Sixties Scoop facts for kids

The Sixties Scoop was a time in Canada when government policies allowed child welfare workers to take Indigenous children from their families. These children were then placed in foster homes or adopted by white families. Even though it's called the "Sixties Scoop," it actually started in the mid-1950s and continued into the 1980s.

It's thought that about 20,000 Indigenous children were taken from their homes during this period. Most of them were fostered or adopted by white middle-class families.

Each province had different rules for foster care and adoption. Saskatchewan had a special program called the Adopt Indian Métis (AIM) Program, which focused on Indigenous children. The name "Sixties Scoop" was first used by social workers in the early 1980s to describe what was happening. It became widely known after a 1983 report called "Native Children and the Child Welfare System."

The government policies that led to the Sixties Scoop stopped in the mid-1980s. This happened after Ontario chiefs spoke out against them. Also, a special investigation in Manitoba strongly criticized these practices. This investigation, led by Judge Edwin Kimelman, resulted in the "Kimelman Report."

Many lawsuits have been filed by people who were affected by the Sixties Scoop. These include large group lawsuits, called class-action lawsuits, in several provinces. For example, a lawsuit was filed in British Columbia in 2011. In Ontario, Chief Marcia Brown Martel led a class-action lawsuit that started in 2009. On February 14, 2017, an Ontario court ruled that the government was responsible for the harm caused. Later, on October 6, 2017, an $800-million agreement was announced for the Martel case. However, Métis and non-status First Nations people are not currently included in this agreement. Groups like the National Indigenous Survivors of Child Welfare Network are working to make sure all Indigenous people affected are included.

What Was the Sixties Scoop?

Canada's residential school system was set up by the federal government and run by different churches. Its goal was to remove Aboriginal children from their homes. They wanted to teach them Euro-Canadian and Christian values. The Sixties Scoop was a period from the late 1950s to the early 1980s. During this time, the child welfare system took many Indigenous children from their families and communities. They were placed in non-Indigenous foster homes, adoptive families, or institutions.

The Sixties Scoop began as Indigenous families were already dealing with the difficult effects of the residential school system. This system had a very negative impact on their lives. Children were often taken from their Native land without their families' knowledge or permission. Sometimes, brothers and sisters were sent to different places. This made it hard for them to stay in touch with their families. These policies often stopped children from speaking their own languages or learning about their culture. They were not allowed to know their true background or family history. This caused a lot of confusion and pain for many children.

The Canadian government started closing residential schools in the 1950s and 1960s. However, authorities believed that Aboriginal children would get a better education in public schools. This led to a change in the Indian Act in 1951. This change allowed provinces to provide services, like child protection, to Aboriginal people. In British Columbia, for example, the number of Aboriginal children in provincial care grew from 29 in 1951 to 1,466 by 1964. Aboriginal children, who were only 1% of all children in care, suddenly made up over 34%.

Canada's Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) was created to record the experiences of Indigenous children in residential schools. It also aimed to share the truth of survivors with all Canadians. The TRC's final report, published in 2015, stated that by the end of the 1970s, the Sixties Scoop's impact was clear across the country. First Nations communities responded by trying to bring children back home. They also worked to gain control over child welfare practices for their children. Today, there are about 125 First Nations Child and Family Service Agencies in Canada.

The Adopt Indian Métis (AIM) Program

The Adopt Indian Métis (AIM) program was started in 1967. It was funded by the Canadian and Saskatchewan governments. Its goal was to encourage middle-class white families to adopt First Nations children. AIM was the only program in Canada specifically for transracial adoption of Indigenous children.

CBC News reported on the AIM program in May 1968. The report showed many Indian and Métis children who needed homes. The reporter said that more children from these communities were available for adoption. The government was taking in nearly 200 children each year. The news report presented AIM as a good solution. It highlighted that 100 children had been placed in homes in the first year.

The AIM program used radio, television, and newspaper ads to find families. Large photos of children in newspapers were very effective. The program also promised quick adoptions, sometimes in as little as 10 weeks.

The original AIM program ran until 1969. It led to more interest in transracial adoptions. By 1970, the program included all children, but First Nations children were still a large focus. For example, in 1969, Indian and Métis people were 7.5% of Saskatchewan's population. However, their children made up 41.9% of all children in foster homes in the province.

In 1971, the Métis Society in Saskatoon formed a committee to challenge the AIM program. They believed AIM was harmful to children, parents, and the Métis community. They said AIM's advertising was unfair. They felt it suggested Métis parents couldn't care for their children. It also seemed to imply that First Nations children were unwanted.

A 1971 CBC News report said 500 children had found homes through AIM. An AIM representative said that increased awareness, not prejudice, led to more adoptions. He hoped AIM would help different races understand each other. However, First Nations leaders were criticizing AIM. They saw it as an attempt to force Indigenous people to fit into white society.

A CBC Radio podcast series, Missing and Murdered: Finding Cleo, tells the story of Cleopatra (Cleo) Nicotine Semaganis. In 1974, at age nine, Cleo was taken from her family in Saskatchewan through the AIM program. Her family never saw her again. The series shows AIM newspaper ads with photos and personal details of children available for adoption. It also includes a memo praising a supervisor for making many children "wards of the province," meaning they were eligible for adoption.

How Many Children Were Affected?

In 1977, about 15,500 Indigenous children were in the care of child welfare services. This was 20% of all Canadian children in care. However, Indigenous children made up less than 5% of the total child population. This shows they were taken from their families at a much higher rate.

In 1983, Patrick Johnston used the term "Sixties Scoop" in his report on Aboriginal child welfare. He found that Aboriginal children were being taken into the child welfare system much more often than non-Indigenous children. Johnston learned the term from a social worker in British Columbia. She told him that in the mid-1960s, it was common to "scoop" almost all newborn children from their mothers on reserves. She later realized this was a big mistake.

In provinces like Alberta, 40-50% of children in care were Aboriginal. In Saskatchewan, it was 60-70%, and in Manitoba, 50-60%. Experts estimated that Aboriginal children were 4.5 times more likely to be in child welfare care than non-Aboriginal children across Canada. Most children removed by social workers did not return to their communities. A 1980 study found that 78% of First Nations children who were adopted were placed with non-Indigenous families.

Raven Sinclair, a professor and member of Gordon First Nation, explained that the Sixties Scoop wasn't a single program. It describes a time when many Indigenous children were taken from their homes. She noted that social workers, like missionaries before them, believed that removing children was the only way to "save" Indigenous people.

The Kimelman Report

A special investigation into the "Sixties Scoop" in Manitoba was led by Judge Edwin Kimelman. This investigation led to the 1985 report known as the "Kimelman Report."

The Kimelman Report strongly criticized Manitoba's child welfare system. It said that the system was not examined enough for a long time. The report also stated that the idea of "best interest of the child" was biased. It was based on the views of white, middle-class workers, not on Indigenous cultures. The report found that the child welfare system ignored or misunderstood important parts of Indigenous life.

For example, the report noted that non-Indigenous agencies often told single Indigenous mothers they had to live alone to get their children back. This went against traditional Indigenous ways of raising children, where grandparents and other family members help. The report called this demand "unrealistic and cruel." Changes to the new Indian Act also made it hard for single Indigenous mothers to live with their children on reserves.

The Kimelman Report made 109 recommendations. These included improving cultural understanding, keeping families connected, and better training for social workers. It also called the loss of children a "cultural genocide." A 1989 report by the Manitoba Metis Federation found that the situation for Métis children had not improved.

Deanna Reder, a Cree-Métis professor, wrote in 2007 that adults affected by these policies are now speaking out. They talk about losing their cultural identity and contact with their birth families. Many also lost access to their medical histories. For status Indian children, they even lost their official status.

Lasting Effects Today

Canada's Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) studied the experiences of Indigenous children taken from their families. The TRC's 2015 report discussed how residential schools and the Sixties Scoop affected Indigenous communities. It stated that these events caused deep, long-lasting trauma. This trauma affected parenting, social values, and economic conditions for generations. It led to many social problems, including struggles with self-identity.

Stereotypes about Indigenous people often led child welfare workers to remove children more quickly. For example, stereotypes about addiction among First Nations people were often repeated. The trauma from government policies like the Sixties Scoop was rarely discussed.

Taking children away from their families had a huge negative impact. It damaged the social and political structures of Aboriginal communities. It also stopped the passing down of knowledge, stories, and values from elders to children. Many children from the Sixties Scoop lost their group identity and cultural knowledge.

The effects of the Sixties Scoop are still seen in child welfare for Aboriginal communities today. Some social workers feel disconnected from these communities. One worker said that when children are removed quickly, it reminds the community of the Sixties Scoop. This can make communities feel like victims again.

However, there's also a problem where Aboriginal children in care are sometimes sent to Aboriginal communities that don't have enough resources to help them. This can make problems worse in already struggling communities.

A 2011 Statistics Canada study found that 3.6% of First Nations children aged 14 and under were in foster care. This is much higher than the 0.3% of non-Indigenous children in foster care.

Many First Nations, Inuit, and Métis people in Canada face difficult living conditions and poor schooling. A 2016 study found that 51% of First Nations children live in poverty. This rate is even higher for children living on reserves.

Some foster parents tried to include the children's Native culture. But being taken from their families still had lasting negative effects. Rose Henry, for example, was placed with adoptive parents in 1966 when she was 8. Her foster mother tried to keep her in touch with her birth family. But Rose still ended up homeless because of the Sixties Scoop's impact. She felt confused about her identity, unsure if she belonged in the white Canadian or First Nations world. She said, "I was torn between the two. It has had a very damaging effect on me."

In other cases, adoptive parents lied to children, telling them they were Italian or French. This further cut children off from their culture. This added to the struggle for self-identity that still affects First Nations people today.

Cindy Blackstock, a professor and leader of the First Nations Child & Family Caring Society of Canada, says that funding for child and family services on reserves is not enough. She believes the Canadian government's funding is unfair to First Nations children. Government documents show that Indigenous agencies get much less funding than provincial agencies.

Blackstock's organization and the Assembly of First Nations filed a complaint in 2007. They said the Canadian government had a long history of giving less money for child welfare services to First Nations children on reserves. In January 2016, a tribunal ruled that the government's failure to provide fair services to 165,000 First Nations children was discrimination.

On August 25, 2017, the United Nations recommended that Canada stop underfunding Indigenous child services. They also said Canada should ensure all Indigenous children have access to services without discrimination. They urged Canada to address the root causes of children being removed, like poverty and poor housing.

Important Court Cases

In 2009, Chief Marcia Brown Martel of Beaverhouse First Nation filed a class action lawsuit in Ontario. She sued on behalf of Indigenous children affected by the Sixties Scoop. Her lawsuit claimed she suffered emotional and physical harm after being placed in foster care as a child.

On February 14, 2017, Justice Edward Belobaba ruled in favor of the plaintiffs. He found that Canada failed to protect the Aboriginal identity of First Nations children in Ontario who were placed with non-Indigenous families. Justice Belobaba said, "The Sixties Scoop happened and great harm was done." He noted that losing their Aboriginal identity left children confused. It led to mental health problems, unemployment, and violence.

The Minister of Indigenous Affairs, Carolyn Bennett, said Canada would not appeal the decision. On October 6, 2017, an $800 million agreement was announced. It will give $25,000 to $50,000 in compensation to First Nations and Inuit people who were adopted out of their families during the Sixties Scoop. It will also create a $50 million fund for an Indigenous Healing Foundation. However, non-status First Nations and Métis people are not included in this agreement.

Jeffery Wilson, the lead lawyer for the plaintiffs, said this agreement was historic. He stated that it recognized children's right to their cultural identities. It also acknowledged a government's duty to protect the cultural identity of children in its care.

Hundreds of claims for compensation have been rejected. Debbie Paul, for example, was taken by a nun from a residential school and placed with a family in the United States. Her claim was rejected because there was no proof she was in long-term care with non-Indigenous parents. With help, she found her school records, which named her foster parents as guardians. This was an emotional moment for her. It wasn't about the money, but about being believed. Having a claim rejected adds more pain to the original trauma of being removed from one's family.

Similar Events Elsewhere

Similar policies happened in other countries too. In Australia, a policy called the Stolen Generations removed Aboriginal children from their families. They were placed in orphanages or with non-Aboriginal foster parents.

In the United States, a large number of Native children were also removed from their families. In 1978, the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) was passed. This law requires strong efforts to keep Native American children with their families or relatives. Children are only placed with non-Native families if a Native foster home cannot be found.

Another similar term in the United States is the Baby Scoop Era. This refers to a time from the late 1950s to 1972. During this period, many children were taken from unmarried mothers for adoption.

In the 1950s, children from a group called the Freedomites (or Sons of Freedom) in British Columbia, Canada, were also taken by authorities. These were children of a Russian Doukhobor group.

See also

• Birth alert
• Cultural genocide

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