White Paper & Pass System
Analyzing the historical measures of surveillance and the proposed policy shifts aimed at total cultural assimilation.
1969 White Paper Policy
The 1969 White Paper on Indian Policy, proposed by the Trudeau government, called for an end to any special status for Indigenous peoples. Its primary aim was the rapid cultural assimilation of Indigenous people into mainstream Canadian society by repealing the Indian Act and dismantling federal responsibilities.
Called for an end to special legal status for Indigenous people
Aim: Quick cultural assimilation into mainstream Canada
Proposed repealing the Indian Act entirely
Sought to dismantle government management on reserve lands
Proposed the complete ending of all federal responsibilities for Indigenous people
The Pass System
Instituted during the 1885 Northwest Resistance, the Pass System was a temporary measure used to control and monitor Indigenous peoples, keeping them restricted to their reserves. Anyone absent without a pass from the Indian Agent was classified as a criminal.
Instituted during the events and years of the Northwest Resistance
Restricted Indigenous people to their specific reserves
Requirement to get permission from the Indian Agent to leave
Remained in use in Treaty 4, 5, and 7 areas until the mid-1930s
Officially removed from the Indian Act in 1951