This timeline focusses on events throughout Canadian history that contributed to the loss of Indigenous languages in Ontario (from 1857 - 2006). ;xNLx;Click on any part of the timeline to view more information about a particular date and/or event.
The Gradual Civilization Act was a bill passed in 1857. It required Indigenous men in Canada over the age of 21 to read, write and speak either English or French, and to choose a government-approved last name. After they were "sufficiently educated", they no longer retained any Indigenous rights (treaty rights or community affiliations) and would be deemed a "British subject". In return, they were awarded a small amount of land. This process was mandatory. It was not removed from the Indian Act until 1985.
The "Indian Act of Canada" was enacted in 1876. Among many things such as land-use and healthcare, it granted the federal government control over Indigenous education. Under the Act, the government developed and implemented Reisdential School and educational policies that were meant to assimilate Indigenous children into Canadian society.
in 1879, Prime Minister Sir John A. Macdonald commissioned MP Nicholas Davin to write a report on "Industrial Schools for Indians and Half-Breeds". Davin travelled across the United States and was "impressed" with the Residential Schools already put in place. Davin reported that in the US, Indigenous education was used as a vehicle to force assimilation, and to "deconstruct" young Indigeneous peoples. Known today as the Davin Report, it led to public funding of the residential school system in Canada.
In 1884, legislation officially passed in Ottawa to create state-funded, church administered Residential Schools. Changes to the Indian Act made school attendance mandatory for Indigenous children between 7-16 years of age. Children were forced to “un-learn” their indigenous language, culture, heritage, and beliefs. They had to re-learn a foreign language, religion, and way of life. Residential school students caught speaking their mother tongue were punished. While its difficult to know the exact figures, the TRC estimates there were at least 17 Residential Schools in Ontario. The last one is presumed to have closed in 1979.
On September 17th, 1924, Prime Minister Mackenzie King signed an order to remove the Chiefs of the Six Nations Reserve and installed an elected government. This was executed by the RCMP. Many Haudenesaunee (Iroquois / Six Nations) Chiefs were dragged and beaten on the front lawn of the council house. On March 6th, 1959, after successfully reclaiming the council house the previous day in a blood-less battle, the government sent 300 armed RCMP officers to evict chiefs and clan mothers from their meeting place on the Six Nations Reserve in Ontario. The removal of Chiefs and clan-mothers from the community contributed to loss of funding, including money allocated for Indigenous language preservation.
The Sixties Scoop was a period in Canada spanning from the mid 60s to mid 80s. During this time, thousands of Indigenous children were taken from their homes on reserves in Ontario, and placed in the care of non-Indigenous foster or adoptive parents. The children were raised without their Indigenous customs, languages, traditions, and practices. "We lost our language. We lost our connection to our home communities... We were victims of colonization and Canadians need to recognize that this is a part of our history," - Coleen Rajotte, victim of the 60s Scoop.
The federal government’s "White Paper" (formally known as the “Statement of the Government of Canada on Indian Policy, 1969”) further called for the assimilation of Indigenous peoples into Canadian society. Proposed by Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development Jean Chrétien and Prime Minister Pierre Elliot Trudeau, the policy proposed to: eliminate “Indian status”, and to gain control over land decisions from Indigenous communities. The White Papers had widespread criticism, and was eventually withdrawn a year later. One part of the policy states: "The policy rests upon the fundamental right of Indian people to full and equal participation in the cultural, social, economic and political life of Canada. To argue against this right is to argue for discrimination, isolation and separation".
In 1998, a state of emergency on Indigenous languages was declared by the Chiefs in Assembly, at its 19th Annual General Assembly. The resolution stated: "That the government of Canada act immediately to recognize, officially and legally, the First Nation languages of Canada, and to make a commitment to provide the resources necessary to reverse First Nation language loss and to prevent the extinction of our languages..."
In 2002, the Liberal government had budgeted $172 million over 11 years for the protection, preservation, and maintenance of Indigenous languages. Then in 2006, under the new Conservative Government, Minister of Heritage and Status for Women Bev Oda announced that the budget had been removed from the fiscal framework. Funding was instead going to be $5 million per year for 10 years, cutting the budget by $160 million. The money needed to develop language curriculum and to develop language education programs was now gone.
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