We are all Treaty People

Treaty of Niagara Wampum Belt in blue, alongside the wampum belts for the 24 Nations that signed the treaty, the Two-Row belt and the Dish With One Spoon belt (courtesy of Toronto Metropolitan University)

July 1 is not the only day to celebrate what we have created as a country. 

By 1867 we had accomplished 250 years of living together in the land we all call home.  The British North America Act united four colonies into a Confederation, but it was one in a long series of negotiated agreements.  And it only included a minority of the people that call this land home.

But the new federal government did inherit obligations to those other peoples, set out in a treaty signed a century earlier.  A treaty that remains in force to this day and which serves as the foundation for the structures later built atop.

On August 1 1764, several dozen First Nations signed the Treaty of Niagara with the United Kingdom.  That treaty recognized the inherent rights they have to their respective land. The treaty remains in force, one reason why the Supreme Court of Canada continues to rule in favour of Indigenous peoples on land claims.

Niagara represents the profound rule of law on which our country was created. As we confront the violations of that rule of law in the residential school system, we have this deeper foundation on which to build something better.

This August 1, we will be gathering around a fire on the Humber River to tell the story of Niagara and to celebrate a first year of the Remembering Project. This ancient historical site is just steps from the Old Mill subway station.  We’ll be there from 6:00 pm to 9:00 pm.

Please join us as we uncover the deeper history of this country and celebrate our work to build a better one.