Yet another precedent for Alberta Independence. Vive L'Alberta Libre
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There Is a Constitutional Crisis in Canada. You Just Don’t Know It yet. On Friday, the B.C. Supreme Court declared Aboriginal title over the entire island of Haida Gwaii—with the consent of both the provincial and federal governments. This follows agreements already signed to transfer ownership and control of the island from the people of Canada to the Haida Nation. Nobody fully understands what this means. What we do know is that Aboriginal title is ownership of the land itself. Our governments are now bound by court order to recognize that title and surrender control of Haida Gwaii in accordance with those agreements. The Haida Nation voted on these agreements. But their members represent only about half the island’s residents. Imagine being among the rest. You are now governed by rulers you cannot elect, accountable only to those who share their ancestry. They now meaningfully own and control your home or business. What is your land worth? What protects you from unfair taxation or regulation? Will your Charter rights even apply under an Aboriginal government? You may not need to imagine for long. Premier David Eby’s NDP government is already at dozens of tables negotiating similar agreements across B.C. The only obstacle is overlapping claims. But once those are sorted out, the rest of the province will follow. If this is what you want—a province carved into dozens of ethnostates ruled by unaccountable elites—then by all means, remain silent. Downplay. Pretend. We are witnessing an unprecedented betrayal of the Canadian public. Worried about American influence? About Beijing’s creeping hand in our politics? Our leaders are literally giving our country away. Will you let them? To defend British Columbia and recover Canada, we must stop giving it away. Canada must withdraw from UNDRIP. Adopted internationally in 2017, made law in B.C. in 2019 with unanimous support—including David Eby and John Rustad—and passed federally in 2021, UNDRIP requires Canadian laws to conform to a framework that demands land be given away and public money flow endlessly to aboriginal groups. It is a disaster that should never have been endorsed. Repeal must be a top priority. But even repeal will not end the threat. Courts have shown in the Tsilhqot’in and Cowichan cases that they will declare Aboriginal title even against government objections. Why? Because in 1982, Pierre Trudeau entrenched Aboriginal property rights in section 35 of the Constitution—rights not subject to the notwithstanding clause. That means real change requires constitutional reform. We must remove the constitutional status of Aboriginal title, so that all Canadians have equal property rights. And we must go further: eliminate all race-based rights and privileges from our Constitution. This is a true constitutional crisis. But it is also an opportunity: to restore equality, to end division, and to build a Canada that belongs to every citizen equally. The future is still ours to shape—if we choose to fight for it.
Press Release from the Council of the Haida Nation - Court Declaration of Haida Title
September 5, 2025 TODAY is a day where our ancestors are celebrated. Where the Haida Nation's title is recognized by Canada, the Province, and the Supreme Court of British
Columbia.
TODAY the Haida Nation took a significant step towards meeting its inherent responsibilities to ensure that Haida Gwaii is protected for future gen TODAY Haida ancestors are dancing in celebration that the discrimination they endured in our colonial past is now behind us, and that the govern Haida Nation, Canada and British Columbia are forging a new path where we can foster the jurisdictional space for Haida laws to grow and deeper conflict, and based on yahguudang respect. Doing so will benefit not only the lands, water, people and all beings of Haida Gwaii, but all people in E
Canada.
TODAY, building upon the Gaayhllxid • Gihlagalgang "Rising Tide" Haida Title Lands Agreement ("Rising Tide Agreement") with the Province of British Columbia, and the Chiixuujin • Chaaw Kaawgaa "Big Tide (Low Water)" Haida Title Lands Agreement ("Big Tide Agreement") with Canada, Justice Giaschi of
the Supreme Court of British Columbia issued a declaration that:
The Haida Nation has Aboriginal Title, recognized and affirmed under s. 35(1) of the Constitution Act, 1982, to the terrestrial areas of Haida Gwaii [...] The definition of the "terrestrial areas of Haida Gwaii" in Justice Giaschi's order includes "any submerged lands underlying freshwater or in the intertidal area
between the high and low water marks, extending below the surface, and for greater certainty does not include the water column." Other terms of Justice Giaschi's order include that the Haida Nation, Canada, and British Columbia will give effect to Aboriginal Title in accordance with the conditions of the Rising Tide Agreement and the Big Tide Agreement. This includes agreement that the Haida Nation, BC and Canada will reconcile their
respective laws, jurisdictions, and titles during a transition period.
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The Haida application was supported by Canada and British Columbia on the basis of agreements with the Haida Nation made in 2024. The Court held that the evidentiary foundation was met to support making a declaration of Aboriginal Title to Haida Gwaii and recognized that a declaration wi
have a practical effect, promote reconciliation and uphold the honour of the Crown.
This ends a major part of the Haida Nation's court case over title to Haida Gwaii. The case was filed in 2002, and a 300-day trial is set for 2026. The agreements and the court order follow 5 years of negotiations to reconcile Haida title with the interests of non-Haida residents of Haida Gwaii. They also
build upon over a century of advocacy by Haida leadership, including Alfred Adams and Godfrey Kelly.
This historic declaration was made possible by precedent set by other Indigenous Nations who have paved the way for recognition of Aboriginal Title through negotiation and litigation, such as the Nisga'a, Wet'suwet'en, Gitxsan, Nuu-chah-nulth, and Cowichan. The decision was granted in the same courtroom that
the Delgamuukw trial took place, two similar court proceedings with very different outcomes - an indication of the changing legal and political climate. There is a Haida saying that is "gam tlagw tagaay Ga ga GaagiixanaGangaGan" meaning that "there was no land lying vacant." This refers to the comprehensive and deep relationship between the Haida Nation and Haida Gwaii, grounded in our language, oral history, and laws. The Court's order gives
meaning within Canadian law to what the Haida have always known.
Overall, this is an historic day for the Haida Nation, an historic day for Canada, and an historic day for British Columbia. It is the first time that the BC Supreme
& Court has issued a declaration of Aboriginal Title which encompasses the entire terrestrial portion of an indigenous Nation's territory. "Today is a good day for the Haida Nation, British Columbia and Canada. Citizens of each government can be proud of how all parties came together to demonstrate gud ad t'alang hlGang.gulxa til yahda • til y'adee Gii gud ahl tálang hiGángulaang (good people working together to make things right) to advance reconciliation for all. Haawa to our ancestors and all those who came before us to help lead to achieving this long-awaited declaration of title to the
land of Haida Gwaii"
- Gaagwiis, President of the Haida Nation |
