Land Claims Agreements

The 1960's saw the rise of Inuit political consciousness. Along with other Native groups in the North and in the rest of Canada, the Inuit initiates land claim negotiations with the federal government. The Inuit began from the standpoint that they had never surrendered their land by conquest or treaty. The negotiations culminated in a number of agreements. In 1975, the James Bay and Northern Quebec Final Agreement was signed with the Cree and Ungava Inuit. The Inuvialuit Final Agreement, covering the western Arctic, was signed in 1984, and in 1993, the Nunavut Final Agreement was signed. The Labrador Inuit are the only group who have not yet settled their outstanding aboriginal land claims.