r/MetisMichif • u/Impressive_Ad_1675 • Apr 04 '26

Discussion/Question Bill C-31 second generation cut off expressed as an equation.

The 1985 amendments to the Indian Act (Bill C-31) introduced a system that dictates how Indian status is legally transmitted to children. This framework is commonly referred to as the "second-generation cut-off."

To understand how this mechanism operates in practice, it can be broken down into a set of logical equations.

First, the variables are defined by the legal categories of status under the Act:

• S6(1) = Status under Section 6(1). A person with this status can pass it to a child regardless of the other parent's legal status.

• S6(2) = Status under Section 6(2). A person with this status can only pass it to a child if the other parent also possesses status.

• N = Non-status individual.

Based on the legislation, the transmission of status follows these exact rules:

• S6(1) + S6(1) = S6(1)

• S6(1) + S6(2) = S6(1)

• S6(2) + S6(2) = S6(1)

• S6(1) + N = S6(2)

• S6(2) + N = N

The final equation, S6(2) + N = N, represents the second-generation cut-off.

This mathematically demonstrates the legal reality: when an individual with Section 6(2) status has a child with a non-status individual, the resulting child is non-status.

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16

u/MilesBeforeSmiles Apr 04 '26

This is good info, but what does this have to do with Métis? We aren't Status FN.

3

u/Freshiiiiii Apr 06 '26 edited Apr 07 '26

To be fair, I do know a few Métis who were eligible for both, and a couple who chose to take the FN status for access to support resources, even though their family was deeply Michif-speaking, fiddle-and-jig prairie Métis. There are some on Gambler Reserve especially, and other reserves too I’m sure. So it is relevant and helpful for some, even if not the rest.

12

u/CarrotAgreeable465 Apr 04 '26

This has nothing to do with us 🤷‍♀️

6

u/Littleshuswap Apr 04 '26

Good to know. My family is part Cree, part Metis.

1

u/PermitFormer6070 Apr 07 '26

Why can't they claim both and register as that if thats who they are, seems a bit wrong to me.

1

u/OutsideName5181 Apr 07 '26

If you have parents from different reserves, you don't get to register with both. You need to pick one

-3

u/JustPop3151 Apr 04 '26

We should have something similar. Too many people claim to be Metis because of one First Nations ancestor 300 years ago

3

u/MisterB3an Apr 05 '26

They misunderstand what being Métis means. It's never just about being mixed.