Many hundreds of unmarked graves of Indigenous children discovered at Canadian residential schools

[DrDeth]

@Dr_Paprika

There was an attempt to end the cultures and languages of minority groups which, though offensive, is hardly unique to this country. A desire to educate sounds positive; assimilation is negative, but might theoretically have some benefits. I felt calling it genocidal was not wrong, but was melodramatic - and that this did not help the debate.

I do not buy the term “cultural genocide”. That word “genocide” needs to be reserved for the mass deaths of millions, not just denying people their cultural heritage. The term “cultural genocide” minimizes the very real act of death genocide perpetrated upon the Jews, slavs, gays, gypsies and others during the Holocaust- causing the deaths of some 12 millions. Or Stalins genocide which killed maybe 20 million. Pol Pots genocide which killed 2 million, the Armenian genocide which killed about a million, etc.

Sure shutting down some peoples culture is pretty damn bad. But killing them all is worse. I don’t buy the term 'cultural" genocide" at all, because it weakens real genocide.

So yeah, I deny “cultural genocide” as it is in a way Holocaust denial. By using that same word to refer to both actions, it minimizes the horrors of real genocide.

Do not get me wrong- trying to destroy a culture is of course horrible and a crime. But once we start throwing around the word too lightly it weakens it.