Off the Bookshelf
by Rosemary Brown
Our latest read in the Indigenous Book Club was Bob Joseph’s 21 Things You Need to Know about Indigenous Self-Government: A Conversation about dismantling the Indian Act.
Joseph is the author of the previously reviewed 21 Things you May Not Know About the Indian Act. He is “a hereditary chief of the Gayaxala, or Thunderbird Clan, “the first clan of the Gwawa’enuxw which is one of the eighteen tribes making up the Kwakwaka’wakw†in British Columbia.
He is also the co-founder of Indigenous Training Incorporated, which works with governments, corporations, and others on communicating with Indigenous peoples and communities.
His book on self-government is an insightful commentary designed to simplify the complexities of what it would mean to dismantle the Indian Act.
He contextualizes his discussion with an historical overview of relations between Indigenous peoples and governing authorities. In the pre-contact period Indigenous peoples had total control over their lives and lands. The Royal Proclamation of 1763 affirmed these rights, as Indigenous peoples were important trading partners and military allies. By 1867 and the founding of the Canadian state, this was no longer the case. The Canadian government viewed Indigenous peoples as dependents who needed to be civilized and assimilated, and the Indian Act was the coercive tool used in that process. It replaced traditional forms of governance, weakened the status of Indigenous women, enforced the removal of children to residential schools, outlawed traditional spiritual practices, and controlled every aspect of the lives and lands of Indigenous peoples.
This was the situation that existed in 1962 when Pierre Trudeau and Jean Chrétien introduced the White Paper proposing returning title to the lands and ending the Indian Act. Indigenous peoples rejected the White Paper pointing out that they were being “cut loose with no resources and capacity to manage their own affairs.†However, the door was open to discuss what to do with the Indian Act. Then a variety of legal decisions on Indigenous land rights and the inclusion of section 35 in the repatriated Canadian Constitution provided the means and opportunity to move towards self-government.
Joseph points out that there is no one path to self-government. Instead, each Indigenous Nation needs to negotiate what dismantling the Indian Act means to them. Currently there are 25 self-government agreements and 50 being negotiated.
Joseph refers to three of the negotiated agreements: those with the James Bay Cree, the Nisga’a, and the West Bank First Nation in B.C.
At the heart of these agreements is the assertion of First Nations authority over governance, revenue collection, economic development, lands, education, health, language, and culture. It would not be a downloading of responsibilities while maintaining government restrictions and red tape.
The federal government would continue to fulfill its fiduciary responsibilities with the long-term view of these lessening over time. Joseph details the issues to be considered in these Fiscal Agreements, sufficiency being a key one given the immense gap in infrastructure funding between Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities, the gaps which exist in income and employment opportunities, and the disproportionate impact of social issues such as incarceration rates and suicide due to colonialism.
These fiscal agreements would mean that instead of funds going to government departments and non-Indigenous organizations, the funds would go directly to the Nations to be employed as they saw fit.
Another shift is that of accountability with First Nations governments becoming accountable to the community rather than the federal government, which had entailed many restrictions, red tape, and the constant need for reporting. While for example the West Bank First Nation has a chief and band council, the Nation’s constitution includes among other things, recall provisions of the chief and/or any councillors, and key decisions are made by the whole community. Transparency and fairness are built into the constitution.
In brief, Joseph says that self-government means no Indian Act. Furthermore, Joseph states that Indigenous self government would benefit everyone.
For those wanting to learn more, I recommend reading the previously reviewed Rez Rules by Clarence Louie, Chief of the West Bank First Nation.
There are also two podcast interviews with Bob Joseph:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1jAkbdewu50
https://www.nativecalgarian.com/podcast/episode/26f395ed/bob-joseph
The latter is with Michelle Robinson who facilitates the Indigenous Book Club.
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