Subject Guides: Anti-Racism Resources: Anti-Indigenous Racism

Anti-Indigenous Racism

Anti-Indigenous racism is the ongoing discrimination, injustices, and stereotyping experienced by Indigenous people. It is deeply rooted in colonialism, policies of assimilation, and genocide, and forced disconnection from land and family (StFX, n.d.).

It includes any ideas and practices that are put in place to maintain power imbalances, systemic barriers, and inequitable outcomes in health, education, and employment.

Anti-Indigenous racism has also resulted in over representation of Indigenous people in the justice system and child-care systems. Systemic anti-Indigenous racism is still seen in federal legislation such as the Indian Act.

The rise in hostility and violence toward Indigenous people highlights the ongoing reality of anti-Indigenous racism experienced at an individual level.

Reference

StFX. (n.d.). Anti-Indigenous racism. https://www.stfx.ca/student-services/support-services/human-rights-equity/learning-hub/anti-racism-intersectionality/anti-indigenous-racism

CTV Your Morning. (2020, June 4). What needs to change to address systemic racism in Canada towards Indigenous people [Video}. CTV.. https://youtu.be/eJCRqD4vepU?si=FL8xgmYqpBBDqWld

Former MKO Grand Chief Sheila North reacts to some Canadian politicians denying systemic racism.

Websites

Indigenous Foundations
Indigenous Foundations: information resource from University of British Columbia's First Nations Studies Program.
Indigenous Perspectives Education Guide
This guide is a collaborative process that engages history educators, academic historians, and community stakeholders in content creation and lesson planning. Historica Canada is grateful to share the voices of Indigenous educators and scholars within this guide.
Indigenous Resources NSCC Subject Guide
This guide provides access to resources on Indigenous history, communities, and culture in Canada and NS, as well as government documents. It was developed in consultation with members of the Indigenous community in Nova Scotia and NSCC.
Mi'kmaq History Month
In 1993, Premier John Savage and Mi’kmaw Grand Chief Ben Sylliboy declared October as the official month to recognize and celebrate Mi’kmaw culture and heritage.
National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation
The NCTR is a place of learning and dialogue where the truths of the residential school experience will be honoured and kept safe for future generations.
The National Collaborating Centre for Indigenous Health (NCCIH)
This series of three fact sheets focuses on racism experienced by Indigenous people in Canada - how to understand it in historical context, how it affects individuals and communities, and what programs, policies and strategies exist to combat it.
Truth and Reconciliation Educator's Tool Guides
Designed to support educators in both their own learning and teaching.

Books

eBook: Canada at a Crossroads: Boundaries, Bridges, and Laissez-Faire Racism in Indigenous-Settler Relations by Jeffrey Denis
Canada at a Crossroads investigates the boundaries and bridges between Indigenous and settler communities and the persistence of anti-Indigenous racism.
eBook: Ipperwash by Edward J. Hedican
Edward J. Hedican's Ipperwash provides an incisive examination of protest and dissent within the context of land claims disputes and Aboriginal rights. Hedican investigates how racism and government practices have affected Aboriginal resistance to policies, especially those that have resulted in the loss of Aboriginal lands and led to persistent socio-economic problems in Native communities.

Videos

Profound Lessons from Indigenous Law. Films on Demand, 2013.

(NSCC w# and password required)

John Borrows is one of Canada's most prolific and celebrated legal scholars and a professor of law at the University of Minnesota. He has written and spoken widely on aboriginal legal rights and traditions, treaties and land claims, and religion and the law. He's also Anishinaabe, a member of the Neyaashiinigmiing community, the Cape Croker First Nation on Bruce Peninsula in North-Western Ontario. Well steeped in both traditions of law, Borrows is uniquely positioned to reflect on the essential nature of law itself.

Etua Snowball. Films on Demand, 2013.

(NSCC w# and password required)

Originally from Kuujjuaq in Nunavik, Etua Snowball is a secondary school Inuktitut teacher and award-winning musician. Mindful of the consequences of modern development and the influence of the English language in his community, Etua has taken on the mission to preserve and promote his culture and indigenous language.

Shifting Attitudes. Curio.ca, 2016.

(NSCC w# and password required)

Chief Morley Googoo, Assembly of First Nations' (AFN) regional chief for Newfoundland and Nova Scotia, says shifting political attitudes toward Indigenous peoples in Canada offers a big opportunity that should be seized.