Anishinabe Of The Water
The official website of the Sharbot Mishigama Anishinabe AlgonquinFirst Nation Membership.

Indian

The term "Indian" collectively describes all the Indigenous people in Canada who are not Inuit or Métis. Indian peoples are one of three peoples recognized as Aboriginal in the Constitution Act, 1982. It specifies that Aboriginal people in Canada consist of the Indian, Inuit and Métis peoples.

There are three categories of Indians in Canada: Status Indians, Non-Status Indians and Treaty Indians.

• Status Indians
  Status Indians are people who are entitled to have their names included on the Indian Register, an official list maintained by the federal government. Certain criteria determine who can be registered as a Status Indian. Only Status Indians are recognized as Indians under the Indian Act, which defines an Indian as "a person who, pursuant to this Act, is registered as an Indian or is entitled to be registered as an Indian." Status Indians are entitled to certain rights and benefits under the law.
  
  
• Non-Status Indians
  Non-Status Indians are people who consider themselves Indians or members of a First Nation but whom the Government of Canada does not recognize as Indians under the Indian Act, either because they are unable to prove their status or have lost their status rights. Many Indian people in Canada, especially women, lost their Indian status through discriminatory practices in the past. Non-Status Indians are not entitled to the same rights and benefits available to Status Indians.
  
  
• Treaty Indian
  A Status Indian who belongs to a First Nation that signed a treaty
  with the Crown.

The term "Indian" is considered outdated by many people, and there is much debate over whether to continue using this term. The Department, following popular usage, typically uses the term "First Nation" instead of "Indian," except in the following cases:

• in direct quotations
  
• when citing titles of books, works of art, etc.
  
• in discussions of history where necessary for clarity and accuracy
  
• in discussions of some legal/constitutional matters requiring precision in terminology
  
• in discussions of rights and benefits provided on the basis of "Indian" status
  
• in statistical information collected using these categories (e.g., the Census).

Suggested usage:

Capitalize. The Department capitalizes "Indian," "Status Indian," "Non-Status Indian," and "Treaty Indian" as it would other designations like "Francophone," "Arabic" or "Nordic."

Use as a noun and a modifier. The term is acceptable as both.