History
Synopsis:
A provocative, historical investigation into the displacement of the Snayackstx (Sinixt) First People of British Columbia’s West Kootenays.
This compact book records a quest for understanding, to find the story behind the Snayackstx (Sinixt) First Nation. Known in the United States as the Arrow Lakes Indians of the Colville Confederated Tribes, the tribe lived along the upper Columbia River and its tributaries for thousands of years. In a story unique to First Nations in Canada, the Canadian federal government declared them “extinct” in 1956, eliminating with the stroke of a pen this tribe’s ability to legally access 80 per cent of their trans-boundary traditional territory.
Part travelogue, part cultural history, the book details the culture, place names, practices, and landscape features of this lost tribe of British Columbia, through a contemporary lens that presents all readers with an opportunity to participate in reconciliation.
Educator Information
Please note that the author of this work is not Indigenous, but the text content is about the Snayackstx (Sinixt) First People. Shelly Boyd, Sinixt/Arrow Lakes Cultural Facilitator provides a Foreword.
In an Introduction to the work, the author notes: "First and foremost, every word of the story of their culture as presented here has been confirmed and accepted as true by the contemporary Sinixt.... Second, because the story also exists within a colonial context, it refers to written materials, published history and textual memories, information that was often recorded by the hand of non-Indigenous People but nonetheless reflects the knowledge of Indigenous generations.... The result is a tapestry, combining threads of history, ethnography, science and personal essays on the natural word.... Sinixit leaders, local historians, and academic experts review[ed] the text prior to publication.... Some non-Indigenous people criticized me for writing about Indigenous People at all, telling me it was not 'my story to tell.' This was, I realize now, a subtle form of silencing. While racism toward Indigenous People still exists across this culture, a groundswell of recognition has begun. In working alongside the Sinixt all these years, I have come to understand that integrating Indigenous perspectives into contemporary culture is not exclusively the responsibility of Indigenous People. As Shelly Boyd so aptly reminds all of us, we, the settlers, need to listen well and with respect. We need to pick up our pens or cameras or drawing pencils, and dig in to help."
It is up to readers to determine if this resource will be useful for their purposes.
Additional Information
280 pages | 6.00" x 8.90" | Paperback
Synopsis:
Too often, history and knowledge of Indigenous-settler conflict over land take the form of confidential reports prepared for court challenges. To Share, Not Surrender offers an entirely new approach, opening scholarship to the public and augmenting it with First Nations community expertise.
The collection appraises the historical and present-day relevance of treaty-making in the colonies of Vancouver Island and British Columbia. The authors take us back to when James Douglas and his family relocated to Fort Victoria on Vancouver Island in 1849, critically tracing the transition from treaty-making in the colony of Vancouver Island to reserve formation in the colony of British Columbia. Informed by cel’aṉ’en – “our culture, the way of our people” – this multivocal work explicitly addresses the tensions between academic research, Indigenous knowledge, and local experience. The collection includes essays, translations/interpretations of the treaties into the SENĆOŦEN and Lekwungen languages, and contributions by participants of the Songhees, Huu-ay-aht, and WSANEC peoples.
The chapters demonstrate that the continuing inability to arrive at equitable land-sharing arrangements stem from a fundamental absence of will with respect to accommodating First Nations world views. To Share, Not Surrender is an attempt to understand why, and thus to advance the urgent task of reconciliation in Canada.
The multiple perspectives presented in this important work will find equally diverse audiences: Canadian historians, scholars and students of Indigenous studies, ethno-historians, legal historians, lawyers practising in the areas of Aboriginal law, and researchers preparing historical reports on First Nation land claims.
Reviews
"The past is with us and history matters. Read To Share Not Surrender as a great example of how there can be different interpretations of the past." — Robin Fisher, The British Columbia Review
"After James Douglas negotiated treaties on Vancouver Island, he never made another in BC. Why not? Some of the foremost experts in the field work here to answer this question, analyzing Douglas’s policies and their lasting impact on BC First Nations’ continuing battle with rights and title." — Daniel Boxberger, professor emeritus, anthropology, Western Washington University
"The connection that To Share, Not Surrender makes between the events of the 1850s and 1860s and the modern-day treaty process in British Columbia is extremely valuable. It helps the reader develop a better understanding, not only of colonial history, but also of the relevance of Indigenous law to territorial claims today." — Kent McNeil, author of Flawed Precedent: The St. Catherine’s Case and Aboriginal Title
Educator Information
Contributors: Keith Thor Carlson, Robert Clifford, Emchayiik Robert Dennis Sr., STOLCEL John Elliott Sr., Elmer George, Stephen Hume, Maxine Hayman Matilpi, Kevin Neary, Adele Perry, Sarah Pike, Chief Ron Sam, and Laura Spitz
Additional Information
330 pages | 6.00" x 9.00" | Paperback
Synopsis:
In May 2021, the world was shocked by news of the detection of 215 unmarked graves on the grounds of the former Kamloops Indian Residential School (KIRS) in British Columbia, Canada. Ground-penetrating radar confirmed the deaths of students as young as three in the infamous residential school system, which systematically removed children from their families and brought them to the schools. At these Christian-run, government-supported institutions, they were subjected to physical, mental, and sexual abuse while their Indigenous languages and traditions were stifled and denounced. The egregious abuses suffered in residential schools across the continent caused - as the 2021 discoveries confirmed - death for too many and a multigenerational legacy of trauma for those who survived.
"Tsquelmucwilc" (pronounced cha-CAL-mux-weel) is a Secwepemc phrase loosely translated as "We return to being human again." Tsqelmucwilc is the story of those who survived the Kamloops Indian Residential School, based on the 1988 book Resistance and Renewal, a groundbreaking history of the school - and the first book on residential schools ever published in Canada. Tsqelmucwilc includes the original text as well as new material by the original book's author, Celia Haig-Brown; essays by Secwepemc poet and KIRS survivor Garry Gottfriedson and Nuu-chah-nulth elder and residential school survivor Randy Fred; and first-hand reminiscences by other survivors of KIRS, as well as their children, on their experience and the impact of their trauma throughout their lives.
Read both within and outside the context of the grim 2021 discoveries, Tsqelmucwilc is a tragic story in the history of Indigenous peoples of the indignities suffered at the hands of their colonizers, but it is equally a remarkable tale of Indigenous survival, resilience, and courage.
Additional Information
240 pages | 6.00" x 8.00" | B&W photos throughout | Paperback
Synopsis:
A heart-rending true story about racism and reconciliation.
Divided by a beautiful valley and 150 years of racism, the town of Rossburn and the Waywayseecappo Indian reserve have been neighbours nearly as long as Canada has been a country. Their story reflects much of what has gone wrong in relations between Indigenous Peoples and non-Indigenous Canadians. It also offers, in the end, an uncommon measure of hope.
Valley of the Birdtail is about how two communities became separate and unequal—and what it means for the rest of us. In Rossburn, once settled by Ukrainian immigrants who fled poverty and persecution, family income is near the national average and more than a third of adults have graduated from university. In Waywayseecappo, the average family lives below the national poverty line and less than a third of adults have graduated from high school, with many haunted by their time in residential schools.
This book follows multiple generations of two families, one white and one Indigenous, and weaves their lives into the larger story of Canada. It is a story of villains and heroes, irony and idealism, racism and reconciliation. Valley of the Birdtail has the ambition to change the way we think about our past and show a path to a better future.
Reviews
"Meticulously researched and written with compassion, Valley of the Birdtail draws two parallel lines hopelessly distant, and then shows us a pathway through which they can come together. It’s a work of trauma, of broken relationships, of how we perceive one another, but ultimately, it’s a story of possibility and healing." — David A. Robertson, author of Black Water: Family, Legacy, and Blood Memory
"This is a magnificent book. It’s a new history of Canada, as lived in two communities—Rossburn and Waywayseecappo—who shared the same valley but never lived the same reality. I am haunted by what I learned and touched by the hope that these communities can teach us all how to live together in peace and justice. A truly extraordinary achievement: peeling back the layers of the history, searching through the records, but never once losing the characters, the detail, the grit of lives lived. I'm just so impressed." — Michael Ignatieff, author of On Consolation: Finding Solace in Dark Times
Additional Information
384 pages | 6.00" x 9.00" | Hardcover
Synopsis:
The story of an overlooked group of cultural visionaries
The “Micmac Indian Craftsmen” of Elsipogtog (then known as Big Cove) rose to national prominence in the early 1960s. At their peak, they were featured in print media from coast to coast, their work was included in books and exhibitions — including at Expo 67 — and their designs were featured on prints, silkscreened notecards, jewelry, tapestries, and even English porcelain.
Primarily self-taught and deeply rooted in their community, they were among the first modern Indigenous artists in Atlantic Canada. Inspired by traditional Wabanaki stories, they produced an eclectic range of handmade objects that were sophisticated, profound, and eloquent.
By 1966, the withdrawal of government support compromised the Craftsmen's resources, production soon ceased, and their work faded from memory. Now, for the first time, the story of this groundbreaking co-operative and their art is told in full. Accompanying a major exhibition at the Beaverbrook Art Gallery opening in 2022, Wabanaki Modern features essays on the history of this vibrant art workshop, archival photographs of the artisans, and stunning full-colour images of their art.
Wla atukuaqn na ujit ta'nik mu ewi'tamuki'k tetuji kelulkɨpp ta'n teli amaliteka'tijik
Wla “Mi'kmewaqq L'nue'k amaliteka'tijik” tlo'ltijik Elsipogtog (amskweseweyekk i'tlui'tasikɨpp Big Cove) poqji wuli nenupnikk wla amaliteka'tijik 1960ekk. Je wekaw wutlukowaqnmuwow ika'tasikɨpp wikatikniktuk aqq ne'yo'tasikɨpp ta'n pukwelk ta'n wen nmitew — je wekaw Expo 67 — aqq ta'n koqoey kisi napui'kmi'tipp tampasɨk koqoey eweketu'tij stike' l'taqnewi'kasik, napui'kn misekn, wi'katikne'ji'jk, meko'tikl kuntal, kaqapitkl l'taqa'teke'l, aqq wekaw akalasie'we'k eptaqnk. Nekmow na kekina'masultijik aqq melki knukwi'tij ta'n tett telayawultijik, nekmow na amskewsewa'jewaqq l'nu'k tel nenujik ujit ta'n teli amaliteka'tijik ujit Atlantic Canada. Pema'lkwi'titl a'tukuaqnn ta'n sa'qewe'l, ta'n wejiaqel a'tukuaqnn Wabanaki, l'tu'tipp kaqasi milamu'k koqowey toqo eweketu'titl wutpitnual tetuji moqɨtekl, ma'muntekl, aqq weltekl.
Wekaw 1966ekk, kpno'l pun apoqnmuapni wla amaliteka'tikete'jɨk jel kaqnma'tijik ta'n koqoey nuta'tipp, amuj pana pun lukutipnikk, aqq tel awantasuwalutki'k. Nike', amskwesewey, wla a'tukuaqn tetuji msɨki'kɨpp wla wut lukewaqnmuwow etel kaqi a'tukwasikk. Wije'tew meski'k neya'tmk Beaverbrook Art Gallery pana'siktetew 2022al, Wabanaki Modern na pema'toql wikikaqnn ujit ta'n pemiaqɨpp wla tetuji wulamu'kɨpp kisitaqnne'l telukutijik, maskutekl sa'qewe'l napuikasikl toqo nemu'jik etl-lukutijik wla lukewinu'k, aqq sikte wultek aqq welamu'k ta'n koqoey kisitu'tij.
L'histoire d'un groupe de visionnaires culturels ignorés
Un groupe d'artisans mi'kmaw d'Elsipogtog (autrefois Big Cove) au Nouveau-Brunswick se fit connaître à travers le Canada au début des années 1960. À l'apogée de leur renommée, les Micmac Indian Craftsmen firent l'objet d'articles dans des publications d'un océan à l'autre. Leur travail figura dans des livres et des expositions — dont Expo 67 à Montréal — et leurs œuvres graphiques furent reproduites sous forme de gravures et de sérigraphies, et elles ornèrent de la papeterie, des bijoux, des tapisseries et même de la porcelaine anglaise.
En grande partie autodidactes et solidement enracinés dans leur communauté, les Micmac Indian Craftsmen furent parmi les premiers artistes autochtones modernes au Canada atlantique. En s'inspirant de récits traditionnels wabanakis, ils fabriquaient à la main une gamme variée d'objets raffinés, évocateurs et porteurs d'un sens profond.
En 1966, toutefois, le gouvernement retira son soutien. Les Craftsmen perdirent leur financement, la production cessa peu après et leur œuvre finit par être oubliée. Une nouvelle publication relate maintenant, pour la première fois, l'histoire complète de cette coopérative innovatrice et de ses réalisations. Publié dans le cadre d'une grande exposition qui a lieu à la Galerie d'art Beaverbrook en 2022, Wabanaki Moderne comprend des textes sur l'histoire de cet atelier dynamique, des photographies d'archives des artisans et de superbes illustrations couleur de leurs œuvres.
Educator Information
Delivered in three languages: English, Mi'kmaw, and French
Additional Information
228 pages | 10.00" x 10.00" | Paperback | 96 Colour Reproductions and Photos, 26 Black and White Illustrations and Archival Photos
Synopsis:
Long known as the Cannibal Dance, the Hamat̓sa is among the most important hereditary prerogatives of the Kwakwa̱ka̱ꞌwakw of British Columbia. Writing the Hamat̓sa offers a critical survey of attempts to record, describe, and interpret the dance under shifting colonial policy. In the late nineteenth century, as anthropologists arrived to document the practice, colonial agents were pursuing its eradication and Kwakwa̱ka̱ꞌwakw were adapting it to ensure its survival. In the process, the dance – with dramatic choreography, magnificent bird masks, and an aura of cannibalism – entered a vast and variegated library of ethnographic texts.
Drawing on close, contextualized reading of published texts, extensive archival research, and fieldwork, Aaron Glass analyses key examples of overlapping genres over four centuries: the exploration journal, the territorial survey, the missionary polemic, settler journalism, government reports, anthropological works (especially by Franz Boas and George Hunt), poetry, fiction, and Indigenous (auto)biography.
Going beyond postcolonial critiques of representation that often ignore Indigenous agency in the ethnographic encounter, Writing the Hamat̓sa focuses on forms of textual mediation and Indigenous response that helped transform the ceremony from a set of specific performances into a generalized cultural icon. This meticulous work illuminates how Indigenous people contribute to, contest, and repurpose texts in the process of fashioning modern identities under settler colonialism.
This comprehensive critical survey of ethnographic literature on the Hamat̓sa ceremony will be an invaluable resource for scholars and students of the Northwest Coast in a range of disciplines – Indigenous studies, anthropology and history of anthropology, ethnohistory, BC studies, art history, museum studies, and material culture – as well as for Kwakwa̱ka̱ꞌwakw/Indigenous readers.
Educator Information
Table of Contents
Foreword / Chief William Cranmer/T̓łlakwagila (ꞌNa̱mg̱is Nation)
Prologue: Points of Arrival and Departure
Introduction: From Writing Culture to the Intercultural History of Ethnography
1 A Complex Cannibal: Colonialism, Modernity and the Hamat̓sa
2 Discursive Cannibals:The Textual Dynamics of Settler Colonialism, 1786–1893
3 The Foundations of All Future Researches: The Work of Franz Boas and George Hunt, 1886–1966
4 Reading, Rewriting, and Writing Against: Changing Anthropological Theory, 1896–1997
5 From Index to Icon: (Auto)Biography and Popular Culture, 1941–2012
6 Reading Culture, Consuming Ethnography
Afterword: Between This World and That / Andy Everson/Tanis (K̕ómoks Nation)
Appendices
Glossary
Notes; References; Index
Additional Information
512 pages | 6.00" x 9.00" | 28 b&w photos, 2 maps | Paperback
Synopsis:
What's natural, what's caused by humans, and why climate change is a disaster for all.
A Brief History of the Earth's Climate is an accessible myth-busting guide to the natural evolution of the Earth's climate over 4.6 billion years, and how and why human-caused global warming and climate change is different and much more dangerous.
Richly illustrated chapters cover the major historical climate change processes including evolution of the sun, plate motions and continental collisions, volcanic eruptions, changes to major ocean currents, Earth's orbital variations, sunspot variations, and short-term ocean current cycles. As well as recent human-induced climate change and an overview of the implications of the COVID pandemic for climate change. Content includes:
- Understanding natural geological processes that shaped the climate
- How human impacts are now rapidly changing the climate
- Tipping points and the unfolding climate crisis
- What we can do to limit the damage to the planet and ecosystems
- Countering climate myths peddled by climate change science deniers.
A Brief History of the Earth's Climate is essential reading for everyone who is looking to understand what drives climate change, counter skeptics and deniers, and take action on the climate emergency.
Reviews
"I love it. Earle understands the big climate picture and paints it with exceptional clarity."— James Hansen, director, Climate Science, Awareness and Solutions, Columbia University Earth Institute
"An informative, succinct, and fascinating read — Steven Earle offers a unique and detailed account of Earth's climate history. His innate story-telling ability, coupled with his remarkable talent for making complex scientific information accessible, makes this page-turner a must-read for anyone seeking to understand the Earth's climate system."— Andrew Weaver, professor, University of Victoria, lead author, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, second, third, fourth, and fifth Assessment Reports, former chief editor, Journal of Climate
"An engaging tour through the complex natural processes at play in writing the Earth's long history of natural climate change to our present climate emergency. This primer will give campaigners, policymakers, and concerned citizens a more thorough understanding of climate science and renewed conviction to go all in on applying the brakes, leaving fossil fuels behind, and embracing a cleaner, healthier, and more equitable future."— Tom Green, Senior Climate Policy Advisor, David Suzuki Foundation
"People interested in climate change, which these days should be everyone, need a basic understanding of the science of why Earth's climate is the way it is, and why it sometimes changes. Earle's book makes that complicated story easy to grasp. It's a model for clear science writing, and it forcefully awakens readers to what's at stake and what needs to be done."— Richard Heinberg, Senior Fellow, Post Carbon Institute, author, Power
Additional Information
208 pages | 6.00" x 9.00" | 60 black and white illustrations | Paperback
Synopsis:
In A People and a Nation, the authors, most of whom are themselves Métis, offer readers a set of lenses through which to consider the complexity of historical and contemporary Métis nationhood and peoplehood. Multidisciplinary chapters on identity, politics, literature, history, spirituality, religion, and kinship networks orient the conversation toward Métis experiences today.
The chapters within are themselves also a reorientation given that the field of Métis Studies has been afflicted by a longstanding tendency to situate Métis within deeply racialized contexts, and/or by an overwhelming focus on the nineteenth century. A People and a Nation confronts such problematic characterizations head on, training a critical gaze on conventional historiographical positionings of the Métis people as a primitive intermediate force that opened up the Canadian West.
A People and a Nation dismantles the impoverished notions that continue to shape political, legal, and social understandings of Métis existence. It is a timely collection that convincingly demonstrates how racialized interpretative frameworks diminish the Métis people and are incompatible with the task of understanding Métis peoplehood and nationhood.
Reviews
Educator Information
This important work will appeal not only to scholars in Métis studies but also to scholars and students of Indigenous studies, political science, sociology, history, and cultural studies, and to policy workers and others seeking a better understanding of the Métis people and the current state of Métis studies.
Table of Contents
Introduction: A New Era of Métis Studies Scholarship / Chris Andersen and Jennifer Adese
1 Peoplehood and the Nation Form: Core Concepts for a Critical Métis Studies / Chris Andersen
2 The Power of Peoplehood: Reimagining Metis Relationships, Research, and Responsibilities / Robert L.A. Hancock
3 The Race Question in Canada and the Politics of Racial Mixing / Daniel Voth
4 Challenging a Racist Fiction: A Closer Look at Métis-First Nations Relations / Robert Alexander Innes
5 Restoring the Balance: Métis Women and Contemporary Nationalist Political Organizing / Jennifer Adese
6 Alcide Morrissette: Oral Histories of a Métis Man on the Prairies in the Mid-Twentieth Century / Jesse Thistle
7 “We’re Still Here and Métis:” Rewriting the 1885 Resistance in Marilyn Dumont’s The Pemmican Eaters / June Scudeler
8 Mary and the Métis: Religion as a Site for New Insight in Métis Studies / Paul L. Gareau
9 Building the Field of Métis Studies: Toward Transformative and Empowering Métis Scholarship / Adam Gaudry
List of Contributors; Index
Additional Information
252 pages | 6.00" x 9.00" | Paperback
Synopsis:
The first intersectional history of the Black and Native American struggle for freedom in the United States that also reframes our understanding of who was Indigenous in early America.
Beginning with pre-Revolutionary America and moving into the movement for Black lives and contemporary Indigenous activism, Afro-Indigenous historian, Kyle T. Mays argues that the foundations of the US are rooted in antiblackness and settler colonialism, and that these parallel oppressions continue into the present. He explores how Black and Indigenous peoples have always resisted and struggled for freedom, sometimes together, and sometimes apart. Whether to end African enslavement and Indigenous removal or eradicate capitalism and colonialism, Mays show how the fervor of Black and Indigenous peoples calls for justice have consistently sought to uproot white supremacy.
Mays uses a wide-array of historical activists and pop culture icons, “sacred” texts, and foundational texts like the Declaration of Independence and Democracy in America. He covers the civil rights movement and freedom struggles of the 1960s and 1970s, and explores current debates around the use of Native American imagery and the cultural appropriation of Black culture. Mays compels us to rethink both our history as well as contemporary debates and to imagine the powerful possibilities of Afro-Indigenous solidarity.
Reviews
“Nuanced and illuminating, this book is a worthy addition to a remarkable series.”—Booklist
“This book reveals uncomfortable truths about the dehumanizing legacies of both capitalism and colonialism while forging a path of reconciliation between the Black and Native communities. Mays offers a solid entry point for further study. An enlightening reexamination of American history.” —Kirkus Reviews
“Accessible and informative . . . Mays’s colloquial voice enlivens the often-distressing history . . . This immersive revisionist history sheds light on an overlooked aspect of the American past.”—Publishers Weekly
“This is a bold and original narrative that is required reading to comprehend the deep historical relationship between the Indigenous peoples who were transported from Africa into chattel slavery and the Indigenous peoples who were displaced by European settler colonialism to profit from the land and resources, two parallel realities in search of self-determination and justice.” —Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz, author of An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States
“A bold, innovative, and astute analysis of how Blackness and Indigeneity have been forged as distinct yet overlapping social locations through the needs of capital, the logic of the nation-state, and the aims of US empire. While we know that slavery and settler colonialism are intricately linked, Kyle Mays uniquely demonstrates that the afterlives of these two institutions are also linked. They provide the land, bodies, and capital for ‘newer’ systems of bondage to flourish, such as mass incarceration. You will never think of the peoples’ history the same way after reading An Afro-Indigenous History of the United States.” —Robin D. G. Kelley, author of Freedom Dreams: The Black Radical Imagination
“Dr. Mays brilliantly makes accessible the knowledge of how Native, Black, and Afro-Indigenous communities, under the oppressive projects of settler colonialism and white supremacy, have navigated points of tension and harm, while simultaneously revealing instances when we’ve resisted by way of solidarity and allyship. Ultimately, he reminds us that both the ‘Indian problem’ and the ‘Negro problem’ are, in fact, a white supremacist problem.”—Melanin Mvskoke, Afro-Indigenous (Mvskoke Creek) activist
Additional Information
272 pages | 6.25" x 9.35" | Hardcover
Synopsis:
In 2000, the Nisg̱a’a treaty marked the culmination of over one hundred years of Nisg̱a’a people protesting, petitioning, litigating, and negotiating for recognition of their rights and land title. Beyond Rights explores this ground-breaking achievement and its impact.
Treaty making has long been an important element in relationships between the Crown and Indigenous peoples in what is now Canada, but modern treaties are more complex and multifaceted. Embodying the force of law, they are social and political compacts intended to create lasting reciprocal relationships between treaty partners. The Nisg̱a’a were trailblazers in gaining Supreme Court recognition of unextinguished Aboriginal title, and the treaty marked a turning point in the relationship between First Nations and provincial and federal governments. By embedding three key elements – self-government, title, and control of citizenship – the Nisg̱a’a treaty tackled fundamental issues concerning state sovereignty, the underlying title of the Crown, and the distribution of rights.
Using this pivotal case study, Beyond Rights analyzes both the potential and the limits of treaty making as a way to address historical injustice and achieve contemporary legal recognition. It also assesses the possibilities for a distinct Indigenous citizenship in a settler state with a long history of exclusion and assimilation.
This informed and critical analysis is for scholars and students of Indigenous studies, anthropology, political science, law, and socio-legal studies, as well as for practitioners and Indigenous communities engaged in intergovernmental relations.
Reviews
"Beyond Rights rejects one-sided assessments of modern treaty agreements and provides a nuanced view of their generative potential as well as their inherent limits. It will undoubtedly become a major reference on this topic." — Martin Papillon, professor of political science, Université de Montréal
"Carole Blackburn provides a sophisticated analysis of the Nisg̱a’a land claim and self-government agreement. This is an important and timely book." — Paul Nadasdy, professor of anthropology and American Indian and Indigenous studies, Cornell University
Additional Information
202 pages | 6.00" x 9.00" | 5 black and white photos | Hardcover
Synopsis:
For six decades, Olive Dickason was a remarkable contributor to Canadian public life. An award-winning journalist, influential academic, and respected human rights advocate, her life was a triumph over seemingly impossible obstacles. These many impediments include having a childhood marked by poverty; being forced, as a single working mother, to place her three daughters in foster care for several years; working as a female journalist in the sexist, “Mad Men” era of the 1950s and ‘60s; giving up a successful journalism career to obtain a doctorate in Indigenous history; arguing successfully with the university establishment on whether or not Indigenous peoples had history; and taking her fight against mandatory retirement all the way to the Supreme Court. Olive Dickason faced these challenges with determination and dignity and was an inspiration for all who knew her. Changing Canadian History: The Life and Works of Olive Patricia Dickason is the first full-length biography of this trailblazing icon who forever changed how Indigenous history is viewed in Canada.
Reviews
“Olive Dickason pushed the boundaries of sexism, racism, and ageism, defying colonial narratives upheld by patriarchal systems.”—Dr. Cindy Gaudet, Campus Saint-Jean, University of Alberta
“A biography of a brilliant woman who forged entry into Canadian cultural and intellectual institutions by sheer force of determination.”—Dr. Allyson Stevenson, Gabriel Dumont Institute Chair, Métis Studies
Educator Information
This book is the first biography of this trailblazing icon who forever changed how Indigenous history is viewed in Turtle Island and beyond. Based on years of meticulous research, this work provides readers with an engaging and thought-provoking read about this iconic academic who helped define a discipline.
Additional Information
445 Pages
Synopsis:
Dadibaajim narratives are of and from the land, born from experience and observation. Invoking this critical Anishinaabe methodology for teaching and learning, Helen Agger documents and reclaims the history, identity, and inherent entitlement of the Namegosibii Anishinaabeg to the care, use, and occupation of their Trout Lake homelands.
When Agger’s mother, Dedibaayaanimanook, was born in 1922, the community had limited contact with Euro-Canadian settlers and still lived throughout their territory according to seasonal migrations along agricultural, hunting, and fishing routes. By the 1940s, colonialism was in full swing: hydro development had resulted in major flooding of traditional territories, settlers had overrun Trout Lake for its resource, tourism, and recreational potential, and the Namegosibii Anishinaabe were forced out of their homelands in Treaty 3 territory, north-western Ontario.
Agger mines an archive of treaty paylists, census records, and the work of influential anthropologists like A.I. Hallowell, but the dadibaajim narratives of eight community members spanning three generations form the heart of this book. Dadibaajim provide the framework that fills in the silences and omissions of the colonial record. Embedded in Anishinaabe language and epistemology, they record how the people of Namegosibiing experienced the invasion of interlocking forces of colonialism and globalized neo-liberalism into their lives and upon their homelands. Ultimately, Dadibaajim is a message about how all humans may live well on the earth.
Reviews
“Dadibaajim is the product of a lifetime of reflection, and the distilled narrative we are presented shares an invaluable part of our Anishinaabe – and larger human – story that might have otherwise never been told. This work brings new value and appreciation for the role and positionality of our senior and traditional Elders, our Indigenous languages, and knowledge building customs and protocols that are inherent to the community." — Brian McInnes
"Dadibaajim is a fascinating story of the people and the land told from a uniquely Anishinaabe perspective. It also gives us hope for the future of these stories and traditions, particularly in the narratives, experiences, and perspectives of the younger generations that are represented." — Brian McInnes
“Dadibaajim is brilliant in its unapologetic incorporation of Anishinaabemowin and its prioritizing of Anishinaabe way of being in the world. It contributes to important decolonial work and challenges settler histories and discourse.” — Brittany Luby and Margaret Lehman
Educator Information
Table of Contents
Ch 1: How We Know
Ch 2: Subjectivity
Ch 3: As Written of Us
Ch 4: Our Anishinaabe Selves
Ch 5: Boreal Narratives
Ch 6: Colonial Identity
Ch 7: Anishinaabe Rectitude
Ch 8: Historical Texts
Additional Information
176 pages | 6.00" x 9.00" | Black and white illustrations and tables, maps, index, bibliography | Paperback
Synopsis:
In Daniels v. Canada the Supreme Court determined that Métis and non-status Indians were “Indians” under section 91(24) of the Constitution Act, 1867, one of a number of court victories that has powerfully shaped Métis relationships with the federal government.
However, the decision (and the case) continues to reverberate far beyond its immediate policy implications. Bringing together scholars and practitioners from a wide array of professional contexts, this volume demonstrates the power of Supreme Court of Canada cases to directly and indirectly shape our conversations about and conceptions of what Indigeneity is, what its boundaries are, and what Canadians believe Indigenous peoples are “owed.”
Attention to Daniels v. Canada’s variegated impacts also demonstrates the extent to which the power of the courts extend and refract far deeper and into a much wider array of social arenas than we often give them credit for. This volume demonstrates the importance of understanding “law” beyond its jurisprudential manifestations, but it also points to the central importance of respecting the power of court cases in how law is carried out in a liberal nation-state such as Canada.
Reviews
"This important collection of original pieces focusing on Daniel’s v. Canada and the Supreme Court’s decision will have an impact for years to come. Reader’s will appreciate the diverse areas of expertise found in this volume, including Indigenous leadership, political activism, sociology, law, and anthropology." — Christopher Adams
“Articulate, thoughtful, provocative assessments of how we might assess the Supreme Court’s 2016 decision regarding the Metis People’s legal status in Canada.” — William Craig Wicken
Educator Information
Other contributors: Tony Belcourt, Catherine Bell, Deborah A. Bolnick, Brenda L. Gunn, Arend J.A. Hoekstra, Thomas Isaac, Darryl Leroux, Jason Madden, Brenda Macdougall, Austin W. Reynolds, Rick W.A. Smith, Lauren Springs, D’Arcy Vermette
Table of Contents
Introduction
Ch. 1—Daniels in Context
Ch. 2—Harry Daniels and Section 91 (24) of the British North America Act
Ch. 3—After the Hysteria: Understanding Daniels v. Canada from a Métis Nation Perspective
Ch. 4—Daniels v Canada: A Framework for Redress
Ch. 5—The Other Declarations in Daniels: Fiduciary Obligations and the Duty to Negotiate
Ch. 4—Racism, Canadian Jurisprudence, and the de-Peopling of the Métis in Daniels
Ch. 5—Daniels Through an International Law Lens
Ch. 6—Daniels v. Canada Beyond Jurisprudential Interpretation: What to do Once the Horse has Left the Barn
Ch. 7—Outlining the Origins of “Eastern métis” Studies
Ch. 8—Making Kin in a Postgenomic World: Indigenous Belonging after the Genome
Ch. 9—How We Know Who We Are: Historical Literacy, Kinscapes, and Defining a People
Conclusion: The Multiple Lives of the Daniels Case
Additional Information
336 pages | 6.00" x 9.00" | index, bibliography
Synopsis:
Daughters of Aataentsic highlights and connects the unique lives of seven Wendat/Wandat women whose legacies are still felt today. Spanning the continent and the colonial borders of New France, British North America, Canada, and the United States, this book shows how Wendat people and place came together in Ontario, Quebec, Michigan, Ohio, Kansas, and Oklahoma, and how generations of activism became intimately tied with notions of family, community, motherwork, and legacy from the seventeenth to the twenty-first century. The lives of the seven women tell a story of individual and community triumph despite difficulties and great loss. Kathryn Magee Labelle aims to decolonize the historical discipline by researching with Indigenous people rather than researching on them. It is a collaborative effort, guided by an advisory council of eight Wendat/Wandat women, reflecting the needs and desires of community members. Daughters of Aataentsic challenges colonial interpretations by demonstrating the centrality of women, past and present, to Wendat/Wandat culture and history. Labelle draws from institutional archives and published works, as well as from oral histories and private collections. Breaking new ground in both historical narratives and community-guided research in North America, Daughters of Aataentsic offers an alternative narrative by considering the ways in which individual Wendat/Wandat women resisted colonialism, preserved their culture, and acted as matriarchs.
Reviews
"Daughters of Aataentsic makes a significant contribution to the historiography of Indigenous women. Labelle has written an important book and her laudatory and exemplary methodology is a model for all people researching and writing on First Nations and Native Americans." — Clifford Trafzer, University of California, Riverside
"Daughters of Aataentsic enriches our understanding of the everyday lives of real women, their families, and communities across time in Quebec and parts of the southwestern and western United States. This book does not denounce the past, holler, and shout, but rather attends to the range of information and knowledge passed down to draw us into times and places we would otherwise not have the privilege of knowing from an Indigenous perspective. Its insights have stuck with me long after my first reading, as I expect they will for others." — Jean Barman, University of British Columbia
Educator Information
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments xiii
Figures xv
Map xxvi
Introduction 3
1 Cécile Gannendâris (?-1669) 13
2 Marie Catherine Jean dit Vien (1676-1767) 33
3 Margaret Grey Eyes Solomon (1816-1890) 50
4 Mary McKee (1838-1922) 69
5 Eliza Burton Conley Jr (1869-1946) 90
6 Jane Zane Gordon (1871-1963) 115
7 Dr Éléonore Sioui (1924-2006) 132
Epilogue: The Wendat/Wandat Women’s Advisory Council 154
Notes 169
Index 205
Recommended for these subjects: History, Women's History, North American History, Canadian History, Indigenous History, Indigenous Studies, Women's and Gender Studies.
Additional Information
240 pages | 6.00" x 9.00" | 21 Photos, 7 Diagrams
Synopsis:
The Assiniboia school is unique within Canada’s Indian Residential School system. It was the first residential high school in Manitoba and one of the only residential schools in Canada to be located in a large urban setting. Operating between 1958 and 1973 in a period when the residential school system was in decline, it produced several future leaders, artists, educators, knowledge keepers, and other notable figures. It was in many ways an experiment within the broader destructive framework of Canadian residential schools.
Stitching together memories of arrival at, day-to-day life within, and departure from the school with a socio-historical reconstruction of the school and its position in both Winnipeg and the larger residential school system, Did You See Us? offers a glimpse of Assiniboia that is not available in the archival records. It connects readers with a specific residential school and illustrates that residential schools were often complex spaces where forced assimilation and Indigenous resilience co-existed.
These recollections of Assiniboia at times diverge, but together exhibit Survivor resilience and the strength of the relationships that bond them to this day. The volume captures the troubled history of residential schools. At the same time, it invites the reader to join in a reunion of sorts, entered into through memories and images of students, staff, and neighbours. It is a gathering of diverse knowledges juxtaposed to communicate the complexity of the residential school experience.
Reviews
“Remembering Assiniboia is a thoughtful, community based project rooted in the needs of the Assiniboia Residential School community. This book is a must read for those working on the history of Residential Schools and those engaged in community based restorative justice projects.” — Krista McCracken
"Did You See Us? was born out of a reunion, and readers are invited to the reverberations of this coming together. It offers multi-vocal perspectives primarily from survivors but also from non-Indigenous staff, archival documents, and settler community members. As the Truth and Reconciliation Commission begins to accumulate anniversaries, now more than ever the testimonies of residential school survivors are much needed." — Jane Griffith
Educator Information
Table of Contents
Dedication
Land Acknowledgement Statement/ Theodore Fontaine
Preface / Theodore Fontaine
Section One: The Residential Years (1958-1967)
Section Two: The Hostel Years (1967-1973)
Section Three: Assiniboia and the Archives
Section Four: Staff Remembrances
Section Five: Neighbours
Section Six: Winnipeg Remembers
Section Seven: Reunion and Remembrance
Additional Information
272 pages | 6.00" x 8.50" | bibliography