StudentShare
Contact Us
Sign In / Sign Up for FREE
Search
Go to advanced search...
Free

Aboriginal and Northern Issues in Canadian Society - Essay Example

Cite this document
Summary
The paper "Aboriginal and Northern Issues in Canadian Society" discusses that the region's development agenda had been widely ignored leading to severe poverty in the region. Despite the region's richness in diamond mines, the local communities have nothing to smile about. …
Download full paper File format: .doc, available for editing
GRAB THE BEST PAPER92.9% of users find it useful
Aboriginal and Northern Issues in Canadian Society
Read Text Preview

Extract of sample "Aboriginal and Northern Issues in Canadian Society"

Aboriginal and Northern Issues in Canadian Society The aboriginal population in the northern Canadian Society is a representation of the fastest growing segment of the Canadian population. Currently, the Inuits and the Métis people want to regain back their rights by rebuilding their communities and revitalizing their culture. Additionally, they are also keen in increasing their share in Canada, which is now one of the most prosperous countries in the world (Simeone, 2011). In colonization history and the past government, policies have negatively affected the aboriginal communities in the Northwest of the country. The past governments leading to its poor social, educational, and health outcomes in relation to their Aboriginal Canadian citizens have sidelined the Northwest region (Simeone, 2011). Despite the little improvements in the Northwest Region, more still needs to be done so that the Aboriginal Canadians also enjoy good standards of living like the other Canadian citizens. According to the 2006 Census, 3.8% of the Canadian population was made of the Aboriginal communities (Simeone, 2011). Amongst these communities, the Indians make the largest percentage of 60%. Furthermore, Canadas Northwest Aboriginal population is growing faster than the nonaboriginal population (Simeone, 2011). Moreover, from 1996-2006 there was almost 45% increase of the aboriginal population in Canada (Simeone, 2011). Despite the various gains in sectors of education, employment, and income in the past decade, the aboriginal population in Canada still lags behind on those sectors. In Northwest region, Inuits fare worse on a variety of economic indicators when compared to the Metis. Some of the social and economic challenges that face the region include poor prevalence on health issues in the region, unemployment, and low income and educational levels. The Northwest region in Canada has been a topic of concern with its increasing gas and oil development in the region. The political situation in the region has been high with the local communities and non-governmental organizations raising their concerns on the need to protect the environment (Cain and Ken, 2013). Additionally, the Aboriginal communities in the region often experience a dynamic political and social, cultural response. The politics of the region are concerned with the ultimate protection of various cultural landscapes in the Northwest region. Furthermore, the government has consistently negotiated with the community leaders through the government resource managers towards amicable solutions that could lead to environmental protection and more resource allocation to the region. The critical issue in the Northwest region of Canada is the issue of poverty. Therefore, the government should apply the following prospects to improve the living conditions of the region and to eradicate poverty. The prospects that the government should feature on include the issues of human rights, income support, housing, education, early childhood education and care, healthcare, unemployment, and community building. On matters related to the human rights, the government should ensure that there is no discrimination by promoting the social and the economic status of the inhabitants in the region. Additionally, there has been an improvement in the region. The government has provided the income support for the communities living in the region to become self-reliant on matters of food security. The region has the biggest gaps between the rich and the poor and, therefore, by the government providing income support to the region it aims at narrowing the gap between the rich and the poor (Canada Without poverty, 2012). The issue of housing is also a major concern in the region whereby the territorial government has poorly addressed the issue of housing and majority of people in the region are homeless (Canada Without poverty, 2012). Despite the increase of the territorial government funding on housing units in the region, more still needs to be done to uplift the living standards of the people in the region. In education, the program that was developed by the department of education, Culture and employment has realized success in improved lives in the local people and a more prosperous society. The high living costs in the Northwest region has forced many women to work making early childhood education and care a critical issue in the region (Canada Without poverty, 2012). However, there are prospects on improvement in the sector because the government has rolled out programs by providing subsidies on childcare centers. Another encouraging issue in the Northwest region is the issue of unemployment. The Northwest people are amongst the richest people Canada. In 2011, over 70% of people aged above 15 years of age were employed which is commendable. The Northwest Territory is important to the rest of the country in that the territory is rich in minerals like diamond. The region has been lauded by businesses and the state the major source of income for the Northern economy and the rest of Canada. Additionally, diamond mining in the region is a major foreign income earner for Canada from international trade (Hall and Rebecca, 2013). In the microanalysis of the diamond mining in the region, the economic activity is the major GDP boom for the NWT economy. The mining industry has created thousands of jobs attracting employment opportunities for various communities across the country. Moreover, diamond mining in the Northwest Territories is important to the rest of the country in that it has been a main economic boost for the economy of the country for many years (Hall and Rebecca, 2013). In conclusion, the aboriginal and northern issues of the Canadian society have a long history since the colonization period. The regions aboriginal communities have been sidelined for a number of years and have been exposed to various injustices by the successful governments since independence. The regions development agenda had been widely ignored leading to severe poverty in the region. Despite the region richness in diamond mines, the local communities have nothing to smile. Their human rights have been widely violated, poor education infrastructure, poor housing, poor healthcare, and unemployment. As a result of a political revolution and self governance, the region is now coming back to track through its efforts to eradicate poverty, by proving employment opportunities, good healthcare services, good education, and community building capacities with the aim of eradicating poverty. Additionally, the region is the critical pillar to the rest of the country because it is the main diamond producer in the country. Diamond mining has created thousands of jobs that have attracted people from all over of the country to the region. Moreover, the living standards of the aboriginal people of the Northwest Territories by lowering the poverty levels in the region. Since Canada is one of the leading exporters of diamond, therefore, the Northwest Territory is the main economic hub. References Caine, Ken J. 2013. Bourdieu in the North: Practical Understanding in Natural Resource Governance. Canadian Journal of Sociology, 38(3), 333-358. Canada Without povert. (2012). Northwest territories Poverty progress profile. Posted May 2012. Retrieved on 22nd October 2013 from http://www.cwp-csp.ca/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/NT-Poverty-Progress-Profile-Final-May-20121.pdf. Hall and Rebecca. (2013). Diamond Mining in Canada’s Northwest Territories. 45(2),376-393. Retrieved on 22 October 2014 from http://eds.a.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail/detail?vid=3&sid=22bd397d-38fa-47ad-b320-ecaf3182ae30%40sessionmgr4001&hid=4111&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=aph&AN=85340448. Simeone, T. (2011). Primer on Aboriginal Issues. Social, Health and Cultural Affairs Section Parliamentary Information and Research Service. Retrieved on 22 October 2014 from http://carolynbennett.liberal.ca/files/2010/07/Primer-on-Aboriginal-Issues_EN.pdf. Read More
Cite this document
  • APA
  • MLA
  • CHICAGO
(“Canadaian Studies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words”, n.d.)
Canadaian Studies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words. Retrieved from https://studentshare.org/english/1661420-canadaian-studies
(Canadaian Studies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 Words)
Canadaian Studies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 Words. https://studentshare.org/english/1661420-canadaian-studies.
“Canadaian Studies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 Words”, n.d. https://studentshare.org/english/1661420-canadaian-studies.
  • Cited: 0 times

CHECK THESE SAMPLES OF Aboriginal and Northern Issues in Canadian Society

Aboriginal (Native) Peoples of Canada: there Perspectives on Mental Disorders

A major contributing factor to this increased awareness of mental health among the canadian aboriginals is the escalating rate of mental illnesses such as anxiety and depression and their effects (Olive, 1992).... Prior to discussing the canadian aborigines' mental health problems, their symptoms, causes, and solutions, it is important that certain questions pertaining to the aborigines' perceptions of mental illnesses are addressed.... Aboriginal (Native) Peoples of Canada: There Perspectives on Mental Disorders Introduction The increasing awareness and need to address mental health problems and issues among the aboriginal communities of Canada are quite apparent....
8 Pages (2000 words) Research Paper

The Impact of the Fur Trade on Aboriginals in Canada

Trading between aboriginal and Europeans would likely have remained relatively small-scale if it had not been for a new fashion trend in Europe that fuelled the demand for beaver pelts (Office of the Treaty of Commissioner, 2).... The nature of the fishing trade required long periods onshore which necessitated maintaining good relations with the local Aboriginal communities (The canadian Encyclopedia, 1).... The value of the beaver in the North American fur trade was indisputable and it became the fur of choice until the late 19th century, thereafter the market opened to include other types of fur as well (The Oxford Companion to canadian History, 1)....
7 Pages (1750 words) Coursework

Criminal Justice Reform: Restorative Justice for Aboriginal Offenders

Importantly, certain groups of canadian society are disproportionately represented in the criminal justice system.... Statistics Canada has recently reported that for the first time in more than 10 years Canada's incarceration rate has increased and is now 110 prisoners per 100,000 of the canadian population.... eeking to address the fundamental issues associated with an overcrowded prison system and one in which aboriginal people are disproportionately represented, this essay will argue that restorative justice will provide the answer to Canada's incarceration woes....
7 Pages (1750 words) Coursework

Aboriginal Residential Schools

The difference between the majority non-Aboriginal population and minority Aboriginal peoples speaks volumes about the imbalance in canadian society.... This article explains the effects of Aboriginal residential schools on canadian society and its economy.... From this research it is clear that The Government of Canada spends a lot to address the issues of unemployment and provide mental and physical health care, but the task is huge and would not be possible without taking more measures to eradicate poverty among the Aboriginal peoples, so that they can also become productive members of the canadian society....
8 Pages (2000 words) Essay

Mini research proposal

Unlike the modern society, indigenous people primarily depend on the natural resources for survival and Canadian aborigines are no exception.... I have noted with interest the similarities between the Whereas indigenous people in Libya face danger of extinction due to modernity, the same happens to the canadian indigenous people.... More importantly, my research will primarily focus on the ethical issues involving canadian aborigines as the modern community competes with the indigenous community for their indigenous environment....
4 Pages (1000 words) Research Paper

Major Changes Aboriginal Women's Life after the Indian Act

The lives of Aboriginal individuals were at a disadvantage in canadian society.... here is a disparity between the Aboriginal and the rest of the citizens living in canadian society.... The canadian society believes Indians refer themselves as Indian.... The life expectancy of Indian men is 8 years shorter than that of the normal canadian society.... There is a difference between the aboriginal and the rest of the citizens in society....
6 Pages (1500 words) Report

Canadian Culture and the Influence of Neil Youngs Music

The lingering guilt over the historical treatment of the aboriginal population called the First People, led to the appointment of a Royal Commission to study aboriginal issues in 1991.... In this paper, 'canadian Culture and the Influence of Neil Young's Music' the author first tries to understand how canadian culture is shaped by the background of its people, in particular, the impact of the large-scale immigration into Canada of people from diverse ethnic backgrounds....
10 Pages (2500 words) Assignment

Should the Government of Canada Abolish the Indian Act

Annulling Indian Act would be imperative in the realization of equal distribution of political, economic, and social resources and benefits to both aboriginals and non-aboriginals living within canadian society.... Consequently, the main issue entails needing to abolish the Indian Act with the central aim of encouraging the sharing of economic, social, and political resources existing within canadian society (Montpetit, 2011).... The foremost aim of the Indian Act related to an inherent responsibility and obligation of guarding the interests of First Nations individuals within the country until they could explicitly integrate within the canadian society (Canada First People, 2015)....
7 Pages (1750 words) Article
sponsored ads
We use cookies to create the best experience for you. Keep on browsing if you are OK with that, or find out how to manage cookies.
Contact Us