Autism and the Rights of the Disabled

You have watched two video clips on Temple Grandin.  We can see that sometimes we can be blinded by the behaviour of someone with autism or delayed development.

Make a list of people or characters that you see on tv or in the movies that might have autism spectrum, mental illness, physical disabilities, etc.  In other words, people who are differently abled.

After you have made out your list, look at this one and imagine what life would have been like if these people had not been encouraged to reach their potential?

• Albert Einstein - didn't talk till 3, had a learning disorder
• Alexander Graham Bell - learning disability
• Cher - dyslexia
• Christopher Reeves (played Superman) - quadraplegic, unable to breath on his own.  Continued to direct movies after his riding accident made him quadraplegic.
• David Blunket - British member of parliament - blind
• Goya - deaf, famous Spanish painter
• Vincent Van Gogh - Bipolar disorder, famous Dutch painter.
• John Milton - blind, wrote Paradise Lost
• Beethoven - deaf
• Michael Bolton - deaf
• Marlee Matlin - deaf, comedian
• Big Daddy Taz - Bipolar disorder, comedian
• Stephan Hawking - has ALS, working on string theory, and developed big bang theory and black hole theory.
• Dan Akroyd - Asperger's syndrome, actor in films like Ghostbusters and Blues Brothers
• Daryl Hannah - autistic, actress in films like Kill Bill and Kill Bill 2
• Satoshi Tajiri - autistic, designed and developed Pokemon

The list goes on and on.

Read this article together - 

UN adopts landmark bill for disabled rights

Discuss these issues in class.

Barbie/Ken/Action Figure Exercise

Today students examined these questions:

1. What makes a man a man?
2. What makes a woman a woman?
3. What makes a person a human being?

After looking at these questions, they took dolls and created something that would represent the answers they had come up with.  Here are some of them.

Brad:

1. A man is represented by many different things.  Sports such as soccer, football, hockey, rugby all bring out the adrenaline side of us men.  Fighting and fighting sports such as UFC are there for men to show strength, power, rank. A man can also be shown by what job they have such as war, fireman, policemen and many others.
2. Women are represented by lots of things.  Some are kindness, mature, thoughtful and hard-working but are sometimes less important than men for some reason.  They have less level jobs and can even be paid less.  Clothes, jewelery, work, upper body size and attitude can make a woman a woman.
3. Being respectful and living a great life, being achieving, having emotion and love.

Explanation:
"This was a woman that felt better as a man so she changed gender.  Through all of her/his experience of being bullied, he became a police officer and maintained his strength."

Laurie:

1. I think a 'man' is someone who is comfortable in their own skin.  Someone who is respectable, has morals, is proud to be who they are (but not too proud), and acts as an individual person.  Someone who understands that size doesn't matter. The definition of a man, of course, differs from person to person.
2. (see answer to question 1) Someone who understands that they have a right to respect and equality.
3. See answers to one and two.

Explanation:
"Women should be able to dress or behave however they choose (toward whatever side of the gender spectrum) without facing persecution or prejudices; my doll has sporty not figure flattering or typically masculine clothes and short hair that many people feel women should not have.  She is her own person."


Holly:
What makes a man a man?  A woman a woman? - Hormones and thought processes.
What makes a person a human being?  Anatomy?

Explanation: "I picked the Monsters Inc. character because it is the farthest from human in my opinion.  It represents the idea of questioning 'who really knows?'  Because I don't, I truly do not have an answer that I can wrap my head around.  But Nick's idea was genius!!"

James:
A person A man A woman:

• How you are both mentally
• Genitalia (you can have the mentality of a man/woman but not be one [physically]).
• Empathy, the ability to identify with others emotions - the lack of this leads people to commit attrocities.

Explanation:
"They are both male due to the combination of their mentality and genitalia.  Only one is a human being - Chewbacca because he feels empathy while the 'mongol' does not."


Nicole:
I think that the most important thing for what makes a man a man is the internal thought process and feelings of the person in question.  Other things that make a man a man are more simpler things such as male hormones (testosterone) and typically male genitalia.  But it remains that the most important thing is how a person feels on the inside, even if someone has what society considers to be female characteristics, who are we to say that they aren't who they know themselves to be.

The things that make a man a man are basically the same as what makes a woman a woman, except for in opposite.  Women are made woman with female hormones (estrogen) and female genitalia.  They are also defined by how they feel on the inside and their thought process/feelings.  Again, who are we to say anyone is not who they feel to be?

To me, a person is simply someone who is part of the homo sapien race.  Everyone is human, is is simply a question of who knows how to act humane and who understands the true meaning of humanity.

Explanation:
"My doll is naked and simply has a question mark covering her face.  This is to represent my idea that who are we to say who she or he is?  We don't know from the outside, only they can know on the inside."


Dhugomsa:

1. muscles, testosterone, facial hair, having a penis, the the heart is, never backs down, takes care of the family
2. breasts, vagina, estrogen, compassion, emotional, soft and caring
3. if they're happy, have all the right body parts, have a soul, empathy, survival

Explanation:
"My figure represented a man with a woman's head, muscles and facial hair.  The muscles and the facial hair represent all the qualities of the male.  And the woman's face represents how not everyone's fate is like a male or a female when they are born and undergo a sex change.  And that behind every male is a woman."

Miyuki:
Biologically, a man is someone with male genitalia.  But what makes a man a man is how he feels.  I feel the same about women and what makes a woman a woman.  A human being is a race of animals with feelings and empathy and sympathy.

Explanation:
"My barbie is transgendered.  I added a penis and pubic hair [under the dress].  She was originally a man but is making the transition to female.  She felt she was in the wrong body and made a change in her life."


Kyle:
Gender roles aren't as clearly defined as they once were; as demonstrated by the documentary we watched yesterday [Taboo: Transgender].  The only factor that determines gender now is how the individual feels.

Explanation:
"Han Solo, bat jetpack, rocket powered skateboard, gun.  My action figure represents the average stereotype of masculinity; however in our new age, one cannot be sure.  All that matters is this character is true to itself."


Caitlin:
1 & 2 The answer is the same: society ordains what gender is.  There are not even universal standards: What we think of as male or female traits would not be considered in the same light in Taiwan or Peru.
3. That they exist and are of the homo erectus species.

 Explanation:
"Just a mixture of outdated masculinity (the hair helmet of the '80s and pink) and current apparently masculine traits.  To show how fabricated gender precepts are"

Asher:

1. kindness and responsibility
2. women can have babies and have soft skin
3. short term memory loss

Explanation:
Asher expressed to me that he could tell which one was a man and which one was a woman because they were husband and wife.  He said that long hair on the 'military doll' would make it a "man-girl". 


Tim:

1. A man can be recognized by physical appearance, clothing, and the way a man acts.  His actions and how he behaves clearly distinguish him from a woman.  A man will want to protect his area and defend it anyway possible.  A man takes care of his family and does whatever he needs to provide money and shelter for his family to survive.
2. A woman is the one who cares and shows compassion.  She can show emotional support and empathy.  A woman is the other half of the family and shows love.  She is a soft person and obviously wears different clothing.
3. A human being shows empathy.  Can function properly and has all the necessary survival skills.  A human being will be created by male and female and live according to what it's thought.

Explanation:
"Body parts separate a man and a woman.  A female person is not comfortable in her body so this represents the change to male."



Conrad:

1. genes, hormones, thought process, God
2. geneology, hormones, thought process, God
3. The species that we are.  Anatomy. God. Anatomy

Explanation:
"I collected a nice collection of characters that reflect the answer to my third question - None of my characters are human. e.g. I would not consider Yoda a human being.  That is only because I look at the question literally and not 'what makes a person humane'."

Nick:

1. Once a male no longer needs to prove himself as a man, he is then one.
2. Independence and understand of morals and maturity.
3. Willingness to change, understanding of human nature, distancing oneself from the average, courage, strength during hard times, compassion, a genuine personality.

Explanation:
" A woman has to balance her gender roles with masculinity in the 21st century era of feminism, all the while a man's arm condescendingly pats her head."


Brogan:

1. Testosterone, muscles, genitals, experience, confidence, facial hair.
2. Empathy, caring, genitals, experience, estrogen, emotion
3. Ability to see others for who they are, human beings created by male and female

[no picture]

Explanation:
"My doll is a ken who has not muscle mass and who is a cross dresser.  I put tattoos on him for individuality.  I also put stitches on his mouth to show that people are still uncomfortable with cross dressers."

Jackson:

1. A man can be recognized by physical appearance, clothing, and the way a man acts.  His actions an how he behaves clearly distinguish him from a woman.  A man will want to protect his area and defend it anyway possible.
2. A woman is the one who cures and shows compassion.  She can show emotional support and empathy.  A woman is the other half of family and shows love.

Explanation:
"What my doll means: I dressed Mr. Incredible into an infant female clothing.  Mr. Incredible is a very muscular and manly character and every one has a feminine side.  Mr. Incredible is still strong and manly but he is also expressing his feminine side."

Gay Activists

What makes gay activists so important?



Harvey Milk is probably the most famous LGBT activists but he is certainly not the only one.

In Canada

• Brian Burke - American hockey executive, founder of myGSA.ca
• Libby Davies - NDP Member of Parliament, supporter of same sex marriage.
• Douglas Wilson - writer, scholar, publisher, fought for LGBT rights in Saskatchewan, also an AIDS activist
• Mark Tewsbury - Olympic gold medal swimmer, fights for LGBT rights in sports
• David Corbett - Canadian lawyer, took the Durham Catholic School Board to court to pressure them to allow Marc Hall to attend his high school prom with his boyfriend.
• El-Farouk Khaki - Canadian refugee and immigration lawyer, human rights activist on issues including gender equality, sexual orientation and progressive Islam.

Why do we still need LGBT activists?

Beginning of the Gay Rights Movement

What do these letters stand for?
L                                                         2
G
B
B
T
T
T
T
Q
Q
P
I
A
A
S


The Gay Rights Movement started on June 28, 1969.  This was the night of the Stonewall Riots

The period after Stonewall saw the rise of many gay rights activists.  One of the most important was Harvey Milk.  Harvey Milk was the first openly gay politician to take office in the United States.  He was opposed by a number of people, including Anita Bryant.

How far have we come today?

Women, Sex and Power

Women, Power, and Sexuality

Both the Sexualization of Women and the Desexualization of Women has been used to remove women’s power.

Sexualization occurs when a person’s value comes only from his/her sexual appeal or behaviour to the exclusion of other characteristics and/or when a person is sexually objectified or made into an object for another’s sexual pleasure.

• Sexualization of young girls through toys (i.e. Barbie), clothing (A&F push-up padded bikini tops for prepubescent girls), advertising, and other media, beauty pagents lead to severe problems for females of all ages: low self esteem, depression, eating disorders, cutting, suicide, etc.

Child Beauty Pageants

• Using women’s sexuality to promote economic growth removes women’s other characteristics, i.e. emotions, power, intelligence, compassion, talents, etc.

• Women in the sex trade in North America have little or no voice/power. They are at the mercy of men, i.e. the pimps, the johns, the police, because of the law. Even in places where brothels are legal, i.e. Nevada, men run the brothels and live off the “backs” of the women. Only in New Zealand are the brothels operated as co-ops so that the women have a voice and an equal share in the profits.

• Approximately 16,000 women per week are kidnapped and held in sexual slavery all over the world including Canada.

Desexualization occurs when a person’s sexual appeal, characteristics, power or qualities are removed. This may happen physically, emotionally, or metaphorically.

• Female genital mutilation (FGM) is a cultural, social and religious practice which is most common in the western, eastern, and north-eastern regions of Africa, in some countries in Asia and the Middle East, and among certain immigrant communities in North America and Europe. (an estimated 92 million women age 10 and up have undergone FGM). FGM is often motivated by beliefs about what is considered proper sexual behaviour, linking procedures to premarital virginity and marital fidelity. It is believed to reduce sex drive and to help her resist "illicit" sexual acts. When a vaginal opening is covered or narrowed the fear of pain of opening it, and the fear that this will be found out, is expected to further discourage "illicit" sexual intercourse. FGM is associated with cultural ideals of femininity and modesty, which include the notion that girls are “clean” and "beautiful" after removal of body parts that are considered "male" or "unclean". This is not a practice that is mentioned in either the Koran or the Sunnah but has become “law by custom”.

• The idea of women as “chattel” and owned by her father until she is “given” to her husband. The dowry was originally given to the husband as the woman did not have intrinsic value on her own. Women before marriage were expected to be chaste or virginal. During the middle ages, men who attended crusades would require their wives to wear chastity belts so that they could be sexual only with their husbands.

• The use of fashion to remove sexual qualities of women. An example of this was the “Twiggy” look from the 1960s or the flapper look from the 1920s.

Twiggy

Flapper look

By defining women by their sexuality or lack of sexuality does not allow women to be viewed as whole women.

The "F" Word

No...the "F" word is not the four letter one.  This one has eight letters.  Feminism.

Before you watch this film, what do you think feminism means?  Are you a feminist?

Make a list of reasons why someone might choose to call themselves a feminist.

What are some of the disparities between men and women?

After watching the film, read the articles below and respond on your blog.

Global Voices: A Mother’s Day Manifesto

Published On Mon May 09 2011

By Craig and Marc Kielburger: Global Voices

We felt an advertising-induced urge to buy something to express love for our mom on Mother’s Day—but she doesn’t need a sappy greeting card, sweets, or roses tied with pink ribbon.

Instead, we devote this column to you, Mom, in hopes that women—and men—will open their eyes to the suffering we’ve witnessed in countries where rape is a weapon of war, wives are chattel to their husbands, and girls covered head to toe are silenced.

Our Mother’s Day gift is our fierce feminist resolve.

To state the obvious: we’re men. Far from disqualifying us as feminists, we think it’s our responsibility to be what one male feminist dubbed “unlikely allies” in the battle for gender equality. We know young women who reject the f-word because they think it’s past its prime; because feminism is seen as a pointless academic pursuit by those who wrongly believe there is gender equality in developed countries. This is hardly the case.
The trafficking of women and children for prostitution is rampant, a global smuggling business worth an estimated $32 billion, and it’s crossing our borders. Two weeks ago, Toronto-area police infiltrated a sex ring that forced girls as young as 14 into prostitution. They were auctioned off like cattle on the Internet.

Normally we’d define feminism as the struggle for gender quality, but in some cases it’s a struggle for fundamental human rights.

Last week, we spoke at an event with Stephen Lewis, co-founder of the advocacy group AIDS-Free World. The organization has issued a horrifying report on sexual terror in Zimbabwe under President Robert Mugabe. Rape wasn’t just an outcome, but a systematic weapon of war used to degrade women whose families supported the opposition. With Zimbabwe’s high prevalence of HIV/AIDS, rape was a “death sentence” from perpetrators who deliberately infected their victims.

Our reaction was visceral—throats closed and eyes watering—as we struggled to imagine such pain.

Our hearts broke again this month when we learned that in Libya, troops loyal to leader Moammar Gadhafi had allegedly been issued the anti-impotence drug Viagra in order to commit acts of sexual violence against female rebel supporters.

These are the most horrific women’s rights violations, but many more girls and women face harsh realities every day.

Bride burnings in Africa and the Middle East, veilings and dowries; genital mutilation in West Africa; the killing of infants and little girls in China.

In our travels, we have met some of these ailing survivors. Their sorrowful stories brought us to tears.
And as women in developing countries fight for reproductive rights, our now Conservative majority government is poised to cut funding to International Planned Parenthood, an organization that provides reproductive health services abroad. It’s a paternalistic refusal to offer women in Africa the same rights offered to women in Canada.

Not for a moment do we think that women in this country are immune from abuse. Date rape and domestic violence plague even developed countries. In the United States, someone suffers from sexual assault every two minutes, on average. We all know someone—a co-worker, a cousin, a friend—living with this violence.

We don’t say this to degrade or attack men, just as feminism is not only a “women’s issue.” Fighting for feminism is also a strategy for economic growth and prosperity. Investing in women, especially in developing countries, offers a huge return on capital, seen in the improved health of families, communities and nations.
We say this because we need to end rape as a weapon of war. We need a world where foreign aid means sustainable development—education and employment strategies for women to empower themselves, to take control over their own wages, bodies and lives.
Mom, we vow that we’re doing our part every day to make this happen. We buy gifts from charities and organizations that partner with women overseas to form sustainable employment; we contribute to women’s advocacy groups; we proudly use the feminist label to describe our beliefs, and we respect women in our daily lives as co-workers, friends and family.

On Mother’s Day, we want to give mothers, and women everywhere, the kind of promise you won’t find written in a Hallmark card—the power to lead your families, communities, economies, nations, and the global fight against poverty.

Marc and Craig Kielburger are children's rights activists and co-founded Free The Children, which is active in the developing world. Their column appears Mondays online at thestar.com/globalvoices.

 

The Origins of Mother's Day

  Mothers' Day Proclamation: Julia Ward Howe, Boston, 1870

Mother's Day was originally started after the Civil War, as a protest to the carnage of that war, by women who had lost their sons. Here is the original Mother's Day Proclamation from 1870, followed by a bit of history:

          ......................................

Arise, then, women of this day! Arise all women who have hearts,
whether our baptism be that of water or of tears!

Say firmly: "We will not have great questions decided by
irrelevant agencies. Our husbands shall not come to us, reeking with carnage, for caresses and applause. Our sons shall not be taken from us to unlearn all that we have been able to teach them of charity, mercy and patience.

We women of one country will be too tender of those of another country to allow our sons to be trained to injure theirs. From the bosom of the devastated earth a voice goes up with our own. It says "Disarm, Disarm! The sword of murder is not the balance of justice."

Blood does not wipe our dishonor nor violence indicate possession. As men have often forsaken the plow and the anvil at the summons of war, let women now leave all that may be left of home for a great and earnest day of counsel. Let them meet first, as women, to bewail and commemorate the dead.

Let them then solemnly take counsel with each other as to the means whereby the great human family can live in peace, each bearing after their own time the sacred impress, not of Caesar, but of God.

In the name of womanhood and of humanity, I earnestly ask that a general congress of women without limit of nationality may be appointed and held at some place deemed most convenient and at the earliest period consistent with its objects, to promote the alliance of the different nationalities, the amicable settlement of international questions, the great and general interests of
peace.

Julia Ward Howe
Boston
1870

*************************************************************

Mother's Day for Peace - by Ruth Rosen.

Honor Mother with Rallies in the Streets.The holiday
began in activism; it needs rescuing from commercialism
and platitudes.

Every year, people snipe at the shallow commercialism of Mother's Day. But to ignore your mother on this holy holiday is unthinkable. And if you are a mother, you'll be devastated if your ingrates fail to honor you at least one
day of the year.

Mother's Day wasn't always like this. The women who conceived Mother's Day would be bewildered by the ubiquitous ads that hound us to find that "perfect gift for Mom."  They would expect women to be marching in the streets, not eating with their families in restaurants.  This is because Mother's Day began as a holiday that  commemorated women's public activism, not as a celebration of a mother's devotion to her family.

The story begins in 1858 when a community activist named Anna Reeves Jarvis organized Mothers' Works Days in West Virginia.  Her immediate goal was to improve sanitation in Appalachian communities.  During the Civil War, Jarvis pried women from their families to care for  the wounded on both sides. Afterward she convened meetings to persuade men to lay aside their
hostilities.

In 1872, Julia Ward Howe, author of the "Battle Hymn of the Republic", proposed an annual Mother's Day for Peace.  Committed to abolishing war, Howe wrote: "Our husbands shall not come to us reeking with carnage... Our sons shall not be taken from us to unlearn all that we have been able to teach them of charity, mercy and patience. We women of one country will be too tender of
those of another country to allow our sons to be trained to injure theirs".

For the next 30 years, Americans celebrated Mothers' Day for Peace on June 2.

Many middle-class women in the 19th century believed that they bore a special responsibility as actual or potential mothers to care for the casualties of society and to turn America into a more civilized nation.  They played a leading role  in the abolitionist movement to end slavery.  In the following decades, they launched successful campaigns against lynching and consumer
fraud and battled for improved working conditions for women and protection for children, public health services and social welfare assistance to the poor.
To the activists, the connection between motherhood and the fight for social and economic justice seemed self-evident.

In 1913, Congress declared the second Sunday in May to be Mother's Day.  By then, the growing consumer culture had successfully redefined women as consumers for their families.  Politicians and businessmen eagerly embraced the idea of celebrating the private sacrifices made by individual mothers.  As the Florists' Review, the industry's trade journal, bluntly put it, "This was a
holiday that could be exploited."

The new advertising industry quickly taught Americans how to honor their mothers - by buying flowers.  Outraged by florists who were seling carnations for the exorbitant price of $1 a piece, Anna Jarvis' daughter undertook a campaign against those who "would undermine Mother's Day with their greed." But she fought a losing battle.  Within a few years, the Florists' Review triumphantly announced that it was "Miss Jarvis who was completely squelched."

Since then, Mother's Day has ballooned into a billion-dollar industry.

Americans may revere the idea of motherhood and love their own mothers, but not all mothers.  Poor, unemployed mothers may enjoy flowers, but they also
need child care, job training, health care, a higher minimum wage and paid parental leave.  Working mothers may enjoy breakfast in bed, but they also
need the kind of governmental assistance provided by every other industrialized society.

With a little imagination, we could restore Mother's Day as a holiday that celebrates women's political engagement in society.  During the 1980's, some
peace groups gathered at nuclear test sites on Mother's Day to protest the arms race.  Today, our greatest threat is not from missilies but from our indifference toward human welfare and the health of our planet.  Imagine, if
you can, an annual Million Mother March in the nation's capital.  Imagine a Mother's Day filled with voices demanding social and economic justice and a
sustainable future, rather than speeches studded with syrupy platitudes.

Some will think it insulting to alter our current way of celebrating Mother's Day.  But public activism does not preclude private expressions of love and gratitude. (Nor does it prevent people from expressing their appreciation all year round.)

Nineteenth century women dared to dream of a day that honored women's civil activism.  We can do no less. We should honor their vision with civic activism.

Ruth Rosen is a professor of history at UC Davis.

Finding Dawn

Lorraine and Dawn Crey

We will be watching the movie "Finding Dawn".  As you watch this film, I want you to consider the following issues:

1. Systemic racism - how is the inherent racism in the justice system demonstrated in the story of Dawn Crey?
2. How did Dawn suffer from a loss of identity and how did this affect her?
3. What made the missing women of the downtown eastside nameless and faceless?
4. Can you see a difference how the women on the Highway of Tears and the women of the downtown eastside are viewed?  How was the response of the community different?  Why might that be?
5. "Women's issues are men's issues too."  How is this statement demonstrated in this film?

Read one of the following articles:

1. Stolen Sisters
2. Seeking Justice for Canada's 500 Missing Native Women.   
3. Investigating Violence Against Aboriginal Women
4. Vancouver Eastside Missing Women
5. Racism Keeps Native Women's Killer Anonymous 

Write a response in your blog to this article.

First Nations and the Justice System

Less than 3% of the population of Canada is Aboriginal, yet about 40% of the population of Canada’s prisons is Aboriginal.  What do you think might be the cause of this?

Make a list of five things that you think might be factors in the over-representation of Aboriginal people in Canada's prisons.

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

Notice how all these factors hold the person in a web of poor choices.  

Traditional Aboriginal justice varied from nation to nation, however there were some common themes.  What are the common themes and the different practices in traditional Aboriginal justice?  What is the basic philosophy of Aboriginal justice compared to the Canadian justice system?

Aboriginal people have faced a justice system that has racism embedded in it for many, many years.  Aboriginal people did not have equal rights in the law to other Canadians.  They were not allowed to hire lawyers to settle land claims.  Traditional ceremonies like the potlatch were made illegal.  On the prairies, First Nations people would have to get permission (and a card) from their Indian agent if they wanted to travel from their reserve to a different reserve. The pass-card said where the person could travel to, and how long they could stay. The Canadian government didn’t want different reserves to organize and either make demands or war against them. It was also illegal under the Indian Act for an Aboriginal person to have any alcohol. Aboriginal people who did not speak English or French were not given translators. An Aboriginal person who only spoke their traditional language could end up in court, but not understand what was being said. Obtaining a fair trial was impossible. 

 

Today, the numbers of Aboriginal prisoners is a serious problem - 40% of all prisoners in federal and provincial prisons are Aboriginal. 

Racism aside, many of these prisoners suffer from personal histories that have thrown them into the circle you looked at above. 

Problems experienced as youth	% of FN prisoners
Parental neglect	39.1%
Absent parent(s)	35.9%
Group/foster homes	10.9%
Runaway	9.4%
Poverty	35.9%
Alcohol Abuse	84.4%
Drug use	50%
Learning problems	15.6%
Behavioural problems	65.5%
Emotional problems	21.9%
Physical abuse	50%
Sexual abuse	21.9%

Highest grade achieved	Percentage of FN prisoners.
Grade 6 or less	12.5%
Grades 7-9	46.9%
Grades 10-12	37.5%
Post graduate	3.1%

Vocational Skills	Percentage of FN prisoners
No Response	7.8%
Unskilled	45.3%
Semi-Skilled	23.4%
Skilled (Non-traditional skills)	18.8%
Craftwork/Artwork	4.7%

Needs of Aboriginal Inmates	Percentage of FN Prisoners
Substance Abuse Treatment	88%
Personal/Emotional Counselling	82%
Employment Counselling	63%
Education and Training	54%

Other causes of higher arrest rates are:

• Police arresting without cause.
• Police are more likely to patrol areas of cities that have a higher Aboriginal population.
• These areas have higher poverty levels, other social problems, and  higher crime rates
• This results in Aboriginal peoples being arrested for minor offences that would be overlooked in the white community.   Fewer non-Aboriginal people are arrested for the same offence because there are fewer police in their area.
•  There is also evidence that police are less likely to arrest a non-Aboriginal for being drunk in a public place than an Aboriginal person.
• There can also be different community standards for behaviour in cities and towns compared to reserves. Reserves are smaller and are more tightknit.  Behaviour that is criminal off reserve might not be considered criminal on reserve – it is seen as being part of who that person is. Being arrested in a city usually results in the accused being dealt with through the formal, legal justice system.

Reforming Canada's Prisons:  

In groups, discuss these questions.

• What is the purpose of prison?
• Is it to punish the offender, or is it to rehabilitate the offender?
• Is prison always the answer to criminal activity? 
• Is the incarceration of offenders always the best option?

Sentencing Circles: Sentencing circles are one way that the prison system is trying to make things better for Aboriginal offenders.

In a sentencing circle, the aboriginal community decides a person’s punishment. Also the offender is expected to make amends not just to their victim but to the community. This is called restorative justice.

Restorative justice doesn't work for everyone or every situation.  In a group, create a list of criteria that an offender would have to meet before they can take part in restorative justice.

…the [current] system is right now just a punishing system…They’re not looking at what’s causing these problems, they’re looking at, hey, we have to punish this guy for what he’s done…a lot of these guys go to jail, and they sit around this ten-by-twelve cell…And they get very bitter. …Here in a sentencing circle, we make sure somebody tells the offender that we’re here to help, for support…if recommendations are made that he takes some kind of programming to better himself back in society, he’s not only promising the magistrate or probation officer, he’s promising it to his own community.

Restorative justice and sentencing circles can allow offenders to begin to heal.

Criticisms of Sentencing Circles:


What do you think might be some of the criticisms of sentencing circles?

How do you think this fits into the concept of social justice?

Indigenous Peoples - Comparison

Create a Venn diagram looking at the history of the First Nations people, the Australian Aborigines, and the Ainu and their contact with colonists/settlers/late-comers.  Your Venn diagram should look something like this:

When you are finished your Venn diagram, you will write a composition comparing the experiences of each group as well as the indigenous people you researched for your poster.  After you compare them, write another paragraph expressing why you think there are so many similarities in the treatment of tribal people by the colonists/settlers/late-comers.  Hint:  I want you to think about power.