Métis, non-status Indians call for action following historic Daniels ruling
2-day symposium to discuss impact of Daniels decision on Métis and non-status Indians
Métis and non-status Indigenous people from across Canada are in Ottawa this week for the Daniels Symposium, a two-day gathering to discuss last year's landmark Supreme Court of Canada decision that ruled the federal government has the same responsibility to them as it does to status Indians and Inuit.
Little has developed in nearly a year since that ruling, so those gathered in Ottawa hope to come to a consensus on an action plan to present to the federal government on how they'd like it to proceed.
We caught up with some of the symposium's attendees from across Canada to ask them what the ruling means to them as Métis, non-status, and off-reserve Indigenous people and what they want to see happen in its aftermath.
Scott Clark, Vancouver, B.C.
"I'm a status Indian — treaty status Indian from B.C. with three sons who are non-status off-reserve. It's extremely important that we get some action from the Supreme Court decision about the responsibility of the federal government to work with all Indigenous peoples.
"We see the crisis situations for Indigenous peoples, particularly in the off-reserve context. We have child welfare issues, we have housing, homelessness, education, employment training — and this is something that Canada's been ignoring since its inception. And it's critically important that we start to address these issues so we get in front of it so that we can build healthy citizens and healthy nations."
Tianna Fisher, Dryden, Ont.
"Indigenous people are often pinned against each other. But with the Daniels decision, we are all Indians under the law. So there needed to be a discussion. Someone needs to stand up to say that we all need to be included. And that's really important to me.
"Growing up in northwestern Ontario, I'm surrounded by thousands of lakes and lots of trees. I would like to see anyone like me who's an Aboriginal person who doesn't have treaty rights — I want to be able to see more people being allowed to go out and fish or hunt or support their families in a way that I guess isn't conventional in today's society. I want us to be able to include ourselves in national discussions and be represented."
Blake Desjarlais, Fishing Lake Métis Settlement, Alta.
"What I hope to do is really raise awareness that we're all — in a lot of ways — in this together. We're all trying to figure out and navigate ways in which we can achieve the best for our own peoples ... Achieve actual parity with other Canadians and other Indigenous groups. We have done remarkable work the last 80 to 100 years, the Métis settlements, and we're not done. We're not near parity. We're not near any of those places where we ought to be. Our health and our education are still below par, still below the standard of some of our Indigenous peers.
"It's a long and hard struggle, but it's one that I think with the Daniels decision - it moved us a little further and closer to achieving a betterment for the next generation."
Lisa Cooper, Native Council of Prince Edward Island
"For me it's about bringing the issues forward from my community, from the grassroots. Daniels has come out — it's been a year now. The government doesn't seem to have done much about it. And I think it's time for us and our communities to be heard and to give direction to the government on who we are, who we represent, and what needs to be done, and how do we close the gaps that exist between our communities."
Gerald Cunningham, Métis Settlements General Council, Alta.
"One thing we've always wanted to do was establish a relationship with the federal government as well. And the Daniels case basically opens the door for us to be able to look at tripartite agreements between the federal government, and the provincial government, and our Métis settlements government on a nation-to-nation, government-to-government basis.
"I'm hoping that everybody has a better understanding of what the Daniels case is really all about. We talked a lot today about people working together, organizations working together for the benefit of the people that we represent. Basically that we will have the relationship built with the federal government, and that we'll be able to access programs and services on a same level playing field as other Aboriginal groups — something that we've been deprived of for years."
THE MARTLET
The University of Victoria's independent newspaper
So says Blake Desjarlais, Native Students Union (NSU) Firekeeper and fifth-year Political Science and Indigenous Studies student. And it’s an honour he does not take lightly, as became evident while speaking with the Martlet.
Hailing from the Fishing Lake Métis Settlement in Alberta, located on Treaty 6 land, Desjarlais studied for two years at MacEwan University in Edmonton. But the lack of support for indigenous students made it “hard to survive as an indigenous person,” so he moved to Victoria in January 2014.
Desjarlais was initially drawn to UVic by the First Peoples House. “I heard about it, and I said ‘I want to go to UVic. It sounds like being an Indian’s okay.’” Upon arriving, he quickly became involved with the indigenous community, and was elected to the NSU’s administrative council in the fall of 2015. One year later, the NSU elected him as firekeeper.
As he describes it, Desjarlais’ role is not only to be someone that indigenous students look up to, but also to be “somebody that serves.”
“[Being firekeeper means] to be community-oriented, to be in that mindset that you’re a servant. And I like that,” he says.
The position is not without its challenges, though. “There’s a lot of hard parts,” Desjarlais says. “No matter where you go, there are people who have a really loud voice for the amount of information they don’t know.”
Desjarlais cites an oped by a UVic student published in the National Post, titled “I am too privileged to be liberal,” as an example. “I could never get into that or [get] something on their website or anywhere close,” Desjarlais says. “And it takes one person and his friends to get a message [that’s] so violent to so many people so easily in this country.”
While admitting there have been other challenges, including last semester’s Undergraduates of Political Science misunderstanding, Desjarlais says the NSU and UVSS have “also done a lot of good work together.”
The key to good work, he says, is making sure everyone comes to the table with honour. “Anytime we make an agreement with someone, [we] must come into them as honourable people . . . And it’s always a question of are we thinking the same thing? Are they on the same side as that?”
“I really do think there’s more good settlers than bad settlers,” Desjarlais says. “We’re never gonna say something unless [settlers] do something bad, and a lot of things they do are good for the community, whether it’s for themselves, their friends, or their family.” Desjarlais mentions folks asking for permission to host bake sales on campus as an example of people going too far in being considerate to indigenous students, though he laughs at the idea of him shutting a sale down.
“I think we can all agree bake sales are pretty awesome,” he says. “I would never say no.”
The NSU has also been in consultation with the university around the Indigenous Academic Plan. From that consultation, Desjarlais says, there’ve been two main requests: that indigenous students have an active role in governance, and that Elders be stakeholders in that governance.
“It’s trying to dismantle the administration’s desire to have VPs, directors, [and so on], and make it a table, a roundtable, where we’re all respected as stakeholders in this higher learning,” he says.
Desjarlais also wishes UVic could formalize its relationship with the NSU. “They seem to see us as this group that bubbles up when things go bad, and pops and goes back into the water. But we want a seat at the table.”
“We want [to] have [President] Jamie Cassels sit down with us, have some coffee, and talk about the issues pertaining to indigenous students,” Desjarlais says. “[The NSU] forming its own relationship with the university is integral in how to better support indigenous students learning.”
In the meantime, Desjarlais will continue to build relationships in the community that’ll last for years to come.
“I have a great reassurance that no matter who comes into the position of firekeeper,” he says, “[they] understand that to be a firekeeper, symbolically, is to keep the fire going, and that fire is shared with all of us.”
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