Alexandra Nemy, Kylie Summers, Mary Connor, Ben Haig, Bryan
Milosevic-Hill

• All men over 16 were required to fill out a registration form
• They were required to carry this with them at all times
• Aboriginal people were exempt from conscription
• At the time there was no such thing as Canadian citizenship
• Canadians were British subjects either by birth or by choice
• Aboriginal people thought that they were allies of Britain, not their subjects
• Some thought that the registration was tricking them into giving up their rights
• As a result of this many aboriginal men refused to register

• In 1876 the Parliament passed the Indian act.
• Gave Government complete control over lives of First Nations people on reserves.
• Benefits included government funded health care and education. However it a took away
First Nations people’s right to govern themselves and their right to vote.
• They were also prohibited from consuming alcohol.
• On each reserve, a government-appointed
Indian agent controlled people’s day-to-day activities

• Goal of the Indian Act was to assimilate (to make the same) First Nations into the Canadian society
• Parliament changed the act many times without consulting the First Nations people
• Many reserves were too small for First Nations to carry on traditional activities and unemployment was high for the First Nations
• Their houses lacked running water and indoor toilets
• Poor health took toll and suicide rates jumped
• In 1500, about 500,000 First Nations people had lived in Canada
• By the early 1920s, it has reduced to about
100,000

• Goal was to protect the rights and improve living conditions of First Nations in Canada
• First Aboriginal political organization in Canada
• Formed by Fred Loft, a Mohawk from the Six Nations of the Grand River Reserve
• Government officials viewed Loft’s efforts with suspicion and tried to destroy it
• In 1927, changes to the Indian act made it illegal for First
Nations to form political organizations
• Loft died in 1934 and the organization faded away

vs.
Frederick Loft is recognized for being the creator of the League of Indians.
Duncan Scott supported assimilation and disagreed with Frederick Loft.

• Duncan Campbell Scott rose through the ranks to lead to the Department of Indian Affairs (1923-
1939)
• Believed that education was the key to assimilation and his goal was to civilize children so they could fit into the Canadian society
• Children were separated from siblings and friends and put into dormitories and often lost touch with their culture
• Teachers were harsh and cruel and required students to do housework or manual labor to reduce operating costs
• By 1931, 80 residential schools were across Canada and about 150,000 Aboriginals attended
• Graduates were qualified for citizenship rights and the right to vote however they had to give up their
Indian status in return

Information
Colyer, Jill, Jack Cecillon, Graham Draper, and
Margaret Hoogeveen. Creating Canada: A History - 1914 to
the Present. Toronto: McGraw-Hill Ryerson, 2010.
Print.