Canadian Indian residential school system

The Canadian Indian residential school system was a network of boarding schools for Indigenous peoples funded by the Canadian government's Department of Indian Affairs and administered by various Christian churches from the 19th to mid-20th century. The school system was created as a civilizing mission to isolate Indigenous children from the influence of their own culture and religion in order to assimilate them into the dominant Euro-Canadian culture.

The system began with laws before Confederation and was mainly active after the Indian Act was passed in 1876. Attendance at these schools became compulsory in 1894, and many schools were located far from Indigenous communities, in part to limit cultural contact. By the 1930s, about 30 percent of Indigenous children were attending residential schools. The last federally-funded residential school closed in 1997, with schools operating across most provinces and territories. Over the course of the system's more than 160-year history, around 150,000 children were placed in residential schools nationally.

The schools caused significant harm to Indigenous children by removing them from their families and cultures. Cases of physical and sexual abuse are documented. During their stay many students were forced to assimilate to Euro-Canadian culture, losing their Indigenous identities and struggling to fit into both their own communities as well as Canadian society. This disruption has contributed to ongoing issues like post-traumatic stress and substance abuse in Indigenous communities. Over 4,000 student deaths have been documented, with estimates that the full number is over 6,000. The vast majority of these fatalities were caused by diseases such as tuberculosis.

The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada was established in 2008, concluding in 2015 labeling the system as a cultural genocide of Indigenous peoples in Canada. Efforts have been ongoing to identify unmarked graves at former school sites, and Pope Francis acknowledged the system as genocide in 2022. The House of Commons called for recognition of the residential school system as genocide in October 2022. Notwithstanding, scholarly debate over terminology usage, and genocide denialism are ongoing components of Canadian society.