Western Standard - Why we need more individual property ownership for indigenous folks

The lack of private property ownership on First Nations reserves puts Indigenous entrepreneurs at a disadvantage in securing credit for their business ventures, and it's a key part of why poverty and inadequate housing is a chronic issue on reserves. We need to radically change the entire system, and individual property ownership will be key.

00:00:00.000 So, I mean, this is something rare for me. I have to give a little credit word due to the CBC.

00:00:04.700 They actually ran an excellent piece a little while ago on how the lack of private property

00:00:08.440 ownership on First Nation reserves puts Indigenous entrepreneurs at a disadvantage

00:00:13.280 in securing credit for their business ventures. Private home and land ownership's been essential

00:00:18.500 for many people in building personal equity, and it can be used for retirement, business startups,

00:00:23.200 or handing their wealth down to their children. People living on reserves are deprived of that

00:00:27.380 ability, though, to build wealth that way, and it's a key part of why poverty and inadequate housing

00:00:32.880 are chronic issues on reserves. Employment opportunities are limited on reserves already.

00:00:38.200 They're often in isolated areas without easy access to broader markets. The prime employer on most

00:00:42.800 reserves is usually the government, and it's often a little more than a work for welfare program.

00:00:48.440 Ambitious citizens on reserves, and there's lots of them, are drawn to self-employment because of this.

00:00:53.140 With new opportunities in virtual businesses, there's huge potential for business startups,

00:00:56.500 even on the most remote of reserves. Even virtual businesses don't need capital to begin with,

00:01:01.640 and there's the problem. I'm not a fan of banks, and I've dealt with the frustration of tight lending

00:01:06.640 practices when it comes to small businesses. When my wife and I opened our pub, we had to use 0.69

00:01:10.460 non-traditional lenders, and even after maintaining a perfect credit record and making profit for five

00:01:15.540 years, we still couldn't qualify for a company credit card. We had to use our own. We never would have been

00:01:19.960 able to finance the pub if we didn't have a home to use as equity to back it up. I don't blame banks.

00:01:26.220 Business loans are high risk, particularly in the hospitality industry, and that's why a system of

00:01:30.540 equity-based loans has evolved. Now, reserve residents don't have that ability. If a person lives on a

00:01:36.320 reserve and defaults on a loan, there's no property a lender could seize to recover their costs and

00:01:41.000 loss. People passing through reserves often wonder, why are the houses often in such terrible condition,

00:01:46.120 even though they appear to be recently built? Well, when a person doesn't own a home, they have

00:01:51.200 little incentive in maintaining it or trying to add value to it. I mean, have you ever put premium

00:01:56.720 gas into a rental car? Citizens on reserves live in their home at the whim of the banned council. It's

00:02:02.620 not their property, and they could actually conceivably be evicted from it on a whim if they caught the eye

00:02:08.460 of the wrong council member who wanted a home for his cousin. They don't own it. They're basically in

00:02:11.980 there, and the council controls it. Now, home equity is an integral part of retirement savings

00:02:16.160 for many people. In First Nations, people are often trapped in a cradle-to-grave dependency on

00:02:21.260 government support. The ability to own property could break them out of that cycle. The article

00:02:26.280 to CBC, it did note that there are fears that private property would be sold to non-reserve people

00:02:30.480 if it was granted. So what? That's the point of private property, the ability to do with it as you

00:02:36.060 please, as the owner. How long do we want to maintain these poverty-ridden racial enclaves we call 1.00

00:02:41.140 reserves anyway? What sort of future is there for citizens in these failed models of collectivism

00:02:45.780 and dependency? Reserves should be divided up among the citizens so they may choose individually what

00:02:51.280 the disposition of their land may be. Many, if not most, will stay, but they'll have the means to

00:02:55.980 pursue business initiatives or the growth in their personal equity through property as everybody else

00:03:00.420 does. The culture and community and reserves won't vanish if citizens are allowed to own property.

00:03:05.660 Let's not pretend the cultures are doing really great as the reserves are sitting right now.

00:03:09.680 First Nation citizens can own private property if we just change the Indian Act. People are under 1.00

00:03:14.440 the misconception that the state of reserves or First Nation policy is set in stone somehow that

00:03:18.380 the constitution or treaty obligations prevent it. That's not the case. The Indian Act is what

00:03:23.120 guides these policies. Like any other piece of legislation, it can be amended or scrapped if the

00:03:27.380 political will encouraged to do so can be found. The status quo with First Nations isn't acceptable. 1.00

00:03:33.080 Despite constant injections of more and more money, living conditions remain deplorable. We need to

00:03:38.640 radically change and reform the entire system and individual property ownership will be key to those

00:03:43.820 reforms. It won't be easy and it won't happen soon, but if we see the state broadcaster willing to broach

00:03:49.200 the issue now, we can see the cause isn't necessarily hopeless.

Western Standard - August 18, 2022

Why we need more individual property ownership for indigenous folks

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