The Indigenous Law Student Governance (ILSG) has been a community for Indigenous law students at the University of Ottawa Faculty of Law for many years. As Indigenous students come to uOttawa from communities across Turtle Island, ILSG has always acted as a sort of “home away from home” for our Indigenous members. We’ve long been dedicated to fostering a community, putting on events, and gaining recognition within colonial legal spaces. 

 

As the ILSG (previously ILSA) was historically regarded as a “club” under the Faculty’s Common Law Student Society, ILSG members began to envision a new future for our community. We wanted to be recognized as a community representing our land, our traditions, and our laws. Past and present ILSG members worked tirelessly to develop a motion to become a self-governing body, while generating support from allies, faculty, and community.

 

On November 12, 2020, our motion to become an Indigenous self-governing body was unanimously passed, and the Indigenous Law Students Governance was born. We are touched by the support the Indigenous community and non-Indigenous allies have shown us in helping our vision come to life. As we continue to create the Indigenous self-governing body of our dreams, we have dedicated ourselves to doing this work in a good way.