Questions About Aboriginal Peoples

In our Lecture on Thursday 24th with Dr. Don Julien  was one of the best lecture that I have attended.  


Dr Don Julien  was "born and raised in the Millbrook Mi'kmaw Community, Truro, NS, Don Julien has worked throughout his life toward a better future for the Mi'kmaw people. Following high school completion, Don spent five years with the Canadian Armed Forces, which included a six-month tour of duty in Cyprus with the United Nations. To this day, he advocates great respect for the military and is a member of the Indian War Veterans Association."(CMM, 2007)


If you want more go to:
http://www.cmmns.com/DonJulien.php


We were supposed to asked questions related to Mi'kmaw people. And he answered to some of the question but not all of them due to time limit he was compelled to put an end to the lecture (what a pity!)
It was amazing how he used the tools to answer to those questions. By saying tools I mean sense of humour, metaphors and so on so forth.


Here are some examples of those questions that were asked that day.


What are treaty rights?


                   "First Nations signed treaties with various British and Canadian governments before and after Confederation in 1867. Treaty rights are collective rights that provide for payments to individual Treaty Indians. The payments depend on the precise terms and conditions of the treaty signed by her or his First Nation."


What are claims? 


There are two claims: comprehensive and specific claims. 


                 "Comprehensive claims are based on the recognition that there are continuing Aboriginal rights to lands and natural resources. These kinds of claims arise in those parts of Canada where Aboriginal title has not been dealt with by treaty or other legal means. The claims are called “comprehensive” because of their wide scope. They include such things as land title, fishing and trapping rights, and financial compensation."
                 "Specific claims arise when there is an outstanding historical grievance between a First Nation and the Crown that relates to an unfulfilled obligation of a treaty or another agreement, or a breach of statutory responsibilities by the Crown. "


I do not know if I gave here the right answer but this is what I understood from what he told us.