This Is Why Atleo...

...was so unpopular with the Chiefs and other parts of The Industry:

Addressing the legacy of residential schools means supporting native families, not necessarily their band leaders

"...Mr. Atleo decisively stated: “We must not burden another generation with anger and pain.” The message of his op-ed seems clear: As much pain as Residential Schools caused many First Nations people, we should not encourage young aboriginals to dwell incessantly on the injustices of the past. The whole point of the truth and reconciliation process has been to help these communities gain a sense of closure. If that project is to be a success, their members also must stop thinking of themselves primarily as victims.

Testimony at the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, like most journalistic coverage of the issue, has focused on the worst examples of abuse. But the truth is that the system was run by a patchwork of religious and government officials, and there was no universal residential-school experience for native students. Some schools were infamous. Others were humane.

In fact, some First Nations communities, when given the choice in the mid-20th century, voted to keep their local residential schools open, because they wanted their children to learn the math and language skills that would permit them gain a livelihood. Many children at residential schools also received life-saving medical treatment — including medication for tuberculosis — that was unavailable to First Nations people still living in the bush or in remote settlements." (Emphasis mine, throughout.)

[---]

"...in some ways, the emphasis on treaty rights has actually retarded the healing of First Nations families — because the cash bounty has encouraged the transformation of reserves into miniature low-employment welfare states. No matter what one’s skin colour, dependency and idleness always encourage substance abuse, a lack of respect for education, local political corruption and other pathologies that prevent the creation of healthy communities."

Finally someone tells the truth!!! Well done Mr. Kay and Mr. Atleo.

Blah, Blah, Blah!

Chiefs vow to do 'whatever it takes' to scrap aboriginal education bill


Calls to impeach AFN Chief Shawn Atleo rise over endorsement of controversial education bill



Valcourt tells opposition MP to follow Atleo’s “lead” on education bill

I agree. Let's scrap all pieces of legislation dealing with "First Nations", all money transfers and all treaty obligations. The Indians have broken them all, anyway.

They Must Be...

...getting the message:

FSIN vice-chiefs take pay cut

"Meeting for most of the day Wednesday at the Allan Bird Memorial Centre in Prince Albert, chiefs voted nearly unanimously to cut the salaries of the four vice-chiefs from $100,000 per year to $75,000. The $215,000 salary of FSIN Chief Perry Bellegarde remains unaffected, as it’s funded by the national Assembly of First Nations (AFN).

Chiefs also voted overwhelmingly to take $500,000 in casino revenue from the First Nations Trust."

More here, here and here.

Long story short. They're cutting the fat and they ain't crying about "inherent and treaty rights". Will wonders ever cease?

And don't you just love it that Bellegarde is exempted?

Treaties and Stuff - Part 6

There are two clauses pertaining to the role envisioned for the Chiefs of each Band. They are:

"It is further agreed between Her Majesty and the said Indians, that each Chief duly recognized as such, shall receive an annual salary of twenty-five dollars per annum; and each subordinate officer, not exceeding four for each Band, shall receive fifteen dollars per annum; and each such Chief and subordinate officer, as aforesaid, shall also receive once every three years, a suitable suit of  clothing, and each Chief shall receive, in recognition of the closing of the treaty, a suitabe flag and medal, and also as soon as convenient, one horse, harness and waggon."

(You may note the payment is in dollars, not Pounds Sterling, as would have been the currency in use in Great Britain, where "Her Majesty" lived. The sum of twenty-five dollars is a paltry amount, considering what the Chiefs pay themselves today, isn't it? It was also a paltry amount in 1876, when the treaty was negotiated. A few years later, when Industrial Schools were opened, the lowest paid employees at those institutions made almost as much in one month as the Chiefs did in a whole year.)

And:

"That in lieu of waggons, if they desire it and declare their option to that effect, there shall be  given to each of the Chiefs adhering hereto at Fort Pitt or elsewhere hereafter (exclusively of those in the Carlton district), in recognition of this treaty, as soon as the same can be conveniently transported, two carts with iron bushings and tires."

(It seems Her Majesty's Government in Canada had a role which they decided the Chiefs should play.)

The last section worthy of note in the Treaty 6 text pertains to obeying the law, which also pertains, to some extent, to the role envisaged for the Chiefs:

"And the undersigned Chiefs on their own behalf and on behalf of all other Indians inhabiting the tract within ceded, do hereby solemnly promise and engage to strictly observe this treaty, and also to conduct and behave themselves as good and loyal subjects of Her Majesty the Queen.

They promise and engage that they will in all respects obey and abide by the law, and they will maintain peace and good order between each other, and also between themselves and other tribes of Indians, and also between themselves and others of Her Majesty's subjects, whether Indians or whites, now inhabiting or hereafter to inhabit any part of said ceded tracts, and that they will not molest the person or property of any inhabitant of such ceded tracts. or the property of Her Majesty the Queen, or interfere with or trouble any person passing or travelling through the said tracts, or any part thereof, and that they will aid and assist the officers of Her Majesty in bringing to justice, and punishment any Indian offending against the stipulations of this treaty, or infringing the laws in force in the country so ceded.  (I think it's safe to say that promise has been broken, and not by the "whites".) 

So, should we call the Treaties off?

In the next several segments of this series I will examine what little evidence exists in support of the contemporary Indian view of the Treaties, which is obviously very different from this dry legalistic, stilted language in the text of Treaty 6 as well as, to some extent, the rise of the Indian Industry, which has developed a very lucrative grievance mongering business.

Treaties and Stuff - Part 5

In addition to the emphasis on agriculture, Treaty 6 contains two clauses that caused an hysterically negative reaction from the Chief Civil Servant in Ottawa, namely, the "medicine chest" clause and the "assistance during famine" clause, which read as follows:

"That a medicine chest shall be kept at the house of each Indian Agent for the use and benefit of the Indians."

Sometime in the 1930s this clause was interpreted by the courts to mean that all health services would be provided to the Indians, by the government in Ottawa. It has been pointed out that the Hudson's Bay Company provided medical services to Indians, and also that when Rupertsland (Hudson's Bay Company's territory) had been sold to Canada, the Indians were appalled by the loss of these services and the sale of their land, and assumed the Queen's government was intent on taking over the role previously played by the company.

And...

"That in the event hereafter of the Indians comprised within this treaty being overtaken by any pestilence, or by a general famine, the Queen, on being satisfied and certified thereof by Her Indian Agent or Agents, will grant to the Indians assistance of such character and to such extent as Her Chief Superintendent of Indian Affairs shall deem necessary and sufficient to relieve the Indians from the calamity that shall have befallen them."

At the time Treaty 6 was being negotiated, the specter of famine was already in view. The buffalo were rapidly disappearing, and hunger was already gnawing at Indian well-being.  There is little wonder that the need for such assistant was on the minds of the Indians as they negotiated the terms of their land surrender. While Ottawa bureaucrats were appalled, the Indians were grateful that the Queen had stepped up to replace the role previously played by the Company, which, during it's final days, had indeed, provided Indians with just such assistance.

However, the government in Ottawa was ill prepared, both in terms of logistics and mindset, to adequately fulfill these treaty promises, and a widespread famine did ensue while assistance from Ottawa was parsimonious at best.

Treaties And Stuff - Part 4

Government policy in the 1870s was to turn Indians into farmers. Not surprisingly, then, there are three paragraphs in Treaty 6 that relate to agriculture.  Namely:

"It is further agreed between Her Majesty and the said Indians that the following articles shall be supplied to any Band of the said Indians who are now cultivating the soil, or who shall hereafter commence to cultivate the land, that is to say: Four hoes for every family actually cultivating ; also, two spades per family as aforesaid ; one plough for every three families, as aforesaid ; one harrow for every three families, as aforesaid ; two scythes and one whetstone, and two hay forks and two reaping hooks, for every family as aforesaid, and also one crosscut saw,  one handsaw, one pit-saw, the necessary files one grindstone and one grindstone and one auger for each Band ; also for each Chief  for the use of his band, one chest of ordinary carpenter's tools; also, for each Band, enough of wheat, barley, potatoes and oats to plant the land actually broken up for cultivation by such Band; also for each Band four oxen, one bull and six cows ; also one boar and two sows, and one hand mill when any Band shall raise sufficient grain therefor. All the aforesaid articles to be given once for all for the encouragement of the practice of agriculture among the Indians."

(Needless to say, that clause has been turned into something else completely by the Indian Industry.)

And:

"That during the next three years, after two or more of the reserves hereby agreed to be set apart to the Indians shall have been agreed upon and surveyed, there shall be granted to the Indians included under the Chiefs adhering to the Treaty at Carlton, each spring, the sum of one thousand dollars, to be expended for them by Her Majesty's Indian Agents, in the purchase of provisions for the use of such of the Band as are actually settled on the reserves and are engaged in cultivating the soil, to assist them in such cultivation."

And:

"That with regard to the Indians included under the Chiefs adhering to the Treaty at Fort Pitt, and to those under Chiefs within the treaty limits who may hereafter give their adhesion thereto (exclusively, however, of the Indians of the Carlton region), there  shall, during three years , after two or more reserves shall have been agreed upon and surveyed be distributed each spring among the Bands cultivating the soil on such reserves, by Her Majesty's Chief Indian Agent for this treaty, in his discretion, a sum not exceeding one thousand dollars, in the purchase of provisions for the use of such members of the Band as are actually settled on the reserves and engages in the cultivation of the soil, to assist and encourage them in such cultivation."


(What is noteable about these clauses is how specific they are. The last one, immediately above, for example, was to apply only to those Indians who had gathered at Fort Pitt, but not to the ones at Fort Carlton, but, perhaps that's because there was a different group assembled at Fort Pitt and those who had assembled at Fort Carlton had already been promised more or less the same. It's also noteable that there was an altruistic spirit in what was being offered. It is also quite evident that the Treaty Commissioners of the day thought the transition to agriculture would be fairly speedy and without major problems. Naivety, perhaps, but it certainly didn't turn out that way.)

Treaties and Stuff - Part 3

Following the clause concerning liquor, comes one about hunting and fishing rights:

"Her Majesty further agrees with her said Indians that they, the said Indians, shall have the right to pursue their avocations of hunting and fishing throughout the tract surrendered as hereinbefore described, subject to such regulations as may from time to time be made by Her Government of her Dominion of Canada, and saving and excepting such tracts as may from time to time be required or taken up for settlement, mining, lumbering or other purposes by Her said Government of the Dominion of Canada, or by any of the subjects thereof duly authorized therefor by the said Government."

(Not quite what Indians understand their hunting and fishing rights to be today, is it?)

Next, is a clause pertaining to lands required for public works or buildings on reserve land:

"It is further agreed between Her Majesty and Her said Indians, (There we go again. It seems Her Majesty viewed "Her" Indians as "Her subjects".) that such sections of the reserves above indicated as may from time to time be required for public works or buildings, of what nature soever, may be appropriated for that purpose by Her Majesty for that purpose by Her Majesty's Government of the Dominion of Canada, due compensation being made for the value of any improvements thereon."

Following that:

"And further, that Her Majesty's Commissioners shall, as soon as possible after the execution of this treaty, cause to be taken an accurate census of all the Indians inhabiting the tract above described, distributing them in families, and shall, in every year ensuing the date hereof,and at some period in each year, to be duly notified to the Indians, at a place or places to be appointed for that purpose within the territory ceded, pay to each Indian person, the sum of $5 per head yearly.  (This practice is still in, place. Members of the RCMP, dressed in their red serge, attend Treaty Days, and assist with the distribution of the cash.)

"It is further agreed between Her Majesty and the said Indians, that the sum of $1,500 per annum shall be yearly and every year expended by Her Majesty in the purchase of ammunition, and twine for nets, for the use of the said Indians, in manner following, that is to say : In the reasonable discretion, as regards the distribution thereof among the Indians  inhabiting  the several reserves, or otherwise, included herein, of Her Majesty's Indian Agent having the supervision of this treaty." (I'll have more to say about this in a future installment. I doubt whether the amounts have been increased, as Her Majesty's government in Canada, at the time, were certain that Her subjects would be completely engrossed in farming in a few short years. In any case, those amounts in 1876 dollars would not buy much in 2013 dollars.)

Part 4...

Treaties And Stuff - Part 1

Further to this entry, I intend to go clause by clause through Treaty 6, as it was written when it was signed. (Bolded emphasis is mine, as are the comments in red.)

The opening clauses read as follows:

"Articles of a Treaty made and concluded near Carlton on the 23rd day of August  and on the 28th day of said month, respectively, and Near Fort Pitt  on the 9th day of September, in the year of Our Lord one thousand eight hundred and seventy-six, between Her Most Gracious Majesty the Queen of  Great Britain and Ireland, by Her Commissioners, the Honourable Alexander Morris, Lieutenant-Governor of the Province of Manitoba and the North-west Territories, and the Honourable James McKay, and the Honourable William Joseph Cristie, of the one part, and the Plain and Wood Cree and other Tribes (What? You mean they weren't Nations?) of Indians, inhabitants of the country within the limits hereinafter defined and as described by their Chiefs, chosen and named as hereinafter mentioned, of the other part.

And whereas the Indians inhabiting the said country have, pursuant to an appointment made by the said commissioners, been convened at meetings at Fort Carlton, Fort Pitt and Battle River, to deliberate upon certain matters of interest to Her Most Gracious Majesty, of the one part, and the said Indians of the other." (Is it little wonder Indians of today consider the treaties to have been made with the Queen of Britain?  But why is that the only thing they seem to remember, today, when there is so much more in the treaties?)

To continue:

"And whereas the said Indians have been notified and informed by her Majesty's said Commissioners that it is the desire of Her Majesty to open up for settlement, immigration and such other purposes as to Her Majesty may seem meet, (Opps. Does that mean mineral rights and other stuff beyond and over and above the "depth of a plow"?) a tract of country bounded and described as hereinafter mentioned, and to obtain the consent thereto of Her Indian subjects (What??!! You mean they were already "subjects" of the crown? How could that be????) inhabiting the said tract, and to make a treaty and arrange with them, so that there may be peace and good will between them and Her Majesty, and that they may know and be assured of what allowance they are to count upon and receive from Her Majesty's bounty and benevolence.

And whereas the Indians of the said tract, duly convened in council, as aforesaid, and being requested by Her Majesty's said Commissioners to name certain Chiefs and Headmen, who should be authorized on their behalf to conduct such negotiations and sign any treaty to be founded thereon, and to become responsible to Her Majesty for their faithful performance by their respective Bands of such obligations as shall be assumed by them, the said Indians have thereupon named for that purpose, that is to say, representing the Indians who make the treaty at Carlton, the several Chiefs and Councillors who have subscribed hereto, and representing  the Indians who make the treaty at Fort Pitt, the several Chiefs and Councillors who have subscribed hereto."

Following these clauses is a description of the territory so ceded, after which is the following:

"And also, all their rights, titles and privileges whatsoever to all other lands wherever situated in the North-west Territories, or in any other Province or portion of Her Majesty's Dominions, situated and being within the Dominion of Canada.

The tract comprised within the lines above described embracing an area of 121,000 square miles, be the same, more or less.

To have and to hold the same to Her Majesty the Queen and Her successors forever."

(Whoa!! You mean, Her Majesty did not recognize these territories as belonging to anyone but herself?  Say it ain't so!!)

Following these clauses are the standard clauses, found in all the numbered treaties negotiated in the 1870s, whereby the Indians were to select the locations where they wanted their "reserves" located, and Her Majesty would arrange to have surveyors mark out the said tracts of land.

(Yup. The Indians got to select their own reserves, contrary to what the Indian Industry would have us believe. Mind you, the intent was to train the Indians how to farm, and in those days, one could make a good living farming on a much smaller tract of land than would be necessary today.)

Part 2...

Treaties and Stuff - Part 2

Part 1 is here.

Included also in the clauses about reserved land is the following:

"..the aforesaid reserves of land, or any interest therein, may be sold or otherwise disposed of by Her Majesty's Government for the use and benefit of the said Indians entitled thereto, with their consent first had and obtained"

(There were a number of such land "surrenders" duly arranged in the decades that followed, which became the subject of land claims in the 1970s and '80s with the assertion that they had be defrauded of their land, however, it would appear that, contrary to the Indian version of events, all was on the up and up at the time of the surrender.)

In the same paragraph, Indians are promised cash payouts "with a view to show the satisfaction of Her Majesty with the behavior and good conduct of Her Indians", as follows:

"...twelve dollars for each man, woman and child belonging to the bands here represented, in extinguishment of all claims heretofore preferred."

Following that is a promise of schools. (Interesting anecdote: Publicly funded education was a new, and as yet, not universally accepted  concept in the 1870s. Prior to that, most schooling for poor children was delivered by the churches.  So it makes perfect sense that the schools opened on reserves, and later, the residential schools, were administered by the churches.)

The exact wording of the education clause in Treaty 6, is: "And further, Her Majesty's Government of the Dominion of Canada agrees to maintain schools for instruction in such reserves [Emphasis mine} hereby made as to her Government of the Dominion of Canada may seem advisable, whenever the Indians of such reserve shall desire it.

(I placed the words "in such reserves" in bold, in order to emphasize the mindset of the Victorian era. In other words, paying for post-secondary education was not anticipated, as Indian organizations would have us believe today.   Indeed, post-secondary education, or even secondary education, at that time, was a luxury only the well-to-do could afford. As mentioned above, at the time Treaty 6 was negotiated, only recently had public funding for lower-class children become acceptable,  It is highly unlikely that the Treaty Commissioner, or the Queen herself, had that in mind.  What was most likely, given the life-ways of Europeans and the colonials of the time, and given what was anticipated as the future for Indians, was an agrarian mode of life, or careers in trades that supported an agrarian lifestyle, such as blacksmithing.  In fact, and in hand with the residential schools appearing during that era, where "industrial schools", where Indian youth were taught precisely those sorts of skills.)

Finally, to round out Part 2, is the next clause pertained to the general prohibition against alcohol:

"...within the boundary of Indian reserves, until otherwise determined by Her Government of the Dominion of Canada, no intoxicating liquor shall be allowed to be introduced or sold, and all laws now in force, or hereinafter enacted, to preserve Her Indian subjects inhabiting or living elsewhere within Her North-west Territories from the evil influence of the use of intoxicating liquors, shall be strictly enforced."

(This prohibition was an integral part of the Indian Act until the late 1950s (or early 1960s). And still, today, there are "wet' reserves, and "dry" reserves, the status being determined by Band Council resolution.)  

Part 3 -