Indigenous Citizenship Verification in Employment-Related Opportunities (ICVERO) Working Group

On Thursday, February 2, 2023, the Indigenous Citizenship Verification in Employment-Related Opportunities at McGill (ICVERO) Working Group met for the first time over Zoom. The meeting was facilitated by the Working Group Chair and Associate Provost (Indigenous Initiatives) at McGill University, Celeste Pedri-Spade.

The internal Working Group members present were: (1) Prof. Richard Budgell; (2) Prof. Diane Dechief; (3) Prof. Geraldine King; and (4) Prof. Alyssa Bader. The external community-based members present were: (1) Ms. Patricia Oakes; (2) Mr. Michael Mitchell; (3) Ms. Melanie Howard; and (4) Mr. Michael Loft.

After a welcome by the Chair and a round of introductions, the Working Group reviewed the draft Terms of Reference document prepared by the Chair. The goals of the Terms of Reference were outlined: to ground the work of the Working Group and provide it guiding commitments and responsibilities, such as centering its work in care and kinship, keeping an open mind, and being patient with what others have to say.

A brief overview then took place of the Indigenous citizenship conversation taking place nationally. The Chair spoke of how universities across Canada are at different stages of developing a policy on Indigenous citizenship verification, and of the upcoming National Indigenous Citizenship Forum (March 21 & 22, 2023), which Working Group members were encouraged to attend.

The Working Group composition was then discussed. While the Office of Indigenous Initiatives (OII) did its best to reflect diverse Indigenous experiences in the Working Group while also honouring territoriality, the group discussed the importance of consulting with those from other Nations/groups to fill in gaps in the Working Group.

Finally, the Working Group discussed the meaning and complexities of the term citizenship. Citizenship, it discussed, emerged as a response to Indigenous self-identification or an honor system that predominates in post-secondary institutions. In this context, identity is about one’s personal right to identify as something. Citizenship, on the other hand, relates to what you claim and the people or Nation that claim you.

The Working Group discussed the importance of including the limitations of the term in the Terms of Reference, noting that space should be made for those whose citizenship has been impacted and that, depending on the community, a word other than citizenship may be used (e.g., in the Inuit context, Beneficiary is often used).

On Thursday, February 16, 2023, the Indigenous Citizenship Verification in Employment-Related Opportunities at McGill (ICVERO) Working Group met for the second time over Zoom.

The internal Working Group members present were: (1) Prof. Richard Budgell; (2) Prof. Diane Dechief; (3) Prof. Geraldine King; (4) Prof. Alyssa Bader; and (5) Ms. Ann Deer. The external community-based members present were: (1) Ms. Patricia Oakes; (2) Mr. Michael Mitchell; (3) Ms. Melanie Howard; and (4) Mr. Michael Loft. The Chair, Prof. Celeste Pedri-Spade was in attendance.

The meeting began with a review of the Terms of Reference for the Working Group, which was revised by the Chair following the previous Working Group discussion. The group accepted the revisions, which included adding a footnote addressing the meaning and complexities of the term citizenship in this context (see Terms of Reference, page 1).

Following this, the Working Group discussed the commitments McGill has made to hiring Indigenous peoples—outlined in its Calls to Action (see Calls #44 and #52)—and how this connects to its task of developing policies and procedures related to Indigenous citizenship verification in hiring. The Calls to Action were McGill’s institutional response to Truth and Reconciliation, which is itself a response to the residential school system in Canada. Considering this, the Working Group discussed how Indigenous hiring at McGill must consider and respond to those impacted by the residential school system.

The group then had a preliminary discussion of different criteria that could be used by the university to determine Indigenous citizenship for the purpose of hiring at McGill, such as demonstrating a connection to a people, culture, place, values, language, etc. The importance of using Nation- and community-specific criteria was emphasized here, as was the importance of listening to candidates’ understandings of what lived experiences they carry as an Indigenous person. It should also be clear what’s expected of them (i.e., which experiences they should bring to the university) from their unit, department, or faculty.

Finally, the Working Group began planning the internal dialogue sessions set to take place in the spring. The sessions will serve as an opportunity for all self-identifying Indigenous faculty and staff at McGill to provide key input to the Working Group. Before the next Working Group meeting, the Chair would draft guiding questions based on the previous two discussions.

On Thursday, March 2, 2023, the Indigenous Citizenship Verification in Employment-Related Opportunities at McGill (ICVERO) Working Group met for the third time over Zoom. The meeting was facilitated by the Working Group Chair and Associate Provost (Indigenous Initiatives) at McGill University, Celeste Pedri-Spade.

The internal Working Group members present were: (1) Prof. Richard Budgell; (2) Prof. Diane Dechief; (3) Prof. Geraldine King; (4) Prof. Alyssa Bader; and (5) Ms. Ann Deer. The external community-based members present were: (1) Ms. Patricia Oakes; (2) Mr. Michael Mitchell; and (3) Mr. Michael Loft.

The meeting began with a discussion of the upcoming National Indigenous Citizenship Forum (March 21 & 22, 2023), which Working Group members were encouraged to attend with the support of the Office of Indigenous Initiatives (OII). The group discussed the “individual cultural credentials” required to register for the Forum (i.e., an all-Indigenous space), such as: “your traditional / given name, who gave it to you, your clan, what knowledge transfers you have and who transferred that knowledge, what territory you are connected to, what family line(s), and/or what other claims or connections you may have to Indigenous citizenship.” This was discussed as an example of how Indigenous citizenship claims can be verified or elaborated on in order to preserve the integrity of Indigenous-only spaces.

The Working Group then reviewed the draft internal dialogue questions prepared by the Chair. These questions would help guide the discussions with self-identifying Indigenous faculty and staff at McGill related to what they would like to see in the policy and procedures produced by the Working Group. The questions reviewed are as follows:

1. What kinds of knowledges and life experiences do we expect individuals identifying as ‘Indigenous’ should have in the context of opportunities devoted to preferential Indigenous hires?
2. What are your thoughts on what explicit requirements should be outlined for those claiming Indigeneity in the recruitment process?
3. How would McGill go about confirming or validating that these requirements have indeed been met by the applicant?
4. Are you aware of any other universities that have created policies and processes related to confirming claims to Indigeneity that are seen to be effective?
5. If new requirements are enacted, what would be a reasonable course of action for those faculty members who do not meet them?
6. How may universities go about addressing any existing tenuous claims to Indigeneity within their university community?

As part of this review, the Working Group discussed how McGill currently has no Indigenous citizenship verification policy and that no documentary evidence of Indigenous citizenship is required of those seeking employment as an Indigenous hire. At the same time, it discussed the limitations of documentary evidence; that is, though it speaks to whether someone is recognized, it doesn’t always speak to their lived experiences, kinship relations, etc. as an Indigenous person. The Working Group also discussed that a person’s story outlining their lived experience isn’t solely reliable as stories can be mis-claimed by individuals.

The Working Group also asked: Who are we talking about when we use the word “Indigenous”? Should the criteria for citizenship verification be different depending on which position a candidate is applying for (e.g., a senior administrative leadership role versus a math professor)? After some discussion, the group agreed that the citizenship verification process and its criteria should be the same for all those applying irregardless of the position.

On Thursday, March 16, 2023, the Indigenous Citizenship Verification in Employment-Related Opportunities at McGill (ICVERO) Working Group met for the fourth time over Zoom. 

The internal Working Group members present were: (1) Prof. Diane Dechief; (2) Prof. Geraldine King; (3) Prof. Alyssa Bader; and (4) Ms. Ann Deer. The external community-based members present were: (1) Ms. Patricia Oakes; (2) Mr. Michael Mitchell; (3) Ms. Melanie Howard; and (4) Mr. Michael Loft. The Chair, Prof. Celeste Pedri-Spade was also in attendance.

The meeting began with a discussion of the finalized Indigenous citizenship policies at the University of Saskatchewan and Wilfred Laurier University. The group noted that in the University of Saskatchewan policy, international Indigenous candidates will be considered “on a case-by-case basis.” This raised concern about the mechanism that would be used and whether it would be equitable.

This policy review led to a discussion of the following criteria as key considerations for a policy on Indigenous citizenship:

1. Recognition (i.e., that a candidate is recognized by a legitimate Nation or community that is attached to a legal Indigenous government)

2. Lived experience (i.e., that a candidate possesses lived experiences as an Indigenous person)

3. Kinship and community (i.e., not only that they have kinship and community relations but that their family members also identify as Indigenous)

In the US context, the group heard, there is an important distinction to be made between tribal sovereignty/citizenship versus lived experience. 

Hearing this, the Working Group discussed the possibility of drafting a citizenship policy that asks for both documentation and a self-location statement. It discussed how what we’re seeing in existing policies is an either/or approach (i.e., if you don’t have documentation, then you provide a statement, a letter from community, etc.). The group supported the idea of a more holistic approach, noting that lived experience should count for something, as should being accepted and claimed by the Nation.

The Working Group then considered what should be done in situations where someone self-identifies as Indigenous after being hired by the university. To account for these situations, the group agreed that Indigenous citizenship verification also needs to take place at the research level (e.g., by the Tri-Council, which at present only requires self-identification).

On Thursday, March 30, 2023, the Indigenous Citizenship Verification in Employment-Related Opportunities at McGill (ICVERO) Working Group met for the fifth time over Zoom. 

The internal Working Group members present were: (1) Prof. Diane Dechief; (2) Prof. Geraldine King; (3) Prof. Richard Budgell; and (4) Ms. Ann Deer. The external community-based members present were: (1) Ms. Patricia Oakes; (2) Mr. Michael Mitchell; (3) Ms. Melanie Howard; and (4) Mr. Michael Loft. The Chair, Prof. Celeste Pedri-Spade was also in attendance.

At the meeting, the Chair facilitated a debrief on the National Indigenous Citizenship Forum held on March 21 & 22, 2023. The group discussed key takeaways from the Forum, such as the move away from terminology like “pretendianism” (i.e., pretending to be Indigenous) toward terms like “deception” and “fraud” to characterize the issue. It discussed how issues of belonging, identity, and citizenship will always be spoken about in Indigenous communities (i.e., that there will never be a consensus on these issues and that they’re constantly evolving), and that these conversations belong in community. Finally, the group spoke of how addressing Indigenous identity fraud in academia has disproportionately impacted Indigenous women, and that carrying this labour has impacted their ability to focus on their personal and professional/academic lives.

Related to next year’s Forum, the group suggested that key allies and decision-making parties be invited to participate, such as senior university leadership and the Tri-Council Canada. The group agreed that while the Forum shouldn’t have open enrolment, it’s important that university leadership and granting agencies witness the Forum, as they are often the ones making key decisions related to this issue.

The Working Group briefly discussed the issue of Indigenous people being dishonest with their Nationhood (i.e., Nation-shifting). They discussed that while this is different than committing Indigenous identity fraud, a lack of truthfulness and level of deception are still present. It asked of its members to ponder: How do we handle these cases? Do we handle them in the same way? 

The Working Group also reviewed Queen’s University’s interim Indigenous citizenship policy. The group discussion focused on how the policy is seemingly not being applied retroactively, and how this communicates that deception is okay if it happened in the past.

On Thursday, April 13th, 2023, the Indigenous Citizenship Verification in Employment-Related Opportunities at McGill (ICVERO) Working Group met for the sixth time over Zoom. The meeting was facilitated by the Working Group Chair and Associate Provost (Indigenous Initiatives) at McGill University, Celeste Pedri-Spade. 

The internal Working Group members present were: (1) Prof. Richard Budgell; (2) Prof. Geraldine King; (3) Prof. Alyssa Bader; and (4) Ms. Ann Deer. The external community-based members present were: (1) Ms. Patricia Oakes; (2) Mr. Michael Mitchell; (3) Mr. Michael Loft; and (4) Ms. Melanie Howard.  

The Working Group began with a discussion regarding the possibility of collecting anonymous feedback on the future policy for Citizenship Verification. Members discussed at length about how collecting feedback anonymously contradicts the way that Indigenous Peoples engage in a relational way. A question was raised about the ethics of someone claiming Indigeneity who would demand Indigenous anonymity within this territory. However, the group also discussed the need to ensure that anyone self-Identifying as Indigenous at McGill should be able to meet one-on-one with the Working Group should they request this.   

In this meeting the Working Group considered a question that was raised within the Faculty of Arts around whether to not non-Indigenous colleagues’ can provide input on the policy. Points raised included the possibility of creating an opportunity for non-Indigenous colleagues to ask questions about the policy, but that there cannot be a “floodgate situation” created in which people are given opportunities to provide feedback when they are non-Indigenous. There is the concern that while some people have good intentions, they can easily undermine Indigenous self-determination and governance. The focus right now is on building an Indigenous-led policy.

On Thursday, April 27th, 2023, the Indigenous Citizenship Verification in Employment-Related Opportunities at McGill (ICVERO) Working Group met for the seventh time over Zoom. The meeting was facilitated by the Working Group Chair and Associate Provost (Indigenous Initiatives) at McGill University, Celeste Pedri-Spade. 

The internal Working Group members present were: (1) Prof. Richard Budgell; (2) Prof. Geraldine King; (3) Prof. Alyssa Bader; (4) Ms. Ann Deer; and (5) Prof. Diane Dechief. The external community-based members present were: (1) Ms. Patricia Oakes; (2) Mr. Michael Mitchell; and (3) Mr. Michael Loft. 

Special guests present were: (1) Elder Kevin Deer, who presently works at the First Nations Technical Institute and assisting in the student-led discussions on verification, and (2) Ms. Lynn Jacobs, invited by Elder Deer. Both will be attending the upcoming Working Group retreat held in Kahnawake. 

The Working Group started the meeting by addressing the upcoming retreat to be held in Kahnawake. Objectives discussed for the meeting were:  

• For the Office of Indigenous Initiatives to start developing the policy draft so that it may be reviewed;  

• To develop a series of questions so that effective discussions may take place at the retreat (e.g. what does developing a policy look like, what are the parameters?); 

• To develop an agenda for what should be achieved by the retreat, particularly involving vision statements. 

Working Group members were strongly encouraged to submit their own vision statements for the policy development process to Prof. Pedri-Spade so that they would be included in the retreat agenda. 

After discussing the retreat, Prof. Pedri-Spade presented a PowerPoint (see separate document on ICVERO site) summarizing key takeaways following the internal dialogue sessions held at McGill, each of which had 9-12 people in attendance.  

It was later discussed that Indigenous citizenship verification in the spirit of upholding truth and accountability must always be the focus in this process. Working Group members shared that while they have yet to receive much concern from their Indigenous colleagues, non-Indigenous faculty and staff are apprehensive towards the verification process that will come with the policy. Reiterating that it is “not for non-Indigenous people to decide what Indigenous excellence is”, or what representations should be in the academic setting, the Working Group noted the continued importance of the website with all meeting summaries and documents reviewed throughout this process accessible to individuals. 

On Thursday, May 11th, 2023, the Indigenous Citizenship Verification in Employment-Related Opportunities at McGill (ICVERO) Working Group met for the eighth time over Zoom. The meeting was facilitated by the Working Group Chair and Associate Provost (Indigenous Initiatives) at McGill University, Celeste Pedri-Spade. 

The internal Working Group members present were: (1) Prof. Richard Budgell; (2) Prof. Geraldine King; (3) Prof. Alyssa Bader; and (4) Ms. Ann Deer. The external community-based members present were: (1) Ms. Patricia Oakes; (2) Mr. Michael Mitchell; and (3) Mr. Michael Loft. 

Prof. Pedri-Spade began by sharing questions that rose during the Office of Indigenous Initiatives’ Spring-Summer Gathering for Indigenous Faculty and Staff members regarding the findings of the internal ICVERO dialogue sessions. The questions raised were:  

• How will verification of self-identifying guests (e.g., speakers, performers....) be done?  

• If an Indigenous faculty or staff member has concerns about someone’s identity, how should they proceed? 

• Will there (or can there) be a procedure to deal with ad-hoc hiring?  

• How will the policy be aligned with provincial legislation (preferential hiring)?  

Following the presentation, Working Group members developed a series of preliminary questions and points that will be used to guide future discussions on policy development. The topics that will be used as a guideline are as follows:  

1. What issues or objectives need to be addressed in this policy? It was determined that the policy will address harmful dishonesty that has kept Indigenous academics and peoples out of these spaces and undermines hard work. There needs to be an emphasis placed on the Seven Grandfather Teachings, outlined in the Terms of Reference in the policy. It cannot be for non-Indigenous peoples to determine what is Indigenous excellence. Documentation of citizenship is the baseline for determining this. Indigenous scholars and academics are held accountable from their communities. 

2. Why is this issue of citizenship verification important to the community? The Working Group reiterated that Indigenous peoples are community-oriented, and that ancestors have always prioritized the health of the community and collective over the individual, which is the colonial tendency of individualism. It is important to have Indigenous peoples in McGill that accurately represent and are connected to their community, which is a theme that was discussed in the internal dialogues under “Nation-to-Nation" protocols.  

3. Who needs to be engaged with to create the most effective and sustainable policy? The Working Group determined that following this work there needs to be community discussions around what is considered Indigenous excellence—both academically, but also socially and in-community. There is high significance and importance in knowing Indigenous culture, ceremonies, and histories. As Indigenous peoples are in the minority at McGill, the Working Group will aim to prioritize building a framework on excellence that can be implemented at McGill.  

4. When should this policy be developed and implemented? (Question to be addressed in later meetings.) 

5. How should this policy be maintained or reviewed once it is developed? (Question to be addressed in later meetings.) 

On Thursday, May 25th, 2023, the Indigenous Citizenship Verification in Employment-Related Opportunities at McGill (ICVERO) Working Group met for the ninth time over Zoom. The meeting was facilitated by the Working Group Chair and Associate Provost (Indigenous Initiatives) at McGill University, Celeste Pedri-Spade.

The internal Working Group members present were: (1) Prof. Diane Dechief; (2) Ms. Ann Deer; and (3) Prof. Alyssa Bader.

The external Working Group members present were: (1) Mr. Mike Loft; (2) Ms. Patricia Oakes; and (3) Ms. Melanie Howard. 

The Working Group began their discussion by emphasizing that it is important to consider what is the intent, grounding message, and which themes will continue to rise as the policy develops. Similar to the Edge of the Woods welcome ceremony, it is important to ensure that relationships are built with Indigenous peoples in the McGill University context on a positive note. The group emphasized that it will be important to welcome Indigenous colleagues to the community is a way that is respectful, motivating, and a clear process so that values, procedures, and meanings are communicated. 

After this, the Working Group discussed that the policy will include a checklist of sorts for ensuring verification is met prior to interviewing a candidate for an Indigenous role. For this, it will be important to develop clear guidelines for what is determined as “Indigeneity” and if we are extending this definition to nations outside of Canada, or internationally. It was noted that it is often difficult for Indigenous peoples that have lost status cards to provide documentation, but also that those pretending to be Indigenous can easily claim that they have “non-status” while not being claimed by a community. 

The Working Group determined that after agreeing that Indigeneity is always linked back to kinship relations, it will be crucial to ensure sufficient community consultation on the development of job postings to attract Indigenous applicants. As this can be a highly educational process for those external to the group, the idea of developing a video on the Office of Indigenous Initiatives’ website regarding the policy’s significance surfaced. 

The Group pushed to have a working document of the policy developed by the next meeting (Thursday, June 8th, 2023). Members emphasized that the retreat held the previous week in Akwesasne (Thursday, May 18th, 2023) helped in grounding this policy and reminding the group the importance of community in this work.

On Thursday, June 8th, 2023, the Indigenous Citizenship Verification in Employment-Related Opportunities at McGill (ICVERO) Working Group met for the tenth time over Zoom. The meeting was facilitated by the Working Group Chair and Associate Provost (Indigenous Initiatives) at McGill University, Celeste Pedri-Spade.

The internal Working Group members present were: (1) Prof. Diane Dechief; and (2) Ms. Ann Deer.

The external Working Group members present were: (1) Mr. Mike Loft; (2) Ms. Patricia Oakes; (3) Ms. Melanie Howard; and (4) Mr. Mike Mitchell.

To open the meeting, Prof. Pedri-Spade announced that the first draft of the policy has been developed. Those who have read it who are not Indigenous have had difficulty engaging Indigenous peoples in discussion and how to understand what the policy means for determining Indigeneity. For Indigenous peoples, the Working Group emphasized that the Edge of the Woods welcome ceremony once again, goes back to kinship ties, knowing your identity, and how you come to belong in a community of Indigenous-practicing individuals. This brought back the Seven Grandfather Teachings, where the principle of honesty should be included in the policy. 

Further, the Working Group discussed the possible procedure for Indigenous colleagues that would need to undergo verification procedures in adherence with the policy. The people that are most harmed when Indigenous identity fraud occurs are those who have been displaced and it is crucial to ensure that Indigenous peoples are not re-traumatized in this verification process. 

To conclude, the Working Group agreed to send their feedback on the policy document to Prof. Pedri-Spade, who will consult other existing frameworks on Diversity, Equity, and Conclusion in McGill and use the group’s comments to develop the policy. It was mentioned again who should be included in the policy, and which guidelines on Indigenous categorization (e.g. Canada’s Section 35 of the Constitution, United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples...) should be used as a reference within the policy. The Working Group agreed that while McGill operates in the Canadian context domestically, perhaps there should be different meanings of Indigeneity that are applied in international settings where McGill classes are taught or campus spaces abroad. 

Please view the meeting summary here:  ICVERO meeting 11 summary

Please view the meeting summary here:  ICVERO Meeting 12 Summary