RECONCILIATION
AND
PUBLIC EDUCATION:
TREATIES AS A FOUNDATION
FOR RELEVANT TEACHING
Colloquium on Improving the
Educational Outcomes of Aboriginal
People Living Off-Reserve,
Saskatoon, March 16, 2010
Jim Miller
Reconciliation is now desired by
many parties in Canada.



courts (e.g., Delgamuuk, 1997)
provincial governments (e.g., BC and Ont.)
Parliament (e.g., prime ministerial apology, 2008)
 On June 11, 2008,
Prime Minister
Stephen Harper
apologized
in the House of
Commons for the
damage Residential
schools had caused
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Treaties as a Forum for Reconciliation

Treaties are an ideal
platform for reconciliation
 Treaties involve all three
Aboriginal peoples, along
with the Crown
 Treaties are found in all
regions
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Types of Crown-Aboriginal Treaties

commercial compacts made according to Aboriginal protocol
(kin-making)

found everywhere in Canada in early post-contact period
LAC e002291421
The Red Lake Chief Making a Speech to the Governor of
Red River at Fort Douglas in 1825
treaties of peace
and friendship
made according
to Aboriginal
protocol
 everywhere in early
fur trade
 Maritime provinces
in early 1700s
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Types of Treaties (cont’d)

territorial treaties: from 1760s to 1921; in Ontario,
prairie West (and NE corner of BC), and North
Map of Treaty 8
1900
LAC NMC 12251
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 modern treaties: comprehensive claims
settlements; individually negotiated treaties
(e.g., James Bay, Nunavut, and Nisga’a); BC
Treaty Commission process
Signing
ceremony for
James Bay
Settlement,
Montreal,
1974
PA 129351
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“We are all treaty people.”



Since treaties embrace all people in
Canada, and are found everywhere in the
country, they can serve as a platform for
building reconciliation.
The task: restore the original treaty
relationship.
But HOW?
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Education, public and classroom,
is the key.

As an encouraging example,
consider the work of the Office
of the Treaty Commissioner for
Saskatchewan (www.otc.ca)
 public education:
Speakers Bureau
and videos
 classroom: Teaching
Treaties in the
Classroom
9
Teaching Treaties in the Classroom

background



research; public opinion survey
cooperative work with teachers,
FSIN, Canada, SaskEd, and
specialists
goals: “promote
understanding”; “build
positive relationships”;
“respect each other and
honour our diversity”; and
“train teachers.”
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Teaching Treaties (cont’d): Content



Grade seven: “First Nations of the Land Now Known as
Saskatchewan”
Grade eight: “Building a Foundation for Treaty Relations”
Grade nine: “Establishing the Treaty Process”
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Teaching Treaties: Content (cont’d)



Grade ten: “Treaties
Negotiated in What is
Now Known as
Saskatchewan”
Grade eleven: “The
Impact of Colonialism
on the Treaty
Relationship”
Grade twelve: “The
Treaty Relationship
Today”
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Teaching Treaties in the Classroom
(cont’d): Support Services


Treaties Kit sent to
every school in the
province: curricula;
teachers’ guides;
videos; books
In-service workshops
(one-day, two-day,
and four-day)
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Teaching Treaties in the Classroom
in Operation


The provincial government mandated its use in
all provincial schools in 2007
lessons to be learned:
 Strong
and imaginative leadership is essential
 Such initiatives are highly labour-intensive
 Saskatchewan’s experiment/experience
demonstrates that treaties can serve as a
foundation for reconciliation-building efforts
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“Let’s face it. We’re all here to stay.”
Chief Justice Antonio Lamer, 1997
“We are all treaty people.”
OTC
Medal to Commemorate Treaties
LAC C070758
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