First Nations chiefs say Alberta premier is trying to 'manufacture a national unity crisis'

Stephanie Cram · CBC News

· Posted: May 01, 2025 7:00 PM EDT | Last Updated: 10 minutes ago

Many First Nations successful Alberta are denouncing Bill 54, the Election Statutes Amendment Act tabled successful the provincial legislature Tuesday, saying it disregards pact rights.

If passed, it will change however referendums tin beryllium introduced successful the province by lowering the signature threshold required.

In a letter, Sturgeon Lake Cree Nation Chief Sheldon Sunshine and Mikisew Cree First Nation Chief Billy-Joe Tuccaro accused Premier Danielle Smith of "attempting to manufacture a nationalist unity situation by enabling a referendum connected separatism."

"Alberta did not beryllium erstwhile our ancestors agreed to stock the onshore with the Crown. The state has nary authorization to supersede oregon interfere with our treaties, adjacent indirectly by passing the subordinate to a 'citizen' referendum," the missive continued.

Tuccaro told CBC News the measure continues the enactment the state started erstwhile they introduced the Alberta Sovereignty Within a United Canada Act successful 2022. 

"If pact rights were breached … it would let Alberta to bash thing they would spot acceptable successful regards to our accepted territories," helium said. 

"If the treaties are breached past that leaves america arsenic First Nations with perfectly thing successful regards to holding the British Crown liable for their fiduciary responsibility, and that is to uphold the pact that we signed successful 1899." 

He described the narration betwixt the state and First Nations arsenic "very tense" and said if the bill is passed, "There volition beryllium a emergence up from the pact people."

In a quality release, the Blackfoot Confederacy said the projected authorities "threatens the law and ineligible bid by disregarding the Nation-to-Crown agreements that specify our narration to the state."

It reminded the province their pact "was not a onshore surrender," but alternatively "a model for peaceful coexistence and shared usage of territory." 

"We volition aggressively support our historical pact rights and our inherent rights," said Piikani Nation Chief Troy Knowlton successful a statement. 

"We volition necessitate that the Crown's obligations to First Nations beryllium honoured and fulfilled." 

'Enabling nonstop democracy'

At a quality league connected Thursday, Smith said she respects "all of the pact rights that are enshrined successful the Constitution." 

She described referendums arsenic "enabling nonstop democracy," and she encouraged each Albertans — including Indigenous radical — to clasp it. 

"The intent of a referendum is to fto each azygous Albertan person a accidental connected matters of important nationalist policy," said Smith. 

When pushed connected her idiosyncratic views connected Alberta separatism, the premier said she believes successful "Alberta sovereignty wrong a agreed Canada."

She accused the national authorities of meddling successful provincial issues. 

"When the national authorities goes retired of their mode to interfere with our exclusive jurisdiction, we are going to conscionable them with each measurement that we tin successful bid to sphere our quality to negociate our ain affairs," she said. 

Rethinking sovereignty 

One adept says some Albertans are feeling disenchanted by the governmental process pursuing the national election, with immoderate wanting the state to interruption from Canada. 

"It's intolerable for Alberta to deliberation it tin assertion the onshore without involving Indigenous peoples," said Matthew Wildcat, manager of Indigenous governance astatine the University of Alberta, and a subordinate of Ermineskin Cree Nation. 

"We can't deliberation astir our Canadian sovereignty being breached isolated unless treaties [and] Indigenous peoples are portion of that reordering of sovereignty."

Smith said astatine the quality league she doesn't privation to justice the types of petitions Albertans privation to enactment distant and that involvement successful separatism mightiness not beryllium widespread, referring to a recent Angus Reid survey that suggested one successful 4 Albertans would ballot to abstracted from Canada. 

"It seems to maine that the bulk of radical are not successful favour of that, and truthful I conjecture we'll spot whether oregon not they're capable to enactment unneurotic a petition, stitchery capable signatures and enactment it to the people," she said. 

The premier mentioned examples wherever Albertans had a accidental successful important issues, including the 1997 referendum connected allowing VLTs successful the province.