First Nations in Canada during the 20th Century

The Indian Act (1876)

"A person means an individual other than an Indian."

Section 12 of the Indian Act (1880).

• The Indian Act - was a series of racist social control laws enacted by the Federal government of Canada to place Aboriginal Peoples of Canada in the position of a colonized people.

• Assimilation – the process through which a person or group of a

minority culture is absorbed into the majority culture, losing the distinct features of the minority people.

– Examples: The Canadian government assimilated First Nations people by

putting them on reservations, which were often too small for traditional hunting.

• The Indian Act regulated and controlled virtually every aspect of Aboriginal people’s life, including Sundance and Potlatch gatherings, which were the major social, economic and political institutions of the First Nations tribes.

• It wasn’t until 1951 that Parliament repealed the laws prohibiting potlatch.

• The Indian Act still exists today, although it is now used to protect First Nations rights.

Potlatch Ceremonies: Past and Present

First Nations right to vote • In British Columbia, First

Nations didn’t get the right to vote in provincial elections until 1949.

• It wasn’t until 1960 that all First Nations people got the right to vote in Canadian federal elections.

• This was the first time that the government acknowledged citizenship for Aboriginal Peoples without the condition of the assimilation into the Canadian white society.

Residential Schools

• Attendance at residential schools was made mandatory by the government in 1920 for Native Canadian children between the ages of 7 and 16.

• The "aggressive assimilation" program was dedicated to eradicating the languages, traditions and cultural practices of native Canadians.

• Children were forced to leave their parents and were harshly punished for speaking their own languages or practicing their religions.

• Students also suffered from poor diet and inadequate housing

• The Canadian government forced about 150,000 First Nations children into government-financed residential schools where many suffered physical, mental and sexual abuse.

• The residential schools have been linked to the widespread incidence of alcoholism, suicide and family violence in many First Nations communities.

• In June 2008, Prime Minister Harper made an official apology at the House of Commons for the governments treatment of children in Indian residential schools, stating "Today, we recognize that this policy of assimilation was wrong, has caused great harm and has no place in our country."

• The federal government agreed to pay $1.86 billion to surviving residential students, and to establish a truth and reconciliation commission to document the experiences of children who attended the schools.

Land Claims (Aboriginal Title)• Cut-off Lands – Even thought the Federal government

had set aside reservations for First Nations to live on, the government had taken reserve land without the consent of the Aboriginal bands.

• 1906 – Chief Joe Capilano presented an unsuccessful land claim to British King Edward VII in London, England

• 1927 – Andrew Paull & Peter Kelly petitioned the House of Commons & Senate for the government to begin land treaty negotiations with the First Nations– The Federal Government disagreed, and changed the Indian

Act so that it became illegal for First Nations to pursue land claims

Chief Joe Capilano

Delegation sends Chief Capilano off on his way to England (1906)

Resistance

• National Indian Brotherhood (1968)– First Nations organized pressure group to lobby on

behalf of Aboriginal people living on reserves

White Paper (1969)• Government document proposed by Pierre Trudeau’s

Liberal Government, and his Minister of Indian Affairs Jean Chretien.

• Trudeau wanted to end the protective attitude by the Federal government towards First Nations people, essentially which would cancel the Indian Act

– Cree leader Harold Cardinal and the National Indian Brotherhood led the attack on the White Paper, demanding self-government to control their own affairs

• They presented their own paper called Citizens Plus (Red Paper), and Chretien decided to cancel the White Paper

Assembly of First Nations

• The National Indian Brotherhood changed their name to the Assembly of First Nations in 1980

• The Assembly of First Nations is still lobbying the government today

Environmental Victories

• Inuit, Metis and the Dene of the Yukon and Northwest Territories successfully lobbied government to halt construction of the Mackenzie Valley oil and natural gas pipeline– The pipeline would deliver energy from Alaska and the

Arctic to Alberta• The Berger Commission was created to hear the

First Nations environmental concerns. In 1977, Judge Berger’s recommended stopping the Mackenzie Pipeline for 10 years until

environmental surveys could be done

James Bay Hydro Project

• Cree residents halted construction of two new phases of the James Bay Hydro Project– The project threatened to flood part of their

ancestral lands

Oka Confrontation (1990)• Oka Town Council wanted to expand a golf course

into land that Mohawks at the Kanesatake Reserve considered sacred (holy)

• Mohawk Warrior Society decided to stop the project by blocking the land

• Oka Town Council called the police, and gunfire broke out between the police and Mohawk warriors, and one policeman was killed in the fighting

• The Police blockaded Kanesatake, and the Mohawks blocked a bridge to Montreal that went through their reservation

• Aboriginals across Canada demonstrated (protested) in support of the Mohawk

• Railways, bridges, and highways that went through reservations were blocked (civil disobedience)

• Premier Bourassa called in the Canadian Army• Eventually the tense stand-off ended after the

Federal Government bought the disputed land and gave it to the Kanesatake Reserve

• The Oka Standoff proved that the First Nations could stand up to the government (and win!)

Self- Government

• 1982 – First Nations rights were entrenched in the Charter of Rights and Freedoms

• 1985 – Bill C-31 gave Aboriginal band councils the power to decide who had the right to live on Aboriginal reserves.– This power used to belong to the Federal

Government’s Department of Indian Affairs

Land Claims

• Specific Land Claims – Treaties between Aboriginal peoples and the Federal Government have been signed, but the terms were not kept (Ex. Cut-off Lands)

• Comprehensive Land Claims – The land was never surrendered in a treaty, which makes it harder to prove in a land claim case in court (Ex. Oka Standoff)

History of Land Claims

• 1763 – Royal Proclamation stated that “any lands whatever, which have not been ceded to or purchased by us… are reserved to the…Indians” – But Western and Northern Canada were not

known to the British at this time, so many government people believe the Royal Proclamation is not valid there

Nisga’a Treaty• 1887 – The Nisga’a began claiming their land

• 1912 – The Nisga became the first group to make a land claim against the Canadian government (even though it was illegal under the Indian Act)

• 1993 – Supreme Court of Canada acknowledged that Aboriginal Title (the right to land) in a comprehensive land claim case could exist

• 1996 – The Federal government and British Columbia provincial government signed the Nisga’a Treaty (8% of original land claim, $190 million over 15 years, fishing, forestry and hydro rights, self-government)– In exchange, the Nisga’s have agreed to give up their rights under the Indian

Act and become regular tax paying citizens (Trudeau’s dream)

– The Nisga’a finally got their self-government and land after 130 years, and many other Aboriginal groups now want a similar deal from government involving their land claims

Delgamuukw Case (1998)

• The Supreme Court of Canada officially defined Aboriginal Title:

• “Aboriginal groups could claim ownership of land if they can prove that they occupied the land before the Canadian government claimed sovereignty, and that they occupied it continuously and exclusively.”

• This decision has really worried land owners in disputed land areas, as Aboriginals in BC have already claimed 110% of British Columbia land

• See Map on pg.214

Nunavut (1999)

• The territory of Nunavut was created in 1999, giving the Inuit people of Northern Canada the right to self-government. It is Canada’s largest territory (1.6 million square kilometres)