Indian Register Facts for Kids

The Indian Register is an official list of people in Canada who are recognized by the government as status Indians or registered Indians under a law called the Indian Act. Being on this list means these individuals have certain rights and benefits that other First Nations people, Inuit, or Métis people do not have. These benefits can include living on Indian reserves, special hunting seasons, and being free from some federal and provincial taxes when they are on a reserve.

History of the Indian Register
Getting Indian Status
- Unfair Rules from the Past
- Proof of Status: The Status Card
See also

History of the Indian Register

Early Records (1851-1951)

Back in 1851, the governments in what is now Canada started keeping records of Indigenous people and groups who were supposed to receive benefits from treaties. For about 100 years, individual government agents, called Indian agents, kept separate lists for each Indigenous group.

The Modern Register (1951)

In 1951, the Indian Act was changed, and the modern Indian Register was created. All those many separate lists were combined into one big official list.

Making it Fairer (1985)

Later, in 1985, the Indian Act was changed again. The main goal was to give "status" back to people who had lost it because of unfair rules in the past. This change helped over 100,000 people and their children get their status back and be added to the register.

Getting Indian Status

The official list is managed by a government department called Indigenous Services Canada. Only one person, called the Indian Registrar, has the power to decide who can be added to the register.

Unfair Rules from the Past

For many years, some rules in the Indian Act were very unfair and caused people to lose their status. These rules were later changed because they were discriminatory. Here are some examples of why people used to lose their status:

If a woman who had status married a man who was not registered under the Indian Act.
If a person with status chose to vote in federal elections before 1960. At that time, they had to give up their status to vote.
If a person's mother and their father's mother were not registered under the Indian Act. These people would lose their status when they turned 21.
If a child was born to a mother with status but a father without status, and their parents were not married.

Proof of Status: The Status Card

Since 1956, the Canadian government has given out a special identity document to people who are registered under the Indian Act. This document is often called a "status card." It has been used by First Nations people to cross the border between Canada and the United States under the Jay Treaty.

Indian Register facts for kids

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