Bold textThe 1969 White Paper was a Canadian poliycy document (white paper) in which the then Minister of Indian Affairs, Jean Chrétien, proposed the abolition of the Indian Act of Canada, the rejection of land claims, and the assimilation of First Nations people into the Canadian population with the status of other ethnic minorities rather than a distinct group.

A response by Harold Cardinal and the Indian Chiefs of Alberta (entitled "Citizens Plus" but commonly known as the "Red Paper") explained the widespread opposition to the paper from Status Indians in Canada. Prime Minister Trudeau and the Liberals began to back away from the White Paper, particularly after the Calder case decision in 1973.^[1]

References

External links

• 1969 White Paper original text, Statement of the Government of Canada on Indian Policy, 1969
• Aboriginal People: History of Discriminatory Laws, Wendy Moss, Elaine Gardner-O'Toole, Law and Government Division, Last revised, November 1991