Florence Nightingale (English), nurse and inventor of the pie chart produced an analysis of the death rates of children in government run schools across the British Empire. This report was published in 1863 and reported a mortality rate for Indigenous children that was twice that of English children of the same age.
Charles Alexander Eastman (Dakota) was the first Indigenous person to become a Dr in the US and he was later a writer and reformer. He was a Dr for the Bureau of Indian Affairs and cared for the Indigenous peoples there after the Wounded Knee Massacre. From the paper I read about him, these deaths deeply impacted him and his subsequent reform work.
Laura Cornelius Kellogg (Oneida) pursued land claims and developed the “Lolomi Plan” an alternative to the Bureau of Indian Affairs. This plans focused on building self-sufficiency for Indigenous people based on cooperative labour, connection to indigeneity and traditional knowledge. Her vision was one of successful economies for Indigenous peoples that drew on the strengths of the communities and traditions. She was a longtime advocate for her peoples.
Jean Cuthand Goodwill (Cree) was one of the first Indigenous registered nurses in Canada who later became a public servant. She was active at the same time as my great uncle Jim Brady (Métis) who worked to support Métis and Indigenous peoples. He also held a number of positions for the government. His mother, my great grandmother, Philomena Archange Garneau, was Alberta’s first Métis registered nurse.
Do you have any civil service ancestors? Share in the comments.
I did not know that responsibility for Indigenous peoples was under Mining at one point.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frederick_Blair
Here is the wiki page about the Canadian Civil service history where I learnt that they formally restricted the employment of married women and fired married women who were already working for the government. This rule was in place until 1955.
