POLI 436. Aboriginal Rights in the Canadian Constitution.

This course explores the inclusion, impact, and interpretation of s.35 of the Constitution Act, 1982. In s.35, "the existing aboriginal and treaty rights of the aboriginal peoples of Canada are hereby recognized and affirmed". What does it mean for Canada to recognize, affirm, define, justify, and implement such rights? The course sets out how one might think about the constitutional promise of s.35, and challenges us to address whether this promise has been realized. It sets out how s.35 has structured Indigenous-settler politics since 1982.