Indigenous Peoples 1905
“Indian” status
Since 1820, a series of laws had been adopted to define the role of Indigenous people in Canadian society. In the 1850s, the government passed a law to reserve 230 000 acres of Indigenous lands to protect them from colonial expansion. The government also defined what an “Indian” was. In doing so, Indigenous people became somewhat like minors, because they could not own property or vote. However, Indigenous people could emancipate themselves and become full citizens by renouncing their Indian status. What’s more, any Indigenous woman who married a white man lost her “Indian” status. In 1876, the Government of Canada passed the “Indian Act”, which upheld the laws that had been enacted before the creation of Canada.
Economic hardship
By 1905, it had become increasingly difficult for Indigenous people to earn a living. They were no longer able to sustain themselves solely through hunting because colonization and growing industries like hydroelectricity and pulp and paper had taken up more and more of the land. The still-nomadic communities often had to resign themselves to living on government reservations. Many communities continued to make handicrafts, which they sold in towns and in the United States.
Residential schools
The first residential school opened in Canada in 1831. Around 1905, Indigenous children from across Canada were still forced to attend residential or day schools which were run by by churches. The last residential school only closed its doors in 1996. The goal of these schools was to eliminate Indigenous cultures and assimilate Indigenous Peoples into dominant Canadian society. Since 2021, Sept. 30 has been known as the National Day of Truth and Reconciliation to honour the children, families, and communities that were impacted by residential schools in Canada.
The creation of national parks and wildlife reserves
Towards the end of the 19th century, the federal and provincial governments decided create parks and wildlife reserves to preserve land and promote tourism. These parks were accessible to wealthy American and Canadian tourists and were often on territories the Indigenous Peoples had lived on for millennia. In 1895, for example, the Parc des Laurentides (now known as Réserve faunique des Laurentides or Laurentides Wildlife Reserve) was created north of Quebec City. This led to some members of the region’s Innu and (Huron)Wendat communities being denied access to their traditional territory. It was only after long legal and political struggles that members of these Nations were once again allowed to access these areas.
Author: Alexandre Lanoix