Category Archives: Indigenous Issues

Treaties like Constitutions Should not be written in stone.

2024 Trip to Eastern Canada, Indigenous People After Contact, Indigenous Treaties

 

 

Nipigon, Ontario

 

On the second day of our trip to Eastern Canada we travelled through Nipigon Ontario. Our first morning on the trip really started with a short tour of Nipigon and then breakfast at a local restaurant there by the name of Ducky’s. Inside the restaurant is graced with a lot of parts from trees. Such as Birch bark and slices of birch trees. Thank goodness we did not have to make toast out of those slices. The wall was hung with snowshoes and massive moose antlers. We realized we really were in the north woods. The French toast was excellent with generous portions of real maple syrup. And bacon. I don’t mind that bacon does not come from the north woods. Maybe it came from LA Broquerie Hy-life pork.

 

Nipigon is a place where some of the members of the Flying Post First Nation have settled. Members of the Flying Post First Nation are widely spread out. Many of them don’t live in their designated Indian Reserve. Some of them live near Nipigon Ontario where we had breakfast. Flying Post First Nation was at one time an independent First Nation as part of the Nishnawbe-Aski Nation (NAN), and later joined with or merged with the Wabun Tribal Council in 2007. Flying Post’s priorities include encouraging its members to pursue educational and professional ambitions and to create a sustainable economy for the First Nation that will create prosperity for future generations of its members.

Though most of the Flying Post First Nation members are located near Nipigon, others live in various parts of the country. The official territory of the Flying Post FN is located near Timmins, Ontario along the Ground Hog River. The Reserve lands were established between the government and First Nation people in Northern Ontario through the signing of Treaty #9 in 1905 and 1906 with later additional adhesions in 1929 and 1930. In 1906, Flying Post lands were identified in a ‘Schedule of Reserves’ in the Treaty #9 document and described the First Nation Reserve lands as follows – ‘In the province of Ontario, commencing at a point half a mile south of Six-Mile Rapids, on the east side of Ground Hog River, thence south a distance of four miles, and of sufficient depth to give an area of twenty-three square miles.’ As a lawyer who many times drafted land descriptions for various legal documents, I was amused by the looseness of the legal definition of the Reserve. But they are part of a Treaty and that makes them constitutional documents in Canadian law.

 

According to a subsequent Chief of the First Nation, Chief Murray Ray, the Treaty documents “included many discrepancies that came out of miscommunication.”   Chief Black Ice was the first recognized Chief of Flying Post First Nation. He had been informed of the treaty making process while his people were living near Groundhog River. However, they just happened to be there at the time, but they were nomadic, as were many First Nations people of Canada. The government of Canada did not respect the nomadic lifestyle of the Ojibway and Cree people of northern Ontario. As a result, the legal documents describing their Treaty lands were based on including the land which they happened to occupy at that time. Not necessarily the land they would occupy the net year. It was a like trying to squeeze a square peg into a round hole. That process never ends well and it didn’t here either. This is just one example, among many, of how cultural differences between First Nations and Canadians of European descent mashed up their relationship.

When people of the First Nation realized what land they were entitled to under the Treaty, many were displeased as they considered it a poor permanent location. Some of the members of Flying Post First Nation joined other First Nations instead.

In the 1960s, some Flying Post First Nation members began to organize themselves during the formation of First Nation political organizations such as Nishnawbe-Aski Nation (NAN). During that time, they re-established themselves as a First Nation entity and elected a Chief and Council to represent their people.

First Nations people of Canada usually made it clear to their Canadian government negotiators that they expected frequent revision and renewal of the treaties to iron out problems and keep them current in accordance with current expectations on both sides. Had such frequent renewals occurred there would likely have been fewer complications resulting in happier relations between First Nation peoples and the Canadian government. Treaties like Constitutions should always be living documents, not pressed in unmovable stone. A good example of this mistake is the American constitution. as a result of failure to amend in many years it has become calcified and an impediment to good government instead of a facilitator. While in earlier years amendments were common, in modern times amendments seem all but impossible leading to inevitable grief. It really is impossible to negotiate documents for ever. Neither party is long happy with the results. Such documents need to change. They  must be alive.

 

After 8 weeks of War

Extremism, Indigenous Treaties, War Between Israel and Hamas

 

According to UNICEF, whose numbers should be reliable, unlike those emanating from the Hama  officials which I frankly have no reason to believe are true, 5300 civilians and children have died in the Israeli air strikes. 115 children have been dying every day. And things are getting worse! That is what Holy War in the Holy Land looks like, not lmited war!

 

I also heard more civilians have died than in the near 2-year- war in Ukraine so far.  And Ukraine has been dealing with a ruthless blood-thirsty tyrant. Some have said Russia is the world’s most brutal regime in the world.

Israel, is supported militarily by the western countries like Canada, the United States, and United Kingdom. Canada called for a pause in fighting but not a cease-fire. It got what it asked for. Maybe it should asked for more.

It seems to me Canada might be supporting a war without limits. If that is the case, as some say, Canada is supporting war crimes. That, I think would be a first for Canada. That would not be something to be proud of. That would a a stain on our reputation. When friends see other friends going too far, the good friend would warn the friend. Good friends give each other the truth, even when its hard.  Especially when its hard.

 

Heaven and Hell in Huckleberry Finn

Classic Books, Indigenous Treaties, Religious Quest in the Modern Age

 

Huck Finn, like Mark Twain, was not really that keen on heaven.  Twain also pursued this theme with his classic sense of humour in a wonderful essay called “Letters from the Earth.” It is well worth reading.

In many ways, hell seemed more attractive to Huck than heaven. As he thought to himself after Miss Watson tried to extoll the benefits of heaven to Huck, “Then she told me all about the bad place, and I said, I wished I were there.” Miss Watson said it was wicked to say that. But in his resolve Huck remained firm: “I couldn’t see no advantage in going where she was going, so I made up my mind, I wouldn’t try for it.” Why try hard to get to a place that really didn’t seem that attractive? But Miss Watson did not give us so easily. But neither did Huck. Twain described their spiritual tussle this way:

 

“…she went on and told me all about the good place. She said all a body would have to do there was to go around all day long with a harp and sing, forever and ever. So I didn’t think much of it. But I never said so. I asked her if she reckoned Tom Sawyer would go there and she said not by a considerable sight. I was glad about that, because I wanted him and me to be together.”

 

Once again, Huck was prepared to go to hell for a friend. Friendship was more important than religious ideology. Even an ideology he had been swimming in since birth and even though it came with powerful religious artillery. He even wished his friend would be in hell to keep their friendship intact.

Grueling Inquest

2022 Inferior Trip to Superior, autumn, Indigenous Issues, photography

 

Sometimes truth does not come in clear images.  The impressionist painters of the late 19th century realized that, and I found their images captivating.  Some of you may have noticed that some of my photos are not clear either. That is not an accident.  I have been using a technique called “the Orton effect” after the man who invented it. The technique involves combining 2 identical images into one. The first one is clear, but over exposed. So it is very light. Then I take a second image of the same subject and blur it deliberately. When combined the images sometimes are stunning. Sometimes you have no idea what the result will be when the images are combined. Sometimes the results are duds. When combined however, sometimes the images seem magical what you see the two images coming together in the computer.

 

A few years ago I was at photographic workshop with a photographer by the name of Andre Gallant who produced a book called Dream Scapes. He is a master of the technique.  I am a poor elementary student.  His images were deeply compelling to me, but he admitted, as must I, that the technique is not for everyone. After all, why would one deliberately blur a sharp image? That is a good question? Why did the impressionists do that?

 

Julian Falconer, in the film Spirit to Soar, together with the Grand Chief Nishnawbe Aski Nation, Alvin Fiddler fought for an inquest into the deaths of the 7 young indigenous people in Thunder Bay for years.  Finally, one was announced in 2008, but only for one of the 7 students.  The inquest was for Reggie Bushie and it was finally called in 2015. According to CBC reporter Jodi Porter,

“there was a roomful of lawyers there and their only job was to protect and cover-up and they were the ones who got to call [witnesses]…There wasn’t healing in it. It was traumatizing. It was awful to sit there every day. And no one from Thunder Bay bothered to show up.”

 

While the Inquest was being held another indigenous body was pulled from the river. “The gruelling inquest”, according to Talaga, “lasted for 9 months and came up with 145 recommendations including building high schools for every community that needs one. And improving safety for Thunder Bay rivers.

I wonder if anyone cared about that. The film did not say. It left a lot of questions unanswered.

In the same way, combining images can leave a lot of questions unanswered. But aren’t questions more important than answers? I don’t want to give up on truth, but sometimes I want to experience it from a fresh perspective.

Fear and Trembling

2022 Inferior Trip to Superior, autumn, Colonialism, Exploitation, Indigenous People After Contact, Indigenous Treaties, Indigenous--Indian Act, Indigenous--Indian Residential Schools

 

I love autumn and in particular the maple leaves of autumn.  What is more beautiful?

The Canadian federal government in 1876 introduced the Indian Act. It has been amended a number of times since then, but is still on the books. That statute gave the federal government authority over indigenous people. Indigenous people were shocked by the introduction of that statute, since many of them had recently entered into treaties which they thought guaranteed them sovereignty over their own lands and peoples while agreeing to share (but not cede) the land with non-indigenous Canadians. That law actually gave the federal government the authority to completely control the lives of indigenous people in Canada. That statute gave the federal government the power to take away indigenous children from their homes and send them to church run government funded Indian Residential Schools. There were eventually more than 140 residential schools across Canada. 150,000 indigenous children were taken from their families and sent to these schools often at considerable distance from their home communities and far away from their families. The last school closed in 1996. Again, this is not ancient history. This is yesterday. And the ill-effects of those schools live on in the lives of descendants of the survivors.

 

The Indian Act is a piece of legislation that amounts to the extreme use of colonial power and paved the way for exploitation of indigenous people. It is based on the false notion that whites were superior to indigenous people. I will have more to say about that legislation in future posts.

 

Children are still leaving their homes and families and communities just to get an education.  Now they do it by “choice.” Many go to places like Thunder Bay where they are the objects of powerful and deep racism. Of course, indigenous people are compelled to go there by economic circumstances. Many of these modern students report that they feel unsafe in places like Thunder Bay. One said, “I feel like I have to look over my shoulder every second, or I’m going to, you know, get hurt.” Many are scared because they know of others who have gone missing.

Of course, the 7 deaths of indigenous students in the Thunder Bay area brought painful recollections of Indian Residential Schools where often young children were sent to schools far away and never came home. Was this not comparable to that? Were we living through another heinous event like that?

Pays Plat 51 Reserve: Where the water is shallow

2022 Inferior Trip to Superior, Colonialism, Exploitation, Indigenous People After Contact, Indigenous Treaties, New Attitude to Nature

Pays Plat River Northwest Ontario

There are an amazing number of First Nations in this region of Northwest Ontario through which I traveled. One I had never heard of before was the Pays Plat First Nation. It is a small first nation near Rossport, my final destination on this trip. According to the First Nation’s website, The Pays Plat 51 reserve is in the boundary of the territory described in Robinson Superior Treaty of 1850. The community is now found alongside the Trans-Canada highway.  I stopped because it had a lovely little river with a church beside it. How could I resist photographing it?

The ancestors of the current first nation survived by hunting, fishing, and trapping. It was deeply involved in the fur trade. The name “Pays Plat”  comes from the French and means flat land. It is between 2 mountains. Modest sized mountains of course, as befits Ontario.

In the Anishinaabemowin language, the community is known as Baagwaashiing which means “Where the water is shallow.” To me the little village was a delight.

The Robinson Treaties, of 1850 also known as the Robinson-Huron and Robinson-Superior Treaties saw Canada secure almost all of northwest Ontario for settlement and resource development. New in these agreements were provisions made for reserves based on sites chosen by Indigenous leaders. These Robinson Treaties  are credited with laying the foundation for what later became known as Western Canada’s Numbered Treaties. Treaty making during this period was not just confined to the eastern and central areas of what would become Canada.

 

 

A treaty is a legally binding agreement outlining the rights and duties of its signatories and is protected by international law. Negotiated and agreed to by two or more sovereign nations, treaties are formal agreements used to reinforce and protect relations between those parties.

In North America, Indigenous societies and colonial powers often held divergent traditions and understandings on the composition and structure of these agreements. These understandings were informed by their own social, political and economic norms. Far from homogenous, pre-colonial laws, customs, and practices informed Indigenous treaty agreements, like that in Gusweñta. Many of these principles were shared among Indigenous nations, ensuring that all parties upheld their obligations. Many Indigenous nations recognize this treaty legacy and continue to advocate that the original intent of these agreements with the Crown, and then Canada, be honoured.

 

Conflict between competing empires often made its way to North America, and almost always involved Indigenous peoples. The French and British each had their supporting allies among the indigenous people. The Great Peace of Montreal serves as but one example of an agreement that brought to a close prolonged periods of conflict. Signed in 1701 between New France and forty (40) Indigenous groups of Central and Eastern North America. This treaty ushered in several years of peace. Treaties such as this lay the groundwork for peace and cooperation between colonial powers and the areas Indigenous populations, and were tested and fractured time and again when European rivals clashed overseas and brought their conflict to the Americas.

Key differences in treaty making during each of these phases is a direct result of the economic, political, and social dynamics that emerged as colonial and later state powers competed for control of the continent. As trade relations, wartime diplomacy, increasing land settlement pressures, and resource development increased, so too did the need for officials to deal with the question of Indigenous land title. As Leanne Betasamosake Simpson said, treaties were always about land.

 

And what struck me most on this jaunt through God’s country was that the land was beautiful. Unbelievably beautiful. Worth cherishing. I am not always sure that Canada appreciated how the land should be cherished. Canadians by and large wanted to exploit the land, not cherish it. I am not sure that was always the right approach. Often I think we need a new attitude to nature. I have blogged about that. I want to blog a lot more about that. I think it is a crucial concept.

 

Wampum Belt: We’’ll Work Together

2022 Inferior Trip to Superior, autumn, Colonialism, Indigenous People After Contact, Indigenous Treaties, Indigenous--Indian Act

 

 

On my jaunt past Thunder Bay I started to see a few red maples.  What says autumn more than a red maple? We get very few of these wonderful autumn leaves of red maples in Manitoba. In fact, to my surprise, since I know there are some just past Kenora, I was surprised that I did not encounter these until I was past Thunder Bay. But eventually they were evident in all of their splendour.

 

The Two Row Wampum Belt of the Haudenosaunee people, also known as that Iroquois, is a great example that illustrated one way that Indigenous peoples recorded and preserved their laws and government systems. The Two Row Wampum Belt is made from either whelk shell, quahog, or hard shell clams. The belt’s rows of cylindrical purple and white beads are bound together with hemp that runs its full length. It was these belts and their intricate beadwork designs that served as the foundation for all other treaties and agreements between the Haudenosaunee and the colonial representatives.

 

2 row Wampum Belt

In addition to confirming an individual’s credentials and authority, these belts also served as one of the first methods used to document oral agreements. Today, they also act as evidence of pre-existing Indigenous diplomatic relationships. Wampum belts were used as mnemonic devices to record important events and were often brought out for official gatherings and sacred ceremonies. Indigenous laws were also recorded within the patterns on these belts. Items like masks, medicine bundles, birch bark scrolls, petroglyphs, and button blankets, although primarily spiritual in nature, could also record and preserve legal traditions.

Named Gusweñta, this two-row wampum belt serves as a symbolic and binding agreement that was made in 1645 between Haudenosaunee leaders and Dutch colonial officials. When the Dutch began making incursions into Haudenosaunee territory, Mohawk runners traveled to Onondaga to request a meeting among the Haudenosaunee leadership to determine how to deal with these new uninvited guests. This belt represents the outcome of subsequent meetings between Haudenosaunee representatives and Dutch officials. Like other wampum belts, this living treaty is made of purple and white wampum beads. The three rows of white beads each represent the shared tenants of friendship, peace, and forever. The two parallel rows of purple represent two vessels. One row embodies the Haudenosaunee, their people and their life ways. The other row stands for the Dutch, their people and their life ways.

 

Later other First nations adopted the wampum belts as well.

The image on the wampum belt was two boats on the same river. Pam Palmater in the film Colonization Road gave one of the best explanations of  the wampum belt:

“The whole Wampum belt concept of we’ll work together, we’ll share this place, but I will steer my boat and you will steer yours, and never will we try to interfere with one another. I think that’s the most critical fundamental message that has since been recognized by the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples, the United Nations Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. It’s basically self-determination. Recognizing however whatever English word you want to use nationhood, sovereignty, self-determination. It’s we will take care of ourselves, and govern ourselves and you do your business and we’ll work along cooperatively in the areas that we have to. And what a wonderful vision for Canada. And I think that is the original vision. We don’t need any new ideas to save Canada, we just need to go back to that original wampum belt, and recognizing each other’s abilities to govern ourselves and protect one another.”

 

But sadly, that was not the vision of the Canadian government. Immediately after the first treaties were signed it enacted the Indian Act to impose its vision of how the “Indians” should conduct their affairs in this white system and foisted it upon them without their consent. The vision of the government was that European whites were superior, and Indians should assimilate with them. They should become like us. They should do things our way. Many non-indigenous people still believe this. They should do things our way, because we know best what’s good for all of us. But it is not what Indigenous people wanted and was not what they thought they had agreed to.

 Indigenous people began to see colonialism as the whites putting their foot on the throats of indigenous people. And they believe that is ongoing to this day. That of course is what the Indian Act is all about. It is about dominance.

Meandering in God’s country: Sacred Treaties

2022 Inferior Trip to Superior, Colonialism, Indigenous People After Contact, Indigenous Treaties

 

The land and lakes around Thunder Bay are extraordinarily beautiful. I made many stops to photograph them. It really did feel like I was meandering in God’s country.

In the morning in Thunder Bay after my first night on this inferior jaunt to Superior, in the breakfast room of my hotel, I met a couple from Steinbach. It is a small world. They were also visiting to see the autumn colours. I met a nurse from North Vancouver who heard me complaining about hotel prices in Thunder Bay. She said if I could not find a place, I could bunk in with her. She was either the nicest or most naïve woman around, or perhaps she was overwhelmed with my good looks and charm. I later told Christiane she should be paying me more respect as I was obviously a very desirable man. She seemed entirely unimpressed.

 

Cuyler Cotton in the film Colonization Road had some interesting things to say about indigenous relations with settlers.  He said, “the lesson of the treaties is that we have a deal. We have a sacred agreement you and I, that we’re supposed to live here together in this place for as long as the waters run.”

It is also noteworthy that the treaties were hard bargained. The First Nations were shrewd negotiators. Some think they were in a weak position. If that is true, and I don’t think they were, they sure managed to bargain well. Both parties got a good deal. Sadly, one side, Canada, often did not live up to its bargain. It has not always been honourable. The honour of the crown has often been threadbare.

Those treaties were written in English, but also contained indigenous elements. They were only written in English because the First Nations had largely unwritten languages. But the treaties included things like a Wampum Belt. It is not a European custom to have such things in treaties.

For example, according to Palmater,  “the Treaty of Niagara wampum belt is a founding document of this country and should be treated as such.” This is what the Canadian Encyclopedia says about it:

 

“In July and August 1764, sir William Johnson and approximately 2,000 people, representing approximately 24 First Nations, met at Niagara to discuss an “alliance with the English.” The discussion led to the acceptance of the Royal Proclamation of 1763. It also included one of the first land cessions under the Royal Proclamation’s protocols, a return of prisoners, and an accepted British presence in the Great Lakes area. The resulting treaty was recorded in wampum. In the contemporary era, the 1764 Treaty of Niagara is not recognized by the Canadian government but is seen as a foundational document by First Nations for all subsequent relations and treaties.”

 

When the English conquered New France in 1760, England realized it had to ensure a peaceful settlement with First Nations of the regions. It could not afford the ruinously expensive “Indian Wars” the Americans became engaged in. In 1763 the British built numerous forts throughout their newly acquired territory. England also signalled its “Indian policies” in the Royal Proclamation of 1763 and it instructed Sir William Johnson the superintendent of Indian Affairs for the northern colonies to establish peace with those first nations. He spread around the Royal Proclamation with wampum strings among First Nations from Nova Scotia to Hudson Bay and even to the Gulf of Mexico.

The Americans hated the Royal Proclamation  because it claimed that they could not acquire land east of the Mississippi except through the British Crown and this would hamper its expansionary desires. Some American elites like George Washington for example, amassed astonishing fortunes doing exactly that. Others wanted to do exactly the same thing. As a result, the Royal Proclamation was instrumental in leading to the War of Independence a few years later.

Johnson presented the Proclamation to the Haudenosaunee Confederacy in December of 1763 and called for a congress in Niagara in the summer of 1764.

As the Canadian Encyclopedia said,

“The First Nations who agreed to the Niagara Treaty fought as allies with the British in the American Revolution and the War of 1812. Indigenous involvement in both of these conflicts, particularly the latter, ensured British North America’s survival.”

 

As Assistant Professor Hayden King said, “First Nations saw the treaties as Nation to Nation.” Pam Palmater pointed out that “another really important thing about the Treaty of Niagara was that the Wampum belt was done by indigenous hands, with indigenous ceremony and indigenous intentions, and there is no misinterpretation about what that belt means.”

Niigaan Sinclair, Associate Professor of Native Studies at the University of Manitoba said, “the signing of the treaties made them family not friends.”

As Heidi Bohaker said,

“In their [indigenous peoples’] world view, people were divided into one of two categories: relatives or strangers. There wasn’t any acquaintance category. So, if you were going to trade with somebody, if you were going to engage in any kind of alliance relationship they had to become relatives. And there are all kinds of ceremonies and protocols, a law, in other words for how you brought people in, and then what rights and obligations those people had.”

 

That is how the non-indigenous settlers became relatives with indigenous people. At first there was a lot of enthusiasm for this new relationship among people in North America. Later not so much.