Sixties Scoop Indigenous Society of Alberta

The Sixties Scoop is the catch-all name for a series of policies enacted by provincial child welfare authorities starting from the mid-1950s, which saw thousands of Indigenous children taken from their homes and families, place in foster homes, and often adopted out to white families from across Canada, the US, Western Europe, Australia and New Zealand.

The Sixties Scoop was not an isolated event propelled by inferior Indigenous parenting, but rather an extension of paternalistic policies in Canada that sought the assimilation of Indigenous cultures and communities. The process began in 1951, when amendments to the Indian Act gave the provinces jurisdiction over Indigenous child welfare (Section 88) where none existed federally.

By the 1960s, after nearly a century living under devastating federal policies, such as the Indian Act and residential schools, many Indigenous communities — particularly those living on-reserve— were rampant with poverty, high death rates and socio-economic barriers.

With no additional financial resources, provincial agencies in 1951 inherited a litany of issues surrounding children and child welfare in Indigenous communities. With many communities under-serviced, under-resourced and under the control of the Indian Act, provincial child welfare agencies chose to remove children from their homes rather than provide community resources and supports.

From the 1960s to the 1980s, provincial governments considered the removal of Indigenous children the fastest and easiest way of addressing Indigenous child welfare issues. In many cases, the child welfare system did not expect or require its social workers to have specific knowledge about, or training in, Indigenous child welfare. They also did not have to seek the consent of communities to “scoop” newborn and young children from their parents

These children lost their names, their languages, and a connection to their heritage. Many were also abused and made to feel ashamed of who they were.

It was originally estimated that 20,000 aboriginal children were taken from their families. However, after conversations with lawyers from the Federal Settlement, it was learned that an Actuary was hired by the Federal Government when negotiating the Sixties Scoop Settlement Agreement who determined there were over 130,000 Indigenous Children apprehended and fostered/adopted out during this time period, and of these, it’s estimated that only about 25,000 survivors remain.