Thank you, everyone. I'm a little frazzled because I wasn't supposed to be speaking today. My colleague Rosalind was supposed to be here. This is her story that she's asked me to read, so I'll do my very best to honour her words.
I will start by acknowledging that we're on the traditional territory of the Anishinabe Algonquin nation.
Good morning, honourable delegate members and dignitaries. My name is Beverly Asmann. I am a member of the Michel Callihoo Nation Society. I was honoured to testify at the Senate on behalf of this bill back in October. I'm now going to read Rosalind's story.
She says, “I am the great-great-granddaughter of Michel Callihoo, who signed Treaty 6 by way of an adhesion in 1878.
“I am here as a director of the Michel Callihoo Nation Society, the representative group that has been in exploratory discussions with Canada since 2022. For my part, I have spent the last 44 years advocating justice for Michel descendants, first visiting Ottawa in 1982 to research our story in the archives. Some of our other directors have similarly spent decades seeking reconciliation for the Michel Band descendants.
“Joining me today at the witness table is Troy Chalifoux of Maurice Law legal team. In attendance with me is Linda Buffalo.”
We're missing another member who's supposed to be here as well.
Rosalind's text says, “Before I continue, I wish to acknowledge and thank directors Brandy Callihoo and Beverly Asmann, who testified before the Standing Senate Committee on Indigenous Peoples in October. Their voices helped carry the Michel story forward, and I am honoured to continue that advocacy here today before the House of Commons.
“Thank you for inviting me to provide testimony before you. I am here on behalf of all the descendants of the former Michel Band number 472 to share our common story and to impress upon this committee the urgent need for Bill S-2 to pass without further delay.
“First and foremost, we are signatories to Treaty 6, a sacred covenant that was to last as long as the sun shines, the rivers flow and the grass grows.
“Until 1958, we were known as Michel Band 472, with Indian Reserve 132, and we were a recognized band under the Indian Act. Today, our descendants represent the largest group who would become eligible for status with the passage of Bill S-2. Indigenous Services Canada has estimated that approximately 3,500 individuals would be newly eligible for registration under this bill overall, and the Michel descendants represent the largest group among them. This bill represents another vital step by Canada to address the long-standing inequities caused by enfranchisement.
“I have been advised by our legal counsel that this point is critically important, so please allow me to explain it plainly: The Michel descendants cannot rely on the Nicholas court decision to have our status reinstated. The Nicholas decision, which comes into effect on April 30, specifically excludes individuals who were members of a band that was enfranchised under section 112 of the Indian Act, and that is us. We are the only band in Canadian history to be collectively enfranchised under that provision. While other victims of enfranchisement may find their remedy through the Nicholas case, we will not. Bill S-2 is our only hope.
“To understand why we find ourselves in this position, you need to know a little about our history.
“The Michel Band members are the largest group in Canada to have suffered the discriminatory consequences of enfranchisement. Every member of the Michel Band, with the exception of four women who were deemed ‘mentally incompetent’ under the law of that time, lost their status as a result of enfranchisement, either as individuals in 1928 or as a whole band in 1958.
“Prior to the 1958 band enfranchisement, section 111 of the Indian Act required a majority vote for voluntary enfranchisement. When this proved unattainable, the government created section 112 to accommodate the forced enfranchisement of our band as a whole. We were the test case, and it worked so devastatingly well that no other band was ever subjected to this provision.
“The Michel Band story is one of continued atrocities and has been hidden in the darkness of Canadian history for far too long. While there is not enough time to share the full story today, I have provided a brief history along with my testimony, but let me share with you the roots of our people so you understand what was taken from us.
“Our ancestors—the Cree and the Iroquois—have deep roots in this land. Since time immemorial, the Cree lived in the northern territory around what is now Edmonton. The Iroquois came west with the fur trade, and both communities became the ancestors of the Michel Band.
“My paternal ancestors were Iroquois who intermarried with the Cree. While my great-great-great grandfather Louis settled in Jasper, his son Michel, along with his followers, signed the treaty in 1878.
“Michel chose Indian Reserve 132 on the banks of the Sturgeon River, and according to the DIA surveyor, it was one of the best pieces of land in western Canada. This is perhaps the reason European settlers began a letter campaign in the early 1900s seeking to buy the land—and provoked the subsequent illegal land surrenders that stripped us of half our reserve.
“What happened next was a systematic dismantling of our community, piece by piece.”