Mikisew Cree First Nation ( cr, ᒥᑭᓯᐤ, mikisiw, ''meaning: "golden eagle"'') is an Indigenous First Nations government of Woodland Cree people in northeastern

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest T ...

and in

Northwest Territories The Northwest Territories (abbreviated ''NT'' or ''NWT''; french: Territoires du Nord-Ouest, formerly ''North-Western Territory'' and ''North-West Territories'' and namely shortened as ''Northwest Territory'') is a federal territory of Canada. ...

, Canada. Most Mikisew Cree First Nation members live in Fort McMurray,

Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city an ...

, and Fort Chipewyan in Alberta and in

Fort Smith, Northwest Territories Fort Smith ( chp, Thebacha "beside the rapids") is a town in the South Slave Region of the Northwest Territories (NWT), Canada. It is located in the southeastern portion of the Northwest Territories, on the Slave River and adjacent to the Albe ...

. According to former chief Lawrence Courtoreille, starting in 1944 many Dene people were induced by the government of to transfer their registration to the Mikisew band, including Courtoreille's own mother, leading to "a little over fifty percent" of the Mikisew Cree band members having some Dene heritage . Dene people were denied access to hunting, fishing, and gathering within the boundaries of Wood Buffalo National Park unless they switched their registration, and were threatened with eviction from the Birch River settlement. In the end, Cree access to the park was restricted as well. The Mikisew Cree First Nation is one of the five

Athabasca Tribal Council The Athabasca Tribal Council is a tribal council representing five First Nation band governments in the province of Alberta. The organization is based in Fort McMurray, Alberta. Demographics As of August 2016, there were 6,807 registered members ...

Nations. The group signed a treaty in 1986 with Canada establishing several reserves. The Mikisew Cree won a case in the Supreme Court of Canada in 2005 over title interests to areas of the Wood Buffalo National Park.

References

External links

Mikisew Cree First Nation website
First Nations governments in Alberta Cree governments Dene communities Forced migration Cultural assimilation {{alberta-stub