Page 58 - Chippewas of Rama First Nation

If you live in a town or city, you live by the laws of the country,
the province, and the municipality. We also live by the laws of
the country and the province, as well as by the laws of our First
Nation. To receive benefits provided to the First Nation under
the treaties (e.g., health services), we must be registered and be
a member of a First Nation. For some benefits, we must reside in
the First Nation territory (i.e., the reserve).

One basic treaty right for all Status Indians is the right to
education. Our treaty rights came about in exchange for our
agreement to share our lands. It was agreed that all First
Nations people would be entitled to these rights, which in many
treaties were granted “for as long as the sun shines and the
rivers flow.” Despite these assurances, the federal government
has not always upheld their end of the treaty agreements, and
many First Nations, including our people, have been forced to
fight for these rights through the courts (the legal system). We
successfully argued in court for the Collins Treaty, and in 1999,
we received compensation from that treaty.

After a lengthy court process in the 1990s and early 2000s,
efforts were made to address compensation of agreements
that were never fulfilled in the Williams Treaties. In 2018, the
WORDS TO KNOW First Nations and governments of Canada and Ontario arrived
settlement: an arrangement to at a negotiated settlement of the Williams Treaties (see The
end conflict
Williams Treaties: A Chronology of Events on page 70 of the
Resources section).

Treaty rights and how they are interpreted are an ongoing
concern for our First Nation. Ensuring that both parties honour
the spirit and intent of the treaties, making sure that treaty
agreements are fit to modern times, and ensuring that our right
to our traditional lands is not taken away are some of the major
issues in present-day treaty negotiations.

56 Chippewas of Rama First Nation

ogemawahj_community_book5.indd 56 2019-03-14 8:12 AM