The Legislatures Impacted the Rights of Aboriginal People in Canada - Essay Example

The Legislatures Impacted the Rights of Aboriginal People in Canada Notably, before non- discriminative legislations in Canada, the Aboriginal people of Canada experienced numerous challenges and discriminations. The non-Aboriginal settlers in Canada are settlers who first arrived in the current Canada (Carter 173). These first settlers came with their patriarchal beliefs and social codes that they tried to impose on the Aboriginal people of Canada. However, following the coming of the European into Canada led to the change of governance and administrative policies that brought a wide change to the operations of the Aboriginal people of Canada. It is worth noting that the Aboriginal Canadian jurisprudence rights has its roots entrenched into nearly two centuries stretching to the post confederation era (Walsh 299). Despite the Aboriginal rights defining many judicious considerations, the legislation focused mainly on the self-governance rights. It emphasized on the political autonomy of the people, communities, and their authority and resources. The legislation aimed at providing people to determine their individual and collective selves. The Aboriginal persons of Canada suffered discrimination, aggravated poverty, and low levels of education. The Canadian authority discriminated Aboriginal people through identifications, registrations, and exclusive meetings through its Commission staffs and chief commissions. These actions heightened racism through racial profiling. The Aboriginal people were often referred to the “ethnic group” or “minority group” terminologies that washed respect off their faces. Such discriminations extended to public institutions including learning institutions where student were often punished for using their Aboriginal languages. These actions led to the reduction of the Aboriginal languages in Canada (An Act for the advancement of the Aboriginal languages of Canada…172). Notably, the treatments that the Aboriginal people were subjected were similar to that colonizers subjected their slaves and subjects. Moreover, the Aboriginal had no homes and were never allowed to participate in any public resourceful activities (Carter 92). They were also subjected to violent treatments that including being humiliated by the security guards, police, and employers, as well as storekeepers. The Aboriginal people of Canada were also being frustrated whenever they seek medical services among other services from the government facilities. The discriminations on the Aboriginal people aimed at suppressing their culture and beliefs since according to the native Canadians authorities, Aboriginals’ cultures and beliefs were inferior and had no place in their society. For instance, regarding the Indians, their cultures and beliefs were discriminated upon to “kill the Indian the (Canadian) child”. This policy depicted that the assimilation was a wrong concept for a society to apprehend. With regards to education, the Indians’ children were provided with poor or inferior education with immense punishments, strict rules and regulations as well as such children being subjected to physical, emotional, sexual, and psychological abuses (Harper 01). The Aboriginal schools in Canada were up to the fifth grade with those who proceeded with education were only to choose from manual related disciplines in agriculture and light industries such as woodworking and domestic work such as sewing and laundry work. The undermining the Aboriginals’ cultures across Canada through the education system that they were subjected disrupted the generations of these families (The Indian Residential Schools…282). For instance, these families lost the track of their cultures and language since such were never passed down to their children by teaching them since such teachings were prohibited. Other than the government participating on the same cultural eradication of the Aboriginal people, churches were also involved in discriminating acts upon these families. The 1790s legislations saw the first relieve to the Aboriginal people. This period’s legislations aimed at respecting the Indians by eradicating any form of discrimination. The exclusive parliament jurisdiction aimed at amending the rights of Aboriginal people of Canada over issues relating to discrimination and land reserves (Dalton 14). The federal legislation was concern about the discrimination that were subjected to the Aboriginal people in the provinces thereby leading to discriminatory provincial legislation that impacted on provincial and federal discrimination especially regarding the human rights of the Aboriginal people of Canada. Before the confederation of the Canadian state, there was poor race relations especially in the demarcation of the territories and this led to the initial acts of slavery in Canada that primarily started with the Indian slaves who were either referred to as “Pawnees” or “Panis”. However, the 1790s legislations of the Canadian upper house and its lower house judicial actions lead to the signing to the end of slavery in Canada (Notzke 188). However, it is worth noting that not until 1833 that slavery was finally abolished in the British Empires under “the Act of the Abolition of Slavery” that Canada ended its acts of slavery to the Aboriginal people. More legislations in Canada, for example, the 1857 legislation gave the Aboriginal people more rights as the Canadian man including the right to vote. It should be noted that, in Canada, voting was not a right to everyone but those citizens who owned land and could be franchised the same. These rights were limited for the Aboriginal people of Canada before the 1857; hence, it I worth stating this year’s legislative measures gave the Aboriginal citizens of Canada equal right to land ownership and franchise (Harper 01). The law simply eliminated all distinctions between the liabilities and rights of the Aboriginal and the British subjects. However, the rights of the Aboriginal people were limited to this slavery abolition in that such right to land ownership and franchise were limited to literacy, solvency, morality, and education. The same conditions limited the voting rights; hence, there was further needs to completely give rights to voting without any level of discrimination. The need for lean voting rights led to the 1867 colonial’s enfranchisement policy that led to the 1868 federal legislation with its subsequent modification in the year 1869. The policy come the legislation allows enfranchisement of any a life estate rights to any Aboriginal male "who from the degree of civilization to which he has attained, and the character for integrity and sobriety which he bears, appears to be a safe and suitable person for becoming a proprietor of land” (An Act for the Gradual Enfranchisement of Indians…17). However, this legislation still discriminated on women since only Aboriginal men were given the right to land ownership. Further legislation give more rights to the Aboriginal people. For instance, the 1875 provincial legislation was dissatisfied by allocation of land franchise on racial basis and eliminated the same thereby giving voting rights to all Aboriginal people without any restriction and limitation. This right was entrenched in the Canadian “Municipal Elections Act subsequently in the Public School Act.” This legislation led to the abolition of the British racial discriminatory electoral laws (Notzke 293). This law took effect in Colombia and by 1909, it had spread to nearly all the Canadian provinces. Further legislations most of which were demanded by the Aboriginal people led to more rights being bestowed on the Aboriginal people of Canada. For instance, the constitution act of 1982 with 1983 and 1987 amendments further defined and gave more dignifying rights to the Aboriginal people. However, the constitution still denied the Aboriginal people the right to self-governance with the first ministers’ Aboriginal rights’ conference only shifting to broader constitutional agenda. However, the Aboriginal contest of 1990 defeated the accord (Walsh 308). Following the October 1995’s referendum, the Aboriginal people demanded the right to be involved in future constitutional discussions. These demands led to the January 1998 full recognition of the Aboriginal people as part of Canadian people thereby leading to full restructuring of institutions to accommodate them (Murphy 122). Therefore, it is worth noting the despite the historical discrimination of the Aboriginal people of Canada, subsequent provincial and federal legislation led to their assimilation into the Canadian people and their eroded rights replenished into honorable human rights. Hence, effective legislations are vital in shaping the society and defining relationship expected in such societies. Works Cited An Act for the advancement of the Aboriginal languages of Canada and to recognize and respect Aboriginal language rights, 2nd Session 40th Parliament, 57-58 Elizabeth II 2009 the Senate of Parliament January, 26 - December 30, 2009 An Act for the Gradual Enfranchisement of Indians, the Better Management of Indian Affairs, and to Extend the Provisions of the Act, 31st Victoria, Chapter 42, S.C. 1869, c. 6, s. 13. Carter, Sarah. Aboriginal People and Colonizers of Western Canada to 1900. Toronto [u.a.: Univ. of Toronto Press, 1999. Print. Dalton, Jennifer. Aboriginal Self-Determination in Canada: Protections Afforded by Judiciary and Government. 2006, Retrieved March 8, 2015, Harper, Stephen. Prime Minister Harper offers full apology on behalf of Canadians for the Indian Residential Schools system,2008. Retrieved March 8, 2015, Murphy, Michael. Culture and the Courts: A New Directionin Canadian Jurisprudence onAboriginal Rights?N.d. Print. Notzke, Claudia. Aboriginal Peoples and Natural Resources in Canada. North York, Ont: Captus Press, 1994. Print. The Indian Residential Schools Truth and Reconciliation Commission, Julian Walker Legal and Legislative Affairs Division, 11 February 2009. Walsh, Michael. Will Indigenous Languages Survive? The Annual Review of Anthropology. 2005. 34:293–315 Read More