File IMC-144 - Indian-Eskimo Association documents

The Indian-Eskimo Association of Canada (IEA) had its origins in the Canadian Association for Adult Education (CAAE) when the CAAE appointed a committee “to study the problem of the Indian in the community off reserve, thereby stimulating organizations to make surveys, conduct research appoint specialists and provide services as needs arise,” with the intention of the Committee becoming a national organization. This committee became known as the National Commission on the Indian Canadian and it functioned as a standing committee of the CAAE. In 1960, the Commission withdrew from the CAAE and was incorporated as the Indian-Eskimo Association. Its services, at this time, were expanded to include all First Nations, Inuit and Métis people both on and off reserve. Its first president was Clare Evelyn Clark. The Indian-Eskimo Association was a national citizen's organization with membership open to all people interested in promoting the well-being of Indigenous people. Indigenous people formed 25% of the membership and at all times had members on the Board of Directors. The Association was headquartered in Toronto until 1973, it when it moved to Ottawa and changed its name to the Canadian Association in Support of Native Peoples (CASNP). The IEA was active in fund raising, organizing workshops to discuss housing, and working on community and economic development projects.