Impact of the War of 1812 on Indigenous Peoples and the Métis

1 What was the impact of the War of 1812 on Indigenous Peoples? The War of 1812 had a significant impact on Indigenous peoples. They faced many challenges and hardships during this time. Causes of the war are not specific but various reasons when combined created increased tension between the United States and the British who resided in Canada. Indigenous Peoples are said to have played very crucial roles in the victories of the British during the war (Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development, 2012), with the Metis volunteering to fight invaders (Robertson, 1974).

2 The War of 1812 was a conflict between the United States and Great Britain, and its causes can be traced back to a series of short and long-term factors. In the short-term, the immediate cause of the war was a legislation named the British Orders in Council, which restricted American trade with Europe, increasing tension between the two counties (Torrence, 2023). Long term causes are said to have been due to the ongoing tension that was apparent in both countries (USS Constitution Museum, n.d.). Based on the Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development (2012), the First Nation Warriors and Metis fighters were largely responsible for British victories. First Nation warriors such as the Dakota, harassed and attacked American troops as far West as Chicago (Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development, 2012). The British were ill prepared for war, so alliances with First Nation groups were a huge asset. And as mentioned above, the Metis fighters employed by the Northwest Company even volunteered to ‘take up arms against invaders’ (Robertson, 1974). After the conclusion of the War of 1812, the Indigenous Peoples were now seen as a ‘problem’, and the assimilation and isolation of the Indigenous people began (Forsythe, 2023). The British First Nation allies were also left isolated after the war and the First Nations in the United States eventually migrated to Canadian territory. For many Canadian Indigenous Peoples, the end of the war marked a shift in the Indian policy (Indigenous Contributions to the War of 1812, 2016).

3 References Forsythe, L. (2023). Unit 6: War of 1812 Forsythe, L (2023). Unit 6: The aftermath of the War of 1812 Government of Canada; Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada. (2016, February 16). Exhibit: Indigenous contributions to the War of 1812. https://www.rcaanc-cirnac.gc.ca/eng/1348771334472/1607906032957

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4 Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development. (2016, February 16). Indigenous contributions to the War of 1812: Theatres of War Map. Government of Canada; Crown- Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada. https://www.rcaanc-cirnac.gc.ca/eng/1338906996435/1607905615872

5 Unit 7: The Métis Period: Métis Identity, Repression & Resistance Sifa Githinji Department of Indigenous Studies, University of Manitoba INDG 1220: Indigenous Peoples in Canada 1 Dr. Laura Forsythe October 30th, 2023 Activity 1: Who are the Métis? 1. Who are the Metis? The Metis, according to the article by C. Vowel (2016), are a post contact Indigenous People, whose roots ran in the Red River community. The Metis nation is said to have been comprised of the descendants of the French intermarried with Anishinaabe, Cree or other First Nations. To be identified as Metis, an individual must self identify as Metis, have an

6 ancestral connection to a historic Metis community and be accepted by the modern Metis community (Vowel, 2016). 2. How has the terminology referring to these people and their membership changed? In terms of terminology, a lot of people translate Metis to mean mixed people, which can be considered a racist category, as the Metis are their own Indigenous People with their own identity. A person who identifies as Metis can prove this through verifiable genealogical, historical, and legal documents which require records confirming a blood connection to an Indigenous and European couple, or in rare cases, the affidavit of an elder (Metis Nation of Canada, n.d.). 3. What is the danger inherent in the “Métis-as-mixed” stereotype? And what should be emphasized instead of “mixed-race/blood”? Discuss. Being labelled as mixed blood is considered disrespectful and racist. This fails to recognize Metis for their own nation, so categorizing them as mixed people is not appropriate. The term diminishes the Metis with strong cultural elements, such as their language. Instead of using these terms, we can refer to Metis as their own people, with their own set of values, cultures, and identities. References The Buffalo Hunt. (2021). YouTube. Retrieved November 15, 2023, from https://youtu.be/CfJwQqKXNVo . Âpihtawikosisân. (2019, April 1). Who are the Métis? âpihtawikosisân. https://apihtawikosisan.com/2016/05/who-are-the-metis/

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7 Unit 8: Land Dispossession: Treaties & Scrip

8 Sifa Githinji Department of Indigenous Studies, University of Manitoba INDG 1220: Indigenous Peoples in Canada 1 Dr. Laura Forsythe November 01st, 2023 Activity 4: Metis Scrip 1. Describe the scrip and outline who was eligible. The Scrip was an application in which Indigenous Peoples went through Canadas bureaucratic organization to switch their identity from Indigenous or ‘Indian’ to ‘Half-breeds’ (Adese, 2011, p.203). For the application to be approved, ‘Indian agents’ were called upon to

9 advice the Scrip commissioners as to whether an application was ‘civilized’ enough to qualify for withdrawal (Adese, 2011, p.204). Eligibility for the Scrip was based on the ‘civil’ or white litmus test which as previously mentioned was determined by the ‘Indian Agents’ (Adese, 2011, p.206). Lucille (Lucie) Gladu who was the daughter Joseph Gladu and Marie Amable Belcourt (Adese, 2011, p.203) was declared a ‘Half Breed’ and received the scrip which she says was a piece of paper that was redeemable for 193 Canadian dollars (Adese, 2011, p.204) 2. Discuss how scrip allows the Federal government to negate its responsibility to Indigenous Peoples. The scrip is said to have offered a quick and convenient way for the government to negate its responsibility to Indigenous peoples who were viewed and labelled as half breed. The government was able to do this by buying people out of their Indian rights. According to Maggis Siggins (2011), it was the biggest land grab in Canadas history and served as a way for white speculators to cheat the Metis out of their government appointed Scrip land (Adese, 2011, p.205) 3. Identify the paternalistic racism evident through the scrip process. John. A. MacDonalds provided a stellar example of the racism that was present during the scrip process when he stated in a speech that ‘The government knew… that we were not acting in the interests of the half breed by giving them scrip and I said “well for Gods sake, let them have the scrip, they will either drink it or waste it or sell it, but let us have peace”’ (Adese, 2011, p.205). This statement clearly shows that the scrip process was not in the best interests of the Metis people and was created only to serve the whites. While the Metis were

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10 deemed as ‘civil’, the Indigenous people who could not be eligible for the scrip were deemed as savage and uncivil, a racist view on Indigenous peoples. Being a ‘half breed’ also appeared on occupational and marital documents, but the paternalistic culture among Euro Canadians did not apply to the inheritance of race, so, despite taking the scrip you did not pass into whiteness and no matter how much you adapt to Canadian cultural beliefs, children were undeniably coded as R (Red) on documentations (Adese, 2011, p.208). Reference Adese. (2011). “R” Is for Métis: Contradictions in Scrip and Census in the Construction of a Colonial Métis IdentityTopia (Montreal), 25(25), 203–212. https://doi.org/10.3138/topia.25.203

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12 Unit 9: Residential School Period: History & Reflections of First Nations, Metis & Inuit Sifa Githinji Department of Indigenous Studies, University of Manitoba INDG 1220: Indigenous Peoples in Canada 1 Dr. Laura Forsythe November 08th, 2023 Activity 3: A Residential School Day 1. What was the Canadian government’s intent when creating the residential school system and removing Indigenous children from their families? According to James Sinclair of University of Manitoba, the purpose and intent of the Residential School system was to assimilate and absorb Indigenous Peoples into the culture

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13 and body politic of the country. To assimilate their culture, European settlers began by attempting to segregate First Nations into what they called ‘civil societies’ which removed their rights, languages, cultures, and traditions. Albert Sutherd, who was a principal of Gordon school, a residential school, said that the school’s goal was to ‘change the philosophy of the Indian child’ and that the children should begin and learn to think like the whites. For the Metis, the government considered them as people who needed to be delt with, although their attendance in Residential schools went unrecorded (Residential Schools Podcast series, 2020) 2. What was the Canadian government’s intent when creating the residential school system and removing Indigenous children from their families? After concluding that the best way for Indigenous Peoples to integrate into Euro- Canadian society was to remove their children from their homes, the Canadian government came up with the Residential school system with the goal of removing Indigenous cultures and traditions. One month into his stay, Residential school survivor Riley Burns remembers being treated horribly. He was beaten for speaking Cree, which also sometimes resulted with soap in his mouth. These stories affected the community in that survivors are still recovering from the abuse that happened at Residential schools. Based on many horror stories from survivors, we can see that the European settler’s goal of eradicating Indigenous culture and traditions failed miserably and impacted an entire population negatively (Residential Schools Podcast series, 2020)

14 References Residential Schools Podcast series. The Canadian Encyclopedia. (2020, February 21). https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/residential-schools-podcast-series

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16 Unit 10: Repression & Resistance Period: Resistance Grows & Organizes Sifa Githinji Department of Indigenous Studies, University of Manitoba INDG 1220: Indigenous Peoples in Canada 1 Dr. Laura Forsythe November 13th, 2023 Activity 4 1. Outline the connection between Residential Schools and military service. A connection between the Residential schools and the military services was established in reference to the correlation between parents who were veterans and children enrolled in the schools. Due to the children of various veterans attending residential schools, veteran parents

17 received lower stipend. Parents were still responsible for their children’s clothes and for their shelter, food, and entertainment for two months during the summer break, but despite this, children remained off the pension roles (Pratt, 2023, p. 12). Harry Badger, a veteran who suffered serious wounds that turned out to be tuberculosis, had a son who attended St. Micheals Residential School and because the pension was not supporting him, he received no pension, even after the Indian Agent at the school enquired about a pension for a younger son, the official said that he did not mention that Badger in the documents had a son because he did not expect the boy to live long. The story of Badger and his son serve as a perfect example of the connection between Indigenous Peoples who served in the military and their children who attended residential schools. Discrimination of Indigenous veterans went on to affect their children, in ways they might not have expected (Pratt, 2023, p. 12) 2. Provide evidence of Indigenous veterans being treated differently than settler soldiers. Despite efforts to become valuable members of the military, Indigenous People regularly faced obstacles to serve in the army, something that settler soldiers did not have to endure. Indigenous soldiers had to endure discriminatory policies that sometimes led to the loss of their Indian Status (Native Women's Association of Canada, 2022). As per the YouTube video by CTV News (2021), in the beginning of the First World War it was written that no First Nations or Indians would be recruited in the army. This illustrates that the discrimination towards Indigenous People occurred even when they wanted to help fight for their own country. When Indigenous Peoples were finally allowed and accepted as worthy of fighting in support of their own country, the veterans had to prove they were worthy of managing their own pension money (Pratt, 2023, p. 15). And Indian agents also exercised their control on Indigenous Peoples, making major decisions about the war and benefits given at the time

18 (Pratt, 2023, p. 2). The examination and control of the pension files of Indigenous veterans shows the injustices of the system which was not designed with Indigenous culture in mind (Pratt, 2023, p. 6). A soldier suffered a gunshot wound and was given 15% disability, which would not have been the case for European veterans, and, following the war, the pension authority wrote that no employer would trust the veterans a worker or his ability, adding that no one could imagine him ever working for them (Pratt, 2023, p. 11). Such examples show just how much racism and discrimination Indigenous soldiers endured during their time as soldiers and after. As per the article by William Pratt (2023), the pension files of Indigenous veterans reveal the tragedy of their lives in the First World War, experiencing the ‘inability for the government to view them as both Indigenous and Veterans’ (Pratt, 2023, p. 16). They were also restricted from recognizing their war efforts at the National Memorial in Ottawa on Remembrance Day, which was not the case for settlers. 3. Why does scholarship use the term 'forgotten' when discussing Indigenous military service? Scholarship uses the term forgotten when discussing Indigenous military service because many Indigenous men fought hard overseas and the Canadian state abandoned them, denying them of their rights and benefits (Pratt, 2023, p. 3). And as Fred Gaffen said, Indigenous Great War veterans faced discrimination, hardships and unfair treatment which is why they were described as ‘forgotten’ (Pratt, 2023, p. 4). 4. List the Indian Act's impact on First Nations military service.

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19 When Canada went to war in the early 1900s, First Nations people volunteered for the military. First Nations youth enlisted and served in regular military units. During WWII, racial barriers and education requirements removed First Nations from the Navy or Air Force, so they enrolled in the army. First Nations leaders across the country protested the application of the Military Service Act of 1917 to their people, stating ‘mandatory military service for all British subjects of age to serve (Sheffield, 2020). The act made no exemption for Treaty Indians, who had expected to be exempt because they did not have the rights of citizenship that obligated Canadian citizens to serve. (Government of Canada, 2014). The government responded in early 1918 by exempting Status Indians from overseas combative service. After 1945, a post-war Parliamentary review led to a new Indian Act in 1951. The revised Act eased some restrictions on Status Indians and extended some powers to Indian Band Councils (Sheffield, 2020). References Government of Canada; Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada. (2014, October 24). Indigenous contributions during the First World War.

20 https://opentextbc.ca/postconfederation/chapter/6-12-status-indians-and-military-service- in-the-world-wars/ Native Women's Association of Canada (2022). National Veteran's Day https://universityofmanitoba.desire2learn.com/content/enforced3/572455- 24484.202390/Veterans_Day_12_Pages_WEB-compressed.pdf? _&d2lSessionVal=O6mN24ypGGUbRF5QIon0aDfbF&ou=572455 Pratt, W. J. (2023). Indigenous Veterans of the First World War and their Families in the Prairie West. Canadian Military History, 32(1), 7. https://universityofmanitoba.desire2learn.com/content/enforced3/572455-24484.202390/ Indigenous%20Veterans%20of%20the%20First%20World%20War.pdf? _&d2lSessionVal=O6mN24ypGGUbRF5QIon0aDfbF&ou=572455 Sheffield, S. R. (2020). 6.12 Status Indians and Military Service in the World Wars. Canadian History: Post-Confederation-2nd Edition. https://opentextbc.ca/postconfederation/chapter/6-12-status-indians-and-military-service- in-the-world-wars/ Indigenous war veterans served a ‘country that didn’t want them | Historian on Remembrance Day https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIY76nggvYE

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Indigenous Studies Unit 6-10 Activities

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