C2. Constitutional/Charter Rights
Specific Expectations
C2.1
assess the significance of section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982, including its ability to guarantee Aboriginal rights and accommodate the needs of diverse First Nations, Métis, and Inuit individuals and communities
- How did the enactment of section 35 bring about fundamental changes in how Canada’s legal system addresses Aboriginal and treaty rights?
- What does it mean to Indigenous peoples to have Aboriginal rights entrenched in the constitution?
- Do you think that the Constitution Act, 1982 provides equal recognition for First Nations, Métis, and Inuit? Why, or why not?
- How might the clause that states that ‘the existing aboriginal and treaty rights of the aboriginal peoples of Canada are hereby recognized and affirmed’ affect the rights of future generations of Indigenous peoples in Canada?
- What means do Métis presently have to bring claims relating to section 35 rights?
C2.2
identify some of the rights and freedoms protected by the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms (the Charter) (e.g., the “fundamental freedoms”, democratic rights, mobility rights, legal rights, equality rights, language rights, minority language education rights), and explain their significance for First Nations, Métis, and Inuit individuals and communities
- What are some ways in which the general rights and freedoms guaranteed by the Charter have affected Indigenous peoples in Canada?
- How might other Charter rights and freedoms compete with Aboriginal rights?
- What implications has the Charter clause referring to gender equality had for Indigenous peoples?
- Why was section 25 added to the Charter? What implications does that section have for Indigenous self-governance?
- How could the Charter be used as a vehicle for educational reform that would benefit First Nations, Métis, and Inuit individuals and communities?
- What implications has the Charter’s equality rights clause had on government funding and financial support for First Nations, Métis, and Inuit communities?
C2.3
explain the role of the judiciary in interpreting and enforcing the Charter and other constitutional provisions in decisions that have affected First Nations, Métis, and/or Inuit individuals and communities in Canada (e.g., with reference to Derrickson v. Derrickson, 1986; R. v. Sparrow, 1990; R. v. Marshall, 1999; McIvor v. Canada, 2009; Daniels v. Canada, 2016)
- What role did the Charter play in the McIvor decision? What impact did this decision have on First Nations communities with respect to their membership? How has this ruling affected the lives of many First Nations women and their children? What actions did the government take with respect to this ruling?
- How has the Daniels decision affected the relationship between the Crown and Métis?
