Civil Rights and Social Movements in Canada: 1960’s & 1970’s

1. Civil Rights and Social Movements in Canada: 1960’s & 1970’s

2. Aboriginal Peoples Challenge the System • Heartened by their participation in WWII, Aboriginal People began to challenge the restrictions of the Indian Act and the assimilative aims of the residential schools. • Aboriginal people were pushing for a recognition of their unique group rights within Canada. • This approach was at odds with the individual rights orientation that was becoming dominant in Canada at the time. • The Indian Act continued to have discriminatory provisions: • - land claims cases could not be launched without the permission of the superintendent of Indian Affairs - Aboriginal people could not vote without giving up their Indian status • Those who gave up their status could not function well in either the reserve community or mainstream society.

3. Aboriginal Peoples Challenge the System • After WWII, Aboriginal peoples formed many regional, provincial and traditional bodies and they succeeded in having many of the worst parts of the Indian act reformed. • For example, during the 1950s bands gained the right to administer their own funds. • By 1960, status Indians were allowed to vote in federal elections. • The National Indian Brotherhood was formed in 1968 to advocate for status Indians (now the Assembly of First Nations). • The Native Council of Canada was formed to advocate for non-status Indians and the Metis (now the Congress of Aboriginal Peoples).

4. James Gladstone • Gladstone (Cree/Scots) came from NWT but was active in Alberta. • He was a successful farmer before becoming an effective leader of the Indian Association of Alberta. • The IAA lobbied provincial and federal governments as well as tried to raise public support for Aboriginal issues. • Gladstone participated in the changes made to reduce the restrictions in the Indian Act in the 1940s/1950s.

5. James Gladstone • Despite this work, the 1951 Indian Act was still unjust: • Aboriginal people were not allowed to drink alcohol • They could not subdivide their reserve lands • They could not vote in federal elections. • Gladstone was appointed by Prime Minister John Diefenbaker in 1958 and became Canada’s first Senator of Aboriginal descent. • Gladstone was a reformer who emphasized individual efforts over collective efforts. • He participated in the fight for better rights regarding education, band administration, and honouring the treaties as well as the eventual victory of receiving the federal vote in 1960.

7. The Indian Act and Women • For most of the 20th century, if an Aboriginal woman married a non-Aboriginal man she and her children lost their Indian status. The reverse was not true for Aboriginal men who married non-Aboriginal women. • In 1966, this sexist, patriarchal and colonialist policy was challenged by Mary Two Axe Earley when she founded Equal Rights for Indian Women. • After losses and victories in Canadian courts, the matter was brought to the Human Rights Committee of the United Nations in 1981. The UN ruled that the Indian Act violated human rights. • Canada passed Bill C-31 to amend the Indian Act in 1985. • Since that time, over 100,000 Aboriginal women and their children have regained their Indian status.

8. Challenging Residential Schools • During the post–war period Aboriginal peoples also focused on resolving the issue of residential schools. • These institutions were created to assimilate Aboriginal children into white Christian society. • The quality of education was poor, diseases and infections resulted form overcrowding, physical and sexual abuse were commonplace, and the destruction of traditional languages, culture and spirituality were seen as objectionable. • In 1951, attendance was no longer compulsory under the Indian Act. • In 1968, the federal government ended partnership with religious organizations in running the schools. • When the government tried to close Blue Quills residential school in Alberta in 1971, it was seized by Aboriginal peoples. By 1973, it was the first school administered by Aboriginal peoples and guided by indigenous teachings. • By the 1990’s the last of the residential schools had been closed. • In 2008, the federal government officially apologized for the schools and started distributing compensation payments to survivors (10 and 3 formula)

9. The White Paper & Response • Inspired by his vision of a “just society” where all Canadians would be equal, Prime Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau introduced the White Paper on Indian Policy in 1969. • Trudeau proposed to do away with the Indian Act, dismantle the Department of Indian Affairs, shift responsibility for Aboriginal issues to provincial governments, and eventually eliminate treaty rights. • Aboriginal peoples responded to the White Paper with outrage. • Harold Cardinal, the young leader of the National Indian Brotherhood, described it as assimilation by another name. • Cardinal helped in presenting the Aboriginal response called the Red Paper and also wrote the influential book ‘The Unjust Society” • The White Paper galvanized Aboriginal people across Canada and as a result of their protests, the White Paper was withdrawn in 1970. • Aboriginal people had asserted their Aboriginal and treaty rights.

10. Developments in the North in the 1970s • In the 1970s, with the development of more effective political organizations, Aboriginal peoples began to make their voices heard. • The Cree and Inuit of northern Quebec succeeded in delaying a massive Hydro development project. • The resulting James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement granted $232.5 million over 20 years, special economic assistance, ownership of 5500 square km of land, hunting and fishing rights over 129,500 sq km of land, and a veto over mineral resource development. • While the James Bay Agreement was viewed as a victory, there have subsequently been negative impacts on the environment and the lives of Aboriginal people.

11. Red Power in Canada • Many Aboriginal people were inspired by the militancy and activism of the Black Power and Red Power movements in the USA during the late 1960s. • Anna Mae Aquash, for example, was a Mi’kmaq from Nova Scotia who moved to the US to participate in the activities of the American Indian Movement (AIM). • In 1974, 30 members of the Ojibway Warriors and AIM occupied Anicinabe Park in Kenora, ON to protest against ongoing issues of poverty, land claims and the mercury poisoning of fish. • 1974 also saw the Native Peoples’ Caravan head to Ottawa to demand more rights for Aboriginal peoples. • Caravan members were met and assaulted by the RCMP’s brand new riot squad. It was indicative of a new era of confrontation.

12. Anna Mae Aquash(born 1945 in Indian Brook, Nova Scotia, died 1975 on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota)

13. Red Power in Canada • As an example of the politics of the time, the Native Alliance for Red Power issued the following demands in 1969: • Self-determination for reserves and Aboriginal communities • An end to taxation of Aboriginal peoples • The creation of an education system that serves the needs of the people • An end to discrimination in the prisons and by police. • Honouring the treaties and compensation for loss of land. • The end of resource to enrich private business and the economic development of Aboriginal communities, • The end of “divide and rule” tactics by the government.

14. The Charter of Rights and Freedoms • When Trudeau was attempting to bring the Constitution of Canada under Canadian control, he also wanted to add a Charter of Rights and Freedoms. • Aboriginal peoples were not provided with the opportunity to participate in the talks and the Charter did not include terms to protect their rights. • After campaigning nationally and internationally, Aboriginal leaders were successful in having the Charter changed in 1982 to recognize Indians, Metis, and Inuit as Aboriginal peoples with special Aboriginal and treaty rights. • The exact extent of these “Aboriginal rights” is still debated. • The Canadian government views these rights as a gift from the gov’t that can be over-ridden when necessary. • For Aboriginal peoples, they view these rights as including the inherent right to self-government and relations with Canada on a nation-to-nation basis.

15. The Evolution of Human Rights • After WWII Canada began to confront some of the human rights abuses at home. • Despite this, Canada was slow to vote in favour of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights because it was still discriminating against various groups. • For example: • Jehovah’s Witnesses received hostile treatment • Communists were being targeted due to Cold War fears and the discovery of a USSR spy operation. • Japanese Canadians continued to be denied the right to vote in 1948. • This is ironic because it was a Canadian (John Humphrey) who drafted the original Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

16. The Tragedy of Africville, NS • One event which shows the limitations of human rights in Canada during this era is the tragedy of Africville. • Africville was a tiny community established by former American slaves in Halifax in 1812. • Despite being a vibrant hub for the black community in Nova Scotia, Africville was chronically underdeveloped (it had no water service, sewage system, or street lights and most houses lacked plumbing and electricity) • Also, the city of Halifax had located the Infectious Disease Hospital and dump/incinerator beside Africville. • As part of the postwar development projects that were common at the time, without consultation the city removed and re-housed the residents and then bulldozed their homes in the late 1960s. • The city argued that it was for sanitary reasons and to help speed desegregation, but in reality it was a racist assault that erased a historic maritime community.

19. The Bill of Rights • When John Diefenbaker became Prime Minister in 1958, he wanted to create a new law that would address issues of human rights in Canada and guarantee the rights of individuals. • The Bill of Rights became law in 1960 and included the following rights: • To life, liberty, and personal security • To equality before the law • Freedom of religion, speech, assembly, association, and the press • To legal counsel and a fair hearing. • Diefenbaker could not enshrine the Bill of Rights in the Canadian Constitution because Britain still had power over Canada’s constitutional affairs.

20. Bill of Rights and the Charter • As a result, the Bill of Rights was simply legislated by Parliament and acted as a guideline for the federal government. • It did allow for some victories against discrimination, such as the R. v. Drybones case which ruled that Indian Act provisions related to liquor laws were discriminatory. • The Bill of Rights was a first step towards the Charter of Rights and Freedoms • The CCRF was entrenched in the Canadian Constitution when the Constitution was repatriated by Pierre Elliott Trudeau in 1982.

21. The Women’s Movement • After WWII, women were expected to quit wartime jobs so that returning male veterans could take them. • Government-run daycares were closed and women were expected to return to their traditional domestic roles. • Not all women left the workforce. • In 1951, women represented 22.3% of the workforce. • However, in 1961 women employed full-time earned only 59% of what men did in the same job categories.

22. The Women’s Movement • Around this time, numerous small victories were won. • In 1955, restrictions in the federal public service on the employment and advancement of married women were removed. • By the 1970s, an increasing number of women were opting to participate in the workforce. • For example, women working in the auto industry won equal pay in 1970. • Also around this time big ticket consumer goods (washers, refrigerators, etc.) became widely available and dramatically reduced the domestic burden for women. Supermarkets also simplified the preparation and preservation of food.

23. The Women’s Movement • Despite these improvements, women still required their husband’s permission to have a credit card. • The introduction of the birth control pill in 1961 had dramatic effects on women’s lives. • Even though spreading information on birth control was illegal until 1969, barriers methods (condoms, diaphragms) had been popular since WWII. • Once the pill was available, women could plan families, work, or go to school with much more confidence. • As a result, birth rates decreased and women participated in the workforce and higher education at greater rates

24. Women’s Social Action Groups • Women organized groups to promote causes that were important to them. • For example, Voice of Women was created in 1960 to promote disarmament and peace, and enabled many women to articulate concerns about the Cold War. • By the late 1960s, women were politically active and frustrated by their inability to make headway on crucial issues such as: • Equal pay for equal work • Paid maternity leave • Laws protecting them from sexual harassment • Control of their own reproductive rights

25. Royal Commission on the Status of Women, 1967 • Women tended to view the government as at best neutral and at worst obstructionist in passing laws to improve women’s lives. • As a result, a broad coalition of women successfully lobbied PM Lester B. Pearson to create a Royal Commission in 1967 that was to examine the problems faced by Canadian women and to propose solutions. • After 3 years of listening to women across Canada, the commission delivered a report with 167 recommendations. These included: • Paid maternity leave • Fair employment practices • Changes to the Indian Act so that women could not be deprived of their Indian status if they married non-Indians.

26. The Women’s Movement (cont’d) • By the time the commission’s report came in, Trudeau was prime minister. • Trudeau created the Status of Women portfolio in cabinet. Ironically, the first minister was a man, Robert Andras. • The department was mandated to promote gender equality and to ensure the full participation of women in economic, social, cultural, and political life. • Status of Women suggested new laws, ensured the federal gov’t treated its female employees fairly, and provided funds for women’s groups and causes.

27. Victories in the Fight for Women’s Equality • 1969: Abortion was decriminalized. • 1973: Air Canada withdraws its policy prohibiting married women from being flight attendants. • 1974: The National Film Board established Studio D to produce and promote films about and by women. • 1983: Spousal rape laws were created that allowed women to charge their husbands with sexual assault. • 1985: Bill C-31 repeals the sexist parts of the Indian Act that caused women and their children to lose Indian status. • 1986: The federal government passes employment equity legislation. • 1993: Kim Campbell becomes Canada’s first female Prime Minister.

28. Second Wave Feminism • The first wave of feminism came at the turn of the 20th century and focused on winning women the right to vote (suffrage) • The second wave of feminism came in the late 1960s and early 1970s and was part of the general radicalization of the time period. • This movement included protests, meeting, lobbying, debates and consciousness-raising groups. • Lesbians, women of colour, and immigrant, native and disabled women all struggled and challenged the white middle-class women’s movement. • In 1978, a successful International Women’s Day march was held in Toronto. • Second Wave feminism had three main branches: • Liberal Feminists: worked for change within the existing system. Concentrated on legal and parliamentary changes. • Radical Feminists: worked to abolish the male dominated or patriarchal system. Men are usually seen as the enemy. Concentrated on anti-pornography and issues of violence against women. • Socialist Feminists: worked to abolish patriarchy and capitalism. They favoured grass-roots organizing, mass mobilization and building solidarity between oppressed groups.

29. The Response of Governments Canadian folk singer Rita MacNeil speaking at a feminist rally in 1970s. The RCMP infiltrated the women’s lib movement and spied on MacNeil because she wrote women’s lib songs.

30. The Gay Rights Movement • Homosexuality was illegal in Canada until 1969. • The government of Trudeau decriminalized homosexual acts arguing that “what’s done in private between adults doesn’t concern the The Criminal Code.” • Inspired by the Stonewall Riots in 1969, the gay and lesbian rights movement spread in Canada. • Some victories include: • 1970s - early 1980s: Gay pride marches and festivals start to happen across Canada. • 1978: The Canadian Immigration Act removes homosexuals from the list of inadmissibles. • Early 1990s: The Canadian Auto Workers union starts winning same-sex couples benefits in its contracts. • 1996: Parliament passed Bill C-33, adding sexual orientation to the Canadian Human Rights Act. • 2005: Canada became the 4th country in the world to legalize same-sex marriage.

31. Activism at the Universities • The increased participation of young people in post-secondary education resulted in exposure to radical and critical new ideas. • Young people questioned prohibitions against using marijuana and the sexual double standard that applied to women. • On campuses during the late 1960s, students protested and organized strikes over the issue of professors’ tenure. • While professors viewed tenure as a key element of job security, youth felt professors should be fired if they were incompetent or indifferent.

32. Sir George Williams University Riot • In 1969, 6 black students from the Caribbean at Sir George Williams (now Concordia) University accused an assistant biology professor of racism. • The university set up a committee to hear the complaints, but students did not approve of the representatives. • 200 students protests by occupying the university’s computer centre. • The police were called in to end the occupation. Students shut down the elevators and built barricades. A fire, smashed computers and computer data cards flying out the windows ensued. • Numerous arrests were made and the assistant professor was reinstated. • The riot and response demonstrated just how out of touch the university was with the concerns of university students. • One participant in the riot, Roosevelt Douglas, was sentenced to 2 years in prison and then deported back to the Dominican Republic. In 2000 he became the prime minister of his country.

33. Canada and the Vietnam War • As in the U.S.A., opposition to the war in Vietnam was a defining issue for youth counterculture in Canada. • At least 20,000 draft dodgers and 12,000 deserters came to Canada for refuge. • Although Canada was not at war with Vietnam, it did support the US in a number of ways: • 10,000 Canadians went to fight in the US forces • The herbicide Agent Orange was tested in New Brunswick • American bombers practiced carpet-bombing in Alberta and Saskatchewan. • When President Jimmy Carter pardoned the draft dodgers in 1977, many returned to the US, but others stayed in Canada permanently.

34. Canadian Contributions to the Youth Counterculture • Canadian artists made significant contributions to the music scene during the 1960s and 1970s. • Some examples include: The Guess Who, Neil Young, Robbie Robertson (The Band), Buffy Sainte-Marie, Leonard Cohen, and Joni Mitchell.