This year, as our annual Remembrance ceremony takes place on National Indigenous Veterans Day, it seems appropriate to reflect on the contributions of Indigenous veterans like Private George McLean. A member of the Head of the Lake Band from BC’s interior, Pvt McLean fought for Canada during the famous battle of Vimy Ridge, in April 1917, earning the Distinguished Conduct Medal for single-handedly capturing more than a dozen enemy soldiers.
His story was not unique. In fact, an estimated 4,000 Indigenous veterans served Canada during the First World War. Most were volunteers— as those with “status” under the Indian Act had been exempted from conscription. And they were following in the footsteps of others who had fought for Canada in previous wars. Indigenous soldiers had served fifteen years earlier, in the Anglo-Boer war in South Africa. And eighty years before that, Britain had relied on Indigenous allies to help repel multiple American invasions of Canada during the War of 1812.
Like others, Indigenous people enlisted for a multitude of reasons: some were driven by patriotism or idealism; while others saw serving as an adventure, or as a means to escape poverty or build a better life. Some, too, hoped their service would guarantee greater rights and recognition for their communities.
But Canada didn’t make it easy. Similar to Black and Chinese Canadians, would-be Indigenous volunteers had to overcome pervasive racism, and a perception that this was “white man’s war”. They also faced an added barrier: Canada’s longstanding assimilation policy. Some were forced to choose between enlisting or keeping their status. Others were simply stripped of it without their knowledge or consent. For many, the loss of status meant surrendering their treaty rights as well.
Still they volunteered. And their impact was significant. Thousands went on to serve with distinction during the Second World War, in the Korean conflict of 1950-53, and later with UN peacekeeping missions all over the world, as well as in Afghanistan from 2001-2014. In all, Veterans Affairs Canada estimates that at least 12,000 Indigenous peoples served in the Canadian military during the major conflicts of twentieth century. And today, Indigenous people continue to be well represented, with StatsCanada estimating that 5% of current servicemembers identify as Indigenous.
Unfortunately, for much of the twentieth century, Indigenous veterans returned home to a country that still treated them as less than second-class citizens. Residential schooling was made mandatory for their children, and it became illegal to hire lawyers to fight for their rights. Once again, they were subject to the whims of their local Indian Agents, not to mention the faceless bureaucrats in far-away Ottawa. After the Second World War, many were denied access to government programmes offered to their non-Indigenous comrades. Or they were given a stark choice: forfeit their status and treaty rights if they wanted these benefits. Others found that valuable reserve lands had been seized and sold off in their absence. Still others struggled to re-integrate in the absence of adequate support.
Many Indigenous veterans also continued to face widespread racism in their everyday lives. Dick Patrick of the Saik'uz First Nation from the BC interior was awarded the Military Medal for defending a bridge in Belgium after D-Day but was refused service at a restaurant in Vanderhoof, BC, in 1946. Undaunted, he repeatedly returned to assert his rights, despite being taken to the Oakalla prison eleven times. Ultimately, many Indigenous veterans must have chafed at the hypocrisy of a country that would accept their sacrifices, yet deny them the benefits of full citizenship.
But this did not stop them from advocating for change. Famed sniper Francis Pegahmagabow, an Anishinaabe from Northern Ontario, lobbied various levels of government for better treatment for his people. His fellow WWI veteran Lieutenant Fred Loft (Onondeyoh) of the Kanyen'kehà:ka (Mohawk) of Six Nations helped to found the League of Indians of Canada, a precursor to the modern Assembly of First Nations.
Thanks to efforts like these, and growing recognition of Indigenous wartime contributions, improvements eventually occurred. In 1951, many of the most restrictive prohibitions of the Indian Act were repealed. And in 1960, all Indigenous peoples finally gained the right to vote. Twenty two years later, their unique rights would finally be enshrined in the new Canadian constitution.
These collective experiences reveal much about the complicated relationship Canada has had historically with the Indigenous people who share this land. These anecdotes also remind us that Indigenous veterans have bravely served this country for generations, and, yet, have also had to endure a long and troublesome history of discrimination and inequality.
Let’s take a moment this year to remember all of the veterans -- Indigenous and non-Indigenous alike -- who helped bring us to the present moment. Let’s be inspired by their example, and honour them by continuing to move forward together, in a good way, to create a better Canada.
