Treaty 3

Treaty 3 was an agreement between indigenous people and the Canadian government.[1] It is also known as the North-West Angle Treaty. In 1873, this treaty made a large area in today’s west Ontario between Winnipeg and Thunder Bay owned by the Federal government. In exchange, reserves and goods are provided to Indigenous people.[2] The area of Treaty 3 is where the author’s family grew up.

Treaty 3 Lands. [3]

Canadian Residential School System

The residential school system was established for, advertised by the federal government, “helping Aboriginal children integrate into modern Catholic society in Canada”. These schools were mostly operated by churches and religious organizations. The real goal of the system is to destroy the indigenous culture from their children. Since the early 20 century, around 150000 kids were forcibly separated from their parents and cultural environment.[4] In school, children were subjected to harsh discipline, malnutrition and starvation, poor healthcare, physical, emotional, and sexual abuse, neglect, and the deliberate suppression of their languages. They were punished for speaking their language or trying to escape. Thousands of kids died inside the school and were buried at unknown times or positions. The influence of those schools remained in the survivors, often causing mental disabilities and difficulty in recognition of cultural identities.

The last residential school, Gordon Residential School were closed in 1996. In the following years, survivors of the school and the community advocated for recognition and reparations. Their efforts ultimately culminated in the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement and apologies by the government. NCTR or the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation was established.

[1] “Treaty 3 between Her Majesty the Queen and the Saulteaux Tribe of the Ojibbeway Indians at the Northwest Angle on the Lake of the Woods with Adhesions”. ROGER DUHAMEL, F.R.S.C. QUEEN’S PRINTER AND CONTROLLER OF STATIONERY OTTAWA, 1966 Cat. No. Ci 72-0366, ISBN 0-662-91350-7

[2] Moran. “Truth and Reconciliation Commission”. The Canadian Encyclopedia. September 2015 .https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/truth-and-reconciliation-commission

[3]Native Land Digital API. 2022. https://native-land.ca/

[4]Canadian press staff. “By the numbers: A look at residential schools”. Global News. May 29, 2015. https://globalnews.ca/news/2024481/by-the-numbers-a-look-at-residential-schools/Themes