Canada's First Nation

Residential Schools

1. religious schools provided by the government to bring Indigenous children into Euro-Canadian culture.

first schools to be built
were in New France

Provided care and schooling

Instead of converting Indigenous, it
disrupted lives and community

Residential schools were located across Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba and Saskatchewan, but there were also significant numbers in northwestern Ontario and in northern Québec.

2. Residental Schools after 1880

Indigenous leaders hoped that Euro-Canadian schooling would help their kids make a smooth transition to a world of strangers.

After Indian Act (1976), government had to provide Indigenous youth with an education and incorporate them into Canadian society

But these schools were not what the leaders envisioned

These schools tried to take away the culture of Indigenous people by trying to convert them into Christians.

1930: 80 school systems
were counted

3. Life at Residential Schools

Students spent half the day working and the other half doing school work

assumption was that students would learn valuable skills while working

In reality, they were working because schools didn't have enough money to hire workers

half-day system failed to give
students proper education

However, schools by late 1950s had enough
money and got rid of the half-day system

condition were horrible

barely any food and
even that tasted bad

clothing for winter barely
covered the student's body

Teachers were not
fit to teach

lessons were taught in languages that indigenous students didn't comprehend (English & French)

workplace: employers/overseers
were harsh

missionary staff continously
bashed indigenous culture

sometimes forbidden to
speak their language

isolated; it was
a culture genocide

if they were caught speaking their language
they would get beaten

4. Health

3,200 Indigenous children died due
to overcrowding, malnourishment, tuberculosis, influenza and abuse

5. Definace

indigenous students sometimes
burned schools down

parents protested, but were ignored

1969: Department of Indian Affairs took control of residential schools, ending church involvement

catholic churches objected;
wanted to force culture on them

By 1986, most schools had closed

6. Aftermath

since 1998, indigenous families started
getting help from government

many former students got
compensation money

2008: P.M Stephen Harper apologized to indigenous people on behalf of Canadian Government

apology epmasized how horrible
residential schools were

Oka Crisis

1. What was it?

lasted from July 11– September 26 1990

78-day standoff between Mohawk protesters, army, police

during this time, Corporal Marcel Lemay, a police officer, was shot and killed

dispute was due to expansion of a golf course and development of condos

the new course & buildings would interfere with a Mohawk land, including their burial ground

this was sacred to them

occured in Oka, Quebec

Village on the northern bank of the Ottawa River

2. Background

Since 18th century, Mohawks wanted the government to recognize their land

but request kept getting denied

1961: 9-hole golf course built on land claimed by Mohawk

area known as Pines

land was built even after governement found out that this site was a burial ground

1989: announced that the golf course would be expanded to 18 holes & condos would be built

3. Resistance

SQ not only dealt with the barricades, but also with frustrated and hostile civilians who blamed them for the situation

To stop construction, Mohawk protesters formed baricade to block the area.

Mayor of Oka then asked police force (Sûreté du Québec (SQ)) to intervene and they attacked on July 11, 1990

used tear gas, concussion grenades

A gunfight occured after where SQ Corporal Marcel Lemay was killed

SQ retreated

Aboriginal supporters from the country joined Mohawk at the barricades for support

this led to SQ blockading roads leading to Oka and the reserve

after this, Mohawks from the nearby Kahnawake reserve put blockades up at the Mercier Bridge to cut off access between Montreal's southern suburbs and Island of Montreal

this angered local residents and relationship between them and Aboriginal people got worse

4. Resolution

By August, Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) was brought in as SQ failed to resolve the crisis

At the same time, Quebec Premier Robert Bourassa wanted Canadian armed forces to help

Altogether, 800 members took over from the SQ at the barricades and took position only meters away from the Mohawk warriors.

Mohawks continued to protest until Sep 26, 1900

surrendered to the army

several of them were captured by military and lots were later charged by the SQ for crimes like assaukt and theft

lots of media coverage
for this crisis across the nation

this crisis made more Canadians aware of Aboriginal rights and their land space

During the crisis, government purchased Pines to stop development on that land

After Oka Crisis ended, they also bought additional land for Kanesatake, but these lands have not been transferred to them yet

Ipperwash

1. History & Background

On September 4th, 1995 protesters also occupied Ipperwash Provincial Park.

Tension between the protesters and the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) increased, resulting in a confrontation on September 6th, 1995.

Dudley George (aboriginal protestor) was killed

took place in 1995 around Ontario's Ipperwash Provincial Park

this was claimed by the Kettle and Stony Point First Nations

underlying cause of Ipperwash
was the government taking Stoney
Point Reserve in 1942 to use as a military camp

After requests for the land to be returned, members of the Stony Point First Nation occupied the camp in 1993 and in 1995.

2. Confrontation

May 1993: Stony Point memebers peacefully occupied part of Camp Ipperwash, where the military training camp was.

1994: federal government said they would close the camp and return the land

However, military equipment stayed on the site until July 29, 1995.

this led to angry protesters forcing their way into the camp's buildings and demanding the military to withdraw completely.

the presence of police, weapons, boats and helicopters increased tension

this led to both the protesters and OPP to belive that the other side was planning to attack on September 6, 1995

there were rumors of Aboriginals carrying firearms which made OPP believe that protestors were about to become violent

OPP Emergency Response Team, the Crowd Management Unit and the Tactics and Rescue Unit were called in.

several physical confrontations took place

during the chaos, Sergeant Ken Deane shot Dudely George because he had pointed a firearm at the officer

3. Aftermath

The final agreement was completyed on April 14, 2016, when it was signed by Chief Thomas Bressette, Minister of Indigenous and Northern Affairs Carolyn Bennett and Minister of National Defence Harjit Sajjan.

May 2007: Ontario government established Ministry of Aboriginal Affairs

Ontario also agreed to give Ipperwash Provincial Park to the Kettle and Stony Point First Nation in 2007

2010: Ontario government announced it would transfer land to federal government and they would have the power to add it back to the reserve

negotiations between federal government and Kettle and Stony Point continued until 2015

September 1915: Chippewas of Kettle and Stony Point First Nations accepted $95 million from the federal government

this includede return of the land, $20 million in compensation and $70 million for the future development of land

60s Scoop

refers to scooping of Indigenous children

after being removed from their homes without consent, the kids would be placed into Christian families that did not know anything about Aboriginal culture

Sometimes, these homes would in the United States

happened from 1950 to 1980

this term was first used by Patrick Johnston who was a a researcher for the Canadian Council on Social Development

began in 1951, when changes to the Indian Act gave the provinces control over Indigenous child welfare

from the beginning, Aboriginals were poor and had high death rates with no financial support from anyone

Instead of providing help to the families, provincial child welfare agencies chose to remove children from their homes

between 1960 and 1990, more than 20,000 kids were taken from their faimilies

to this day, First Nations kids are still over-represented in adoption programs

there are lots of long-term impacts on adult adoptees

mental health

loss of cultural identity

low self-esteem and feelings of shame

loneliness and confusion

birth records couldn't be accessed until both the child and parent consented so adoptees learned about their true heritage late in life, causing frustration and emotional distress

Many adoptees were also sexually and physically abused

recent actions have been taken regarding the 60s Scoop by the government

Manitoba apologized for the Sixties Scoop and announced that it will be included in the school curriculum.

the Canadian government was sued for failing to protect the culture indentity of Indigenous kids

could cost the government 1.3 Billion dollars in damages

Missing & Murdered Women

1. What Is It

human rights crisis that has gained attention through the media

Indigenous women would dissapear or get killed and the government would take no action

Before the launch of the national public inquiry on December 8, 2015, federal government would constantly ignore calls to investigate missing and murdered women

over 4000 have gone missing or murdered but only 1,200 have been reported

but these homocides also affect communities and family memebers as many are scared that their mom or sister can be the next one killed

The Native Women’s Association of Canada (NWAC) did research and concluded that violence against Indigenous women doesn't only happen more but is also more severe.

1997-2000: the homicide rate for Indigenous women seven times higher than the rate for non-Indigenous women.

2. Call To Action

October 2004- Amnesty International released a report titled Stolen Sisters: A Human Rights Response to Discrimination and Violence against Indigenous Women in Canada

this report was a call to action

highlighted the stories of 9 Indigenous women that were killed to show how severe the violence was against them

called for more police
awareness

3. Reasons for violence
against women

racism

inequality regarding economic, social, political and cultural rights

disruption of Indigenous communities such as the government occupying land

no police responses

4. Spreading Awarenes

The Native Women’s Association of Canada (NWAC) started the Sisters in Spirit Initiative

they tracked cases of violence against Indigenous women

created a report that addressed preventing violence against Indigenous women and policies that would help protect them

overall, created more awareness for the women

The Legal Strategy Coalition on Violence against Indigenous Women (LSC) was formed 2014

support national inquiry and they look to bring justice to the families of missing and murdered Indigenous women.

Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) also investigated Highway 16 of British Columbia, also known as Highway of Tears

believe that over 40 women are missing or murdered along this stretch

5. Government Response

Despite pushes from the Indigenous community to start a national inquiry, the federal government has continued to ignore it

Stephen Harper said that a national investagation was last on the government's list

But on December 8, 2015, Trudeau announced an independent national inquiry into missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls.

$53.86 million would go into this investigation

A final report is expected to be out by November 2018

Creation of Nunavut

On April 1, 1999, The former Northwest Territories (NWT) was divided in two, creating a new territory called Nunavut

Means "Our Land" in the Inuit language Inuktitut

made up of the central and eastern parts of the former Northwest Territories

Nunavut is the traditional land of the Inuit as they have lived there for thousands of year

population is 85% Inuit

1. Its History

federal & territorial governments along with the Inuit in the Eastern Arctic talked about dividing the NWT for many years.

1976: the Inuit Tapirisat of Canada (represents Inuits across Canada) asked the federal government to put a boundary between the eastern and western regions of the NWT.

After negotiations, the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement was settled 1993

largest land claim in Canadian history

the agreement gave Inuit control of more than 350,00 squaare km

36,000 square km include mineral rights

additionally the settlement gives Inuit $1 Billion over 14 years

2. Its Government

some challenges included

creating job opportunities was difficult as 56% of Nunavut's population is under 25 years old

increasing people's income

increasing education
levels

finding ways to live a life that costs 2 or 3 times higher than southern Canadians

government is similar to NWT as it has an elected legislative assembly, cabinet and territorial court

there are training programs to prepare Inuit for government related jobs in the territory.

focusd on management, administration and support services

Indian Act & White Paper

statute in which the federal government administers Indian status, local First Nations governments and the management of reserve land and communal monies.

first introduced in 1876

1. 1763-1876

known as the Royal Proclamation of 1763

it guaranteed the First Nation people certain rights and protections

laid down the process of how the government could aquire the lands they owned

Further policies and rules were appointed in the first half of 19th century

policies wanted to make the First Nations adapt to the non-First Nation poulation whie protecting them and their lands at the same time

The 1850 Act for the better protection of the Lands and Property of the Indians in Lower Canada was the first document that had requirements on what a legal Indian should be

based on blood and whether they were tribal or not

people that were adopted or married an Indian were also considered Indian

2. 1876-1951

changes were made to the to the Act

Now, the Indian Act gave the government the ability to take out anything related to First Nation identity, political structure, culture and education

Children had to attend residental schools

made it illegal for First Nations to practice religious ceremonies

these changes made it seem as though the First Nations couldn't take care of themselves

act was attempting to familiarize First Nations with non-Aboriginal society but it wasn't done in a correct way

3. White Paper

1969: the Prime Minister released White Paper

declared that government wanted to get rid of Indian status and the Depatment of Indian Affairs

he was against the Indians getting a "special treatment"

intended to eliminate Aboriginals as a group and make them fit into the normal Canadian society

included reserve lands, fishing, hunting and edcation rights, medical services, use of land and economic development on reserve lands

the White Paper angered First Nations people

but due to opposition from Aboriginal groups, government quickly withdrew the paper