Indigenous People | The Canadian Encyclopedia

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  • Article

    Native People's Caravan

    The Native People’s Caravan was a cross-country mobile protest that took place in 1974. Its main purpose was to raise awareness about the poor living conditions and discrimination experienced by Indigenous peoples in Canada. It travelled from Vancouver to Ottawa, where the subsequent occupation of a vacant warehouse on Victoria Island, near Parliament Hill, extended into 1975. The caravan brought various Indigenous groups together in protest of broken treaties, as well as a lack of government-supported education, housing and health care. As a result, meetings between Cabinet ministers and Indigenous leaders became more frequent. The protest is remembered as an important turning point in Indigenous activism in Canada. 

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    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/media/media/e9e4a925-a033-404d-9819-a3bb46fe9c8e.jpg Native People's Caravan

  • Article

    Nellie J. Cournoyea

    Nellie J. Cournoyea, OC, ONWT, premier of the Northwest Territories 1991–95, politician (born on 4 March 1940 in Aklavik, NT). Cournoyea is the first Indigenous woman to lead a provincial or territorial government in Canada.

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    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/IndiLeaderStamps/nellie-cournoyea-stamp.jpg Nellie J. Cournoyea

  • Article

    Peter Tomkins

    Peter Tomkins Jr., Métis leader, political organizer, blacksmith (born 1 January 1899 in Poundmaker Reserve, SK; died June 1970 in High Prairie, AB). In the 1930s, he worked with Jim Brady and Malcolm Norris to build the Métis Association of Alberta (founded 1932, now the Métis Nation of Alberta) and the Indian Association of Alberta (1939). From health care to his work with the Métis settlements, Tomkins promoted improved living conditions for the Métis of Alberta and Saskatchewan. His diplomacy, lobbying and negotiating skills helped get the first Métis-specific legislation passed in Canada in 1938.

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    https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/images/tce_placeholder.jpg?v=e9dca980c9bdb3aa11e832e7ea94f5d9 Peter Tomkins

  • Article

    Pitikwahanapiwiyin (Poundmaker)

    Pitikwahanapiwiyin (Poundmaker), Cree chief (born circa 1842 in central SK; died 4 July 1886 in Blackfoot Crossing, AB). Remembered as a great leader, Pitikwahanapiwiyin strove to protect the interests of his people during the negotiation of Treaty 6. Considered a peacemaker, he did not take up arms in the North-West Resistance. However, a young and militant faction of his band did participate in the conflict, resulting in Pitikwahanapiwiyin’s arrest and imprisonment for treason. His legacy as a peacemaker lives on among many Cree peoples, including the Poundmaker Cree Nation in Saskatchewan.

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    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/!feature-img-thumbnails/poundmaker-th.jpg Pitikwahanapiwiyin (Poundmaker)

  • Article

    Reconciliation in Canada (Plain-Language Summary)

    The word reconciliation is used a lot in Canada. It is closely tied with Indigenous peoples. Indigenous peoples were harmed in many ways in the past. Children were abused in residential schools. Their languages and cultures were taken from them (see Genocide and Indigenous Peoples in Canada). The key goal of reconciliation is to heal the wounds of the past and make reparations for these wounds. Reconciliation also includes making a better future. In Canada, the process of reconciliation has only recently started. The process will continue for a long time. This article is a plain-language summary of Reconciliation in Canada. If you are interested in reading about this topic in more depth, please see our full-length entry, Reconciliation in Canada.

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    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/10022750263_777cc2f581_k-1.jpg Reconciliation in Canada (Plain-Language Summary)

  • Article

    Romeo Saganash

    Romeo Saganash, lawyer, politician, advocate for Indigenous rights (born 28 October 1962 in Waswanipi, a Cree community southeast of James Bay in central Quebec). Saganash is Quebec’s first Indigenous Member of Parliament and the province’s first Cree person to receive an undergraduate law degree. He is believed to be the first Indigenous leader in Canada to run for the leadership of a major political party. For the last 20 years, Saganash has represented the Cree at numerous national and international forums concerning Indigenous issues. He spent 23 years helping to negotiate the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples — a resolution that provides a framework to implement treaty rights between First Peoples and Canada and to fulfill other obligations in international agreements. He has spent his life furthering the economic, environmental, legal and constitutional rights of Indigenous peoples in Canada, particularly the Cree in the James Bay region.

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    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/media/new_article_images/Romeo-Saganash.jpg Romeo Saganash

  • Article

    Rosemarie Kuptana

    Rosemarie Kuptana (sometimes Rosemary), OC, Inuit broadcaster, author, rights activist, and former president of Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami (born 24 March 1954 near the Prince of Wales Strait, NT).

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    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/media/Twitter_Cards/Kuptana.png Rosemarie Kuptana

  • Article

    Sheila North

    Sheila North, leader, activist, journalist (born 1972 in Oxford House, MB, now Bunibonibee Cree Nation). In 2015, Sheila North became the first woman elected as Grand Chief of Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak. This organization represents 30 First Nations in Northern Manitoba. She coined the hashtag #MMIW (Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women) in 2012. It is meant to raise awareness of the national crisis and address violence against Indigenous women. A journalist, North has worked as a correspondent for CBC News and CTV News in Winnipeg.

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    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/SheilaNorth/Sheila_North_upload.jpg Sheila North

  • Article

    Sixties Scoop (Plain-Language Summary)

    The term “Sixties Scoop” refers to the large numbers of Indigenous children who were taken from their homes (scooped) throughout the 1960s. Most of these children were adopted by non-Indigenous families in Canada and the United States. The “Sixties Scoop” has left a lasting legacy on the children, families and communities involved. This article is a plain-language summary of Sixties Scoop. If you are interested in reading about this topic in more depth, please see our full-length entry, Sixties Scoop.

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    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/media/media/9fee628e-1ce5-4c82-9ebb-d5b2764b09c4.jpg Sixties Scoop (Plain-Language Summary)

  • Article

    Ted Moses

    Ted Moses, OQ, Cree leader, negotiator, business leader (born 1950 in Eastmain, QC). Ted Moses was the chief Cree negotiator in talks that led to the signing of the James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement and the Agreement Respecting a New Relationship Between the Cree Nation and the Government of Quebec, also known as the Paix des Braves. He was the founder and first director-general of the Cree School Board. Throughout his career, he has served as a leader for Cree governments, international organizations and corporations. 

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    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/TedMoses/Ted_Moses_resized.jpg Ted Moses

  • Article

    The Penner Report

    The Penner Report was a report prepared by the Special Committee of the House of Commons on Indian Self-Government. It was issued in November 1983. Named after committee chairman Keith Penner, the report made a series of recommendations. These recommendations promoted the concept of self-governing First Nations. First Nations, in this legal context, are classified as status Indians under the Indian Act.

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    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/media/media/1eef3d08-4031-40d3-bbd4-6443822cd128.jpg The Penner Report

  • Article

    Thelma Chalifoux

    Thelma Julia Chalifoux, senator, entrepreneur, activist (born 8 February 1929 in Calgary, AB; died 22 September 2017 in St. Albert, AB). Chalifoux was the first Métis woman appointed to the Senate of Canada. As a senator, she was concerned with a range of issues, including Métis housing, drug company relations with the federal government, and environmental legislation. An ardent advocate for women’s and Indigenous rights, Chalifoux was involved in organizations such as the Aboriginal Women’s Business Development Corporation and the Métis Women’s Council. She was also known for her work in the protection of Métis culture, having served in the Alberta Métis Senate and Michif Cultural and Métis Resource Institute (now Michif Cultural Connections).

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    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/IndiLeaderStamps/thelma-chalifoux-stamp.jpg Thelma Chalifoux

  • Article

    Together Today for Our Children Tomorrow

    Together Today for Our Children Tomorrow was a document that set out land claim grievances in Yukon and recommended an approach to settlement. The Council of Yukon Indians, the organization that authored the document, presented it to then Prime Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau in Ottawa on 14 February 1973. The document told the story of traditional Indigenous ways in the territory. It chronicles ways in which life changed with the arrival of the “Whiteman.” It identifies some of the contemporary challenges the local First Nations faced at the time. Additionally, it proposes solutions and offers a roadmap forward. Finally, it sets out a vision for the future that sees control and authority for decision-making returned to the First Nations of the territory. Fifty years later, it continues to be a guiding force for First Nation and non-First Nation Yukoners. It promotes “walking together down the same road.” In other words, it suggests participating equitably as partners in the fabric and governance of Yukon society.

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    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/TCE_placeholder.png Together Today for Our Children Tomorrow

  • Article

    Tony Whitford

    Anthony (Tony) Wilfred James Whitford, ONWT, Commissioner of Northwest Territories 2005-2010, politician (born 11 June 1941 in Fort Smith, NWT). Throughout his life, Tony Whitford has held multiple political positions, including on the town council of Fort Smith and in the Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly. In 2005, Whitford was named commissioner of the Northwest Territories. 

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    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/TonyWhitford/NWT_2008_Election_Order_resized.jpg Tony Whitford

  • Article

    Truth and Reconciliation Commission (Plain-Language Summary)

    The Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) started working in 2008. It was a result of the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement (IRSSA). The IRSSA recognized the suffering and trauma experienced by Indigenous students at residential schools. It also provided financial compensation (money) to the students. The TRC performed many tasks. It created a national research centre. It collected documents from churches and government. It held events where students told their stories. Also, it did research about residential schools and issued a final report. (See also  Reconciliation in Canada.)

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    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/media/media/2bd71aaf-ebc5-44e0-9f91-e4d07b16e81d.jpg Truth and Reconciliation Commission (Plain-Language Summary)