The Innu of Davis Inlet in Labrador have refused to register as Indians under the Indian Act in order to get benefits from federal programs. They see registration as repugnant.
“The Indian Act is an outdated, colonialist act that treats aboriginal people as children,”
Innu leader Peter Penashue said in a letter to the Indian Affairs Minister before the federal election. The Innu say they don’t want to be dealt with as wards of the state but as a people. Since 1949, Newfoundland and the federal government have shared jurisdiction over the affairs of native people in Labrador.
This, the Innu claim, has led to a situation in which neither level of government fulfill their obligations. The lack of government assistance has resulted in years of community-wide solvent abuse, unemployment and despair.
