Introduction Before colonization, Mi’kmaq territory included all of Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and parts of Quebec, New Brunswick and Maine. The Mi’kmaq practiced a religion based on Mother Nature, and deeply tied to the land. Mythology also played an important part in spiritual life. According to Orkin (2009), the Mi’kmaq people live in conical birch bark wigwams. The birch bark was also used to make canoes in which to travel the water ways. The Mi’kmaq was also at home on the sea, traveling in ocean going versions of their light canoes. Mi’kmaq in Historical Perspective For centuries, the Mi’kmaq lived along the shore line in summer, fishing, gathering shell fish, and hunting seals and whales. In the winter, most moved inland setting up settlements in sheltered forested areas. Moose, bear, caribou, and smaller game provided food and clothing, supplemented by wild berries. In addition, plants and herbs were used for teas and medical purposes. They respected their environment and only killed, took, or used what they needed. When the Europeans first settled in Nova Scotia, the natural resources were virtually untouched. They befriended the first French settlers, acting as guides, teaching them to live off the land and showing them how to make fish weirs and eel traps, how to ice-fish, which wild berries were safe to eat, and how to prepare them, how to cure and prevent scurvy, and more. The Mi’kmaq began to convert to Christianity in 1610, and their way of life underwent other major changes as they abandoned many traditional customs and focused on gathering furs and hides for trade purposes. The French gave these people weapons, and both French and English passed on diseases such as small pox which killed many. Distrustful and fearful, the English and New Englanders saw the Mi’kmaq not as allies but hostile savages, and decided that forceful subjugation and assimilation would be the best course of action. In 1749, Governor Cornwallis put a bounty on the head of every Mi’kmaq whether man, woman, or child. The amount of the bounty was increased the following year. Although a proclamation by King George III in 1763 promised protection for the Mi’kmaq and their hunting grounds, they suffered a similar fate to that of Native Americans across the continent. Often caught between the French and English/British power struggle for North America, they were robbed off their land, persecuted, forced to live with virtually no rights, and herded on to reserves. For decades, the federal government actively suppressed Mi’kmaq traditions. For example, in 1885, religious ceremonies were prohibited. In 1927, Canadian government legislation forbade aboriginals in Canada from forming political organizations, as well as practicing their traditional culture and language. In the 19 th century, the Mi’kmaq were confined to about 60 locations, both on and off reserve, dotted about the province. In the 1940s, the Canadians implemented a centralization policy, which mandated that they be moved against their will to just two reserves. Young Mi’kmaq children were taken away from their families and taught the white man’s ways in order to integrate them into mainstream society and rapidly lose the culture and