English - Ontario Association of Children's Aid Societies

G. ATTACHMENT
Culture has commonly been defined
as the worldview, lifestyle, learned
and shared beliefs and values,
knowledge, symbols, and rules that
guide behaviour and create shared
meanings within a group of people.
These cultural norms are passed
down from generation to generation.
Early childhood is a critical time for
positive identity formation. The
opportunity to learn one’s heritage
language clearly contributes to
healthy cultural identity formation.
Section Four of this Practice Guide
articulates how child welfare
professionals may strengthen their
practice with Aboriginal families
experiencing violence.
By the age of nine, after being placed in over 28 different living situations, Richard
Cardinal had given up his longing for love, for family, and for dignity. He ended his
life, writing, “I just can’t take it anymore” (Obomsawin, 1986).
Richard’s death drew a great deal of attention to the over-representation of Aboriginal
children in care, and raised questions as to why any child would be moved to so many
homes in such a short time. It also raised the question about
the impact on a child’s ability to attach to a person if s/he is
moved repeatedly.
In the last 20 years, research has emphasized the importance
of attachment in the first years of life, and has particularly
focused on the crucial importance of mother and child
bonding. In some Aboriginal cultures it is deemed so
important to ensure attachment that mothers carry their
children for the first year of life. For the Inuit, the design of
their coat, the Amauti, is intended to ensure that children
stay physically close to the mother throughout the day.
By relying on a broader circle including extended family
members to care for a child, the chance for attachment and
connection increases. Fortunately, the practices of kinship
care and Customary Care provide opportunities for healthy
bonding to occur between children and their families.
Some Aboriginal scholars have suggested that “attachment
theory is not particularly relevant in Indigenous cultures” and
suggest that “a discussion on connectedness has stronger
cultural meaning to Aboriginal peoples than the suggestion
that children should attach to one or two principle figures in
their lives”(Carrière 2007). This is consistent with the
teachings embedded in the Harmony Circles.
A research project conducted by Weechi-it-te-win Family
Services examined the ways in which children’s cultural
identity could be ensured by providing cultural attachment.
Weechi-it-te-win built on the foundation of the traditional
family structure and created a service placement model called “Cultural Placement.”
The model is based on the placement principle that is designed to ensure that a child
is safe and mechanisms are in place for the family, extended family and community
to collectively raise the child within the child’s cultural context. Attachment is
recognized as a need but more people are engaged to perform that responsibility to
the individual child.
34