My first project of BCFP… I was interested to start this course as it allows us to dive deeper into the history of Indigenous Peoples in Canada. In socials, we typically touch on this history in one unit, but this course allows us to explore it in greater detail throughout the whole term. In this project, I learned more about the Indian Act, the policies that shaped it and its impact on Indigenous communities today.

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Early on in the project, We did an activity to help us learn the path to rights and freedoms, where we rotated through stations, each with different papers explaining various events, policies and practices that impacted Indigenous Peoples. We moved from station to station in a small group taking notes and sharing our thoughts. Right off the bat what I found most interesting was Bill C-31. 

In front of me lay this weird-looking diagram, almost like a word problem in math class. I had no idea what it could represent. Upon discussion with my group, we discovered it was a way to illustrate the experiences of Indigenous women and how their identity and rights were affected by who they married. Specifically, if an Indigenous woman married a non-Indigenous man, she would lose her status along with her children.

Meanwhile, Indigenous men were not affected the same way. Their status did not change regardless of who they married. On top of that non-status women who married status men were granted status. A major double standard. Bill C-31 was introduced in year 1985, in an attempt to correct this injustice. It protects and restores Indigenous women’s rights to their status and who they are. It also gives first-generation children affected, their legal status back. Although this was a milestone achieved, there are still unresolved impacts, and many women who lost their status are still fighting to get it back.

Alongside Bill C-31 we learned about other significant moments in Indigenous rights, including Calder vs BC – 1973, Delgamuukw vs BC – 1997, Section 35 – 1982, Indian Act Revisions – 1951, and First Nations right to vote in BC – 1949. These were all monumental events but I noticed the incomplete progress in the journey toward justice. For instance, Section 35 of the Constitution Act was meant to recognize and affirm Indigenous Peoples’ rights in Canada. Although Canada did that, they didn’t define what their rights were, in the end, it was left to the courts to decide. The government’s actions projected an image of inclusivity but the vagueness of it all didn’t enact real change.

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Toward the end of our journey within this project, we synthesized our learning as a class – a road map of 21 Things You Might Not Know About the Indian Act. Each student took one specific topic to research and created a small infographic explaining the key points. I chose to focus on the Pass System, a policy that confined and controlled the movement of Indigenous Peoples. It required them to carry a pass signed by an Indian agent if they wanted to leave their reserve. The most shocking part to me was that it was never an official law, it was an informal policy that wasn’t even legal🚨. The government knew exactly what was happening despite the significant and horrendous impacts it had on Indigenous communities. It tells me just how discriminatory the times were not that long ago. How does such a process even start?

Covering such a significant topic as the Pass System was hard. There was always a little extra bit of information that could be told. Yet, for the sake of the size of the text and space I put down the key information. Personally, I dislike using Keynote to make infographics, I am a Canva girl for life. But, I gotta learn to use what’s given to me. It took me a few drafts to finally complete a solid infographic.

Here are my drafts and ideas:

Here’s my final product:

I was number #10 out of 21 infographics that are presented in the halls of Seycove so that students can learn more about the Indian Act.

The Pass System further restricted Indigenous Peoples, taking away their fundamental freedom of movement. Freedom is essential to being human, it allows us to make our own choices and have agency over our lives. Under this system, Indigenous Peoples had so much of their free will stripped away from them. Imagine being a full-grown adult, unable to make your own life decisions without permission. This system shut down and silenced their voices. They had no way to fight back and were denied of any rights which deeply impacted their lives. It disrupted their traditional practices, relationships and their economy. Learning about these policies is essential to understand the depth of the history of injustices, because only then can we take meaningful actions and work towards true reconciliation.