The Red Indians: An Episodic, Informal Collection of Tales from the History of Aboriginal People’s Struggles in Canada

Description

In the manner of Eduardo Galeanoas famous trilogy Memories of Fire, the book uncovers a critical, living history of conflict. The book, The Red Indians, with its polyvalent title that points to the many issues covered in the text, introduces readers to the history of colonial oppression in Canada, and looks at contemporary examples of resistance. Kulchyski clarifies the unique and specific politics of Aboriginal resistance in Canada. As Kulchyski argues, any analysis of Aboriginal resistance to government and corporate interests and/or projects must consider that traditionally, Aboriginal culture in Canada was a hunting and gathering economy that necessitates their free access to an expansive homeland (in post-contact terms, the aCrowna lands) in order to maintain this traditional way of life. Moreover, the book exposes the neglect of Aboriginal oral history and other extrinsic evidence in the way that treaties have been interpreted and manipulated by the provincial and federal levels of government, and the failure of modern governments to consult with Aboriginals in advance of planning projects (such as hydroelectric dams or deforestation) on their homelands, or to negotiate equitable and fair treaties in the present-day.