Yes, it is, absolutely. I think it is hard to understand.
However, this is where I come back to what I initially said. If we're looking at the history of indigenous veterans, it is inextricably linked to the treatment by the government of indigenous people overall. This is just one element of that treatment. When I mentioned in my talk that initially in the First World War, indigenous people were dissuaded from enlisting, eventually that policy was reversed, in part because military service was seen as a tool of assimilation. This was seen as a way to get indigenous people to integrate into mainstream society, to enfranchise, to give up their treaty rights and their status. This is all part of the history of the government and the Crown's approach to indigenous people. This is just a small part of colonialism: colonialism in the British Crown, and then Canada's approach towards indigenous people. However, it's hard to wrap your mind around, for sure.