Rights of Indigenous Peoples in Canada Essay Example

Indigenous peoples have roamed and owned these lands for more than 12,000 years, and this land has been rightfully theirs all along. However, as of lately the government has been trying to take that away from them. They have been trying to develop these lands for its economic assets, but for indigenous peoples, their land is not about money, it is about surviving, and keeping their cultures and traditions alive in their hearts. The government is a very powerful and important organization and has recently been trying to build and on develop indigenous lands, which should come to an end due to the fact that these lands hold great importance to the lives of the indigenous peoples of that land, they are filled to the brim with history, and since people and animals are still living in these areas peacefully, the destruction, and development of this land will disrupt the lives of others. 

To begin, Indigenous owned land holds great importance to the lives of people living there. Unlike the government, land for the First Nations, Inuit and Metis is much more than an economic asset, meaning for them, they do not build on their land for money, they build on their land to survive. Indigenous land provides nourishment and food for current and future generations due to the rich and fertile soil that their land includes. This land is connected to their spiritual beliefs, their traditional knowledge, languages, cultural practices and oral traditions that have been built up over time are all connected to the land, and if that connection is is taken away, that connection that keeps the indigenous cultures and traditions alive and strong in their hearts, the spiritual well-being of the First Nation’s, Inuit and Metis could be at stake. Due to the fact that indigenous peoples land is much more than just a method to make money, the government should not be building and developing these precious lands that clearly hold a huge importance to the lives of First Nations living there.  

Not only does this land hold a great importance to the lives of Indigenous peoples for many reasons, but this land is filled with history that took place decades and even centuries ago, and allowing the government to build and develop their land is similar to allowing the government to build over history. Although a good amount of that history is negative, such as the European settlers forcing indigenous children into residential schools, and new Canadain settlers purposely trying to transmit different diseases on these indigenous people, it is something that needs to be recognized and acknowledged, so that we as Canadians can start to reconcile, and show these people some sympathy. Many indigenous peoples have gone through a lot in the past, so acknowledging this and allowing them to celebrate and practice their beliefs and cultures can give them a sense of pride in being indigeous, which is why we need to preserve these lands, and allow the indigenous cultures, languages, spirituality, and traditions to continue throughout Canadian history.       

Indigenous owned land not only holds important history that needs to be remembered, but developing, and building on their land would cause a lot of havoc due to the fact that developing on this land will cause ruckus that will disturb the lives of the indigenous peoples living there. Not to mention all of the animals that will be driven out of their natural habitat. This is a huge factor relating to this because one of the Indigenous beliefs is that people should live in harmony with the natural world, and all it contains, and developing on land which people and animals still live on is not living in harmony with nature, and all that surrounds it. Land is incredibly important to the Native Americans living there, for many reasons, and taking this land is wrong as we know it, which is why we as Canadians can stand up and make a difference, so that the innocent Indigenous lives don't have to go through any more trauma then they already have, and so that their future here in Canada, here on their land, can be better for them, and better for everyone! 

As mentioned before, the indigenous peoples lands are more of an economic asset to the government, and although to indigenous people, their land is not about money, building and developing these lands can help the Canadian economy. Trying to fix our country's economy to how it was before this global pandemic is a major priority for our government, and developing these lands would be a huge help. The government's job is to put us first, and think about what would be best for the citizens of Canada and our country, and the positives that developing indigenous lands will have on our country outweighs the negatives that will occur to indigenous peoples if the government did decide to go on with this plan. However, that does not change the fact that this was Indigenous peoples land first, and that if the government were to start taking their land, we would be repeating history, and what happened when European settlers started coming to Canada and slowly pushing the First Nations, Inuit and Metis off of their land would be happening again, which is why even though there may be a few positives to developing their land, it would still be the wrong thing to do.  

In the end, we as Canadians need to help stop the government from building on indigenous peoples land so that we can help keep their cultures and traditions strong, keep the history that took place on their land safe, and stop the disruption that the development of the land will cause to everyone and everything on that land . Land is important for many, and to many people, Indigenous or not. This land is filled with history, and building in these areas will disrupt the lives of Indigenous peoples and wildlife, which are just some of the reasons why the government should not be building in these areas at all. The past is the past, and there is nothing we can do to change what happened to the indigenous peoples of our land, but what we can do is truly start to reconcile, and make the future better for everyone, including the Indigenous peoples native to this land.