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<b>Task force calls for funding of Aboriginal language project<br>
</b> <br>
Posted: October 04, 2005<br>
by: David Wiwchar / Today correspondent<br>
<br>
OTTAWA, Ontario - The Federal Task Force on Aboriginal Cultures and
Language recently released a 142-page report, calling on the Canadian
government to immediately begin funding Aboriginal language projects
before it's too late. <br>
<br>
''Canada's past assimilative actions, particularly the residential
school system, cannot be ignored. Canada's failure to protect First
Nation, Inuit and Metis languages and cultures means it must now
provide the resources necessary to restore them. All federal
departments share this responsibility. However, First Nation, Inuit and
Metis peoples must also take their rightful place as the first and
foremost teachers of their own languages and cultures,'' read the
report. <br>
<br>
''Forcibly removing language and culture from individual First Nation,
Inuit and Metis people is tantamount to a breach of Aboriginal and
treaty rights, as well as a breach of the Crown's fiduciary duty, and
should therefore be compensable. It is also our view that Canada's
refusal to compensate individuals who continue to suffer the
devastating effects of their loss of connection to their communities
and their languages, cultures and spiritual beliefs fails to uphold the
honour of the Crown. Further, this refusal has the effect of appearing
to relegate First Nation, Inuit and Metis languages to the position of
subjugated languages that can be forcibly removed from the memories of
the people who spoke them, with impunity.'' <br>
<br>
During 16 community consultations held across Canada in 2004, many
stated that the ability to speak one's own language helps people
understand who they are in relation to themselves, their families and
their communities, and to creation itself. <br>
<br>
''The exact number of languages and dialects is unknown, but around 61
are spoken today. First Nations speak 51 languages. Inuit speak various
dialects of Inuktitut and Metis speak Michif, as well as some First
Nation languages.'' <br>
<br>
British Columbia has the greatest language diversity, containing eight
of the 11 language families. But in that province, First Nation
generational language transmission is in serious decline. <br>
<br>
Most First Nation languages there are listed as ''endangered'' because
Interior Salish languages - along with the languages in the Tsimshian
family, Kwakw'ala, Nuu-chah-nulth, and several of the smaller Dene
languages in northern British Columbia, the Northwest Territories and
the Yukon - fell within a range of more than 300, but fewer than 1,000,
speakers. <br>
<br>
30 percent or 52 First Nations had endangered languages (less than 50
percent of the adult population were reported speaking the language and
there were few if any young speakers or, although over 80 percent of
the older population spoke the language, there were no identified
speakers under 45 years old). <br>
<br>
Research suggests that intergenerational transmission of British
Columbia's First Nation languages has virtually ceased, and that almost
no young children are acquiring the First Nation language in the home.
Even among the population of childbearing age, especially younger
parents, very few individuals are fluent. <br>
<br>
American Indian people able to speak a First Nation language well
enough to conduct a conversation fell from 20 percent in 1996 to 16
percent in 2001, while those speaking it in the home declined from 13
percent to 8 percent. <br>
<br>
''It is important to keep in mind that statistics on language tell
only a small part of the story. <br>
<br>
''Most of the world's indigenous languages are in danger of
extinction, including those in Canada. Regardless of the number of
speakers, all First Nations, Inuit and Metis languages are equal. There
are many reasons why every effort should be made to save them. First,
they are the original languages of Canada, spoken here millennia before
French and English. They ground First Nation, Inuit and Metis
nationhood, are recognized in treaties, and are entrenched in section
35 of the Canadian Constitution.'' <br>
<br>
The task force made 25 recommendations in the report, released July
27. They recommend a national language strategy be developed through
community-based planning by First Nation, Inuit and Metis language
communities, as well as by their regional and national representative
organizations, with coordination and technical support to be provided
by the proposed national language organization. <br>
<br>
Other recommendations included equitable resources for language
support; that Canada provide funding for First Nation, Inuit and Metis
languages which is, at a minimum, at the same level as that provided
for the French and English languages; and that funding of First Nation
schools by the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development be
provided at the same level and standard as that provided to Ministries
of Education. <br>
<br>
Those incarcerated in Canadian jails and prisons should also receive
language-training resources, because what has been missing so far is
any systematic attempt to provide language training to incarcerated
First Nation, Inuit and Metis persons to enable them to participate
more deeply and fully in their own traditions. <br>
<br>
''That being said, however, Canada cannot speak our languages for us.
Canada cannot restore them. And Canada cannot promote them among our
peoples. We must take our rightful positions as the first and most
appropriate teachers of our languages and cultures. We must begin by
speaking our own languages to our children in our homes and communities
and we must do it daily. We cannot delegate this task to our schools or
leave it for the next generation. To maintain, revitalize and preserve
our languages, we must use traditional and contemporary methods and
strategies in the development of new approaches.'' <br>
<br>
''We view this foundational report as a new beginning, the first step
of what many described as being a 100-year journey to the
revitalization of our languages and cultures,'' read the report. ''...
Restoring their languages and cultures would ensure that First Nations,
Inuit and Metis people remain strong nations for as long as the sun
shines, the grass grows, and the river flows.''<br>
<br>
<pre class="moz-signature" cols="72">--
Ilse Ackerman
Manager, Endangered Language Program
Fairfield Language Technologies, Rosetta Stone
135 West Market St, Harrisonburg, VA 22801 USA
w: 540-432-6166 c: 540-578-3074 f: 540-432-0953
</pre>
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