Background

The Report of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples (RCAP), issued in October 1996, identified a number of archival, records management, historical, and cultural issues which provide a collective challenge to the Canadian archival community. The move to establish a special interest section within the ACA has largely resulted from the recognition that Canadian archivists must contribute in their own unique way to the future of Aboriginal peoples in Canada.

A meeting was held during the Annual Conference of the ACA on 4 June 1997 in order to open a dialogue between archivists (including Aboriginal archivists) and non-archivists on the subject of Aboriginal archives. This meeting resulted in the appointment of Terry Cook as interim chair of a steering committee to establish the Special Interest Section on Aboriginal Archives (SISAA). The steering committee has sought expressions of interest in joining SISAA through an article in the ACA Bulletin, a number of regional archival newsletters, the ACA web site, and via the ARCAN-L listserv. SISAA received formal recognition as a Special Interest Section by the ACA Board of Directors in November, 1997.

Any questions or comments on SISAA may be directed to Edward Atkinson, Chair, care of the SISAA electronic mail box.

Purpose of SISAA

• provide members of the ACA with a forum to discuss a wide range of archival issues relating to records created by Aboriginal peoples and records concerning Aboriginal peoples created by non-Aboriginal peoples;
  
  
• serve as an interface between the community of Canadian archivists and Aboriginal communities and organizations;
  
  
• form a base of expertise, advice, and support on archival issues that can be shared with Aboriginal communities and organizations;
  
  
• provide ACA members at large with information on archival issues of significance to Aboriginal peoples.

Objectives of SISAA

• promote awareness of and membership in SISAA among members of the ACA;
  
  
• promote awareness of SISAA within the Canadian archival community as a whole, and among Aboriginal communities and organizations through the use of the Internet, notices in Aboriginal and other relevant magazines, newsletters, and newspapers, and through direct mailing where necessary;
  
  
• build a foundation for a permanent membership and communications infrastructure, with the particular goal of attracting Aboriginal membership and reaching out to Aboriginal communities and organizations;
  
  
• building on the analysis and recommendations offered by the report of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples, 1) identify archival issues of greatest concern to archivists and Aboriginal peoples, and 2) prepare a strategic plan that will prioritize these issues and plan action steps for the medium term that will be carried out by ACA members in partnership with archival institutions, other cultural institutions, regional and international archival associations, educational institutions, Aboriginal communities and organizations,and other interested parties.