Unseen Tears: The Native American Boarding School Experience in Western New York

Native American families in Western New York continue to feel the impact of the Thomas Indian School and the Mohawk Institute. Survivors speak of traumatic separation from their families, abuse, and a systematic assault on their language and culture.

The Impact of Residential Schools on Aboriginal Healthcare

Dawn talks about residential schools and their impact on the people and their family's who were involved. She passionately makes a plea for a link between what residential school survivors experienced, and how their future healthcare needs have to match the impacts of that experience.

Dawn Tisdale is a third year student obtaining her Bachelor of Science in Nursing at North Island College. Dawn grew up in Montreal, moved to the island in 2000, and became a community support worker for adults with disabilities. Wanting to further explore her career in health care, she decided to go back to school to become an RN. Since entering the BSN program, Dawn has become extremely passionate about nursing - aboriginal health, in particular. What fuels her fire is social justice and advocacy for health promotion. Dawn was recently elected president of the Canadian Nursing Student Association, representing 28,000 nursing students across Canada.

This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community.