The Congress of Aboriginal Peoples (CAP) is the sole national representative organization whose affiliates are open to over 800,000 off-reserve Indian, Inuit, and Metis people. CAP's constituency not only stretches across Canada from sea to sea to sea, but consists of a wide variety of Aboriginal peoples with very different historical backgrounds, and current environments. Most of these peoples share common problems in terms of exclusion from policies and programs for other Aboriginal peoples. As a result of their varying histories and circumstances, however, several of these peoples have different priorities in terms of achieving a solution to those common problems. These priorities provide one useful way by which CAP's constituency can be identified. They can be described in terms of:

1. -the Indian Act system and its consequences; particularly for those who are excluded from registration, band membership, residency on reserve, or related programs and benefits and want to address those concerns.

2. -the constituency's Aboriginal and/or treaty rights; particularly for those who live in comprehensive claims areas, those who have been excluded from treaty benefits, or who are pursung modern treaty as a vehicle for addressing their rights.

3. -the population's socio-demographics; particularly for those who are seeking economic parity or equity of access to policies, programs and services designed to serve the Aboriginal population; and,

4. -the simplicity or complexity of the Tribal/Nationality identities within regional organizations; particularly for those organizations whose membership maintains tribal affiliations, or who includes different groups who are associated with different tribal groupings.

Each approach carries with it implications for the relations between CAP and the federal government, and each is valid in its own context.

To Next Page The Indian Act System and The Forgotten People

Kevin Daniels

Interim National Chief

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