Uncivilized. Primitive. Inferior. Apparently, that is what the rest of us Canadians think of First Nations' people.
OK this is pretty generalized but anything that is trying to categorize how one group of people is viewed by other groups is bound to be that. None of those words fit the history that I was taught by teachers. Objectively, when viewing the technologies of native groups vs the Europeans who arrived in the 15th and 16h centuries, primitive is the only one that
could fit. Civilization is completely subjective. Inferiority is also largely subjective without some specific areas to compare (i.e. the weaponry of the native groups was inferior to the weaponry of the Europeans... and this is a technological comparison thus contributing as much to primitive vs non).
Now at times I have (in my worst stereotyping periods) viewed natives as inferior and uncivilized, largely because of my experiences with Alberta Crees and their lack of regard for our laws. How does an 8 yr old respond when someone steals their new bike from the bike rack in his backyard, which is later recovered from a native kid, much worse for wear? Maybe that native kid didn't steal it but the evidence isn't convincing to that 8 yr old mind. How does a 12 year old react when his nemesis is a native kid who is bigger and bullies smaller kids? He doesn't focus so much on the non-native sidekicks, as the main bully. How does a 19-20 yr old man respond in the aftermath of an accident where a young woman he is fond of was killed, and its related to him by a survivor, that the native driver of the car causing the accident laughed at the hospital about "killing some whitey". Incidents like these leave their mark, even when the majority of native kids you grow up and live around are decent people who just want to live their lives and enjoy them, like anyone else. I know native kids can probably relate similar stories about non-natives too, but when we see the large proportion of native inmates in our prisons, it reinforces the stereotypes. I haven't read the report but I think the effort to understand the cultural differences has to go both ways.When I look at the stats like the prison demographics (and couple them to my own life experiences), I do think there has been reluctance by some native groups to do that as well, in large part because I do think they fear losing their cultural identity.
Reflecting back on it, Canadian history, as it was taught to those of my generation anyway, only began once the Europeans arrived and was seen through that prism.
This is true for my education in 70s-80s Alberta as well. Canadian history was taught starting with Cabot and Cartier. Depending on the teachers, the Iroquois, Huron and other nations could be either protagonists or antagonists, depending on their nationalistic view point (and the French vs English perspective did colour that issue almost always). Realistically, a lot of education depends on records, so I do wonder how we base a curriculum on what in many cases was oral histories? How do we provide context and gain perspective? Teaching elementary students and teenagers isn't the same as deciphering information as an adult.