Union of Nova Scotia Mi'kmaq

Union of Nova Scotia Mi'kmaq
Name	Union of Nova Scotia Mi'kmaq
Abbreviation	UNSM
Formation	1969
Type	Indigenous organization
Headquarters	[Halifax]
Region served	Nova Scotia
Language	English, Mi'kmaq
Leader title	Chief Executive

Union of Nova Scotia Mi'kmaq

The Union of Nova Scotia Mi'kmaq is a provincial Indigenous organization representing Mi'kmaq communities in Nova Scotia, coordinating on issues including treaty rights, land claims, education, health, and economic development. It acts as an intercommunity body linking chiefs, councils, and organizations such as the Assembly of Nova Scotia Mi'kmaq, Confederacy of Mainland Mi'kmaq, and Mi'kmaw Kina'matnewey to provincial and federal institutions including the Government of Nova Scotia and the Government of Canada. The Union engages with legal forums like the Supreme Court of Canada and with Indigenous political networks such as the Assembly of First Nations and the Mi'kmaq Grand Council.

History

The Union of Nova Scotia Mi'kmaq traces origins to community organizing in the 1960s and 1970s alongside movements involving the National Indian Brotherhood, Native Council of Nova Scotia, and the Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami. Early leaders and activists connected with figures from the Mi'kmaq Grand Council, Canadian Indian Residential School survivors, and treaty negotiators who engaged with the British Crown and Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada. The Union intersected with events like the Calder case, the Marshall decision, and the Sparrow case through alliances with legal teams from the Native Law Centre and academics at Saint Mary's University, Dalhousie University, and Mount Saint Vincent University. Over decades the Union worked with the Confederacy of Mainland Mi'kmaq, Millbrook First Nation leadership, Membertou First Nation, Eskasoni First Nation, and Potlotek (Chapel Island) in responses to provincial initiatives such as the forestry agreements, fisheries disputes involving Department of Fisheries and Oceans, and the Ipperwash-like protests and blockades that attracted media from CBC, CTV, and Global News.

Membership and Structure

Membership comprises elected chiefs and band councils from Mi'kmaq communities including Sipekne'katik, Waycobah, Wagmatcook, Acadia First Nation, Membertou, Eskasoni, Millbrook-Metepenagiag allied bodies, and urban Indigenous organizations in Halifax and Dartmouth. The Union operates with an executive council, technical staff, and working groups mirroring structures used by the Assembly of First Nations, Mi'kmaw Kina'matnewey, and the Nova Scotia Native Women’s Association. It collaborates with institutions like Cape Breton University, Nova Scotia Community College, Health Canada, and the Nova Scotia Health Authority to administer programs. Governance procedures reference models from the Indian Act era, Aboriginal Healing Foundation frameworks, and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples as discussed by the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

Political Activities and Advocacy

The Union has led or supported political campaigns linked to treaty interpretations arising from the Peace and Friendship Treaties of 1725, the 1999 Marshall decision, and ongoing litigation before provincial courts and the Supreme Court of Canada. It has liaised with the Mi'kmaq Rights Initiative, Legal Services Society, and organizations such as the Native Women's Association of Canada, Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada, and the Department of Fisheries and Oceans during fisheries disputes involving commercial licenses, communal licenses, and enforcement actions by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. The Union has participated in intergovernmental negotiations with the Government of Nova Scotia, Indigenous Services Canada, Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada, and international advocacy with the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination and UNESCO.

Land, Treaty Rights, and Legal Actions

The Union has coordinated responses to land claims and treaty rights litigation involving the Marshall decision, Mikmaq treaty rights claims, and aboriginal title claims that reference precedent from R. v. Sparrow, R. v. Van der Peet, and Delgamuukw. It supported community legal strategies with firms and clinics such as the Mi'kmaq Rights Initiative legal team, the Native Law Centre, Legal Aid Nova Scotia, and advocacy groups like Amnesty International when strategic litigation invoked the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and provincial land-use policies. The Union engaged with negotiations over fisheries, forestry, and resource revenue-sharing agreements, interfacing with the Nova Scotia Department of Lands and Forestry, the Canada–Nova Scotia Offshore Petroleum Board, and the Supreme Court of Nova Scotia in precedent-setting matters.

Social and Cultural Programs

The Union administers or partners on education programs with Mi'kmaw Kina'matnewey, post-secondary pathways with Cape Breton University and Saint Mary's University, language revitalization with the Mi'kmaq Language Centre, and cultural initiatives tied to the Mi'kmaq Grand Council, Provincial Archives of Nova Scotia, and museums such as the Nova Scotia Museum. Health and wellness programs have involved Health Canada, Indigenous Services Canada, and community health centres, addressing legacy issues from Indian residential schools and collaborating with the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Calls to Action. Cultural events and capacity-building projects have involved the Halifax Citadel tour programs, the Canadian Museum of History, the Atlantic Policy Congress, and partnerships with non-profits like Tides Canada and the Halifax Local Immigration Partnership.

Notable Campaigns and Events

Notable actions include coordinated responses to the 1999 Marshall decision, fisheries blockades involving Membertou and Sipekne'katik, land claim assertions near Shubenacadie and Annapolis, participation in national conferences hosted by the Assembly of First Nations and the Native Women's Association of Canada, and engagement in the Truth and Reconciliation Commission hearings and UN fora. Other events include partnerships for economic development with the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency, environmental advocacy with Ecology Action Centre, and participation in high-profile legal challenges at the Supreme Court of Canada and Nova Scotia courts alongside allies such as Amnesty International, the David Suzuki Foundation, and academic researchers at Dalhousie University and Mount Allison University.

Category:Mi'kmaq Category:Indigenous organizations in Nova Scotia