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Royal Proclamation
-Issued by British King in 1763 after the 7 Year War which France ended
-France had ceded (given) the territories in North American to Britain as part of the peace deal
-The king drew a line along the Appalachian mountains and designed everything west of the mountains as native territory
-Designation forbade colonists from settling there, which angered the european settlers
-Explicitly stated that natives owned "all lands not ceded by or purchased from them" -
Indian Act
-Passed in 1876
-Governs how Canada and the Canadian gov't interacts with native people
-Gives the government control over almost all aspects of native's lives
-Limits the power of "Band Councils" and forbids them from reserving land
-It was unilaterally imposed, as opposed to being negotiated
-The act was used to try and assimilate native people into Canadian society
-Set up residential schools to teach native kids the Canadian way of life
-Is seen as discrimination by many Canadians -
Assembly of the First Nations
-After First World War, League of Indians in Canada founded by a Mohawk veteran, Fred Ogilvie Loft
-Became antecedent of Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations and Indian Association of Alberta
-1926 - Indian Defence League of America formed by Chief Clinton Rickard of the Tuscarora Nation
-Heavy involvement in US-Canada border crossing problems faced by "Indians" in both countries
-Rickard organized an annual celebration to assert border crossing rights -
Ipperwash Ontario
-Was Indigenous land, dispute that took place in Ipperwash, Provincial Park, Ontario in 1995
-Several members of Stoney Point Ojibway band occupied park in order to assert their claim to nearby land which had been expropriated from them during WW2
-During violent confrontation, Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) killed protester Dudley George
-George was unarmed and an OPP officer fired and killed Dudley George, believing the flashlight he had was a weapon -
Aboriginal Right to Universal Suffrage
-Gave native people the right to vote in Canadian elections
-Universal suffrage defined as everyone having the right to vote, not just certain groups based on race, religion or gender (this term still often excluded minors)
-Passed at around the same time as the Canadian bill of rights, which stated that all Canadians have equal rights
-Bill of rights was strong evidence that native people should get the right to vote
-Until now they were considered wards of the state, like foster kids -
Period: to
National Indian Brotherhood and Native Council of Canada
-Formed in 1961 to represent the interests of Canada's native people
-Collapsed in 1967 since the Status, Non Statues Natives and Metis couldn't work together
-Metis and Non Status Indians formed the Native Council of Canada
-Status Indians formed the National Indian Brotherhood
-Both groups still had the same goal, to represent and advance the interest of native Canadians -
Abolishment of Residential School System
-Residential schools were formally abolished in 1969, and all such institutions were placed under the administration of the Department of Indian Affairs, as opposed to that of the catholic Church
-Although ownership changed hands, the conditions at the schools didn't
-Despite the clear indications that the schools were not working, and did more harm than good, it took many more years before schools actually started to close
-Last residential school only closed in 1996, almost 3 decades later -
Period: to
White Paper
-Was a policy proposed by PM Trudeau and the Minister of Indian Affairs
-Was meant to abolish the Indian Act, which many saw as discriminatory
-Would also remove the legal status of "Indian" from Canadian law, which was part of Trudeau's plan to increase equality
-However, most native band leaders opposed the policy proposal, and after a year it was withdrawn
-The Natives saw it as more of an assimilation attempt seeking to remove their special status then as a sincere equality measure -
Specific Land Claim
-Specific clams deal with past grievances of First Nations related to Canada's obligations under historic treaties or the way it managed First Nations' fund or other assets
-To honor its obligations, Canada negotiates settlements w/ First Nation and (where applicable) provincial and/or territorial gov't -
Comprehensive Land Claims
-Comprehensive land claims deal with the unfinished business of treaty-making in Canada
-Claims generally arised in areas of Canada where Aboriginal land rights haven't been death with by treaty or through other legal means -
Movement Towards Self Gov't
-Proposal to give gov't representing Canada's native peoples greater powers, ranging from powers equal to those of municipal gov'ts, to demands to be considered sovereign states
-No bands were granted status of sovereign states, some granted varying degrees of power as a result of their negotiations with federal/provincial gov't
-Drive for self gov't stems from the idea that this land belongs to the natives, and that it is occupied by settlers, who impose laws upon them -
Passing of Bill C-31
Three Principles that guided the amendments to the Indian Act were:
-Removal of discrimination
-Restoring status and membership rights
-Increasing control of Indian bands over their own affairs
-In addition to bringing the Indian Act into accord with the equality provisions of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
-bill C-31 expanded band control over membership and community life -enabling Indian people to take an important step toward self-gov't -
Oka Standoff
-Land dispute between group of Mohawk people and town of Oka
-Surete du Quebec Corporal Marcel Lemay was killed by a bullet, rumours circulated that the reason no source had been determined was that it had been a police bullet and the Lemay had been conducting an internal investigation which was connecting the death of two Mohawk men to SQ guns
-The dispute was the first well-publicized violent conflict between First Nations and the Canadian gov't -
Gustafasen Lake, BC
-Confrontation between the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the Ts'peten Defenders in the interior of BC, Canada at Gustafsen Lake
-RCMP operation would end up being the most costly of its kind in Canadian history having involved 400 police officers and support from the Canadian Military
-Predominantly indigenous occupiers believed that the "grazing rights privilege" ranch land on which they stood was both sacred space and part of a larger tract of Shuswap territory -
Delgamuukw Case
-Aboriginal title is the idea that the land in Canada is owned by the native people, and illegally occupied by the white settler's defendants
-The supreme court defined Aboriginal title and what requirements had to be met in order for the natives to claims sovereignty over that land
The requirements were:
-"Must have occupied the territory before the declaration of sovereignty"
-Must prove continued occupation between the declaration of sovereignty and before it -
Statement of Reconciliation
-The Canadian gov't issued a "Statement of reconciliation" continued within a document entitled Gathering Strength - Canada's Aboriginal Action Plan
-Made a # of recommendations to the gov't of Canada regarding residential schools
-Canada consequently made a Statement of Reconciliation to residential school survivor in 1998 and created the Aboriginal Healing Foundation -
Nisga's Treaty
-Between the Nisga's FNs and the BC gov't
-2000 square KM of reserve land was created in the Nass River Valley
-300,000 square KM of water reserve was also created
-Gave the natives control of the land's rich fishing logging industries
-Was the 1st formal treaty signed between natives and the BC gov't in over a century -
Creation of Nunavut
-Map of Canada changed
-Former Northwest Territories (NWT) divided into two
-Creating new territory called Nunavut
-Inuit language, Inuktitut, word "Nunavut" means our land
