Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami (Inuktitut syllabics: , meaning "Inuit are united in Canada"), previously known as the Inuit Tapirisat of Canada (Eskimo Brotherhood of Canada), is a nonprofit organization in Canada that represents over 65,000 Inuit across Inuit Nunangat and the rest of Canada.Canada's Indigenous suicide crisis, Thelancet.com Their mission is to "serve as a national voice protecting and advancing the rights and interests of Inuit in Canada."
Founded in 1971 by Inuit leaders, the organization has gone on to accomplish various Inuit priorities such as assisting in the negotiation of land claims, representing the voice of Inuit and their culture by using television, taking legal action against those who have violated their rights, and creating a programme to improve education for Inuit children. The ITK has sought to attain its goals either in cooperation with various levels of government or in opposition. Altogether, the ITK looks to advocate on the behalf of Inuit in Canada. The contributions of the ITK led to the creation of Nunavut.
History
Background Before European contact, the Inuit would choose leaders based on their survival skills with this role usually falling to the oldest male, but decisions were generally made via a group consensus. As interest in Canada's north increased there came further development. This development led to an increase of non-Inuit in northern Canada. These southern Canadians occupied the federal and territorial civil services along with the main industries present in the north. These positions required a western education which favoured the southern Canadians over the Inuit. As more and more southern Canadians came north they demanded consumer goods which made Inuit knowledge and survival skills less needed for the survival of southern Canadians in the north. This contributed to an inequality between the Inuit and non-Inuit, both socially and economically, in the north.
By the 1960s, there was a push to incorporate the Inuit into the political system and civil service. Such examples include the Government of the Northwest Territories, regional councils, and town/hamlet councils. A particular strong example of this was the Baffin Regional Council which was primarily administered by Inuit. Despite these efforts, the Inuit had concerns over a lack of autonomy, assimilative policies, and growing restrictions on traditional lands. In 1969, the White Paper was introduced which sought to terminate aboriginal status under the Indian Act and assimilate indigenous peoples. Based on these concerns and events the will for an Inuit political organization grew.
Concerns, such as the lack of Inuit autonomy, were shared by the Indian-Eskimo Association (IEA). The IEA were a group of southern Canadian educators, church leaders, and civil servants who advocated and promoted issues related to First Nations and Inuit. The IEA worked towards enabling indigenous peoples to advocate for their own goals. Using the IEA's public support and funding they helped facilitate the founding of an Inuit organization: the Inuit Tapirisat of Canada (ITC). In 1970, the IEA sponsored a meeting in Coppermine (now Kugluktuk) for the Inuit from across Canada's Arctic to talk of matters of mutual concern. From this meeting a telegram was created and sent to then Prime Minister Trudeau asking for the recognition of indigenous land rights in the north. This was this first instance of such a collective message being sent to the Federal government by the Inuit.
Foundation Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, then known as the Inuit Tapirisat of Canada (ITC), was founded in 1971 by seven Inuit community leaders, who were attending an IEA meeting in Toronto. The leaders attending this first meeting were Noah Qumak, Jacob Oweetaluktuk, Celestino Makpah, Josiah Kadlusiak, Ipeele KìLabuk, Tagak Curley, and Mary Cousins. The decision to form a national Inuit organization was made to lobby the Government of Canada through a united voice regarding the "status of land and resource ownership in Inuit Nunangat" and to increase their autonomy. As potential projects, such as the Mackenzie Valley Pipeline and the James Bay Project, began to threaten the Inuit Nunangat, leaders decided to take action. Inuit Nunangat is currently made up of four regions: the Inuvialuit Settlement Region (northern Northwest Territories and Yukon), Nunavut, Nunavik (northern Quebec) and Nunatsiavut (northern Labrador). Inuit culture has remained resilient across Inuit Nunangat, as an estimate of 60% of the population continue to speak Inuktut (the collective name for several Inuit languages and dialects), and access traditional foods through the hunting of marine mammals and caribou. ITK represents 51 communities and the 65,000 Inuit residing in Inuit Nunangat. The creation of political organizations such as the ITK and Committee for Original Peoples' Entitlement (COPE), led to the creation of 5 more organizations to represent Inuit. These organizations include the Northern Quebec Inuit Association (NQIA), which was founded in 1971; the Labrador Inuit Association (LIA), which was founded in 1973; the Kitikmeot Inuit Association, the Keewatin (now Kivalliq) Inuit Association, and the Baffin Regional (now Qikiqtani) Inuit Association all founded in the mid-1970s.
Later that year in Ottawa, Ontario the first conference was held and ITK has been headquartered out of Ottawa since 1972.
In 2001, the Inuit Tapirisat of Canada ("Inuit will be united") changed its name to Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, meaning "Inuit are united in Canada". The name was changed after the signing of the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement-in-Principle (AIP). The Government of Canada and Labrador Inuit Association gathered to sign a land claims agreement, which reinforced Inuit title to their land and increased their self-sufficiency in their communities.
Tagak Curley Tagak Curley, born in 1944 in Southampton Island, Nunavut, is an Inuk politician and advocate of Inuit rights. Curley was a founding member of ITK and the first president. He was brought up in a traditional Inuit lifestyle, having strong connections to the land and culture. Before he took on the role of ITK president, he worked careers that dealt first hand with issues surrounding development and housing in Inuit communities. From 1966 to 1970, he worked with the Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada (formerly known as the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development) as a development officer. After that, he became a settlement manager in Naujaat (then called Repulse Bay) for a year. Curley successfully acted as president for four years, accomplished a lot, most notably in leading the movement to replace the term Eskimo with Inuit in all official Canadian documents. He then went on to pursue a legislative career and in 1979, Curley ran in the federal election as a Liberal candidate but was defeated by Peter Ittinuar.
Creation of the Inuit Committee on National Issues In 1979 the ITC created the Inuit Committee on National Issues (ICNI) in order to represent their views regarding the constitution and other issues policy issues. The ICNI was a part of a larger Aboriginal Rights Coalition. In 1981, this coalition successfully lobbied the Federal–Provincial Conference of First Ministers on the Constitution to reinstate Section 35 into the Constitution after it was previously removed. Section 35 entrenches indigenous and treaty rights into the constitution. At the 1983 Federal–Provincial Conference of First Ministers on Aboriginal Constitutional Matters it was agreed to hold three more subsequent First Ministers' meetings to discuss aboriginal constitutional matters. The ICNI, as a part of the Aboriginal Rights Coalition, was present at these subsequent meetings. The ICNI was disbanded after these meetings after its funding expired.
The creation of Nunavut
As early as 1976, the ITC submitted its first Inuit land claims proposal. This first proposal was not only a land claims but also called for the creation of a new territory, effectively calling for the settlement of land claims and political development simultaneously. This proposal was later rejected due to complexity. A further proposal was set-up by the NWT Inuit Land Claims Commission (ILCC) in 1977. This proposal was halted due to political deadlock which ultimately led to the dissolution of the ILCC. In 1979, the Nunavut Land Claims Project (NLCP) continued the land claims process. That same year's ITC meeting, members agreed to the Political Development in Nunavut. This was a land claims proposal that blended elements of previous claims. In 1982, the Tunngavik Federation of Nunavut (TFN) was formed in order to take over land claims negotiations from the NLCP. In 1990, an agreement-in-principle was reached which eventually led to the 1993 ratification of the agreement via the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement and the Nunavut Act (which created the territory of Nunavut). The TFN was superseded by the Nunavut Tunngavik Incorporated (NTI). The NTI, along with the Nunavut Implementation Commission, worked to implement this new land claim before the actual creation of Nunavut in 1999. The creation of Nunavut Land Claims Agreement is the largest and most all-encompassing land claims and self-determination agreement in Canadian history.
Goals The goals of ITK have changed over the years as they have continued to make progress in defending Inuit rights. In the beginning the organizations main focus was on the preservation of Inuit land, throughout the 1970s and 1980s Inuit have negotiated four land claim agreements with the federal government. In 1975, the James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement and Complementary Agreements (JBNQA) was reached; in 1984 the Inuvialuit Final Agreement was reached; in 1993 the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement was settled; and finally in 2003 the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement was settled. Although the importance of land claims remains an objective for ITK they have also shifted their focus on more social issues surrounding Inuit. Those include preserving culture heritage and Inuit languages and raising awareness concerning education, healthcare, environment, climate change and economic development. The creation of Inuit organization, such as the ITK, have aided in forming a partnership with the Government of Canada to discuss domestic and international issues.
Activities Hamlet of Baker Lake v. Minister of Indian Affairs In 1979, the ITC was seeking an injunction to stop the mineral exploration at Baker Lake, Northwest Territories (now in Nunavut). The plaintiffs, Baker Lake Hunters and Trappers Association, the ITC and the 112 Inuit who lived and hunted in Baker Lake at the time, took the Canadian federal government to court in Hamlet of Baker Lake v. Minister of Indian Affairs. The case raised questions concerning aboriginal rights, more specifically their right to hunt caribou. The plaintiffs sought to stop the mining activities happening in the area and for a declaration to be made that Baker Lake was subject to an Inuit aboriginal title to hunt and fish. The case concluded by Judge Pat Mahoney of the Federal Court of Canada recognized the existence of Aboriginal Title in Nunavut.
Inukshuk Project