May 2018 - Treaties and the Treaty Relationship

The Canada’s History Treaties issue features guest editor Treaty Commissioner Loretta Ross from the Treaty Relations Commission of Manitoba. Contributing writers, from throughout Canada, have shared their insights and knowledge on a wide variety of aspects of Treaty history and the Treaty Relationship.

We approached the magazine with the understanding that the history of treaties in Canada is not simply a history of where and when treaties were made, but a much larger conversation about land, people, their relationships to each other, and why this continues to be relevant today.

This issue is free to all. You can read the stories online or download the PDF. This issue is also available in French.

Teachers, homeschoolers, educators — you can receive a free, complementary, digital educational package (suitable for grades 7–12) by filling in this registration form.

On the cover

The cover design for this issue began with the Treaty phrase “As long as the sun shines, the grass grows, and the waters flow” represented by three colours (red, green, and blue). These colours were then interwoven to resemble a sweetgrass braid, traditionally signifying mind, body, and spirit, and in this case also representing the three parties in the Treaty relationship (the First Nations, the Crown, and the Creator). The end of the braid includes twenty-one individual strands representing seven past generations, seven future generations, and the Seven Sacred Teachings. The design was a collaboration between artist Kenneth Lavallee and graphic designer Andrew Workman.