Chapter 9 - Imposing Liberalism
Key Terms:
Assimilation - a minority group or culture comes to resemble a society's majority group or assimilate the
values, behaviors, and beliefs of another group whether fully or partially.
Humanitarianism - the promotion of human welfare.
Indian Act - a Canadian act of Parliament that concerns registered Indians, their bands, and the system of
Indian reserves.
Canada and the Imposition of Liberalism on Aboriginal Peoples
● The Great Law of Peace provided the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) peoples with a constitution that
dates back to the 15th century.
● The Great Binding Law, as it sometimes is referred to, has three main principles: righteousness,
health and power – all characteristics of liberalism.
● It has been argued that many of the principles of liberalism originated in traditional Aboriginal
societies.
● In Canada, our Aboriginal communities use liberal ideas such as elected leaders, government by
consensus, leadership on the basis of merit, just punishment, and concepts of equality and
equality before the law.
● In the 19th century, the ideology of classical liberalism, and the concept of progress associated
with it, became a dominant force in the thinking of many European and North American colonial
leaders.
● This ‘faith in progress’ had become an ideology:
○ “…it consists of irreversible changes in one direction only, and that this direction is
towards improvement”
● This ideology contrasted sharply with beliefs that are considered common in most aboriginal
cultures, known as:
● “The Laws of Sacred Life”
○ “Laws of Nature”
○ and “Laws of Mutual Support”
● The principles included in these laws lead to misunderstandings in areas such as land ownership,
education, work and governance
Land Holding Conflicts
● Aboriginals viewed land ownership differently
, ● Europeans believed that they personally could own the land
● First Nations believed that land was borrowed from the Creator – not something that was owned
● As more immigrants arrived, more land was needed
● Treaties were signed
● In exchange for the land, First Nations were given annual payments, social and economic
● benefits, and continued use of some land and resources
● The Problem with Treaties…
○ First Nations used oral agreements and traditions, Europeans had a history of written
documents
○ Language was a barrier – interpreters didn’t grasp both languages, some words
○ (exclusive land ownership) had no equivalent in First Nations languages
○ Europeans called the legal status of these agreements into question, even though they
were written
○ Came to believe that First Nations were not sovereign nations and stopped treating the
treaties as valid international agreements
Assimilation & Enfranchisement
● Gradual Civilization Act (1857)
● Any First Nations male who gave up his official Indian status would be considered enfranchised
and given 50 acres of land for his personal use
● He would continue to receive his share of treaty settlements and band money
● When he died, ownership of land would be given to his children and removed from the band’s
reserve
Assimilation & Indian Act (1876)
● Defined what First Nations could and could not do
● Defined who was considered to be a First Nations person
● Encouraged Aboriginals to abandon their Indian status and identity to become members of
Canadian society
● Regarded First Nations’ children as wards of the state
● Tried to suppress cultures by banning traditional practices
● Until 1960, voting was only allowed for those who moved off of the reserve (and was therefore
not considered to be a status Indian) and gave up their treaty rights
Assimilation & Residential Schools
● Mandatory boarding schools for Aboriginal children that had the primary goal of
● assimilating them into Western cultures and traditions
● According to the Indian Act, the federal government was responsible for the education of First
Nations children
● School age children were taken from their families and placed in these schools where they lived,
worked, and studied
● Returned home for the summer and required to return in August
, The White Paper
● Aboriginal people in Canada took hope with the election of Pierre Trudeau's Liberals in 1968.
● They were outraged when the White Paper introduced by Minister of Indian and Northern Affairs
Jean Chretien a year later amounted to an assimilation program: the repeal of the Indian Act, the
transfer of Indian affairs to the provinces, the elimination of separate legal status native people.
● The Unjust Society, Cree leader Harold Cardinal's stinging rebuttal, was an immediate best-seller,
and it remains one of the most important books ever published.
● Cardinal summed up the government's approach as "The only good Indian is a non-Indian."
● He coined the term "buckskin curtain" to describe the barriers that indifference, ignorance and
bigotry had placed in the way of his people.
● He insisted on his right to remain "a red tile in the Canadian mosaic."
● Above all, he called for radical changes in policy on aboriginal rights, education, social programs
and economic development.
● The Unjust Society heralded a profound change in the political landscape.
● Thirty years later, however, the buckskin curtain has still not disappeared. Canada's First Nations
continue their fight for justice. And Harold Cardinal's vision is as compelling and powerful as
ever.
Taking a Stand against Assimilation: The Red Paper
● Aboriginals responded with their own document, named Citizens Plus, in 1970
● This became more commonly known as the Red Paper
● The Red Paper countered all of the proposals of the White Paper
● An Aboriginal delegation, backed by other Canadian citizens, met with the government and
successfully convinced it to radically change its policies and positions
Constitutional Act - 1982
● The constitutional document was signed by the Queen in Canada on April 17, 1982
● It included two additional sections dealing with the aboriginal peoples:
○ Section 25 which provides guarantees and protection of aboriginal and treaty rights in
relation to the Charter of Rights
○ Section 37 which dealt with a future constitutional conference which would include
Aboriginal Representatives
○ A series of constitutional conferences on Aboriginal rights were held between 1983 and
1987
Contemporary solution: Land claims and the constitution
● Pressure to negotiate land claims
● In 1982 the Constitutional Act recognized and affirmed existing aboriginal and treaty rights.
● Land claims slowly began to resolve
● The Nigsa’s final agreement is a land claims settlement allowing the Nigsa’s complete control
over their land. (any other peoples are forbidden from entering the territory)
● Also allows the Nigsa’s self-governance, allowed to govern their people and maintain
sovereignty.
Key Terms:
Assimilation - a minority group or culture comes to resemble a society's majority group or assimilate the
values, behaviors, and beliefs of another group whether fully or partially.
Humanitarianism - the promotion of human welfare.
Indian Act - a Canadian act of Parliament that concerns registered Indians, their bands, and the system of
Indian reserves.
Canada and the Imposition of Liberalism on Aboriginal Peoples
● The Great Law of Peace provided the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) peoples with a constitution that
dates back to the 15th century.
● The Great Binding Law, as it sometimes is referred to, has three main principles: righteousness,
health and power – all characteristics of liberalism.
● It has been argued that many of the principles of liberalism originated in traditional Aboriginal
societies.
● In Canada, our Aboriginal communities use liberal ideas such as elected leaders, government by
consensus, leadership on the basis of merit, just punishment, and concepts of equality and
equality before the law.
● In the 19th century, the ideology of classical liberalism, and the concept of progress associated
with it, became a dominant force in the thinking of many European and North American colonial
leaders.
● This ‘faith in progress’ had become an ideology:
○ “…it consists of irreversible changes in one direction only, and that this direction is
towards improvement”
● This ideology contrasted sharply with beliefs that are considered common in most aboriginal
cultures, known as:
● “The Laws of Sacred Life”
○ “Laws of Nature”
○ and “Laws of Mutual Support”
● The principles included in these laws lead to misunderstandings in areas such as land ownership,
education, work and governance
Land Holding Conflicts
● Aboriginals viewed land ownership differently
, ● Europeans believed that they personally could own the land
● First Nations believed that land was borrowed from the Creator – not something that was owned
● As more immigrants arrived, more land was needed
● Treaties were signed
● In exchange for the land, First Nations were given annual payments, social and economic
● benefits, and continued use of some land and resources
● The Problem with Treaties…
○ First Nations used oral agreements and traditions, Europeans had a history of written
documents
○ Language was a barrier – interpreters didn’t grasp both languages, some words
○ (exclusive land ownership) had no equivalent in First Nations languages
○ Europeans called the legal status of these agreements into question, even though they
were written
○ Came to believe that First Nations were not sovereign nations and stopped treating the
treaties as valid international agreements
Assimilation & Enfranchisement
● Gradual Civilization Act (1857)
● Any First Nations male who gave up his official Indian status would be considered enfranchised
and given 50 acres of land for his personal use
● He would continue to receive his share of treaty settlements and band money
● When he died, ownership of land would be given to his children and removed from the band’s
reserve
Assimilation & Indian Act (1876)
● Defined what First Nations could and could not do
● Defined who was considered to be a First Nations person
● Encouraged Aboriginals to abandon their Indian status and identity to become members of
Canadian society
● Regarded First Nations’ children as wards of the state
● Tried to suppress cultures by banning traditional practices
● Until 1960, voting was only allowed for those who moved off of the reserve (and was therefore
not considered to be a status Indian) and gave up their treaty rights
Assimilation & Residential Schools
● Mandatory boarding schools for Aboriginal children that had the primary goal of
● assimilating them into Western cultures and traditions
● According to the Indian Act, the federal government was responsible for the education of First
Nations children
● School age children were taken from their families and placed in these schools where they lived,
worked, and studied
● Returned home for the summer and required to return in August
, The White Paper
● Aboriginal people in Canada took hope with the election of Pierre Trudeau's Liberals in 1968.
● They were outraged when the White Paper introduced by Minister of Indian and Northern Affairs
Jean Chretien a year later amounted to an assimilation program: the repeal of the Indian Act, the
transfer of Indian affairs to the provinces, the elimination of separate legal status native people.
● The Unjust Society, Cree leader Harold Cardinal's stinging rebuttal, was an immediate best-seller,
and it remains one of the most important books ever published.
● Cardinal summed up the government's approach as "The only good Indian is a non-Indian."
● He coined the term "buckskin curtain" to describe the barriers that indifference, ignorance and
bigotry had placed in the way of his people.
● He insisted on his right to remain "a red tile in the Canadian mosaic."
● Above all, he called for radical changes in policy on aboriginal rights, education, social programs
and economic development.
● The Unjust Society heralded a profound change in the political landscape.
● Thirty years later, however, the buckskin curtain has still not disappeared. Canada's First Nations
continue their fight for justice. And Harold Cardinal's vision is as compelling and powerful as
ever.
Taking a Stand against Assimilation: The Red Paper
● Aboriginals responded with their own document, named Citizens Plus, in 1970
● This became more commonly known as the Red Paper
● The Red Paper countered all of the proposals of the White Paper
● An Aboriginal delegation, backed by other Canadian citizens, met with the government and
successfully convinced it to radically change its policies and positions
Constitutional Act - 1982
● The constitutional document was signed by the Queen in Canada on April 17, 1982
● It included two additional sections dealing with the aboriginal peoples:
○ Section 25 which provides guarantees and protection of aboriginal and treaty rights in
relation to the Charter of Rights
○ Section 37 which dealt with a future constitutional conference which would include
Aboriginal Representatives
○ A series of constitutional conferences on Aboriginal rights were held between 1983 and
1987
Contemporary solution: Land claims and the constitution
● Pressure to negotiate land claims
● In 1982 the Constitutional Act recognized and affirmed existing aboriginal and treaty rights.
● Land claims slowly began to resolve
● The Nigsa’s final agreement is a land claims settlement allowing the Nigsa’s complete control
over their land. (any other peoples are forbidden from entering the territory)
● Also allows the Nigsa’s self-governance, allowed to govern their people and maintain
sovereignty.
