Gesgapegiag

Gesgapegiag is one of three First Nations communities on the south shore of the Gaspé Peninsula, whose members are primarily of Mi'kmaq ancestry. Most reside on the federally recognized Indian reserve established by the legislature of Lower Canada in the 1850s for the exclusive use of Mi'kmaq in the region. Others live off-reserve across Canada and the eastern United States, maintaining close ties to the community.

All members, whether on- or off-reserve, participate in biennial elections to choose one chief and eight councillors under the Indian Act. The community maintains close alliances with other Mi'kmaq communities in Quebec’s Gaspé Peninsula and New Brunswick. Together, their elected chiefs work to advance ancestral claims to self-government and the traditional Mi’kmaq district of Gespe’gewa’gi (Kespékewáki), meaning “the last land.”

Gespe’gewa’gi is the Mi’kmaq Nation district extending from the Miramichi River to the tip of the Gaspé Peninsula, spanning the modern Quebec–New Brunswick border. The Gesgapegiag First Nation is an active advocate for Indigenous and treaty rights in Canada. Its economy and cultural practices continue to rely on natural resources such as Atlantic salmon, forestry, and freshwater systems. Representatives of Gesgapegiag and the wider Gespe’gewa’gi district continue discussions with the Government of Quebec regarding access to traditional lands.