Aboriginal Canadians - Issues and Challenges: An Editorial Introduction

  • James C. Saku Frostburg State University
Keywords: Aboriginal Canadians

Abstract

To improve the living conditions of Aboriginal people in the world, different initiatives have been adopted by various governments. In Canada, since the 1960s, the federal and provincial governments have implemented several policies which are designed to improve the socio-economic status of Aboriginal Canadians (Saku 2002). From segregated reserves, the encouragements of assimilation, legal enfranchisement to residential schools, Aboriginal peoples and communities have been promised that some government program or other would end their isolation from the Canadian mainstream and provide them with the ability to prosper within Canada”(Coates and Morrison, 2008, 105). The Royal Commission on Aboriginal People (RCAP) (1996) identified outmigration to urban centers, business development, sectoral development, human resource development, and community development as policy initiatives which have been implemented by the federal government. Unfortunately, these policies have failed to change the socio-economic status of Aboriginal Canadians. This special issue of Geography Research Forum focuses on a variety of issues confronting Aboriginal Canadians.

References

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Published
2016-02-27