In 1970, Jeannette Corbiere Lavell, a young Anishinaabe woman, lost her legal status under the Indian Act simply because she married a non-Indigenous man. She was stripped of her membership in the Wiikwemkoong community and barred from living on the reserve. This provision did not apply to Indigenous men who married non-Indigenous women.
Dismayed by this blatant injustice, she took her case all the way to the Supreme Court of Canada.
This short film retraces Jeannette’s stand against colonialism and gender discrimination in Canadian law. Through her voice, we revisit a defining chapter in the struggle for Indigenous women’s rights and reflect on how her willingness to overcome obstacles helped shape the path for future generations.
This documentary is part of a series of short films giving voice to citizens who brought their cases to the Supreme Court of Canada, featured throughout the docu-course Keys to the Court. These documentaries offer perspectives rarely heard on their experience with the justice system and the lasting impact of those experiences on their families and communities.
Step inside the Supreme Court of Canada
