Quote:
Originally Posted by CliffFletcher
And some posters are missing the fact that the alternative to residential schools was illiteracy and no hope of ever having a job. The first generation of Natives from remote communities who did get an education, who became teachers and lawyers and leaders of their community, went to residential schools. Because there were no other options.
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Why couldn't they be educated in their communities like most other Canadian students? Why was an involuntary boarding school model the only alternative to illiteracy? The answer isn't because such things weren't possible; obviously the children of white settlers received educations in very remote places. It's because residential and industrial schools were crafted to isolate the students from their families and their culture. This wasn't a side effect, it was by design.