FNST 100: Indigenous Rights, Governance, Health, and State Relations

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering FNST 100 lectures on Indigenous rights, political economy, health, treaties, demographics, and federal administrative bureaucracy.

Inherent Rights

Rights that existed among Indigenous peoples prior to European settlement and stem directly from their pre-existing presence on the land, operating independently of any rights conferred or delegated by colonial or settler governments.

Collective Rights

Rights held and exercised collectively by members of a distinct group or community rather than by individual citizens alone, encompassing rights to land, self-determination, and cultural practice.

Generic Rights vs. Specific Rights

Generic rights are held broadly by all Indigenous peoples (such as rights to land, self-government, and culture), whereas specific rights belong to distinct, particular Indigenous communities established through individual treaties, specific court rulings, or localized traditions (such as Musqueam fishing rights).

Citizens Plus

A foundational doctrine formulated in the Indian Association of Alberta's 1970 Red Paper (countering the federal 1969 White Paper) asserting that Indigenous peoples hold all the rights and responsibilities of Canadian citizenship plus distinct, preexisting constitutional and treaty rights.

Section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982

The constitutional provision that recognizes and affirms existing Aboriginal and treaty rights in Canada, guaranteeing them equally to male and female persons, and requiring constitutional conferences prior to any amendment of relevant clauses.

Self-Administration vs. Self-Government

Self-administration is an outsider-imposed model where Indigenous bodies merely administer social programs and distribute transferred federal funds with one-way accountability to funders; self-government is designed by Indigenous nations to establish constitutional foundations, enforce laws, control diverse revenues, and maintain two-way intergovernmental partnerships.

Sovereign Citizen Movement

An anti-tax, anti-regulation, libertarian movement of individuals advocating pseudolegal conspiracy theories (such as identifying as 'Moorish' citizens or 'American state nationals') to deny government authority, distinct from legitimate Indigenous assertions of inherent sovereignty.

RCAP Models of Indigenous Government

Three governance frameworks proposed by the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples: the Nation Model (land-based, dual citizenship, full core multi-level jurisdiction), the Public Model (land base with non-Indigenous citizenship and co-jurisdiction, as in Nunavut), and the Community-of-Interest Model (non-land-based, urban, sector-specific services).

Penner Report (1983)

A landmark Canadian parliamentary report that recommended recognizing First Nations communities as a distinct, inherent order of self-government within the Canadian federation, moving beyond limited municipal-style administration.

United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP)

An international human rights instrument affirming Indigenous peoples' rights to self-determination, autonomy in local affairs, cultural protection, and participation in decisions impacting them, officially enacted into Canadian law on June 21, 2021.

Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (DRIPA)

Legislation enacted by British Columbia requiring provincial laws to align with UNDRIP, interpreted by BC courts in cases such as Quw'utsun (Cowichan) and Gitxaala as imposing legally binding requirements rather than purely aspirational targets.

Oka Crisis (1990)

A $78$-day armed standoff during the summer of 1990 between Kanien'kehaka (Mohawk) activists and police/military forces at Kanesatake and Kahnawake over a proposed municipal golf course expansion onto sacred pine forest and burial grounds.

Community Capitalism

An Indigenous economic development model in which a band or community manages collective assets (such as lands, forestry, and natural resources) to generate independent revenues, commercial jobs, and social programs for members while preserving cultural ties.

The New Buffalo

A metaphor used to describe commercial casino gambling enterprises (such as Ontario's Casino Rama) operated by Indigenous communities to generate high-yield, independent revenue and economic development comparable to historical reliance on the bison.

First Nations Fiscal and Statistical Management Act (2005)

Federal legislation providing First Nations governments with the formal institutional and legal capacity to collect real property taxes on reserves, resulting by 2007 in $115$ First Nations generating approximately $55\text{ million}$ dollars annually.

Medicine Wheel

A traditional, circular philosophical framework representing holistic health and balance across the physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual dimensions, corresponding to the four directions, life stages, races, and sacred medicines (tobacco, sweetgrass, sage, cedar).

Prevalence of Selected Health Issues (Indigenous vs. Non-Indigenous)

Statistical health disparities demonstrating that Indigenous populations suffer from tuberculosis at rates $32.2$ times that of the non-Indigenous population, diabetes at $1.9$ times, disability at $1.7$ times, and arthritis, asthma, and obesity each at $1.6$ times.

Comparative Mortality Rates (PHAC 2018)

Epidemiological data showing stark inequalities: infant mortality rates per $1{,}000$ live births are $13.5$ for Inuit, $8.1$ for First Nations, $6.8$ for Métis, and $3.7$ for non-Indigenous; suicide rates per $100{,}000$ are $72$ for Inuit, $40$ for First Nations, $30$ for Métis, and $11$ for non-Indigenous.

The Medicine Chest Clause

A specific legal obligation written into Treaty No. 6 stipulating that the Crown must maintain a medicine chest at the Indian Agent's home and provide food and medical assistance during times of pestilence or general famine.

Clearing the Plains (James Daschuk)

A historical study documenting how the post-Confederation Canadian government weaponized food rations, deliberate starvation, and substandard healthcare to subjugate Plains Indigenous nations and clear territory for settler expansion and the CPR.

Nutritional Experiments in Residential Schools

Federally funded scientific studies conducted between 1942 and 1952 (revealed by Ian Mosby) wherein essential vitamins, milk, and dental treatments were deliberately withheld from malnourished Indigenous children to study the clinical effects of dietary deficiency.

Jordan's Principle

A child-first legal principle established to ensure that First Nations children receive public services, medical equipment, and educational supports immediately, without denial or delay caused by jurisdictional billing disputes between provincial and federal governments.

Medical Care Act of 1966

Federal legislation establishing Canadian universal medicare—championed by Saskatchewan Premier Tommy Douglas—grounded in public administration, comprehensive coverage, universality, portability, and accessibility.

1967 Indian Health Policy

A federal policy reversal recognizing that government responsibility for Indigenous health derives from constitutional provisions, treaties, and customary practices, committing the Crown to preserve and enhance First Nations culture and healthcare delivery.

BC First Nations Health Authority (FNHA)

The first and only province-wide Indigenous health authority in Canada, designed to plan, manage, and deliver community-driven, culturally safe health programs across First Nations communities in British Columbia.

Royal Proclamation of 1763

A British royal decree establishing 'Indian Territory' west of the Appalachian ridge and establishing that Indigenous lands could only be legally ceded through purchase by the British Crown at a public assembly.

Peace and Friendship Treaties (1725–1779)

Early historic treaties negotiated in Atlantic Canada between the British Crown and the Mi'kmaq, Wolastoqiyik, and Peskotomuhkati to maintain commercial pacts and military alliances without surrendering land or title.

Numbered Treaties (1871–1921)

A series of $11$ formal agreements negotiated between the Crown and First Nations from Ontario to the Northwest Territories, securing land surrenders for European settlement and infrastructure in exchange for reserves, annuities, education, and hunting/fishing provisions.

Calder v. British Columbia (1973)

A pivotal Supreme Court of Canada decision initiated by Nisga'a leader Frank Calder which established that Aboriginal title existed in Canadian common law prior to European settlement and had not been extinguished in British Columbia.

Fiduciary Duty

A legal obligation established in Guerin v. The Queen (1984) holding that the Crown has an enforceable, trust-like responsibility to act in utmost good faith and protect Indigenous interests whenever negotiating or leasing surrendered reserve lands.

Duty to Consult and Accommodate

The constitutional requirement that the Crown must meaningfully consult with Indigenous peoples and accommodate their constitutionally protected rights before authorizing projects or making administrative decisions affecting their traditional territories.

Comprehensive Land Claims (Modern Treaties)

Modern tripartite agreements negotiated in regions of Canada where Indigenous rights and title have not been extinguished by historic treaties, initiating with the James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement (1975) and including the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement (1993).

Nunavut Land Claims Agreement (1993)

The largest comprehensive land claims agreement in Canadian history, signed between the Inuit of the Nunavut Settlement Area and the Crown, which facilitated the territorial creation of Nunavut in 1999 under a public government structure.

Specific Claims Tribunal (2008)

An independent judicial body created to adjudicate First Nations claims against the federal government concerning past failures to honor historic treaty promises, administer band funds, or protect reserve lands, operating with an annual budget of $250\text{ million}$ dollars.

Indigenous Demographic Trends (1500–2021)

Historical census records showing a demographic collapse of the Indigenous population from $300{,}000$ in 1500 to a nadir of $107{,}000$ in 1901, followed by a dramatic resurgence to $2{,}070{,}000$ ($2.07\text{ million}$) by 2021.

Census Metropolitan Areas with Largest Indigenous Populations (2021)

Statistics showing Winnipeg, Manitoba has the highest urban Indigenous population in Canada at $102{,}080$, followed by Edmonton, Alberta at $87{,}600$, Vancouver, B.C. at $63{,}345$, and Calgary, Alberta at $48{,}625$.

Indigenous Identity Population Distribution (2022)

Statistics Canada demographic data documenting a total Indigenous identity population of $1{,}807{,}250$, comprised of First Nations single identity ($58.3\%$; $1{,}048{,}405$), Métis single identity ($35.1\%$; $624{,}220$), and Inuit single identity ($3.8\%$; $70{,}545$).

Bill C-31 (1985)

Federal legislation amending the Indian Act to eliminate overt sexual discrimination by restoring legal Indian Status to women who had lost it by marrying non-Status men, while introducing generational status transmission limits under Sections 6(1) and 6(2).

Abocide

A critical term referring to the statutory elimination of legal Indian Status across future generations through statutory bloodline formulas and 'second-generation cut-off' provisions embedded in the Indian Act.

Major John Norton (Teyoninhokarawen)

A prominent Mohawk political diplomat and military leader who helped lead Haudenosaunee forces alongside the British in the War of 1812, representing early military-diplomatic alliances with the Crown.

Tecumseh

The visionary Shawnee leader who organized a multi-tribal Indigenous confederacy and allied with the British against American expansion during the War of 1812 to establish a recognized, independent Indigenous state.

Indigenous Services Canada (ISC)

A federal department created upon the dissolution of INAC, tasked with collaborating with First Nations, Inuit, and Métis to deliver essential services (health, child welfare, education, infrastructure) with the goal of ultimately devolving service delivery to Indigenous nations.

Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada (CIRNAC)

The federal ministry responsible for renewing nation-to-nation, Inuit-Crown, and government-to-government relations, negotiating modern treaties and self-government agreements, and coordinating Northern development and Arctic policy.

Certificate of Indian Status

An official federal identity card issued by the Canadian government verifying that an individual is registered under the regulatory provisions of the Indian Act as a Status Indian.

Ten Principles Governing Indigenous Relations

The federal guidance framework mandating that Crown interactions be guided by the inherent right to self-determination, reconciliation under Section 35, the honour of the Crown, free prior and informed consent, and a distinctions-based approach.

Canada-Métis Nation Accord (2017)

A bilateral agreement affirming the Métis Nation as a distinct Indigenous people with a collective identity and establishing a permanent, nation-to-nation mechanism to address socio-economic gaps and land rights.

Urban Aboriginal Strategy

A federal policy initiative designed to address the specific socio-economic, housing, and integration challenges of off-reserve and urban Indigenous populations while supporting cultural connections to home communities.