Indian Act (Canada)

The Indian Act ("An Act respecting Indians"), is a Canadian Act of Parliament that concerns registered Indians, their bands, and the system of Indian reserves. First passed in 1876 and still in force with amendments, it is the primary document which governs how the Canadian state interacts with the 614 First Nation bands in Canada and their members. Throughout its long history the Act has been an ongoing source of controversy and has been interpreted in many ways by both Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Canadians. The legislation has been amended many times, including "over twenty major changes" made by 2002.

The act is very wide-ranging in scope, covering governance, land use, healthcare, education, and more on Indian reserves. Notably, the original Indian Act does two things affecting all Aboriginal people:

The act's existence is necessitated by the fact that First Nations (historically called "Indians") relate differently to the state because of inherited legal arrangements such as the Royal Proclamation of 1763 and various treaties, and because Canada's constitution specifically assigns Native issues to the federal, rather than provincial, governments, by the terms of Section 91(24) of the Constitution Act, 1867. The Indian Act replaces any laws on the topic passed by a local legislature before a province joined Canadian Confederation, creating a definitive national policy on the subject. The Indian Act is not a treaty; it is Canada's legal response to the treaties. Nevertheless, its unilateral nature, imposed on indigenous peoples by the Canadian government in contrast to the treaties, is itself a source of discontent among Native peoples in Canada.

"The great aim of our legislation has been to do away with the tribal system and assimilate the Indian people in all respects with the other inhabitants of the Dominion as speedily as they are fit to change."

The Indian Act was first passed in 1876 as a consolidation of various laws concerning indigenous peoples enacted by the separate colonies of British North America prior to Canadian Confederation, most notably the Gradual Civilization Act passed by Upper Canada's legislature in 1857 and the Gradual Enfranchisement Act of 1869. The Indian Act was passed by the Parliament of Canada under the provisions of Section 91(24) of the Constitution Act, 1867, which provides Canada's federal government exclusive authority to govern in relation to "Indians and Lands Reserved for Indians". It was an attempt to codify rights promised to Native peoples by George III in the Royal Proclamation of 1763, while at the same time enforcing Euro-Canadian standards of "civilization". The purpose of the act, as stated by its drafters, was to administer Indian affairs in such a way that Indian people would feel compelled to renounce their Indian status and join Canadian civilization as full members: a process called enfranchisement.

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