The First Nations

Canada’s native population constitutes 700,000 (2%) of Canada’s 35 million population. The preferred term is “First Nations” or aboriginals. Descendants of the original inhabitants of Canada, they live primarily on reserves, spanning every Canadian province and territory.
Canada’s First Nations population is scattered across cities as well as 600 bands (the favored Canadian term for tribe) that operate local governments on reserves across the country. Despite stereotypes, there is no monolithic First Nations culture: as one should expect, given the vast size of the North American continent, there are many variations in religious beliefs, customs, and culture. For instance, totem poles and potlatches are rarely found outside the coast of British Columbia, the sun dance is almost exclusive to Plains First Nations bands, etc. However, there are some broad commonalities between many First Nation cultures. First Nations bands share animistic religions, meaning they believe animals possess a spiritual essence. Contrary to popular belief, there are no “shamans” among First Nations peoples; that word is a foreign term applied to spiritual leaders in First Nations cultures. First Nations bands are more likely to use terms like “spirit elder” and “medicine elder.”
Canada’s history with its aboriginal population is not as bloody as the United States’. With the exception of the Riel Rebellion of 1885 and several small-scale conflicts in the 1990s, Canada has rarely gone to open war against its native population. One of the keys to this relative peace was the early R.C.M.P., which tended to treat the natives with more respect than many of their American counterparts. In fact, Canada became a safe haven for natives in the 19th century, with high profile Native American leaders such as Sitting Bull fleeing into Canada to escape the United States army.
Unfortunately, Canada’s own history with its First Nations peoples is anything but sterling. In the late 19th century, traditional cultural artifacts like the potlatch gift giving ceremony, the Plains sun dance, and totem poles were outlawed. In some instances, children were forbidden to learn about their native culture and language, and were placed in “residential schools” which ripped children away from their families, even as late as 1996. Conditions in residential schools were abusive and harsh, and death rates for aboriginal students far exceeded those of non-aboriginals at government institutions.
Many reserves suffer from extreme poverty, though others, particularly those with rich resource deposits, are experiencing boom economies. Self-government is a major goal of most First Nations bands. There have been tensions between First Nations bands and Canada’s federal and provincial governments, and occasional armed conflicts, and there are many land claim disputes still ongoing. Of course, superheroes sometimes get caught in the middle.
Perhaps unfairly, Canada’s First Nations are seen as being on the front lines against mystical threats in Canada. There is, however, a secret council of spirit elders (the Assembly of the Spirit Nation) from across Canada, currently led by the Ojibwa medicine elder Chris Sault. They have provided advice and aid for heroes such as Team Canada, though only a small number would be considered mages of significant power in the superhuman world.
While the mystical supers are perhaps the best known, the bulk of First Nations superhumans, like Phillip Eagleclaw (a ’70s hero who was part of the original Team Canada) and the ’90s villain Scarletstorm, have absolutely no connection to native mystical or spiritual beliefs. There’s intense debate among First Nations supers on whether they should adopt historically accurate code-names, or whether the presence of supers like Steven Sun Bear (Canada’s earliest First Nations hero, active in the 1950s and ’60s) honors their heritage, or plays too heavily into stereotypes.
THE INUIT In the North lives the second of the region’s three main aboriginal groups. The Inuit (known by past generations as “Eskimos”) are a nomadic people, originally from northern Europe, now dwelling in Alaska, Greenland, and the Canadian arctic. They have an ancient and complex mythology, honoring gods and powers such as Nanook, master of polar bears, Amarok, the wolf-god and hunter of the lost, and Sedna, mistress of sea creatures. Their shaman are called angakok. While the majority of Inuit were Christianized long ago, some still honor the old ways, and the old gods have been seen more than once in the far north, especially when the northern lights are in the sky.
THE METIS The last of the First Peoples are the Metis. These are the descendants of French traders and settlers who bred with the aboriginal population, and can be found in small communities across Canada. The monsters of First Nations folklore are, of course, real and terrifying. This includes the reclusive Sasquatch (native to the forests of British Columbia), Quebec’s rougarou (a type of werewolf, spread by curses, who live in clans in remote areas of rural Quebec), and the wendigo (a cursed cannibal spirit of great strength and ferocity), and various manitou spirits of many shapes and breeds, the most malignant of which are demons who lead people astray and then devour them when they are lost.