Land & Rights
…established that Aboriginal title was a sui generis right and the Crown had a fiduciary duty to protect it for Aboriginal peoples. R v Sparrow [1990] established the “Sparrow test,”…
Van der Peet case
…previous test outlined in R. v. Sparrow.2 Some critics view this as enabling the Crown to extinguish rights at the point of definition. Critics of the Van der Peet test…
The Indian Act
…rights through the legal system. Eventually, these laws expanded to such a point that virtually any gathering was strictly prohibited and would result in a jail term. These amendments presented…
Reserves
…were a Native person, the reserves bore on what one could and could not do. They were fixed geographical points of reference, surrounded by clusters of permissions and inhibitions that…
About Indigenous Foundations
…Studies at the University of British Columbia to support students in their studies, and to provide instructors, researchers and the broader public with a starting point to their investigations of…
Musqueam Legal History Digital Media Archive
…more about R. v. Guerin R. v. Guerin Media Archive Sparrow Sparrow v. The Queen (1990) was a case involving Aboriginal fishing rights in British Columbia. In 1984, Musqueam Band…
George Manuel
George Manuel (1921-1989) was an Aboriginal political leader in Canada who held a number of influential roles throughout his career. George Manuel was born February 17, 1921, a member of…
The Residential School System
…were often given numbers, and their days were strictly regimented by timetables. Boys and girls were kept separate, and even siblings rarely interacted, further weakening family ties. Chief Bobby Joseph…

The Residential School System
…were often given numbers, and their days were strictly regimented by timetables. Boys and girls were kept separate, and even siblings rarely interacted, further weakening family ties. Chief Bobby Joseph…
Indian Status
…band, and their registration number. “Status Indians” are wards of the Canadian federal government, a paternalistic legal relationship that illustrates the historical imperial notion that Aboriginal peoples are “children” requiring…