113-504: Miawpukek First Nation is a Mi'kmaq First Nations band government in Conne River, Newfoundland and Labrador , Canada, with a registered population of 836 living on-reserve as of May 2023, with another 2,265 living off-reserve. They control the reserve of Samiajij Miawpukek in Bay d'Espoir on the island of Newfoundland . It was formerly known as Conne River Indian Reserve until
226-731: A "moderate livelihood fishery" with a ceremony at the Saulnierville wharf, the first lobster fishery regulated by Mi'kmaq in Nova Scotia. On September 18, the Assembly of Nova Scotia Mi'kmaw Chiefs declared a province-wide state of emergency in response to threats by commercial and non-indigenous fishers, including some that had cut the Mi'kmaw lobster traps. On September 25, the Sipekne'katik fishery released its proposed regulations allowing
339-484: A celebration at Battery Provincial Park that coincided with Mi'kmaq Treaty Day. The management plan behind this fishery had been in development for three months, prompted by the seizure of lobster traps by DFO officials. Community licenses issued through this fishery will entitle fishers to 70 tags, and boats will be allowed to carry up to 200 lobster traps each. At the time of the launch of the Potlotek fishery, Membertou
452-465: A compensation to Marshall of a lifetime pension of $ 1.5 million. Marshall used the financial compensation to finance the lengthy and costly Supreme Court case. When Marshall won, 34 Mi'kmaq and Maliseet First Nations bands were affected in the provinces of New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, and the Gaspé region of Quebec. The West Nova Fishermen's Coalition submitted an appeal asking for
565-737: A greater quality of status than women. Under Bill C-31, this system became known as the second generation cut-off. Bill C-31 amendments create a new system for classifying status Indians that maintains gender discrimination. Indigenous women's movements expressed that Bill C-31 failed to eliminate all gender discrimination from the Indian Act , and in 2010 the Canadian government introduced Bill C-3 (the Act to Promote Gender Equality in Indian Registration ). Bill C-31 attempts to recognise
678-497: A greeting. The French initially referred to the Mi'kmaq as Souriquois and later as Gaspesiens . Adopting a term from the English, they referred to them as Mickmakis . The British originally referred to the people as Tarrantines , which appears to have a French basis. Various explanations exist for the rise of the term Mi'kmaq . The Mi'kmaw Resource Guide says that "Mi'kmaq" means "the family". The Anishinaabe refer to
791-486: A husband with status. In Attorney General of Canada v. Lavell (1974), these laws were upheld despite arguments made under the Canadian Bill of Rights . The act was amended in 1985 (Bill C-31) to restore status to people who had lost it in one of these ways, and to their children. Though people accepted into band membership under band rules may not be status Indians, Bill C-31 clarified that various sections of
904-421: A lawyer for the purpose of making a claim against Canada, and further forbade them from raising money to retain a lawyer, on punishment of imprisonment. Section 87 exempts Indians from paying taxes on two types of property: (a) the interest of an Indian or a band in reserve lands or surrendered lands; and (b) the personal property of an Indian or a band situated on a reserve. The rights exclusive to Indians in
1017-629: A negotiator for the DFO had offered Nova Scotia First Nations nearly $ 87 million for boats, gear, and training, with the condition that the First Nations would not practice their treaty right to earn a moderate livelihood fishing (ie out of the DFO season) for a period of 10 years. The proposal did not define "moderate livelihood", and was rejected. On November 9, 2020, a group of Mi'kmaq First Nations and Premium Brands Holdings Corporation announced their $ 1 billion purchase of Clearwater Seafoods, which
1130-408: A reserve are used or are to be used is for the use and benefit of the band. Marginal note: Use of reserves for schools, etc. 18. (2) The Minister may authorize the use of lands in a reserve for the purpose of Indian schools, the administration of Indian affairs, Indian burial grounds, Indian health projects or, with the consent of the council of the band, for any other purpose for the general welfare of
1243-558: A reserve were subject to a different set of rights and obligations. One needed to descend from an Indian to be allowed to live on a reserve. The tenure of land in a reserve was limited to the collective, or tribe, by virtue of a Crown protectorate . Interactions between enfranchised citizens and Indians were subject to strict controls; for example, the enfranchised were forbidden by the Royal Proclamation of 1763 to traffic in alcohol or land with Indians. The Crown (in this case
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#17328022316861356-534: A series of treaties known as the Covenant Chain of Peace and Friendship Treaties with the British Crown throughout the eighteenth century; the first was signed in 1725, and the last in 1779. The Mi'kmaq maintain that they did not cede or give up their land title or other rights through these Peace and Friendship Treaties. The landmark 1999 Supreme Court of Canada decision in R v Marshall upheld
1469-536: A suspicious fire. On the evening of October 13, several hundred non-Indigenous fishers and their supporters raided two storage facilities in New Edinburgh and Middle West Pubnico that were being used by Mi'kmaw fishers to store lobsters. During the raids, a van was set aflame, another vehicle was defaced and damaged, lobsters being stored in the facilities were destroyed, and the New Edinburgh facility
1582-566: Is often not counted) are Epekwitk aq Piktuk (Epegwitg aq Pigtug), Eskikewa'kik (Esge'gewa'gi), Kespek (Gespe'gewa'gi) , Kespukwitk (Gespugwitg), Siknikt (Signigtewa'gi), Sipekni'katik (Sugapune'gati), Ktaqmkuk (Gtaqamg) , and Unama'kik (Unama'gi) . The orthography between parentheses is the Listuguj orthography used in the Gespe'gewa'gi area. In 1997, the Mi'kmaq–Nova Scotia–Canada Tripartite Forum
1695-804: Is still in use, the Mi'kmaq consider the spelling "Micmac" to be "tainted" by colonialism. The "q" ending is used in the plural form of the noun, and Mi'kmaw is used as singular of Mi'kmaq . It is also used as an adjective, for example, "the Miꞌkmaw nation". The Mi'kmaq prefer to use one of the three current Miꞌkmaq orthographies when writing the language. Spellings used by Mi'kmaq people include Mi'kmaq (singular Mi'kmaw ) in Prince Edward Island ( Epekw'itk ), Nova Scotia ( Mi'kma'ki-Unama'ki ), and Newfoundland ( K'taqamkuk ); Miigmaq ( Miigmao ) in New Brunswick ( Sipekni'katik ); Mi'gmaq by
1808-474: Is the first such collaborative agreement in Canadian history including all the First Nations within an entire province. On September 17, 1999, the Supreme Court of Canada upheld the treaty rights of Mi'kmaw Donald Marshall Jr. its landmark R v Marshall ruling, which "affirmed a treaty right to hunt, fish and gather in pursuit of a 'moderate livelihood'." The Supreme Court also cited Section 35 of
1921-447: Is the question of defining who they are (e.g. who are the "Indians" of the Indian Act ?), and this aspect of the legislation has been an ongoing source of controversy throughout its history. Not all people who self-identify as "Aboriginal" are considered "Indians" under the terms of the act. Only those on the official Indian Register maintained by the federal government (or a local "band list" in some cases) are Status Indians, subject to
2034-564: Is traditionally divided into seven districts. Prior to the imposition of the Indian Act , each district had its own independent government and boundaries. The independent governments had a district chief and a council. The council members were band chiefs, elders, and other worthy community leaders. The district council was charged with performing all the duties of any independent and free government by enacting laws, justice, apportioning fishing and hunting grounds, making war and suing for peace. The eight Mi'kmaw districts (including Ktaqmkuk which
2147-403: The Bay of Chaleur developed their own self-regulated lobster fisheries management plan and opened their own lobster fishery in the fall of 2020. Under the existing Fish Buyers' Licensing Regulations the self-regulated Listuguj fisheries can harvest, but can only use the lobster for "food, social and ceremonial purposes". According to Chief Terry Paul of Membertou First Nation , early in 2020,
2260-737: The Indian Act are beyond legal challenge under the Constitution Act, 1982 . Section 25 of the Constitution Act, 1982 provides that the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms shall not be interpreted as negating Aboriginal, treaty or other rights of Canada's Aboriginal peoples. Section 88 of the act states that provincial laws may affect Aboriginals if they are of "general application", meaning that they affect other people as well as Aboriginals. Hence, provincial laws are incorporated into federal law, since otherwise
2373-458: The Indian Act without success. Those changes that have been made have been piecemeal reforms, rather than sweeping revisions. Since the 1990s, several pieces of legislation have been passed allowing individual bands to opt out of a particular section of the Indian Act if an agreement is signed between the band and the government putting alternative measures in place. These are called "Sectoral Legislative Arrangements". The band remains subject to
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#17328022316862486-492: The Indian Act would apply to such members. The sections in question are those relating to community life (e.g., landholdings). Sections relating to Indians (Aboriginal people) as individuals (in this case, wills and taxation of personal property) were not included. Bonita Lawrence (2003) discusses a feminist position on the relationship between federal definition and Indian identity in Canada. Until 1985, subsection 12(1)(b) of
2599-644: The Indian Act , updated to April 2013, the term "band" means a body of Indians (a) for whose use and benefit in common, lands, the legal title to which is vested in Her Majesty, have been set apart before, on or after September 4, 1951, (b) for whose use and benefit in common, moneys are held by Her Majesty, or (c) declared by the Governor in Council to be a band for the purposes of this Act. Fundamental to Canada's ability to interact with First Nations peoples
2712-611: The Indian Department ) hoped, by means of fiduciary duty that it voluntarily took on, to preserve Indian identity. But later the government of the Province of Canada conceived of the compulsory enfranchisement scheme of the Gradual Civilization Act . The 1985 amendment to the Indian Act extinguished the idea of enfranchisement, although by then Status Indians were Canadian citizens by birth . Under
2825-505: The Kejimkujik National Park and National Historic Site , petroglyphs of "life-ways of the Mi'kmaq", include written hieroglyphics, human figures, Mi'kmaq houses and lodges, decorations including crosses, sailing vessels, and animals, etched into slate rocks. These are attributed to the Mi'kmaq, who have continuously inhabited the area since prehistoric times. The petroglyphs date from the late prehistoric period through
2938-504: The Lord's Prayer , in his German Christian catechism published in 1866. David L. Schmidt and Murdena Marshall published some of the prayers, narratives, and liturgies represented in hieroglyphs—pictographic symbols in a 1995 book. As noted, the pre-contact Mi'kmaq utilized some form of writing, but Le Clerq indicated that the hieroglyphs were "formed" by him. French Jesuit missionaries adopted their use to teach Catholic prayers and religion to
3051-579: The Mi'kmaq–Nova Scotia–Canada Tripartite Forum . This collaborative agreement, which includes all the First Nations within the province of Nova Scotia, was the first in Canadian history. Historically, the Santé Mawiómi , or Grand Council, which was made up of chiefs of the district councils of Mi'kma'ki , was the traditional senior level of government for the Mi'kmaw people. The 1876 Indian Act disrupted that authority, by requiring First Nations to establish representative elected governments along
3164-539: The Northeastern Woodlands , native to the areas of Canada's Atlantic Provinces , primarily Nova Scotia , New Brunswick , Prince Edward Island , and Newfoundland , and the Gaspé Peninsula of Quebec as well as Native Americans in the northeastern region of Maine . The traditional national territory of the Mi'kmaq is named Mi'kma'ki (or Mi'gma'gi). There are 66,748 Mi'kmaq people in
3277-631: The Parliament of the Province of Canada in 1857 and the Gradual Enfranchisement Act of 1869. The act was passed by the Parliament of Canada under the provisions of Section 91(24) of the Constitution Act, 1867 , which provides Canada's federal government exclusive authority to govern in relation to "Indians and Lands Reserved for Indians". It was an attempt to codify rights promised to Native peoples by King George III in
3390-403: The Royal Proclamation of 1763 while at the same time enforcing Euro-Canadian standards of "civilization" . The purpose of the act, as stated by its drafters, was to administer Indian affairs in such a way that Indian people would feel compelled to renounce their Indian status and join Canadian civilization as full members: a process called enfranchisement. The idea of enfranchisement predated
3503-572: The Supreme Court of Canada ruled that the Indian Act was not discriminatory, as the pair gained the legal rights of white women at the same time they lost the status of Indian women, in a parallel to R. v. Drybones . In 1981, Sandra Lovelace , a Maliseet woman from western New Brunswick , forced the issue by taking her case to the United Nations Human Rights Committee , contending that she should not have to lose her own status by her marriage. The Canadian law
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3616-421: The matrilineal cultures of many First Nations, whereby children were born to the mother's clan and people gained their belonging in the clan from her family. Often property and hereditary leadership passed through the maternal line. In addition, the 1876 Indian Act maintained that Indigenous women with status who married status Indigenous men would, in the event of divorce, be unable to regain their status to
3729-485: The "double mother" clause, "removed status from children when they reached the age of 21 if their mother and paternal grandmother did not have status before marriage." Much of the discrimination stems from the Indian Act amendments and modifications in 1951. Lawrence discusses the struggles of Jeannette Corbiere Lavell and Yvonne Bédard in the early 1970s, two Indigenous women who had both lost their Indian status for marrying white men. Lavell , whose activism helped create
3842-789: The "grass dance". The dance ceremony involved the giving away and exchange of blankets and horses; thus it breached Section 114 of the Indian Act. As a result, Wanduta, an elder of the Dakota community, was sentenced to four months of hard labour and imprisonment on January 26, 1903. According to Canadian historian Constance Backhouse, the Aboriginal "give-away dances" were ceremonies more commonly known as potlatches that connected entire communities politically, economically and socially. These dances affirmed kinship ties, provided elders with opportunities to pass on insight, legends and history to
3955-476: The "same season as non-native fishermen" and could not therefore, fish in the fall. It recommended that "native bands be issued licences, which they would distribute to native fishermen." On the tenth anniversary of the benchmark decision, CBC News reported that "Maritime waters" were "calm a decade after Marshall decision." However, by 2020, the Fish Buyers' Licensing and Enforcement Regulations , under
4068-399: The 1752 Peace and Friendship Treaty "which promised Indigenous Peoples the right to hunt and fish their lands and establish trade." The Mi'kmaw Grand Council is the official authority that engages in consultation with the Canadian federal government and the provincial government of Nova Scotia, as established by the historic August 30, 2010, agreement with the Mi'kmaq Nation, resulting from
4181-520: The 1876 version of the act and survived in some form until 1985. From the introduction in 1857 by the Taché - Macdonald administration of the Gradual Civilization Act until 1961, the enfranchisement process was optional for men of age 21 able to read and write English or French. The great aim of our legislation has been to do away with the tribal system and assimilate the Indian people in all respects with
4294-561: The 1980s, as prison wardens often denied Indigenous peoples access to materials used for prayer. Starting in the early 1900s, the Nisga'a First Nation started or attempted to start several legal proceedings to take control of their traditional territory. A series of attempts were denied by the B.C. government or not pursued by the Canadian Government. A 1927 amendment (Section 141) forbade any First Nation or band from retaining
4407-554: The 1982 Constitution Act in their 1999 ruling that resulted in Mi'kmaq, Maliseet, and Peskotomuhkati people the "right to hunt, fish and gather in pursuit of a 'moderate livelihood' from the resources of the land and waters." The legal precedent had previously been established in the Treaty of 1752 , one in a series of treaties known as the Peace and Friendship Treaties, but was not being respected prior to R v Marshall . This resulted in
4520-469: The 1993 charges laid against Marshall Jr. for "fishing eels out of season, fishing without a licence, and fishing with an illegal net". In the 2018 publication, Truth and conviction: Donald Marshall Jr. and the Mi'kmaq quest for justice , Marshall was quoted as saying, "I don't need a licence. I have the 1752 Treaty." The 1989 Royal Commission on the Donald Marshall Jr. Prosecution resulted in
4633-535: The 1996 N.S. Fisheries and Coastal Resources Act , remains in effect—as it does in other Atlantic provinces. These regulations do not mention the Mi'kmaq or the Marshall decision. These regulations prevent Mi'kmaq lobster fishers from selling their lobster to non-Mi'kmaq. Mi'kmaq fishers say that this does not align with the Marshall decision. In 2019, the government of the Listuguj First Nation in
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4746-526: The 2002 National Film Board feature-length documentary Is the Crown at war with us? by Alanis Obomsawin . The documentary also described how Ocean and Fisheries department officials seemed to "wage a war" on the Mi'kmaq fishermen of Burnt Church, New Brunswick with "helicopters, patrol boats, guns, with observation by airplanes and dozens of RCMP officers". The documentary asks why the fishers were being harassed for "exercising rights that had been affirmed by
4859-584: The Bay of Fundy Inshore Fishermen's Association, all condemned the violence. Nova Scotia Premier Stephen McNeil maintained his position that this issue must be solved federally when asked about it at a press conference. Several months later, in January 2021, the manager of the Middle West Pubnico facility, James Muise, made a public post in a Facebook group for commercial fishers, claiming that he gave
4972-549: The Canadian government, in contrast to the treaties, which were negotiated. This aspect was resented and resisted by many Indigenous peoples in Canada. The act was introduced in 1875 by the Liberal government as a consolidation of various laws concerning Indigenous peoples enacted by the separate colonies of British North America prior to Confederation , most notably the Gradual Civilization Act passed by
5085-440: The Canadian model, and attempting to limit the Council's role to spiritual guidance. On August 30, 2010, the Mi'kmaw Nation and the Nova Scotia provincial government reached an historic agreement, affirming that the Mi'kmaw Grand Council was the official consultative authority that engages with the Canadian federal government and the provincial government of Nova Scotia. The Mi'kmaq–Nova Scotia–Canada Tripartite Forum preceded
5198-767: The Chapel Island Mission boats would stop if he was crossing." Traditionally, the Grand Council met on a small island, Mniku , on the Bras d'Or Lake in Cape Breton. In the early 21st century, this site is now within the reserve known as Chapel Island or Potlotek . The Grand Council continues to meet at Mniku to discuss current issues within the Miꞌkmaq Nation. Taqamkuk (Newfoundland) was historically defined as part of Unama'kik territory. (Later
5311-485: The Council's role to that of spiritual guidance. In addition to the district councils, the M'ikmaq have been traditionally governed by a Grand Council or Santé Mawiómi . The Grand Council was composed of Keptinaq ("captains" in English), who were the district chiefs. There were also elders, the putús ( wampum belt readers and historians, who also dealt with the treaties with the non-natives and other Native tribes),
5424-760: The Crown could add land to the British Empire from other sovereign nations through treaties. This led to early treaties between Britain and nations the British still recognized as sovereign, like the " Peace and Friendship Treaties " with the Mi'kmaq and the Upper Canada treaties. During the negotiations around Canadian Confederation , the framers of Canada's constitution wanted the new federal government to inherit Britain's former role in treaty-making and land acquisition, and specifically assigned responsibility for "Indians and lands reserved for Indians" to
5537-401: The DFO issued a temporary license to Burnt Church Mi'kmaq fishers while negotiations for a more permanent agreement were underway. The DFO license had restrictions that some Burnt Church fishers refused: the fishers could not sell their lobsters, they could only use them for food, social, and ceremonial (FSC) purposes. The "Aboriginal right to fish for food, social and ceremonial purposes (FSC)"
5650-525: The Department of Indian Affairs. Consequently, the reality of scarce access to essential services and resources amongst Indigenous communities became a primary factor driving the membership process and its outcomes. As stated in Bill C-31, women who lost their status as a result of marrying a man who was not a status Indian can apply for reinstatement and regain status under subsection 6(1). However,
5763-464: The French, were amenable to limited French settlement in their midst. Gabriel Sylliboy (1874–1964), a respected Mi'kmaq religious leader and traditional Grand Chief of the Council, was elected as the Council's Grand Chief in 1918. Repeatedly re-elected, he held this position for the rest of his life. In 1927, Grand Chief Sylliboy was charged by Nova Scotia with hunting muskrat pelts out of season. He
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#17328022316865876-672: The International Covenant, in concurrence of Article 27. As well, In Article 2(3)(a) of the decision, the Government of Canada must provide effective remedy. Under the United Nations' International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the Government of Canada is required in 180 days to fulfill these requirements: to ensuring that paragraph 6(1)(a) of the Indian Act is understood in a way that allows registration of those who were not previously registered under
5989-544: The Listuguj Council in Quebec ( Kespek ); and Mìgmaq ( Mìgmaw ) in some native literature. Lnu (the adjectival and singular noun, previously spelled "L'nu"; the plural is Lnúk , Lnu'k , Lnu'g , or Lnùg ) is the term the Mi'kmaq use for themselves, their autonym , meaning "human being" or "the people". Members of the Mi'kmaq historically referred to themselves as Lnu , but used the term níkmaq (my kin) as
6102-604: The Marshall decision to be set aside. In November 17, 1999, released a new ruling (Marshall 2) to clarify that the DFO had the power to regulate the fishery for conservation purposes if it "consulted with the First Nation and could justify the regulations". Soon after the September 17 decision, Miramichi Bay —"one of Canada's most lucrative lobster fisheries"— became the site of a violent conflict between Mi'kmaq fishers and non-Mi'kmaq commercial fishers. Immediately after
6215-416: The Marshall decision, as the Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) granted access to Mi'kmaq fishers to the "commercial fishery through communal licences operated by the bands". Macdonald-Laurier Institute 's Ken Coates said that the commercial fishing industry had not suffered because of this. Others disagreed, saying that Canada had never fully implemented the Marshall decision, and that, over
6328-634: The Mi'kmaq and non-Indigenous lobster fishers mainly in Digby County and Yarmouth County , Nova Scotia . After Mi'kmaq chiefs declared a state of emergency in October 2020, the federal government appointed Allister Surette as Federal Special Representative to investigate. In the March 2021 report's backgrounder, Surette cited Macdonald-Laurier Institute 's Ken Coates who said that Mik'maq communities had benefitted from improvements resulting from
6441-455: The Mi'kmaq as Miijimaa(g) , meaning "The Brother(s)/Ally(ies)", with the use of the nX prefix m- , opposed to the use of n1 prefix n- (i.e. Niijimaa(g) , "my brother(s)/comrade(s)") or the n3 prefix w- (i.e., Wiijimaa(g) , "brother(s)/compatriot(s)/comrade(s)"). Charles Aubert de La Chesnaye was documented as the first European to record the term "Mi'kmaq" for the people, using it in his 1676 memoir. Marion Robertson stated this in
6554-526: The Mi'kmaq children were memorizing prayers utilizing the counting of marks, but did not claim to have incorporated any of this system into the hieroglyphs he created. It is likely that this pre-Le Clerq writing system was part of a writing tradition by the Mi'kmaq similar to that observed in 1651 amongst the Eastern Abenaki of Maine. Today, it is written mainly using letters of the Latin alphabet . At
6667-444: The Mi'kmaq right to fish and trade." By that point, vehicles and property belonging to members of the Sipekne'katik First Nation had already been damaged and stolen, including boats being burned. There were already planned protests by non-Indigenous fishers to block the Mi'kmaq fishers' access to several wharves. One such protest took place on September 15 at Saulnierville and Weymouth wharves. On September 17, Sipekne'katik launched
6780-517: The Mi'kmaq. Schmidt and Marshall showed that these hieroglyphics served as a fully functional writing system. They assert it is the oldest writing system for an indigenous language in North America north of Mexico. By the 1980s, the spelling of the ethnonym Mi'kmaq , which is preferred by the Mi'kmaq people, was widely adopted by scholarly publications and the media. It replaced the previous spelling Micmac . Although this older spelling
6893-550: The Miawpukek First Nation opened the "Cannabis Boutique", which they claim is "the first Indigenous-owned and -operated marijuana store in Newfoundland". Mi%27kmaq The Mi'kmaq (also Mi'gmaq , Lnu , Mi'kmaw or Mi'gmaw ; English: / ˈ m ɪ ɡ m ɑː / MIG -mah ; Miꞌkmaq : [miːɡmaɣ] , and formerly Micmac ) are an Indigenous group of people of
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#17328022316867006-539: The Ontario Native Women's Association and also held the position of vice president of the Native Women's Association of Canada , and other Indigenous women were key actors in generating public awareness of gender discrimination in Canadian law and paving the way for later amendments to the Indian Act that allowed some women and their children to regain and/or attain status under Bill-C31. Meanwhile,
7119-671: The Superior Court of Quebec decision in Descheneaux c. Canada (Procureur général)" addresses gender-based inequalities in the Indian Act . Bill S-3 received royal assent in December 2017 and came in to full effect in August 2019. In 1894 amendments to the Indian Act made school attendance compulsory for Indigenous children between 7 and 16 years of age. The changes included a series of exemptions regarding school location,
7232-460: The United Nations' Human Rights Committee decision in the Sandra Lovelace case and Charter compliance issues. However, under Bill C-31, women who regain status fall under 6(1) and her children fall under 6(1) status. However, anybody who loses and regains status that is not from marriage falls under 6(2) and cannot gain status [like 6(1)]. This action has ultimately violated the United Nations' International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights through
7345-451: The act "discriminated against Indian women by stripping them and their descendants of their Indian status if they married a man without Indian status." Under subsection 12(2) of the act, "'illegitimate' children of status Indian women could also lose status if the alleged father was known not to be a status Indian and if the child's status as an Indian was "protested" by the Indian agent." Further, subparagraph 12(1)(a)(iv), which Lawrence calls
7458-557: The act except for the section in question. The 1895 amendment of the Indian Act (Section 114) criminalized many Aboriginal ceremonies, which resulted in the arrest and conviction of numerous Aboriginal people for practising their basic traditions. These arrests were based on Aboriginal participation in festivals, dances and ceremonies that involved the wounding of animals or humans, or the giving away of money or goods. The Dakota people (Sioux) who settled in Oak River, Manitoba, in 1875 were known to conduct "give-away dances", also known as
7571-477: The act has been a subject of controversy and has been interpreted in different ways by both Indigenous Canadians and non-Indigenous Canadians. The legislation has been amended many times, including "over five major changes" made in 2002. The act is very wide-ranging in scope, covering governance , land use , healthcare , education , and more on Indian reserves. Notably, the original Indian Act defines two elements that affect all Indigenous Canadians : The act
7684-415: The act worked to disadvantage the position of Aboriginal women and can be considered an attempt to demolish Aboriginal families and alienate Aboriginal women from their land. Inflicting gender discriminatory laws, the Canadian government marginalized and disadvantaged Aboriginal women. Section 12 gained the attention of female movements contributing to a variety of proposals for reform. Amended in 1985 through
7797-544: The agreement. The August 2010 agreement is the first such collaborative agreement in Canadian history; it includes representation for all the First Nations within the entire province of Nova Scotia. Historically the Santé Mawiómi , or Grand Council, which was made up of chiefs of the district councils of Mi'kma'ki , was the traditional senior level of government for the Mi'kmaw people. The 1876 Indian Act disrupted that authority, by requiring First Nations to establish representative elected governments and attempting to limit
7910-448: The band they were originally registered in. This occurred as a result of the act's enforcement of the patrilineal descent principle required to determine an individual's eligibility for Indian status. As individuals, Indigenous women were not eligible for status or able to transfer status to their children in their own right. Indian status could only be reacquired or transferred legally by proof of an Indigenous father or through marriage to
8023-401: The band, and may take any lands in a reserve required for those purposes, but where an individual Indian, immediately prior to the taking, was entitled to the possession of those lands, compensation for that use shall be paid to the Indian, in such amount as may be agreed between the Indian and the Minister, or, failing agreement, as may be determined in such manner as the Minister may direct. In
8136-719: The book Red Earth: Tales of the Mi'kmaq (1960s), published by the Nova Scotia Museum, Robertson cites Professor Ganong, who suggested that "Mi'kmaq" was derived from the Mi'kmaq word megamingo (earth). Marc Lescarbot had also suggested this. The Mi'kmaq may have identified as "the Red Earth People, or the People of the Red Earth". Megumaagee , the name the Mi'kmaq used to describe their land, and Megumawaach , what they called themselves, were linked to
8249-447: The children of reinstated women are subject to registration under subsection 6(2). Aboriginal people registered under section 6(2) are unable to transmit status to future generations. Thus, by reinstating women under section 6 of the act, the Canadian government failed to completely remove gender discrimination from its legislation, as the children of reinstated women have restrictions on their status, and status Indian men continue to hold
8362-610: The constitution and the Indian Act . The case involved whether Aboriginals were subject to provincial game laws when hunting on Indian reserves. The act was at the centre of the 1969 Supreme Court case R. v. Drybones , regarding the conflict of a clause forbidding Indians to be drunk off the reserve with the Bill of Rights. The case is remembered for having been one of the few in which the Bill of Rights prevailed in application to Indian rights. In Corbiere v. Canada (1999), voting rights on reserves were extended under Section Fifteen of
8475-563: The decades, various levels of government and authorities mishandled and neglected local concerns related to the implementation of the Marshall decision. In September 2020, the Sipekne'katik First Nation developed a fishing plan based on their right to fish in pursuit of a moderate livelihood. They issued seven lobster licenses to band members; each license has 50 tags, representing a combined total of 350 tags. One commercial lobster license represents 350 tags. The lobster fishery they initiated
8588-458: The discriminatory practices of the Indian Act ; that this law discriminates against Indigenous women and her descendants and their right to express their culture. In addition, this decision was also made based on the 2007 Supreme Court of British Columbia case of Sharon McIvor and her son, Jacob Grisner, that have been waiting over a decade of a verdict of their case. The UNHRC's decision has determined that Bill C-31 has violated Articles 3 and 26 of
8701-654: The distinction of paragraph 6(1)(a) on the basis of sex and gender, account for the ongoing discrimination of Indigenous peoples in Canada of gender and sex in the Indian Act and to avoid future discrimination similar to this Bill. Bill C-3 amendments to the act ( Gender Equity in Indian Registration Act —GEIRA) permitted Aboriginal women reinstated under subsection 6(2) to be eligible for 6(1) status. Creating paragraph 6(1)(c.1) registration, reinstated Aboriginal women could only be eligible for registration under 6(1) if they had non-status children. Since it
8814-440: The federal government (rather than the provinces ), by the terms of Section 91(24) of the Constitution Act, 1867 . The Indian Act replaced any laws on the topic passed by a local legislature before a province joined Canadian Confederation, creating a definitive national policy. The act is not a treaty; it is Canada's legal response to the treaties. The act's unilateral nature was imposed on Indigenous peoples after passage by
8927-442: The full legal benefits and restrictions of the act. Notably this excludes Métis , Inuit , and so-called Non-Status Indians . Various amendments and court decisions have repeatedly altered the rules regarding who is eligible for Indian Status. Many bands now maintain their own band lists. Prior to 1985, Indigenous persons could lose status under the act in a variety of ways, including the following: These provisions interfered with
9040-634: The government of Canada apologized. In 1885, an amendment to the act banned the Potlatch ceremony of the West Coast peoples. The Potlatch ban drove traditional ceremonies underground. A similar amendment in 1895 banned the Sun Dance of the Plains peoples, which was not lifted until 1951. Although lifted in 1951, repression of Indigenous spiritual practices continued in Canadian prisons through to
9153-557: The health of the children and their prior completion of school examinations. The Canadian Indian residential school system subjected children to forced conversions, sickness, abuse and what has been described as an attempt at cultural genocide by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission . The residential school system severed family ties and diminished the transmission of traditional culture, in an attempt to assimilate Indigenous peoples into broader Canadian society for which on June 11, 2008,
9266-459: The highest court in the land." Following lengthy negotiations with the Mi'kmaq, the DFO developed the $ 160 million Marshall Response Initiative, which operated until 2007, through which the DFO offered to purchase over 1,000 commercial fishing licences, including boats and gear, to support the expansion of the Mi'kmaq lobster fishery. By mid-2000, about 1,400 commercial fishermen stated their intention to retire over 5,000 licences. On August 20, 2001,
9379-425: The introduction of Bill C-31, section 12 was removed and status was reinstated to those affected. The 1985 amendments led to the repatriation of status for many Indigenous women and their children but did not guarantee acceptance into an Indian band. A decade later, nearly 100,000 people had their status' reinstated while bands had newly gained control of membership responsibilities which was previously administrated by
9492-503: The large island was organized as a separate district in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador .) According to the 2021 census, 9,245 people identified as speakers of the Mi'kmaq language. 4,910 of which said it was their mother tongue , and 2,595 reported it to be their most often spoken language at home. The Mi'kmaq language was written using Mi'kmaq hieroglyphic writing using a hieroglyphic system created in 1677 by French Catholic missionary Chrestien Le Clerq. Le Clerq noted that
9605-520: The legal sale of seafood harvested under the fishery to Indigenous and non-Indigenous consumers and wholesalers. However, at the time of the announcement, Nova Scotia's Fisheries and Coastal Resources Act prohibited anyone in Nova Scotia from purchasing fish from "a person who does not hold a valid commercial fishing license issued by Fisheries and Oceans Canada," which would include the fishery. On October 1, Potlotek First Nation and Eskasoni First Nation launched their own moderate livelihood fishery in
9718-490: The lobsters taken in the raids were removed as they represented "bad fishing practices" on the part of the Mi'kmaq, but Sipekne'katik Chief Mike Sack and a worker at the Middle West Pubnico facility claimed the lobsters that were stored there were caught by the commercial fishers, not Mi'kmaw. Assembly of First Nations national chief Perry Bellegarde , federal Fisheries minister Bernadette Jordan , and Colin Sproul, president of
9831-474: The mid-1980s. Samiajij Miawpukek was established as a federal Indian reserve in 1987, the first in Newfoundland and Labrador. In 1991, Miawpukek was one of the poorest communities in Atlantic Canada. Due in part to increased education of its members, it has gone on to become the most well-off First Nation in Atlantic Canada after Membertou . The powwow , started in 1996, is held every year. In 2019,
9944-432: The moderate livelihood fishery. On September 11, Sipekne'katik First Nation Chief Michael Sack sent a letter to Premier Stephen McNeil, DFO Minister Bernadette Jordan and Nova Scotia RCMP Commanding Officer Lee Bergerman, calling for them "to uphold the rule of law amid ongoing violence, threats, human rights discrimination and ongoing failure to uphold the 1999 Supreme Court of Canada decision in R. v. Marshall, recognizing
10057-580: The next generation, and were a core part of Aboriginal resistance to assimilation. It is estimated that between 1900 and 1904, 50 Aboriginal people were arrested and 20 were convicted for their involvement in such dances. The Indian Act was amended in 1951 to allow religious ceremonies, including the "give-away dance". In R. v. Jim (1915), the British Columbia Supreme Court found that Aboriginal hunting on Indian reserves should be considered under federal jurisdiction under both
10170-530: The nineteenth century. Jerry Lonecloud (1854 – 1930, Mi'kmaq) is considered the "ethnographer of the Mi'kmaq nation". In 1912, he transcribed some of the Kejimkujik petroglyphs, and donated his works to the Nova Scotia Museum . He is credited with the first Mi'kmaq memoir, which was recorded from his oral history in the 1920s. In the late 1670s, French missionary Chrestien Le Clercq , who
10283-632: The other inhabitants of the Dominion as speedily as they are fit to change. John A Macdonald, 1887 Reserves, under this legislation, were islands within Canada to which were attached a different set of Indigenous rights. "Enfranchisement" derives from the idea of "franchise", which has gradually been degraded as "vote". Indigenous people with the franchise became official citizens of Canada (or British subjects before 1947), were allowed to vote for representatives, were expected to pay taxes, and lived "off-reserve". By contrast, groups of people who lived on
10396-399: The people involved in the raids permission to enter the facility and take the lobsters. Muise offered to work with people charged with offenses connected to the raids and try to get those charges dropped. Chief Mike Sack was sucker punched while trying to give a press conference on October 14. Also during the violence, an elder had sage knocked out of her hand while smudging , and a woman
10509-524: The police had not been doing so. Indian Act The Indian Act ( French : Loi sur les Indiens ) is a Canadian Act of Parliament that concerns registered Indians , their bands , and the system of Indian reserves . First passed in 1876 and still in force with amendments, it is the primary document that defines how the Government of Canada interacts with the 614 First Nation bands in Canada and their members. Throughout its long history,
10622-587: The posthumous pardon in 2017. Lieutenant-Governor of Nova Scotia, John James Grant, McNeil, and the Justice Minister Diana Whalen , pardoned Sylliboy and issued a formal apology: it was the "second posthumous pardon in Nova Scotia's history". His grandson, Andrew Denny, now the Grand Keptin of the Council, said that his grandfather had "commanded respect. Young people who were about to get married would go and ask for his blessing. At
10735-739: The provincial laws would be unconstitutional. In Kruger and al. v. The Queen (1978), the Supreme Court found that provincial laws with a more significant impact on Aboriginals than other people can be upheld, as "There are few laws which have a uniform impact." Constitutional scholar Peter Hogg argues that in Dick v. The Queen (1985), the Supreme Court "changed its mind about the scope of s. 88." Section 88 could now protect provincial laws relating to primary Aboriginal issues and even limiting Aboriginal rights. Numerous failed attempts have been made by Canadian parliamentarians to repeal or replace
10848-402: The region as of 2023 (including 25,182 members in the more recently formed Qalipu First Nation in Newfoundland ). According to the Canadian 2021 census, 9,245 people claim to speak Mi'kmaq , an Eastern Algonquian language. Once written in Mi'kmaw hieroglyphic writing , it is now written using most letters of the Latin alphabet . The Mi'kmaq, Maliseet , and Pasamaquoddy nations signed
10961-473: The ruling, Mi'kmaq fishers began to lay lobster traps out of season. Incidents such as the Burnt Church Crisis were widely covered by the media from 1999 and 2002. On October 3, 1999, non-Indigenous commercial fishers in 150 boats destroyed hundreds of Mi'kmaq lobster traps, then returned to shore and vandalized fishing equipment, as well as three fish plants. This was captured and documented in
11074-406: The section entitled "Reserves" in the Indian Act , reserves are said "to be held for use and benefit of Indians. 18. (1) Subject to this Act, reserves are held by Her Majesty for the use and benefit of the respective bands for which they were set apart, and subject to this Act and to the terms of any treaty or surrender, the Governor in Council may determine whether any purpose for which lands in
11187-486: The southern tip of Nova Scotia up to Digby in the Bay of Fundy." It is also "one of the most lucrative fishing areas in Canada". DFO reported that as of December 2019, there were 979 commercial lobster licenses in LFA 34. The Sipekneꞌkatik fishing plan "became a flash point" resulting in violent highly-charged conflict pitting non-Miꞌkmaw lobster fishers in the adjacent coastal communities and Mi'kmaw fishers those carrying out
11300-518: The women's council, and the grand chief. The grand chief was a title given to one of the district chiefs, who was usually from the Mi'kmaw district of Unamáki or Cape Breton Island . This title was hereditary within a clan and usually passed on to the grand chief's eldest son. On June 24, 1610, Grand Chief Membertou converted to Catholicism and was baptised. He concluded an alliance with the French Jesuits . The Mi'kmaq, as trading allies of
11413-484: The words megwaak , which refers to the colour red, and magumegek , "on the earth". Rand translated megakumegek as "red on the earth", "red ground", or "red earth". Other suggestions from Robertson include its origin in nigumaach , which means "my brother" or "my friend", or a term of endearment. Stansbury Hagar suggested in Mi'kmaq Magic and Medicine that the word megumawaach is from megumoowesoo , in reference to magic. Mi'kmaw Country, known as Mi'kma'ki ,
11526-459: Was also planning on launching their own fishery, following a similar plan. After the launch of this fishery, DFO officers continued to seize Mi'kmaq traps. Harassment around the Sipekne'katik fishery continued through October. On October 5, Sipekne'katik fisher Robert Syliboy, a holder of one of the moderate livelihood fishery's licenses, found his boat at the Comeauville wharf destroyed in
11639-885: Was amended in 1985. The Canadian government applied gender bias requirements to the legal status of Aboriginal peoples in Canada. First passed as part of the Gradual Enfranchisement Act , a status Indian woman who married a man who was not a status Indian became non-status. Without legal status, Aboriginal women are unable to access treaty benefits, practice inherent rights to live on their reserve, inherit family property or be buried on reserve with ancestors. Restricted from access to their native community, Aboriginal women without legal status were unable to participate in ceremonies and rituals on their traditional land. However, these conditions did not apply to status Indian men who married non-status women; these men were able to keep their status. Section 12, paragraph 1(b) of
11752-577: Was confirmed in the landmark 1990 R. v. Sparrow Supreme Court case which cited section 35 of the Constitution Act , 1982. In May 2003, the House of Commons' Standing Committee On Fisheries And Oceans chaired by MP Tom Wappel , submitted its report on fisheries issues, which "recommended that all charges stemming from the [confrontation over the lobster fisheries]" be dropped and that the fishers should be compensated by federal government for "their lost traps and boats." The report said that Mi'kmaq fishers have
11865-469: Was damaged, while a Mi'kmaw fisher was forced to barricade himself inside the facility in Middle West Pubnico. Indigenous leaders called the raids racist hate crimes and called on the RCMP to intervene, citing their slow response on the evening and lack of arrests even a day after the police claimed they "witnessed criminal activity". Social media posts from the commercial fishers and their supporters claimed that
11978-477: Was established. On August 31, 2010, the governments of Canada and Nova Scotia signed a historic agreement with the Mi'kmaw Nation, establishing a process whereby the federal government must consult with the Miꞌkmaw Grand Council before engaging in any activities or projects that affect the Mi'kmaq in Nova Scotia. This covers most, if not all, actions these governments might take within that jurisdiction. This
12091-556: Was finalised on January 25, 2021. The group of First Nations includes Sipekne'katik, We'koqma'q, Potlotek, Pictou Landing, and Paqtnkek First Nations, and is led by Membertou and Miapukek First Nations. The purchase represents the "largest investment in the seafood industry by a Canadian Indigenous group". The harvest of non-Indigenous fishermen in the region will now be purchased by Clearwater Seafoods' Mi'kmaq part owners. Since September 2020, there has been an ongoing lobster fishing dispute between Sipekne'katik First Nation members of
12204-513: Was grabbed by the neck. On October 15, the Mi'kmaq Warrior Peacekeepers arrived at the Saulnierville wharf with the intention of providing protection to Miꞌkmaq who were continuing to fish amid the violence. On Friday, October 16, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said that his government was "extremely active" in trying to de-escalate the situation. He also stated that he expected the police to be keeping people safe, and acknowledged concerns that
12317-610: Was located "outside of the regulated commercial season in Lobster Fishing Area 34 in St. Marys Bay, Nova Scotia —the Kespukwitk (also spelled Gespogoitnag ) district of Mi'kma'ki . The inshore fishery is the last small-scale fishery in Nova Scotia. St. Marys Bay is part of Lobster Fishing Area (LFA) 34, making it the "largest lobster fishing area in Canada with more than 900 licensed commercial fishermen harvesting from
12430-468: Was passed because the Crown relates differently to First Nations (historically called "Indians") than to other ethnic groups because of their previous history on the land. When Canada confederated in 1867 the new state inherited legal responsibilities from the colonial periods under France and Great Britain , most notably the Royal Proclamation of 1763 which made it illegal for British subjects to buy land directly from Indian nations, because only
12543-402: Was the children of Aboriginal women who had been affected by restrictions under subsection 6(2) legal registration, only women who had children were eligible to be registered under subsection 6(1) of the act. Continuing to place restrictions on the status of reinstated women, Bill C-3 does not remove all gender bias provisions from the act. Bill S-3, "An Act to amend the Indian Act in response to
12656-422: Was the first to use the rights defined in the Treaty of 1752 in his court defence. He lost his case. In 1985, the Supreme Court of Canada finally recognized the 1752 treaty rights for indigenous hunting and fishing in their ruling on R. v. Simon . On the 50th anniversary of Sylliboy's death, the Grand Council asked the Nova Scotia government for a pardon for the late Grand Chief. Premier Stephen McNeil granted
12769-534: Was working in the Gaspé Peninsula , was inspired by marks made by a young Mi'kmaq using charcoal on birchbark. Leclercq created what is now known as Mi'kmaq hieroglyphs to teach Catholic prayers and hymns to the people in their own form of language. Christian Kauder was a missionary in Mi'kma'ki from 1856 to 1871. He included samples of Mi'kmaq hieroglyphic writing, such as the Holy Mary Rosary prayer and
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