REFLECTIVE JOURNAL #1

PMAL 103 : TURTLE ISLAND CANADA, AND THE WORLD

NAME: KRUPARTH RUDANI

SECTION: B

PROFESSOR NAME: NICK ESPOSTO

"Indigenous peoples" is a collective name for the original peoples of North America
and their descendants. Often, "Aboriginal peoples" is also used. The Canadian
Constitution recognizes 3 groups of Aboriginal peoples: Indians (more commonly
referred to as First Nations), Inuit and Métis.

There are three categories of Indigenous peoples in Canada: Inuit, Métis and First
Nation. The Inuit primarily inhabit the northern regions of Canada. Their homeland,
known as Inuit Nunangat, includes much of the land, water and ice contained in the
Arctic region. Métis peoples are of mixed European and Indigenous ancestry, and live
mostly in the Prairie Provinces and Ontario, but also in other parts of the country.
First Nations peoples were the original inhabitants of the land that is now Canada,
often occupying territories south of the Arctic.

The Indian Act the principal statue through which the federal government manages a
variety of issues concerning Indigenous affairs further divides Indigenous peoples
into two categories: Status Indians and Non-Status Indians. Status Indians are
individuals who are listed in the Indian Register and are issued identification cards
that contain information about their identity, band and registration number. Non-
Status Indians are Indigenous peoples who are not registered with the federal
government.
Indigenous peoples have been in Canada since time immemorial. They formed
complex social, political, economic and cultural systems before Europeans came to
North America.

With colonization and white settlement, traditional Indigenous ways of life were
forever altered. Colonial practices and policies, such as the Indian Act, pas
system, reserves and residential schools, sought to control and assimilate Indigenous
peoples. These have had historic and ongoing impacts on generations of Indigenous
peoples.

Such practices and policies, when combined with racism, acts of segregation, loss of
land, and declining or unequal access to food resources and public services, have had
devastating consequences on the health and socio-economic well-being of
Indigenous peoples.

References :

https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/aboriginal-people

https://www.rcaanc-cirnac.gc.ca/eng/1100100013785/1529102490303