First Nations

First Nations are the varied Aboriginal Canadian groups who are neither Inuit nor Métis. The Canadian government instituted a number of harsh assimilationist policies against its native population in the 19th and 20th centuries, resulting in drastic population decrease and the criminalization of many traditional practices. Although many modern indigenous peoples have moved back toward a traditional way of life, the damage done by colonizers has had tremendous effect. Here is a list of illustrative facts from the Assembly of First Nations:

• One in four children in First Nation communities live in poverty. That’s almost double the national average.
• Suicide rates among First Nation youth are five to seven times higher than other young non-Aboriginal Canadians.
• The life expectancy of First Nation citizens is five to seven years less than other non-Aboriginal Canadians and infant mortality rates are 1.5 times higher among First Nations.
• Tuberculosis rates among First Nation citizens living on-reserve are 31 times the national average.
• First Nation youth is more likely to end up in jail than to graduate high school.  First Nation children, on average, receive 22% less funding for child welfare services than other Canadian children.
• There are almost 600 unresolved cases of missing and murdered Aboriginal women in Canada.

Canada’s relationship to the 614 First Nation bands by the Indian Act of 1876, which has undergone many amendments since. First Nations govern themselves as a band government that interacts with the Canadian government at the Federal Level.