Pass system (Canadian history)

The pass system was an informal Canadian administrative policy, never codified in the Indian Act or enacted as law, which intended to keep First Nations in Canada separated from settlers and confined to Indian reserves, unless they had been issued a special travel permit, called a pass.[1] It was introduced in 1885, at the time of the North-West Rebellion, and remained in force for 60 years. Any First Nation person caught outside their reservation without a pass issued by an Indian agent was returned to their reservation or incarcerated.[2]

Objections to the policy were raised by the North-West Mounted Police in 1893, and its commissioner William Herchmer ordered the officers to cease returning First Nations individuals to reserves.[2] He was overruled by the federal Indian Affairs commissioner Hayter Reed.[2]

The policy is the subject of a 2015 documentary film, The Pass System.[3]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Sarah Carter Aboriginal People and Colonizers of Western Canada to 1900 1999 0802079954 "The pass system was never a law; it was never codified in the Indian Act, and it can only be described as a 'policy.' From the time of the earliest discussions about such a system, there was recognition among officials that it ran directly counter to the treaties and had no validity in law. Official rationales advanced for maintaining the system after 1885 were that Indians had to be kept separate from the rest of society for their own good, as contact tended to be injurious to them."
  2. 1 2 3 Cram, Stephanie (2016-02-19). "Dark history of Canada's First Nations pass system uncovered in documentary". CBC News. Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 2016-02-20.
  3. ↑ Benjoe, Kerry (November 26, 2015). "First Nation reserves prior to 1960s were 'open-air prisons,' says Saskatoon filmmaker behind The Pass System". Leader-Post. Postmedia Network. Retrieved 13 December 2015.
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