Treaty No. 6 Recognition Day

"We are a party to Treaty 6 and as such we wish to acknowledge that the land on which we gather is Treaty 6 Territory and a traditional meeting ground for many Indigenous peoples. We recognize the diversity of First Nations who have, at one time, lived across the territory, as well as the presence of the Métis Nation."

On August 23, 1876, Treaty No. 6 was signed by Crown representatives and Cree, Assiniboine, and Ojibwa leaders in Fort Carlton, Saskatchewan. The treaty ceded an area of 120,000 square miles across the plains of present-day Alberta and Saskatchewan and was the sixth of seven numbered treaties signed between 1871 and 1877.

Since Treaty 6 was signed, there have been multiple disagreements between Indigenous groups and the federal government about treaty terms. The Confederacy of Treaty Six First Nations was founded in 1993 to serve as a united political voice representing and protecting the rights and interests of the Treaty 6 First Nations.

Treaty 6 is still active today, and a Treaty No. 6 Recognition Day has been held in Edmonton each August since 2013. You can read more about Treaty 6 on The Canadian Encyclopedia.