Sideshow Stars to Schoolhouse Burdens:

The Evolution of the Treatment and Education of Mentally and Physically Handicapped Children in Canada as Influenced by Society

          The mentally and physically ill have long been the black sheep of society. Today, we see many positive changes to improve this traditionally disadvantaged section of our population and incorporate them into everyday life, where we can offer equal opportunity and proper care. The changes taking place today to better understand and treat societies mentally and physically handicapped started in the last century, as Canadians pushed towards a more equal world. The advancements made in technology, medicine, and science, have allowed us to grasp a better understanding of mental and physical handicaps and illnesses. This push started in the later half of the twentieth century, emerging from previous decades of mistreatment, misunderstanding, ridicule, stigma, and poor conditions, for those living with mental or physical disabilities and challenges. Those who were mentally or physically handicapped were often exploited or forgotten about in the past, a good number of which happened to be children. Throughout the twentieth century, disabled children were segregated from society: put into Freak Shows, placed in separate schools, and always a popular subject when speaking of eugenics. It took decades until these children would begin to receive proper treatment, schooling, and protection in society; something we are still attempting to perfect today. Therefore, this paper will look at the changes undergone from the turn of the century until the 1960’s and 1970’s in Canada, in regards to the experiences and treatment of these children. The various topics that will be explored are; first, the growth and evolution of healthcare and education standards; second, the role of parents and the family in the lives of mentally and physically disabled children; and finally, the effects society had on disabled children, and it’s pushes to protect them. This paper will make the argument that it was the rapid changes in society and public opinion that caused the treatment and education of mentally and physically disabled children to evolve and improve during this time period.

          Today children with mental or physical disabilities can be properly diagnosed, treated, and provided with the care and support they need to flourish in life. This is due greatly to the technological growth and evolution of the previous century that modernized medicine and healthcare. The last century also saw a push towards improving the treatment and understanding of mental and physical illness as well. Various new technological innovations, wars, and a changing social dynamic, throughout the twentieth century have led to this. Prior to the turn of the twentieth century, those who suffered from mental illnesses were inadequatly examined and largely misunderstood. This led to improper care and mistreatment of the mentally ill, of which children were dealt with most diversely. Specialized care for the mentally ill had begun in the mid-nineteenth century, in the form of mental institutions and asylums. Few children were admitted to mental institutions in the early twentieth century, but those who were, were admitted regularly. The main diagnosis for those admitted claimed them to be “idiots and imbeciles”, what today would equate to learning disorders. Physically disabled children were labeled similarly, with the added notions of being “handicapped, crippled, retarded…”. Children were rarely associated or diagnosed with any sort of lunacy, such as “mania, melancholia and dementia”; these were often reserved for adults, and the only forms of mental disablement deemed curable. A diagnosis of idiocy was believed to be untreatable and incurable, and so those afflicted with it fell to the lowest priorities of doctors. Many were also subsequently released back to the home for treatment, as doctors believed there was nothing more they could do. Originally, institutionalizing children, and adults, was encouraged. These types of people were deemed to be dangerous, and so asylums were celebrated places where they could be contained and controlled. It was believed they were places of community, progress and humane treatment; this began to be called to question by the mid twentieth century. The idea of placing children into asylums began to raise  alarm, coinciding with the rising need people saw to care for children and protect them, especially as the early twentieth century saw a mass movement of families into cities from small and rural towns. As life changed rapidly, and cities boomed and industry took over, it seemed there was a sudden surge of desire to ensure all children were being properly looked after, and would grow up with the right traditional values, many of which seemed to be derailed in the modernizing world. This need to care for children did, in some ways, extend to those who were mentally handicapped. However, the idea that these kinds of children were dangerous, which began in the Victorian era, persisted. So, if society could not bear the idea of institutionalizing children, they still needed a way to ensure they would not turn to criminal behaviours; this is where education came to play its role. An educator and politician in Ontario in the late nineteenth century, Egerton Ryerson, had previously advocated for compulsory public education, his main argument was that it could guide the minds of societies youth, and instil upon them the proper beliefs, values and loyalties they needed to be a positive contributor to their country. He believed this would create future generations of citizens willing to sacrifice everything for the wellbeing of their country, and that those who had a lack of education were prone to ignorance and delinquency. This idea would remain constant during the decades from the 1890’s to 1930’s, there was another push towards better childhood health. New ideas of what a “healthy child” was to be, were constructed, and anyone who could not meet this new standard was labeled as dirty and inferior. This was often the section mentally ill and physically disabled children fell into. These new health standards helped to birth a new social boundary, and maintain the separation between mainstream society and its handicapped. Again, past ideas put forth by people like Egerton would remain, as going past this into World War II the fear of juvenile delinquency rose once again, furthering the need for placing children into schools and keep them from unethical behaviours. Throughout these decades periods, from Ryerson to the end of the second World War, came the common idea: children must be placed into schools and receive compulsory education for their own wellbeing, and for the wellbeing of society. Many schools followed this ideal, and used schools as a way of social control. Thus, it only made sense to implement this same process on the mentally ill. This way the children would not be placed into asylums, which were becoming increasingly scrutinized, but would still be under supervision and in a controlling environment. Here they could be taught both what society expected of them, and how to act in it. However, the new health standards, as mentioned previously, represented a challenge when it came to placing handicapped children into schools with other “normal” kids. So, the solution, which was developed around the same time these new health standards were made, was to create segregated schooling for special needs children. These segregated schools began to make headway in the first half of the twentieth century, becoming common practice across Canada between 1910-1945. They were to keep the “feeble minded” children from affecting and disrupting the learning of other children, a common and fast spreading fear at the time. The segregated schools were believed to keep the handicapped children from becoming burdens on society or turning criminal, and teach them how to act properly and contribute to society. The implementation of these schools, and the beliefs behind them, are best represented by the career of Miss Josephine Dauphinee. Dauphinee was a teacher and was seen as a pioneer for segregated schooling. She upheld the values many middle class women had in regards to the mentally ill, those being; separation and eugenics. Sterilization was a thought often intertwined with the conversation of societies mentally or physically disabled, and was pushed for well into the progressive era of the 1960’s. But, as sciences, medicine, technology, and education, continued to progress these ideas faded and we gained a better understanding of mental illness and physical disability. Today, those with mental or physical handicaps are well integrated into society, though specialized schooling still exists, its focus is now truly on the education and success of handicapped children. However, one idea surrounding the treatment of disabled children that has not changed as dramatically was the role of family in the lives of mentally and physically handicapped children.  

         As mentioned, while children were regularly checked into institutions, even when their popularity declined, they were always few in number. Instead many children, with both mental and physical disabilities, were treated at home. It is seen that the likelihood of being placed outside the home for care increases with age, with adults being placed in a variety of settings, and children largely residing with their families. Childhood insanity was seen as a domestic issue, and parents who attempted to place children outside the home were  judged for their actions. Asylums were seen as last resort, and as a result, a majority of disabled children remained in the home, or in some cases housed in workhouses, or even simply on the streets. The intensive care needed for these children could represent a massive challenge to their respective families, and a strain on their resources. The move from farmland to cities already meant many families kept children home, as both rural and city workers could not afford to send children to school, but needed them to contribute to the family economics. Children would do household chores, clean, run errands for the family and neighbours, babysit, and even work in sweatshops and factories. Those that did attend school often missed classes or dropped out in order to work and support the family. Families with handicapped children had the same issues with poverty, but with the added effect that their child could not help the family, but instead added a new pressure. This was especially difficult for lower class and immigrant families who were poor and without the proper resources to care for mentally and physically ill children. Furthermore, family poverty was actually seen a something that could jeopardize a child’s health, mentally and physically. Families with an economic disadvantage were linked were ineffective parenting, parental psychopathology, intrafamilial hostility, and single parent families; all things that could disrupt one’s mental well being. Poverty was also associated with higher levels of parental depression and family dysfunction. Altogether this could lead to an increase in the mental health disorders in children. These poverty stricken families with mentally and physically ill children to care for received little or no support. Since childhood mental and physical illness was believed to be an issue dealt with internally, they received very little outside or government assistance. This usually led to more unethical ways of trying to care for disabled children, as was the case with Pookie the Monkey Girl. Five year old Pookie was a part of a Freak Show, here she would be brought to stage by her brother and crawl for the audience. Pookie was both physically deformed and mentally handicapped. She, like many, would perform in front of crowds as a part of a side show or circus, displaying things out of the ordinary in regards to the human body. Pookie’s display in the 1970’s caused an outcry from the public that would have a domino effect leading to the end of live freak shows by the 1980’s. Freak Shows had previously been quite popular, but had been in decline since the 1940’s and 1950’s. Until the 1970’s there had been little outcry, and children who were apart of the shows were framed as being genetic failures, and potential threats to the health of the nation. Pookie’s performance, on the other hand, seemed to be the last straw, as many called out about how unethical such displays were. An article from the Daily Mail even went so far as to suggest that Freak Shows were a “question of humanity”, and that “any public exhibits of indecent material should be punishable by law”. When questioned, Pookie’s mother, who had given permission for her to be apart of the show, stated that she simply had no choice. Her mother said that they were a poor family and that the government did not offer them enough assistance to get by. So, in order to have enough to care for themselves and for Pookie’s treatment, they were forced to place her into Freak Shows. At this time, as a post World War II nation, Canada deemed child labour unacceptable, and so children like Pookie could not participate in these displays any longer, “The common interpretation of freak show history has the shows declining and ending…as the freak gave way to the medical specimen…”. They, like all children, were to be in schools. So once again it fell to the families of mentally and physically handicapped children to fend for themselves. Though the government eventually came to offer more assistance, childhood disability is still largely seen as a domestic issue even today, with the parents providing the main source of treatment and care. This is what society believed to be the proper way to manage such children.

          Throughout all the changes and advancements made in the healthcare, education, and family dynamics, throughout the twentieth century, society was at the center of it. As discussed above, the early twentieth century saw a society that did not fully grasp the effects, causes of, or proper treatments for, those with disabilities. This left handicapped people in general at a disadvantage. For disabled children they were often confined to homes, with poor families and in poor conditions, segregated in schools and society in general, with Freak Shows clearly exemplifying society’s opinion of them. As the century goes on, many changes in Canadian society occur that bring about a rise in the quality of healthcare, education, and assistance for the mentally and physically ill and their families. One of the first changes, as previously identified, was the transition of children from the home and the workplace into schools. The developmental years of life became more clearly identified, making childhood a defined era of life. The period of the teenager also saw its invention during the 1920’s, following World War I. As these parts of life became more defined, society turned its focus onto these new phenomenons, and many sought to protect Canada’s young individuals. Seen as susceptible to influence, both good and bad, they needed to be set straight and taught to live life morally. Another change happens in terms of education. The desire for a common and universal teaching, as well as creating a better educated generation for a new technologically centered world, took the nation by storm. Society wanted to both aid Canadian youth, and benefit from them. This led to the implementation of compulsory public education, through which there could also be social control. A nation wide curriculum was also formed that would include specialized teaching for handicapped children. Finally, the last change, as previously discussed, happened in the realm of the family. Parents were expected to provide all the love and care their children needed; an expectation that extended to those raising mentally and physically disabled children. Going into the later part of the twentieth century, parenting again underwent a swift and significant change. The social upheaval of World War II left very different family dynamics. Fathers and mothers were now both active parts of the working force, and more absent in the lives of their children. This led to a gap in which society saw fit to step in. As a whole, it seems Canadians decided that parents of post World War II Canada were unfit to raise respectable children. They accused parents of “ineffective parenting” and, influenced by the work of many childhood psychologists, parents were now the ones who were to be taught. Parents were to be disciplined, not children, and any problems with a child were seen to stem from problems with the parent, leading to social intervention. Throughout all the changes that health care, education, and family structure, went through, the changes in society were at the center, and the cause. As opinions changed so did the Canadian demographic. When is seemed that children were failed or their childhood threatened, it was society that stepped in to uphold them and their values. For example, in the case of Pookie it was society’s new growing need to protect all children that led to the opposition facing her performance, and the subsequent end of Freak Shows. Another example is the decreased popularity of institutions for children, as the belief that all children needed to be nurtured and cared for by their family rose; something unable to be offered in a medical facility. It was the rise in education standards that led to the specialized schooling for special needs students, despite the idea that they were inferior. These pushes made by society can also be seen reflected in the types of legislation passed at this time to ensure the protection of children. Prior to the twentieth century the Act for the Prevention of Cruelty and Better Protection of Children was established in 1893, giving the government rights to take children away from families if it was believed they were being mistreated or there was a threat to their health. 1913 and 1914 saw the establishment of the Mental Deficiency Act and Elementary Education (Defective and Epileptic Children) Act, respectively. These were put in place as society deepened its understanding of mental illness, and sought to give every child a good education. 1959 saw the United Nations implement the Declaration of the Rights of the Child. This bill was to protect every aspect of childhood. It was to make sure that every child, regardless of race, gender, education, ethnicity, status, or any other factor, would be entitled to a good life. They would have their innocence preserved, and be allowed to learn and grow in a supportive environment. Under this bill the children would be protected from all forms of neglect, abuse and exploitation, and given the rights to education and play. This bill not only protected their freedom, but their happiness, “Whereas mankind owes to the child the best it has to give”. It would be the responsibility of everyone, from parents, to educators, to the government, to your everyday person, to uphold the values of childhood. This bill even protected the rights and freedoms of mentally and physically disabled children, stating, “The child who is physically or socially handicapped shall be given the special treatment, education, and care required by his particular condition”. In all, the changes undergone in the lives of children with mental or physical disabilities would not have happened without the influence of Canadian society. From new technologies,innovations, and war, to the movement from agricultural and farm life to industry and cities, all this changed how childhood and education were considered and approached. Ultimately this would lead to a deeper understanding of, and treatment for, mentally and physically disabled children, and their continued incorporation into the same society that permanently changed them.

         From the early 1900’s to the 1960’s and 1970’s, Canadian society underwent a variety of changes. These changes were the result of new technologies, two World Wars, growing industries, and advancements in healthcare, education, and science. These brought permanent changes to every aspect of Canadian society. As society evolved and struggled with balancing new knowledge and traditional values, it both enabled and caused all social aspects of life to change as well. Mentally and physically ill or disabled children were greatly affected by this as health and education standards, and family structure, evolved due to societal intervention. Ultimately their stance in life would improve, as Canada pushed for compulsory public education and universal healthcare. The whole world seemed to reach out to protect children, regardless of disability, leading to societies better equipped to care and provide for those with disabilities. In the end, the changes seen in terms of the treatment, care, and education, of children with mental and physical disabilities were the result of greater social changes in Canada throughout the twentieth century.  

Bibliography

Beiser, Morton, Feng Hou, Ilene Hyman, and Michel Tousignant. “Poverty, family process, and the mental health of immigrant children in Canada.” American Journal Of Public Health 92, no. 2 (2002): 220-227. MEDLINE with Full Text, EBSCOhost (accessed October 1, 2017).

Braddock, David, Eric Emerson, David Felce, and Roger J. Stancliffe.  “Living Circumstances of Children and Adults with Mental Retardation or Developmental Disabilities in the United States, Canada, England and Wales, and Australia.” Mental Retardation & Developmental Disabilities Research Reviews 7, no. 2 (2001): 115-121. Academic Search Complete, EBSCOhost (accessed September 29, 2017).

Bullen, John, “Hidden Workers: Child Labour and the Family Economy in Late Nineteenth-Century Urban Ontario.” Labour/Le Travail 18 (Fall 1986): 163-187.

-“Declaration of the Rights of the Child,” in Y. Yazarsız, Milletlerarası Hukuk ve Milletlerarası Özel Hukuk Bülteni 16 (2011): 221-224.

Gleason, Mona, “Race, Class, Health: School Medical Inspection and ‘Healthy’ Children in British Columbia, 1890-1930,” Canadian Bulletin of Medical History, 19, 1 (2002): 95-112.

Gleason, Mona. “Disciplining Children, Disciplining Parents: The Nature and Meaning of Advice to Canadian Parents, 1945-1955,” in Sara Burke and Patrice Milewski (Eds.), Schooling in Transition: Readings in the Canadian History of Education, Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2012: 357-375.

-“In the end the public is the censor.” Daily Mail [London, England] (20 Sept. 1972): 6-7.

McDonald, Neil, “Egerton Ryerson and the School as an Agent of Political Socialization,” in Sara Burke and Patrice Milewski (Eds.), Schooling in Transition: Readings in the Canadian History of Education, Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2012: 39-56.

Nicholas, Jane, and Lori Chambers. “In Search of Monkey Girl: Disability, Child Welfare, and the Freak Show in Ontario in the 1970s.” Journal Of Canadian Studies 50, no. 3 (2016): 639-668. Academic Search Complete, EBSCOhost (accessed September 30, 2017).

Taylor, Steven J. “Insanity, philanthropy and emigration: dealing with insane children in late-nineteenth-century north-west England.” History Of Psychiatry 25, no. 2 (June 2014): 224. Complementary Index, EBSCOhost (accessed September 30, 2017).

Thomson, Gerald. “‘Through no fault of their own’: Josephine Dauphinee and the ‘Subnormal’ Pupils of the Vancouver School System, 1911-1941.” Historical Studies in Education 18, no.1 (Spring 2006): 51-73.

Image: Bee on a Daisy, taken by Katryna Barone