Make housing a priority for First Nations post-Indian Act

Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew has suggested that the 1876 Indian Act is an anachronism of a bygone era. He is right.

An earlier challenge to the Indian Act came in the form of the 1969 White Paper. Drafted by two of Canada’s most respected thinkers, Pierre Trudeau and Jean Chrétien, it was the first clear call for abolishing the Indian Act.

Based on what they knew and had observed, these two pragmatic politicians concluded that the Indian Act was an impediment to the growth and the collective prosperity of First Nations and their individual members.

Our premier has reached the same conclusion.

A review of the Indian Act, as suggested by Kinew and supported by Prime Minister Mark Carney and some First Nations leaders, could consider many issues. One of the most urgent may be related to housing. More than half a century ago, the White Paper noted that Indigenous people often lacked, among other things, a decent place to call home.

In communities such as Pukatawagan in northern Manitoba, the federal government’s billion-dollar efforts have hardly made a dent in the on-reserve housing demand. That may be because the only solution available to First Nations people is to wait for more federal support.

Building more houses on-reserve — in the face of the movement of many Indigenous people to urban centres, especially youth looking for work and opportunity — is not going to solve the larger problem.

On-reserve Indigenous people cannot invest in a home like most Canadians. The Indian Act considers reserves to be Crown land, owned collectively for the well-being all First Nations members, thus prohibiting Indigenous people living on-reserve from owning their own land.

With no collateral to offer to lenders, First Nations people wishing to build or buy their own home cannot go to a bank and borrow money or get a mortgage, even if they have a good job.

In Canada, about 70 per cent of Canadians own their own home; almost 50 per cent of the wealth of non-Indigenous Canadians is a direct result of owning a home. First Nations families living on-reserve in housing provided by the First Nation cannot own a home or hope to build an asset based on ownership.

The current situation creates a dilemma. When a First Nations person is considering their housing options, they can wait until the federal government funds new on-reserve housing and chief and council decide they are entitled to a new home or they can try — without any assets or property to use as collateral and often without the money for a down payment — to arrange to buy a home off-reserve in a non-reserve community. Compounding the problem is the reluctance of First Nations to undertake local housing initiatives, preferring to wait on the federal government for solutions and funding.

Returning to the Pukatawagan example, housing initiatives that were started have been undercut when leadership changed. At one time, local leaders purchased tiny homes in an attempt to accommodate people on waiting lists, particularly single parents waiting to move into bigger units to accommodate their families.

When the administration changed, the already-purchased tiny homes were left in the community, unused, to deteriorate, presumably because they no longer fit the agenda.

In another effort to expand local housing options and generate some revenue for housing repairs, previous councils have tried to establish rental arrangements with homeowners. Another council attempted to create a local rent-to-own housing program geared towards local teachers. Council reasoned that the majority of local teachers, and many other young professionals earning a decent salary, wanted an option to rent or lease-to-own their own home.

Unfortunately, neither the rent-to-own program or the tiny homes initiatives were supported by the incoming chief and council. Unless First Nations try new approaches, solving the problem of getting and maintaining homes will continue to be a struggle.

As it stands, the federal government will continue to try to fund housing starts on-reserve, but cannot offer incentives or support to individual First Nations people who may want to consider owning their own homes, or provide the option of having housing support for individuals looking to live elsewhere, to find work or access health and education services.

Surely finding a way to make home ownership possible for Indigenous people should be a priority. The growing number of First Nations people choosing to live off-reserve, almost 50 per cent now, is telling. The recent decision of some First Nations to use their housing dollars to support the construction of apartment complexes in Winnipeg and larger urban centres is a recognition of the changing attitudes on-reserve.

It is time to allow Indigenous people housing options that consider their own best interests and those of their children.

Ralph Caribou is a former chief of the Mathias Colomb Band in Pukatawagan. Jerry Storie represented the area as the former MLA for Flin Flon.