Community Breaking/Fracturing

According to the testimony given by Myrtle LaFontaine in an interview for the Metis Oral History Project, in the year 1949, her family, and the residents of the Chicago Line, or Little Chicago, were relocated by the government to Northern Saskatchewan. This was a road allowance community outside of Lestock, Saskatchewan. As per Myrtle, the Chicago Line was “…on the municipality road allowance they used to call in those days and it is about eight or nine miles from Lestock, Saskatchewan…” Also according to Myrtle, there were about fifteen families that lived on the road allowance until the relocation. As explained by Myrtle “…we lived in Lestock till 1949 and then at that time the government saw fit that they relocate us like, you know. So there were, that was to, while we were sent up north, you know, to Green Lake where they had a population of like, you know, Metis people. And we were promised in those days that we would get better housing and jobs and that. And yet when we got there there was, you know, it was really discouraging because we couldn't find, like I think they were worse off than we were, you know.” When the interviewer Margret Jefferson asks how Myrtle and her family survived in the North, Myrtle responds “Mrytle: No, we lived in Lestock till 1949 and then at that time the government saw fit that they relocate us like, you know. So there were, that was to, while we were sent up north, you know, to Green Lake where they had a population of like, you know, Metis people. And we were promised in those days that we would get better housing and jobs and that. And yet when we got there there was, you know, it was really discouraging because we couldn't find, like I think they were worse off than we were, you know.”

The dominance of maleness is deeply embedded in Western/European cultures as a result of centuries of philosophical, literary and religious traditions which position the supposed superiority of the male gender as a result of irrefutable conditions of biology. That is, male dominance, as evidenced in both the public and private sphere, and in political, social and religious organization, is premised on men being intellectually, morally and physically advantaged. (One practical example being women's natural confinement to the private realm and subsequent exclusion from the physically, intellectually and morally demanding conditions of decision-making in the public sphere, such as those experienced in politics, thus resulting in their lower numbers of representation in this field). The hegemony of male dominance has also resulted in differing expectations for parenting. For example, women are subjected to much more intensive surveillance and scrutiny as it relates to their parenting styles and level of engagement than men. Men who are involved in parenting are praised for their exceptionality, whereas if the same standards were applied to women, they would be considered abnormal and morally deficient. Biologically speaking, there is no known scientific evidence to support the belief that men are intellectually or morally superior to women. Nor is there any scientific evidence to support the belief that women are better suited or more necessary to parenting or caregiving than men. If one were to strictly speak along the lines of the gender binary, caregiving is no more a woman's job than breadwinning is a man's. Rather, caregiving is a necessary condition for the propagation of the human species - a condition which is socially, not biologically conditioned. However, the socialization of caregiving activities as a woman's responsibility, combined with male dominance in the public and private sphere, has resulted in a high propensity for men's neglect of parenting responsibilities and abandonment of children in western societies, as well as in societies where such structures of patriarchy have been imposed. That is, men are able to escape their parenting responsibilities with minimal social or legal consequences, but women cannot. In addition to the socialization of gender, the socialization of ethnicity has historically played a role in acceptable notions of fatherhood, particularly in mixed marriages. Beginning shortly after Contact, European men formed unions with Indigenous women, often resulting in children. This also allowed such men to form alliances with the nations from which these women originated, better ensuring the survival of ill-equipped European fur-traders and voyageurs. However, because their children were mixed-race, they were also considered inferior to white children, and thus these families could be (and many were) abandoned with little to no negative repercussions for the father. (Note: this is not to ignore the colonial construction of gender, of which common beliefs perpetrated by media and religion were that European men had irrepressible sexual needs. The simultaneous construction of Indigenous women in the new country as immoral and sexually licentious "squaws" presented such men with a convenient outlet for sexual expression. However, the belief that these women always desired sexual activity, and, like the land, were "there for the taking", rendered mute any consideration of consent, resulting in widespread sexual violence. These beliefs are deeply entrenched in the colonial Canadian psyche and continue to affect perceptions of Indigenous women today.) Black feminist theorist bell hooks argues that without a lack of positive male role modelling, men who experienced father neglect or absenteeism internalize and perpetuate the patriarchal narrative that male parental absenteeism is a normal and even essential component of masculinity (hooks 2003, 95-108). Please also see related entry titled "History of Racist and Gendered Perceptions of Indigenous Women."

A road allowance is land that had been surveyed and set apart by the government for future roads and development - it was the margin between provincial land and Crown land. The state simultaneously denied Métis land rights and also would not allow them to purchase land. The decision to permit Métis families to move onto road allowances was one that further perpetuated their economic marginalization. Some Métis found and occupied abandoned shacks and rail cars as housing was not provided on road allowances. After 1885, the Métis were effectively legally ignored by all levels of government until the 1930s, when a surge of Métis political organization engaged in consciousness-raising and mobilization.

Metis were denied their land rights following the Red River Resistance and Riel Resistance.  The land dispossession of many Metis resulted in their establishing residence on unoccupied road allowances on Crown land.  Metis people disposessed of their homelands and unable to reside in road allowance communities were pushed to find shelter on elsewhere.  

Joe Amyotte worked to raise the living standards for Metis people in Saskatchewan, focusing specifically on creating access to education and housing. 

In an interview with Joe Amyotte (attached under Resources below), he notes that housing conditions of the Metis were worse in Northern Saskatchewan. He also describes how previous experiences attemping Metis political organization made it difficult to engage in grassroots mobilization (i.e., receiving racism/mockery from white settlers for their past efforts), and in turn advocate for improvements that would allow them to attain a higher quality of living conditions. He also describes the low level of educational attainment amongst the Metis, which is corroborated by several testimonies of Metis individuals in Saskatchewan who cite lack of access to a school within their area as the barrier which prevented them from obtaining an education. Some of these individuals also cite that family circumstances of poverty required them to begin working and end their school career early. In another section of the interview, Amyotte says that because of the intiatives of the Metis Society of Saskatchewan, schools were established in Green Lake, Beauval, La Ronge, La Loche, Qu'Appelle, to name a few. There were 35 schools that he initiated across the province in total. These schools were discontinued in 1969 when the leadership of the Metis Society of Saskatchewan changed. Mr. Amyotte does not disclose the reasons why.

During the late 1800s and early 1900s, tuberculosis was sweeping across the Canadian Prairies, resulting in many deaths. Periodic but severe famines were also documented in several communities. During this period of time, theories of social Darwinism and racial evolution informed the perspective of many health professionals and policy makers in Ottawa, impacting how they treated Indigenous people who had contracted tuberculosis. In the 1930s, sanatorium directors and government medical personnel warned of the threat of "Indian tuberculosis" spreading to white communities. Indigenous people were characterized as being negligent towards their own health. In Saskatchewan, as in other prairie provinces, provincial sanatoria and community hospitals often refused to take Indigenous patients. For example, the Fort Qu'Appelle Sanatorium reserved its more than 300 beds for white patients, although at a time the administration opened up 40 beds for Indigenous people in order to repay debts to the Federal government. Further north in Prince Albert, the sanatorium provided a few beds for Indigenous people who were deemed deserving of care by the Indian Agents or local physicians. In this case, it was social rather than medical criteria that determined which Indigenous people would be admitted to the sanatorium: young residential school students who came from families demonstrating progress and assimilation. This led to the development of segregated health care, and the construction of "Indian hospitals" such as the Fort Qu'Appelle Indian Hospital in 1936. At the time, Dr. Ferguson, director of the Fort Qu'Appelle Sanatorium, began conducting an experimental trial of the controversial BCG vaccine on Indigenous children (see BCG Lubeck disaster). His trial was funded by Indian Affairs and the National Research Council. Ferguson had began his investigation into TB in 1927 at the nearby File Hills school. Surrounded by poverty-ridden Treaty 4 reserves, Ferguson had a readily available source of subjects to test the vaccine. Ferguson's twelve-year study was an apparent success. However, his research revealed that 77 of the 609 children in the study, more than 12%, died before their first birthday, but only four of these were tuberculosis deaths. The rest of the child deaths were caused by other diseases such as pneumonia and gastroenteritis. The most likely cause of these diseases was poverty, an issue not addressed by the BCG vaccine, nor by the provincial and federal governments. Finally, historical research has demonstrated that residential schools played a significant role in the spread of tuberculosis, as sanitation was poor, ventilation in most schools was substandard, and infected children were not properly quarantined, often sleeping in the same rooms as the other children, increasing the risk of cross-infection. According to the final report of the TRC, tuberculosis accounted for just under 50% of counted deaths in residential schools. In addition to the residential school system, several government policies contributed to undermining the health conditions of Indigenous people. For example, in periods of starvation, rations were withheld from bands in an effort to force them to abandon their lands. Aid that was promised by the government when making the treaties was slow to come, if it came at all. Restrictions on Indigenous farmers made it difficult for them to sell their produce of borrow money to invest in farming technology. Reserve housing was also poor and crowded, sanitation was inadequate and access to clean water was limited. Under these conditions, TB flourished on reserves and within Indigenous communities.

In 1910, a local Indian Agent noted, "about one-half of the children sent to Duck Lake Boarding School, die before the age 18, or very shortly afterwards." The Indian Agent remarked, "[the students] are kept in a building whose every seam and crevice is, doubtless, burdened with Tuberculosis." In response to this outbreak of Tuberculosis, the One Arrow and Beardy bands requested their children be sent to day schools. The Department of Indian Affairs refused these requests and asked an Inspector to open an investigation into the matter. The Inspector recommended that incoming children should be be screened for health problems more thoroughly, that more windows be installed and walls replastered, that improvements be made to the basement, and that the water system be changed. The water system was changed, and in 1924 a new school was built.

Metis communities in northern Saskatchewan (formerly North-west Territories) began appealing to the Crown in approximately 1886-87 to have their land claims recognized. Although the North-west Commission of 1885 would have surveyed a large number of Metis claims in the North-west Territories, there would have been a number of factors which would have prevented Metis who lived farther north from attending, such as distance. It was extremely difficult for families to leave their work for a number of days during the busy summer months. As well, many Metis were illiterate and did not speak English, and would have been unfamiliar with the complicated and unorganized bureaucratic process inherent to the policies of the Metis land claims Commissions. The process of applying for one’s claim was time-consuming as it required not only travelling to the Commission’s sitting, but travelling to the Dominion Land Office as well to mark one’s claim on a map. Sometimes scrip coupons were issued immediately, other times individuals had to wait for months for their claim to process. As well, if the land upon which the individual resided had not yet been surveyed, they could not use the land or money scrip to obtain title to their land. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- For the government, the purpose of distributing scrip was to extinguish Metis claims to land title, just as treaties did for non-Metis Aboriginal people. A distinct difference between the two, however, is that the Metis claims were dealt with individually, while Aboriginal title to land was collectively extinguished. Similar to the numbered Aboriginal treaties, Commissioners were appointed by orders in council to hold sittings at locations where Metis could come and fill out the requisite government applications. Although scrip had been issued for many decades, perhaps most notably in Manitoba following the Red River resistance in the 1870s, as well as in Saskatchewan in the 1880s and in conjunction with Treaty 8, the existence of prior commissions did not quell the fears of the Metis that their rights to occupation and land title would be recognized by the government. Ottawa’s intent to settle the west was demonstrated by their failure to follow through with their decade-long delay in distributing land in Manitoba following the issuance of land scrip in 1880. The Metis correctly assessed the situation by recognizing that the Crown was more preoccupied with the interests of the Settler population than the rights of the Metis people. In response, the Metis continually petitioned Ottawa regarding their concerns in the 1870s and 1880s, which are clearly documented by government records and correspondence from that time period. These concerns were ignored and resulted in growing political tension and the Riel resistance of 1885. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- As well, the decline of the buffalo in the 1880s as a result of enormously wasteful hunting by the Settler population required that the Metis transition to a new way of life. This wasteful consumption is starkly contrasted by the careful stewardship of the buffalo by the Metis, in which judicious hunting was exercised and all parts of the buffalo used. The fur trade was also in decline. Since the sharp dual decline of buffalo and the fur trade 1880s, requests had been made by the Metis for assistance in transitioning to a way of life based on a different economy. Aboriginal peoples of Northern Saskatchewan had also made requests to enter treaty due to destitution and sickness. The government ignored these requests until the time of the gold rush and the invasion of prospectors in Northern Saskatchewan in approximately 1906. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- On July 20, 1906, the Commissioner for the first half of Treaty 10 (McKenna) collected a total of 541 testimonies to land claim, of which 498 were allowed by the government. This amounted to $65, 040 in money scrip and 54, 480 acres in land scrip. Under the second Treaty 10 Commissioner (Borthwick), a total of 202 testimonies to land claim were made, of which 178 were allowed. The second half amounted to $14, 160 in money scrip and 28, 560 in land scrip. The scrip commissions were held in conjunction with the Treaty 10 commissions at Snake Plains, Lac la Ronge, Stanley Mission, Southend, Ile-a-la-Crosse, La Loche Mission, La Loche River and Portage la Loche. All successful applicants received either $240 in money scrip or 240 acres in land scrip, regardless of date of birth (this is in contrast to prior scrip commissions which required a particular birth date and where $160 in money scrip or 160 acres of land scrip was given to adults and $240 in money scrip or 240 acres of land scrip given to children). In 1908, a further 17 Metis claims to land title were made during the payment of annuities to Aboriginal residents of Lac la Ronge and Pelican Narrows. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- While the government’s presumed legal authority to assess these claims is questionable, as it is based on the assumption that it supersedes any rights to land claims made by Aboriginal or Metis people, it should also be noted that the claims made during the Treaty 10 era do not represent the totality of Metis people in the region. Some Metis individuals, particularly those in the northern and eastern fringes of the Treaty 10 area which spanned approximately 85,500 square miles, were prohibited by economic circumstances to leave their work during the busy summer months for several days. As well, there were other obstacles to filing claims, such as the language barrier (many Metis spoke Michif or French), the foreign, cumbersome and confusing nature of the Crown’s bureaucratic policies (the Metis would have had little to no experience with written laws, deeds or money), and the length of time that was required for processing (the process of obtaining scrip varied from commission to commission, and the application was frequently approved on-site if the individual qualified. The standard format involved filling out an application and an affidavit or obtaining the testimony of two reliable and disinterested witnesses. Following approval and reception of the land scrip coupon, the claimant needed to go to the Dominion land office and enter the scrip, which initiated the long wait to receive a land patent. This was granted as long as there were no conflicts with other settler claims, reserves, or public projects like railways or schools. The latter part of the process involved formalities, paperwork, and lengthy waits). Collectively, these factors served to discourage Metis people from making claims. Although the government may not have had malicious intent in making the process extremely drawn-out and complex, it served to discriminate against the Metis, not only by insisting that they conform to EuroCanadian government policy regarding recognition of land sovereignty, but because it made the process of obtaining such recognition difficult. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The end result for many Metis was alienation of their land title claims, if not because of the difficulty involved in obtaining them, then because of being preyed upon by land speculators. Land speculators frequently lurked alongside scrip commissions and land offices to purchase land scrip certificates, and speculators also frequently organized to agree upon a pre-set price so that Metis individuals had no bartering leverage to negotiate a better deal. In the struggle to adjust from a buffalo economy to an agrarian economy, many Metis were driven by poverty to sell their land scrip certificates for a fraction of their value. Also, government information about scrip certificates was not readily available and, when it was available, was unclear to applicants. As a result many Metis individuals failed to appreciate its value. There was also notable difficulty in locating the land distributed to them in the claim. Government documents clearly implicate the government in fraudulent dealings, as Commissioners, at least part of the time, worked in conjunction with land speculators to make the transfer of land easier. In government memoranda from 1921, it notes: “It appears that the scrip was handed to the half-breeds by the agent of the Indian Department and it was then purchased, for small sums of course, by speculators. However the half-breed himself was required by the Department of the Interior to appear in person at the office of the land agent and select his land and hand over his scrip. In order to get over this difficulty they speculator would employ the half-breed to impersonate the breed entitled to the scrip. This practice appears to have been very widely indulged in at one time. The practice was winked at evidently at the time and the offences were very numerous.” (Memorandum for Mr. Newcombe, 14 October 1921). ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Evidence of land speculation in relationship to Treaty 10 proceedings demonstrates some of the government’s attitudes towards Metis land rights. In a series of telegrams which were sent in July of 1907, the Minister of the Interior, Frank Oliver, became involved in a dispute whereby a scrip buying representative of Revillon Brothers named Bernard was using intimidation tactics to influence other scrip buyers and sellers. Oliver had received a telegram from an agency named Bradshaw, Richards and Affleck which advised him that “Revillon Brothers through representative Bernard in charge transportation Borthwick commission, is buying all scrip and terrorizing other script buyers submit Revillon Brothers. Government contractors should be prohibited, please wire answer.” Oliver replied to the agency that the government had no authority to prohibit individuals from buying scrip, but that he had also wired the acting Indian Agent for Mistiwasis, Thomas Borthwick, to see that Bernard did not use undue influence or terrorize either the “halfbreeds” (Metis) or other scrip buyers. To Borthwick, Oliver said, “See that he uses no undue influence in any degree with respect to any person You will be held responsible.” Oliver also wired Revillon Brothers and instructed them to notify Bernard that a complaint had been made and that he should “act accordingly.”

In a May 1885 correspondence to the Indian Commissioner, an official states that it is his impression that Moosomin, Turtle Lake and Thunderchild bands will remain loyal, and that if they are not, that they will be discreet enough to at least appear to hold a position of neutrality. The writer was unsure regarding the loyalty, disloyalty or neutrality of Poundmaker. The writer also states, “It would seem to be matter for regret that we should not endeavour to keep well disposed Indians in hand, but the military authority superseding ours, renders it impossible to make any move in this direction.”

In a correspondence from May 29, 1885, from Indian Agent MacDonald to the Indian Commissioner, the Agent writes,

“If it can be done I would strongly recommend that the File Hill Band of indians be treated with by General Middleton, in the same manner he has done with those north - Invite the Chiefs and Head men to meet him at Fort Qu’Appelle, order the men to surrender their arms, depose the three chiefs and unruly head men and those who killed the cattle we will punish [there had been an oxen found, stripped of meat - assumedly killed by Aboriginal people, who were likely starving]. Actions of this kind will settle all difficulties in the future in this Treaty, an example should or must be made, I see no better one than to treat the File Hill Bands as having been disloyal during the troubles North had they been harshly dealt with previous to the battle of Batoche these four bands would have been on the warpath, reinforced by young bucks from other Reserves within the Treaty and by some halfbreeds what the consequences would have been no one can tell….The Northern Indians have got a lesson which they will never forget.”

In a June 2, 1885 letter from the Indian Commissioner to the Superintendent General, the Commissioner writes, “The guilty Indians should also be severely punished as an example to others in the future and the Chiefs and Head men deposed as suggested by Agent McDonald.

In a June 5, 1885 letter from the same Commissioner to Indian Agent MacDonald, the Commissioner reiterates these plans:

“In a letter from the Indian Commissioner to the Superintendent General of Indian Affairs, the Commissioner recommends numerous ways to punish First Nations and Métis who were involved in the resistance: “I told the young men to consider over well what was going on [up] North. The Government was determined to punish all who took up arms against the Queen’s laws no matter how slight they may be, and no matter whether he was a White or Black man, Halfbreed or Indian, they would be dealt with alike.”

The following is a summary of the Memorandum for the Honorable Indian Commissioner relative to the future management of Indians (the summary is not a direct transcription but aims to use as much original phrasing as possible):

1. All Indians who have not during the late troubles been disloyal or troublesome should be treated as heretofore.

 2. It is suggested that all leading Indian rebels whom is it found possible to convict of particular crimes such as instigating and inciting to treason, felony, arson, larceny, murder, be dealt with in as severe a manner as the law will allow, and that no offence of their most prominent men be overlooked.

 3. Métis involved in the rebellion convicted will be punished in similar manner.

 4. That the tribal system should be abolished in as far as is compatible with the Treaty, ie. in all cases in which the Treaty has been broken by rebel tribes; by doing away with chiefs and councillors, depriving them of medals and other gifts to their offices.

 5. No annuity money to any ‘rebellious’ bands or individuals who joined “insurgents... The annuity money which should have been expended wholly in necessaries has to a great extent been wasted upon articles more or less useless and in purchasing necessaries at exorbitant prices, entailing upon the Department a greater expenditure in providing articles of clothing, food and implements not called for by the terms of the Treaty…”

 6. Disarm all rebels, but to those rebel Indians north of the North Saskatchewan River who have heretofore mainly existed by hunting: return shot guns (retaining the rifles), branding them as Indian Department property and keeping lists of those to whom arms are lent.

 7. No rebel Indians should be allowed off the Reserves without a pass signed by an Indian Department official.

8. The leaders of the Lakota who fought against the troops should be hanged and the rest be sent out of the country as they are certain of the settlers who are greatly inclined to shoot them on sight.

 9. Big Bear’s band should either be broken up and scattered among other bands or be given a Reserve adjacent to that of Onion Lake.

10. One Arrows band (later seen on the ‘not loyal’ list of bands in Carlton Agency) should be joined with that of Beardy and Okemasis (also considered ‘not-loyal’) and their present Reserve surrendered and dealt with by the Department for their benefit. Chekastaypaysin’s band should be broken up and their Reserve surrendered, the band being treated similar to One Arrows. Neither of these bands are large enough to render it desirable to maintain Farming Instructors permanently with them and as they are beyond assistance.

11. All Métis, members of rebel bands, although not shown to have taken any active part in the rebellion, should have their names erased from the Paysheets and if this suggestion is not approved of, by forcing anyone belonging to a band to reside on Reserves. It is desirable however that the connection between Métis and the Indians be entirely severed as it is “never productive” (Researcher observed note in margin of this document which was presumably by another official, possibly the Commissioner. The note simply says “yes” to indicate agreement.)

 12. Not applicable

 13. James Teenum, Mistawasis and Ahtahkakoop should receive some gift of government appreciation for their conduct [not participating in the rebellion].

14. Agents should be particularly strict in seeing that each and every Indian now works for every pound of provision given to him.

15. Horses of rebel Indians should be confiscated and sold, and cattle or other necessities be purchased with the profits of such sale as this would encourage an agricultural lifestyle.

A school opened on Little Child (Cowessess) reserve in 1886. Cree, Saulteaux and Metis children in the area were legally obligated to attend.

On 26 August 1908, Commissioner David Laird and Indian Agent Day held a meeting with the Thunderchild First Nations with the intent of convincing them to surrender their reserve land. The members of the reserve had repeatedly voiced their opposition to a surrender. During the meeting, the men of Thunderchild voted many times on the issue. On occasion, the Crown officials brought cash to entice the band members to sell. After two days of deliberation, the band voted to surrender the land. Thunderchild First Nation was relocated to IR 115B. This reserve was located further north and the land was less suitable for farming. Band members were unable to sustain themselves on the new reserve due to the poor land conditions.