I think that what I found during my research and the topic I chose definitely relates to the topics we discussed in class. Indigenous people lived a certain way before Europeans came to this land. Their traditional diet was very different from what is considered normal today. Changes in their diet began as soon as trade started between Europeans and Indigenous peoples as they were introduced to sugar, flour and other new, possibly less nutritious food. This was emphasized during the switch to reservations and through residential schools. Their way of life and diet was forcibly altered by each of these as the traditional way of gathering food became limited. What I see in this was that Europeans believed Indigenous people did not know how to care for themselves well enough through traditional ways, which lead to enforcing a new way of life. This is looking at how Europeans claiming authority over Indigenous peoples lead to various alterations in their lifestyle. It also raises the question of how and if Indigenous peoples were viewed as citizens. I may not have addressed these questions directly in my research but they are there when looking at Canadian history.
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