Residential school system

In Canada, the Indian (Aboriginal) residential schools (French: pensionnats autochtones / écoles résidentielles) were a network of "residential" (boarding) schools for Indigenous people (First Nations or "Indians"; Métis; and Inuit). The network was funded by the Canadian government's Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development, and administered by Christian churches.

The school system was created for the purpose of removing children from the influence of their own culture and assimilating them into the dominant Canadian culture. Over the course of the system's existence, approximately 30% of native children, or roughly 150,000, were placed in residential schools nationally. At least 6,000 of these students are estimated to have died while in attendance.

The system had its origins in laws enacted before Confederation, but was primarily active following the passage of the Indian Act in 1876, until 1996, when the last federally-operated residential school was closed. An amendment to the Indian Act in 1884 made attendance at day schools, industrial schools, or residential schools compulsory for First Nations children. Due to the remote nature of many communities, school locations meant that for some families residential schools were the only way to comply. Distance between the schools and Indigenous communities was also used as a way to intentionally keep families from their children. Indian Commissioner Hayter Reed argued for schools at greater distances to cut down on family visits that he viewed as counteracting the "civilizing" of Indigenous children. Parental visits were further restricted by the use of a pass system designed to confine Indigenous peoples to reserves.

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