In Canada there is a law against 'stolen valour.' Section 419 of the Criminal Code prosecutes individuals (usually civilians) who falsely claim that they are military veterans and decorated war heroes.
Canadians so despise these imposters that there are at least five web pages including Facebook, that expose, dishonour, and publicly shame individuals who lie about military service.
I, myself, have outed two individuals who I learned were impersonating military veterans at Remembrance Day Services or at Pow Wow Grand Entry ceremonies. They are usually easy to spot. They wear the wrong insignia or uniform and often they’re wearing medals that don’t fit their story.
Everyone agrees, stolen valour is not a victimless crime. It is a violation of those who sacrificed much to serve their country and as a military veteran, I am always on the lookout for this fraud.
In my other life as a First Nations person, I have to be equally as vigilant.
In Canada there is no law against anyone claiming to be of First Nations descent. There is no section in the Criminal Code or for that matter, in the “Indian Act,” that seeks to prosecute individuals who falsely claim that they are Indigenous.
I have personally known a number of individuals who I have (with much effort), exposed as being F.I. or fraudulently Indigenous.
There are high profile stories in the media as recent as last week of people who allegedly falsely claimed Indigenous ancestry to obtain employment. There are high profile celebrities such as author Joseph Boyden (claimed to be Anishinaabe, Mikmac, Nipmuc, and Metis). But as I discovered, this is a problem right here in Simcoe County as well.
I not only discovered individuals who were stealing our Indigenous identity, but organizations as well. Each is a danger to the First Nations people and First Nations organizations simply because the perpetrators are attracted by the possibility of obtaining money or employment.
When they successfully obtain these, it means a legitimate First Nations person continues to be without employment. It also means that a legitimate First Nations organization will not have funding to feed, house, or clothe, Indigenous people.
One recent high profile case that I had a hand in exposing, saw a fraudulently Indigenous person make their way to the highest echelons inside one of Canada’s political parties. Despite their false claims to Indigeneity, they were appointed to lead the Indigenous arm of this political party.
Along the way, for years, they had successfully applied for and received government funding earmarked to assist Indigenous youth. When exposed, they lost their position but were never prosecuted because no law exists that you cannot impersonate an Indigenous person. Nor were they ever asked to pay back any funding they received from government while committing their fraud.
Much the same as stolen valour, being fraudulently Indigenous is not a victimless act. And just like stolen valour it should be outlawed and prosecutable.
As a people, we have seen our lands stolen. An act that continues today (Wet'suwet'en Territory). We have seen our children stolen (Residential Schools). Is the last act of an ongoing genocide a theft of our very identity?
Jeff Monague is a former Chief of the Beausoleil First Nation on Christian Island, former Treaty Research Director with the Anishnabek (Union of Ontario Indians), and veteran of the Canadian Forces. Monague, who taught the Ojibwe language with the Simcoe County District School Board and Georgian College, is currently the Superintendent of Springwater Provincial Park. His column appears every other Monday.
