This study breaks new ground by examining data from Canada’s last three censuses — 1996, 2001 and 2006 — to measure the income gap between Aboriginal peoples and the rest of Canadians.

Not only has the legacy of colonialism left Aboriginal peoples disproportionately ranked among the poorest of Canadians, this study reveals disturbing levels of income inequality persist as well.

In 2006, the median income for Aboriginal peoples was $18,962 — 30% lower than the $27,097 median income for the rest of Canadians. The difference of $8,135 that existed in 2006, however, was marginally smaller than the difference of $9,045 in 2001 or $9,428 in 1996.

While income disparity between Aboriginal peoples and the rest of Canadians narrowed slightly between 1996 and 2006, at this rate it would take 63 years for the gap to be erased.