Indigenous Treatment and Colonization in Canada

Indigenous Treatment

• Treaties were considered sacred due to the principle of honour, even if oral.
• Indigenous peoples signed treaties due to government threats (loss of possessions) and promises.
• Promises included reserve land rights, hunting/fishing rights, annual payments, agricultural tools/techniques, and reserve schools.
• Treaty No. 6 consequences included massive land loss, bison extinction, and starvation.
• The Indian Act was unfair due to voting/alcohol restrictions, women's status discrepancies (marriage), government timber authorization on reserves, unequal legal proceedings, and voting restrictions dependent on renunciation of Indigenous status.

Colonization

• Passengers arriving in Canada were quarantined to prevent contagious diseases.
• The Immigration Act aimed to control contagious disease entry and limit immigrant numbers per ship.
• Rupert's Land was governed by the Power Lands Act.
• The Prairies were divided into cantons, approximately 10 km² each.
• Homesteading involved land allocation for farming. A house and functioning farm were required within 3 years; otherwise, the land returned to government ownership.

Transcontinental Railway

• Pacific Scandal: John A. Macdonald's campaign funding ($350,000) from a railroad contract recipient appeared like a bribery scheme.
• Railway construction difficulties included funding issues, mountainous terrain, and swampy areas.
• Chinese railway workers faced dangerous conditions, inadequate food and shelter, poor medical care, lower wages, repatriation denial, and family immigration restrictions.
• The National Policy aimed to boost Canadian industry. Measures included higher tariffs on foreign goods and lower tariffs on imported raw materials.
• Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) received a significant land grant, financial support, and a non-competition guarantee for the railway contract.

Northwest Rebellion

• The Northwest Rebellion stemmed from Métis land anxieties due to settler expansion into Saskatchewan, after previous displacement.
• Indigenous groups used guerrilla warfare tactics (surprise attacks).
• The loss of the Battle of Batoche was caused by leadership disagreements: Dumont (surprise) versus Riel (negotiation). Inadequate defense strategy led to defeat.
• Chiefs Poundmaker and Big Bear, and Louis Riel, faced imprisonment or execution.
• The Riel conviction created Anglophone-Francophone tensions because British-origin groups desired punishment, while French-speaking groups saw him as a Métis defender.

Miscellaneous

• Gabriel Dumont was war lieutenant in Louis Riel's provisional government.
• The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) permitted duty-free entry of goods from Mexico and the USA.
• After the Pacific Scandal, John A. Macdonald gave way to Alexander Mackenzie, Canada's 2nd Prime Minister.
• A bribe may be considered a "pot de vin."
• Guerrilla tactics are characterized by surprise attacks and harassment of the enemy.