Everything about First Nation totally explained
First Nations is a term of
ethnicity that refers to the
indigenous peoples in what is now
Canada who are neither
Inuit nor
Métis people. (The First Nations were formerly known as "Indians" and the Inuit as "Eskimo"; the Métis are a separate people whose ancestors included both Indian and European.) In other words, "First Nations" is a collective term, but not an all-inclusive one, for
Canada's aboriginal peoples. In 2006, there were just under 700,000 First Nations individuals in Canada, over 2% of the population. First Nations are concentrated in Ontario and British Columbia but communities live across most of the other provinces.
Controversial terminology
The term "First Nations" can be confusing. Collectively, First Nations,
Inuit, and
Métis peoples constitute
Canada's aboriginal peoples, first peoples, or
indigenous peoples. Although "First Nations" seems to suggest that these people are the sole original occupiers of the land that's now Canada, the Inuit are also ancient inhabitants not included in the term.
"First Nations" is a legally undefined term that came into common usage in the
1980s to replace the term "Indian
band". Elder Sol Sanderson says that he coined the term in the early 1980s. A band is a legally recognized "body of Indians for whose collective use and benefit lands have been set apart or money is held by the
Canadian Crown, or declared to be a band for the purposes of the
Indian Act". There are currently over 600 recognized
First Nations governments or bands in Canada, roughly half of which are in the provinces of
Ontario and
British Columbia.
As individuals, First Nations people are officially recognized by the
Government of Canada by the archaic terms "registered Indians" or "status Indians" only if they're listed on the
Indian Register and are thus entitled to benefits under the often controversial
Indian Act, or as "Non-Status Indian" if they're not so listed and thus not entitled to benefits, according to the Canadian state. Administration of the Indian Act and Indian Register is carried out by the federal government's
Department of Indian and Northern Affairs.
While still a legal term, the use of the word "Indian" is erratic and declining in Canada. Some see the term as offensive while others prefer it to terminology such as "aboriginal person/persons/people". Another reason for the decline in the use of this term is purely practical - according to the
2006 Census, there are now more Canadians who identify as being of
East Indian ethnicity than there are members of First Nations. The use of the term "
Native Americans" isn't common in Canada, as it's seen to refer to the aboriginal peoples of the
United States specifically. The parallel term "Native Canadian" isn't commonly used, but "natives" and "autochtones" (from
Canadian French) are sometimes used. Under the
Royal Proclamation of 1763, also known as the "Indian
Magna Carta", the Crown refers to indigenous peoples in
British territory as "tribes" or "nations". The term "First Nations" is capitalized, unlike many of the alternative terms.
Bands and
nations may have slightly different meanings.
There is some controversy over the use of the term "First Nations" to either self-describe indigenous peoples within Canada, or for non-indigenous peoples to refer to indigenous peoples in this fashion. Under
international law covenants, "First Nations"
per se have no standing, whereas "indigenous peoples" or "nations" do. The Canadian government, many indigenous people within Canada, and many non-indigenous people use the term "First Nations" out of respect for the right of indigenous people to describe themselves. In general, indigenous peoples within Canada who identify themselves as "First Nations" don't believe in the status of indigenous peoples as
nation-states, while those who don't use the term, or insist on the term "indigenous peoples", are
sovereigntists. There are also indigenous people in Canada who use the term "First Nation" for any tribal and/or nomadic
ethnic group deprived of
self-determination as a political recognition of colonization. Those groups work internationally on
minority rights and self-determination.
A national representative body is the
Assembly of First Nations. Its chief,
Phil Fontaine, and many others, have argued that a citizenship-based membership for each First Nation is needed, instead of only memberships based on bloodlines, race theories, and records of ancestry. If one has to always be a quarter or eighth "Indian", then over a long period of time and mixing with others, there might be very few official "Indians" or natives. Citizenship could be based on other factors, like loyalty to one's community, knowledge and education about the history and politics of that traditional territory, language spoken, and close family and friendship bonds with community members.
History since European contact
Despite an ancient history of their own, First Nations cultures are sometimes written about as if their history begins with the encroachment of Europeans onto the continent. Nevertheless, First Nations'
written history, in fact begins at the hands of European authors, as in accounts by trappers, traders, explorers, and missionaries (cf. the
Codex canadiensis).
Aboriginal people in Canada have interacted with Europeans as far back as 1000 AD, but prolonged contact came once permanent European settlements were established. These accounts, though biased, generally speak of friendliness on the part of the First Nations, some of whom profited in trade with Europeans. Such trade generally strengthened more organized political entities like the
Iroquois Confederation.
As far back as the late 18th century, First Nations have been targeted for assimilation into what is referred to as the European/Canadian culture. These attempts reached a climax with the establishment of the
Canadian residential school system, the prohibition of Indigenous cultural practices, and the
Indian Acts of the late 19th and early 20th century.
Late 19th century
The situation for Indigenous people in the
prairies grew very grave, very quickly. Between 1875 and 1885, the
North American Bison were hunted almost to extinction; the construction of the
Canadian Pacific Railway brought large numbers of white settlers west; governments, police forces, and courts of law were established; and various epidemics continued to devastate Indigenous communities. All of these factors had a profound effect on Indigenous people, particularly those from the
plains who relied on the return of the bison every year. Most of those nations that agreed to treaties had negotiated for a guarantee of food, and help to begin farming. Just as the bison finally disappeared (the last Canadian hunt was in 1879),
Lieutenant-Governor Edgar Dewdney cut rations to reduce government costs. Between 1880 and 1885, approximately 3,000 Indigenous people starved to death in the
Northwest Territories.
Late 20th century
Following the end of the
Second World War, laws concerning First Nations in Canada began to change, albeit slowly. The federal prohibition of
potlatch and
sun dance ceremonies ended in 1951, and provinces began to accept the right of Indigenous people to vote. In June 1956, section 9 of the
Citizenship Act was amended to grant formal citizenship to Status Indians and Inuit, retroactively as of January 1947. All First Nations people were granted the right to vote in federal elections in 1960. By comparison,
Native Americans in the United States had been allowed to vote since the 1920s.
1969 White Paper
In his
1969 White Paper, then-
Minister of Indian Affairs, the Hon.
Jean Chrétien, proposed the abolition of the
Indian Act of Canada, the rejection of
Aboriginal land claims, and the assimilation of First Nations people into the Canadian population with the status of "other ethnic minorities" rather than a distinct group.
A response by
Harold Cardinal and the Indian Chiefs of Alberta (entitled "Citizens Plus" but commonly known as the "Red Paper") explained the widespread opposition to Chrétien's proposal from Status Indians in Canada. Prime Minister
Trudeau and the
Liberals began to back away from the 1969 White Paper, particularly after the
Calder case decision in 1973.
Ontario Minamata disease
In 1970, severe
mercury poisoning called
Ontario Minamata disease was discovered at
Asubpeeschoseewagong First Nation and
Wabaseemoong Independent Nation, both near
Dryden, Ontario, where there was extensive mercury pollution caused by Dryden Chemicals Company's waste water effluent that was being discharged into the
Wabigoon-
English River system. Because the local fish were no longer safe to eat, the Ontario provincial government closed the commercial fisheries run by the First Nation people and ordered them to stop eating local fish, which previously had made up the majority of their diet. In addition to the acute mercury poisoning in northwestern Ontario,
Aamjiwnaang First Nation, near
Sarnia, Ontario, experienced a wide range of chemical effects, including severe mercury poisoning, and have severely affected birth rates, birth gender ratio and general health of the population.
Elijah Harper & the Meech Lake Accord
In
1981,
Elijah Harper, a
Cree from
Red Sucker Lake,
Manitoba, became the first "Treaty Indian" in Canada to be elected as a
provincial politician. In 1990, Harper achieved national fame by holding an eagle feather as he took his stand in the Manitoba legislature and refused to accept the
Meech Lake Accord, a constitutional amendment package negotiated to gain Quebec's acceptance of the Constitution Act, 1982. The accord was negotiated in 1987 without the input of Canada's
aboriginal peoples. That was made more irksome given the recent conclusion of the third, final and unsuccessful constitutional conference on aboriginal peoples. To proceed with its intention, the Manitoba assembly was required to unanimously consent to a motion allowing it to hold a vote on the accord, because of a procedural rule. With only twelve days before the ratification deadline for the Accord, Harper began a
filibuster which prevented the assembly from ratifying the accord. Because Meech Lake failed in Manitoba, the proposed constitutional amendment failed. Harper also opposed the
Charlottetown Accord in
1992, even though
Assembly of First Nations Chief
Ovide Mercredi supported it.
Women's status and Bill C-31
According to
Indian Act, indigenous women who married white men lost their
treaty status, and their children wouldn't get status at all. In the reverse situation (indigenous men married to white women), men could keep their status, and their children would also get treaty status. In the 1970s, the
Indian Rights for Indian Women and
National Native Women's Association groups campaigned against this policy on the grounds that it discriminated against women and failed to fulfill treaty promises.
The Erasmus-Dussault commission
In 1991, Prime Minister
Brian Mulroney created the
Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples. Their report was issued in 1996; its most revolutionary proposal was the creation of a government for (and by) the First Nations that would be fully responsible within its own jurisdiction, and with which the federal government would speak on a "Nation-to-Nation" basis. This proposal offered a far different way of doing politics than the traditional policy of assigning all First Nations matters under the jurisdiction of the Indian and Northern Affairs, managed by one minister of the federal cabinet. The report also recommended providing the governments of the First Nations with up to $2 billion every year until 2010, in order to reduce the economic gap between the First Nations and the rest of the Canadian citizenry. The money would represent an increase of at least 50% to the budget of Indian and Northern Affairs. Finally, the report insisted on the importance of First Nations leaders to actively think of ways to cope with the challenging issues their people were facing, so the First Nations could take their destiny into their own hands.
The federal government, then headed by
Jean Chrétien, responded to the report a year later by officially presenting its apologies for the forced acculturation the federal government had imposed on the First Nations, and by offering an "initial" provision of $350 million.
In the spirit of the Eramus-Dussault commission, several tripartite (federal, provincial, and First Nations) accords have been signed since the report was issued. Several political crises between different provincial governments and different bands of the First Nations also occurred in the late 20th century, notably:
Early 21st century
In 2001, the
Quebec government, the federal government, and the
Cree Nation signed "
La Paix des Braves" (
The Peace of the Braves, a reference to the 1701 peace treaty between the French and the
Iroquois League). The agreement allowed
Hydro-Québec to exploit the province's hydroelectric resources in exchange for an allocation of $3.5 billion to be given to the government of the Cree Nation. Later, the
Inuit of northern Quebec joined in the agreement.
In 2005, the leaders of the First Nations, various provincial governments, and the federal government produced a working paper called the
Kelowna Accord, which would have yielded $5 billion for 5 years, but the new federal government of
Stephen Harper (2006) didn't fully follow through on the working paper.
At present, many First Nations, along with the Métis and the Inuit, claim to receive inadequate funding for education, and allege their rights have been overlooked in many instances. Recently
James K. Bartleman,
Lieutenant Governor of Ontario, listed the encouragement of indigenous young people as one of his key priorities. During his term that began in 2002, he's launched several initiatives to promote literacy and bridge building. Bartleman himself is the first aboriginal person to hold the Lieutenant Governor's position in Ontario.
As of 2006, over 75 First Nations communities exist in
boil-water advisory conditions.
In late 2005, the
drinking water crisis of the
Kashechewan First Nation received national
media attention when
E. coli was discovered in their
water supply system, following two years of living under a boil-water advisory. The drinking water was supplied by a relatively new treatment plant built in March 1998. The cause of the tainted water was a plugged chlorine injector that wasn't discovered by local operators, who were not qualified to be running the treatment plant. When officials arrived and fixed the problem, chlorine levels were around 1.7 mg/l, which was blamed for chronic skin disorders such as
impetigo and
scabies. An investigation led by
Health Canada revealed that the skin disorders were likely due to living in squalor. The evacuation of Kashechewan is largely viewed by Canadians as a cry for help for other underlying social and economic issues which Aboriginal people in Canada face.
On
June 29,
2007, Canadian aboriginal groups held countrywide protests aimed at ending First Nations poverty, dubbed the
Aboriginal Day of Action. The demonstrations were largely peaceful, although some groups disrupted transportation with blockades or bonfires; a stretch of the
Highway 401 was shut down, as was the
Canadian National Railway's line between
Toronto and
Montreal.
Demographics
In the 20th century the First Nations population of Canada increased tenfold. Between 1900 and 1950 the population grew only by 29% but after the 1960’s the
infant mortality level on reserves dropped dramatically and the population grew by 161%. Since the 1980’s the number of First Nations babies more than doubled and currently almost half of the First Nations population is under the age of 25. As a result the First Nations population of Canada is expected to increase dramatically in the coming decades.
Diversity
There are many distinct
First Nations cultures in Canada, originating from all regions of the country.
Indian reserves, established in
Canadian law by treaties such as
Treaty 7, are the very limited contemporary lands of First Nations recognised by the non-indigenous governments. Some reserves are within cities, such as the
Opawikoscikan Reserve in
Prince Albert, Saskatchewan. There are more reserves in Canada than there are First Nations, as some First Nations were ceded multiple reserves by treaty.
Culture areas
First Nations can be
grouped into cultural areas based on their ancestors’ primary
lifeway, or occupation, at the time of European contact. These culture areas correspond closely with
physical and biological regions of Canada.
The
Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast were centred around ocean and river fishing; in the interior of
British Columbia,
hunting and gathering and river fishing. In both of these areas the salmon was of chief importance. For the
people of the plains,
bison hunting was the primary activity. In the
subartic forest, other species such as the
moose were more important. For peoples near the Great Lakes and St. Laurence river,
shifting agriculture was practised, including the raising of
maize,
beans, and
squash.
Today, First Nations people work in a variety of occupations and many also live outside their ancestor's homes. Nevertheless, the traditional cultures of their ancestors, shaped by nature, still exert a strong influence on their culture, from spirituality to political attitudes.
Language diversity
At European contact, First Nations peoples spoke a
wide variety of languages grouped into several
language families. Peoples with similar languages didn't always share the same material culture. For example,
Cree language speakers lived both in the forests and on the prairies. Similarly, peoples with related languages were not always allies.
While a number of First Nation languages are still found in Canada, many of them are presently endangered, with decreasing numbers of speakers.
Political organization
At contact, First Nations organization ranged in size from
band societies of a few people to multi-nation
confederacies like the
Iroquois. First Nations leaders from across the country form the
Assembly of First Nations, which began as the National Indian Brotherhood in 1968.
Today's political organizations are largely the by-product of interaction with European-style methods of government. As well, First Nations political organizations are spread throughout Canada and vary in political standing, viewpoints, and reasons for forming. Most First Nations political organizations arise from the need to be united and to have their opinions heard. First Nations negotiate with the
Canadian Government through
Indian and Northern Affairs Canada in all affairs concerning land, entitlement, and rights.
However, not all first nation groups belong to these groups. Some groups operate independently.
First Nation issues
First Nations peoples face a number of problems to greater degrees than Canadians overall. They have higher unemployment, rates of
crime and incarceration,
substance abuse, health problems and lower levels of education. Suicide rates are more than twice the sex-specific rate and three times the age-specific rates of non-aboriginal Canadians.
Life expectancy at birth is significantly lower for First Nations babies than for babies in the Canadian population as a whole. As of 2001, Indian and Northern Affairs Canada estimates First Nations life expectancy to be 8.1 years shorter for males and 5.5 years shorter for females.
Further Information
Get more info on 'First Nation'.
|
External Link Exchanges
Do you know how hard it is to get a link from a large encyclopaedia? Well we're different and will prove it. To get a link from us just add the following HTML to your site on a relevant page:
<a href="http://first_nations.totallyexplained.com">First Nations Totally Explained</a>
Then simply click through this link from your web page. Our crawlers will verify your link, extract the title of your web page and instantly add a link back to it. If you like you can remove the words Totally Explained and embed the link in article text.
As long as your link remains in place, we'll keep our link to you right here. Please play fair - our crawlers are watching. Your site must be closely related to this one's topic. Any kind of spamming, dubious practises or removing the link will result in your link from us being dropped and, potentially, your whole site being banned. |
