To what extent has Canada affirmed collective rights?

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To what extent has Canada affirmed collective
rights?
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• What are collective
• rights?
• Rights held by Canadians who belong to one of
  several groups in society.
• They are recognized and protected by Canadas
  constitution.

• Why do only some people have collective rights?
• Collective rights recognize the founding peoples
  of Canada.
• Canada wouldnt exist today without the
  contribution of these peoples.

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Who holds collective rights in Canada?

• Aboriginal peoples, including First Nations,
  Metis and Inuit people
• Francophones including the Metis
• Anglophones

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FIRST NATIONS COLLECTIVE RIGHTSTHE NUMBERED
TREATIES
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These medals were struck to commemorate the
Numbered Treaties. This medal dates from 1874.
The images are meant to convey a specific
message. What was it? What clues are there in
the images?
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Eleven "Numbered Treaties" were signed between
1871 and 1921 as the Canadian government began to
pursue settlement, farming and resource
development in the west and north of the country.
The terms of the treaties differed, but in most
cases First Nations agreed to share their land
and resources in exchange for education, hunting
and fishing rights, reserves, farming assistance
and annuities.
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For example, Treaty 7 made provisions for one
square mile of land for each Indian family, plus
a limited supply of cattle, some farm equipment
(one plow for each band) and a small amount of
treaty and ammunition money. The treaty also
made limited commitments on the part of the Queen
to provide education for children and in some
cases, medical services.
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This map shows the location of First Nation
reserves in Alberta.
RESERVES
Land set aside for the exclusive use of First
Nations
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Both the Canadian government and the First
Nations had their own reasons for signing the
Numbered Treaties. Use the following pictures to
determine what the reasons could have been.
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The eradication of the buffalo meant social and
economic upheaval for some First Nations peoples.
They saw the Treaties as a way to secure their
future.
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• BC had joined Confederation on the condition that
  Canada would build a railway within ten years to
  link the province with the rest of Canada.
• The railway also allowed a large number of
  immigrants to migrate to Canadas West in hopes
  of a better life. They had been promised land by
  the government.
• Both of these issues required that Canada obtain
  land from the First Nations.

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Small pox epidemics had taken a horrible toll on
the First Nations both socially and economically.
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Both First Nations and Canadas government wanted
to avoid wars over territory like those happening
in the United States. The treaties provided a
peaceful way of meeting the needs of both groups.
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WHAT DO YOU THINK?
Do you feel that the needs of both parties - the
Canadian government and the First Nations - were
equal? Did one group need the Treaties more than
the other? Did both groups benefit equally??
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The perspective of each group played a role in
how they negotiated and interpreted the Treaties
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Treaty negotiations took place in several
languages and relied on interpreters. Sometimes
meaning or connotation was lost in the
translation and the two parties came away with a
different view of what had been agreed to.
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First Nations recorded the Treaties in their own
language as oral histories while Canadas
government recorded them in written English.
What problems could arise from this?
Sometimes the oral history and the written word
dont agree.
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First Nations never believed that land could be
owned - they did not understand the European
practice of fencing land - and therefore, see the
Treaties as an agreement to share the land with
the Canadian government however, the government
believes the First Nations gave up their land
under the Treaties.
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Treaty Number Six has a provision for health
care. One clause allows a medicine chest to be
kept in the Indian agents home for the use and
benefit of the First Nations. Some people felt
that this provision extended to everyone who
signed the Numbered Treaties. Others went so far
as to later interpret this provision as an
eternal promise by the government to provide free
health care to all First Nations people in Canada.
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Numbered Treaties Video

• http//www.ainc-inac.gc.ca/al/hts/cys/index-eng.as
  p

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What collective rights do official language
groups have under the Charter?
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What are official language minorities?

• Canada has two official languages, English and
  French
• French is spoken predominantly in Quebec
• In Nunavut, Inuktitut is predominantly spoken
• But what makes a language a minority?

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• Minority means a small group within a larger
  group
• Francophones (people who speak French) who live
  in Alberta are considered to be part of a
  language minority
• Francophone schools affirm the identity of
  Francophone students, their families, and their
  communities
• Anglophones (people who speak English) are
  considered a language minority in Quebec
• There are Francophone schools throughout Canada
  just as there are Anglophone schools throughout
  Quebec

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What are the Charter rights of official language
groups?

• Official bilingualism sections 16 to 20 of the
  Charter establish French and English as official
  languages of Canada, and the right of Canadian
  citizens to conduct their affairs with the
  federal government in either official language
• These sections also establish New Brunswick as an
  officially bilingual province

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Continued

• Minority language education rights section 23 of
  the Charter says that a French-speaking or
  English-speaking minority population of
  sufficient size in any province has the right to
  publicly funded schools that serve their language
  community
• this made it possible for Francophones to
  maintain their own education rights in a
  predominantly English-speaking nation

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Official Languages Act

• The Official Languages Act of 1969 stated that
  French and English to be the official languages
  of Canada, and under which all federal
  institutions must provide their services in
  English or French at the customer's choice. The
  Act (passed following the recommendation of the
  Royal Commission on BILINGUALISM AND
  BICULTURALISM) created the office of Commissioner
  of Official Languages to oversee its
  implementation. Politically, the Act has been
  supported by all federal parties, but the
  public's understanding and acceptance of it has
  been mixed. In June 1987 the Conservative
  government introduced an amended Official
  Languages Act to promote official language
  minority rights.

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The Metis descendants of First Nations peoples
and French settlers

• The Metis are one of Canadas Aboriginal peoples
  under Canadas constitution
• However, unlike the First Nations, the Metis do
  not have any historic treaties with Canadas
  government
• They believe they have inherent rights, which are
  rights they have strictly because they are First
  Peoples

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Metis

• Today, the Metis are represented in Canada by
  several organizations
• Two are in Alberta the Metis Nation of Alberta
  and the Metis Settlements General Council
• The Metis speak French, therefore they are
  Francophones

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What laws recognize the collective rights of the
Metis?

• Quick timeline
• 1869-1870 Metis-led Red River Resistance
  resulted in the Manitoba Act, passed by Canadas
  parliament, which made Manitoba a bilingual
  province and gave land rights to the Metis people
• 1875-1879 Canadas government changed its mind
  and instead offered issued scrip to the Metis,
  which was a document that could be exhanged for
  land. In other words, instead of establishing
  Metis lands in Manitoba, they gave them a choice
  accept scrip or become Treaty Indians under the
  Numbered Treaties (which do you think they would
  want?)

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• 1885 the Northwest Resistance sought to protect
  Metis lands in what is today Saskatchewan where
  the railway was being laid and settlers were
  moving in
• Two different interpretations of this event the
  Metis view it as a way to assert their rights,
  the government saw it as a threat to their
  authority
• 1938 after being forced to move their
  settlements constantly over a long period,
  LAssociation des Metis de lAlberta et des
  Territoires du Nord-Ouest lobbied Albertas
  government to set aside land for the Metis

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• Albertas government then passed the Metis
  Population Betterment Act, which established
  twelve temporary Metis settlements
• 1940-1960 unfortunately, these settlements still
  did not give the Metis control of their land and
  were closed when the land became less useful for
  farming and hunting
• 1982 the Metis lobbied for recognition of Metis
  rights in Canadas constitution and were
  successful

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• Finally, in 1990, Albertas government enacted
  legislation under which the Metis received the
  Metis settlements as a permanent land base with
  the right to manage their own affairs. The
  legislation included
• Constitution of Alberta Amendment Act
• Metis Settlements Accord Implementation Act
• Metis Settlements Act
• Metis Settlements Land Protection Act
• 2003 Supreme Court ruled that the Metis have the
  right to hunt and fish as one of Canadas
  Aboriginal peoples under the constitution

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How do the Metis see their rights?

• In 1996, the president of the Metis Nation of
  Alberta, Audrey Poitras said One of the
  fundamental aspects of Metis rights is our
  ability to define ourselves. Its not up to the
  government, or non-Metis people, to define who is
  Metis. Only the Metis Nation itself can make
  those kinds of distinctions.

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Different Perspectives of the Treaties and of
Collective Rights in Canada
The following are quotes and ideas taken from
different points in history from different
perspectives concerning those who hold collective
rights in Canada. From whose perspective are they
from?
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1876What I will promise, and what I believe and
hope you will take, is to last as long as the sun
shines and the rivers flow....I see the Queens
Councillors taking the Indian by the hand saying
we are brothers, we will lift you up, we will
teach you, if you will learn, the cunning of the
white man....I see Indians gathering, I see
gardens growing and houses building I see them
receiving money from the Queens commissioners to
purchase clothing for their children at the same
time, I see them enjoying their hunting and
fishing as before, I see them retaining their old
modes of living with the Queens gift in
addition.
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1876What we speak of will last as long as the
sun shines and the river runs. We are looking to
the future of our childrens children.1879Res
idential schools allow aggressive civilization
by separating the children from the
parents....Residential schools make a certain
degree of civilization within the reach of
Indians despite the deficiencies of their
race....The Indians realize they will disappear.
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1939 The economic adjustment of the Indians to
modern life is a large problem. We need to make
the Indians lead the normal life of the ordinary
Canadian citizen. 1946 We made treaties with
Great Britain and the trust was given to the
Canadian government to live up to our treaties.
Ever since the first Treaties, First Nations have
felt that Canadian officials have not complied
with those treaties.
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1969 Canada cannot be a just society and keep
discriminatory legislation on its statute book.
The barriers created by special legislation, such
as treaties, can generally be struck down. The
treaties need to be reviewed to see how they can
be equitably ended. 1970 To preserve our
culture it is necessary to preserve our status,
rights, lands and traditions. Our treaties are
the basis of our rights....the treaties are
historic, moral, and legal obligations.....The
government must declare that it accepts the
treaties as binding..... 1982 I speak of a
Canada where men and women of Aboriginal
ancestry, of French and British heritage, of the
diverse cultures of the world, demonstrate the
will to share this land in peace, in justice, and
with mutual respect.
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If Canada is to survive, it can only survive in
mutual respect and in love for one another.