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A review by xxstefaniereadsxx
They Called Me Number One: Secrets and Survival at an Indian Residential School by Bev Sellars
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
slow-paced
4.0
This book is the personal memoir of Bev Sellers, a Xat'sull Chief and activist. (Xat'sull First Nations were formerly known as Soda Creek Indian Band.) Bev was sent to St. Joseph's Residential School in Williams Lake, British Columbia. Residential Schools in Canada were supported by Christian Churches and the Department of Indian Affairs. The entire purpose of schools like this were to get Native children away from the cultural norms and family kinships, break those bonds, and force them to adopt the mainstream (read white European) manner of language, religion, and dress. (Read cultural genocide.) Of COURSE the records are "incomplete" so the number of children who actually died at these schools and their causes of death will never be fully known, however the multiple accounts of sadistic abuse recounted by former students (read survivors) support the high estimation (in the thousands) of student deaths. Residential schools are horrible places of sadness and torment, and I cannot imagine being snatched away from my family, sexually/mentally/physically/emotionally abused, called a number instead of my name, and forced to deny all of my heritage. It's horrible and just...vile.
Book Feelings: I bought this book, because it had good reviews and I always appreciate personal accounts of various historical events. I think personal accounts are tremendously important to the historical record, and I tend to pick up books like this regularly. Bev Sellers mentioned in her book that she was advised to not write about her personal experiences or those experiences of her family, and I am so glad that she did not listen to that advice. The trauma that the Native community faced as a whole needs to be known and talked about, and I hope that more people pick up this book and others like it to supplement the articles that are currently in the news from the uncovering of mass graves at places like this. As an elementary school student, we were briefly taught about residential schools, and they were presented in a way that made the schools seem like such blessings...they were given clothes, food, and education. That is not hardly at all the truth. We need to be teaching actual history in schools, and not white washed nonsense that helps perpetuate the racial stereotypes that Native people have been forced to deal with since Europeans decided to show up. This book was well written, and I really enjoyed learning about Native familial connections and how life was when the author was not in a residential school. I strongly suggest reading this book and many more like it.
Personal Feelings: Native American genocide is absolutely a thing that happened, still happens, and it is disgusting to me that people are either oblivious to these facts or flat out deny them. I should not be shocked, because there are those that deny the Holocaust as well. These schools implemented weaponized Christianity, eradicating familial kinships and identities throughout generations. This is cultural genocide. People being denied access to their religious practices, language, manner of dress, etc is by definition the eradication of an identity. It's gross. Christianity has been weaponized for centuries, and is still being weaponized today against a whole host of people. I personally believe that people have the right to believe what they want, but nobody has the right to force someone else to conform to their personal beliefs. I would also like to make the personal note here that, as an extraordinarily white person, I did not ask for my ancestors hundreds of years ago to move to this land and participate in the theft and ethnic cleansing that has been perpetrated against the Native communities in the entire North American continent. Just because I did not ASK to be here, does not mean that I am NOT here, and thus bear some of the burden and responsibility for the past. People are always quick to say I didn't force anyone off their land, I didn't own slaves, I didn't blah blah blah, and that is true. These things were done long before we were born, but that doesn't mean we cannot LEARN about the atrocities committed against people, attempt to understand and empathize with the loss of freedoms and lives, and be a great ally to people now. Buying books like this, supporting Native art and businesses, opening your mind to other beliefs and cultures, and speaking out against things that were so blatantly wrong are just a few ways that we can help to heal past wounds, as well as learn something new and grow as people. Just because YOU didn't do something, shouldn't mean that you turn your nose up to the facts.
Book Feelings: I bought this book, because it had good reviews and I always appreciate personal accounts of various historical events. I think personal accounts are tremendously important to the historical record, and I tend to pick up books like this regularly. Bev Sellers mentioned in her book that she was advised to not write about her personal experiences or those experiences of her family, and I am so glad that she did not listen to that advice. The trauma that the Native community faced as a whole needs to be known and talked about, and I hope that more people pick up this book and others like it to supplement the articles that are currently in the news from the uncovering of mass graves at places like this. As an elementary school student, we were briefly taught about residential schools, and they were presented in a way that made the schools seem like such blessings...they were given clothes, food, and education. That is not hardly at all the truth. We need to be teaching actual history in schools, and not white washed nonsense that helps perpetuate the racial stereotypes that Native people have been forced to deal with since Europeans decided to show up. This book was well written, and I really enjoyed learning about Native familial connections and how life was when the author was not in a residential school. I strongly suggest reading this book and many more like it.
Personal Feelings: Native American genocide is absolutely a thing that happened, still happens, and it is disgusting to me that people are either oblivious to these facts or flat out deny them. I should not be shocked, because there are those that deny the Holocaust as well. These schools implemented weaponized Christianity, eradicating familial kinships and identities throughout generations. This is cultural genocide. People being denied access to their religious practices, language, manner of dress, etc is by definition the eradication of an identity. It's gross. Christianity has been weaponized for centuries, and is still being weaponized today against a whole host of people. I personally believe that people have the right to believe what they want, but nobody has the right to force someone else to conform to their personal beliefs. I would also like to make the personal note here that, as an extraordinarily white person, I did not ask for my ancestors hundreds of years ago to move to this land and participate in the theft and ethnic cleansing that has been perpetrated against the Native communities in the entire North American continent. Just because I did not ASK to be here, does not mean that I am NOT here, and thus bear some of the burden and responsibility for the past. People are always quick to say I didn't force anyone off their land, I didn't own slaves, I didn't blah blah blah, and that is true. These things were done long before we were born, but that doesn't mean we cannot LEARN about the atrocities committed against people, attempt to understand and empathize with the loss of freedoms and lives, and be a great ally to people now. Buying books like this, supporting Native art and businesses, opening your mind to other beliefs and cultures, and speaking out against things that were so blatantly wrong are just a few ways that we can help to heal past wounds, as well as learn something new and grow as people. Just because YOU didn't do something, shouldn't mean that you turn your nose up to the facts.