Twelve essays look at Canadian Métis today in terms of history, identity, law, and politics.

“In this book, Professor D.N. Sprague tells why the Métis did not receive the land that was supposed to be theirs under the Manitoba Act.... Sprague offers many examples of the methods used, such as legislation justifying the sale of the land allotted to Métis children without any of the safeguards ordinarily required in connection with transactions with infants. Then there were powers of attorny, tax sales—any number of stratgems could be used, and were—to see that the land intended for the Métis and their families went to others. All branches of the government participated. It is a shameful tale, but one that must be told.” — from the foreword by Thomas R. Berger

Lists approximately 500 items under the headings "Historical Sources", "Sociological Sources" and "Educational Sources". Includes name and subject indexes.

Between 1867 and 2000, the Canadian government sent over 150,000 Aboriginal children to residential schools across the country. Government officials and missionaries agreed that in order to “civilize and Christianize” Aboriginal children, it was necessary to separate them from their parents and their home communities. For children, life in these schools was lonely and alien. Discipline was harsh, and daily life was highly regimented. Aboriginal languages and cultures were denigrated and suppressed. Education and technical training too often gave way to the drudgery of doing the chores necessary to make the schools self-sustaining. Child neglect was institutionalized, and the lack of supervision created situations where students were prey to sexual and physical abusers. Legal action by the schools’ former students led to the creation of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada in 2008. The product of over six years of research, the Commission’s final report outlines the history and legacy of the schools, and charts a pathway towards reconciliation. Canada’s Residential Schools: The Métis Experience focuses on an often-overlooked element of Canada’s residential school history. Canada’s residential school system was a partnership between the federal government and the churches. Since the churches wished to convert as many Aboriginal children as possible, they had no objection to admitting Métis children. At Saint-Paul-des-Métis in Alberta, Roman Catholic missionaries established a residential school specifically for Métis children in the early twentieth century, while the Anglicans opened hostels for Métis children in the Yukon in the 1920s and the 1950s. The federal government policy on providing schooling to Métis children was subject to constant change. It viewed the Métis as members of the ‘dangerous classes,’ whom the residential schools were intended to civilize and assimilate. This view led to the adoption of policies that allowed for the admission of Métis children at various times. However, from a jurisdictional perspective, the federal government believed that the responsibility for educating and assimilating Métis people lay with provincial and territorial governments. When this view dominated, Indian agents were often instructed to remove Métis children from residential schools. Because provincial and territorial governments were reluctant to provide services to Métis people, many Métis parents who wished to see their children educated in schools had no option but to try to have them accepted into a residential school. As provincial governments slowly began to provide increased educational services to Métis students after the Second World War, Métis children lived in residences and residential schools that were either run or funded by provincial governments. As this volume demonstrates the Métis experience of residential schooling in Canada is long and complex, involving not only the federal government and the churches, but provincial and territorial governments. Much remains to be done to identify and redress the impact that these schools had on Métis children, their families, and their community.

At a time when the Métis are becoming increasingly visible in Canadian politics, this unique book offers a practical guide for understanding who they are, how they govern themselves, and the challenges they face on the path to self-government. The Métis have always been a political people. Kelly Saunders and Janique Dubois draw on interviews with elders, leaders, and community members to reveal how the Métis are giving life to Louis Riel’s vision of a self-governing Métis Nation within Canada. They look to the Métis language – Michif – to identify Métis principles of governance that emerged during the fur trade and that continue to shape Métis governing structures. Both then and now, the Métis have engaged in political action to negotiate their place alongside federal and provincial partners in Confederation. As Canada engages in nation-to-nation relationships to advance reconciliation, this book provides timely insight into the Métis Nation’s ongoing struggle to remain a free and self-governing Indigenous people.

Many books over the years have promised to tell the true story of the Native American Indians. Many, however, have been filled with misinformation or derogatory views. Finally here is a book that the Native American can believe in. This well researched book tells the true story of Native American accomplishments, challenges and struggles and is a gold mine for the serious researcher. It includes extensive notes to the text and over 500 photographs and illustrations -- many that have never before been published. The author, after 20 years of research, has attempted to provide the world with the most truthful and accurate portrayal of the Native American Indians. Every serious researcher and Native American family should have this ground-breaking book.

Intended for use in schools. Suitable grades 5 and up.

This study of the eight Metis settlements in northern Alberta examines their history, legal status, government and politics, external and internal organizations, the issue of self-government and the opinions and attitudes of residents on a number of topics, and presents an unconventional approach to native self government.