The Relationship Between Canada and Indigenous Peoples: Where Are We?
Document Type
Book Chapter
Publication Date
2018
Keywords
Aboriginal Law, Decolonization, Reconciliation, Indian Act, Section 35, Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples
Abstract
This paper examines six major milestones that mark what the Report of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples (RCAP) has called the era of ‘Renewal and Renegotiation’ (1951 to the present). This includes: (1) amendments to the Indian Act in 1951; (2) the 1969 White Paper Policy; (3) the 1973 Calder Decision; (4) Section 35 of Constitution Act, 1982; (5) the 1992 Charlottetown Accord; and (6) the 1996 RCAP Report itself. This examination shows how these events were improvements over the previous era, which RCAP called the era of ‘Domination and Assimilation’, but also to draw attention to the fact that significant problems in the relationship between Canada and Indigenous peoples remain to be addressed. These shortcomings point us in the direction we need to be going on the path to decolonizing and achieving meaningful reconciliation.
Recommended Citation
Naiomi Metallic, "The Relationship Between Canada and Indigenous Peoples: Where Are We?" in The Law Society of Upper Canada, ed, Special Lectures 2017: Canada at 150: The Charter and the Constitution (Toronto: Irwin Law, 2018) 423.
