Sask. police remove roadblocks for Indigenous people reclaiming names

Indigenous people whose names were changed by the residential school system will have an easier time reclaiming their names thanks to a change by police across Saskatchewan.

The new move by the Saskatchewan Association of Chiefs of Police will remove barriers for those who are seeking to reclaim their Indigenous names, in a move that follows a specific call to action by Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

“In recognition of not only the historical trauma but to acknowledge the living trauma of the Survivors of residential schools and the Sixties Scoop, effective immediately all police agencies in Saskatchewan will waive the fees associated with criminal record checks and fingerprints required for Indigenous people who wish to reclaim their Indigenous name,” the association said in a statement.

Saskatchewan requires a record check and fingerprints for anyone requesting a legal name change, the association noted, and police agencies typically charge a fee for those services. Now, the association said, those fees will be waived for anyone seeking to reclaim an Indigenous name.

“The Saskatchewan Association of Chiefs of Police is committed to working collectively with policing agencies and Indigenous people across the province and this policy change is one way we can journey together on a continued path toward reconciliation,” the association’s statement added.

More information on the legal name change process in Saskatchewan can be found on the provincial government’s website.