A major theme throughout Indigenous history, especially towards the end of the nineteenth century and onwards, was the limited control the First Nations had over their own affairs. Although through the years many policies and laws were enacted, in 1876, in an attempt to aid Indigenous people, the Canadian government established the Indian Act. It was put forth with the intention of rectifying previous legislations but resulted in presenting the Indigenous community with a whole new set of inequalities. The Indian Act granted more power to the federal Department of Indian Affairs in decision making for First Nations communities. The Act allowed for the Department of Indian Affairs to have control things over such things as land, money, resources, and access to alcohol and other intoxicants, but the main goal was to promote ‘civilization. ’Assimilation has been a long running issue in the lives of the First Nations in Canada. Over the history of Indigenous-Settler relations, the government has a track record of forcing values and culture upon the First Nations people. Though it is one of the most amended pieces of legislature in Canadian history, many versions of the Indian Act went so far as to ban traditional celebrations such as the potlatch and sundances. Rather than accepting differences and allowing Indigenous people to thrive and implementing measures to help in cultural preservation, the government decided the First Nations would benefit more from abandoning their way of life and becoming more like the rest of Canadian citizens. Unfortunately this was done in a forceful way and the attempt to immerse First Nations into western culture was even more enhanced with the existence of residential schools. Between 1857-1996, 150 000 children were filed through the residential school system in which they were separated from their families and forced to abandon their culture. In these school systems the children faces all sorts of abuse of which the effects are still felt today.

By the 1960s, the government could no longer deny that there was an apparent inequality in the quality of life of the First Nations compared to the rest of Canadian citizens. In 1969, the Trudeau government introduced the White Paper. The goal of this was to eliminate everything that separated First Nations from the rest of Canadian citizens in attempt to create a more equal society. The government thought that if all Canadians held the same rights regardless of language, culture, socio-economic background etc.,then they would successfully abolish injustices faced by the First Nations. It was believed that the labelling of First Nations people with special ‘Indian Status’ put them at a disadvantage. The White Paper eliminated Indian status, sought to dissolve the Department of Indian Affairs and shift to a provincial lens, abolished the Indian Act and removed and added other policies to help in encouraging a more unified society. The goal was to end separation and fully integrate Indigenous people into Canadian society because the government associated so many of the issues faced by First Nations people with being socially isolated.

Though it was an attempt to improve the lives of the First Nations people, the Canadian government oversaw many crucial details that made this legislature extremely unpopular. Most significantly, the government neglected to incorporate the Indigenous communities in their discussion on the potential impacts of the White Paper. This was a crucial mistake as the government attempted to make a piece of legislation to benefit the lives of First Nations without first consulting them. A major issue many Indigenous people had with the White Paper Act was that though it strove for equality, it failed to see how it was a new form of assimilation. Though the intentions were good, The White Papers goal for equality was not what First Nations people needed. Socially they were not at a disadvantage because of the title of Indian Status, but because of the years of abuse and cultural genocide that affected their communities from within. the White Paper was extremely threatening to Indigenous culture in the early 1970s as it essentially eliminated many of the few rights First Nations people had by applying the same rights to all Canadian citizens instead of taking into account that they were already at a disadvantage. Due to its lack of consultation with the Indigenous population and poor interpretation of the lives of Indigenous people, the White Paper was widely rejected and was withdrawn by 1971.

The failure of the White Paper, did however give birth to a new form of Indigenous Nationalism by giving First Nations people a need to preserve culture and demand more from the government, namely being included in the decision making processes. The concept of Citizens Plus was coined with the idea of Indigenous people being equal to the rest of Canadian citizens in addition to other rights that would protect their culture and help them thrive regardless of the previous discrimination. The new surge of Aboriginal Nationalism and pride was followed by further movements involving the supreme court. First Nations organizations begin to increasingly challenge the governments policies and courts got involved. Throughout the 1970s there were three court decisions involving First Nations land claims that all ruled in favour of the Indigenous community. Following this, the (at the time) Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development, reviewed the three Supreme Court cases and expressed a willingness to negotiate land claims which ended up leading to new policies being creating, granting First Nations people more land, fishing and hunting rights, as well as financial compensation and other social and economic benefits.

Between the late 1960s and early 1980s there was a significant shift in the First Nation's attitude as well as recognition for the inequalities. Seeing as how Nishnabe Delights was written in the midst of this significant period of social unrest in first nations communities, that it as well as other works of Mary Lou Fox was written as a response to threats the Ojibwe and Odawa people faced during these years. Cultural preservation and celebration was essential to the Indigenous people and it is expressed in their unwillingness to forego their rights and status. Today there still exists many inequalities and threats to the First Nation population but recognition and effort exist and going forward there can hopefully only be more improvements.