Call to Action #10 - New Aboriginal Education Legislation
6 years after its release, I am finally digging into the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s 94 calls to action. There are 83 days left in the year and the goal is to read and reflect on at least one call to action daily for the remainder of the year. Thank you for joining me on this journey. May our endeavour together be a catalyst for lasting progress and affect meaningful change in Canada.
The 10th call to action, seeking parity in the Education sectors:
“10. We call on the federal government to draft new Aboriginal education legislation with the full participation and informed consent of Aboriginal peoples. The new legislation would include a commitment to sufficient funding and would incorporate the following principles:
i. Providing sufficient funding to close identified eucational achievement gaps within one generation.
ii. Improving education attainment levels and success rates.
iii. Developing culturally appropriate curricula.
iv. Protecting the right to Aboriginal languages, including the teaching of Aboriginal languages as credit courses.
v. Enabling parental and community responsibility, control, and accountability, similar to what parents enjoy in public school systems.
vi. Enabling parents to fully participate in the education of their children.
vii. Respecting and honouring Treaty relationships.”
Treaty Rights is a concept that I had never given much thought. Not until today, when reading this call to action and Googling concepts to buttress this burgeoning understanding did I even consider the notion that treaty rights extend to me as well, and that I take them for granted on a daily basis. And it is these same rights that Indigenous people fight for on a daily basis.
"Why is it important for non-Indigenous people to know what treaties represent?
On a base level, it’s important because every Canadian has treaty rights. For example, if you own property in Winnipeg, you are exercising your treaty right – it goes back to Treaty 1 which was a manifestation of the Royal Proclamation which goes all the way back to the Magna Carta. It’s a right exercised by non-Indigenous people on a daily basis – and is for the most part taken for granted. Canada would not exist as it is today without treaties. Indigenous Peoples have had to argue and push for their rights for so long they are very acutely aware of their different rights. It is fundamentally important to understanding the country we live in. To me you can’t be a fully engaged citizen unless you acknowledge and understand that shared history – it’s part of our collective identity." https://www.ictinc.ca/blog/the-importance-of-treaty-education
Honouring the spirit of education and closing the gap between Indigenous and non-indigenous Canadians, please consider a donation to this amazing initiative:
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