Mohawk status up to us: ottawa

Residence debate pits band against Ottawa

MONTREAL • Who is a Mohawk?

The answer could set the Mohawk Council of Kahnawake on a collision course with the federal government amid renewed debate over who can live on the reserve just south of Montreal.

Kahnawake’s band council claims sole authority over determining membership in the community. But now, in response to a group challenging the reserve’s controversial “Marry out, get out” membership law, the federal government says it has final say over who can legally call themselves a Kahnawake Mohawk.

“The department considers the band list maintained by the (federal government) to be the official band list for the Mohawks of Kahnawake,” wrote Nathalie Nepton, an Indian Registrar with Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada.

The letter, obtained by the Montreal Gazette, adds that Kahnawake’s band council never provided the government “notice of its intent to assume control of its membership” and has, by default, ceded control of the matter to Ottawa.

Band lists, which document who is a member of the Kahnawake First Nation — a designation that gives the right to live on Mohawk land, vote in local elections and receive services from the band council — are maintained by both the band council and federal government.

Ottawa asserted the authority of its list in the June 17 letter, responding to a membership question raised by a Kahnawake resident. This is the latest development in a sometimes ugly debate over a controversial 1981 membership law adopted by the band council.

Under the law, a person forfeits their rights as a Mohawk if they marry a non-native. Though it’s been in place for decades, there are still dozens of bi-racial families living among the 8,000 people of Kahnawake and there’s mounting pressure for them to leave. Some residents have protested outside the homes of bi-racial couples, while a few have spray-painted hateful messages on their property.

Kahnawake Grand Chief Joe Norton has condemned these vigilante tactics and vowed

Seven residents filed a complaint

to put an end to them. At the same time, he says non-aboriginals have no place living on Mohawk land.

Previous attempts to force so-called mixed couples off the reserve yielded mixed results. While some couples left of their own volition, outside courts would overturn any evictions carried out under the 1981 law.

Last week, seven residents filed a complaint with Canada’s Human Rights Commission. Meanwhile, 16 plaintiffs have filed suit against the band council in hopes of having the law thrown out. They contend it violates sections of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

The council’s defence of the membership law has been two-fold: First, the influx of new members would strain the reserve’s already limited resources. And if non-natives are allowed to settle Kahnawake, there’s a fear the Mohawks will one day disappear.