Brian Giesbrecht: Why the Indian Act Is Indeed a Racist Anachronism
Commentary
Pierre Poilievre recently made headlines when he criticized the Indian Act, calling it racist and archaic. In fact, his remarks were not even controversial, because many indigenous leaders have said the same thing for more than half a century.
The Indian Act is indeed a racist anachronism that should have been consigned to the rubbish bin decades ago. No one defends it.
In fact, indigenous chiefs called for the abolition of the act decades ago. This was in the 1960s. The chiefs said it was shameful that a country that called itself enlightened and progressive could live with itself, while it had an apartheid system that treated indigenous people like children. They said it kept them in a ghetto….