- Treaties are legal agreements between sovereign nations.
- Treaties are to last "as long as rivers flow"
- These agreements were signed by representatives of the Crown and First Nations leaders.
- There are three treaty areas in Alberta, 6,7 and 8.
In exchange for land, First Nations were given:
- reserve land (usually fairly crappy land)
- education
- health care
- a small amount of cash
- hunting and fishing rights
- no income tax for money earned on reserve
- no sales tax on reserve
Treaty people were not allowed to vote until 1960
They were not allowed to join the military unless they gave up their treaty rights.
Some things I thought but didn't know for sure:
- Indigenous people did not always understand the terms of the treaties
- There is only one area in Alberta not covered by a treaty, Lubicon Lake
- B.C. is not covered by treaty and they have been working on agreements as long as I can remember
Here are some things I learned:
- There is no word for "cede" or "surrender" in Cree
- Indigenous people see treaties as sacred agreements.
- Indigenous people see treaties as a relationship. They were about peace and friendship
- Indigenous people did not think historical treaties were about control, they were about sharing and honouring the land.
- Oral history tells a different story about treaties
- Indigenous people did not "sign" treaties. They did not have a written language
- The terms of Treaty Six were changed as the treaty made its way from Alberta to Ottawa
- You should not even talk about the sacred nature of the treaty without smudging first
- You should not make any visual representation of a peace pipe
- Treaty rights in Alberta are being discussed at the United Nations and there are indigenous and non-indigenous treaty experts in Alberta
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