Identity area
Reference code
Title
Date(s)
- 1955 - 1978 (Creation)
Level of description
Extent and medium
4 boxes (.5 metres)
Context area
Name of creator
Administrative history
The Indian-Eskimo Association (I.E.A.) was first established as a commission for the Canadian Association for Adult Education (CAAE) in 1957 to study issues in Indigenous communities and issues faced by Indigenous individuals living off reserves. In 1960, the commission withdrew from the CAAE and formed the Indian-Eskimo Association with the purpose of providing national services to Indigenous communities and individuals including housing, community, and economic development, as well as fundraising and to provide a forum for research on Indigenous issues by both Indigenous and non-Indigenous people, scholars, activists, organizations, and governmental entities. The I.E.A had a mixed membership and Indigenous individuals formed at least 25% of the membership of the I.E.A, and sat on the Board of Directors. One of the services of the I.E.A was a library, which actively collected books, as well as amassing reports, periodicals, speeches, and pamphlets by or relating to Indigenous communities and issues. The library provided research resources and reproduced speeches, press releases, offprints and reports, and developed and shared bibliographies and booklists. The I.E.A’s headquarters was originally in Toronto, but in 1973, they moved to Ottawa and changed their name to the Canadian Association in Support of Native Peoples. The association dissolved in 2015.
Name of creator
Biographical history
Archival history
Immediate source of acquisition or transfer
Content and structure area
Scope and content
This collection contains material received by the I.E.A library, most notably including original publications, reports, press releases, speeches and periodicals produced by Indigenous Nations and organizations, such as the National Indian Brotherhood and provincial Indigenous groups, including the Union of Nova Scotia Indians and the Federation of Saskatchewan Indians, as well as the Canadian Metis Society, various friendship centres and the Alberta Native Women’s Society. Also included are original periodicals published by Indigenous Nations and organizations such as The Sun Dance Echo, Kainai News, Indian News and The Native Perspective. This collection also contains Indigenous articles, reports, and speeches, which were reproduced or reprinted by the I.E.A. and made available for research for a small fee, such as pamphlets, offprints and governmental papers produced by Indigenous and non-Indigenous authors on Indigenous issues and events, particularly responses to the 1969 governmental white paper, which proposed to dismantle Indian Affairs. Material related to the internal activities of the I.E.A are also present, most notably reports, minutes, their monthly bulletin, speeches given at conferences and independent projects, which are written and produced by both Indigenous and non-Indigenous members of the organization.
Appraisal, destruction and scheduling
Accruals
System of arrangement
Conditions of access and use area
Conditions governing access
No restrictions on access.
Material may be requested in person at the Fisher Library Reference Desk, or in advance using our online stack retrieval request form: https://fisher.library.utoronto.ca/stack-retrieval-form