The aboriginal way of life was destroyed, and the conduct and behaviour of natives disintegrated from their ancient, steady, stable patterns (Wells 20). The colonizing governments disrupted aboriginal cultures by suppressing native customs such as the potlatch, which were naming ceremonies during which publicly incurred debts and credits unified tribes. Disease and alcohol ravaged the bodies, minds, and spirits of generations. Government and Church schools repressed native languages and knowledge, shattering families and communities.
Leaders chosen by imposed rules replaced the tribes' traditional leaders. Colonial authority and the dictates of urban and European markets supplanted aboriginals' symbiotic relationship with nature. Government laws constrained Indians to reserves whose natural resources were a small fraction of their traditional habitation. White hunters and fishers decimated the native food stocks of buffalo and salmon. European traders disturbed established trade patterns among tribes, with gold, silver, coins, and currency replacing Indian trade commodities. Spanish priests destroyed the Aztec library at Tenochtitlán. The Christian missionary proselytizers interrupted the strong religious convictions of the aboriginal people acquired and passed on over the millennia. Upon their arrival in the Americas, Europeans upset most aspects of the lifestyle of its indigenous people. UBC Student - First Nations Studies - Adaptations to RealityĪ society's religious beliefs, culture, and traditions condition a person's conduct and behaviour.