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For Future Generations
Reconciling Gitxsan and Canadian Law
“. . . For Future Generations exemplifies Dr. Mills’ ongoing commitment to reconciliation and her motivation to provide a model for collaborative land use planning and management between the Crown and Aboriginal people.”
-Don Ryan, Hanamuxw, from the foreword
Relying extensively on the court transcripts from Delgam’Uukw v. British Columbia, her own research, and material provided by the Gitxsan Hereditary Chiefs’ office, Dawn Mills paints a compelling picture of the Gitxsan relationship to the land and their community, and their court battle all the way to Canada’s Supreme Court to prove their Aboriginal right to land and self-government. Contrary to the position taken by many legal scholars, Mills argues that the trial judgment in the Delgam’Uukw decision opened up new opportunities for First Nations people to present evidence based on oral traditions that had not been previously accepted by the courts.
While the book focuses on the judgments rendered in the Gitxsan’s struggle in the courts and an analysis of the judgments and strategies utilized, it is more than a law book. Written to appeal to a wide audience, Dawn Mills passionately shows how reconciliation can be achieved between Canada’s First Nations and the various levels of government. The lessons to be learned from this book can be applied equally to all Indigenous communities in Canada and elsewhere.
Foreword / Don Ryan
Introduction
Gitxsan Glossary
1. Be Gentle on the Newcomers
2. Since the Coming of the Lixs giigyet
The Arrival of the Lixs giigyet: The Regional Economy 1795 - 1910
Tensions between the Lixs giigyet and the Gitxsan: 1871 - 1884
The Land Question
The Establishment of the Reserve Commission in 1875
Reserve Allocations: 1891 - 1898
The Stewart-Vowell Commission
3. The Trials of the Gitxsan
Delgam’Uukw v. Attorney General of British Columbia
After 1927: Background to the 1987 Trial
The Calder Case
The British Columbia Court of Appeal Decision, 1993
Delgam’Uukw v. British Columbia, 1997
4. Gitxsan Property, Ownership, and Governance
Wilp Property and Ownership
The Sigidim haanak’a and Governance Principles
Li’ligit
5. Gitxsan Reconciliation
Past Usage of the Crown
Gitxsan Acts of Reconciliation
The Gitxsan Treaty Model
Governance
Conclusion
Notes
Bibliography
Index