First Peoples In Canada
By Elizabeth Cardona
Introduction to First Peoples In Canada
The Indian Act
Throughout the time, the Canadian Government has changed the Indian Act. In 1951, they had to revise the Indian Act because Canada got involved with The United Nations Universal Declaration Of Human rights. The revisions made to the Act let the First Nations Peoples practice their customs and culture. They were allowed to enter pool halls, to gamble, restrictions on alcohol were reinforced, they were allowed to appear off reserve in ceremony dresses, Indian woman were allowed to vote in band councils, to organize and hire legal counsel. However, the Indian Act didn't give women, their full rights. If a woman married a non-Indian man she would lose her status and if an Indian man married a non-Indian women they would still keep their rights. The Indian Act affected the topic because The First Nation Peoples were restricted their human rights. They couldn't even practice their traditions. Many people suffer from this because they lost their culture. It made the people lose confidence to fight against the government because the government decided for them by this act.
Source of image: http://www.usask.ca/nativelaw/publications/books/the-indian-act-of-canada.php
Oka Crisis
The following quote explains what happened in the Oka Crisis, "In 1990, when the town of Oka decided it was going to allow the expansion of a golf course on disputed territory —including on a Mohawk burial ground — people living in the neighbouring Mohawk community of Kanesatake rose up in defence of what they said was their land.
In response to the council's decision, Mohawks barricaded a dirt road leading to the golf course.After they refused to obey a court injunction to stand down, a shoot out ensued with provincial police officers and resulted in the death of Cpl. Marcel Lemay on July 11. Where the bullet came from remains a mystery" (Valiante & Rakobowchuk, 2015). This act of resistance gained national attention which it was needed. At the end, the Mohawk burned their weapons and walked out of the final area they had been contained in but didn't surrender. They went to court and the golf course was never expanded. The Oka Crisis also helped create the Royal Commission and it also helped with land claims.
Source of image:
http://www.bulgergallery.com/dynamic/fr_artwork_display.asp?ArtworkID=265
The Royal Commisison
The Royal Commission on Aboriginal People was created in 1991. The Royal Commission was created so that they could give suggestions to the government on how to fix the many problems they had with the First Nations Peoples. In an article by Robert J. Carney he states, "One of the tasks addressed by the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples (RCAP) was to chronicle the origins and characteristics of Native residential schools. But the phenomenon of Aboriginal residential schooling is complex and requires considerably more nuance, as well as conceptual analysis, than the simplistic historical interpretations offered in this document"(CARNEY 1998). The Royal Commission had to give a report about the First Nations education. They also had to give suggestions on how to fix the problems with education because that was their job. The Royal Commission helped the First Nation Peoples a lot because it was part of the government and the government couldn't ignore them. That made the government actually help the First Nations Peoples. The last report of the Commissions was in 1996.
Source of image:
https://alvarri.com/press-releases/1851-research-fellowship/
How did the Indian Act affect The First Nations Peoples?
A way the Indian Act affected the First Nations Peoples was by taking away their human rights. School Britannica states that "Human rights are those that individuals have by virtue of their existence as human beings. The right to life itself and the basic necessities of food and clothing may be considered fundamental human rights". Every human has rights and in Canada the First Nations Peoples were denied to them. The First Nation Peoples didn't have control over their land, resources, traditions, status, language, education etc. During the years of the Indian Act, Residential school were implemented in the First Nations Peoples lives. According to the website called Indigenous Foundations it states "The term residential schools refers to an extensive school system set up by the Canadian government and administered by churches that had the nominal objective of educating Aboriginal children but also the more damaging and equally explicit objectives of indoctrinating them into Euro-Canadian and Christian ways of living and assimilating them into mainstream Canadian society". The school system’s goal was to eliminate all aspects of the Aboriginal culture. In the schools, they were very strict with the children. If they spoke their language they would get punished even if that was the only language they could speak. All the abuse in the school affected the children emotionally. By this, the children couldn't succeed and that resulted in them giving up. Also, because the children didn't get a good education, they couldn't revolt or know anything about the government. They couldn't learn how to get rid of the Indian Act. The Indian Act didn't let the First Nations peoples do anything. They couldn't even practice their traditions. For a long time, the First Nations peoples were under Canadian rule.
Annotated Bibliography/OPVL
"The White Paper 1969." The White Paper 1969. First Nations Studies Program, 2009. Web. 21 Sept. 2015.
"The Residential School System." The Residential School System. First Nations Studies Program, 2009. Web. 21 Sept. 2015.
This website gives information on the First Nation Peoples. It explains the Indian Act, The White Paper, Residential School amongst other topic related to the First Nations Peoples. It is easy to read which helped me understand the topic. I think its a reliable source because I looked at information from encyclopedias and it had the same info. Also its from the university of British Colombia which is located in Canada.
Montpetit, Isabelle. "Background: The Indian Act." CBCnews. CBC/Radio Canada, 14 July 2011. Web. 21 Sept. 2015.
"The Indian Act." The Indian Act. First Nations Studies Program, 2009. Web. 21 Sept. 2015.
This website explains the Indian Act plus other First Nation History. The website is very helpful because it has information on different topics about indigenous people.
"Citizenship." Britannica School. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 2015. Web. 21 Sep. 2015.
Carney, Robert J. "Review Article: Canada: Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples." Review Article: Canada: Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples. Catholic Education Resource Center, 1998. Web. 21 Sept. 2015.
This website gave information on the Royal Commission on Aboriginal People. I used it to reference it in a quote about one of the duties it had. The source seems reliable because it cites it sources and the author. The title says "Recourse center" so it might be reliable. The website also offers other type of information about culture, religion, education, and other subjects.
Valiante, Giuseppe, and Peter Rakobowchuk. "Oka Crisis Deepened Understanding of Land Claims in Canada - Aboriginal - CBC."CBCnews. CBC/Radio Canada, 17 July 2015. Web. 21 Sept. 2015.
This article was helpful because it gives information of the Oka Crisis. I think its reliable because its report and uses evidence from people. Also it is rom the Canadian press. The bad thing is that because the Oka Crisis happen a little while ago,it might not be accurate.
"Shaney Komulainen Soldier Patrick Cloutier and Brad Laroque, an Aboriginal from Saskatchewan, Come Face to Face in a Tense Standoff at the Kahnesatake Reserve in Oka, Que. on Sept. 1, 1990. Presented by Stephen Bulger Gallery." Shaney Komulainen Soldier Patrick Cloutier and Brad Laroque, an Aboriginal from Saskatchewan, Come Face to Face in a Tense Standoff at the Kahnesatake Reserve in Oka, Que. on Sept. 1, 1990. Presented by Stephen Bulger Gallery. Stephen Bulger Gallery, n.d. Web. 22 Sept. 2015.