First Nations delegates demonstrate, 1980

Defining Indigenous Nationhood

Defining Indigenous Nationhood



How Indigenous activism pushed to reframe the relationship between Indigenous Peoples and Canada, and made the politicians behind patriation take notice.

By Ardith Walkem, Nlaka’pamux Nation

The constitutional discussions in the early 1980s offered an opportunity to reformulate the relationship between Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples and Canada after a fractured history marked more by denial and assimilation than recognition.

Shut out of initial constitutional discussions, Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples responded by opposing patriation The process of bringing the British North America Act, 1867 – the Constitution of Canada – under full domestic control, rather than having it remain as an act of the British Parliament. After decades of effort, patriation was completed with the 1982 passage of the Canada Act in Britain and the Constitution Act in Canada. It includes a means of amending the Constitution in Canada. The new Constitution was not endorsed by the government of Québec.  . Organizations representing status and non-status Indians Indian is a term historically used by governments to describe the original peoples of North America - Indigenous and Aboriginal - but it is not considered respectful or accurate. It remains in section 91(24) of the Constitution and the “Indian Act”.  , Treaty Nations, Métis, Inuit, and Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  women mobilized to demand their voices be heard. The most dramatic was the Indian Constitution Express.

Constitution Express rally, 1980

Mildred Poplar worked for the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs and was a key organizer and witness to the Indigenous political movement that challenged Prime Minister Trudeau’s attempt to change the Canadian Constitution in the early 1980s.

Listen to her describe those events here.

Mildred Poplar worked with the Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs (1979-1982)
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Royal Proclamation, 1763

1700s-1970s

Crown and Indigenous Relations

1700s-1970s


Crown and Indigenous Relations


When newcomers first arrived in North America, they found Indigenous Peoples who had their own laws, religion, and way of life. These newcomers entered into treaties with Indigenous nations or purchased land from them. The Royal Proclamation of 1763, which was given Indigenous assent through the Treaty of Niagara, 1764, recognized Aboriginal title to land during European settlement of what is now Canada. It established the framework for the negotiation of treaties with the Aboriginal inhabitants of large sections of Canada.

The Proclamation has two significant parts. First, it defined the land west of the established colonies as " Indian Indian is a term historically used by governments to describe the original peoples of North America - Indigenous and Aboriginal - but it is not considered respectful or accurate. It remains in section 91(24) of the Constitution and the “Indian Act”.  Territories", where Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples (called Indian in the Proclamation) "should not be molested or disturbed" by settlers and where the Indian Indian is a term historically used by governments to describe the original peoples of North America - Indigenous and Aboriginal - but it is not considered respectful or accurate. It remains in section 91(24) of the Constitution and the “Indian Act”.  Department would be the primary liaison between the Crown and Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples; and second, in order to prevent any future abuse, the Proclamation prohibited colonial governors from making any grants or taking any land cessions from Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples. It also established a set of protocols and procedures for the purchasing of Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  lands.

Since it was issued in 1763, the Royal Proclamation has served as the basis of treaty making throughout Canada. The Royal Proclamation, 1763, is reflected in the Indian Department's primary role as intermediary between Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples and the Crown and continues to guide the Crown’s obligations to Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples in treaty making.

The power balance shifted between Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples and newcomers, as Indigenous numbers fell due to the introduction of diseases (both accidentally and purposefully) to which Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples had no natural immunity, and the rapid growth of newcomers. A new era emerged where newcomers ignored their own laws and simply settled on Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  lands without heeding Aboriginal Aboriginal is the collective term used in the Constitution to describe the original peoples of North America and their descendants and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis. See also: Indigenous. title.  Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples were forcibly removed to small areas of lands “reserved” for their use. Aboriginal Aboriginal is the collective term used in the Constitution to describe the original peoples of North America and their descendants and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis. See also: Indigenous. title was ignored.

Indigenous Peoples were forcibly removed to small areas of lands “reserved” for their use. Aboriginal title was ignored.

Mildred Poplar explains how Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples see their covenant with the Creator, and in that context, how difficult it is to partake in constitutional debates.

Mildred Poplar worked with the Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs (1979-1982)
01_bna_act_SENCANADA_TINY.jpg British North America Act 1867

Canada’s first Constitution, the British North America Act (now the Constitution Act, 1867) gave responsibility for “ Indians Indian is a term historically used by governments to describe the original peoples of North America - Indigenous and Aboriginal - but it is not considered respectful or accurate. It remains in section 91(24) of the Constitution and the “Indian Act”.  , and Lands reserved for the Indians Indian is a term historically used by governments to describe the original peoples of North America - Indigenous and Aboriginal - but it is not considered respectful or accurate. It remains in section 91(24) of the Constitution and the “Indian Act”.  ” to the federal government. In 1876, Canada passed the first Indian Act, which determined how Indian nations would be governed on reserves, outlawed Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  governance, and prohibited Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples from leaving reserves without permission from officials called Indian Indian is a term historically used by governments to describe the original peoples of North America - Indigenous and Aboriginal - but it is not considered respectful or accurate. It remains in section 91(24) of the Constitution and the “Indian Act”.  Agents.

By 1927, it had become illegal to hire lawyers to pursue Aboriginal Aboriginal is the collective term used in the Constitution to describe the original peoples of North America and their descendants and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis. See also: Indigenous. title claims. Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples could be arrested for hunting, fishing, and other activities. And until 1960, they were denied the right to vote.

The Indian Indian is a term historically used by governments to describe the original peoples of North America - Indigenous and Aboriginal - but it is not considered respectful or accurate. It remains in section 91(24) of the Constitution and the “Indian Act”.  Act defined who would be recognized as an Indian Indian is a term historically used by governments to describe the original peoples of North America - Indigenous and Aboriginal - but it is not considered respectful or accurate. It remains in section 91(24) of the Constitution and the “Indian Act”.  by categories of status Indian Indian is a term historically used by governments to describe the original peoples of North America - Indigenous and Aboriginal - but it is not considered respectful or accurate. It remains in section 91(24) of the Constitution and the “Indian Act”.  and non-status Indian Indian is a term historically used by governments to describe the original peoples of North America - Indigenous and Aboriginal - but it is not considered respectful or accurate. It remains in section 91(24) of the Constitution and the “Indian Act”.  . After 1869, Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  women who married non-status men lost their status, as did their children. Legal definitions of “Indian” Indian is a term historically used by governments to describe the original peoples of North America - Indigenous and Aboriginal - but it is not considered respectful or accurate. It remains in section 91(24) of the Constitution and the “Indian Act”.  also excluded Métis, Inuit, and countless other Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  people. According to the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs (UBCIC), “Canada attempted to statistically empty the land of ‘Indians’ Indian is a term historically used by governments to describe the original peoples of North America - Indigenous and Aboriginal - but it is not considered respectful or accurate. It remains in section 91(24) of the Constitution and the “Indian Act”.  by eliminating categories of people… legally defined as Indian Indian is a term historically used by governments to describe the original peoples of North America - Indigenous and Aboriginal - but it is not considered respectful or accurate. It remains in section 91(24) of the Constitution and the “Indian Act”.  .”

Indian Act 1763
03_shingwauk_residential_schools_centre_ALGOMAUNIVERSITY_TINY.jpg Students of St. Anne's Indian Residential School in Fort Albany, Ontario, ca. 1945

Canadian efforts to assimilate Indigenous Peoples focused on forcibly removing Indigenous children from their communities and placing them in residential schools, where they were often subject to extreme physical, psychological, and sexual abuse. Many generations of Indigenous children were forcibly placed in residential schools.

Many generations of Indigenous children were forcibly placed in residential schools.

Undated before and after photos of young Thomas Moore Keesick at the Regina Indian Industrial School

Mildred Poplar went to residential school for seven years, and her parents permanently relocated to stay close to her.

Mildred Poplar worked with the Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs (1979-1982)

In 1969, the Canadian government released a report called the Statement of the Government of Canada on Indian Policy, known as the “White Paper”. In it, Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau and then-Indian Affairs Minister Jean Chrétien proposed that Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples be treated as just another group in a new multicultural Canada, with no special constitutional status or relationship. This assimilationist policy led to widespread Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  resistance. The White Paper was withdrawn in 1970, but it remained a key context for Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  reactions when the Trudeau government later brought forward its constitutional proposals.

In 1973, the Supreme Court of Canada issued a decision (Calder v British Columbia (AG) )recognizing Aboriginal Aboriginal is the collective term used in the Constitution to describe the original peoples of North America and their descendants and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis. See also: Indigenous. title, but it was split about whether that title could be extinguished by legislation and settlement activity. Provinces, especially B.C., became aware about the uncertainty of their own title and jurisdiction to lands and resources where Aboriginal Aboriginal is the collective term used in the Constitution to describe the original peoples of North America and their descendants and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis. See also: Indigenous. title or rights to those same lands and resources hadn’t been resolved through treaties.

At relatively the same time, the Mackenzie Valley Pipeline Inquiry, run by Justice Thomas Berger, was tasked with reporting on the social, environmental, and economic impacts of a proposed pipeline carrying natural gas from the Arctic through to Alberta. The inquiry was the first to consider impacts of resource development before they occurred, and also the first to extensively consider the impact of resource development on Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples and cultures.

Justice Thomas Berger listens to testimony at a federal inquiry into development of a natural gas pipeline through the Mackenzie Valley, Yellowknife, March 6, 1974

During this period, and largely as a result of these two developments, the federal government passed its Comprehensive Claims Policy and began to negotiate land claims with Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Nations.

Louise Mandell, Counsel for Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs and World Council of Indigenous Peoples
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Participants of the Constitution Express, 1980

1979-1981, Before Patriation

Left Out And Fighting Back

1979-1981, Before Patriation


Left Out And Fighting Back


Indigenous nations were excluded from initial constitutional talks, and they campaigned to participate as founding peoples at upcoming patriation conferences. They were concerned that patriation would change the international status of their treaties with the British Crown and increase the powers of Canadian governments and courts to abrogate or terminate Aboriginal and Treaty rights.

Patriation The process of bringing the British North America Act, 1867 – the Constitution of Canada – under full domestic control, rather than having it remain as an act of the British Parliament. After decades of effort, patriation was completed with the 1982 passage of the Canada Act in Britain and the Constitution Act in Canada. It includes a means of amending the Constitution in Canada. The new Constitution was not endorsed by the government of Québec.  could allow Canada to get rid of the special constitutional status of Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples, as had been proposed in the White Paper. Both Trudeau and Chrétien said that negotiations would happen after patriation The process of bringing the British North America Act, 1867 – the Constitution of Canada – under full domestic control, rather than having it remain as an act of the British Parliament. After decades of effort, patriation was completed with the 1982 passage of the Canada Act in Britain and the Constitution Act in Canada. It includes a means of amending the Constitution in Canada. The new Constitution was not endorsed by the government of Québec.  and urged Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples to be patient.

Louise Mandell, Counsel for Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs and World Council of Indigenous Peoples

Elders in England

Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  groups representing First Nations, Inuit and Métis Peoples resolved to lobby Britain to honour the British Crown’s obligations, and not allow the Canadian government to bring the Constitution to Canada from Britain without Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  consent. In 1979, three hundred chiefs and elders travelled to Britain, where they met with British parliamentarians, religious leaders, and representatives of the Crown. 

United Kingdom Supreme Court, 2005
02_george_manuel_conference_fnc_658_0011_UBCIC_TINY.jpg George Manuel speaks at the First Nations Constitutional Conference, 1980

The Leaked Brief

In October 1980 at a general meeting of the UBCIC, a confidential government brief was leaked which expressed the fear that if Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples’ poor living conditions were widely known, the world would question the human rights situation in Canada — that Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples had a life expectancy 10 years shorter than the Canadian average, and more than three times the rate of violent deaths, were largely unemployed, lived in substandard homes, and were imprisoned in disproportionate numbers.

Louise Mandell, Counsel for Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs and World Council of Indigenous Peoples

In November 1980, Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples nationally agreed to an action plan to resist patriation The process of bringing the British North America Act, 1867 – the Constitution of Canada – under full domestic control, rather than having it remain as an act of the British Parliament. After decades of effort, patriation was completed with the 1982 passage of the Canada Act in Britain and the Constitution Act in Canada. It includes a means of amending the Constitution in Canada. The new Constitution was not endorsed by the government of Québec.  that did not include protection for treaty and land rights, and recognition for the rights of Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  women, Métis, Inuit, and non-status Indians Indian is a term historically used by governments to describe the original peoples of North America - Indigenous and Aboriginal - but it is not considered respectful or accurate. It remains in section 91(24) of the Constitution and the “Indian Act”.  .

Resist patriation

Neil Sterritt, President of the Gitxsan-Wet’suwet’en Tribal Council (1981-1987)
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Constitution Express participants, 1980

The Constitution Express

The Constitution Express



The most visible highlight of Indigenous Peoples’ effort to build support among the Canadian and international public came on November 24, 1980, when hundreds of Indigenous Peoples – First Nations, Inuit, Métis and non-status, including whole families, boarded two trains in Vancouver.

Dubbed the Constitution Express, the trains travelled across the country, raising awareness and building support along the way to Ottawa.

(CTV)

The Constitution Express Arrives in Ottawa, 1980 

The journey had many dramas, including a confrontation with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), who boarded a train at one point claiming there had been a bomb threat. Many of the people aboard felt it was a thinly-veiled excuse for the RCMP to search the train.

Many of the people aboard felt it was a thinly-veiled excuse for the RCMP to search the train.

RCMP searching the Constitution Express train, 1980

Mildred Poplar describes the mood on the Constitution Express and the claims of a bomb scare.

Mildred Poplar worked with the Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs (1979-1982)
05_1000_indigenous_protesters_framegrab_10062302_CBC_TINY.jpg Parliament Hill, 1980

The trains merged into one in Manitoba. By the time the train arrived in Ottawa The capital city of Canada, where the federal Parliament buildings, the House of Commons and the Senate are located. For this reason, “Ottawa” is sometimes used as a synonym for the federal government, as in a phrase such as, “Ottawa refused any further negotiations.”  four days later, over 1,000 people had joined. They peacefully protested and camped out in front of the Parliament Buildings.

Despite a relatively warm welcome, they were not allowed access to constitutional discussions. However, Prime Minister Trudeau announced that the Joint Parliamentary Committee – the  Hays-Joyal Committee The Special Joint Committee on the Constitution, chaired by Senator Harry Hays and MP Serge Joyal, in 1980 and 1981. It held three months of hearings (many televised) and took written submissions from more than 900 individuals and organizations on the federal government’s proposals for constitutional patriation. – which was holding hearings into the patriation The process of bringing the British North America Act, 1867 – the Constitution of Canada – under full domestic control, rather than having it remain as an act of the British Parliament. After decades of effort, patriation was completed with the 1982 passage of the Canada Act in Britain and the Constitution Act in Canada. It includes a means of amending the Constitution in Canada. The new Constitution was not endorsed by the government of Québec.  process, would extend its hearings into January to give Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples and other Canadians a greater opportunity to have their say.  

Not satisfied with this response, Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples carried their lobbying efforts to the United Nations in New York to raise awareness and to ask officials at the United Nations to intervene between the Indian Indian is a term historically used by governments to describe the original peoples of North America - Indigenous and Aboriginal - but it is not considered respectful or accurate. It remains in section 91(24) of the Constitution and the “Indian Act”.  Governments of Canada and the Canadian and British Governments. They highlighted the lack of basic human rights for Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples in Canada, and their exclusion from constitutional reform.

08_fnc_665_0011_UBCIC_fnc_665_0009_UBCIC_fnc_665_0010_UBCIC_TINY.jpg First Nations Constitutional Conference, 1980

At the same time, Métis, Inuit, and many national First Nations organizations energetically pressured the Hays-Joyal Committee The Special Joint Committee on the Constitution, chaired by Senator Harry Hays and MP Serge Joyal, in 1980 and 1981. It held three months of hearings (many televised) and took written submissions from more than 900 individuals and organizations on the federal government’s proposals for constitutional patriation. to amend the Constitution to entrench Aboriginal Aboriginal is the collective term used in the Constitution to describe the original peoples of North America and their descendants and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis. See also: Indigenous. and Treaty rights.  Many forceful presentations were made by national groups such as the Native Council of Canada, the National Indian Indian is a term historically used by governments to describe the original peoples of North America - Indigenous and Aboriginal - but it is not considered respectful or accurate. It remains in section 91(24) of the Constitution and the “Indian Act”.  Brotherhood, Inuit Committee on National Issues, Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples who participated in the Constitution Express and provincial groups such as the Association of Métis and Non-Status Indians Indian is a term historically used by governments to describe the original peoples of North America - Indigenous and Aboriginal - but it is not considered respectful or accurate. It remains in section 91(24) of the Constitution and the “Indian Act”.  of Saskatchewan, Federation of Saskatchewan Indians, Union of Nova Scotia Indians, Union of New Brunswick Indians Indian is a term historically used by governments to describe the original peoples of North America - Indigenous and Aboriginal - but it is not considered respectful or accurate. It remains in section 91(24) of the Constitution and the “Indian Act”.  , Council for Yukon Indians Indian is a term historically used by governments to describe the original peoples of North America - Indigenous and Aboriginal - but it is not considered respectful or accurate. It remains in section 91(24) of the Constitution and the “Indian Act”.  , Union of Ontario Indians Indian is a term historically used by governments to describe the original peoples of North America - Indigenous and Aboriginal - but it is not considered respectful or accurate. It remains in section 91(24) of the Constitution and the “Indian Act”.  , Union of B.C. Indian Indian is a term historically used by governments to describe the original peoples of North America - Indigenous and Aboriginal - but it is not considered respectful or accurate. It remains in section 91(24) of the Constitution and the “Indian Act”.  Chiefs, Indian Indian is a term historically used by governments to describe the original peoples of North America - Indigenous and Aboriginal - but it is not considered respectful or accurate. It remains in section 91(24) of the Constitution and the “Indian Act”.  Association of Alberta and other groups within provinces such as the Nishga Tribal Council and the Algonquin Council.  

A second Constitution Express left for Europe the following fall. The trip included stops in Germany, Holland, Belgium, and the UK. Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  leaders asked the British Parliament to refuse to patriate the Canadian Constitution until it could be done without prejudice to Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples. In Canada, Chiefs and Elders took their case to the press and met with church and support groups. In B.C., Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  women took over the offices of the Department of Indian Indian is a term historically used by governments to describe the original peoples of North America - Indigenous and Aboriginal - but it is not considered respectful or accurate. It remains in section 91(24) of the Constitution and the “Indian Act”.  Affairs, demanding an inquiry into the deplorable living conditions on the reserves. The demonstrators were arrested, and the news came back to the London press.

Making protest signs for the Constitution Express, 1980

The Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  effort in London also included three cases brought by Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples to the British courts. All failed to persuade the British courts to halt patriation The process of bringing the British North America Act, 1867 – the Constitution of Canada – under full domestic control, rather than having it remain as an act of the British Parliament. After decades of effort, patriation was completed with the 1982 passage of the Canada Act in Britain and the Constitution Act in Canada. It includes a means of amending the Constitution in Canada. The new Constitution was not endorsed by the government of Québec.  . However, the British courts did find that Canada, not Britain, was the treaty partner of Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Nations and had inherited the obligations of the British Crown. The Constitution Express raised consciousness of Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  rights nationally and internationally. And it galvanized Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  political activism.

The Constitution Express raised consciousness of Indigenous rights nationally and internationally. And it galvanized Indigenous political activism.

Constitution Express participant, 1980
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Parliament Hill, Ottawa

Concessions from Ottawa

Concessions from Ottawa



Finally in January 1981, Canada agreed to include two sections recognizing Indigenous Peoples in the Constitution. First, a section recognizing Aboriginal and treaty rights (eventually section 35), and second, a section protecting newly negotiated treaty rights (eventually section 25). It was agreed that the Constitution would require a first ministers conference involving Indigenous representatives within a year.

However, the proposed amendments did not meet two critical constitutional requirements of the Indigenous Peoples: recognition of inherent sovereignty and the need for Indigenous consent to any modification of their constitutional rights. Only the Métis Association of Alberta supported the wording of the section recognizing Aboriginal and Treaty rights.

“The Constitution Express brought about an inner transformation for our people… It invigorated the dreams and beliefs of our people, that we could recover our nationhood. Our goal was to strengthen our nationhood and to decolonize. This is what we were fighting for. We never said, ‘We want section 35.’” 

— Mildred Poplar

Louise Mandell, Counsel for Union of British Columbia Indian Indian is a term historically used by governments to describe the original peoples of North America - Indigenous and Aboriginal - but it is not considered respectful or accurate. It remains in section 91(24) of the Constitution and the “Indian Act”.  Chiefs and World Council of Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples

01_constitutional_conference_CP_789554_TINY.jpg Constitutional Conference, 1981

Setback and Successes

In November 1981, with the historic patriation The process of bringing the British North America Act, 1867 – the Constitution of Canada – under full domestic control, rather than having it remain as an act of the British Parliament. After decades of effort, patriation was completed with the 1982 passage of the Canada Act in Britain and the Constitution Act in Canada. It includes a means of amending the Constitution in Canada. The new Constitution was not endorsed by the government of Québec.  conference underway, but with no seat at the table for Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples, the draft section 35 was removed from the constitutional agreement due to provincial opposition (especially from British Columbia). At the end of the conference, Trudeau suggested another conference with Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  representatives. The nine premiers who signed the Accord agreed. Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples, however, fiercely protested the lack of their entrenched rights in the Constitution. They marched and lobbied in Ottawa The capital city of Canada, where the federal Parliament buildings, the House of Commons and the Senate are located. For this reason, “Ottawa” is sometimes used as a synonym for the federal government, as in a phrase such as, “Ottawa refused any further negotiations.”  and organized massive demonstrations in provincial capitals. The mainstream media added its voice in support, as did the federal New Democratic Party Formed to succeed the CCF in 1961, the New Democratic Party is the main left-wing, social-democratic federal and provincial party in Canada. It has never formed a federal government, but has won office many times at the provincial level, particularly in western Canada, but also in Ontario and Nova Scotia.  .

After the conference, the Saskatchewan premier promised leaders of the Saskatchewan Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  organizations that if the Accord was reopened, he would argue for inclusion of the original section on Aboriginal Aboriginal is the collective term used in the Constitution to describe the original peoples of North America and their descendants and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis. See also: Indigenous. rights. Surprisingly, that promise had to be kept a very short time later. As a result of a strong lobby from women’s groups regarding the application of the notwithstanding clause to section 28 of the Charter, Saskatchewan Premier Allan Blakeney strategically withheld his consent to lift the reach of the clause to pressure the other provinces to reinsert the section recognizing Aboriginal Aboriginal is the collective term used in the Constitution to describe the original peoples of North America and their descendants and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis. See also: Indigenous. and Treaty rights.

Allan Blakeney, 1981 (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation)
Howard Leeson, Deputy Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs for Saskatchewan (1979-1982)

Two weeks later, section 35 was reintroduced. Initially, B.C. and Alberta were opposed. But they agreed when the term “existing” was added to Aboriginal and Treaty rights — rights that, at the time, many officials believed had been extinguished by Canadian laws and settlement.

And with that, a measure of constitutional recognition for Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples had been achieved, and with it a new era of Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  politics in Canada. Sections 25 and 35 provided Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples with new legal agency and opened a window of opportunity to reimagine the Canadian constitutional order. 

However, much of what had been lobbied for had not been achieved. Much was left to be done.

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Aboriginal-First Ministers Constitutional Conference, 1983

After Patration

Deals and Disappointments

After Patration


Deals and Disappointments


Aboriginal-First Ministers Constitutional Conferences:

In 1983, there was a constitutional conference between Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  groups and first ministers The leaders of the ruling parties in the federal, provincial and territorial governments, including the Prime Minister and the premiers of each province and territory. Canada has fourteen first ministers.  that produced the first amendments to the new Constitution.

Subsections 3 and 4 were added to section 35. Subsection 3 constitutionally protects any new treaty or land claim rights, while subsection 4 guarantees Aboriginal and Treaty rights equally to male and female persons. Further constitutional conferences failed to move the Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  constitutional agenda forward. The organized voices of Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  women through organizations such as the Native Women’s Association of Canada were never fully represented.

Prime Minister Trudeau expressed exasperation, not understanding what it was Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples were seeking. “I just don’t understand what you want,” he said. In 1983, the first ministers The leaders of the ruling parties in the federal, provincial and territorial governments, including the Prime Minister and the premiers of each province and territory. Canada has fourteen first ministers.  suggested that section 35 – which protected “existing rights” – was an “empty box” that needed to be filled through intergovernmental agreements and decisions of the courts. But Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples argued that section 35 really was full, containing their inherent rights and title.

(National Film Board of Canada)

Excerpt from "Dancing Around The Table"
Trudeau and First Nations Leader, Bill Wilson confronting one another
at the 1983 Aboriginal-First Ministers Constitutional Conference

Turning to the Courts:

The constitutional dreams of Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  activists were not fully realized in the patriation The process of bringing the British North America Act, 1867 – the Constitution of Canada – under full domestic control, rather than having it remain as an act of the British Parliament. After decades of effort, patriation was completed with the 1982 passage of the Canada Act in Britain and the Constitution Act in Canada. It includes a means of amending the Constitution in Canada. The new Constitution was not endorsed by the government of Québec.  process. Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples were seeking full recognition as founding peoples of Canada and a redistribution of power to recognize Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  jurisdictions. Some Indigenous organizations viewed the new Constitution as a defeat because it did not define what sections 25 and 35 protected, leaving this definition to the interpretation of Canadian courts or negotiations with Canadian governments.

With a definition absent in the Constitution, Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  peoples turned to Canadian courts to have their section 35 rights recognized and protected. Cases interpreting section 35 have shaped the landscape and altered the course of Canadian- Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  relations.

Neil Sterritt, President of the Gitxsan-Wet’suwet’en Tribal Council (1981-1987)

The Supreme Court has said that the purposes of section 35 are to ensure that Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples survive as unique peoples, with their own cultures and traditions; address the history of injustice perpetrated against Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples; and reconcile the assertion of Canadian Crown sovereignty with the fact that Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  societies were here before the founding of Canada and continue to exist.

Some of the key decisions around section 35, as well as the protection and interpretation of treaties between the Crown and Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  nations:

However, defining and protecting Aboriginal Aboriginal is the collective term used in the Constitution to describe the original peoples of North America and their descendants and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis. See also: Indigenous. and Treaty rights through courts is expensive and time-consuming for Indigenous Peoples with limited resources. It’s a process some critics have called “extinguishment by litigation.”

01_idle_no_more_03776655_CP.jpg Members of the Haisla First Nation rally in support of the Idle No More movement, Sunday December 30, 2012

Failed Promise

The larger, transformative goal of constitutional inclusion of Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples remains a work in progress. Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples continue to struggle for recognition, self-determination, and a relationship based on respect and recognition. That struggle is expressed through domestic movements like Idle No More, and increasingly by turning to the international field, using the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples (UNDRIP).

Louise Mandell, Counsel for Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs and World Council of Indigenous Peoples

From a poem written about Mildred Poplar by Ardith Walkem, read by the Baker Twins

“True leaders walk with the people, cook for the people, theirs may not be the stories recorded in history books, or archived in the vaults of newspapers, but for all that she has done for Indian Indian is a term historically used by governments to describe the original peoples of North America - Indigenous and Aboriginal - but it is not considered respectful or accurate. It remains in section 91(24) of the Constitution and the “Indian Act”.  Government, she is one of the only true leaders we have ever met.”

Ardith Walkem is a member of the Nlaka’pamux Nation, a lawyer, and co-editor of the book Box of Treasures or Empty Box? Two Decades of Section 35.

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Defining Indigenous Nationhood

Indigenous Perspectives on the Constitution

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Defining Indigenous Nationhood

Crown and Indigenous Relations

Before Patriation: Left Out And Fighting Back

The Constitution Express

Inherent Sovereignty

Deals and Disappointments

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