There never was anything wonderful about the concept of the 'Indian Agent' as it could at its best only foster a culture of paternalism. Human fragility assured that scheme would often fail.
The answers are here of course and they have always been available. What is true is that a long time ago, all first nations became defacto immigrants to a new country that was both culturally different and economically embarked on the enterprise of modernism. Remaining with the past was never an option not an option that first nations actually wanted.
So we had forced removals and an institutional approach to education that did mostly accomplish its aims but in a far too messy manner and far too little sensitivity or even common sense. Yet we are hardly unique in this.
In the aftermath what is unfortunately left over is a hopeless government agency construct attempting to retain its client base. This is garbage and all the first nations want is to be properly welcomed into modern culture and be done with it all.
The rest will fall into place and we are already well down that road.
..
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Exposing the aboriginal industry
Canada
spends billions on its native people, yet many aboriginals remain
plagued by poverty and other social ills. Meanwhile, a handful of
lawyers, band leaders and chiefs prosper.
CALGARY–One
of the most pressing problems in Canada today is the terrible social
conditions that exist in many aboriginal communities. It is well known
that the rates of poverty, substance abuse and violence are much higher
for the native population, and that health and educational levels remain
far below the national average. Even more disturbing is the fact that
the alarming statistics persist despite billions of dollars being spent
on programs and services to alleviate these Third World conditions. Why
has so much government funding had so little impact?
Fifteen years ago we decided to try to provide some answers to these perplexing questions. The result is Disrobing the Aboriginal Industry: The Deception Behind Indigenous Cultural Preservation,
a book that combines our own experiences with 10 years of additional
research to investigate all aspects of aboriginal policy. It shows that
the reason for the massive policy failure is that current initiatives
are being formulated and implemented by a self-serving "industry" that
works behind the scenes in aboriginal organizations.
Legal
firms masterminding the residential schools settlement and
anthropologists directing "traditional knowledge" studies, for example,
have received hundreds of millions of dollars over the years. Some in
this group of non-aboriginal lawyers and consultants have little
incentive to solve aboriginal problems because they thrive on the
continuation of aboriginal dependency and social dysfunction. The
reality of the aboriginal industry is that grievances result in the
dispersal of government funds, and so its members benefit from
perpetuating, rather than alleviating, aboriginal deprivation.
The
aboriginal industry maintains this state of affairs, in part, by
advocating cultural traditionalism in the native population. No rational
person believes that modern problems can be solved by reverting to the
ways of our ancestors, as is assumed in aboriginal policy development.
This does not mean that we are prevented from appreciating historical
accomplishments, only that we are not obligated to accept all past
beliefs and practices under the guise of "preserving our culture."
Valuing the plays of Shakespeare, for example, does not mean that we
have to embrace the Divine Right of Kings, blood-letting or burning
witches at the stake.
Aboriginal cultural
features, however, are perceived as inexorable. It is assumed, for
example, that since aboriginal peoples were once hunters and gatherers,
they should continue to hunt and trap and gather berries so as to
preserve their "spiritual relationship" to the land. Aboriginal
languages that are spoken by only a few hundred people should be taught
in the elementary grades, we are told, so that aboriginal "worldviews"
can continue to find expression. This is not to deny that aboriginal
people, like all Canadians, should have the right to pursue the beliefs
and cultural practices that give them satisfaction; it is only to stress
that this is a choice for individuals to make. The idea that aboriginal
peoples are natural hunters, or that they have a predetermined
spirituality, is actually a form of racial stereotyping that constrains
future possibilities. Aboriginal people, like all other Canadians, can
think for themselves.
Unproductive
economic practices, tribal forms of political organization,
superstitious "healing" initiatives, pre-literate languages and
unscientific forms of "knowledge" are also encouraged because of the
condescending assumption that this will raise aboriginal self-esteem and
give native people the confidence to participate in modern society. But
such initiatives will not provide aboriginal people with the skills,
knowledge and discipline needed to participate in a wide range of
socially necessary occupations. "Native studies" programs in Canadian
universities, for example, teach that the myth that aboriginal peoples
were placed in North America/Turtle Island by "the Creator" is just as
valid as scientific theories about human migrations out of Africa. But
if aboriginal people are not encouraged to approach this myth
critically, as occurs with respect to, say, Christian myths such as
Genesis, how will aboriginal people become contributors to the fields of
archaeology, palæontology and biology? The blanket promotion of
aboriginal "worldviews" and "ways of life," therefore, can rationalize
aboriginal isolation.
Recognizing the need
for aboriginal people to participate in Canadian society, instead of
being warehoused on unviable reserves, does not constitute a proposal
for "assimilation." Rather, it is a plea for integration whereby many
aspects of aboriginal culture – humour, artistic sensibilities,
noncoercive forms of child rearing and so on – will become part of the
wider culture. At the same time, however, integration recognizes that
certain aspects of aboriginal culture are inhibiting aboriginal survival
today, and these characteristics, as well as unviable aboriginal
reserves and remote communities, should be allowed to gradually "wither
away" according to the decline in their expedience.
The
aboriginal industry, however, favours segregation over integration. In
order to prevent the recognition of this socially destructive policy
direction, the aboriginal industry has developed some very effective
tactics over the last 40 years. It viciously attacks the credibility of
opponents, arguing that criticism of aboriginal policy is to denigrate
aboriginal people themselves. "Racist," "colonialist," and "right-wing"
are the most common insults hurled at those who dare to question the
viability and effectiveness of land claims and self-government
initiatives. Recently, organizations like the Assembly of Manitoba
Chiefs have even argued that critics like us are guilty of "inciting
hate," and some members of the Canadian Political Science Association
have asked if we should be charged under the Criminal Code. As a result
of these tactics, most people who are uncomfortable with the obviously
unworkable and irrational character of aboriginal policy are discouraged
from raising their concerns publicly.
Because the negotiation of land claims and
self-government agreements occurs behind closed doors or in remote areas
of Canada, most people are unaware of the machinations driving current
aboriginal policy initiatives. They assume that because a number of
aboriginal leaders are supportive of the existing policy direction, this
must be what most aboriginal people "want." These leaders have been
corrupted by the financial rewards offered by the aboriginal industry,
and therefore are completely unrepresentative of the interests of "their
people." In fact, these leaders remain in positions of power because of
native segregation and marginalization.
Many
native leaders are anxious to build an "economic base" in their
unviable communities because the aboriginal industry ensures that the
leadership will profit from these initiatives. Native leaders obtain a
range of benefits, from "honoraria" to sinecures as members on the
boards of the organizations that are set up to administer the transfers
of funds and provision of services. The aboriginal industry also needs
the leadership to legitimate its proposals and ensure that community
members are brought on side. The latter acquiesce under the misguided
assumption that they will benefit.
The
fundamental needs of indigenous people are common to everyone in the
modern period: education, health care and housing. Provision of these
services should be considered an obligation of the state and delivered
with the consideration of the specific needs of aboriginal people.
Although this proposal for reasserting government control over the
delivery of programs and services to the native population will be
interpreted by some as "colonialism," no advocate for social justice is
opposed to publicly funded education or health care for other Canadian
citizens. In fact, the opposition is to offloading and contracting out –
a circumstance that comes very close to what is actually occurring in
aboriginal communities, with the resulting poor quality of care and low
educational standards.
It is necessary for
the current forms of cultural indoctrination that pass for education in
native communities to be replaced by programs designed to address the
failure of the system to provide education at the level enjoyed by all
other Canadians. This has occurred, for instance, at the
Grandview/Uuquinak'uuh Elementary School in East Vancouver, where
dramatic improvements in educational achievement have been made, not by
instituting "culturally sensitive" programs, but through a focus on
literacy, academics and objective assessments. Health care should also
be provided at the high scientific standard received by the non-native
population. While housing in Canada is generated in the private sector
according to profit motivation, native community housing is government
funded. However, the delivery is through housing boards which have, as
their primary function, native board control. This means that
traditional customs determine distribution of housing and leadership
administers building contracts. The result is that relatives and
favoured friends are allocated houses before those in direct need and
building contracts are awarded to native shadow companies that profit by
sub-contracting to outside construction firms. These firms are then
held up as examples of "successful" aboriginal businesses.
Exposing these deplorable circumstances in Disrobing the Aboriginal Industry has
resulted in a polarized reaction. Some have heralded it as a courageous
and truthful book, while others have either misrepresented its contents
or attacked us personally. Although responding to the personal attacks
has been an emotional strain and the "hate crime" allegation is
disconcerting, we have come to realize that this is an inevitable
process that we have to go through in order for real debate to take
place about aboriginal policy in this country. Intimidation and smear
tactics may have worked in the past, but they are beginning to wear
thin. Now that it has been exposed that the Emperor has no clothes, his
nudity cannot be denied indefinitely.
Disrobing the Aboriginal Industry: The Deception Behind Indigenous Cultural Preservation is
published by McGill-Queen's University Press. Frances Widdowson is a
faculty member at Mount Royal College. Albert Howard has worked as a
consultant for government and native groups. The Donner Prize rewards
the best public policy thinking, writing and research in Canada. This
year's winner will be announced in Toronto next Thursday. For a list of
nominess see donnerbookprize.com.
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