Latest news with #Treaty4
The Guardian
5 days ago
- General
- The Guardian
King Charles's visit brings frustration for First Nations amid ‘backslide in reconciliation'
King Charles's speech to Canada's parliament this week was framed as a subtle rebuke to Donald Trump's threats of annexation and an assertion of the country's sovereignty. But for many Indigenous people, the elaborate spectacle of the royal visit – with its protocol, regalia, thrones and mounties in pith helmets – evoked a model of national identity at odds with ongoing efforts to confront Canada's own violent history of colonization and dispossession. The visit came as some Indigenous Chiefs and academics warned that questions of reconciliation with First Nations are being drowned out by the noisy surge of patriotism provoked by the US president. 'There's only so much oxygen in the room and it gets all sucked up with standing up to Trump. It's 'Indigenous people, you're important – but not right now'. That's a strategy of settler colonialism too,' said David MacDonald, a political science professor at Guelph University in Ontario from Treaty 4 lands in Regina, Saskatchewan. Canada was formed to promote unity among British colonial territories and to stop American expansion – and it was created through genocidal violence against Indigenous people, said MacDonald. 'We need to be careful not to fall back into those historical patterns, because it's pretty easy for a lot of settler Canadians to think that's the way it has been and should be, especially if we appeal to older historical figures,' he said. Indigenous leaders also highlighted the irony of such high-profile declarations of Canadian sovereignty when First Nations are themselves forced to make similar assertions to Canada's own federal government. Canada's federal government admits that colonial efforts to forcefully assimilate Indigenous peoples, and the displacement of First Nations on to inhospitable reserves have all contributed to shorter life expectancy, poverty and illness. Indigenous communities have repeatedly been forced to turn to the courts in order to force the federal government to meet its obligations under centuries-old treaties between First Nations and the Crown. In one case last year, Canada's highest court ruled that the crown had made a 'mockery' of a 1850 agreement by failing to adequately compensate First Nations for the riches extracted from their ancestral territories. 'We were sovereign. We still are sovereign. And you have to respect that we enter these treaties to make sure that we share land and resources – and therefore Canada, the colonial state, must share revenue as well,' said Chief David Monias, of Pimicikamak Okimawin in Manitoba, at a press conference following the King's speech. Grand Chief Krya Wilson of the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs welcomed the King's decision to mention Indigenous rights, meet and acknowledge that Canada's parliament building sits on traditional Algonquin territory. But she added: 'There was talk of truth and reconciliation. But … we've heard the term 'reconciliation' for years now,' she says. 'And what we are expecting – and what we've been expecting for years – is tangible action.' National Chief Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak, who is head of the Assembly of First Nations, said that during her meeting with the king she stressed the need for 'less colonialism'. 'People don't like this [US] colonialism that's happening at the borders,' she said. 'But first nations have been feeling that for a long time: colonialism trying to dictate our lives.' Over the past 20 years, Canada has engaged in a fitful reckoning with its colonial past, with a 2015 report from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) concluding that the country had engaged in a 'cultural genocide' in which tens of thousands of First Nations children were forcibly removed from their families and incarcerated in residential schools rife with abuse. A major shift in public discourse also came four years ago this week, when remains of 215 children were confirmed outside a former residential school in southern British Columbia. But that historical reassessment has been drowned out by a surge of nationalism in response to Trump – often invoking the iconography of British colonialism, said Rowland Keshena Robinson, an assistant professor of political science at the University of Waterloo in Ontario, who is a member of the Menominee Nation of Wisconsin. On the day of Charles' speech, the Ontario government announced that a statue of John A Macdonald, Canada's first prime minister, would be put back on public display, five years after activists threw paint on it to highlight Macdonald's efforts to eliminate Indigenous people including through starvation, 'There absolutely has been a backsliding in reconciliation in the last five years,' Robinson said. Macdonald argued that Canadians face a unique opportunity to define themselves as different from the US not through loyalty to Britain but through by enacting true reconciliation with Indigenous people. 'What's the opposite of a dictatorial, authoritarian presidential system? It's a decentralized system where Indigenous people have control over their own lands, waters and keep large corporations from digging everything up,' he said. 'That would be the most anti-American thing a Canadian could do,' he said. 'If the narrative could change Indigenous self-determination could be a central part of Canadian identity.'
CTV News
07-05-2025
- General
- CTV News
Treaty 4 Territory the focus of new mural in rural Sask.
A mural celebrating Treaty 4 Territory has been unveiled at 33 Central School in Fillmore, Sask. The mural was a collaborative project between the school and Indigenous elders and an artist, with the purpose of better understanding Indigenous history and culture. 'I wanted a lasting legacy on the wall that showed everyone is welcome,' said Kylee Carver, the principal of 33 Central School. 'We really do try to honour our commitments to truth and reconciliation,' she added. In December of 2024, 33 Central School was granted over $10,000 from Sask. Arts for the project. Painting began in January with nearly every student taking part. Brianna LaPlante was the artist coordinating the mural. She said the entire process was a teaching moment, as they created something which can be used as a learning tool in the future. 'I wanted to introduce them to more of a holistic way of learning, by doing, talking and laughing and relationship building,' she said. 'I want the art in the future to be used as a tool. Not only for storytelling, but the story is incomplete with the Indigenous perspective.' Carver said the school has brought their students out to Indigenous gatherings in the past, but it is costly taking everyone along. Through the mural project, the cultural lessons and knowledge were brought right to the school over a length of time. 'I feel like we should have more art like this, and appreciate what treaty people have given us,' said Faith Larson, a Grade 8 student from 33 Central School. There are plans to name the mural and hang it inside of the school. It will be used to teach the history of Treaty 4 Territory through the format of oral tradition.
CBC
26-03-2025
- Politics
- CBC
Liberal candidate looks to take Manitoba's northernmost riding after giving NDP MP 'a good run' in 2015
Rebecca Chartrand says she gave NDP candidate Niki Ashton "a good run for her money" the last time she ran in Manitoba's northernmost riding, and the Liberal candidate says she's now looking to do it again. Chartrand, the president and CEO of Indigenous Strategy, a management consulting company, is running for the federal Liberals in Churchill-Keewatinook Aski, the party confirmed late Tuesday. She'll attempt to unseat the NDP's Niki Ashton, who has won five consecutive elections in the riding. Ashton may have been considered a lock to win the seat again, but polls suggesting the NDP's popularity is sliding could point to an opening for the Liberals and Conservatives to seriously challenge the party's supremacy in a riding the NDP has won 12 times in the last 15 elections. "I see that I have a chance for sure. I think I gave Niki Ashton a good run for her money the last time I ran," Chartrand said, referring to the 2015 election, in which she won 42 per cent of the votes cast (12,575 votes) to Ashon's 45 per cent (13,487 votes). Ashton won the two subsequent elections by at least 3,100 ballots. 'A seat at the table' Chartrand, who is Anishinaabe, Inninew and Métis and from Treaty 4 territory, said Indigenous people "need to have a seat at the table" in a riding where 75 per cent of people identity as Indigenous, according to the 2021 census. "Niki Ashton is not Indigenous. And all things being equal, I think it should be based on the person's skill and what they bring, but democracy also requires change," said Chartrand. "And so I think it's important to bring in some fresh ideas and to bring somebody into a position that's actually going to be in a party that is going to govern this country." Chartrand said the Liberals have wanted her to run in previous elections, but she was busy with her work and children. She felt compelled to run this time as Canadians have galvanized around a "common enemy" in U.S. President Donald Trump amid the ongoing trade war, she said. "With the NDP and their [polling] numbers just plummeting, a vote for Niki Ashton would be a wasted vote and a very critical one at this time in history." CBC requested comment Tuesday night from the NDP for this story. The Conservatives have yet to announce a candidate for the riding. Ashton has been a consistent advocate on Parliament Hill around Indigenous issues and the cost of living. She came under fire last summer when CBC News reported she billed taxpayers for a trip she took to reportedly meet with "stakeholders" over the Christmas holidays in Quebec — travel that included bringing her husband and kids along. She has since paid back some of those expenses. In light of the current trade war, Chartrand said she considers northern Manitoba a "national trade lifeline" the country can no longer ignore. She says if elected she'll advance economic development opportunities in the north, ranging from the railway to the Port of Churchill and the abundance of critical minerals. "I don't think we can see infrastructure in the north as a cost. I think we need to see it as an investment for the rest of Canada."
CBC
05-03-2025
- Politics
- CBC
Descendants of woman who lost status by marriage fight Little Black Bear for full membership
Charles Racette was arranging his father's funeral when he learned his father was not considered a member of Little Black Bear First Nation. Family had suggested he apply to their band for help with funeral costs. That's when Racette learned his father William was actually only considered a "citizen," not a member of the First Nation about 100 kilometres northeast of Regina. Racette's grandmother Emmerence Racette (née Bellegarde), William's mother, lost her treaty status when she married a Métis man in 1901. Under the Indian Act at the time, women lost their status if they married a man who didn't have status. Through Bill C-31 in 1985, women who had lost their status through marriage, and their descendants, could regain it. But Little Black Bear First Nation doesn't recognize Emmerence's descendants as registered members, although according to the family's treaty status that is where they are affiliated. They are classified as "citizens" where they cannot vote or get funding from the band. Now they're taking the First Nation to court over its band registration policies. Racette said the government fixed its wrongs by reinstating women's status and now First Nations should be doing their part as well by reinstating them as members. "That's where we feel that we're being discriminated against by our own; when they talk about truth and reconciliation, where is that with our own people?" said Racette. "Most bands are saying, 'Let's bring our people home' and Little Black Bear is not doing that. We're home, but they won't open the door. We're knocking and they won't let us in." Attempt to block cows and plows Four members of the family are suing Little Black Bear, alleging it is discriminating against them and seeking a declaration that they have a right to be part of any treaty settlements. They sought an injunction to stop the band's Treaty 4 agricultural benefits (cows and plows) settlement until their claim can be heard, but their application for an injunction was dismissed in January. Racette, who is a plaintiff in the lawsuit, says if they were registered members of the band, they would get financial help to cover funeral costs, medical aid and also the family would be included in settlement payments, but he also said "It's not about the money." Racette received his treaty status in 2012, and said he thought he was a registered member ever since then. But he learned the band only considered him a citizen. "It's not fair. We'd like to be treated as members," Racette said. "I want to participate … and be active in some of the things like taking my grandchildren to a powwow over there." Racette said right now he doesn't feel welcome to take his grandchildren out to Little Black Bear to attend powwows, although he has friends and family who live out there. Plaintiff Gene Amyotte, a great-grandson of Emmerence, received his treaty status in 2023. Amyotte said about 50 people want to become full members of Little Black Bear, including his oldest children. Amyotte said his daughter and son, who helped build housing in the community, were also denied band membership through Little Black Bear and want to apply for membership elsewhere. A spokesperson for Indigenous Services Canada said if a person's family history connects them to a First Nation that has assumed control of its membership, they must then reach out to that First Nation to request to be affiliated to the membership list. First Nation has own membership code Little Black Bear controls its own membership list and can determine who is recognized as a member, based on its own set of criteria. In a statement, the First Nations said its Citizenship and Immigration Code has been in effect since 1987 and that applications for membership are considered by the chief and council in accordance with the rules and procedures set out in the code. According to the decision dismissing the injunction application, the code allows membership of people who lost status by marriage, but not the children or grandchildren of that marriage. Little Black Bear Chief Clarence Bellegarde pointed out the decision said granting the injunction to block settlement of the Treaty 4 agricultural benefits claim with Canada could cause irreparable harm to Little Black Bear as a whole. Although their claim is yet to be ruled on, in his decision dismissing the injunction application, Justice Andrew Davis urged Little Black Bear to consider the plaintiffs' membership applications and said that its dealings with them emphasized their dislocation from their community due to Canada's colonial practices. Plaintiff Brenda Constant, a great-granddaughter of Emmerence, received her treaty status in 2000 on her 60th birthday. She lives in Balcarres, Sask., about 25 kilometres from Little Black Bear. Constant said she would love to use her skills as a social worker, where she worked in the field for 30 years, to serve the community. "I wouldn't mind sitting on a board and helping out with different things out there, but they don't want us," said Constant. Constant said they are going forward with their lawsuit against the band, although they would prefer not using the courts to settle the dispute.
CBC
16-02-2025
- Politics
- CBC
Feds' argument over $5 treaty payments 'disgraceful' tactic to delay lawsuit: plaintiffs
A debate over how to adjudicate Treaty 4 rights was at the core of a federal court hearing in Manitoba this week. Chief Derek Nepinak of Minegoziibe Anishinabe First Nation, a community located in west-central Manitoba, filed an amended class-action lawsuit against the federal government in May of last year. Chief Lynn Acoose of Zagime Anishinabek in south-eastern Saskatchewan is also a plaintiff. The statement of claim alleges Canada violated treaty agreements by not increasing $5 annuity payments to treaty members to account for inflation, a payment the plaintiff says was meant to provide purchasing power for essentials amid the shifting economic landscape in 1874. The federal government argued in a statement of defence they are not liable for any damages, and only owe the annuity obligation of $5 per treaty member specifically written in the Treaty 4 text. Lindsay Borrows, professor of Indigenous law at Queens University, says the lawsuit fits into a long line of grievances raised by various First Nations against the Crown for not upholding treaty obligations. "We know that these written texts are not representative of the full negotiations of the treaties," Borrows said. "We can conclude that the honour of the Crown necessitates increasing those annuities over time so that the Crown is not unjustly enriched while the First Nations continue to suffer." Adversarial court system The federal government opposed classifying the suit as a class action during a federal court hearing in Winnipeg on Thursday, arguing the matter should be tried as a representative action instead, a move lawyers for the plaintiffs called a delaying tactic. "It is hard not to read into this … that, you know, they're [Canada] stalling and trying to make this more and more challenging and expensive for the First Nations," Borrows said. Borrows says there are better ways to settle grievances than a forum such as Canada's adversarial court system: A tribunal system used in other parts of the world is more adept at responding to the unique nature of Indigenous treaty claims. "I would really hope that in Canada, we can find better ways to hear these types of claims so that First Nations aren't arguing around whether or not to have a class action or a representative action," she said Nepinak says a class-action suit is the way forward in order to protect individual treaty members' rights, without having to access annuities through a chief-and-council mechanism. "It's not appropriate, for even me as chief today, to tell people what their rights are, so that's what's at stake here," he said. "The individual, such as myself — I can ground myself in in our ceremony, I can ground myself in our treaty teachings and I can take that into any form and fight for it," Nepinak said. Nepinak's lawyer, Michael Rosenberg, says a class-action suit would allow his clients to immediately bring together as many as 74,000 beneficiaries of Treaty 4. "A class action then allows the court to answer what each individual should receive by way of compensation," said the plaintiffs lawyer, Michael Rosenberg. Under a representative action, individuals would not benefit from the lawsuit unless their First Nation participated in the case, Rosenberg says. "So if your First Nation doesn't elect to participate, you as an annuitant of Treaty 4 won't be part of this case," he said. Representative proceedings differ from class proceedings in that they require a court order to start at all. "So you can see from the defendants perspective, more costs for the plaintiffs, delay and, potentially, lesser damages even if the plaintiffs are successful," Rosenberg said. "All of those things make it attractive to push the plaintiffs into this representative action procedure." Treaties 'meant to be living agreements' Waywayseecappo First Nation Chief Murray Clearsky is seeking a similar class-action suit for his claim against the federal government, filed with Manitoba Court of King's Bench in January 2024. Borrows says the Canadian government seems to be approaching treaties from a Canadian legal perspective instead of an Indigenous legal perspective. "Treaties were meant to be living agreements that were continually renewed and were more like a marriage than a divorce," Borrows said. "In other words, they're meant to be continually nurtured and not just signed, crossed and then kind of wipe your hands clean of any sort of ongoing obligations and discussions." The proposed class action is seeking $100 million in damages, an accounting and compensation for "unpaid or underpaid" annuities, and changes to the annuity agreements so that the payments reflect inflation, along with other relief. A procedural motion hearing for the matter to decide how the case would be litigated concluded Thursday. Justice Russel W. Zinn advised he would reserve his decision to a later date, likely in a few months.
