The Forced Sterilization of Indigenous Women

Today many Canadians still see Colonialist policies as a thing of the past, however this couldn’t be farther from the truth. For decades Indigenous Women have been sterilized by their doctors without their consent and often without their knowledge. The practice—born out of the eugenics movement and state sponsored policies to eradicate Indigenous peoples in Canada— has been occurring since at least the 1930s. Similarly to the racist notions behind Residential Schools, Indigenous Women have—and continue to—be sterilized in an attempt to eradicate what Canada’s founders believed to be an inferior class of people.

There were only ever official policies in Alberta and British Columbia legalizing coerced sterilization that were repealed in 1972 and 1973 respectively but the practice was widespread across the nation.

Today, despite being a human rights violation, it is still not illegal under Canada's Criminal Code. Furthermore, a recent report from Canada’s Senate revealed that the practice is still continuing today. Sixteen women testified before a senate committee on Human rights detailing their forced and coerced sterilizations by doctors in Canadian hospitals. Additionally, there is an on-going class action lawsuit with over 100 Women detailing their accounts of their bodily autonomy being violated from 2000 to as recently as 2019 in provinces across the country from the Yukon, Manitoba, Ontario and as east as Quebec. As settlers across the country have an increased sense of consciousness of Canada’s genocidal history against Indigenous people’s it is important to remind ourselves that the horrendous acts of violence against Indiegnous women continue today.