Individuals, descendants impacted by second-generation cut-off varies widely in NWT

“The Indian Act of 1876 is a relic of our colonial history, an attempt to fully assimilate First Nations Peoples into the social fabric the colonizers wanted to create and maintain. While some changes have been made to the Indian Act through the years, more is needed — especially as we work to transition away from it completely.”

– Indigenous Services Minister Mandy Gull-Masty

The second-generation cut-off prevents many First Nations people with status under the Indian Act from passing entitlement on to their children and grandchildren simply because of the person with whom they chose to parent, says the federal government.

In the Northwest Territories, the percentages of individuals and their descendants directly impacted by the second-generation cut-off varies from a low of 14.1% in Gameti, to a high of 41.9% in Deninu K’ue First Nation (Fort Resolution).

Among the 20,660 First Nations residents of the NWT, 31% or 6,404 individuals are impacted.

Across Canada, the numbers are 1,116,323 First Nations residents, 29.3% or 327,370 individuals are impacted.

Indigenous Services Canada has produced a Rights-Holders Information Kit containing detailed descriptions of the second-generation cut-off, along with community-specific data sheets and an inter-active map organized by region.

These documents have been developed as part of this initiative to provide First Nations with the impact of the second-generation cut-off on their community’s registered population, states the federal government.

The second-generation cut-off, which came from a 1985 amendment to the Indian Act, prevents individuals from registering for status under the Indian Act if they have a parent and a grandparent who did not have status.

Last year, the Senate passed sweeping amendments to a Liberal-backed bill that would simplify the transfer of First Nations status between generations will be mere echoes by the time it makes it through Parliament.

Bill S-2 is a proposed Canadian law to amend the Indian Act to address long-standing inequities in the registration of Indigenous peoples, primarily by restoring status to those who lost it through historical enfranchisement and by removing the second-generation cut-off for status, states the federal government.

Indigenous Services Minister Mandy Gull-Masty told CKLB last year that while she supports the Senate’s amendment replacing the “two-parent” rule with a “one-parent rule” for passing on status, it will need to take a different route from the rest of Bill S-2.

The Minister said: “So, with all due respect to the members of the Senate, I do support and agree with them that second-generation cut off is something that needs to be addressed. It’s just the process and the pathway forward on how we make decisions as representatives of the Crown differs greatly.”

Gull-Masty has said the second-generation cut-off is a “critical and deeply personal issue that must be addressed in the right way.”

She told CKLB she is mindful that people want to have a solution, but that a one-size-fits-all approach might not be the best for the entirety of the country.

A look at amendments to the registration provisions of the Indian Act:

Prior to the existence of Canada, First Nations had their own systems for determining the “citizens or members” of their nations. Kinship and community ties were common elements. These systems were targeted by colonizers in deliberate ways, including legislation, land dispossession, violence and forced displacement, and the Indian Residential School and Day School systems.

• 1876: The Indian Act was introduced, and the “marrying out rule” was maintained. The “marrying out rule” was introduced, resulting in: First Nations women who married non-entitled men lost their status, and lost the ability to transmit status to their children. First Nations men who married non-entitled women not only kept their status, but their non-entitled wives were granted status, and they retained the ability to transmit status to their children.
• 1951: Amendments reinforcing discrimination against women and their descendants were made, including the “double mother rule.”
• 1985: With the new backdrop of the Charter of Rights, and increased international pressure, C-31, An Act to Amend the Indian Act was enacted with the intention of eliminating sex-based inequities in the Indian Act. It maintained the status of all people who were entitled prior to C-31, but introduced the “second-generation cut-off.”
• 2011: C-3, Gender Equity in Indian Registration Act, introduced changes that restored status to the grandchildren of First Nations women who had married non-entitled men, and created the “1951 cut-off” in attempts to fix the “double mother” rule introduced in 1951.
• 2015: In the Descheneaux decision, the Superior Court of Quebec ruled that the Indian Act violated the Charter of Rights, and was discriminatory based on sex.
• 2018-2019: During the Collaborative Process on Indian Registration, Band Membership and First Nation Citizenship, First Nations were consulted on the removal of the “1951 cut-off” as well as broader issues relating to the Indian Act.
• 2019: On August 15, 2019, S-3 was brought fully into force to remove the “1951 cut-off”, and new registration provisions mean that descendants of First Nations women who married non-entitled men are treated the same as descendants of First Nations men who married non-entitled women.
• 2020: In the Final Report to Parliament on the Review of S-3, Canada presented next steps towards reform, including addressing enfranchisement and deregistration, and consulting on a legislative remedy for the second-generation cut-off.
• 2023: On June 21, 2023, after two years of consultation and cooperation with First Nations, Inuit and Métis, the Department of Justice released the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act Action Plan.

— Source: Indigenous Services Canada