The Truth and Reconciliation Commission recommended that Canadians educate themselves about the history of aboriginal people in our Country. Alicia Elliot, a writer from the Six Nations Community located near Brantford, Ontario and author of a forthcoming book: A Mind Spread Out on the Ground, gives us a good starting place in “Finding a Way” published in the January 6, 2018 edition of The Globe and Mail. I lived and worked for many years among the Dene and Metis of the Northwest Territories yet this article caused me to realize that I have failed to fully understand how aboriginal people were left on the sideline as Canada unilaterally made decisions about land ownership, independence, and governance, decisions which had an enormous impact on their lives.
The author describes the frustration, weariness and mistrust among our indigenous population with the many changes to the bureaucracy dealing with aboriginal issues. Changes have been cosmetic rather than substantive and have failed to alleviate underlying issues. There are signs of progress: Universities, school boards, CBC, The Globe and Mail, have invested in educating us. The Federal Government has initiated many initiatives to right past wrongs, including the division of INAC (Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada) in August 2017. Yet despite its laudable goals, the replacement of INAC was imposed without consultation or involvement of aboriginal organizations. Once again there is denial and lack of consent.
Ms. Elliot compares the “consent and denial” of sexual exploitation highlighted in the “Me Too” movement to the history of indigenous people in our Country. The author cites concrete examples of the Canadian Government overriding the rights of our 634 First Nations in Canada. First Nations have been prevented from making meaningful changes in their communities, establishing self-determination, and forging their own futures. The article references land grabs, exploitation of natural resources, and imposition of colonial government. But it is Elliot’s account of the Six Nations history which makes real for me the injustice of Canada’s actions, provides knowledge of a history I was never taught, and gives insight which renders the anger and frustration of our indigenous population understandable.
I congratulate Alicia Elliot for her article and The Globe and Mail for publishing it. I recommend that this article be widely disseminated. You may access it through the link given below.