Guides: Being Indigenous in Canada (formerly the Politics of Indigenous Identiy): Primer Resources

Primers and Essentials

The Decolonial Toolbox : Educational Pathway
The result of a multi-year collaboration between the Office of Community Engagement, Mikana and the Montreal Indigenous Community NETWORK, this tool offers carefully-selected accessible resources produced by Indigenous peoples and organizations, showcasing Indigenous expertise. Use our attendant ZOTERO GROUP LIBRARY to create ready-made bibliographies based on the wealth of resources in the toolbox. All sources are either free to the public or available via Concordia-subscribed links. Can be searched by keyword and does not require a Zotero account.
Indigenous Canada
An online course offered by the University of Alberta that explores historical and current issues impacting Indigenous peoples in what is now called Canada.
It's Our Time: The AFN Education Toolkit
An educational toolkit put together by The Assembly of First Nations to further learning on Indigenous issues and foster allyship.
Yellowhead Institute
An Indigenous-led university research institute that prioritizes Indigenous perspectives on policies regarding First Nations land and governance. It also aims to foster education and dialogue across fields of study, between the university and the wider community, and among Indigenous peoples and Canadians.

Media Indigena
Hosted by Rick Harp. A podcast that covers Indigenous current affairs across the country. Regular roundtable guests include scholars Kim TallBear, Candis Callison, Brock Pitawanakwat and Kenneth T. Williams. Issues around identuity are often discussed.
All My Relations
A podcast hosted by Matika Wilbur and Adrienne Keene discussing various topics affecting Indigenous peoples today.
The Secret Life of Canada
A CBC podcast hosted by Leah-Simone Bowen and Falen Johnson that covers historical topics that are neglected in the dominant history of what is now called Canada.
Telling Our Twisted Histories
a CBC podcast hosted by Kaniehti:io Horn that seeks to reclaim Indigenous histories by 11 words whose meanings have been twisted by settler colonialism.
This Land
A podcast hosted by Rebecca Nagle exploring a murder conviction in Oklahoma in 2000 that led to an investigation of treaty rights of five Indigenous tribes within the state.
Unreserved
A CBC Radio show hosted by Falen Johnson. The show features guests from various Indigenous communities and covers important topics related to Indigenous peoples in what is now called Canada.
Warrior Life
Hosted by Pam Palmater. A podcast that encourages listeners to decolonize their views and lifestyles and celebrates Indigenous cultures and traditions.
Media Indigena
Hosted by Rick Harp with regular roundtable guests and scholars Kim TallBear, Candis Callison, Brock Pitawanakwat, Ken Williams, Trina Roache. A podcast that critically examines Indigenous current affairs and media coverage.

The inconvenient Indian : a curious account of Native people in North America by Thomas King
Publication Date: 2017
Reveals the evolution of how Indigenous peoples have been seen, understood, represented and propagandized in North America. Refashions old stories about historical events and figures, takes a sideways look at film and pop culture… and articulates a deep and revolutionary understanding of the cumulative effects of ever-shifting laws and treaties on Indigenous peoples and lands.
Indigenous Writes by Chelsea Vowel
Publication Date: 2016
In Indigenous Writes, Chelsea Vowel initiates myriad conversations about the relationship between Indigenous peoples and Canada. An advocate for Indigenous worldviews, the author discusses the fundamental issues--the terminology of relationships; culture and identity; myth-busting; state violence; and land, learning, law and treaties--along with wider social beliefs about these issues.
Clearing the Plains by James Daschuk.
Publication Date: 2013
Revealing how Canada's first Prime Minister used a policy of starvation against Indigenous people to clear the way for settlement, this multiple award-winning book sparked widespread debate about genocide in Canada.
A National Crime by John S. Milloy
Publication Date: 1999
Using previously unreleased government documents, historian John S. Milloy provides a full picture of the history and reality of the residential school system.
Unsettling the Settler Within by Paulette Regan; Taiaiake Alfred (Foreword)
Publication Date: 2010
Unsettling the Settler Within argues that non-Indigenous Canadians must undergo their own process of decolonization in order to truly participate in the transformative possibilities of reconciliation. Settlers must relinquish the persistent myth of themselves as peacemakers and acknowledge the destructive legacy of a society that has stubbornly ignored and devalued Indigenous experience.

For more book and resource suggestions, see Concordia Library's Colonialism in Canada page and the full Zotero bibliography for this guide.

Being Indigenous in Canada (formerly the Politics of Indigenous Identiy)

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Primers and Essentials