Society when my uncle attended school was a factor in his language loss. Since Indigenous languages were not available to learn until University, my uncle never learned his language. Additionally, the majority of his classmates were the white norm, making it difficult to learn the Indigenous language from peers. Due to the education system, my uncle experienced language loss.
It has been stated that “the loss of language and culture, whether through government action, in creating and maintaining a system of residential schools, or inaction, in its failure to create policies to protect and promote indigenous languages” (Haque & Patrick, 2015, p. 37). My uncle did not attend a residential school since he was adopted by a white family, but he did experience language loss through the government’s actions. During the time of residential schools, the pressure of speaking English was influenced towards individuals of other cultures or language groups. I feel that it is also important to note that although my uncle had been adopted by a white family, he still had a treaty card and treaty rights. The White Paper influenced racism towards Indigenous peoples, eventually leading to language loss. This paper began by “calling for the elimination of treaty rights, the transfer of federal responsibility for indigenous peoples to the provinces and the elimination of the Department of Indian Affairs and the Indian Act” (Haque & Patrick, 2015, p. 34). This severely impacted my uncle’s language loss because the government viewing Indigenous peoples as equal to everyone else was no longer magnified. Not only did this paper allow for my uncle to experience language loss at the government’s hands, but it also pushed schools to eliminate any education on the Indigenous culture and language.