Indigenous These Sand Dissertations

Bibliography of Theses and Dissertations on Indigenous Peoples – 2007 Jan.
This bibliography contains items not included in my ‘Bibliography of ‘Arctic Social Sciences’ Theses and
Dissertations.’
This is very much a work in progress, and despite the fact that it contains 963 entries this bibliography is
undoubtedly missing a great many theses and dissertations – especially those written in languages other than
English. Notification of omissions (and of typos and other errors) would be oh-so-greatly appreciated!
The abstracts are those prepared by the authors of the theses and dissertations. The spellings of some words have
been standardized to facilitate searching by keyword.
Abadian, Sousan. (1999) "From wasteland to homeland: Trauma and the renewal of indigenous peoples and their
communities." Ph.D. Dissertation, Harvard University. 524 pp.
Why is it that the descendants of the original peoples of North America living today on reserves and
reservations continue to suffer disproportionately from poverty, poor health, violence, alcohol and substance
abuse? What are effective means of bettering substandard conditions?
This study suggests that unresolved or poorly resolved individual and collective trauma is an often
overlooked, key causal variable which helps explain present-day conditions in many indigenous communities.
Parts I and II explore the 'trauma thesis' and suggest that the experience of trauma may profoundly distort
individual perceptual filters, values, and behaviour, with damaging social ramifications. Prolonged and
extensive trauma can distort institutions and destroy productive social capital, fostering the antithesis of a
'civic culture' -- a 'subculture of trauma' -- with dire implications for economic and political life.
Multiple generations of native peoples have experienced individual-level trauma in the context of massive
collective traumatization. This coupling of individual and collective trauma is particularly deadly because,
among other things, it cripples the capacity of individuals to heal. Under these circumstances, trauma is
likely to be replicated through time and space, and manifest in substandard conditions.
In addition to exploring root causes, this study has aimed to provide some insight into possible means of
reversing substandard conditions and enhancing well-being. To this end, Part III utilizes psychological
theory on the processes of healing from trauma as well as field cases from North American native
communities. Part III suggests that a set of interventions employed by increasing numbers of aboriginal
communities in various guises, described as 'culture as treatment,' are effective means of countering
traumatically-induced social pathologies on reserves and reservations today (the 'culture as treatment
thesis').
I conclude with an accounting of what culture as treatment might ideally entail: psychological, cultural and
spiritual renewal. Renewal does not mean mere restoration of what was lost, even if that were possible, but
may require a degree of adaptation to the changed realities of present-day circumstances.
Moreover, I suggest that cultural renewal/psychological healing and economic development are not
necessarily at odds with one another. The economic and sociocultural imperatives can go hand-in-hand: they
are compatible and indeed may support one another.
Abbott, Kathryn A. (1996 ) "A history of alcohol as symbol and substance in Anishinabe culture, 1765-1920." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of Massachusetts Amherst. 241 pp.
This dissertation examines the history of alcohol among the Anishinaabe (also known as the Ojibway or
Chippewa) people from the middle of the 18th century until the enactment of National Prohibition in 1920. As
early as the 18th century, alcohol was an integral part of the gift-giving which preceded negotiations for the
French -- and later British and American -- fur trade. Some Anishinaabe people incorporated alcohol into
funerals, and there is also evidence that the Anishinaabeg had reasonable social controls around drinking
into the 20th century.
Alcohol was also pivotal in shaping non-Indian stereotypes of Indian people. In the 19th century, the drinking
habits of the Anishinaabeg were seen first as a sign of cultural weakness. The rhetoric of American
missionaries emphasized that once the Anishinaabeg had accepted Christianity, they would choose to give up
alcohol. However, these same missionaries also argued that in order to become Christian, the Anishinaabeg
first would have to reject liquor.
By the early 20th century, the stereotype of the culturally inferior Indian combined with scientific racism to
create the image of racially inferior Indians. These images served as the justification for Anishinaabeg
Bibliography of theses and dissertations on indigenous peoples – 2007 Jan. 1 – p. 1 of 360 jack@jackhicks.com
dispossession in the early years of the 20th century.
Further, as Prohibition agitation increased in the early 20th century, non-Indians used the Anishinaabeg in
Minnesota to wage an ideological war not only about alcohol in white society but also about the extent of
federal power in enforcing treaty provisions on non-Indians lands. Hence, the Anishinaabeg became the
rhetorical vehicle for a complex debate which at times only marginally included them.
By focusing on one Indian group at a particular point in time, this dissertation seeks to historicize one Indian
group's experience with alcohol and to move away from generalizations about 'Indians' and drinking. By
presenting as full a picture as possible of the diversity of the Anishinaabe experience with alcohol, this
dissertation hopes to emphasize both their humanity and their history.
Abigosis, Betty J. (2003 ) "Seeking a double understanding: Constituting local First Nations governance." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of Saskatchewan (The). 345 pp.
As we turn the corner into the new millennium we see the indigenous peoples of Canada move toward
reclaiming their inherent rights. Having advanced their political status within the governing elites of the
colonial governments, First Nations are striving to become self-determining. The research study that was
conducted falls in line with the movements of the indigenous peoples.
In an attempt to achieve a 'double understanding,' this study engaged in a research process that aimed to
learn the traditional philosophies of one First Nation and build these understandings within a contemporary
form of local governance. To achieve this purpose, the study sought the knowledge of those who are closest to
the past, the elders and those who were leading the First Nation at the time of the study. From the
philosophical findings that resulted from their participation, and through a collaborative process with
members of the First Nation, a local level constitution was developed specifically for their First Nation.
To provide a background on the concepts associated with indigenous philosophy a literature review was
conducted. Through the review, the study provided insight on the traditional philosophies of indigenous
peoples, and the values they share in common. More specific to the Anishinabe people, the study provided
insight on the philosophies that guided their way of life in traditional times. The literature review also
provided explanation of research approaches that aboriginal people consider legitimate. From this stance,
discussion on the concept of 'knowledge-keeper' was offered.
The study also reviewed the historical events that have lead the movement of First Nations governance in
Canada. Describing the events that unfolded in the evolution of First Nations governance, the study provided
an overview of the historical relationship shared between the indigenous peoples and the colonial
governments. As well, the study examined the contemporary options for First Nations self-government in
Canada, from the comprehensive perspective to the narrowed view of local governance. The role of leaders
in the development of local governance was also discussed.
The research process that was conducted in this study evolved through a staged process. The staged process
provided description of the study's evolution and provided explanation of the role of participants.
Incorporating a collaborative course of action throughout its design, the study enabled members of the First
Nation to become directly involved in the research process. By conducting the research from this stance,
participants of the study acted not only to protect the integrity of their community, but more significantly, to
corroborate the trustworthiness of the research.
As a result of the study's findings, a modern-day governance mechanism that the First Nation could utilize
was developed. Designed specifically for the First Nation a community-based constitution that illustrated
their external political position and provided internal principles for governance at the local level evolved.
Therefore, the overall results of the study not only benefited the advancement of academic knowledge but also
provided the First Nation with a tangible result that could ultimately advance their struggle for self-
determination further.
Recommendations for further development with the community itself were offered. As well, considerations on
how to improve the research practice were cited. In addition, recommendations for further academic
research were put forward.
Ackley, Kristina L. (2005) ""We are Oneida yet": Discourse in the Oneida land claim." Ph.D. Dissertation, State
University of New York at Buffalo. 290 pp.
Land claim movements make an important contribution to how Oneidas construct their identities. The idea of
an Oneida community is defined and imagined in multiple ways -- as physical, political, social, cultural, and
spiritual spaces. Paradoxically, for the Oneida the idea of community has been concurrently based on
mobility as well as on a steadfast belief in an aboriginal fixed place. The collective history of activism that is
based on securing Oneida title to the aboriginal territory is based on family forces as well as a nascent
Oneida nationalism.
There is a belief in the coherence and possibility of relationships between the three Oneida communities
existing as one nation. While it is important not to romanticize this and thereby envision that the Oneida are
culturally, spiritually, and politically united, one should not completely discount the centrality of the idea of a
unified Oneida Nation. On a basic level, there does exist a sense of nationhood among the communities, a
sense of connection and kinship between Oneidas when they meet individually, even if it is sometimes absent
in public discourse or if official relations between the communities are adversarial.
A number of core principles that shape the framework in which the Oneida land rights have been argued.
Consistently, the goal of a reconstituted unified Oneida Nation in the homelands is advocated. The act of
defining oneself in terms of a land base that many Oneidas no longer have access to is a complex process in
which geography plays a central role. Location also affects the ways the Oneida situate themselves when they
argue for the return of land. A sense of traditionalism also frames the debate. Throughout the process, the
land claim is placed within a unique sense of the past that is informed by the reality of the present.
Thus the land claim exists not only as a focal point of conflict, but also as a nexus of hope -- with dreams of
unity and the strengthening of the sovereignty envisioned. The land claim is a way to remain "Oneida yet."
Adelson, Naomi. (1992) ""Being alive well": Indigenous belief as opposition among the Whapmagoostui Cree." Ph.D.
Dissertation, McGill University. 284 pp.
Through an analysis of Cree concepts of well-being, I challenge conventional social scientific definitions of
health. In this dissertation I argue that there exists a fundamental biomedical dualism in health studies and,
using cross-cultural examples, explore an expanded notion of 'health.' I then introduce the Cree concept of
miyupimaatisiiu ('being alive well') and explain that for the Whapmagoostui Cree there is no term that
translates back into English as health. I present the core symbols of 'being alive well' and in their analysis
find a persistence of traditional meanings. For the Cree 'being alive well' is consonant with 'being Cree',
simultaneously transcending the individual and reflecting current political realities. Miyupimaatisiiu for the
adult Cree of Whapmagoostui is a strategy of cultural assertion and resistance and hence situated within the
realm of political discourses.
Agoes, Irid F. (1999) "Indigenous Jakartans and globalization." Ph.D. Dissertation, State University of New York at
Buffalo. 186 pp.
This thesis examines the impact of economic globalization on Indonesians. To understand the thesis, it is
important to know the background of the study. Initially, the study was to interview Indonesian former
student activists who fought for the future of Indonesia in 1960s and who have become leaders in the
government and business. What was their dream for Indonesia back then and how did they think of the
economic globalization now? But I found that they did not think about the impact of economic globalization,
except that it had made them rich. The study changed, the objective remained: What is the impact of
economic globalization? The new focus was on Orang Betawi, indigenous Jakartans. As I started writing the
thesis, economic globalization had a direct impact on me. Without warning and without being actively
involved in the global economy, many 'innocent' Asians went bankrupt, because of the 'Asian economic
collapse.' The story of the indigenous Jakartans and the story of my life blended. Self-portrayal became part
of my ethnography not only because of the self-understanding that came from sharing the experience of
Orang Betawi, but also from suffering the same dispossession and impoverishment as they did. The first
chapter, The Day Heaven Fell, describes feelings of the writer and of the families who lost their land. The
second, Jakarta Catching Up with the World, describes Jakarta's effort to become one of the world's
metropolitan metropolises. The third chapter, Jakarta in the Global Outreach, is about Indonesia's
infatuation with globalizing values. Chapter four, The Values Within, explores Betawi values. The fifth
chapter, When Dreams Become Nightmares describes the disruption results from the economic collapse, the
beginning of deeper problems that continue to convulse Jakarta and Indonesia as a whole. This chapter ends
with a section called Electronic News, a mosaic of relevant news from the Internet, a collage created through
an instrument of globalization and representing the effects of the globalization. The final chapter of this
thesis is (In)conclusion, reiterating the problems wrought by globalization as it continues to exist unless we
question its existence.
Ahokas, Marianne M. (1992) ""As distinct as nature has formed them": Race, class, and nation in the early Republic."
Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Minnesota. 152 pp.
"No nation imagines itself coterminous with mankind," Benedict Anderson has declared. But that was the
idealistic implication of the natural rights rhetoric that justified the founding of the United States, the first
state to consciously authorize its own existence on the basis of universal human nature and human rights.
One of the paradoxes of the early national period is the apparent contradiction between that universalist
humanist rhetoric and the material facts of life for those who were systematically denied the rights that were
being defined as the most basic of human entitlements. How was the exclusion of particular humans from the
national project made possible? In this dissertation, I consider how new essentialized identities were being
constructed in the last quarter of the 18th century, and the extent to which those identities were made
possible by the same discourses that authorized American independence: the political philosophies of natural
rights and civic humanism. The public persona that was invented for Phillis Wheatley in the 1770s
illuminates how earlier, premodern identities based on innate social rank lingered into the early modern
period, but were themselves on the brink of transformation in the late 18th century by the new rhetoric of
liberalism -- a transformation that paved the way for the biologized racial identities of the 19th century. In
Notes on the State of Virginia, Jefferson rewrites America's aboriginal inhabitants as avatars of democracy,
and the New World as the home of man in the state of nature, to respond to, and ultimately discredit,
Buffonian environmentalism. In so doing, Jefferson defines the parameters of membership in the American
polity, based on a naturalized 'political ethnicity.' In Royal Tyler's 1797 novel The Algerine captive the
factionalism of the '90s exposes the vaunted 'human nature' of liberalism and republicanism as shallow, self-
interested, and gullible. So chaotic is the stateside scene that the republican national character can only be
rehabilitated and reconstructed overseas, in an Orientalist fantasy-cum-captivity narrative that permits the
protagonist to reinvent both himself and his nation, and at the same time to erase slavery as a feature of the
republican landscape.
Akers, Donna L. (1997) "Living in the land of death: The Choctaw people, 1830-60." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of
California, Riverside. 317 pp.
The history of the Choctaw people in Indian Territory began with their dispossession and exile from the
Southeast. In the 1830s, they arrived in their new lands in the future state of Oklahoma. The culture and
identity of Choctaw people was intimately connected with the geography of the Mississippi homelands.
Deprived of this foundation, Choctaws devised new cultural institutions and relationships to replace those
that did not survive. From 1830 to 1860, Choctaws redefined their society and kinship structure to fit the
exigencies of their exile. They adapted some institutions and ideals from white society. However, the history
of the Choctaw people in these years is not one of progressive assimilation. Choctaws retained many
traditional beliefs, institutions, and relationships, demonstrating the persistence of a unique Choctaw culture.
Gender roles remained much the same in the new land. Men and women continued to conduct their lives
along traditional lines, emphasizing a strong matrilineal heritage. Women retained many traditional legal
and political rights unknown to white women of the day.
In addition to refuting the assimilation paradigm, this study examines racial and ethnic group relations
which helped mold society and political responses and actions between native groups and between Choctaws
and whites. Unlike the Euro-American society that surrounded them, Choctaws built a society in which native
people were pre-eminent. Choctaws consciously guarded against the encroachment of white society and its
institutions and selected a path of isolation from the intrusion of the world market system. They rejected
Euro-American political, social, and economic ideals that might weaken Choctaw hegemony. Instead, the
Choctaw people tried to insulate themselves from attempts by whites to repeat the dispossession of the 1830s.
This study demonstrates that Choctaw recovered from the tumult of the 1820s and 30s, although they paid a
huge price in human lives and anguish. They succeeded in forming a new Choctaw identity, society, and
economy, that lasted until the United States government abrogated its treaty obligations at the turn of the
century.
Aks, Judith H. (2000) "Re-evaluating rights at the intersections of power: Indigenous women's legal mobilization in
the United States and Canada." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Washington. 241 pp.
Indigenous women have great difficulty making political and legal claims. Often the strategies that are
available speak only to their indigenous identity or their gender, but not to both simultaneously. This sets up
a kind of double bind, when remedies for domination based upon one aspect of one's identity actually
entrenches domination based upon another identity facet. This is a study of power, law, and identity, which
assumes that legal norms have multiple interpretations, hierarchies are deeply entrenched yet also change
over time, and domination and resistance happen simultaneously. Given these theoretical underpinnings, how
can indigenous women mobilize the law? This study urges legal scholars to interrogate the problematic of
intersectional power, such as the combined effects of race and gender domination.
An in-depth comparative analysis of 'marrying out' cases in the US and Canada helps elucidate how
indigenous women might mobilize the law. These are cases where indigenous women marry men who are not
members of their tribe or band. By marrying out of their tribes/bands, these women either lose their 'Indian'
status, or are unable to pass such status on to their children. In examining these cases, conflicting legal
strategies become apparent, showing that indigenous women have few legal tools that allow them to
articulate their unique identities. The analysis of these cases focuses on discourse and considers legal
arguments within six discursive frames: (1) individual civil rights; (2) sovereignty rights; (3) membership
standards; (4) tradition; (5) jurisdiction; and, (6) economic and material forces. These frames show the
plurality of legal tools which serve to further domination over indigenous women, and provide seeds for their
future resistance. The study concludes that the impact of indigenous women's legal mobilization should be
assessed in terms of the potential for future democratic participation, or new opportunities re-evaluate the
meaning of rights. The democratic value of rights discourses lies in the possibility for ascribing new
meanings to them. While such ongoing political participation opens up new opportunities for resistance, it is
important to note that such opportunities can also work to re-inscribe domination. Therefore, through the
lens of intersectional power, legal mobilization becomes an act of simultaneous domination and resistance.
al-Khaldi, Mubarak R. (1998) "Other narratives: Representations of history in four postcolonial Native American
novels." Ph.D. Dissertation, Ohio State University (The). 204 pp.
Ever since its emergence as a mode of critical and cultural analysis, postcolonial theory has been generally
marked, as many have indicated, by its avoidance of American culture. This avoidance has been justified by
reference to the United States's early independence from England compared with other British colonies, or to
its development into an imperialist power, or both. This line of reasoning, however, ignores the fact that the
founding of the United States has been made possible through the subjugation and dispossession of the
original inhabitants of North America.
Given Native Americans' condition of internal colonization in the United States, Native American novels, as a
major tributary to Native American literature, are worthy of consideration in postcolonial culture studies.
This study proposes to demonstrate the postcolonialism of the Native American novel by analyzing
representations of history in four novels: Denton R. Bedford's Tsali (1972), James Welch's Fools crow
(1986), Louise Erdrich's Tracks (1988), and Linda Hogan's Mean spirit (1990).
Chapter One reviews the definitions of postcolonialism formulated by some of the prominent postcolonial
theorists and critics. It synthesizes a working definition for the purpose of this study, and explains the
analytic approach adopted in this study. Chapter Two analyzes Bedford's writing of the story of the Cherokee
hero, Tsali. Chapter Three deals with the historical and cultural recovery in Welch's Fools crow. Chapter
Four analyzes the depiction of the collapse of the Chippewa society in Erdrich's Tracks. Chapter Five
examines the portrayal of the effects of the US policy on the Osages in Hogan's Mean spirit. Chapter 6 sums
up the points raised in each of the four novels, and concludes that Native American literature must not be
overlooked in postcolonial studies.
Alderete, Ethel. (1996) "Western development and the health of indigenous peoples. behavioural aspects of cultural
change and cultural persistence in the Andes." Dr. P.H. Dissertation, University of California, Berkeley. 290
pp.
A case study was conducted in the province of Jujuy, Argentina, to asses the impact that changes in the native
belief system and behaviours, fostered by Western models of social and economic development, have on the
health and well being of Indigenous Peoples. Indigenous Peoples of the Kolla nation constitute the majority
of the population in this province. The research approach integrated ethnographic and statistical methods.
The rural and urban ecosystems were constructed as typologies representing the Andean-traditional and
Western-modern ways of life respectively. The theoretical model was derived from multidimensional models
of disease causation. Culture and acculturation were the dimensions of main interest. Theoretical
perspectives from sociopsychological and anthropological disciplines were integrated, as well as
contributions from South and North American scholars. Statistical data was indicative of the failure of urban
environments to provide healthier living conditions for populations of low SES, compared to the also
economically depressed rural settings. Infant mortality, housing sanitation, and health care indicator
variables derived from the provincial Primary Health Care Program database, showed that the capital city
and its suburban areas have not attained significant improvements, compared to some less urbanized and
more rural and traditional areas. Despite scarcity of economic resources and a continuous drainage of
human resources, the traditional Andean way of life in the mountainous rural communities of Quebrada and
Puna seems to provide a supportive, stable, and cohesive psychosocial environment. Elements consistent with
the traditional ways of life, that enhance the ability for achieving improvements in health and well being in
this area were: traditional social networks, supportive family environments, non conflictive cultural
identification and self esteem, and a cohesive integration of individuals to their social and cultural world. On
the other hand, conditions of social disintegration and anomie prevail among poor urban neighbourhoods in
the capital city of the province of Jujuy. Problem drinking, interpersonal and family violence, lack of
motivation and fatalistic attitude were widespread conditions among males. Although a rare finding, problem
drinking was encountered among poor urban women. Problem drinking and lack of motivation were common
among poor urban adolescents. Although an incipient phenomena, drug use, violence and gang activity are
on the rise among urban young boys and girls. Strain factors related to cultural change, identified among the
urban poor were: perceived racism and discrimination; acculturative stress induced by racism, by the
education system, and by the media; perceived economic inequalities; and the disarticulation of networks of
social support. Differential impact was found across gender and age. It is apparent that men are more prone
than women to lose motivation, to assume a fatalistic attitude, and to readily engage ill problem behaviours.
Both male and female, children and adolescents, suffer compounded effects of acculturation stress. Findings
may be indicative that in time, and across generations, women's resiliency well be debilitated as well.
Problems related to family and community disintegration such as violence, alcohol abuse, and consumption
of drugs, have been shown to be related to health indicators such as infant mortality and birth weight.
Therefore, further deterioration of the health status of the urban poor in Jujuy may be expected.
Alfred-Smith, Andrea H. (2002) "Reviving Kwak'wala language." M.A. Thesis, Royal Roads University. 112 pp.
Alfred, Taiaiake. (1994) "Heeding the voices of our ancestors: Kahnawake Mohawk politics and the rise of native
nationalism in Canada." Ph.D. Dissertation, Cornell University. 452 pp.
The purpose of this dissertation was to examine the formation of political goals and strategies in North
American Indian communities. The particular focus of the research was the resurgence of a set of goals and
strategies oriented toward the achievement of a form of Native sovereignty, as opposed to a further
integration with Canada or the United States. The Mohawks of Kahnawake were selected as a case study
because of their prominence in the assertion of what has been termed Native sovereignty. Initial probes led to
the adoption of a theoretical framework based upon theories of nationalism. Inadequate formulations were
rejected in favour of a re-conceptualized notion of nationalism appropriate to the Mohawk experience. The
data used were collected historical documents and surveys of Mohawk history, previously uncollected
government documents, key informant interviews, two small-n sample surveys, and extensive structured
observations. A theoretical model for understanding contemporary Native nationalism was put forward. It
stated that a Native community's political goals and strategies in the aggregate constitute a form of
nationalism characterized by a specific content and intensity which may be gauged along a spectrum ranging
from localized to state-power assertions. The model was supported by data from the Kahnawake case. The
community's autonomous goals were linked to the Mohawks' alternate set of cultural symbols which have
been used to preserve a distinct identity, a traditional political culture leading to the creation of alternate
institutions, and interactions with the state which have resulted in the near complete rejection of integrative
goals.
Ali, Saleem H. (2001) "Environmental resistance and aboriginal development: A comparative study of mining
ventures in the United States and Canada." Ph.D. Dissertation, Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
This dissertation asks the question: why do indigenous communities support environmental causes in certain
cases of mining development and not in others, when technical indicators of environmental impact may in
fact be comparable? The empirical research question I am trying to address is: When does environmental
resistance arise in native communities in the United States and Canada that are faced with the prospect of
mining development? Native people in the United States and Canada have endured widespread
environmental harm at the behest of mining ventures. During the past two decades, the enactment of
environmental laws and the recognition of treaty violations by settler governments have collectively led to a
politics of retribution in both countries. However, conflicts surrounding mining development and indigenous
people continue to challenge policy-makers on both sides of the border. I use qualitative social science
research techniques such as deviant case analysis, process tracing, congruence procedures and
counterfactual analysis to study four instances of mining development (cases involving both the prevalence
and non-prevalence of environmental resistance in each of the two countries). After using a process of
elimination procedure in my initial scoping analysis for the case studies, I test process-oriented hypotheses
anchored in theories of negotiation involving social movements and linkage politics. My study reveals that
contrary to common belief, neither scientific studies (technical impact) and economic considerations nor
external influence of civic society adequately explain the emergence or prevalence of resistance. Instead the
negotiation process, particularly the way in which issues are linked, strategic alliance formation and the
articulation of sovereignty are the key determinants of environmental resistance in aboriginal communities. I
conclude with some lessons for both the US and Canada in terms of public policy and negotiation processes
that can be most conducive to environmentally responsible and effective planning of mining ventures on or
near aboriginal land.
Allen, Chadwick. (1997) "Blood as a narrative/Narrative as blood: Constructing indigenous identity in contemporary
American Indian and Mäori literatures and politics." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Arizona (The). 457 pp.
Following the end of World War II and the formation of the United Nations organization, indigenous
minorities who had fought on behalf of First World nations -- including record numbers of New Zealand
Mäori and American Indians -- pursued their longstanding efforts to assert cultural and political
distinctiveness from dominant settler populations with renewed vigour. In the first decades after the War,
New Zealand Mäori and American Indians worked largely within dominant discourses in their efforts to
define viable contemporary indigenous identities. But by the late 1960s and early 1970s, both New Zealand
and the United States felt the effects of an emerging indigenous 'renaissance', marked by dramatic events of
political and cultural activism and by unprecedented literary production. By the mid-1970s, New Zealand
Mäori and American Indians were part of an emerging international indigenous rights movement, signalled
by the formation and first general assembly of the World Council of Indigenous Peoples (WCIP).
In 'Blood as narrative/Narrative as blood' I chronicle these periods of indigenous minority activism and
writing and investigate the wide range of tactics developed for asserting indigenous difference in literary and
political activist texts produced by the WCIP, New Zealand Mäori, and American Indians. Indigenous
minority or 'Fourth World' writers and activists have mobilized and revalued both indigenous and dominant
discourses, including the pictographic discourse of plains Indian 'winter counts' in the United States and the
ritual discourse of the Mäori marae in New Zealand, as well as the discourse of treaties in both. These
writers and activists have also created powerful tropes and emblematic figures for contemporary indigenous
identity, including 'blood memory', the ancient child, and the rebuilding of the ancestral house (whare
tipuna). My readings of a wide range of poems, short stories, novels, essays, non-fiction works,
representations of cultural and political activism, and works of literary, art history, political science, and
cultural criticism lead to the development of critical approaches for reading indigenous minority literary and
political activist texts that take into account the complex historical and cultural contexts of their production -
- local, national and, increasingly, global.
Allen, Wayne E. (1998) "Sustainable resource economies versus extractive surplus economies in the Canadian
SubArctic: A reassessment of Hardin's 'tragedy of the commons'." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of
California, Santa Barbara. 291 pp.
Advances in evolutionary biology have revealed that acts of altruism in most species are in fact genetically
selfish. Where it appears an individual is sacrificing itself on behalf of others it is in fact doing so to assist its
close genetic kin. These phenomena come under the dual headings of 'inclusive fitness' and 'kin selection.'
The 'tragedy of the commons', as formulated by Garrett Hardin, does not take into account the fact that for
99.9% of human evolution the actors utilizing common-property resources were close kin. Extant hunter-
gatherers and our nearest primate relatives, whose systems of social organization are kin based, represent
the best scenarios we have for studying territorial and exchange behaviours analogous to those of our
hunter-gatherer forebears. In such contexts one might find a solution to the dilemma posed by the tragedy of
the commons. Nepotism and kin-directed altruism in the form of resource pooling and sharing, along with
concomitant territorial behaviours, evolved through natural selection for the purpose of promoting the
inclusive fitness interests of social cohorts who share high coefficients of relatedness. In this way evolution by
natural selection created evolutionarily stable systems whereby close kin defend a territory containing
common-property resources that they conserve, share and pool. Such a system is broken down when
population increases to the point that kinship mechanisms can no longer mediate cooperative exchanges. It is
population pressure and increasing exchanges between strangers that create the competitive conditions
necessary for Hardin's tragedy of the commons to occur. Data were collected over a 15 month period among
Dene Athabascans in the Canadian SubArctic for the purpose of analyzing land tenure, social organization,
settlement patterns, subsistence practices, and exchange networks. Data collection methods included
participant observation, formal and informal interviews, questionnaires, and surveys. The results revealed
that there is indeed a kinship bias in traditional Dene land-use patterns and resource-sharing networks that
should be characterized as a risk-minimizing strategy among cooperating kin. These findings bring into
question many of the rate-maximizing assumptions about human economic behaviour that characterize
formal microeconomic theory, as well as Hardin's formulation of the tragedy of the commons.
Almaguer, Tomás. (1979) "Class, race, and capitalist development: The social transformation of a southern California
county, 1848-1903." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of California, Berkeley. 375 pp.
This study analyzes Anglo-Mexican relations in California during the last half of the 19th century. This was a
period in which California was transformed from a semi-feudal Mexican society to an Anglo-dominated
capitalist society. The social transformation that occurred at this time proves the critical context for
examining the changing nature of class and race relations established between Anglo Americans and
Mexicans. Unlike other studies of Mexicans during this period, this dissertation employs a comparative
framework. Anglo-Mexicans relations are examined in light of the experiences of Anglo Americans with other
racial minorities. This comparative approach is utilized in both sections of this dissertation. The first section,
Chapters One and Two, outline a broad overview of the historical experiences of the Mexican, Native
American, Black, Chinese, and Japanese populations in the state from 1848 to 1900. This section argues that
important differences existed in the social, political, and economic relations established between these
minority groups and Anglo Americans in the state. One overriding feature of the Black, Chinese, and
Japanese experiences was the existence of widespread conflict between them and the Anglo-American
working class and petit bourgeoisie. Anglo relations with Native Americans during this period is
characterized by opposition to the Indian population by the entire Anglo population. Unlike that of other
racial minorities, the principal conflict that existed among Mexicans and Anglo Americans was between the
dominant classes within each population. The struggle between the Mexican ranchero class and Anglo
capitalists for control of land in the state overshadowed the conflict that existed between the Anglo and
Mexican working class and petit bourgeoisie. A number of social, political, and economic factors contributed
to this unique feature of the Mexican experience in the state. It was only after the turn of the century that
white working-class antagonism toward Mexicans reached the same intensity as it had with the Asian
populations in the 19th century. The second part of this dissertation, which is the major focus, applies this
framework to a case study of the southern California county of Ventura. Anglo-Mexican relations in Ventura
County are examined during the period from 1848 to 1900. The case study begins with an analysis of the
'decline' of the Mexican ranchero class in the county. It examines the various legal and extra-legal methods
utilized by Anglo-American speculators and developers to gain control of the major ranchos in the area.
Attention is given to the way in which Anglo control of local politics facilitated the capitalist transformation
of the political economy of Ventura County. The Ventura County case study also details the emergence of
capitalist agriculture from 1870 to 1900. This includes a discussion of the subdivision of former rancho
estates by new Anglo owners, the transitional development of a small farmer stratum, the shift from extensive
to intensive agricultural production, and the expansion of the capitalist labour market during the closing
decades of the 19th century. Another key feature of this case study is an examination of the impact that
capitalist agricultural production had on the minority population in the country. This study examines the
overall pattern of white/non-white placement in the county occupational structure from 1860 to 1900. Special
use is made of the federal manuscript census to quantitatively analyze the divergent class positions of the
Mexican, Native American, Chinese, Japanese, and Anglo-American populations in the county. Variations in
Anglo attitudes toward the employment of the minority population in various sectors of the local economy are
also discussed. The case study contains an analysis of the Oxnard Sugar Beet Workers' Strike of 1903. This
chapter uses the issues and events surrounding this strike as a vehicle for understanding the nature of class
and race relations operant at this time in the county. The Oxnard strike is also used as a basis for
comparatively assessing the divergent attitudes of white labour toward Mexicans and other non-white
minority groups. The final chapter outlines the salient features of Anglo-Mexican relations discussed in both
the overview in part one and the case study that comprises part two.
Altman, Heidi M. (2002) "Cherokee fishing: Ethnohistorical, ethnoecological, and ethnographic perspectives." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of California, Davis. 202 pp.
As a discrete, undocumented semantic domain, Eastern Cherokee language about fishing affords a dynamic
context in which to examine (1) the relationships between language, environment and culture; (2) the
maintenance and adaptation of traditional ecological knowledge to dramatic local changes; (3) dialectal and
idiosyncratic variations of Cherokee language fish names; (4) changes in subsistence practices over time; (5)
the parallels and divergences between Cherokee language and English vernacular language about fish; and,
(6) discourse about fishing that reveals attitudes about location, tourism and the construction of
contemporary Cherokee identity. These aspects of Cherokee language and culture also provide avenues
through which to document the semantic domain of fishing. In its totality this research provides both
documentation -- of names, practices, and native scientific knowledge -- and new perspectives on the
processes of language and cultural change.
Altman, Jon C. (1982) "Hunter-gatherers and the state: The economic anthropology of the Gunwinggu of north
Australia." Ph.D. Dissertation, Australian National University.
Alvarez Litben, Silvia G. (1995) "Inter-ethnic relations in the coast of Ecuador: The indigenous condition as a basis
for a project of autonomy." Ph.D. Dissertation, Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona. 710 pp.
The main themes in this dissertation are the inter-ethnic relations that have taken place, since the colonial
period until today, in the Santa Elena Peninsula (Ecuador). The analysis takes as a starting point the existing
archaeological information on the Manteno-Huancavilca society, which is characterized as a highly complex
sociopolitical organization, that occupied a large part of the coastal space, and which extended its long-
distance exchange relations as far as Mesoamerica and the Central Andes. Considering the Huancavilcas, as
trade intermediaries and indispensable purveyors of goods, especially of Spondylus (Mullu), and information
to the Incas, helps to better understand their integration and differentiated social reproduction within the
newly established capitalist commercial relations imposed by the colonial system. These ethnic groups, which
survived demographic collapse, quickly managed newly introduced concepts: as exchange value, trading,
and the accumulation of gain, taking advantage of the opportunities offered by a transient market that
communicated and supplied the colonial settlements controlled from distant Lima. Parceled out in
Encomiendas, and later concentrated into Reducciones, then into Parcialidades, these indigenous groups
began to reconstruct their social organization, and their ethnicity, in a continuous process of ethnogenesis
that resisted and opposed the dominant colonial society. During the first 200 years of colonization the
'Goancavilcas' selectively adopted, to their benefit, those cultural components of Spanish society that best
served their needs for social reproduction and survival (language, dress, currency, cattle, and legal
practice). This 'acculturation' did not result in a loss of their native condition, of their 'authenticity', nor
constitute an assimilation into the hegemonic culture, it meant that new resources were appropriated and
used, giving them a new meaning that was used in their confrontation with the colonial society. The strategies
followed throughout historical time oscillated between collaboration and confrontation, integration and
differentiation, adaptation and resistance. Within the Reducciones the indigenous productive system
demonstrated being capable of generating commercial excedents that allowed them to pay tribute, and to
obtain a high level of liquidity that was invested in the acquisition of new land holdings. From the 18th to the
19th century, in the Sant Elena Peninsula area large tracts of land were bought and registered in favour of
the 'Comun de Indios' until they conformed 'large indigenous communities' that were maintained until the
'Ley de Organizacion y Regimen de Comunas' was expedited by the Ecuadorian government in 1937. This
new 'comunidad', distinct from the original, found its strength in the occupation of a common space,
differentiated from the Spanish colonial space. Ethnic space became the pivot around which ethnic identity
was constantly rebuilt. Since 1937, the large territories were broken up into 62 communes that manage the
5,000 sq. km. of collective property.
Alwyn, Eleanor. (2004) "Traditions in a colonized world: Two realities of a First Nation." Ph.D. Dissertation,
University of Toronto. 268 pp.
Set on the rugged south shore of the Island of Newfoundland against a backdrop of ongoing colonial
oppression by church and state and despite all odds, Miawpukek First Nation at Conne River, NF, is the only
Mi'kmaq Band in the province to achieve federal Status. In less than 20 years, the Chief and Band Council
have taken community life from subsistence level to a place where every member is engaged in work and
living conditions that are typically mainstream Canadian. This critical ethnography traces their Mi'kmaq
historical roots in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia and provides a history of more than a century of life from
the perspectives of the People.
This researcher spent more than a year living in the community and participating in ongoing daily activities,
special celebrations and sacred ceremonies. It became profoundly evident that Miawpukek First Nation is, as
are most First Nations peoples, caught between two worlds: the Eurocentric world of surviving in the 21st
century and their traditional culture which is based on a spiritual relationship with the land. The question is
posited about whether Canada's religious freedoms are being denied as aboriginal peoples' lands are
systematically usurped. Although the nature of housing, education and livelihood has changed for
Miawpukek First Nation, there is a spiritual crisis -- as evidenced by ongoing alcoholism, abuse, and suicide.
Most have lost a traditional understanding of how their universe works and their place in it. However, there
is increasing interest among some community members to regain traditional knowledge, language and
practices in order to encourage sacred values.
To further this endeavour this dissertation includes a brief outline of some traditional philosophy and
practices and a listing of plant and animal medicines. A discussion of healing, religion, and traditional
understandings which are based on principles of balance and relationships rather than universal laws has
important implications for virtually all First Nations peoples. Efforts to achieve healthy individuals in healthy
communities can incorporate, but must go beyond, the 1986 Ottawa Charter for Health Promotion which
does not consider the unique cosmology and needs of Canada's aboriginal peoples.
Anders, Gary C. (1978) "Dependence and underdevelopment: The political economy of Cherokee Native Americans."
Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Notre Dame. 209 pp.
Andersen, Christian. (2005) "Courting colonialism? The juridical construction and political aftermath of Metis rights
in R. v. Powley." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Alberta. 351 pp.
This dissertation is the culmination two goals. The primary goal centred on an investigation of juridical
constructions of Métis Aboriginality through an examination of the court files of a recently decided
Aboriginal rights case, R. v. Powley. Analyzing factums, expert reports, testimony and the court decisions at
both the Court of Appeal for Ontario and the Supreme Court of Canada, I investigated how legal actors
positioned Métis Aboriginality in light of their (apparent) 'mixed bloodedness'. Using insights harnessed from
various bodies of critical legal theory and Pierre Bourdieu's concept of social fields, I analyzed the various
discursive constructions of Métis Aboriginality with respect to the purpose, meaning, proper chronology and
role of 'blood quantum' in its inclusion in section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982. In doing so, the
dissertation demonstrates the persistence in contemporary Canadian jurisprudence of racist discourses of
racial and cultural purity which originally anchored nineteenth century Canadian constructions of
Aboriginality. Although Métis were finally ordained as 'fully Aboriginal' at the Supreme Court of Canada,
Aboriginality was itself still positioned as a historical, pre-colonial phenomenon. This is discouraging for
Native communities formed after (and in reaction to) the colonizing projects of the Canadian state, since they
fall outside the protective ambit of section 35 Aboriginal rights.
The secondary goal, pursued more briefly, consists of positioning 'Law' as an antagonistic and fissured set of
social fields to demonstrate the shortcomings of attempts to understand 'Law' as constitutive. That is to say,
this research demonstrates how different fields of 'Law' compete with each other in a hierarchical playing
field such that court victories can be used by Métis political organizations at the expense of other areas of
'Law'. This fracturing necessitates an analytical movement away from understanding 'Law' as a single entity
to an analytical lens which attempts to understand the tensions and antagonisms involved in the reproduction
of 'Law'. Although the smoke has yet to sufficiently clear from the Powley decision, the fact that at present we
fail to hold a clear understanding of the court case's effects should give pause to theorists who seek to imbue
'Law' with a constitutive power it neither possesses nor deserves.
Anderson, Carolyn R. (1997) "Dakota identity in Minnesota, 1820-1995." Ph.D. Dissertation, Indiana University. 557
pp.
This ethnohistorical and ethnographic study of Dakota identity in Minnesota examines the dialectical
relationship between Euro-American cultural constructions of the Indian and Dakota conceptions of
themselves as a people. This study eschews ethnicity models, employing Foucault's 'knowledge/power' and
Bourdieu's 'symbolic domination' approaches. From 1820 to 1851 the Dakota lost their status as producers
in the fur trade and negotiated a series of treaties with the United States. Placed on a reservation, the Dakota
rebelled in 1862, and were subsequently removed from Minnesota. Ultimately resettled at Santee, Nebraska,
individual Dakotas left there and returned to Minnesota, a group of them rebuilding a community at Prairie
Island. Their efforts to establish a land base, make a living, maintain independence, practice Dakota values,
and express identity are explored. Late 20th century issues include casino gaming, entitlement and
enrolment, factionalism, and opposition to nuclear waste storage near the community. Dakota identity
changed from a kinship network of individuals for whom 'being Dakota' meant enacting Dakota values in
individual practice to a multi-layered, situational system of identity that is primarily ideational. Resistance to
the dominant society evolved into an ideology of opposition based on supratribal consciousness, while the
political and economic functions of the tribe took precedence over a practice of peoplehood.
Anderson, Jon C. (1984) "The political and economic basis of Kuku-Yalanji social history ." Ph.D. Dissertation,
University of Queensland.
Anderson, Karen L. (1982 ) "Huron women and Huron men: The effects of demography, kinship and the social
division of labour." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Toronto.
Many contemporary theorists concerned with the nature of male/female relations in non-capitalist societies
continue to ask the same questions Engels raised a century ago in Origins of the family, private property and
the state (1884). Is an egalitarian status possible for women? On what basis can we explain the relative
statuses of men and women? What brings about a decline in women's status relative to that of men? But if
there is accord over the questions to be asked, there is discord over the answers given. Nowhere is the
disagreement more evident than over whether women's status is best explained in terms of their roles as
producers or as reproducers. This thesis addresses that debate through an examination of the 17th century
Huron. The Huron are a particularly good case to which we can address questions concerning male/female
relations in non-capitalist societies. Huron women occupied an extraordinarily undominated position relative
to that of men. More importantly, that status did not decline after the introduction of the fur trade. This thesis
proposes that the key to understanding male/female relations among the Huron lies in tracing out the
connections between demography, the social division of labour, and kinship as social relations of production.
By contrast, explanations that concentrate solely on women's role as producers or as reproducers are
unsatisfactory. What is called for instead is an examination of the social division of labour as the basis on
which society is partitioned into the categories male and female and an examination of kin relations as social
relations of production which function to combine men and women into viable units of production,
consumption and reproduction. Finally, the question 'under what conditions does the status of women decline
relative to that of men?' is asked. This thesis argues that the link between the social division of labour and
kinship as social relations of production must be destroyed. Women are open to domination by men when
they no longer have direct access to the means of production or the product of social labour in their own
right but gain that access only through a relation to some property holder (often their husbands or fathers).
Anderson, Robert B. (1997) "Economic development among First Nations: A contingency perspective." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of Saskatchewan (The). 299 pp.
This dissertation explores the economic development objectives, strategies, and activities of the First Nations
in Canada with three objectives: (i) to identify the approach to development among First Nations; (ii) to
develop a theoretical perspective capable of providing insight into this approach; and, (iii) to investigate the
activities of the First Nations in Saskatchewan to determine if they are consistent with the expected
characteristics of the First Nations' approach to development and the proposed theoretical perspective.
To address the first objective, a wide range of sources are reviewed to determine First Nations development
objectives and strategies. Based on this review, the First Nations' development approach emphasizes the
creation of profitable businesses competing in the global economy. These businesses are usually collectively
owned and often involve partnerships with non-First Nation corporations. A review of development theory
follows to accomplish the second objective. Both the orthodox and radical perspectives are rejected. Instead,
a 'contingency perspective' based on regulation theory, the postimperial perspective and
alternative/indigenous development approaches, is developed.
To address the third objective, research was conducted in three parts: (i) an investigation of the economic
development activities of the 70 Saskatchewan First Nations; (ii) a study of the approach of non-First
Nations companies to business alliances with First Nations; and, (iii) a case study of the development
activities of the Meadow Lake Tribal Council.
Based on the first and third parts of this research, 69% of First Nations businesses are owned by First
Nations alone or First Nations in joint venture with non-First Nations businesses. These businesses account
for 89% of the total estimated annual revenue of all First Nation businesses. Only 24% of First Nations
businesses target the local market, the rest compete in broader regional, national and international markets.
Part two of the research shows that a growing number of non-First Nations corporations are adopting a
strategy of business alliances with aboriginal people. Five factors motivate this corporate behaviour: (i) a
shift in the global competitive environment from a Fordist to a flexible regime of accumulation; (ii) society's
changing expectations about what constitutes socially responsible corporate behaviour; (iii) legal and
regulatory requirements and restrictions; (iv) the growing aboriginal population, and its increasing affluence
and level of education; and, (v) the rapidly growing pool of natural and financial resources under the control
of aboriginal people. These results confirm the eight characteristics of the First Nations' approach to
economic development and are consistent with the proposed contingency perspective.
Andolina, Robert J. (1999) "Colonial legacies and plurinational imaginaries: Indigenous movement politics in Ecuador
and Bolivia." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Minnesota. 385 pp.
This dissertation asserts that ideology is a key element for understanding both the action and impact of social
movements. It examines the formation, behaviour, and consequences of contemporary national indigenous
peoples' movements in Ecuador and Bolivia. Most treatments of social movements see ideology as a glue and
mobilizing force behind social movements. This dissertation goes further in arguing that ideology is
constitutive of the movement itself and consists of both strategies and identities, in turn shaping movement
emergence and evolution. While most theories and concepts of social movements are grounded in first world
contexts or derived from theories grounded in those contexts, this thesis calls for analytically situating 'third
world' indigenous movements and social movements within colonial and global relations of power as well as
national political contexts. As I demonstrate in this thesis, contemporary Andean indigenous movement
ideology is founded on contesting (neo)colonial political practices and ideologies. On the basis of this
ideology, indigenous movements communicatively engage other political actors, such as labour unions, non-
governmental organizations, political parties, or the state. Moving away from the traditional focus on
protests, lobbying, boycotts, and armed struggle as the most important social movement tactics, I find that
indigenous movements use these 'traditional tactics' to carry out what I call an 'authorization politics' that
challenges the legitimacy of the political regime, redefines the bases of its political alliances, and convenes a
broad audience around indigenous peoples' demands and political platforms, packaged as the construction of
a 'plurinational state.' In doing so, indigenous movements in contemporary Ecuador and Bolivia have moved
indigenous peoples from being a completely marginalized sector to one whose members, such as Victor Hugo
Cardenas and Nina Pacari, are being elected to the highest political offices of each country. Substantively,
indigenous movements have reshaped political agendas, reconstituted social identities, and redefined the
principles on which legitimate state rule is based in Ecuador and Bolivia.
Andrade, Carlos L. (2001 ) "Ha'ena, ahupua'a: Towards a Hawai'ian geography." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of
Hawai'i. 322 pp.
This dissertation is a journey of exploration. It is an exploration that will attempt to accomplish three
objectives. The overarching objective is to contribute to the construction of a Hawai'ian geography (as
opposed to a geography of Hawai'i). The purpose of the exploration is to search for elements and ways of
thinking that might be useful in understanding the foundation upon which the aboriginal people of Hawai'i
constructed the relationships that they had with the world in which they lived. The second objective concerns
the concept of ahupua'a developed by the aboriginal people in the process of dealing with the practical issues
of survival that confront all people who inhabit different portions of the earth. The issues of who gets what,
when, where, and how. The concept of ahupua'a will be used in order to better focus our exploration towards
a Hawai'ian geography. The exploration will be done as much as possible through the eyes and life
experiences of the aboriginal people as it is expressed in the place names, oral history, language, and
everyday practices that have been and still continue to be attached to the land. In grounding this exploration
in the real world, a single ahupua'a will be the selected. Examples of aboriginal experiences as they
transpired in Ha'ena, an ahupua'a located in the north-western portion of Kaua'i Island, will be the examples
used to illustrate the points being made in the discussion.
This dissertation is an exploration. It is not presented as a definitive study or a treatise on an all
encompassing Hawai'ian geography. Rather, it is a voyage, perhaps in the style of the early navigators and
wayfinders, and certainly in the genre of many Hawai'ian mele. It is an excursion to visit an ancient place, to
see it through older eyes, and a different language. A journey to a place where people are connected by
genealogy, spirituality, identity, and aloha 'aina to the world in which they live.
Andres, Brian S. (2002) "A qualitative phenomenological analysis of the critical incidents in the Native Hawai'ian
peacemaking process of "ho'oponopono"." Psy.D. Dissertation, Wright Institute (The). 122 pp.
"To set right" and "conflict resolution" are the most widely used and accepted general meanings attributed to
the indigenous Native Hawai'ian process called "Ho’oponopono". Ho’oponopono has been used to restore
interpersonal relationships in Hawai'i for several centuries. Ho’oponopono is often noted as an intervention
to regain the homeostatic balance in families, groups, communities as well as the individual.
The psychological phenomenological methodology approach was used to analyze the subject haku
(Ho’oponopono facilitators/leaders) participants perspectives of their world and ho’oponopono process. The
study attempts to investigate the content and structure of the participants' consciousness, diversity of life
experiences, and to further analyze their essential meanings.
Participants in the study have gone through the ho’oponopono process in the study. The critical incidents of
the hakus are analyzed in the following categories: family mediation, forgiveness and reconciliation. Past
research on ho’oponopono note the importance of the haku 's mental, emotional, and spiritual preparation
and appropriateness are important aspects of the process. Also Native Hawai'ian spiritual and cultural
values most often noted are pono (balance), ohana (family), and lokahi (unity) from this study and past
research in this area. The investigator found the common theme of harmonious balance in the individual,
family, and community was often emphasized by all haku . The implications for use of ho’oponopono as a
family and/or group intervention with people of Hawai'ian as well as other cultural groups is discussed.
Angom, Georgia E. (1998) "Diversity in the Canadian public sector: Understanding the factors that inhibit inclusion."
M.P.A. Thesis, University of Manitoba (The). 147 pp.
In recent years, Canada has experienced more demographic changes than ever before. This is due to the
influx of people from diverse origins. This demographic mix means that the provision of services should be
such that it meets the needs of a diverse population. In addition, the huge influx of women into the workforce
raises their expectations about their participation in the labour force. Disabled persons are becoming more
visible in the larger society as well as in the labour force. Aboriginal peoples are demanding for their rights,
and for recognitions. The public service, as the main provider of essential services to Canadians, is faced
with the task of providing these services to citizens and involving citizens in the provisions of services. One of
the concerns in Canadian society is that the public service workforce does not reflect the make up of society.
This, in turn suggests that diverse needs might not be given appropriate consideration, in policy and
administrative terms. A guiding theme that runs through the paper is the need to strengthen and sharpen the
legal and political commitment to the pursuit of greater equality of opportunity for employment in the public
service for all Canadians regardless of origin or physical abilities. There is need to link policy to
transformation in political attitudes and action.
Arato-Bollivar, Juliette. (2004) "In their own words. Exploring survival factors in suicidal Aboriginal youth: A critical
incident study." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of British Columbia (The). 116 pp.
This study explores the survival factors that suicidal Aboriginal Youth used to keep themselves alive. The
purpose of this study was to develop categories that would identify themes in the events reported by
Aboriginal individuals, by exploring the research question: "What are the critical incidents contributing to
survival in suicidal aboriginal youth?"
The research method involved interviews with 20 adult (18 and over) Aboriginal volunteers (all residents of
British Columbia) who possessed the ability to articulate, identify and discuss their stories of survival. The
Critical Incident Technique (Flanagan, 1954) was utilized to elicit 254 incidents from 20 participants. 14
categories were created from the analysis of all events reported. Thorough validation techniques were
applied in order to test the soundness and comprehensiveness of the categories. In addition, efforts were
made to examine fit with the literature of the categories and expert commentary concerning the results was
provided. The categories reflected that survival factors included: Responsibility to Others, Connection
to/Love of Family, Professional Support, Support of Non family/Non Professional Individuals, Cognitive
Shift/Change in Thinking, Avoiding a Negative Environment, Formal Education, Connection to Cultural
Heritage, Getting Sober, Normalizing One's Difficult Experiences/Learning You Are Not Alone, Spirituality,
Connection to Nature, Self Acceptance/Love/Care, and Sense of Purpose/Making a Difference.
In addition, gender differences were examined and, through incidental commentary of the participants,
factors hindering survival were identified.
The findings of this study contribute to the field of counselling psychology by providing a scheme of
categories that attempt to describe, from the perspective of Aboriginal people, what has aided them in
surviving suicidal thoughts, actions and behaviours, in their youth. This research suggests promising
developments in Aboriginal survival and contains implications for practice and research.
Archibald, Samantha L. (1996) "Contested heritage: An analysis of the discourse on The Spirit Sings." M.A. Thesis,
University of Lethbridge. 348 pp.
This thesis contributes to the knowledge of museology, anthropology and Native American studies. It is an
analysis of the discourse that surrounded The Spirit Sings: Artistic Traditions of Canada's First Peoples, an
exhibition prepared by the Glenbow in Calgary as the 'flagship' of the Olympic Arts Festival in 1988. After
the Lubicon Indians of northern Alberta called for a boycott of The Spirit Sings, in attempt to draw critical
attention to their long outstanding lands claim, a large and heated debate ensued involving several
disciplines, particularly anthropology and museology. Much of this debate took place in the print media,
therefore a large body of material remains to be reviewed and studied. The intent of this thesis is to illustrate
that the issue of museological representation of First Nations was one of the most central themes discussed in
the discourse, but to argue that the major players dealt with this issue on only the most concrete level and
therefore largely neglected to recognize that the issue of First Nation's representation was not just a concern
over museum interpretation but more importantly an issue of the contested authenticity of national and
cultural claims.
Armstrong, Janet M. (2001) "A political economy of native marginalization: A study of the appropriation of aboriginal
water rights. The case of the Mishkeegogamang First Nation." Ph.D. Dissertation, Queen's University at
Kingston. 277 pp.
This study is a historical political economy of native marginalization. The analysis focuses upon aboriginal
water rights in the case of the Mishkeegogamang First Nation. The appropriation of water rights has played
a major factor in the marginalization of this community. Traditionally, the debate about native
marginalization has been dominated by legal and administrative approaches. This study moves beyond these
approaches by looking at issues of class formation, primary accumulation, and the role of the state and the
law. In one instance this is a case study about water rights. However, it is hoped that this case study will also
add insights to the broader theoretical debate on native marginalization. The Mishkeegogamang live at
Osnaburgh, in north-western Ontario. Their reserve, known as I.R. 63A and I.R. 63 B is located at the
headwaters of the Albany River on Lake St. Joseph. The Mishkeegogamang, in times past, fished from the
waters of Lake St. Joseph, the Albany River, and the surrounding lakes for subsistence and trade. In 1905, the
Mislikeegogamang became signatories to Treaty No. 9, known as the James Bay Treaty. The Treaty
Commissioners assured the community that they would be able to continue to hunt, trap and fish as their
ancestors had done. However, just 30 years later, Ontario Hydro constructed a dam at Osnaburgh that
caused serious flooding. The flooding damaged the fishery and altered the shoreline of the reserve. In the
1950s, when the generating station was no longer required, Ontario Hydro diverted the waters of Lake St.
Joseph into Lac Seul causing fluctuating water levels. It is argued that the Treaty, and subsequent acts of
expropriation can best be understood as examples of primary accumulation. It is also demonstrated that the
law was simply ignored by the state for the sake of expediency. Crown appropriation of the aboriginal fishery
also contributed to the marginalization of the Mishkeegogamang. Beginning in the 1930s, non-aboriginal
people began to obtain commercial licenses for Lake St. Joseph. The fishers of Mishkeegogamang became
primary producers for local fish dealers who profited from the resource. It is demonstrated that the
appropriation of the fishery is also an instance of primary accumulation. The liberal ideology of equality in
the marketplace was used to justify this appropriation. Because this study attempts to move beyond existing
legal and administrative approaches to native marginalization, non-governmental sources are used wherever
possible. The most important of these sources is the oral history gathered during visits to the community in
1996 and 1998.
Arndt, Leah M. R. (2004) "Soul wound, warrior spirit: Exploring the vocational choice of American Indian law
enforcement officers working for non-tribal agencies." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Wisconsin --
Madison (The). 120 pp.
This study explored the role and function of vocational choice for American Indian (AI) law enforcement
officers. Extended Case Method (Burawoy, 1991) was used to examine complex patterns of coping, over time,
with intergenerational and historical trauma, or soul wound (Duran, 1990; Duran and Duran, 1995; Duran
et al., 1998). Specifically, the study sought to identify how vocation might serve to either facilitate or hinder
healing of soul wound, and how this choice may be reflective of traditional warrior traditions, and thus a
culturally congruent vehicle of healing available to AIs in largely non-AI settings. Results indicated that
participants saw their law enforcement roles as congruent with traditional warrior roles, particularly the
roles of minister and mentor to the people, and that this worldview held spiritual meaning. Proximity of large
scale, intergenerational soul wound events affecting AI cultural transmission was associated with being more
likely to identify with the traditional warrior roles of protector (soldier), punisher, and dispenser of justice,
and a lower value being placed on spirituality in relationship to vocation. The present study has implications
for expanding vocational and ethno-cultural theories in the field of psychology, and for reworking theoretical
and methodological traditions for research on AIs, traumatized populations, culture/ethnicity, and vocational
choice. Limits and implications are presented in the discussion section.
Arnold, Brent J. (1999) "Principled compromise or compromised principles? Aboriginal land claims and the problem
of liberal property." M.A. Thesis, Queen's University at Kingston. 104 pp.
This thesis examines the nature of Canadian aboriginal conceptions of property as they have been articulated
in the period which began with the federal government's infamous White Paper of 1969 and continues to the
present day. It is argued that there is a common and identifiable pan-aboriginal notion of property in the
writings by and about aboriginals of this period which is fundamentally incompatible with western liberal
notions of property. The improbability that such a commonality should exist, and the issues which spring
from the fact that it does, are also discussed. Despite this incompatibility, both conceptions are currently
being combined within the same institutions as the relationship of aboriginals to the Canadian state is
renegotiated. How such a seemingly impossible combination has become acceptable to those involved is the
primary focus of this thesis.
The characteristics of aboriginal and western property are delineated and contrasted. Each is then placed in
the context of the general worldview from which it arises, demonstrating that competing notions of property
are part of whole systems of belief and understanding which, if taken as seriously as they are offered in the
texts which explain them, must be seen as irreconcilable. This irreconcilability is further illustrated through a
critique of pluralist models of political organization from the standpoint that such models can succeed only
by understating the essential difference between aboriginal and non-aboriginal understandings.
The fact that apparently irreconcilable notions are being combined in new institutional arrangements is
explained by examining the context of the combination. The power relations which determine the nature of
the struggle for aboriginal empowerment, which is to say, the gross power imbalances between aboriginal
peoples and the various branches of the non-aboriginal Canadian state are shown to necessitate, shape, and
circumscribe the discourse of aboriginal property. The result is a discourse which appears intractable in
theory and unrealizable in practice. The result is a discourse which appears intractable in theory and
unrealizable in practice. The study concludes with comments on the current struggle, and about the nature of
discourse in general.
Atkinson, Judy. (2000) "Lifting the blankets: The transgenerational effects of trauma in indigenous Australia." Ph.D.
Dissertation, Queensland University of Technology.
The two specific aims of the fieldwork were to understand: (a) the phenomena of violence in the lives of a
group of Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people (the later by invitation of the Aboriginal people), living
within a central coastal region of Queensland; and, (b) cultural and individual processes of recovery or
healing from violence related trauma.
More specifically the questions that guided the field studies were:
-- What is the experience of violence?
-- How do experiences of violence contribute to experiences/behaviours that influence situations of inter-and
transgenerational trauma?
-- What assists change or healing in such behaviours?
-- What is healing and how do people heal?
-- What cultural tools promote change or healing, and how can these be supported to promote individual,
family and community well-being?
Through the literature review the thesis considers cultural processes Aboriginal peoples previously used to
deal with the trauma of natural disaster or man induced conflict. The literature review is then used to
consider the impacts of trauma on the lives of people generally. Finally the literature make links to locate the
violence of contemporary Aboriginal communal environment to levels of trauma transmitted across
generations from colonising processes.
The thesis is based on evolving Indigenous research methodological approaches, as it uses an Aboriginal
listening/learning process called dadirri which is described as a cyclic process of listening and observing,
reflecting and learning, acting and evaluating, re-listening and re-learning, and acting with insight and
responsibility both in the field and with integrity and fidelity within the dissertation.
The thesis demonstrates dadirri in Chapter Four as it allows the voices of six participants to tell their stories
of trauma and of healing in meaningful painful conversation with each other. These six participants represent
some of the six hundred people who participated in the fieldwork over the years of the study. It is from this
conversation that the data for the explication of the trauma experience and the healing processes has been
drawn.
Chapter Five of the thesis is the explication of the trauma experience. In this chapter links are made between
the violence experience, thoughts and feelings and resulting behaviour; feelings of inadequacy as a result of
childhood experiences; victim perpetrator survivor roles in family and community violence; the relationships
between alcohol and drugs to trauma; suicidal behaviours as a result of trauma; the fractured self, and
finally the transgenerational effects of trauma.
Chapter Six is the explication of the healing processes as they were narrated by the participants. Healing was
defined by participants as educating them selves about who they are. The themes on healing that emerged in
chapter Four are: healing as an awakening to inner (unmet) needs; healing as an experience of safety;
healing as community support; rebuilding a sense of family and community in healing; healing as an ever-
deepening self-knowledge; the use of ceremony in healing; strengthening cultural and spiritual identity in
healing; healing as transformation, and transcendence and integration in healing.
Chapter Seven presents a synthesis and integration of the material and a model proposed for understanding
trauma and healing from an Aboriginal perspective.
The thesis is an exploratory study. The findings and conclusions will be of use in the development and
delivery of programs for community action in primary prevention and critical intervention in family violence,
alcohol and drug programs, social and emotional well-being programs and crime prevention strategies. The
thesis could be used as a foundation for future studies into violence and into healing within Aboriginal
situations within Australia.
Auger, Josephine C. (1999) "Walking through fire and surviving: Resiliency among aboriginal peoples with diabetes."
M.Sc. Thesis, University of Alberta. 105 pp.
The purpose of the evaluation of the Aboriginal Diabetes Wellness Program (ADWP) in Edmonton is to
determine whether or not individuals attending the ADWP are healthier as a result of the services that the
program provides. The research is quantitative based. A limitation of the study is that it does not include
qualitative data to assess what causes some people to improve their health and others not. This thesis utilized
explanatory models as a guide to interview a total of 12 aboriginal peoples with diabetes, their family
members, and a health care professional from the ADWP to understand the lived experience of Aboriginal
peoples with diabetes. The aboriginal peoples were of Cree, Ojibway, and Métis heritage. In addition to the
12 explanatory models, a focus group with staff members and two semi-structured interviews with an elder
and cultural helper were obtained. There was a broad range of explanatory models due to the age, gender,
and geographic location of the people interviewed. 12 themes were extrapolated, including causes of type 2
diabetes, impact of prior knowledge about diabetes, levels of exercise, the consumption of fatty foods, support
systems, care-giving, native spirituality, humour, residential school experience, alcohol consumption,
socioeconomic status, grieving and fears related to complications. These results reflect the experience of
resiliency among aboriginal peoples living with diabetes. This research complements an evaluation of the
Aboriginal Diabetes Wellness Program that was outcome based.
Augsburger, Deborah. (2004) "Language socialization and shift in an Isthmus Zapotec community of Mexico." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of Pennsylvania. 361 pp.
The history of indigenous languages in Mexico has been one largely of gradual displacement by Spanish;
nevertheless many communities persist in using their ancestral languages despite widespread ideological
forces favoring the national language, Spanish. Increasingly, this resistance is supported in some
communities by countervailing ideologies linked with cultural revitalization efforts. The present research
explores such a case among the Isthmus Zapotec of Oaxaca. The study has two broad theoretical aims. First,
it examines the roots and development of the ideological forces in favour of indigenous languages. Why have
these countervailing forces arisen in this community, how are they sustained and developed? Here the focus
is on the extraordinary long-term culture-historical persistence of pro-Zapotec attitudes among the local
population and the rise in the twentieth century of several intellectual and political movements supporting the
maintenance of Zapotec. Second, the study explores the interplay of competing practices and ideologies in
order to identify the crucial dynamics affecting long-term language maintenance in such a case. Here the
research emphasizes the key role played by the intergenerational socialization context. On first glance, in the
Isthmus Zapotec case there seem to be important contradictions between the expressed ideological support
for Zapotec and everyday practices that support language shift. The apparent contradiction stems from the
way the various practical and ideological pressures come together in the socialization context. On the one
hand, parents attempt to reconcile the competing ideological pressures by sequencing the acquisition of the
two languages so as to produce eventual bilingualism; on the other hand, the practical realities of the family
and the community keep this strategy from producing the expected results and in present form ultimately
cannot deflect the steady pressure towards Spanish. As a result, parental strategies designed to promote
bilingualism are contributing to the unintended consequence of language shift. Efforts to promote the long-
term maintenance of Zapotec and other similarly situated indigenous languages will have to attend to this
language socialization dynamic.
Augustine, Stephen J. (1999) "A culturally relevant education for aboriginal youth: Is there room for a middle ground,
accommodating traditional knowledge and mainstream education?" M.A. Thesis, Carleton University. 106
pp.
This thesis aims to show how a culturally relevant education can play a significant role in making learning
interesting and meaningful, and therefore be a key factor in having more aboriginal students stay in school.
The goal is to propose a new approach to education that would combine traditional knowledge, values and
ways of learning with academic curricula in the modern context.
The middle ground approach proposed here searches for a learning environment that would combine
mainstream educational subjects with traditional knowledge components and would also accommodate
teaching and learning styles that would stimulate young students' abilities and creativity. These teaching
methods would have a more holistic approach to learning, community circles, encompass family involvement,
and artistic means of expression. This thesis explores the reasons and the roots of the extremely high
incidence of drop-out rates among aboriginal students in North America, with a particular focus on the
Mi'kmaq experience. In the Mi'kmaq Creation Story, there exists a foundation of knowledge based on the
holistic nature of relationships which are expressed more especially between the people, the land and their
environment.
The thesis includes an historical analysis; a comparison between the aboriginal traditional concepts of
education and the European assimilative approach; a review of contemporary policies for education of
aboriginal peoples; a presentation of Traditional Aboriginal Knowledge with a focus on Mi'kmaq knowledge;
a case study of the Big Cove First Nation; and finally a literature review on major aboriginal educational
theorists and thinkers whose works will help support the conclusions of this research.
Austin, A. Aukahi. (2004 ) "Native Hawai'ian risky behaviour: The role of individual, social, and cultural factors in
predicting substance use and violence." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Hawai'i. 169 pp.
This study examined alcohol use, drug use, and violence experience among Native Hawai'ians living in four
communities using both qualitative and quantitative methods to understand the factors that predict these
behaviours. The methods employed were designed to be culturally appropriate to the communities being
surveyed in terms of the recruitment and engagement strategies employed, an equal representation of both
problem behaviours and well being in the instruments that were used, and the use of Hawai'ian thought in
interpreting results.
Qualitative data derived from focus group sessions in each community centred around themes such as
community-specific strengths and weaknesses, typical substance use and violence patterns, and the role of
Hawai'ian identity and culture in definitions of health.
Quantitative data on demographic characteristics, alcohol and substance use practices, and violence were
collected from 405 Native Hawai'ians living in four geographically and economically diverse communities
including Hilo, Hawai'i, Papakölea, O'ahu, Waimänalo, O'ahu, and Phoenix, Arizona. The
representativeness of the survey sample was examined using Census 2000 data for each of the areas sampled.
In addition, a smaller subset of the sample participated in test-retest reliability and cross-informant
reliability analyses. The instrument was found to be reliable across time and reporters.
By community analyses suggested that the groups were overall more similar than different in their substance
use and experience with violence. Hierarchical regression analyses using gender, religious practice, network
density of use, age at first use, reasons for use, and negative thoughts about use predicted 19.5% of the
variance in 30-day alcohol use and 25.2% of the variance in 30-day binge drinking. 17% of the variance in
30-day marijuana use was explained by age, income, network density of use, age at first use, and negative
thoughts about use. Network density witnessing, perpetrating, and being a victim of violence explained
between 15.8 and 57.8% of the variance in 30-day experience of these same behaviours. Although
depression, hopelessness, and own-group ethnic identity were tested, they were not significant predictors of
substance use or violence experience in this study.
Avery, Quinn. (1997) "Student absenteeism: An American Indian/Native American community perspective." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of Arizona (The). 145 pp.
Boloz and Lincoln (1983) conducted an intervention study concerning Native American student absences in
the public schools in a rural setting. There is little known about Native American student absences in the
public school in metropolitan areas. To address this issue, a qualitative study was conducted with the
community members from an American Indian community in a metropolitan area. This community was
chosen as a result of a pilot study that indicated there may be reasons for student absences not previously
identified. The present research (a) documented the parents' and community members' understanding of
student absenteeism in an American Indian community; (b) explored parents' and community members'
values regarding school attendance in light of the values in the American Indian community; (c) examined
the local district policy regarding absenteeism; (d) explored the congruence/incongruence of the local
district policy with the family values in the American Indian community; and, (e) explored collaborative
problem solving directions the school district and community could consider.
19 people were interviewed. All had different positions within the community, including tribal administration,
school personnel, parents and relatives of school children. Many interviewees functioned in more than one
capacity such as tribal administrator and parent. Individual interviews and focus group sessions were
analyzed using themes and categorical analysis to discern the community attitudes toward student
absenteeism in the public schools.
The study revealed that community members all valued education and school attendance. There were
differences among people regarding their understanding of excused or unexcused absences. Parents and
community members defined what they felt were responsibilities for themselves, school personnel, and tribal
administration. School district policy defined student absences by using a coding system, yet parents and
community members defined student absences in terms of family needs not district policy (e.g., there were
many interpretations of what constituted illness). Parents and community members preferred to deal with
school personnel on an individual basis although they expressed discomfort entering the schools. Several
recommendations were made, based on parent and community member comments, for further dialogue
among the parents, tribal administration, community members, school personnel, and district administration.
Neither the American Indian community nor the school district were identified in this study to maintain
anonymity for the American Indian people involved.
Avison, Shannon M. (1996 ) "Aboriginal newspapers: Their contribution to the emergence of an alternative public
sphere in Canada." M.A. Thesis, Concordia University. 225 pp.
This thesis explores the contribution of the regional Indian, Métis and Inuit newspapers to the development of
an alternative political public sphere for aboriginal peoples in Canada. It argues that although the
development of the newspapers was an important aspect of the political and cultural development, these
newspapers were, to use Habermas' terminology, 'feudalized' by the political organizations that created them,
the Canadian state that funded them and the marketplace that determines their fate today. Using Jurgen
Habermas' concept of the public sphere, this thesis considers the contribution that these publications made to
the process of public opinion at the regional and national levels in Canada. It concludes that the regional
newspapers did contribute to the national aboriginal public sphere, but that state policies and financial
exigencies limited their contribution and prevented them from realizing their full potential in the lives of
aboriginal Canadians.
Awakuni-Swetland, Mark J. (2003) "Umonhon ithae the, umonhon bthi n; I speak Omaha, I am Omaha. Omaha
language choice, 1971-2001." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Oklahoma (The). 225 pp.
The creation of an indigenous language program at the University of Nebraska is the impetus for this study.
It is informed by the local and national movement in native language revival and maintenance. This study
examines the efforts of, and difficulties in, the reversal of language shift by the Omaha Tribe of Nebraska.
The transmission of cultural knowledge/language is negatively impacted by social, political, economic, and
colonial pressures on the family and community. The family is cited as the preferred site of language and
culture learning. Individuals generally shift responsibility for the revival and/or maintenance of the Omaha
language away from themselves and onto the public school and tribal government. There is an absence of
consensus within the Omaha community. A grounded theory approach is used to maximize the local
perspective in the data, drawn from qualitative interviews with ten community leaders. Respondents describe
their language ideology, and what they are doing to act upon those attitudes. A first person participant
observation account of native language use and change spans the years from 1971 through 2001. Topics
include the development of the 1977 Omaha dictionary; vignettes of native language performance, emergence
of the language programs at Omaha Nation Public School and the University of Nebraska, recent research
narratives, orthographic debates, and language assessment reports. The problem in reversing language shift
resides in the nature and goals of the imposed western-model government and social structure. They do not
encourage consensus decision-making. This study suggests a shift to programming and institutions that
maximize pre-reservation ideals of community-wide fusion, interdependence, and action in the face of
divergent ideologies. The principles and approaches of the successful Punana Leo preschool immersion and
Kula Kaiapuni Hawai'ian immersion schools are offered to the Omaha community. The next step in this study
is to develop questions to elicit ideas about ways to motivate the English-only Omaha parents into a
groundswell of action. The hesitant speakers must be encouraged to risk the embarrassment of
mispronunciation and become active models of the language. The practice of critical ridicule without proper
modeling must change. The fundamental key to this, or any action, requires the complete commitment of the
parents.
Bachman-Prehn, Ronet D. (1989) "American Indian homicide: A multimethod, multilevel analysis." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of New Hampshire. 205 pp.
This study investigates the aetiology of American Indian homicide. Its triangulated methodology combined
both the quantitative multivariate analyses with in-depth interview data from American Indian male homicide
offenders. At the national level, a descriptive analysis was performed that compared American Indian, black,
and white disaggregated homicide rates. Although black homicide rates are far greater than either American
Indian or white rates, American Indian rates are more than double that of the white population. American
Indian homicide is more likely to involve knives while both black and white homicide is more likely to involve
handguns. However, when handgun and other gun categories are added together, they account for over 40%
of all homicides regardless of race/ethnicity. Homicide victims are more likely to be acquaintances involved
in conflict situations with the offender in all racial/ethnic groups. And although homicide is a predominantly
male phenomenon for all groups, both black and American Indian populations have a significantly higher
percentage of female perpetrated homicides than the white population. Multiple regression models estimated
American Indian homicide at both the state and SMSA levels. Economic deprivation theory was supported at
the reservation state level while a subculture of violence theory was supported at the SMSA level. The
qualitative analysis of interview data not only supported the same causal forces of economic deprivation and
a subculture of violence, but also illuminated other contributing factors as well. Sources of social
disorganization culture conflict and alcohol/drug use were also found to play an important role in these
offender's lives. This data provided tremendous insight into the nature and extent of the psychological pain
that manifests as a result of these structural and cultural conditions. A theoretical model of American Indian
Homicide was formulated from the results of both quantitative and qualitative analyses. It includes elements
of economic deprivation, a subculture of violence, social disorganization, and culture conflict and perceived
powerlessness, with alcohol/drug abuse placed in the model as an intervening variable.
Badine, Terry D. (2003) "First Nations women clients: Experiences in dual relationships." M.S.W. Thesis, University
of Northern British Columbia. 110 pp.
Dual relationships are of concern to professional therapists. All professional regulatory bodies caution their
members to avoid dual relationships with their clients: it is a matter of ethical boundaries. However, it is now
also acknowledged that in small and rural communities dual or overlapping relationships with clients are
unavoidable. The concept of dual or overlapping relationships is also of concern to professionals who work
in First Nations communities. Nevertheless, like in other small or rural communities, where the counsellors
live and are in constant interaction with the clients, dual relationships in First Nations communities do
occur. Using a phenomenological approach, this study explores First Nations women clients' experiences of
dual relationships with alcohol and drug abuse counsellors indigenous to the clients' communities. The goal
of this study was to provide a description of the nature of this experience from First Nations women clients'
perspectives. Descriptive data for the study was gathered through conversations with three Firsts Nations
women who live in rural communities in British Columbia and Alberta.
Baer-Opazo, Margaret. (1991) "Imag(in)ing Indians: Representations of native people in Rudy Wiebe and W.P.
Kinsella." M.A. Thesis, University of Waterloo. 132 pp.
The representation of native people in Canadian literature written by whites has generally reflected the
marginalization of native people in Canadian society. However, writer have begun to shift attention towards
Canada's aboriginal legacy, both past and present, and among contemporary authors, Rudy Wiebe and W.P.
Kinsella stand out for their unusual placing of natives at the centre of their stories, and for subverting
conventional racist images. Although vastly different from each other, Wiebe and Kinsella create native
characters who are neither symbols of evil nor of nobility, they are instead rich in human complexity. The
thesis begins by introducing these two authors, and briefly surveying the historical and critical context of the
native in Canadian literature. Chapters Two and Three examine Wiebe's works that deal with native
experience, focusing on his 1973 novel, The temptations of Big Bear, which reconstructs the demise of the
Plains Cree way of life in the late 1800s. Chapter Four turns to Kinsella's six collections of short stories
(1977-89), set on the Hobbema Cree reserve in Alberta, in which he traces the legacy of the treaties and
reserve system a hundred years after Big Bear's time, and the lives of contemporary native people in the
midst of the dominant white Canadian society. The study of these two authors highlights many complex and
sensitive issues, including the relation between history, facts, authenticity, and myth, fiction, imagination; the
criteria for distinguishing between racist symbols and realist portraits; the authority of artists to imagine,
and their responsibility to historically oppressed minorities; the appropriation of voice, and the power of
story and language to heal and bridge cultural misunderstanding.
Baker, Brian A. (1996) "A nation in two states: The Annishnabeg in the United States and Canada, 1837-1991." Ph.D.
Dissertation, Stanford University. 235 pp.
The Chippewa and Ojibway bands of the Lake Superior region of the United States and Canada share the
same historical and cultural nexus (best characterized as Annishnabeg). Although the Annishnabeg share a
distinct ethnic identity that stretches across the Canada/US border, they have existed under the influence of
two dissimilar institutional regimes.
When the US and Canada expanded in the Lake Superior region in the 19th century, treaties served as the
vehicle by which the Annishnabeg were politically incorporated by each country. Because the Annishnabeg
bands on both sides of the border maintained hunting and fishing rights to the treaty regions that were
created, their ethnic identity was entrenched in the institutional regime of each country. However, the specific
manner in which the Annishnabeg have enacted those claims in both the historical and contemporary periods
has been different in each county. I argue that the dissimilarities in the reorganization of Annishnabeg ethnic
identity are rooted in the differences in the institutional regimes between these two countries.
The study utilizes qualitative evidence to explain the national differences in the reorganization of
Annishnabeg ethnic identity. The research is grounded in theories of the nation-state, internal colonialism
and ethnic mobilization. For the historical period (1837-1916), I establish differences in the structure of
internal colonialism at the national and sub-national levels in each country with respect to Annishnabeg
hunting and fishing rights. For the contemporary period (1972-91), I focus on the different strategies of
mobilization employed by the Annishnabeg to reclaim those rights in both countries, which were shaped by
differences in the institutionalized political regimes. While the Annishnabeg pursued a strategy of negotiation
in Canada, the Annishnabeg in the US pursued a strategy of litigation. While the Annishnabeg in Ontario
were unable to produce a shift in the institutional regime, the Annishnabeg in Wisconsin were successful.
Comparatively, this difference is explained by the fact that the Annishnabeg have a sovereign status as Indian
nations in the United States where treaties are the supreme law of the land.
Baker, Howard R. (1996) "Law transplanted, justice invented: Sources of law for the Hudson's Bay Company in
Rupert's Land, 1670-1870." M.A., University of Manitoba (The). 166 pp.
Upon its creation on 2nd May 1670, the Hudson's Bay Company received territorial rights to a vast land that
would become the Canadian North West. These were chartered rights that carried with them the obligations
of providing good governance of the territories and maintaining order throughout "Rupert's Land", the name
given the territory by the Company's charter. The Hudson's Bay Company remained the overlord of these
territories -- both de jure and de facto -- for nearly two hundred years.
The Company, while it never transplanted the formal English common law all at once, brought bits and
pieces of law to Rupert's Land. Some came in the baggage of the Company's servants, such as the common
law of master and servant that governed the lawful employment relationships in the Company's factories and
forts during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. The Company exercised its legislative power to create
rules and regulations for the governance of Rupert's Land. Throughout the eighteenth century, however, this
aggregation of laws that governed Company servants, both written and unwritten, touched only Company
servants. Trading practices and marriage alliances adhered to Aboriginal customs, and the Company did not
transplant criminal and civil law to Rupert's Land.
The judicature established m the colony at Red River, therefore, had no Company model to follow. Sir
George Simpson, governor of Rupert's Land in 1835, established in that year the first regularly convening
court of law. Rather than relying on Adam Thom (the first recorder of Rupert's Land) or his expositions on
English law, the men who staffed the courts largely invented justice as they went along.
Baker, Matthew J. (2000) "Essays in the economics of hunter-gatherer and indigenous peoples." Ph.D. Dissertation,
University of Connecticut (The). 131 pp.
I apply economic theory in the analysis of some of the enduring institutions of hunter-gatherer, peasant, and
tribal societies. In Chapter One I synopsize the development of economic anthropology as a field and the
study of traditional societies in economics.
In Chapter Two I study the interrelationship between two common hunter-gatherer institutions: shared
access to resources and shared output. I study production incentives created by output sharing rules. Sharing
introduces interdependency among resource users; agents care about the effects production decisions have
on others. The shared access/shared output system does not require that the actions of individuals be
observed or monitored. Sharing rules can both solve the commons problem and also result in an equal
distribution of output. I discuss sharing and resource access among Kalahari Desert hunting-foraging
peoples.
In Chapter Three I study the ecological conditions behind the emergence of land ownership. I apply tools
from the economics of conflict and analysis of spatial oligopoly. The result is a theoretically sound exposition
of economic defensibility models common in anthropology. Different ownership regimes can emerge,
depending on the relative scarcity of resources, the variability of resources, and the technology that groups
use to defend land. I discuss indigenous land ownership among Kalahari Desert peoples.
In Chapter Four (written with Thomas Miceli), we study land inheritance. We explain the economic forces
underlying different inheritance rules. In our model, potential heirs make land-specific human capital
investments prior to the date of inheritance. The testator then decides how to allocate his land in the best
interests of his family. Allowing the testator discretion over land distribution leads to wasteful competition
between heirs. A fixed rule eliminates competition, but disallows beneficial reallocation of land if the
prespecified heir turns out to be a less able producer than another potential heir. Land markets render the
rule irrelevant; if heirs can buy (sell) land, they buy (sell) land until they have acquired the efficient amount.
Knowing this beforehand, heirs invest efficiently. We study inheritance rules using a cross-cultural data set
comprised of approximately 400 world cultures.
Ball, Thomas J. (1998) "Prevalence rates of full and partial PTSD and lifetime trauma in a sample of adult members of
an American Indian tribe." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Oregon. 172 pp.
A research study was designed to assess the prevalence rates of lifetime trauma and post-traumatic stress
disorder (PTSD) in an adult sample of an American Indian tribe, and assess the impact of the 1950s era
federal policy of termination within adult members of this tribe.
The research incorporated an historical perspective which included the use of a post-colonial stress disorder
(PCSD) diagnosis resulting from 500 years of oppressive colonial policies directed toward the indigenous
people of the North American continent. This historical perspective provides a conceptual basis for
understanding the broad range of negative social statistics associated with American Indian people.
The research instrument utilized to assess PTSD was the Modified Posttraumatic Symptom Scale (MPSS).
The MPSS was further modified to assess termination trauma and resulting PCSD symptoms. Subjects were
randomly selected from the tribal enrolment list. Data were collected by American Indian research staff
specially trained to conduct culturally sensitive interviews.
The results validated the theory that the prevalence rates of lifetime trauma and PTSD were higher in the
adult population of American Indians studied, as compared to a previously published community sample of
adult non-Indian subjects. In addition, the concept of post-colonial stress disorder (PCSD) was supported.
Results from the research suggests that trauma from colonial and federal policy may be a contributor to the
negative social outcomes found in some American Indian people. Understanding the concept of Post Colonial
Stress Disorder will provide means for both policy initiatives and treatment interventions.
Band, Ian H. (1993) "Race relations: Native peoples and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police: Canada's challenge."
M.A. Thesis, University of Manitoba (The). 169 pp.
This thesis is an examination of the relationship between Canada's aboriginal peoples and the Royal
Canadian Mounted Police, and how over time, this relationship has evolved. More and more, native peoples
are calling for increased control over their own affairs, including native-controlled policing programs. Thus,
in order to respond to these pressures there is a need for alternative approaches to the issue of federal,
provincial, and local responsibilities for the delivery for policing services to native communities and
reserves. Further, the recent political developments in relations between aboriginal peoples and government
have enhanced the position of native peoples in society by emphasizing their unique rights, aspirations and
cultural identities as individuals and communities. As the consolidation of special status becomes more firmly
rooted in various services and programs, government has been, and will continue to be under pressure to
deal with the policing needs of native peoples in more direct terms. These developments are premised on the
simple notions that aboriginal communities are entitled to effective and culturally sensitive law enforcement
services just as is any other community within Canada.
Bannerman, Brenda B. (2001) ""A search for healing": A phenomenological study." M.S.W. Thesis, University of
Northern British Columbia. 107 pp.
In the social work and related literature the issue of alcohol addiction and treatment has been examined from
a white, male perspective. Theories in relation to alcohol abuse and treatment modalities have also been
developed from this perspective and do not speak to the unique experience or needs of aboriginal women.
Although little research exists in relation to non-aboriginal women overall, research that examines the issue
of aboriginal women and recovery from an alcohol addiction is basically non-existent. This descriptive
phenomenological study applies a feminist perspective to explore the lived experience of four aboriginal
women who had attended an aboriginal residential treatment program at least two years ago and have been
clean and sober since that time. The goal of this study is to listen to the voices and stories of these women and
to gain an understanding of the essential lived experience of attaining and maintaining sobriety and/or
healing. What do the women themselves consider to be helpful and healing in relation to the journey through
treatment and beyond? What or whom do the women consider as having facilitated their healing journey and
why? From the analysis of interview data a core theme of a search for healing was identified, along with
seven interconnected themes as follows: acceptance and belonging, reclaiming the link to ancestors,
reclaiming cultural esteem and identity, reclaiming cultural expression, group process, mentors and role
models and community supports. These categories are thematically woven together to become a symbolic
research/healing basket that will contain an essence of a lived experience.
Bansal, Anita. (2001) "Childhood sexual abuse in Native American women: Its effects on later sexual risk-taking."
Ph.D. Dissertation, Kent State University. 79 pp.
Decreasing of risky sexual behaviour has long been targeted in HIV prevention interventions. Investigation of
precursors to engaging in sexual risk taking, such as childhood sexual abuse, has received increasing
research attention. This relationship, in addition to the relationship between other forms of childhood
victimization, was investigated in the current study. In addition, because childhood abuse has not consistently
been linked to later risk taking, it is hypothesized that certain protective factors may attenuate this
relationship. For the current study, the resources of social support, self mastery, and communal mastery were
considered as moderating variables between early abuse and later behaviour. These relationships were
investigated in a sample of 160 young, unmarried, Native American women living in Montana, who have
been found to have high rates of HIV infection. Utilization of a Native American population also allowed for
the investigation of these relationships within a communal culture. A series of hierarchical linear and logistic
regressions were conducted to investigate the relationship between childhood sexual abuse and sexual risk
taking in adulthood, as well as the moderating effects of social support, self mastery, and communal mastery.
Results indicated that childhood victimization was associated with increased risk behaviours in adulthood.
There was a moderate relationship between childhood sexual abuse and sexual risk taking. There was also a
significant relationship between physical abuse and later risk taking, indicating that both physical and sexual
abuse are important precursors to sexual risk taking. There was limited support for the hypothesis that
personal resources moderate the relationship between childhood abuse and later behaviour in this
population. Future research should focus on exploring cultural-specific resources that may benefit Native
American populations.
Barajas, Manuel. (2002) "An extended case study of the Xaripu community across borders: Interactive colonization in
the 21st century." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of California, Riverside. 427 pp.
Mexican transnational migrants are among the poorest and most socially marginalized people in the 21st
century, and this extended case study on the Xaripu community examines how a history of social inequalities
extends into the present and impacts the nature of their political-economic and social integration in the
United States. Among the main objectives of this study were to develop a critical theoretical framework --
Interactive Colonization -- that advances the understanding of racism, patriarchy, and economic oppression
in a global context of national inequalities, and to examine how these inequities impact labour-migration,
community, and family.
The subjects of analysis are Xaripu-origin persons from Michoacán, Mexico (n = 25) and California, United
States (n = 31). Oral histories, in-depth interviews, participant observation, letters, newspapers, and other
sources were used to gain a qualitative understanding about their labour, migration, community, and family
experiences. Among the questions examined were the following: What has shaped Xaripus migration
experiences? How have they been economically incorporated into the United States? How have labour-
migration experiences impacted their communities on both sides of the border? How have migration and
employment experiences affected the family?
How have these experiences influenced gender relationships within the family on both sides of the border?
The Interactive Colonization model -- emphasizing colonialism, dialectics, and interactionism -- examines
Xaripus' experiences in relationship to the hegemonic group/nation and to intra-community stratifications.
The applied aspects of this study are broad, but will primarily serve to inform more humane immigration and
labour policies, and will advance the understanding of the processes of community/family production and
reproduction within a global context of political and economic inequalities.
Barker, Joanne M. (2000) "'Indian-made': Sovereignty and the work of identification." Ph.D. Dissertation, University
of California, Santa Cruz. 343 pp.
This dissertation addresses the relationship between indigenous sovereignty and identification as represented
by three 'case studies.' While scholarship to date has treated these cases as if they were discrete, this study
shows that they are in fact related.
Canada's Bill C-31 of 1985 partially reversed the patrilineal requirements for Indian status under the Indian
Act of 1876. The focus of my study is on the emergence of First Nation women's movements during Canada's
patriation from England and the impact of those movements on debates about the definition of First Nation
government in Canada's Constitution Act of 1982. The US Indian Arts and Crafts Act of 1990 provided that
only enrolled members of recognized tribes can sell or display their work as “Indian-made.” My study
examines the commodification of American Indian identity within racialized discourses of authenticity as
registered by the “Indian-made” art market. The Human Genome Diversity Project proposes to map out the
history of human origins and migrations by populations. I analyze the impact of the criticisms of this project
by indigenous nations, organizations, and advocacy/rights groups, focusing on the incommensuratability of
populations with indigenous self-definitions as nations.
The dissertation argues that nation-state policies and cultural practices defining who counts as indigenous
and, especially, who does not, mediate the terms and conditions of ongoing sovereignty struggles. Towards
those ends, the study draws from inter-disciplinary methodological perspectives on policy, law, science, and
globalization from the fields of Indigenous, American, and Women's Studies.
Barnes, Virginia T. (2000) "Thirsty hearts: Drinking, domestic violence and evangelical conversion in a Oaxacan
village." Ph.D. Dissertation, Arizona State University. 227 pp.
The recent growth of evangelical Christianity in southern Mexico, especially among indigenous people, has
produced a new religious orientation that focuses on self-transformation by denying the 'vices' of drinking,
violence, and other activities 'of the street' in favour of promoting abstinence, peacefulness and domestic
harmony.
This transformative experience is presented through the testimonies, or life stories of religious conversion, as
experienced by 12 Chatino Indians from a small village in Oaxaca, Mexico. These stories trace the hardships
centering around poverty, illness and especially drunkenness that led these individuals to accept the alien
religion of evangelical Protestantism. Since 1980 approximately one third of the village of Santa Maria
Magdalena Tiltepec has converted into Protestantism in an attempt to find a more satisfying life experience
in the face of growing personal and socioeconomic pressures. As Tiltepec and other areas in the Sierra
Madre del Sur converted land from subsistence farming to coffee production, indigenous peasants found
themselves less able to maintain traditional religious rituals associated with the cargo system and
compadrazgo. Although alcohol had long been important in social and religious activities, the cash newly
earned from peon labour led to increased consumption. The travelling evangelists who first brought
Protestantism to Oaxaca preached a gospel of sobriety and abstinence that offered an escape from addictive
and self-destructive behaviours that had become intolerable to some of the villagers. Although most recent
research on the growth of evangelism in Latin America has focused on the economic incentives that
encourage conversion, individual testimonies reveal the subjective and very personal ways in which both
men's and women's lives have been reshaped and reinterpreted by their changed beliefs and practices.
The evangelical Protestants try to maintain lives of sobriety and family unity and harmony. For men,
valorization is found as heads of families and as religious leaders rather than as participants in the sex-
segregated life 'in the street.' Although village evangelists are not more prosperous or more modern than
their non-evangelical neighbours, they have internalized a new sense of self-worth and purpose that helps to
alleviate the hardship of their lives.
Barnett, Rachael A. (2001) "The representation of internal colonialism in contemporary American ethnic fiction."
Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Washington.
The representation of internal colonialism in contemporary American ethnic fiction argues that
contemporary literature by American Indians, African Americans, and Mexican Americans challenges
traditional histories of dominance by recognizing the colonial history of the United States and by identifying
the ongoing practice of colonialism in the 20th century. Works by Linda Hogan, Leslie Marmon Silko, Ralph
Ellison, Paule Marshall, Américo Paredes, and Ana Castillo illustrate the individual or familial struggle with
identity and agency in the face of the effects of internal colonialism. Among the critics used to examine these
works are Robert Blauner, Frantz Fanon, Paulo Freire, Ronald Takaki, George Frederickson, Toni
Morrison, Elizabeth Cook-Lynn, and Satya Mohanty. In rendering the lives of individuals, families, and
communities, these novels themselves resist and suggest avenues of resistance against internal colonialism.
Barrera, Laura C. (1992) "The Canadian Métis and the Mexican Mayas: A cross cultural study of native land
struggles." M.A. Thesis, University of Calgary. 213 pp.
This research focuses on the development of two native social movements during the 19th century; the Maya
Caste War of Yucatan (1847-1901), in Mexico and the Western Canadian Métis movements known as Riel
Rebellions (1869-85). The analysis concentrates upon the internal elements that created the development of
both movements, in order to demonstrate that these movements were not only reactions against
dispossession. Central in this study is the idea that before the second half of the 19th century these groups
were in control of their social organization, and thus were autonomous communities. The movements are
shown as struggles to maintain the autonomy and social organization of the Maya and Métis groups. The
analysis is based on a combination of primary and secondary sources, taken from Mexican and Canadian
archives and libraries.
Bartlett, Ben. (1998) "Origins of persisting poor Aboriginal health: An historical exploration of poor Aboriginal health
and the continuities of the colonial relationship as an explanation of the persistence of poor Aboriginal
health." M.Ph. Thesis, University of Sydney. 378 pp.
The thesis examines the history of Central Australia and specifically development of health services in the
Northern Territory. The continuing colonial relationships between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Australia
are explored as a reason for the persistence of poor Aboriginal health status, including the cycle of self-
destructive behaviours. It provides an explanation of the importance of community agency to address
community problems, and the potential of community-controlled Aboriginal health services as vehicles for
such community action.
Basham, Jennifer J. L. (2002) "He puke mele lahui: Na mele Kupa'a, na mele ku'e a me na mele aloha o na kanaka
maoli." M.A. Thesis, University of Hawai'i. 184 pp.
Following the overthrow of the Hawai'ian Kingdom in 1893, Kanaka Maoli composed numerous mele lahui
in commemoration of the events. These mele were published in Hawai'ian language newspapers, the place
where Kanaka Maoli reported the events of their time as well as their opinion about those events. Through
the mele lahui which they composed and published, the Kanaka Maoli reported the historical details of the
overthrow and the period following. In the mele are recorded the people's loyalty to their nation, along with
their resistance and protest to the abuse of their rights to independence. The composers use language of
insult and disparagement in their portrayals and descriptions of those who played vital roles in the
overthrow. There are also many mele which are prayers and request the assistance and the blessings of
Hawai'ians Gods as well as the Christian God. In addition, there are even more mele whose main purpose
and theme are expressions of aloha for the Hawai'ian Kingdom, the native people, and their Queen. From
that time until today, Kanaka Maoli have continued to compose mele as expressions of our lives and our
history, as protest against the continued dominance and subjugation of our people, and as admiration for the
loyal and steadfast support of the rights of our land and our people.
Bastido Munoz, Crescencio. (1997) "Five hundred years of resistance: Self-determination and political strategies for
rejuvenation among indigenous peoples of Mexico." M.A. Thesis, Carleton University. 176 pp.
This thesis analyzes the struggle for self-determination by Indian peoples of Mexico, emphasizing on the last
decade. Indian peoples have been purposefully denied their rights by the Mexican state throughout history,
resulting in their impoverishment and ongoing armed rebellions, culminating in the current economic and
social crisis in the country.
Indians have used political strategies through political organizations (armed and peaceful). A theory of
symbolic politics is used to analyze the process by which Indians of Mexico have: reclaimed their cultural
identities; developed political ideologies of opposition against those of the dominant society reflected through
Indianismo versus indigenismo, and attempted to negotiate the terms of a new political relationship by means
of constitutional amendments which would recognize a fourth level of government by/for Indian peoples. It is
concluded that the most effective resolution for Indian peoples' demand for self-determination may be to
implement a fourth level of government.
Bauermeister, Maxine L. (1998) "The children of the mist: Enculturation in a New Zealand kohanga reo." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of Nebraska -- Lincoln (The). 223 pp.
The purpose of this study was to discover and interpret how a group of Mäori children in New Zealand
experience enculturation in a kohanga reo early childhood program. A qualitative ethnographic approach
was used to guide the research project. To gain the depth of understanding that comes from personal
experience, fieldwork was conducted with a sub tribe of Mäori people in New Zealand for six months.
A rural kohanga reo was purposefully selected as the research site. Young children, from infant to age 5,
teachers, and families at the kohanga reo were the primary participants. Additional participants included the
members of two Mäori families with whom I lived, and the participants in Mäori village life at the marae.
Supporting data were generated from Mäori community life and a second kohanga reo.
The results of this study indicate that children enrolled at kohanga reo are meeting the two primary goals set
by Te Kohanga Reo National Trust. Children are learning the Mäori language and their Mäori culture as
they experience enculturation. Data analysis revealed three themes in response to the research questions:
(1) The children are learning cultural characteristics which include behaviour patterns related to the
following categories: (a) communicating the native language; (b) expressing feelings; (c) viewing and
participating in art; (d) respecting nature; (e) practicing spiritual concepts; (f) developing a sense of family.
(2) The children are learning about their culture through mechanisms of enculturation. This includes
interaction with the curriculum which is embedded within the physical, social, and temporal environments of
the kohanga reo. Two key elements that facilitate enculturation are active participation and educational
leadership.
(3) The children are learning to reconcile the contrasts among the Western culture, their contemporary
Mäori culture, and their traditional Mäori culture. They are able to participate effectively in both group-
oriented and individual activities. They are able to understand and meet different behaviour expectations in
different situations.
The implications and limitations of the study are discussed and recommendations for future research are
presented.
Baumgartner Di Giusto, Carla J. (2001) "Combating racial discrimination: Aboriginal peoples' access to the legal
profession." M.A. Thesis, Carleton University. 137 pp.
In the years 1999 and 2000, three reports, 'Addressing discriminatory barriers facing aboriginal law
students' and 'Lawyers. The challenge of racial equality: Putting principles into practice,' and 'Virtual
justice: Systemic racism and the Canadian legal profession' were created for legal associations in order to
address the barriers Aboriginal peoples face in the legal profession and make recommendations for
overcoming the barriers. This thesis explores the issues and recommendations made within the reports, and
evaluates their potential effectiveness in addressing racial discrimination. In conducting my analysis of the
reports, two conceptual frameworks, critical race theory and aboriginal perspectives, were used; in most
ways the two conceptual approaches support the reports. While the reports are supported by the approaches
(and therefore have the potential for having a positive impact in addressing racism), I argue that the reports
are only one step and not a final solution for addressing the barriers aboriginal peoples face in the legal
profession. Racial discrimination in the profession has existed for many decades and will continue for years
to come. Therefore, in continuing to address and fight racial discrimination, the profession must continue to
develop effective measures to fight this discrimination.
Beal, Carl. (1995) "Money, markets and economic development in Saskatchewan Indian reserve communities, 1870-
1930s." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Manitoba (The). 473 pp.
It is widely-held that Indian reserves were peripheral to Canada's economy from the time of their
establishment, and that reserve economic conditions in Saskatchewan from the 1870s to the 1930s remained
unchanged or worsened over the entire period. However, statistical, archival and other sources, showed that
Indians were pivotal to the development of markets and the monetization of Saskatchewan's economy. The
first two decades of the 20th century saw reserve economic growth and growing participation in the money
economy, followed by a decade of stability. Indian reserves achieved modest economic successes in spite of
government policies. Barriers to production for and participation in markets were circumvented. Population,
income and property data by agency revealed regional variations in the size, composition and temporal
pattern of earnings. These arose from the differing resource bases, production orientations and market
conditions. Greater economic success was associated with better access to markets: economic conditions
worsened when the links between reserves and markets were broken. During the depression decade, the
reserve economy was virtually dismantled; the link between reserve economic activity and the money
economy was broken.
Beard-Moose, Christina T. (2004) "Public Indians, private Cherokees: Indigenous identity at the intersection of
tourism, acculturation, and cultural continuity." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Iowa (The). 339 pp.
This dissertation argues that tourism is the most prevalent acculturative agent at work on indigenous
populations in the United States at the present time. To discuss this, I present a case study examining the
situation of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians in western North Carolina. This work is concerned with
the ways in which tourist venues exist within the physical space that is also simultaneously autonomous,
specific Eastern Cherokee physical space. As such, mass tourism represents one current of a ‘mainstream
American' lifeway that runs continuously through Cherokee land and lifeways. Cherokee-Americans
currently face many of the same problems with the federal government that their ancestors have faced for
centuries. Among these are the struggle for land; the struggle for language retention; the struggle for
autonomy, and the struggle with dependency on a Euro-American culture. These issues were and are
especially salient in a gendered context. For women, roles in society have depended on the continuity of
Cherokee lifeways and identities. For men, roles in society have been disrupted over and over again by
lingering post-colonial presence that has led to male anomie. Within the frame of mass tourism as the
acculturative agent, I examine the relationship between the generalized ‘Indian' identity created specifically
to promote the tourist industry, and the continuous, individuated Cherokee identity that is maintained and
negotiated as an integral part of the Cherokee worldview. I focus on how Cherokee identity is affected in
some knowable way by the tourist industry. As mass tourism and the ‘Disneyfication' process continue their
prodigious worldwide growth, cultural change is occurring at an ever-increasing rate for indigenous
populations. ‘Traditional' meanings, languages, and practices for indigenous populations are rapidly being
lost within nation-states, where forced change to a globalized economy is the norm. However, if Eastern
Cherokee perceptions are indicators of the results of long-term indigenous contact with mass tourism, there
remains a distinctly private space to retain and live an indigenous identity.
Beatty, Bonita. (1996) "The transformation of Indian political culture in northern Saskatchewan." M.A. Thesis,
University of Regina (The). 152 pp.
This thesis examines how northern Indians transformed their traditional group systems to adapt to the values
of a greater Anglo-world over which they had limited power and control. Although they lost much of their
former dependence upon subsistence foods, the social patterns of reciprocal exchange between family groups
are still protected by the persistence of the mixed economy in the north which still depends upon families to
work together in their hunting and trapping pursuits on their furblocks. These group organization systems
form the basis for Indian political culture. Changes to these political cultures have usually been precipitated
by major external events that caused internal conflicts between old and new values. While the process of
conflict resolution is sometimes long, it eventually subsides to create a new value system or adaptation. In
short, a new political culture. While there are many factors involved in any transformation of a society, this
thesis will only focus upon the major external influences to northern Indian societies and their concurrent
adaptive strategies.
Becker, Marc. (1997) "Class and ethnicity in the Canton of Cayambe: The roots of Ecuador's modern Indian
movement." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Kansas. 355 pp.
My research examines changes in ideologies of class and ethnicity within rural movements for social change
in Ecuador during the 20th century. It explores how popular organizations engaged class analyses and ethnic
identities in order to influence strategies of political mobilization among indigenous and peasant peoples.
Although recently ethnicity has come to dominate indigenous political discourse, I have discovered that
historically the rural masses defended their class interests, especially those related to material concerns such
as land, wages, and work, even while embracing an ideology of ethnicity. Through the study of land tenure
and political mobilization issues, this project examines the roles of leadership, institutions, economics, and
class relations in order to understand the formation of class ideologies and ethnic politics in Ecuador.
Although various indigenous revolts occurred during the colonial period, these were localized and lacked a
global vision for social change. In contrast, beginning in the 1920s Indian organizations emerged which
understood that immediate and local solutions would nor improve their situation, but rather that there must
be fundamental structural changes in society. Moving from narrow, local revolts to broad organizational
efforts for structural change represented a profound ideological shift which marks the birth of Ecuador's
modern Indian movement.
An examination of how these early organizations and movements developed and operated elucidates the
emergence of subsequent indigenous organizations. This study utilizes a sequence of organizing efforts in the
Canton of Cayambe in the northern Ecuadorian highlands from the formation of the first indigenous
sindicatos (peasant unions) in the 1920s to the promulgation of agrarian reform legislation in 1964 as a case
study. This story reveals the demands of indigenous movements, the organizational strategies which they
implemented to achieve those demands, and the influence which this history had on the formation of
Ecuador's modern Indian movement. It is the thesis of this study that Ecuador's indigenous movement has its
roots in leftist organizational efforts, and that its character must be understood as an integral part of that
history. In fact, it is the nature and content of that relationship with the left which has led to Ecuador
witnessing perhaps the strongest indigenous movement in Latin America in the 1990s.
Beckett, Cynthia D. (2002) "Navajo children and families living with fetal alcohol syndrome/fetal alcohol effects."
Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Arizona (The). 289 pp.
The aim of the study was to develop a culturally sensitive Grounded Theory of Navajo parenting for families
who are living with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS)/Fetal Alcohol Effects (FAE). The research question was:
What are the social and cultural factors and processes that Navajo families use to mange care for a child
with FAS/FAE?
The philosophical perspectives that guided the study were: the Navajo philosophy, or view of life; resilience
(middle range theory); the Family Stress Theory; and the Resiliency Mode of Family Stress, Adjustment, and
Adaptation. Resilience was used as the over arching conceptual perspective for the study.
A Grounded Theory of Navajo Parenting emerged from the data. Key categories to support the emerging
theory were identified. The core category was Versatility through Transcendence. The supporting categories
were: Strategies for Managing Challenges; Transcendence in Parenting; Intergenerational Alcohol Abuse,
Violence and Suffering; and Knowledge/Acquisition of Needs. The families described their stories of
transcendence through substance abuse, suffering, and violence to be able to parent their children who were
living with the primary and secondary challenges of prenatal alcohol exposures.
Further research is needed to test and expand this emerging theory of Navajo parenting of children with
FAS/FAE. The challenges that were related to FAS/FAE were more easily managed with patterns of
resilience within the families. Factors that influenced family's abilities to parent will be disseminated to assist
other families who are managing the problems associated with FAS/FAE.
Bell, David W. (1999) "Ambivalence and response polarization toward native people: A motivational perspective."
Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Western Ontario (The). 126 pp.
The current research investigated a motivational explanation for ambivalence-induced response polarization
in the intergroup context. Ambivalent attitudes toward a group are based on conflicting evaluations of the
group, containing both positive and negative dimensions (Katz and Hass, 1988; Olson and Zanna, 1993).
This ambivalence may lead to response polarization, which occurs when the responses of individuals toward
a group vary between positive and negative situations (e.g., positive information about the group leads to a
more positive attitude toward the group, whereas negative information about the group leads to a more
negative attitude toward the group). Individuals who hold ambivalent attitudes may display response
polarization because they are motivated to attempt to avoid the negative feelings arising from ambivalence
(see Hass, Katz, Rizzo, Bailey, and Moore, 1992; Monteith, 1996). The first study provided a demonstration
of response polarization in a new context, whereas the second study provided support for the motivational
explanation of response polarization. In Study One, 119 participants completed open-ended measures of
stereotypes, symbolic beliefs, and emotions to determine their ambivalence toward Native people. They then
read a positive or negative essay on Native land claims. It was expected that only participants who were
ambivalent toward Native people would display response polarization. Results supported predictions;
ambivalent participants displayed a significant difference between the positive and negative message
conditions in their attitudes toward Native people. In contrast, nonambivalent participants did not differ
between message conditions in their attitudes toward Native people. In Study Two, 253 participants
completed the same measures as in Study One, and received a motive manipulation as well. The negative
motive manipulation consisted of an essay which emphasized the disadvantages of seeing both the good and
the bad in another person or situation (i.e., ambivalence was negative), whereas the positive motive
manipulation consisted of an essay which emphasized the advantages (i.e., ambivalence was positive). It was
expected that ambivalent participants who received the negative motive manipulation would display response
polarization, whereas ambivalent participants who received the positive motive manipulation would not
display response polarization. Results supported the predictions, providing evidence for the motivational
explanation of response polarization.
Ben, Leon W. (1991) "Wellness circles: The Alkali Lake model in community recovery processes." Ed.D.
Dissertation, Northern Arizona University. 113 pp.
Native American communities throughout the Americas have had devastating experiences with alcohol and
drug abuse. There is not a Native American tribal group that has come forward to claim they are not
adversely affected by alcohol and drug abuse. This study was undertaken to gain insights on how the
Shuswop Indian Band of Alkali Lake, British Columbia, was able to attain a recovery rate of 95% in their 15-
year battle with alcohol and substance abuse. This study took place between 1970 and 1985. The single-site
in depth qualitative study was done with the use of an embedded interview instrument. The data were
collected through a focused one on one interview with the citizens in Alkali Lake, British Columbia, in May
1989. Some of the key healing activities identified in the study included the various community support
circles, use of the Alcoholics Anonymous concepts, primary residential treatment, New Directions training,
and cultural/spiritual rebirth. Based on the results of this study, the methodology for recovery, as used by the
Alkali Lake community, was a successful way to treat a community that was totally dysfunctional due to
misuse of alcohol and drugs. The Alkali Lake model has been presented to other Native American
communities since the discovery of their 95% sobriety following their international gathering in 1985.
Benavides, Carlos M. (2002) "Class mobility and equality of opportunities in the context of erratic modernization: The
Peruvian case." Ph.D. Dissertation, Pennsylvania State University (The). 188 pp.
This thesis use new data on intergenerational mobility for analyzing class mobility and equalities of
opportunities in the context of the 'erratic' modernization of Peruvian society. The thesis begins by proposing
and validating a distinctive class schema for Peru, arguing that the main differences with processes of class
formation in mature industrial countries are related to the institutionalization of the informal relationships in
Peruvian labour market.
The Peruvian case will be discussed as one where huge disparities between upper and lower classes still exist
in the social structure, at the same time that important equalization of opportunities occurs at the
intermediate and lower levels. This leads to a radical transformation of the Peruvian class structure by
generating regions of communication between classes but without improving significantly equality of
opportunities for classes that are socially distant.
I argue that the Peruvian social mobility pattern corresponds to the pattern of societies where
linguistic/ethnic barriers have played an important role in shaping the social structure, such as Hong Kong.
In this sense, I consider this pattern to be different from those experienced by the western European countries
and also by other societies such as Israel and Poland.
The impact of the race/ethnic dimension in social mobility is minor in comparison with the class aspect. It is
more centred on the effect that the race/ethnic dimension has on the class position for the previous
generations than for the more contemporary ones. However, differences in equality of opportunities between
indigenous and whites are still present.
The access to educational resources in a country such as Peru is still unequal across different social classes.
Nevertheless for those who have access to higher levels, education seems to have been doing a good job in
improving equality of opportunities by reducing the association between class of origin and destination. In
other words, at higher levels of education, the problem of equality of opportunities is more related to the
access to education than to the returns to it.
Beneria-Surkin, Jordi. (2003) "Power, conservation, and indigenous livelihood: Guarani strategies for conquering
political space in decentralization in Izozog, Bolivia." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of California, Los
Angeles. 370 pp.
In 1995, the Capitania del Alto y Bajo Izozog (CABI), an Izoceño-Guarani Indian organization, became co-
manager of the Gran Chaco Kaa Iya National Park (GCNP), one of the largest protected areas in the world.
During the mid-1990s, CABI also became involved in numerous facets of decentralized governance and
development. Many in academic and policy circles have embraced such processes of decentralization as an
alternative, better form of governance. Yet, there is insufficient analysis of the contexts in which it is possible
and its results. I examine these pressing questions through a case study of CABI's unprecedented
achievements, which, to date, in addition to co-management of the GCNP have included: (1) co-management
of the USAID funded Kaa-Iya Project; (2) creation, along with multinational gas companies, of the
Indigenous People's Development Project; and, (3) participation in local governance.
I argue that CABI's successful ability to become a significant actor in these multiple decentralised settings
was the result of two factors: (a) a positive policy context resulting from the recasting of Bolivia's
sociopolitical universe through decentralization and a series of land and social policy reforms; and' (b)
CABI's hybrid organizational structure, a combination of Guarani tradition and modern institutional forms
of management which is the result of historical interaction with other socio-cultural, spatial, and economic
milieu.
I argue that local livelihood strategies in Izozog are heterogeneous and highly linked to seasonal migrant
wage labour. In the region, there are also important levels of social, ethnic and religious differentiation. In
this context, decentralization has produced greater biodiversity conservation, land tenure security, and
improvements in social conditions. By contextualizing this example of decentralization, I demonstrate how
structural and discursive conditions limited CABI's access to power and its ability to transform greater local
autonomy into alternative, more equitable development rooted in local socioculturally based livelihoods and
capacities.
This research was conducted at various sites in Bolivia including Izozog, Santa Cruz and La Paz. Data was
collected through participant observation, household surveys, structured and open-ended interviews, and
archival research.
Bennett, Marlyn L. (2003 ) "Perspectives on engaging the participation of First Nations peoples in the development of
child welfare under self-government." M.A. Thesis, University of Manitoba (The). 198 pp.
This focuses on some of the experiences and challenges on how First Nations citizens have been engaged in
public discussions that will inform the development of contemporary First Nations governing institutions.
This research combines an overview of the literature focusing specifically on self-government in relation to
child welfare and First Nations people. The literature review also looks at the role First Nations peoples
have played in community consultations concentrating specifically on the ways First Nations peoples and
communities have been engaged to participate in other consultation initiatives carried out by Aboriginal and
non-Aboriginal governments and/or non-government organizations. The review of the literature is
supplemented by an examination of two very specific child welfare initiatives currently underway in the
Province of Manitoba, with more attention paid primarily to the Manitoba Framework Agreement Initiative.
The examination of these two initiatives is then followed by an in-depth data analysis of interviews carried
out with a select group of child welfare professionals from within and outside Manitoba who shared their
perspectives on aspects of engaging First Nations people's participation in shaping the future of child welfare
under self-government.
This research will be of particular importance to First Nations communities, governments and child welfare
authorities who are interested in engaging and empowering First Nations peoples' to participate in public
discussions on the decision making process that might be instrumental for informing the vision, philosophy,
structure and the consultation aspects of self-determining efforts of First Nations peoples.
Benyshek, Daniel C. (2001) "The political ecology of diabetes among the Havasupai Indians of northern Arizona."
Ph.D. Dissertation, Arizona State University. 182 pp.
The village of Supai, centred in a tributary canyon of the Grand Canyon in northern Arizona, is home to
some 450 full-time residents of the Havasupai Indian Tribe. Like many reservation communities in North
America and other indigenous, minority, and migrant populations world-wide, the Havasupai are faced with
a disease of epidemic proportions -- type 2 diabetes (formerly known as non-insulin-dependent diabetes
mellitus [NIDDM]).
The overwhelming majority of physicians, biomedical researchers and medical ecologists today explain the
astoundingly high prevalence rates of type 2 diabetes among the Havasupai and other high prevalence
populations in terms of a yet-to-be-identified genetic predisposition. Recent experimental and
epidemiological research, however, has identified an etiologic alternative to the genetic-predisposition
model. This body of research suggests that type 2 diabetes may result initially from prenatal malnutrition
followed by calorically adequate diets in adulthood, and propagated in subsequent generations via
hyperglycemic intrauterine environments. Populations at greatest risk for type 2 diabetes today are the ones
most likely to have endured political and economic oppression in their recent histories, conditions which are
the most conducive to the diabetic developmental sequence outlined above.
Ethnographic data for the present study were gathered during the course of fieldwork on the Havasupai
reservation, and provides the basis for a biocultural examination of the etiologic bases of diabetes outlined
above, and the implications of this model for intervention programs. Specifically, the study focuses on the
economic and nutritional history of the tribe over the last century along with Havasupai perceptions,
attitudes and beliefs about the nature, causes, course and treatment of diabetes.
The present study offers supportive evidence for the proposition that the aetiology of type 2 diabetes among
the Havasupai (and other high prevalence Native American populations) has as much to due with phenotypic
adaptations to extended periods of nutritional stress than a racially determined genetic predisposition.
Important applied implications derived from this research are discussed, including the promise of future
community-based diabetes intervention strategies that focus on prenatal nutrition to significantly reduce the
incidence of diabetes in high prevalence communities, and why such programs are likely to enjoy improved
community support and participation.
Berardy, Sandra. (1991) "Secondary post-traumatic stress disorder in Native Americans." M.S.N. Thesis, Southern
Connecticut State University. 89 pp.
Many Native Americans exhibit a variety of behaviours that are signs of family dysfunction. This study
examined and described dysfunctional behaviours and their relationship to secondary post-traumatic stress
disorder in an urban Native American community in northeast USA. A minimum of 30 participants have been
interviewed by the researcher with a questionnaire designed in accordance with Roy's nursing model of
adaptation. The findings indicated that some dysfunctional behaviours such as depression, suicide, child
abuse, and separation had a positive correlation with secondary post-traumatic stress disorder. This study
indicates that future research on a larger scale is warranted.
Berg, Lawrence D. (1990) "Aboriginal people, aboriginal rights, and protected areas: An investigation of the
relationship between the Nuu-chah-nulth people and Pacific Rim National Park Reserve." M.A. Thesis,
University of Victoria. 219 pp.
This thesis examines the relationship between seven different Indian bands and Pacific Rim National Park
Reserve. The West Coast Trail unit of the Park Reserve traverses reserve lands of the Nuu-chah-nulth
Indians. In total, there are 28 Indian reserves belonging to seven different Indian bands, either adjacent to
the park or enclosed within its boundaries. The park is part of a larger area traditionally used by the Nuu-
chah-nulth people, and it is fully encompassed by their comprehensive land claim. Because there are so many
different bands with lands in the park, it is difficult to characterize relations between the Nuu-chah-nulth and
Pacific Rim National Park Reserve. It is best described as falling on a spectrum of views, ranging from 'good
relations' to 'poor relations.' There are a number of issues which can be addressed by park managers and
Nuu-chah-nulth people to improve relations. A cooperative management regime, such as that planned for
South Moresby National Park Reserve is posited as an appropriate means to improve relations.
Bergland, Renée L. (1997) "Possession and dispossession: Native American ghosts and the haunted national
imagination." Ph.D. Dissertation, Columbia University. 207 pp.
American literature is haunted by the ghosts of departed Native Americans. In the first years of nationhood,
Philip Freneau and Sarah Wentworth Morton peopled their works with Indian phantoms. At the start of the
19th century, Charles Brockden Brown, Washington Irving and Samuel Woodworth centred their nationalist
fictions on ghostly Indians. In the 1820s and 1830s, at the height of Indian Removal, Washington Irving,
Lydia Maria Child, James Fenimore Cooper, William Apess, Nathaniel Hawthorne and many others
represented Indians as ghosts who haunted the national imagination. During the late 19th and early 20th
centuries, Native American ghosts figured prominently in speeches attributed to Chief Seattle, and also to
Black Elk and Kicking Bear, two of the best-known voices of the Ghost Dance religion. Today, Stephen King
and Leslie Marmon Silko plot best-selling novels around ghostly Indians and haunted Indian burial grounds.
Yet although spectral Indians appear with startling frequency in the literary works of the United States, the
implications of describing Native Americans as ghosts have never been thoroughly investigated. The
dissertation entertains a number of theoretical perspectives, relying primarily on Sigmund Freud's essay,
'The uncanny', Terry Castle's work on phantasmagorical spectacles in The female thermometer, and Priscilla
Wald's work on the uncanny aspects of United States citizenship in Constituting Americans. It argues that the
representation of Indians as ghosts works to establish American nationhood. The discourse of Indian
spectralization removes Indians from American territory by internalizing them as ghostly figures within the
white imagination. When white Americans conceive of themselves as haunted by Native Americans, they
construct themselves as sharers in a national imagination. However, the horrors of Indian spectralization are
clear, and so the discourse questions the very nationalism it constructs. Indians who are transformed into
ghosts cannot be buried or evaded, and the spectre of their forced disappearance haunts the American nation
and the American imagination. Indian ghosts signify national guilt and horror, but they are also figures of
national pride and pleasure. Possession and dispossession tells the story of a terrifying and triumphant
American aesthetic that repeatedly transforms horror into glory, national dishonour into national pride.
Berry, David S. (1993) "Aboriginal self-determination under international law: Reconciling distinct historical rights
with existing international law models." LL.M. Thesis, Queen's University at Kingston. 271 pp.
All self-determination claims can be analyzed in terms of a 'sliding scale' which encompasses potential forms
for application of the right. Possible modalities for aboriginal self-determination include: (1) control over
specific institutions or programs; (2) municipal/provincial levels of self-government; (3) federal models; (4)
international integration with other states/territories; (5) secession and formation of independent states; and,
(6) free association at international levels. Existing examples of aboriginal self-determination are discussed
for each of these modalities, as well as suggestions for future developments. Two case studies are examined:
the Six Nations Confederacy, and the James Bay Cree Nation. The former seeks some form of greater
autonomy, potentially sovereignty and independent statehood. The latter presents a claim in the context of a
future secession by Québec from Canada, and appears to seek exercise of self-determination rights through
international integration or greater recognition of sovereignty and autonomy. Both of these claims show
entitlements to a right of self-determination under international law. But at what level, or which modality of
exercise, these rights can be utilized will to a large extent be dependent upon the cooperation of the
international community and surrounding states. Nonetheless, rights of self-determination for aboriginal
peoples exist under international law, and states and the international community are obligated to respect
and implement them.
Biever, Nicole L. (2005) "Wild cat dreaming: The dreaming experience as a means of constructing the individual in
Mudrooroo Nyoongah/Colin Johnson's novels." M.A. Thesis, South Dakota State University. 99 pp.
This thesis explores Mudrooroo Nyoongah/Colin Johnson's employment of the form of the novel as a means
of negotiating identity. Mudrooroo uses the novel as his primary genre, even though this western genre seems
to contradict his emphasis on his Aboriginal heritage, and his claim of identity as an Aborigine is further
challenged by evidence that he may have no Aboriginal heritage at all. An examination of several accounts of
Mudrooroo's biography demonstrates a cultural and personal struggle to determine the writer's identity. This
study argues that Mudrooroo is able to successfully negotiate he interpretations of identity imposed by other
voices and construct his individuality by employing the novel form. Mudrooroo's employment of the
Aboriginal concept of the dreaming in his novels -- including Wild cat falling (1965), Doctor Wooreddy's
prescription for enduring the ending of the world (1983), Master of the ghost dreaming (1991), and Wildcat
screaming (1992) -- allows him to reconcile those conflicting interpretations of his identity and construct
himself as an individual. Through the Aboriginal experience of the dreaming, both the writer and his
characters construct their individualities by resolving internal and external interpretations of identity.
Biglow, Brad M. (2001) "Ethno-nationalist politics and cultural preservation: Education and bordered identities
among the Wixaritari (Huichol) of Tateikita, Jalisco, Mexico." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Florida. 315
pp.
This dissertation examines the relationship between “indigenously controlled” education and cultural
preservation among the Wixaritari, or Huichol, of the Sierra Madre Mountains of Jalisco, Mexico. Studies of
indigenous identity and schooling are still lacking in anthropological fieldwork. While such studies have, in
the past, focused on native education in the United States, there has been little research done on the impacts
of indigenous-controlled education on the enculturation process of Indian youth, particularly in Latin
America, and whether such educational environments really serve to fortify indigenous identity, and if so,
how it is done. Recently, there has been resurgence in ethno-nationalism or self-determination among the
indigenous peoples of Mexico and Latin America. This study examines the role of so-called indigenous-
controlled community schooling in fight of these larger pan-Indian movement goals, showing that indigenous
people are themselves divided over the process of cultural preservation due to their own changing sense of
ethnic identity. Conflict results, creating a reliance on notions of an “imagined community” to unify social
actors in a drama of power-knowledge relationships in which intellectuals, not traditionalists, control the
educational process, channelling knowledge to meet the goals of the “imagined community” which may or
may not be shared by all social actors.
Biolsi, Thomas. (1987) "Organizing the Lakota: The implementation of the Indian Reorganization Act on Rosebud
and Pine Ridge reservations." Ph.D. Dissertation, Columbia University. 304 pp.
The Indian Reorganization Act (IRA) was a reform measure in the administration of Indian affairs in the
United States which altered the relationship between reservation Indians and the Office of Indian Affairs
(OIA) in major ways. Among these, the IRA provided for Indian self-government in the form of tribal councils
based on constitutions drafted by the non-Indian reformers. The dissertation analyzes the politics of the
implementation of the self-government provisions of the IRA by focussing on the several intentions of the
federal officials who carried out the provisions and on the various Indian responses to the bill. Three
branches of the federal government were involved: (1) the Interior Department solicitor's office which
drafted the tribal constitutions and formally supervised tribal council actions; (2) the Washington office of
the OIA which directed the organizing of tribes under the IRA and protected the bill from hostile attack in
Congress; and, (3) the local OIA superintendents who administered the reservations and did most of the
actual work of organizing the tribal councils. Each branch had its own interests and agendas regarding the
IRA and the Lakota tribal councils. Because the IRA altered the relations between the Lakota and the OIA,
there was a range of Lakota responses. Some Lakota zealously embraced the idea of Indian self-government
and sought tribal council and personal power in ways unintended by the OIA. Other Lakota rejected the IRA
tribal councils as culturally-alien institutions foisted on them; they organized a formidable resistance
movement. The OIA used its power to attempt to prevent wide deviations in Indian behaviour from its model
of Indian self-government. Conclusions are drawn from the analysis regarding the conceptualization of
culture change on North American Indian reservations. While it is necessary to move beyond traditional
acculturation studies in order to understand the role of power in acculturation, it is argued that global
perspectives such as the underdevelopment model also miss the politics of Indian policy. An appreciation for
the strategic actions of individuals competing for power in social fields not limited to micro- or macro-levels
is found useful.
Bisson, Antonio F. (1972 ) "A demographic study of the Fort Resolution native population, Northwest Territories."
M.A. Thesis, University of Manitoba (The).
Blackburn, Carole R. (2003) "Negotiating rights, reconciling history: The Nisga'a treaty and the terms of inclusion in
the Canadian state." Ph.D. Dissertation, Stanford University. 206 pp.
In 1998 the Canadian government concluded a historic land claims and self-government agreement with the
Nisga'a people of north-western British Columbia. Based on a multi-sited ethnographic field study and
archival research conducted in Canada during 1999 and 2000, this dissertation argues that the public debate
over the Nisga'a treaty involved a series of questions about modernity, history, progress, and the production
and protection of national identities and state sovereignty. These questions were shaped by a set of local,
national and transnational factors, including (1) the increased recognition of aboriginal rights by Canadian
courts and the Canadian constitution; (2) the fact that aboriginal land claims create uncertainty over
property, which was believed to drive away international investment in regional resource development; and,
(3) the growing salience of human rights discourses internationally, matched with an international political
trend toward addressing past human rights violations through reconciliation and apology. These factors
were crucial in shaping both how the rights of the Nisga'a were negotiated and the terms of the treaty itself.
More specifically, this dissertation shows that in the process of discussing and defining Nisga'a peoples'
rights, particular legal and political discourses emerged in the areas of citizenship, property, reconciliation,
and economic certainty. Each of these discourses attempted to mediate between, respectively, the prenational
rights of aboriginal people and the more recent temporal origins of the Canadian state, between aboriginal
title and western property law, between historical injustice and future reconciliation, and between aboriginal
claims to land and the state's need to secure certainty of property rights in order to attract increasingly
mobile transnational capital. In and through each of these emergent discourses, the conceptual categories
and power of western law emerged as the means to both recognize aboriginal rights and title and, by
capturing them in a treaty, protect Canadian sovereignty and create national and regional landscapes
suitable for economic investment. Broadly, this dissertation is a study of nation-making that occurs over the
grounds of an aboriginal rights issue, through the law, to meet the economic conditions of late 20th century
capital.
Blair, Hilary K. (1999) "Settling Seabird Island: Land, resources, and ownership on a British Columbia Indian
Reserve." M.A. Thesis, Simon Fraser University. 134 pp.
After Reserve Commissioner Gilbert M. Sproat provisionally designated Seabird Island, near Agassiz, BC, as
a reserve in common for seven Indian bands in 1879, a long struggle ensued over the island and its
resources. This thesis examines the processes whereby the Seabird Island band came into being, and how the
land, despite great opposition, was retained for the aboriginal residents. It argues that the complex history
reveals an inconsistent administration by the Department of Indian Affairs, characterized by policy reversals,
and that the department sometimes acted in contravention of its own mandate. This intensified the inter-band
dispute which had been set in motion by pressure from non-aboriginal neighbours who wished to settle on the
island. It is a story of complex interactions not only between, but also within, diverse groups of people.
Aboriginals and Euro-Canadians were both highly differentiated groups, and neither had a single vision for
the island. The diversity of opinion among native peoples may represent the continuity of pre-existing tribal
affiliations. Divisions within and between governments hindered efficient Indian administration. The study,
therefore, deepens our understanding about the complicated nature of inter-governmental, native-white, and
intra-native relations, further informing us about the processes of colonization and federal Indian
administration in British Columbia.
Blythe, Martin J. (1988) "From Mäoriland to Aotearoa: Images of the Mäori in New Zealand film and television."
Ph.D. Dissertation, University of California, Los Angeles. 486 pp.
The people of New Zealand consist of approximately 85% from British or European descent (the Pakeha) and
approximately 12% from indigenous descent (the Mäori). This dissertation is an analytical narrative of how
Pakeha New Zealanders have represented the Mäori in film and television images and thus their own image
in the reflection this provided. The dissertation begins with an introduction to the ethical dilemmas -- the
'double binds' -- generated in/by cross-cultural studies of this kind. It then analyses over 50 films and
television programs produced since 1900 as if they were allegories of national and cultural myth-making: the
myths of authenticity, the Fall, the Noble Savage, spiritual and cultural essence, national identity, and so on.
The films are grouped in genres. Structurally the dissertation divides chronologically into three parts:
Mäoriland (1900-1930), New Zealand (1930-1960), and Aotearoa (1960-1990), reflecting the transitions
from the imperial era through the national era to the present era and contemporary debates about
nationalism and postmodern internationalism, biculturalism and multiculturalism, the rise of Mäori
nationalism, and so on. ' Mäoriland' highlights two key genres: the timeless and the historical romance. The
former removes the Mäori from imperial time and into another space; the latter annexes the Mäori into the
national identity. Other contemporary genres -- the ethnographic and tourism romances -- are hybrids of
these. 'New Zealand' discusses the evolution of the newsreel from the war years into the social problem
documentary (the Mäori-as-social-problem) and ultimately the pilgrimage documentary (the Mäori-as-
source-of-authenticity). This was the era when the Integration Math and a national identity were at their most
persuasive. 'Aotearoa' discusses four recent filmic responses to the Mäori renaissance and the current double
bind: the politics of silence; the politics of self-blame (the guilt of colonization); the politics of repression (of
the Mäori); and the politics of irony (as cross-cultural discourse becomes increasingly ambiguous). The
conclusion discusses the first self-consciously Mäori film-making in the 1980s and attempts to resolve or
evade the double bind.
Bobb, Bonnie E. (1999) "Cohort differences in the acculturation of a Native American Indian population:
Individualism/collectivism, locus of control, attributional style, epistemological assumptions, and
spirituality." Ph.D. Dissertation, Pennsylvania State University (The). 143 pp.
The purpose of this exploratory study was to examine the applicability of theoretical models of acculturation
to a sample of Native American Indian people, the Western Shoshone or Newe. The goals of this investigation
were (1) to make a contribution toward differentiating some of the psychological components that contribute
to the concept of culture; (2) to study the effects of acculturation and resistance to acculturation in a group of
indigenous people within the United States; and, (3) to examine whether current psychological theories need
modification when applied to certain non-Western populations. Specifically, the research investigated
possible changes in traditional self-referential thinking styles among the Newe, due to their exposure to the
dominant Euro-American culture.
First, three theoretical models of acculturation were introduced: a single continuum model, a two-culture
matrix model, and a multidimensional model. Then, a brief history and ethnography of the Western Shoshone
nation was presented.
Participants were Newe living in one of three residential settings: trust lands, colonies (similar to trust lands,
but located near to or within towns), or urban areas, and stratified into three age groups: 18-25, 26-45, and
45+. Inventories measuring collectivism-reference, individualism of self-reference, cultural identification,
locus of control, depression, attributional style, and epistemelogical style were administered to each
participant. In addition, a Western Shoshone Cultural Interview with a Spirituality sub-scale, devised by the
author, was included.
Data were analyzed using MANOVA and ANOVA. No differences were found between residential groups on
the any of the hypotheses at the p < .05 level of significance. However, because of the exploratory nature of
the study, borderline significant effects and trends are reported for future analysis with larger sample sizes.
The findings support a multidimensional model of acculturation with traits acculturating independently. In
most cases, the three residential groups appear to be more alike than different. However, the three groups
appear to be very different from the dominant Euro-American culture. Evidence for a collective orientation
and a hunter-gatherer heritage are discussed. Appropriateness of some of the inventories with this sample is
questioned. Findings are related to the three original goals of the study.
Bohn, Diane K. (1993) "The health effects of domestic violence before and during pregnancy among urban American
Indian women in Minnesota: An exploratory study." D.N.Sc. Dissertation, Rush University, College of
Nursing. 260 pp.
The purpose of this study is to examine rates of domestic abuse, abuse during pregnancy and the health
effects of abuse among Native American women. This study is a combined retrospective-prospective
exploratory study that examines individual and cumulative physical, sexual and emotional abuses
experienced during childhood and adulthood. 30 pregnant Native American women from one urban clinic
participated in the study. Data collection included prenatal and postpartum chart reviews as well as personal
interviews.
The majority of study participants (90%) reported having experienced some type of abuse, including
childhood abuse (physical: 27%; sexual: 40%; either: 47%), sexual abuse as adults (40%; 17% current
partner), abuse by an intimate partner (87%; 70% current partner), battering during pregnancy (57%; 33%
current pregnancy).
70% of participants had experienced multiple abuses. An Abuse Events variable was created to examine the
effects of cumulative abuses. Significant relationships were found between increased abuse events and
chemical dependency, depression, increased preterm birth/low birth weight (PTB/LBW) risk scores and child
abuse.
Significant relationships were found between current abuse and decreased birth weight and inadequate
prenatal care; between childhood abuse and chemical dependency; and between battering during pregnancy
and increased Index of Spouse Abuse scores. Perceived cultural acceptance of violence against women was
significantly related to current abuse, battering during pregnancy and increased abuse events. Other
relationships of clinical, but not statistical significance were found between various types of abuse and
inadequate weight gain, sexually transmitted diseases and substance use during pregnancy, suicide attempts,
depression, PTB/LBW and miscarriage.
The results of this study indicate that Native American women may be a population at great risk of abuse and
health problems including substance abuse, suicide and pregnancy complications. Overall rates of abuse and
health problems and risks are interpreted using a model of abuse and dysfunction that includes an historical
analysis of native cultures and the intergenerational post-traumatic stress disorder caused by historical and
current abuses of Native American peoples. Culturally specific nursing interventions are discussed. Further
research to examine culturally specific forms of abuse and to expand the current study are recommended.
Bomberry, Victoria J. (2001) "Indigenous memory and imagination: Thinking beyond the nation." Ph.D. Dissertation,
Stanford University. 210 pp.
This dissertation is a study of the ways in which cultural productions of indigenous women affect local,
national and international discourses and is furthering an emergent hemispheric consciousness on the part of
native people. The dissertation focuses on the novels of Leslie Marmon Silko, N. Scott Momaday, and a
protest march and a video initiated by the cocaleras, the women coca growers, of Bolivia.
The first chapter explores the question of an indigenous women's epistemology and deals with the issues of:
(1) A comparison of the tribal social movements of the late 18th and early 19th century that unified the
eastern part of what is now the United States against increasing cultural and physical encroachment by the
United States; (2) The imaginary topography of the United States that has been coded as the “space of
death” because of the genocide that was perpetrated on indigenous people; and, (3) Analysis of two novels
by N. Scott Momaday that played an influential role in shaping the identity politics of the 60s and 70s and
contributed to the process of the masculinization of indigenous knowledges.
The second chapter, “Indigenous Hemispheric Consciousness” deals with two of the novels written by Leslie
Marmon Silko Ceremony and Almanac of the dead which examine the concept of what I call an emergent
“hemispheric consciousness.” This concept reinserts native women as active producers of knowledge and
refeminizes the imaginary. Silko uses prophecy that allows access to a past that is like yesterday and a future
that is known and spoken in the present moment. For Silko there is no single prophet, but ways of reading,
deciphering, repairing and adding to the ancient texts of the Americas.
The third chapter, “Postmodern Dystopias: The War on Drugs and Indians at the end of the Millennium”,
stretches Silko's map south into Bolivia. It describes the situation in Bolivia during the 90s and its effects on
indigenous people.
The fourth chapter, “The War on Drugs is a War on Women,” records and analyzes a 31 day march planned
and executed by the cocaleras in the Chapare region of Bolivia. By 1995 the militarization of the war on
drugs had become unbearable because of the day by day disruption and violation of women's lives. The
march marked a turning point for the ways in which indigenous women assert their citizenship.
Bonnell, Jennifer L. (1999) "Mapping songs, mapping histories: The negotiation of cultural perspectives on Gitxsan
territory." M.A. Thesis, University of Victoria. 93 pp.
Behind political and legal conflicts over aboriginal land and resource rights in British Columbia lies a more
fundamental impasse in cultural perspectives. For aboriginal people, a dilemma emerges between the
compulsion to communicate their principles and values in terms that non-aboriginal people can understand
(at the risk of sacrificing important context), and the compulsion to preserve 'absolute meanings' at the risk of
sacrificing communication. This thesis explores theoretical approaches to translation as a way of moving
beyond this impasses in Crown-aboriginal relations. It follows the efforts of the Gitxsan First Nation -- both
in the courts and in practice initiatives -- to translate aspects of an aboriginal perspective as evidence of
their claim to the land.
This thesis examines three examples of impasse in cultural perspectives, and the Gitxsan's response to that
impasse. The first occurs in historic disputes over trapline registration in the 1930s, when different cultural
conceptions of 'trapline' led to conflict and, in isolated circumstances, to negotiation. The second occurs in
the trial of Delgamuukw v. The Queen (1991), where differences over the nature of aboriginal title and the
presentation of aboriginal evidence led to an impasse in communication in the trial, and to a negotiation of
meanings in subsequent appeals. In the third example, the Gitxsan explore ways of facilitating cross-cultural
communication through the translation of aboriginal evidence into graphic maps. The maps demonstrate a
Gitxsan understanding of territory in which cultural rights are inextricably connected to the ecosystems on
which they are based.
In each case, differences between western and aboriginal concepts remain constant; the potential for conflict
or, alternatively, for negotiation builds in correlation with developmental pressures. Taken together, the
examples show how the Gitxsan have adapted their claim of ownership and jurisdiction of the territories to
different political environments, using different technologies. By presenting evidence from an aboriginal
perspective, the Gitxsan encourage the Crown to begin its own process of translation: to make room for
aboriginal concepts of title, and aboriginal methods of presenting evidence, in order to reach equitable
agreements. The Gitxsan's approach has implications not only for their own development plans, but also for
those of other First Nations.
Bopp, Michael. (1985) "Education for development." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Alberta.
Borrows, Jennifer A. (2000) "The Chippewa experience with the therapy process: Stepping stones to healing." Ph.D.
Dissertation, Kansas State University. 246 pp.
The treatment of the Canadian Anishinabe people, commonly referred to as Chippewa, presents unique
challenges to mental health services providers and researchers. There has been a need to understand the
First Nations peoples' perception of therapies and the healing process to ensure that service providers will
help, not harm, this population. This study employed a hybrid of ethnographical and phenomenological
methods to collect experiences of therapy/healing from ten Chippewa participants from a band in southern
Ontario. Information was collected by interviews and field observations.
Many Chippewa people sought services as a result of oppression and both present and historical trauma.
Common healing experiences, which were identified, included requiring the service provider to heal him or
herself, be trustworthy, be non-judgmental, know the band's historical trauma, use silence, and listen. Many
left or returned to the reservation to begin the healing process. They attended traditional ceremonies with the
goal of being in harmony with nature. Follow-up services were important. A wide variety of mental health
services and providers were accessed. Both mainstream methods and Chippewa 'traditional' means had been
utilized by all of these participants. Different modes of services had specific functions at different stages in
their healing journeys. Healing integrated holistic (i.e. spiritual) elements. Substance abuse had been used to
deal with grief.
The reasons for attending therapy/healing were to connect with self, connect with the band/community and to
connect to the Chippewa culture. Participants felt the duty to assist others in the healing process, as they
started to heal themselves. Participants, who had used family therapy services, were more likely to access
them during times of crisis and did not expect to attend more than four sessions. Implications included
marriage and family therapists' networking with multiple services providers, evaluating the trajectory of
healing frequently, and being available for follow-up services. Implications and ideas for future research
were outlined.
Bose, Pablo S. (2000) "Damning development: The rise of the 'new grassroots' in the Clayoquot Sound and the
Narmada Valley." M.A. Thesis, Simon Fraser University. 145 pp.
Over the course of the past century, environmentalism has emerged as an important social and political
movement. The birth of this movement has been necessitated by a wealth of factors, particularly the
dominance of the western industrial development paradigm. Yet while it can be argued that there now exists
a broad ecological awareness throughout the world, it is equally true that the environmental movement is
composed of many disparate elements. This thesis focuses on one of these elements, on what are known as the
'new grassroots' movements. These groups are a recent evolution within environmentalism, organizations
dedicated to the cause of social and ecological justice in many parts of the world. The rise of these 'new
grassroots' movements has been attributed by many critics to the failures and problems with other traditional
and mainstream forms of environmentalism. This thesis, therefore, undertakes a closer examination of the
established environmental traditions in order to better understand their perceived flaws. For the same
purpose, this thesis also explores the historical and theoretical basis for many of our modern conceptions of
the relationship between humankind and nature.
Having identified the background from which the 'new grassroots' emerge, this study goes on to examine in
greater detail two particular 'new grassroots' movements -- one in India and one in Canada. The purpose is
to understand the context out of which such groups arise and document the methods they utilize to effect
social and ecological change. The overall goal of this thesis is to learn practicable and applicable lessons as
a result of these various inquiries. By examining the shortcomings of mainstream environmentalism we can
identify problematic strategies and tactics that ecologically-motivated groups would be wise to avoid. By
learning from the victories and defeats of the two subjects of study, we can provide broad recommendations
for ways in which to achieve effective environmental advocacy. Only be having such a thorough and self-
reflexive vision of environmentalism can we embark on finding just and equitable solutions to the modern
ecological crisis.
Boswell, Marion J. (1978 ) "Civilizing the Indian: Government administration of Indians, 1876-96." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of Ottawa.
Boughter, Judith A. (1995) "Betraying their trust: The dispossession of the Omaha nation, 1790-1916." M.A. Thesis,
University of Nebraska -- Omaha (The). 341 pp.
In 1854, the government forced the once-powerful Omaha Indian tribe onto a small reservation in
northeastern Nebraska. Resenting the Omahas' ownership of this fertile farmland, settlers and land
syndicates campaigned relentlessly to alienate the Indians from their property. Due to the words and actions
of only a few tribal 'progressives,' the Omahas became the prototype for several disastrous government
programs during the assimilationist era. Omaha allotment preceded the 1887 Dawes Act by five years;
whites leased Omaha lands long before leasing became an official government policy; and the Omahas were
the first tribe to begin losing their lands as the result of competency commissions. All of these 'firsts' had
disastrous effects on the Omaha people, and by 1916, many Omahas were landless and facing uncertain
futures. But reformers and government officials learned little from the Omaha tragedy, and expanded these
programs to include Indian tribes throughout the United States.
Boulanger, Lori A. (1999 ) ""Resisting coercive assimilation": Identity, empowerment and activism in the native
Hawai'ian movement on Hawai'i Island." Ph.D. Dissertation, State University of New York at Albany. 378
pp.
Hawai'ians are engaged in an oppositional critique of the social and political structure which dominates
island life. No longer content to be coercively assimilated by Western culture and colonialism, they have,
since the 1970s, been organizing themselves at the grassroots level. Sovereignty, self-determination, cultural
identity, and land issues form the basis for activism on every island whom grassroots organizations have
emerged as part of the Hawai'ian Movement.
This dissertation is a study of Native Hawai'ians on Hawai'i Island who are engaged in this Movement, and
in particular of three organizations: The Pele Defence Fund, Ka 'Ohana, O KaLae, and Free Association.
The original intent of this research centred around three questions which focused on the construction of
cultural identity in the Movement, the way in which the past is used and represented, and the relationship
between activists and anthropologists.
While activism and cultural identity have been the dominant themes throughout this research, the issue of
identity as a construction has been overshadowed by a concern with how Hawai'ians in this Movement
experience their activism in the daily struggle for survival. What became most apparent is that Hawai'ian
activists are occupying contested lands both for political reasons, and in an effort to create places of refuge
from the dominant society. By appropriating lands, building Hawai'ian cultural villages, and protecting
natural and historic sites, Hawai'ian are clearly defining who they are while demarcating the boundaries
between Hawai'ian and non-Hawai'ian cultural spaces.
This dissertation explores the inner workings and variations within the Hawai'ian Movement among the
organizations studied, as well as within the greater Movement. These variations were found to include gender
and class distinctions which were tied into degrees of assimilation into American society. I show that rather
than ignoring the forms of asymmetry and inequality present in this Movement, their investigation provides a
way to better understand the internal politics of the Movement and how these interact with the external forces
of domination that are present. Such an understanding can strengthen a position of solidarity, as it helps to
clarify the complex relations between dominant and dominated, as well as within oppressed groups.
Bourgeault, Ron G. (1986 ) "Class, race and gender: Political economy and the Canadian fur trade, 1670s to 1820s."
M.A. Thesis, University of Regina (The). 223 pp.
This study investigates the relationship established between the Indian and the European in the fur trade.
Based on the thesis of unequal development, the study discusses the class relations established between
Canadian Indians, in the production of fur, and the British bourgeoisie, engaged in the accumulation of
capital. This study also examines the structural relationship established between Rupert's Land as a
periphery and Britain as a centre area in the accumulation of capital. The methods employed in the
investigation of this relationship are those of historical materialism. Specifically, two structural relationships
are investigated. First, class is examined from the point of view of the integration of the Indian into the
international division of labour and capitalism as a world-system. A division of labour was created between
the Indian and the European which became the basis of a racial division of labour. Indian women are
examined in the context of the integration of the communal sexual division of labour into the international
division of labour. Class and race divisions were created and imposed on Indian women, Indian women in
turn were exploited in a manner unlike that of Indian men. The result was the special subjugation of Indian
women. At the basis of the division of the labour in Canada between Indian and European was the different
value accorded labour power dictated by the need to accumulate capital in Europe. Second, the fur trade is
examined in the context of British dominance over Rupert's Land. A structural relationship was created,
based on class formations and unequal exchange, which resulted in the underdevelopment of Rupert's Land
and contributed to the development of the capitalist mode of production in Britain. The productive forces in
Rupert's Land were increased for the purpose of fur production, but thereafter there was little change.
Capital accumulation internally in Rupert's Land during the first century and a half was non-existent.
Capitalist relations of production were imposed in the early 19th century which allowed for the internal
accumulation of capital, but in an extremely regulated fashion. The result was the unequal development of
capitalism between Rupert's Land (periphery) and Britain (centre).
Bowman, Barbara J. (1994 ) "Differences in the development and expression of a sense of coherence between Euro-
Americans and Native Americans." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of North Dakota (The). 170 pp.
This study addressed the development and expression of Antonovsky's (1987) Sense of Coherence (SOC) in
individual lives in a cross-cultural context. Two groups of subjects were examined using a survey format.
One group was from the Northern Cheyenne Reservation in Montana and the other from UND. The
psychological and physical health of these subjects, their family interaction patterns, and the coping
strategies they use were examined to assist in increasing our understanding about how people from different
cultures manage stress and stay healthy. Both groups appear equally healthy, both mentally and physically,
and scored equally well on measures of SOC. Negative correlations between SOC and measures of
depression, anxiety and physical symptoms were found for both groups. Despite these similarities, the
pathways by which the two groups achieved SOC appeared to differ. T-tests indicated that UND students
were from smaller families of higher economic status who were more likely to stress independence,
achievement, and active recreation than the Dull Knife Memorial College students. DKMC students were
more likely from larger families of lower economic status who were more likely to stress moral and religious
values and to use cognitive restructuring as a coping strategy than the UND students. Discriminant analyses
suggested that membership in each of the two groups could be predicted by: (a) socioeconomic status; (b)
cohesiveness of the family unit; (c) the use of cognitive restructuring as a coping strategy; and, (d) anger of
the subject. Multiple regressions suggested that a strong SOC could be predicted in the DKMC sample by
frequency of childhood prayer and emotional expressiveness. A strong SOC could be predicted in the UND
sample by active recreation, cognitive restructuring, family organization and, interestingly, the number of
people in the present family suffering from addiction.
Boxberger, Daniel L. (1986) "Resource allocation and control on the Lummi Indian reservation: A century of conflict
and change in the salmon fishery." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of British Columbia (The).
This study focuses on the Lummi Indian fishers of northwest Washington State, and the manner in which they
have been included in and excluded from the commercial fishing industry over the past 100 years. The
approach to be taken in this situation of internal dependency is to examine access to resources. The control
of productive resources -- land, water, timber, minerals, and fish -- that Indians own or have access to,
presents an ideal starting point for understanding Indian underdevelopment. Prior to and immediately after
the time the Lummi were confined to a reservation, they were engaged in a traditional fishery that met their
needs for subsistence and had the potential to develop into a viable commercial endeavour. The penetration
of capital into the commercial salmon fishery of North Puget Sound initially utilized Lummi labour, but the
development of new extractive technologies and an increase in the availability of labour of other ethnicities
rapidly circumvented the need for Indian labour. Concomitantly, throughout the early 1900s, efforts by the
State of Washington to curtail Indian fishing resulted in the Lummi being confined to a small reservation
fishery of insignificant commercial potential. In the 1940s, when Lummi exclusion from the fishery was
almost total, the need for fishers suddenly became acute, and the Lummi were once again incorporated into
the commercial salmon fishery. Nevertheless, the post-war era again saw new developments in the salmon
industry, and, no longer needed by the processors, the Lummi were once again squeezed out of the industry.
Sympathetic court cases in the late 1960s and early 1970s guaranteed commercially significant fishing
opportunity for the Lummi. Nevertheless, the present Lummi salmon fishery is not going to provide the
Lummi with a viable economic base. The manner in which the fishery has developed is causing the majority
of the economic yield of the fishery to be siphoned off to non-Lummi interests. Utilizing ethnohistorical and
ethnographic data, this study examines a dependency approach to understanding Lummi underdevelopment.
By focusing primarily on economic and political dependency on the United States Federal Government, this
study shows how the Lummi community was incorporated into the dominant society and became a dependent
community suffering from chronic underdevelopment, despite access to and utilization of a valuable natural
resource.
Braatz, Timothy. (1997) "The Yavapais: A history of Indians in north-central Arizona to 1910." Ph.D. Dissertation,
Arizona State University. 543 pp.
The Yavapai Indians once occupied a large territory in what is now north-central Arizona. Yavapai families
lived in small, independent, and highly-mobile camps and maintained a hunting and gathering economy, in
places supplemented with small-scale agriculture. Relations with neighbouring Indian groups along the
Colorado and Gila rivers included military alliances and rivalries, trade, and resource sharing. Very few
non-Indians entered Yavapai territory before 1860, but most Yavapai camps felt their influence as the arrival
of European livestock, crops, technology, beliefs, and disease transformed the North American southwest.
In the 1860s, large numbers of whites invaded Yavapai country in search of gold and farmland. Yavapai
camps responded in different ways; some tried to accommodate white demands while others turned to
military resistance. The growing presence of whites disrupted the Yavapai economy and United States
military power forced Yavapai families to move onto reservations. In 1873, most surviving Yavapais were
concentrated at the Rio Verde reservation in the heart of Yavapai lands. At Rio Verde, they generally
cooperated with US demands and began adjusting to a sedentary, agricultural lifestyle. But in 1875, US
officials forced them to relocate to the San Carlos Reservation in western Apache territory. Yavapai families
spent the next 25 years in exile. They adopted non-Yavapai traditions of livestock-raising, large-scale
agriculture, and wage labour, and around 1900, with permission from reservation officials, gradually
wandered back to their homelands. Through political lobbying and persistent occupation, the Yavapais
acquired new reservation lands in the early 20th century, thus restoring to them a small part of their original
territory.
This study draws on ethnographic materials and numerous US Indian Office and Army documents to analyze
how Yavapais reacted to the influx of non-Indians into their territory. Other studies of Arizona history have
reduced Yavapai responses to the knee-jerk violence of 'savages.' However, an examination of early Yavapai
life and relations with other Indians and with Spanish explorers reveals a variety of practices, motivations,
and strategies which informed the way Yavapais dealt with whites in the 19th century. Yavapais struggled
constantly to survive in their harsh desert environment, and thus their efforts to maintain economic and
territorial integrity in the face of disruption and dislocation are the central theme of this account.
Bracken, Christopher J. (1994) "White gift: The potlatch and the rhetoric of Canadian colonialism, 1868-1936." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of British Columbia (The). 320 pp.
This dissertation examines the irony of Canada's discourse on 'Indian affairs' by reinterpreting the postal
literature generated around the banning of the potlatch in British Columbia from 1868 to 1936. To explain
the logic behind the antipotlatch law, the first section, 'Folding,' examines a set of texts which draw an
absolute limit between Europe and the coastal First Nations. The gift is the privileged sign of this limit: it
divides the societies which potlatch from a Euro-Canadian society which claims to be a system of exchange.
Ironically, the moment such a limit is put into writing, it folds together everything it sets apart. The second
section, 'Giving,' situates the antipotlatch literature within the context of this ironic fold. By banning the
potlatch, Canada aimed to Europeanize the coastal First Nations: to collapse them into the white collectivity
even though the collectivity defined itself by excluding them from its borders. To kill the potlatch was to erase
the gift, the mark distinguishing Canada from the cultures it wished to absorb. Yet the potlatch which Canada
banned did not correspond with the potlatches which the First Nations performed. The legal text gave its own
potlatch to the world. The dissertation is, above all, an attempt to explain the mechanics of this textual gift.
The antipotlatch law also banned something it called the 'Tamanawas' dance, which was alleged to be a form
of ritual cannibalism. Section three, 'Eating,' argues that the effort to kill the potlatch was an act of
cannibalistic white nationalism. The two authors of the only serious attempt to enforce the law -- William
Halliday and Duncan Campbell Scott -- interpreted Canada's relation to the First Nations as a relation of
incorporation. Their texts think whiteness as an act of mourning, where to be white is to belong to a nation
that recalls itself to itself by interiorizing the memory of an aboriginal other who has died. Yet the other
refuses to die. The thought of whiteness finds itself tied to, and opposed by, the memory of a death which is
projected onto the horizon of an endlessly deferred future.
Brade, Cassandra R. (2002) "The relationship between participation in aboriginal cultural activities/languages and
educational achievement for native Canadians: An analysis of the 1991 Aboriginal Peoples Survey." M.Sc.
Thesis, University of Manitoba (The). 131 pp.
This research examined the associations between cultural retention, various aspects of identity formation,
and mobility on levels of academic achievement of Canadian aboriginal people. A secondary analysis of a
sample of 636 respondents to the 1991 Aboriginal Peoples Survey was conducted. The variables examined
included: participation in cultural activities and native language(s), perception of parental and family
support, having aboriginal teachers, aboriginal language(s) being used in the classroom, aboriginal
language facility, liking what was taught in school about native people and history, and number of schools
attended. Both bivariate and multivariate analyses indicated significant relationships between educational
attainment and aboriginal language facility, liking what was taught about aboriginal people in elementary
school, and number of high schools attended. Recommendations for future research include the use of more
precise data on the variables of interest in order to confidently predict the factors which affect educational
achievement among Canada's aboriginal people.
Brady, Patrick. (1991) "An analysis of program delivery services in First Nations, federal and provincial schools in
Northwestern Ontario." M.Ed. Thesis, Lakehead University. 174 pp.
This study compares federal, provincial and First Nations schools' delivery of specific educational services to
Native students in Northwestern Ontario. Areas of comparison include those which the Indian Education
Paper Phase One (INAC, 1982) regarded as "determinants of program quality" (p. 20): (a) curriculum and
standards; (b) staffing; (c) staff support and supervision; and, (d) student support services.
The results of the study indicate that all three educational systems have programs in place to provide the
above educational services to the Native students enrolled in their schools. There are, however, significant
differences among the systems in the manner in which these services are implemented. Differences were
found in the provision of a Native cultural component in the curriculum, the professional qualifications
required of teaching staff, the employment benefit packages provided to educational employees, the nature of
supervisory relations, and the provision of student support services. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)
Brealey, Kenneth G. (2002) "First (national) space: (Ab)original (re)mappings of British Columbia." Ph.D.
Before contact First Nations in what is now British Columbia were not mapmakers. Territory was
demarcated experientially, by genealogy, oral narrative, ceremony, and the social arts. Since contact,
however, and especially since the beginning of the comprehensive claims process in the early 1970s, First
Nations have become mapmakers -- not because they especially wanted to but because they had to. They have
recognized that cartography -- whether in court, at the treaty table, or for pedagogical purposes -- is a way
of validating aboriginal title and rights. They have also recognized, however, that committing their
geographies to maps is a risky endeavour. Much of what distinguishes First Nations' geographical space
does not translate well in a cartographic register and Euro-Canadians generally lack the cultural equipment
to interpret and evaluate what does. This dissertation tries to open a space where translation can occur.
Drawing on both native and ethnographic sources and guided by my experience and some of the postcolonial
literature, I show that First Nations' maps are both a record of an encounter that has always turned on the
ability of one side to dominate the representational terrain of the other and a window on a world that most
non-natives have hitherto apprehended only in the faintest outline. The questions raised by this dissertation,
then, are of a theoretical sort, but the answers are matters of fact and future practice. Land claims, if they are
about anything at all, are about the struggle over geography -- both the terrestrial object, and the perspective
through which that object is territorialized -- for aboriginal title and rights, if recognized by law, mean
nothing without the territories to which they refer. At issue is not whether the 'map of First Nations' is more
true than the 'map of British Columbia' -- though I will defend such a claim -- but whether or not, in
mirroring one against the other, a space of mutual understanding can be reached.
———. (1995) "Mapping them 'out': Euro-Canadian cartography and the appropriation of First Nations' territories in
British Columbia, 1793-1916." M.A. Thesis, Simon Fraser University. 296 pp.
In this thesis I use a 'materialist hermeneutic' to interpret and understand the way in which maps made by
European discoverers, explorers, and colonizers during the imperial and (post)colonial periods helped
actualize the territorial dispossession of the (ab)original inhabitants of what is now British Columbia.
Beginning with the charts of George Vancouver and Alexander Mackenzie, and finishing with the reserve
plans of the 1916 Royal Commission, I illustrate this thesis by tracing the cartographic encirclement of the
First Nations of the northwest coast between 1793 and 1916. There are three essential themes: (a) the
'positioning' of the map artefact in an ideological power network; (b) the subjective emplacement of the
objective 'other' in the geographical perspective authorized by the network; and, (c) the representational
discourses on the 'surface' of the map that comprise the rules under which that emplacement is achieved and
maintained. Our entry (and exit) point is the 1991 BC Supreme Court case Delgamuukw vs. A.G., in which
maps were used as evidence by both the Gitksan and Wet'suwet'en nations (the plaintiffs) and the Crown (the
defence). Given the manner in which the Court interpreted this evidence, the thesis has implications not only
for our understanding the social function of maps in historical or contemporary land claims, but also for the
way in which we establish, sustain, and defend our own territorial legitimacy at the expense of another.
Bredin, Marian. (1995) "Aboriginal media in Canada: Cultural politics and communication practices." Ph.D.
This dissertation considers the relation between culture and communication with respect to the development
of aboriginal media in Canada. It introduces and elaborates a concept of cultural politics with which to
interpret the history of contact between aboriginal and non-aboriginal people. This concept is further applied
to an analysis of Canadian cultural and communications policy and the intervention of native broadcasters in
policy procedures and discourses. The dissertation undertakes a critical review of existing research on
aboriginal media. It assesses the usefulness of interpretive tools drawn from poststructuralist philosophy,
ethnography and postcolonial theory in understanding the relation between cultural politics and
communication practices. These tools are then implemented in the presentation of a case study of Wawatay
Native Communications Society, a regional native broadcasting organization based in north-western
Ontario.
Brelsford, Taylor. (1983 ) "Hunters and workers among the Namaska Cree: The role of ideology in a dependent mode
of production." M.A. Thesis, McGill University.
This thesis extends the analysis of persistence in James Bay Cree economy and society by examining the role
of ideology in the stability of a dependent mode of production. Using Althusser's notion that ideology
interpellates individuals, this study asks about the reproduction of collective and individual commitments to
the subsistence sector as a livelihood. The findings identify a number of challenges to the traditional sector,
but suggest that a substantial proportion of the population, still the majority, continues to be drawn to a
primary commitment to the hunting and trapping livelihood. Neither schooling or consumerism is seen to
have substantially eroded this commitment to date. More broadly, the role of ideology in this articulation is
seen to be subordinate to the political practices which, in policy initiatives from the 1930s until the James
Bay Agreement, have done much to reinforce the material conditions of subsistence production.
Brenneman, Dale S. (2004 ) "Climate of rebellion: The relationship between climate variability and indigenous
uprisings in mid-18th century Sonora." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Arizona (The). 359 pp.
A series of indigenous rebellions took place in mid-18th century Sonora that caused Spain to alter its colonial
policies, depending less on the Jesuit mission system and more on a professional military force for pacifying
and controlling the region. The rebellions coincided with a shift toward a drought-dominant climate pattern
that began in the late 1720s. This study explores the relationship between that climatic shift and the
rebellions by narrowing the focus to several disturbances and insurrections among the Seris, Pimas Bajos,
and Yaquis during the period of 1725-42. Research centres on climate variability, the relationship between
climate patterns and indigenous subsistence practices, and whether Spanish colonial policies and institutions
rendered these practices more or less vulnerable to environmental perturbations. Because the same
environmental factors shaping indigenous subsistence strategies also affected Spanish decision-making, the
development of Spanish colonization in Sonora is reviewed within an ecological framework as well,
recognizing the interaction among the environment and political, economic, and demographic factors.
This study adopts a multidisciplinary approach integrating paleoclimatic, ethnohistorical, ethnographic, and
archaeological sources of data to establish patterns of precipitation and reconstruct indigenous subsistence
systems within their local environments, both before and after Spanish colonial rule. The research presents
evaluations and English translations of numerous Spanish texts that include description of local
environments; indigenous land use, reliance on crops versus wild resources, scheduling, harvest, and/or
storage; significant climatic events such as droughts or floods; and the events of specific insurrections.
The research also considers Spanish policies and institutions as they developed in Sonora, and changes they
engendered in indigenous subsistence organization and the environment. This study assesses the effectiveness
of those changes in the face of climate fluctuations, and scrutinizes Seri, Pima Bajo, and Yaqui disturbances
and insurrections as responses to Spanish-induced subsistence changes under escalating colonial pressures
and climate-related environmental stresses. On a broader level, this research demonstrates the potential of
the documentary record, when combined with advances in climate research, for increasing our
understanding of human vulnerability to climate change, human responses and coping strategies, and the
impacts of human behaviour on climate.
Briggs, Peter D. (1999) "Community development with indigenous communities: Facilitating the creation of
appropriate environments." M.L.A. Thesis, University of Guelph. 108 pp.
This thesis proposes an integrated framework for organizing information and subsequently acting as a
diagnostic and predictive tool for those working in the area of community development with indigenous
peoples, but with potential universal scope. Discussion within the thesis utilizes examples and information
from work with indigenous peoples in Australia, Canada and New Zealand. The framework is composed of a
hierarchy of community development (derived from Maslow's hierarchy of human needs) integrated within a
value system, and a hierarchy of cultural influence. Discussion of the framework is divided into three areas:
(1) essential needs and the ethics of crisis-control; (2) community function and planning paradigms; and, (3)
community actualization and how design theory applies to developing meaning in the landscape. Theoretical
and practical support are given for this framework, and operationalization of the framework is offered within
a paradigm of community development through participatory self-determination.
Bright, Marilyn A. (1999 ) "Teaching and learning experiences of Dogrib teachers in the Canadian Northwest
Territories." M.Ed. Thesis, University of Alberta. 156 pp.
The study is a narrative inquiry which records the learning and teaching experiences of eight Dogrib
aboriginal teachers in the Canadian Northwest Territories, in the midst of the rapid changes occurring
within their communities. The Dogrib people belong to the Canadian Athapaskan or Dene group of First
Nations people. Within their life span, the way of life in their communities has changed from a predominantly
hunting and gathering lifestyle to a wage-based, global technological lifestyle. The study describes the results
of such rapid change on the cultural traditions and the social environment of the people in the communities
and the impacts of the change on the public education system. It articulates the cultural differences between
the Dogrib culture and the mainstream Euro-Canadian culture which have implications for the educational
system in the Dogrib school division. It explores the needs, as expressed by the Dogrib teachers who were
interviewed, for continuing in-service support and professional development in their roles as teachers.
Briones, Claudia N. (1999) "Weaving "the Mapuche people": The cultural politics of organizations with indigenous
philosophy and leadership." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Texas at Austin (The). 495 pp.
Since the late 1980s, there has been a global transformation of native peoples into subjects of international
law. Within this context, amendments to the constitutions of several Latin American countries include for the
first time the collective rights of indigenous groups. Specific trajectories of state- and nation-building have
affected both the form that the politics of recognition of indigenous rights has adopted and the content of the
indigenous groups' demands.
This dissertation analyzes the cultural politics of organizations with Mapuche philosophy and leadership and
traces the direction that their struggle for recognition has taken in a country like Argentina, where the
emergence of organized indigenous activism is a new phenomenon. This study focuses on the rise and the
demise of Taiñ KiñeGetuam (or “to be one again”), a coalition of several indigenous organizations that since
1992 has claimed to represent politically “the Mapuche People” and has undertaken many different protests
and actions to challenge hegemonic constructions of aboriginality and to unite the indigenous constituency.
An ethnographic account of indigenous cultural productions, rallies, and communiquès serves as the
analytical foundation to explore the politicization of culture and the culturization of politics which
characterize Mapuche activism. The former process involves deploying “culture” as a political resource to
promote Mapuche communalization and to demonstrate distinctiveness vis-à-vis non-indigenes. The latter
consists of monitoring the political moves of “allies” or “antagonists” to develop indigenous tactical courses
of action, that are interpreted as an exclusively aboriginal way of “doing politics”, radically opposed to
Wigka or non-indigenous politics.
Through ethnographic analyses of the indigenous politics of representation, the dissertation examines the
relevance of concepts such as “strategic essentialism”, “induced agency” or “self-orientalization”, that
have been used to explain contemporary indigenous activism in Latin America. It also contextualizes the most
apparent -- and, for many people, annoying -- contradiction in the agenda of Mapuche activism: their a
constant demand for non-interference by the state and relentless critique of non-indigenous democratic
principles go hand in hand with their equally consistent request for state assistance, and respect for
democratic guarantees.
Brock, Kathy L. (1989) "The theory and practice of aboriginal self-government: Canada in a comparative context."
Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Toronto. 503 pp.
This thesis addresses three questions. How has aboriginal self-government developed in Canada? How is the
development of this issue in Canada different from its development in the United States and Australia? Have
features of the Canadian political system, which are responsible for differentiating the Canadian experience
with aboriginal self-government from the American and Australian experiences, complicated the development
in a peculiarly Canadian manner?
The thesis concludes that the Canadian experience with aboriginal self-government has been paradoxical
and distinctive: the Canadian political system has offered both incentives and impediments to the
development of the issue not found in the American and Australian cases. Compelling features of the
Canadian political system, namely executive dominance and intergovernmental tensions, caused the issue to
unfold in a way which frustrated demands for constitutional entrenchment of the right to self-government.
However, the constitutional talks stimulated the development of aboriginal self-government on a community
basis through land claims, legislation, negotiations and agreements, division of the Northwest Territories,
and administrative changes. The evolving Canadian conception of pluralism and the traditional practices of
reconciling individual and collective rights and minority and majority interests, provide the framework for
the acceptance of aboriginal self-government at the community level.
Brown, Elaine C. (1991) "Tribal peoples and land settlement: The effects of Philippine capitalist development on the
Palawan." Ph.D. Dissertation, State University of New York at Binghampton. 396 pp.
This dissertation explores the processes and effects of land settlement and capitalist development in the
homeland of an indigenous people. The case of the Palawan of southern Palawan island, Philippines
provides insights into socioeconomic, political and environmental transformations that have undermined
their ability to engage in sustainable land use and maintain their lifeways. Research was carried out in a
multiethnic village of 400 households and the area's administrative centre. A census was taken of village
households. Informal interviews were used to learn about local history, social relations and economic and
environmental issues. Structured interviews provided information on the first wave (1910-30) of Christian
Filipino settlers and the registration of land claims. Questionnaires generated data on cropping patterns in
three ecozones for 107 ricefields and 80 second season fields, and on the livelihoods of a stratified sample of
100 households. A survey of 67 fields provided insights into the privatization of the state-owned uplands.
Early settlers established administrative structures, privatized land, started export agriculture and linked
southern Palawan to the national economy. After the Pacific War, other settlers filled the frontier and
reorganized villages. Settlers took Palawan lands on the coastal plain, and so Palawan moved to the uplands.
Displacement of Palawan has been peaceful and piecemeal, which has hindered Palawan identification of
enemies and resistance. Palawan remain the majority (63% of village households), and yet they are less
powerful and visible than non-Palawan. Palawan still intercrop rice varieties and other cultivars, but they
cultivate fields more intensively than when land was abundant. Rice yields have declined. To buy rice,
households produce for the market. They have less access to land, credit, and technological information than
non-Palawan, and thus they are less productive. Palawan households cannot meet their requirements by
farming and foraging. To overcome food shortages, every household must work off-farm. Palawan value their
heritage, but deculturation and acculturation are eroding their lifeways. Discrimination by non-Palawan
creates barriers that prevent Palawan from being fully incorporated into the socioeconomic system. The
contemporary distinctiveness of Palawan is the result of Palawan resistance to domination and non-Palawan
discrimination.
Brown, Jennifer A. (1999 ) "'Our native peoples': The illegitimacy of Canadian citizenship and the Canadian
federation for the aboriginal peoples." M.A. Thesis, Carleton University. 158 pp.
It is often assumed that because aboriginal peoples reside within the boundaries of Canada they are
'Canada's aboriginal people.' It is because of this assumption that the aboriginal peoples face difficulties
achieving the recognition of their inherent right to self-determination.
This thesis presents an examination of how aboriginal peoples became Canadian citizens. It is argued that
this inception into the Canadian definition of citizenship was done without their consent. The result is that
Canadian citizenship is illegitimate for the aboriginal peoples. It is further argued that because Canadian
citizenship is illegitimate so to is the framework on which our definition of citizenship is based.
The goal is to develop a model of association which will remain consistent with Canadian values which
federalism espouses, as well as ensuring the legitimacy of association for the aboriginal nations. The
framework achieved combines elements of treaty and Althusian federalism with aspects of non-territoriality
and multiple citizenship status. The result is a celebration of Canada as a multi-nation state.
This model was tested for its validity and flexibility among three groups of aboriginal nations as well as with
the federal government. The model demonstrated congruency with the aspirations of the aboriginal nations
examined. However, it is not clear that the federal government is willing to accept the notion of Canada as a
multi-nation state as proposed by the framework. The framework remains a goal to strive for to achieve a
legitimate Canadian federation.
Brown, Jennifer S. H. (1976) "Company men and native families: Fur trade social and domestic relations in Canada's
old northwest." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Chicago (The).
Brown, Kimberly L. (2005 ) ""To fish for themselves": A study of accommodation and resistance in the Stó:lo
Fishery." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of British Columbia (The). 243 pp.
Fisheries regulations, implemented in the 1880s, banned the sale of Indian 'food fish' and resulted in the
creation of the categories of "food fishing" and "commercial fishing." While simultaneously accepting and
rejecting that place in the margins of this fractured fishery, Stó:lo people have consistently maintained that
their aboriginal right to fish cannot be cast in these false categories that separate the economic and social
components of their way of life.
Stó:lo fishers have been fighting for their Aboriginal right to fish since the their first encounters with the
Xwelitem. This thesis addresses that struggle within a context of accommodation and resistance. In this
historically situated ethnography, I offer an examination of a problem, not a people. By selecting three
distinct responses to fisheries regulation on the part of peoples identifying themselves as Stó:lo I reveal a link
between the histories of the individual Stó:lo communities and their specific responses to regulation,
demonstrating that connected to those histories are as many different Stó:lo fisheries as there are species of
salmon.
The responses examined in this thesis are, in the words of the Stó:lo themselves, rooted in tradition; tradition
having become the short answer to questions regarding the Stó:lo and their aboriginal right to fish. As a part
of my examination, I seek to uncover the long answer; more specifically how tradition has come to support
these separate and distinct responses to over a century of interference into their way of life.
Brown, Leslie A. (1997) "Administrative work in aboriginal governments." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Victoria.
283 pp.
Aboriginal governments are organizations like any other, but they have some important differences that stem
from the cultures of aboriginal peoples and the history and construction of aboriginal governments in
Canada. Colonization brought particular conceptions of work and administration that are not always
compatible with aboriginal cultures. Aboriginal governments are grounded in their respective communities
and cultures and at the same time exist within a Canadian political system that reflects the values of a
western, non-aboriginal society. The practice of administrative work in aboriginal governments is therefore
complex and internally conflictual for the organization as well as for administrators. The institutional and
financial arrangements of aboriginal governments in Canada only further complicate the work.
Understanding the distinctiveness of administrative work in aboriginal governments is important for both
aboriginal and non-aboriginal governments and administrators as a new relationship between Canadian and
aboriginal governments is forged.
This study explores the work of aboriginal administrators working in aboriginal governments. It considers
the administrative environment of aboriginal government, particularly the complexities of accountability and
the interrelatedness of culture, politics and administration. It suggests that aboriginal governments are
expressions of the cultures, politics, spirituality, economics, values and emotions of aboriginal peoples. These
governments are social movements as well as ruling bureaucracies. Government in this context is a complex
and holistic notion as it does not necessarily separate church from state, politics from bureaucracy, or the
personal from the professional.
Within this context, the study examines the actual work of particular administrators and thereby develops a
distinct picture of administration as it is practiced in aboriginal governments. While such administrative
practice is found to be more holistic in this context, the study further suggests that the construction of the
actual work is influenced by key factors of accountability demands, cultural relevance and integrity, and the
need for education of all people engaged with issues of governance. Given the dilemmas found in each of
these factors, aboriginal administrators face the unique challenge of integrating the discordant demands of
their communities, organizations and professions.
Brown, Malcolm B. (1996) ""Is it not our land?": An ethnohistory of the Susquehanna-Ohio Indian alliance, 1701-54."
Ph.D. Dissertation, Oklahoma State University. 368 pp.
This dissertation describes and analyzes the development, consolidation, and decline of the Susquehanna-
Ohio Indian alliance, an intercultural alliance among the Eastern Woodland Indians of the Susquehanna and
upper Ohio Valleys during the first half of the 18th century. This includes the peoples of the Iroquois
Confederacy, the Lenapes (Delawares), Shawnees, Wyandots, Miamis, Susquehannocks, and other groups.
The standard colonial primary sources for this era were used, including sources recently uncovered by
modern researchers in the field. The study also utilized ethnohistorical sources and tapped disciplines such
as archaeology, ethnography, cultural anthropology, weapons history, and material culture studies to further
illuminate the history of these native peoples. Under the direction of its greatest sachems during its first three
decades, the Susquehanna-Ohio Indian alliance was an elastic and durable structure that easily met the
needs of its members for peaceful intercourse and the resolution of problems among themselves and with
Euro-Americans. The alliance survived during the 1740s and early 1750s despite increasing factionalization
and polarization among its peoples and the meddling of French and British colonials. The alliance's downfall
in 1754 was due primarily to the invasion of the Ohio Valley by the French and British militaries and
secondarily to the inability of its leaders to modify their thinking to effectively resist such aggression.
Brown, Stephen G. (1997) "Teaching to hybridity: Beyond a pedagogy of the oppressed." Ph.D. Dissertation,
University of South Florida. 410 pp.
The aim of this dissertation is not merely to describe the diverse factors problematizing writing instruction on
and Athabascan Indian Reservation, nor merely to proffer a series of critiques: of the aims, assumptions, and
activities of Basic Writing pedagogy; of the limitations of Mary Louise Pratt's 'contact zone' and of Gerald
Graff's model for conflict pedagogy. The primary purpose of this dissertation is to posit a strong theoretical
and practical rationale for a radical pedagogy foregrounding the lived realities of borderland learners.
This inquiry into borderland pedagogy is driven by a number of questions: are the aims, assumptions, and
activities of Basic Writing pedagogy practicable in such a setting? What might be the pedagogical
alternatives to basic writing praxis in such a milieu? Is the acquisition of academic or critical literacy of any
practical or ethical value to such students? To what extent are the bush teacher and the reservation school
complicit in the process of cultural genocide? And finally, is there some pedagogical means of bridging the
gap between knowledge and morality? Is there some means of representing the Other that does not reinscribe
colonizing gestures of domination, that enables the Other to remain as such?
Throughout this dissertation I draw on the diverse discourses of postcolonialism, resistance pedagogy, and
Native American resistance struggle in an effort to discover connections between them and to enunciate an
emancipatory borderland pedagogy. I necessarily engage in issues currently being contested in this
interdisciplinary arena: canonicity, representation, marginalization, identity, agency, and authenticity. If the
first half of this work emphasizes the theoretical over the pedagogical, the second half inverts this
relationship.
Finally, this dissertation attempts to articulate a pedagogy that is an eclectic fusion of autobiography, critical
ethnography and case study, of canonical and non-canonical texts, of the Foxfire Program and conflict-
oriented pedagogy: a pedagogy which was as much a hybrid as the subaltern students it sought to engage -- a
praxis which, in the last analysis, argues the efficacy of teaching to hybridity.
Browne, Annette J. (2003 ) "First Nations women and health care services: The sociopolitical context of encounters
with nurses." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of British Columbia (The). 285 pp.
Health care provided to Canadian aboriginal peoples continues to unfold against a backdrop of colonial
relations. This study explored the sociopolitical and historical context of encounters between nurses and First
Nations women. Using an ethnographic design and Dorothy Smith's standpoint perspective as the method of
inquiry, interactions between nurses and First Nations women were observed in a northern hospital setting.
Subsequently, in-depth interviews were conducted with First Nations women, nurses, and three other health
professionals (n = 35).
Incorporating aspects of postcolonial and feminist theories, this study illustrates how dominant ideologies
and professional discourses intersect to organize the knowledge and attitudes that nurses bring to their
practice. Three related frames of reference were examined: (a) theories of culture, (b) liberal notions of
egalitarianism, and (c) popularized images and discourses of aboriginality. In the absence of competing
frames of reference, embedded assumptions about aboriginal peoples, culture and 'difference' influence the
relational aspects of nurses' work with First Nations women.
Using vignettes from the data, I explain how women's social positioning, material circumstances, past
experiences and pragmatism shape their patterns of relating with nurses, their efforts to 'get along with all
the nurses,' and their perceptions of nurses as 'all good.' Turning their analytical gaze inward, women
focused on how they were perceived by health professionals, and how they could best position themselves. To
unpack the layers of subtext embedded in women's accounts, critical consideration is given to mediating life
circumstances and to particular methodological issues.
The study concludes by analyzing strategies for challenging taken-for-granted assumptions and discourses
that inadvertently perpetuate colonial relations in health care. The concept of cultural safety, positioned
within postcolonial perspectives, is discussed as a means of fostering critical consciousness. By directing
nurses to examine historically mediated relations of power, long-standing patterns of
paternalism/maternalism, and assumptions about 'race', culture and class relations, cultural safety has the
potential to shift nurses' knowledge and attitudes. Locating heath care interactions within these wider
historical and sociopolitical contexts can help nurses to more fully contribute to social justice in the realm of
aboriginal health.
Bruyneel, Kevin M. (2001 ) "Politics on the boundaries: Indigenous people's politics in the United States." Ph.D.
Dissertation, New School for Social Research. 425 pp.
The politics of indigenous people is one of the least understood components of American political life, and is
rarely addressed in the field of political science. My dissertation defines and illustrates a logic of indigenous
political practice and purpose, which I call 'politics on the boundaries.' Politics on the boundaries refers first
to the practice of indigenous politicians seeking to secure rights and resources within the American political
system while, at the same time, arguing for greater self-government outside that same system. The purpose
here is to secure a level of sovereignty that is neither complete secession from nor complete assimilation
within the American polity. This form of sovereignty sits between the internal pole of assimilation (first
space) and the external pole of secession (second space) in what I call a post-colonial third space. The
dissertation starts by theoretically exploring the relationship between sovereignty, identity and boundaries in
indigenous political life. The historical narrative begins with the US Civil War, a critical period not only for
America but also for indigenous people. The shift in indigenous-American political relations that occurs at
this time does not significantly alter until the 1960s, where my dissertation assesses the changing terms of
indigenous sovereignty and political identity. Presently, questions about tribal sovereignty and indigenous
identity are most notable with regard to casino gaming. Thus, I look to the politics of tribal casinos in
California as a vibrant example of politics on the boundaries in the contemporary era. To shed comparative
light on indigenous politics in the US, I also examine the politics of indigenous people in Canada during both
that nation's founding period (just after the US Civil War) and the present era.
Bryant, Michael J. (1989 ) "Canada and U.S. public policy on aboriginal land claims, 1960-88: Alaska and British
Columbia compared." M.A. Thesis, University of British Columbia (The).
Buck, Constance M. A. (2001) "Killing beauty in North America." Ph.D. Dissertation, Pacifica Graduate Institute. 269
pp.
The first recorded battle after the Battle of the Little Big Horn between Plains Indians and the United States
Army occurred in September of 1876. My great grandfather led an assault against the Plains Indians and
acquired war trophies from the Northern Cheyenne Indians. These objects, held by my family for 122 years,
were returned to traditional society members in the summer of 1998.
This paper is a heuristic and hermeneutic interpretation, amplification and reflection of the consequences of
500 years of denied genocide, a depth psychological analysis of cultural trauma, primitive mental states,
Coyote the Trickster, and group functioning.
Our historical shadow includes our participation in the attempted genocide of Native Americans. Revisionism
-- the cunning assertion that memory is a deliberate lie -- is hatred's ultimate obscenity (Bertman, 2000, p.
62). Our schools have traditionally taught both Indian and Euro-American children a revisionist view of our
heroic conquest of the American West that denies that the Holocaust ever happened. Past and current local
and international political policies support this delusion. Eigen (1993) writes that the intensity of belief
attached to delusions indicates that the individual is trying to hold fast to a terrifyingly important dimension
of his own story (p. 10). Our nation's tendency to idealize itself is a perversion resulting in unrealistic and
unattainable attitudes that are related to our society's affinity for killing beauty. Collectively we continue to
both idealize and denigrate Native Americans, perpetrating the same perversion on ourselves.
The destructiveness of idealization is expressed through primitive mental states that no one fully outgrows.
Primitive intrapsychic affect is linked to primitive expressions in the larger collective. Our lack of collective
awareness of history and our ongoing attempts at cultural genocide are affecting us through a process of
denial that splits us off from the violence of our past that is being expressed by our youth. Individual or
collective perversion results in losses of human vitality and creativity that insult the nature of soul.
Buck, Elizabeth B. (1986 ) "The politics of culture: A history of the social and cultural transformation of Hawai'i."
Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Hawai'i. 271 pp.
This study offers an alternative interpretation of Hawai'ian history. Marxist and neo-Marxist theories in the
fields of political, anthropological and literary studies have been drawn on and critiqued for their
applicability to the historical experience of Hawai'i. Marxist conceptualizations of social structures, their
ideological and material reproduction, and their historical transformation are used to trace and analyze
changes in Hawai'i's structural formations at historical conjunctures of competing modes of production,
particularly the radical social restructuration that occurred with the intrusion of capitalism into the islands
during the 19th and 20th centuries. This neo-Marxist interpretation is supplemented by post-structuralist
notions of the power that resides in language and discourse. Hawai'i's move from an oral to a literate culture
in the historical context of Western imperialism, and the subsequent shift from Hawai'ian to English as the
dominant language of discourse, have had far-reaching implications for the structures of power in Hawai'i.
A major focus of the study is the relationship between the changing material conditions of the islands, and
forms of social representation, most particularly chant, hula and contemporary Hawai'ian music. Hawai'ian
music is presented as a site of struggle between Hawai'i and the West, that music used, over time, as part of
contending myths of Hawai'i. From the 19th century to the present, Hawai'ian music has been a site of
struggle between Hawai'ian and western conceptualizations of reality and human relationships, between
indigenous and western forms and practices of musical production, and between the different ideologies that
constrain and inform such practices and that are reproduced by them.
Since contact, Hawai'ian music has been constituted and reconstituted into different objects and practices by
different discourses: into the exotic ritual of the Other by early Western observers; into heathenistic ritual by
the 19th century American missionaries; into cultural commodities by the tourist and recording industries;
and into symbols of cultural identity and nationalism by Hawai'ians. The dialectic between indigenous forms
and Western forms of music that began in the early 19th century continues to the present. The currently
dominant myth is that Hawai'i is an exotic paradise where a multi-ethnic population shares in the social
benefits of progress. This myth has appropriated Hawai'ian music to entice and entertain tourists. The
alternative myth, that of politically and/or culturally active Hawai'ians, is that Hawai'i was a socially
harmonious society in touch with nature. This counter myth has reappropriated Hawai'ian music as a route
to recovering Hawai'ian history and identity.
Bull, Catherin J. (1990) "Sustainable tourism in remote Australia: Strategies for physical planning and infrastructure."
Ph.D. Dissertation, Harvard University. 385 pp.
Using theoretical and case studies, this dissertation explores how remoteness, tourism and sustainability
relate to the planning of infrastructure for National Parks in remote Australia.
Remote Australia is attractive to tourist activity because of its qualities of difference, uniqueness,
naturalness, vastness, emptiness, ancient culture and "reality". Irregular and extreme natural disturbances,
lack of formal knowledge, a sparse and often unstable population, however, combine with a reliance on
distant markets to constrain how any enterprise proceeds here, including tourism. The characteristics of
remoteness influence the type of planning required to ensure that tourist activity conserves environments as it
interprets them, and suggest that modes of travel based on the experiences of discovery, exploration and
education are the most appropriate.
This thesis presents an evaluative model for sustainable tourist activity. This model links the major criteria
constituting (1) care of the natural and cultural environment, and (2) use for environmental experience, with
(3) the processes controlling them, especially physical planning and infrastructure provision. It is used to
evaluate three cases -- Bedarra Island, Lizard Island and Uluru/Yulara -- over the period of their use and
development.
In terms of care, the major measures are control of mechanical and systemic disturbance in the form of
species invasions, erosion, and aural and visual impacts. Though many techniques were developed to control
disturbance, they were used inconsistently across cases and only where environmental experts were involved.
Staff environments, service areas and networks were consistently underplanned and have become significant
sources of negative impact.
The measure of use is the provision of a rich palette of experiences promoting environmental appreciation.
Lack of interpretation, possibilities for exploration or reflection, and a restricted choice of on-site
experiences were the major weaknesses identified from the cases. Accommodation isolated from major
attractions exacerbated these problems.
These issues, combined with an evolving knowledge base and the administrative division between care and
use, indicate the need for a significant investment in the processes of resource assessment, coordinated
management planning and the clarification of experiential goals, along with a more consistent application of
those strategies which successfully contributed towards sustainability on the case sites.
Burke, Pamela L. (1999) "The globalization of contentious politics: The Amazonian indigenous rights movement."
Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Maryland College Park. 248 pp.
In this project, I argue that Amazonian indigenous peoples organized via transnational networks due to the
domestic blockages presented to them in their respective countries. Due to these blockages and the growing
number of transnational political opportunity structures, such as national and international nongovernmental
organizations, inter-governmental organizations, multi-lateral development banks, and multinational
corporations, indigenous peoples mobilized through transnational advocacy networks and eventually formed
transnational social movement organizations. Through a comparative-historical analysis of five Ecuadorian
Amazonian indigenous organizations and two transnational Amazonian social movement organizations, I
illustrate the processes of transnational collective action and its outcomes. This empirical evidence in this
study is based upon two years of fieldwork in Ecuador and archival research.
While many studies of globalization and transnational collective action claim that a global civil society is
forming, the evidence presented in this study also demonstrates a decline in national social movement
organization as transnational collective action increases. This is due to the competition among regional and
local social movement organizations for funding and program development. Thus, while transnational
collective action may increase policy outcomes on local, regional, or transnational levels, it may also
diminish the sustenance of coherent national social movements.
Byers, Lisa G. (2005) "Depression, discrimination, trauma, and American Indian ethnic identity." Ph.D. Dissertation,
Washington University. 134 pp.
Major depression is one of the most debilitating conditions experienced worldwide. The available research
indicates that American Indians experience depressive disorders at higher rates than those reported by the
general American population. Despite this disparity, the research on depression in tribal populations is
severely inadequate. This dissertation utilizes multiple regression to perform a secondary analysis of data
from a recently completed American Indian mental health study. The dissertation represents the first
application of an integrative theory to the study of discrimination, ethnic identity, historical trauma, and
individual trauma in relation to depression vulnerability. Multiple regression results indicate that traumatic
distress, marginalized identity were significant predictors of current depressive symptom distress. Male
respondents reported significantly more depressive symptom distress. The findings have implications for
social work intervention and prevention programs to decrease the burden of depressive disorders for
American Indians.
Byington, Michelle L. (2001) "Bicultural involvement, psychological differentiation, and time perspective as
mediators for depression and anxiety in Native Americans living on and off-reservation." Ph.D. Dissertation,
Columbia University. 136 pp.
The effects of bicultural involvement, psychological differentiation, and time perspective on depression and
anxiety in 100 Native Americans (n = 100) living on- and off-reservation are measured by: the Bicultural
Involvement Questionnaire (BIQ); Group Embedded Figures Test (GEFT); Beck Depression Inventory
(BDI); centre for Epidemiological Studies-Depression (CES-D); Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Revised
(WAIS-R) Vocabulary; Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI) Anxiety-Related Disorders (ARD); and Time
Estimate.
Degree of Indian Blood is neither associated with nor predictive of any bicultural measures except "wish" for
more involvement in native culture. As predicted: individuals with high involvement in both native and Anglo
cultures are less depressed than those with low involvement particularly off-reservation; high Total Anglo
involvement, independent of Total Native scores, predicts less depression on both CES-D and BDI, in total
sample, while predicting less BDI depression in off-reservation. Level of bicultural involvement is predictive
of obsessions and traumatic stress. Off-reservation residents show clinical levels of depression, while
reservation dwellers do not. Balanced cultural involvement groups show the least anxiety-related disorders.
However, on reservation residents who are highly involved in both cultures show much less anxiety than
those who reject their native culture while passively aspiring to Anglo values and practices.
As predicted, psychological differentiation discriminates the most accurate Time Estimators who are more
field independent than those less differentiated who show the most time errors. Additionally, groups showing
more anxiety, as well as those with higher levels of involvement in native culture, have the most inaccurate
Time Estimates.
Finally, biculturalism differentially mediates depression in off-reservation residents and anxiety in on-
reservation natives. Furthermore, psychological differentiation predicts anxiety in off-reservation groups
such that the most anxiety is evidenced in the least differentiated groups. Finally, implications among
biculturalism, psychological differentiation, and time estimate in relation to psychological distress and
resilience in on and off-reservation Native Americans are discussed.
Caldbick, Mary L. (1997) "Locke's doctrine of property and the dispossession of the Passamaquoddy." M.A. Thesis,
University of New Brunswick (The). 141 pp.
This work examines John Locke's doctrine of property, as developed in his Second treatise of government, in
the context of colonial expansion in North America. Specifically, the thesis analyzes the role that the Lockean
view of property acquisition through labour played in rationalizing the dispossession of the Passamaquoddy
people of the Maine-Maritime region. Locke's view that humans could come to have ownership rights in
lands upon which they expended labour was used as a justification for displacing aboriginal groups like the
Passamaquoddy. Native peoples in North America possessed a radically different view of the relationship
between humans and Nature. They saw themselves as intimately connected to their surroundings, as part of a
continuum between humans and the earth. Europeans were able to undermine the legitimacy of this
relationship and vindicate the dispossession of the Passamaquoddy by characterizing Passamaquoddy land
use as wasteful.
Callahan, Ann B. (2002) "On our way to healing: Stories from the oldest living generation of the File Hills Indian
Residential school." M.A. Thesis, University of Manitoba (The). 147 pp.
The story of Indian residential schools is a sad one in Canada. The government's policy of assimilating the
aboriginal people into mainstream society began in the early years of the 19th century in western Canada.
One of the strategies the government employed was through the founding of the Indian residential school.
The churches were the 'hand maidens' in bringing about this movement. There were many effects experienced
by the residents of these establishments. For the most part, the survivors proclaim that this experience was a
negative one while few say that the experience was a positive one. This thesis will examine the various
approaches taken by these survivors to become centred in oneself once again as an aboriginal person, which
is to know one's own identity as a First Nations person. In addition, this paper will specifically examine the
perspectives of the oldest generation of those survivors of the File Hills Indian Residential School (FHIRS),
Balcarres, Saskatchewan of this experience and if returning to or renewing of aboriginal spirituality was a
means of healing from the residential school trauma.
Callahan, Manuel. (2003) "Mexican border troubles: Social war, settler colonialism and the production of frontier
discourses, 1848-80." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Texas at Austin (The). 399 pp.
This study analyzes the social war of the US-Mexico borderlands during the second half of the 19th century.
The more prominent conflicts, or 'brushfire wars' -- the Merchants War, Cortina War, Las Cuevas War, and
the San Elizario Salt War -- are fully elaborated to show a more complex resistance by the Mexican
community. Mexicanos' short-lived and often narrow victories in opposition to Anglo processes of domination
not only reveal the ambiguity of settler colonialism but the ambivalences of ethnic Mexicans and indigenous
peoples who played an integral part in frontier expansion and defence. The research allows for a thick
description of the large-scale violence as well as the 'everyday forms' of conflict, combined with social and
structural violence, which constitute the ongoing social war of the greater borderlands. Data derived from
state-sponsored investigations, military records, testimonies from a variety legal processes, and the urgent
pleas for government protection documents the social war as constituting and constituted by violent episodes
that were as much discursive events as irregular warfare. The study challenges manichean constructions of
domination and resistance by complicating the rigid boundaries that have been constructed as a 'three
cornered conflict' between Anglos, Indigenous peoples and Mexicanos. Frontier defence as a discourse
formation, revealing both the symbolic and material operations of violence, not only erased the contributions
of Mexicanos and indigenous peoples to frontier settlement but also invites a reinterpretation of capitalist
transformation and state formation as ongoing processes linked to the enduring consequences of violence.
The dissertation concludes that the social war in the US-Mexico borderlands unfolded not only as a struggle
between alienation and accommodation to market, state and cultural forces, but also as a complex and
shifting struggle for dignity.
Calverley, David. (1999) "Who controls the hunt? Ontario's Game Act, the Canadian government and the Ojibwa,
1800-1940." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Ottawa. 460 pp.
In 1892 the Ontario government passed the Ontario Game and Fisheries Act. This legislation, designed to
conserve wildlife throughout the province, was applied to Native peoples residing in Ontario. This led to
conflict between the Ontario government, through its Game Commission, the Dominion government, via
Indian Affairs, and Aboriginal peoples throughout the province. Natives, in this thesis the Ojibwa of the
Robinson Treaties, were and are a federal responsibility under the constitution. Ontario, however, was acting
within its constitutional jurisdiction by regulating a natural resource within its provincial boundaries. The
conflict arose over whether provincial legislation can be applied to an area of federal concern, and contrary
to promises contained within the Robinson Treaties that the Ojibwa could continue to hunt trap and fish as
they had “heretofore been in the habit of doing.” Beyond this constitutional and jurisdictional level, political
concerns also played a part. Indian Affairs' bureaucrats were not completely adverse to regulating Ojibwa
hunting as a means of hastening its own policy of acculturation, and they were unwilling to openly challenge
the Ontario government over Native rights. The Ontario Game Commission, and its later incarnation was
unwilling to compromise its control over wildlife which during the 20th century became an increasingly
important resource. The Ojibwa, politically powerless, lost control of the one resource which they were
guaranteed access to by the Crown during treaty negotiations in 1850: wildlife. Ojibwa arguments for
continued access were founded almost exclusively on the Robinson Treaties, but these were agreements
which neither the Dominion nor the Ontario government were interested in.
Campbell, Dean E. (2000) "A search for justice in First Nations communities: The role of the RCMP and community
policing." M.A. Thesis, Carleton University. 162 pp.
In this thesis, I examine the role that the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) has played and is playing
in the lives of Native peoples in Canada; furthermore, I argue that there is the need to refocus policing
efforts. From its beginnings in 1873, the RCMP has slowly evolved as one of the most important institutions
in the imposition of political destructive processes upon Native peoples. As the RCMP carried out its role, the
wounds it inflicted upon Native peoples ran deep. Today, Native peoples have focused themselves upon self-
determination as the key to revitalizing their communities. In effect, there has been a call for policing in First
Nations communities to respond more to the needs and aspirations of Native peoples. Within this context, I
argue that the RCMP can best accommodate these efforts by becoming a valued partner through community
policing initiatives.
Campbell, Janis E. (1997 ) "The social and demographic effects of Creek removal, 1832-60." Ph.D. Dissertation,
University of Oklahoma (The). 260 pp.
This analysis will show the social and political aftermath of Creek Indian removal in the early 19th century.
To accomplish this, this study explains specific demographic characteristics both before and after removal.
This analysis examines one specific area of Creek social organization -- names -- both before and after
removal. Additionally, this analysis indicates that there was a decrease in Creek population. However,
among the Upper Creeks, there was a less severe decrease and a significant increase in household size,
suggesting increased fertility, from 1832 to 1857/58. Likewise, there was a larger increase in household size
among Upper Creeks and Muskogee Creeks. This analysis uses Creek personal names to show social
changes during this period. Initially, in both pre- and post-removal periods, Upper Creeks were the most
Muskogean, at least using the criteria in this study. In this analysis Muskogean means a group had a higher
percentage of Muskogee clan, town, or title names. Upper Creeks also had more English names. Not
unexpectedly, Muskogee towns had a higher proportion of Muskogean personal names. Furthermore, both
Upper and Lower Creeks increase in Muskogean names; by 1858/59 Muskogean names were more common
than in 1832. Likewise, there was less variety in 1858/59 than in 1832. There was a significant increase in
the percentage of English names between 1832 and 1858/59. All of this suggests that some Creeks adjusted to
removal better and faster than others. This data suggests two strategies for adaptation to Creek resettlement.
The first strategy was a return to and intensification of Muskogean social patterns as shown by an increase in
Muskogean names, particularly political and social titles. The second strategy was to increase relations with
Americans. Both strategies existed before removal, but after resettlement the patterns intensified. In short,
both conservatism and, possibly, innovation, became more important. The latter route to adaptation among
the Creek is well known, but the former has not been discussed in previous works.
Campbell, Karen A. (1999 ) "Community life and governance: Early experiences of Mnjikaning First Nation with
Casino Rama." M.S.W. Thesis, University of Manitoba (The). 92 pp.
Casino gambling offers large profits to support self-government and economic self-sufficiency for First
Nations communities. Casinos also increase the number of problem gamblers, redistribute money from
families with low and moderate incomes, and exacerbate community divisions and cultural conflicts.
This qualitative study explores the experiences of Mnjikaning (Rama) First Nation, approximately one year
after it opened the largest Native casino in Canada. Primary data are from fifty-three formal interviews,
conducted from July to October 1997, and informal discussions between June 1994 and September 1998. The
report focuses on how the casino affected community life and governance.
Casino development gave Rama increased employment, new buildings and more social and administrative
services. It has also been extremely disruptive, with increased traffic, many more strangers in the community,
and a greater incidence of gambling problems among community members. The casino's considerable
influence over community decisions and priorities has serious implications for future self-government
processes.
There are many lessons to be learned from Rama's experience for other First Nations communities that are
considering casino development. Most important is to make explicit the negative impacts associated with
casino development, and to ensure the community is able to retain a measure of control over the project.
Campbell, Tracy A. (1996 ) "Aboriginal co-management of non-renewable resources on treaty or traditional territory."
M.A. Thesis, University of Calgary. 172 pp.
Co-management has been loosely defined as a transfer of decision-making authority to non-traditional actors
in the process of natural resource management. Most co-management agreements have been developed in the
context of land claim agreements in the territories. Co-management has not been utilized to any great extent
in the provinces. This can be traced to a lack of clarification of rights held by First Nations to land and
resources off-reserve. Nevertheless, co-management terminology and theory are increasingly being cited
outside of land claims, within a provincial resource management context. Co-management is not possible
under present circumstances within the provinces. Without a drastic change in the relationship between First
Nations and the provincial and federal governments, co-management is simply an empty promise. In the
absence of equal rights of participation gained through rights to land off-reserve, co-management cannot be
realized.
Candler, Craig T. (1999) "Healing and cultural formation in a Bush Cree community." M.A. Thesis, University of
Alberta. 146 pp.
This thesis is based on fieldwork conducted with the Cree and Métis community of Wabasca-Desmarais,
Alberta in 1996 and 1997. By comparing three case studies involving Cree traditionalism, northern industry,
and Pentecostalism, traditional knowledge is explored as a critical resource for the formation of healthy and
effective worldviews within rapidly changing circumstances. This process of cultural formation involves
developing models of the world that are both aesthetically meaningful and pragmatically rewarding within
individual lived contexts. If northern development is to be truly sustainable, we must recognize that industrial
activities have an impact not only upon material resources critical to traditional health and healing (e.g.
plants and animals), but also upon the institutions in which traditional knowledge is encoded and
transmitted. The thesis concludes with a set of recommendations as to how such impacts might be recognized,
reduced, or mitigated in the future.
Caouette, Julie. (2004) ""Don't blame me for what my ancestors did!": Factors associated with the experience of
collective guilt regarding Aboriginal people." M.A. Thesis, McGill University. 133 pp.
Egalitarianism is highly valued in Canada and yet some groups are profoundly disadvantaged. This can be
explained by sociological and psychological theorizing that claims advantaged group members are motivated
to maintain a system of inequality from which they benefit. The challenge is to explain the few advantaged
group members who defy self-interest and support disadvantaged groups. My research objectives were to
understand what motivates selected advantaged group members to support disadvantaged groups, and to
understand how the majority of advantaged group members maintain their belief in egalitarianism in the face
of clear social inequality. Results revealed that most advantaged group members value egalitarianism highly,
but only those who define egalitarianism in terms of social responsibility unequivocally support the interests
of disadvantaged groups. Most advantaged group members conceive egalitarianism in terms of equality of
opportunity, rights or treatment, allowing them to legitimize inequality; consequently, they are less willing to
sympathize with the demands for fair treatment by disadvantaged group.
Caplan, Karen D. (2001) "Local liberalisms: Mexico's indigenous villagers and the state, 1812-57." Ph.D. Dissertation,
Princeton University. 462 pp.
After the collapse of the Spanish Empire, Mexico's indigenous citizens and government representatives were
forced to rethink their relationship and rebuild the bases for state legitimacy. When Spain and then Mexico
adopted liberalism as a guide for establishing new governments, colonial ethnic distinctions were formally
abolished. Nonetheless, governments and indigenous people continued to recognize ethnic distinctions in
both institutions and informal agreements about the legitimacy of government. This study argues that these
arrangements were not simply colonial holdovers but rather unique forms of liberalism, constructed around
both colonial and liberal ideals and institutions.
The dissertation examines local politics in two states with large indigenous majorities -- Oaxaca and
Yucatán. It shows how local institutions of government that took shape between 1812 and 1857 were products
of negotiation between indigenous villagers and state agents. In negotiations over land use, taxation, and the
draft, these parties refashioned colonial assumptions about reciprocity in light of liberal ideas and
institutions. Oaxacans and Yucatecans created very different systems, reflecting economic conditions in each
state. Oaxacans used liberal institutions to reinforce a relationship in which non-indígenas indirectly
exploited indigenous goods and labour in tacit exchange for government protection and advocacy. In
Yucatán, by contrast, non-indígenas increasingly used liberal ideas to justify intrusions on traditional
indigenous prerogatives and to tie indigenous labourers to the production of new commodities, leading to
indigenous insurrection by 1847. After that year, both state governments attempted to transform earlier
political compromises. Oaxaca's government couched its reforms in terms of indigenous integration into a
liberal polity, while Yucatán's sanctioned the explicit subjugation of indìgenas, in part in the service of
liberal economic goals.
Historians have often characterized liberalism as having a predictable and largely destructive impact on
indigenous Mexicans -- or as having little impact at all. This dissertation argues instead that liberal
institutions were subject to local interpretations, whereby the ideas and practices of colonialism and
liberalism combined to produce multiple systems with divergent consequences for indigenous people.
Mexican liberalism was not a monolithic set of institutions with predictable outcomes but rather a collection
of local responses to a common ideological and institutional challenge.
Caragliano, Maureen O. (1997) "Beyond princess and squaw: Wilma Mankiller and the Cherokee gynocentric
system." M.A. Thesis, San Jose State University. 102 pp.
This thesis takes the reader beyond the historically accepted descriptors of princess and squaw for Native
American women. In popular and scholarly literature, Native American women have been overlooked as
leaders in their own communities and as political activists.
Using the Cherokees as an example, my research shows that before colonization Cherokee women held
positions of power and authority. They had political, social, and economic status in their society. After
colonization, Cherokee women ceased to have a voice in government. The patriarchal nuclear family
replaced the matrilineal clan system, and the home, not the field, became the domain of women.
The election of Wilma Mankiller as the first female principal chief of the Cherokees restored women to their
rightful place in Cherokee society. Her political campaign strategy and her successful leadership of the
second largest Native American tribe in the United States serve as a model for all women.
Carey, Janet M. (2001) "Continuing cultural viability via cultural tourism as an economic survival project for Pueblo
Indian people." Ph.D. Dissertation, Northern Arizona University. 408 pp.
This study increases the knowledge of indigenous peoples' quest to utilize their unique life ways for cultural
survival through cultural tourism in the 21st century. Tourism is the fastest growing international economic
endeavour and this study examines the Pueblo Indian tribes within the tourism industry both domestic and
international.
The political culture within the United State southwestern region where the Pueblo have lived since time
immemorial, became dominated by the Western Europeans beginning 450 years ago with exploration and
colonization by the Spanish in 1540, continuing on through the present time with the introduction of
American territorial government in 1848. In relationship to the Pueblo people the political culture of the
states of Arizona and New Mexico in the year 2001 still reflects political characteristics of those original
Spanish and American governmental agents.
The Pueblo tribes, because of their non-nomadic way of life, have been hosts to guests since their cultural
beginnings. Modern tourism came to Pueblo Indian County with the coming of the railroads in 1880. The
Pueblo were a great attraction for tourists from all over the United States and the world. Tourist operators
brought the tourists "out to the pueblos to see the Indians." The tourists still come to the Pueblo villages, both
ancient and modern, to visit and enjoy Pueblo culture. Today, the Pueblo are entering the tourism industry
for themselves, rather than being the in situ destination provided by others in the tourism industry. The
Pueblo strive for their own successful cultural tourism enterprises for their cultural survival.
The outcome of this study provides prescription for successful Pueblo tourism negotiation and enterprise for
their survival in the 21st century. This study also provides information for reciprocal tourism -- agent and
operator participation -- regarding the survival of the Pueblo culture which could insure a sustainable
Pueblo culture in the American Southwest.
Carisse, Karl. (2000) "Becoming Canadian. Federal-provincial Indian policy and the integration of natives, 1945-69:
The case of Ontario." M.A. Thesis, University of Ottawa. 140 pp.
Since Confederation, the federal government has pursued a policy of assimilation toward Canada's First
Nations. Measures such as the Indian Act, the creation of reserves, and numerous treaties were implemented
to “civilize” natives, dispose of aboriginal land rights, and ultimately integrate natives within Canadian
society. However, by World War II, most federal authorities realized that the government's policy had failed.
Thus, other means were adopted to achieve the goal of assimilation. The new method, first elaborated in the
late 1940s, proposed that the federal government devolve its jurisdiction over First Nations to the provincial
governments so that natives could receive provincial services on the same basis as non-natives and thus be
considered “normal” citizens. Consequently, federal Indian administration, the Indian Act, and the special
status of natives could be abolished since they had received full citizenship with all its benefits and
responsibilities. Throughout the 1950s and 1960s, the federal and provincial governments signed agreements
to arrive at this end with Ontario leading the way. However, in 1969, this method of integration met the same
forsaken fate as its predecessors. This thesis will examine the federal government's integration policy from
1945 to 1969 by focusing, but not limiting itself, to the agreements that were signed between Ontario and
Ottawa regarding the delivery of social services. The study will also look at the native reaction toward this
policy and the rise of opposition which led to its demise.
Carlson, Keith T. (2003) "The power of place, the problem of time: A study of history and aboriginal collective
identity." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of British Columbia (The). 406 pp.
This dissertation historicizes and explains the tensions that arose between localized and regionally dispersed
expressions of group affiliation and political authority among the indigenous people of the Lower Fraser
River watershed after European contact. It accomplishes this by directly engaging indigenous historiography
and epistemology. The period examined covers the late 18th century, just prior to the first smallpox epidemic,
through to 1906 when a delegation of Salish men met with King Edward in London on behalf of all the native
people of British Columbia. I argue that aboriginal collective identity and political authority are and were
situationally constructed products of complicated negotiations among indigenous people and between natives
and newcomers. Multiple options were always available and the various expressions that shared identity
assumed never were the only ones possible. Consequently, among the local indigenous population, history
has always been regarded as an important arbitrator of identity and disagreements over competing historical
interpretations highly contentious.
To a greater extent than has been appreciated, changes in the way native collective affiliations have been
constituted have been informed by reference to ancient sacred stories and an ongoing process of interpreting
past precedence. They are also intimately linked to migrations. Over time and across geography, different
indigenous people have used these stories to different ends. Gendered and class-based distinctions in the way
these narratives have been applied to either the creation of innovative collective identities or to the defence of
older expressions reveal the tensions within aboriginal society and between natives and newcomers that
arose as indigenous people struggled to make sense of a rapidly changing colonial world. The uncertainty
following pivotal historical events allowed these submerged tensions to assume more public forms. Examined
here are the important identity shaping historical events and migrations that indigenous historiography has
emphasized: Creation, the Great Flood, the 1780 smallpox epidemic, the establishment of local Hudson's Bay
trading posts in 1827 and 1846, the 1858 goldrush, the imposition of colonial reserves, the banning of the
potlatch, the 1884 hostile incursions into Canadian native communities of an American lynch mob, and the
government policy to transform Salish fishermen into western-style farmers. Ultimately, Western ideologies,
colonial authority and global economic forces are considered as forces acting within indigenous society, and
not merely as exogenous powers acting upon it.
Carlstroem, Catherine M. (2001) "Homicidal economics in Mark Twain: Legacies of American theft." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of California, Santa Cruz. 358 pp.
'Homicidal economics in Mark Twain: Legacies of American theft' examines the roles and representations of
money -- economic valuations, definitions, and transactions -- within the context of two critical economic
events in 19th century America: the culmination and virtual completion of Native Americans' dispossession,
and the existence and abolition of race-slavery. I focus on four of Mark Twain's major works: Roughing it,
The adventures of Tom Sawyer, Life on the Mississippi and Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. My thesis,
greatly simplified, is that Twain's work is profoundly informed by particularly disturbing aspects of the
national economy, the homicidal-economy. His vision of economics is fundamentally, irrevocably altered by
the twin realities of American economics, particularly pointed for a Southerner from Missouri: stolen land
and stolen labour. It thereby encompasses a range of interpenetrating issues: the Civil War, murder,
violence, racial prejudice, theories of racial difference -- the civilized and savage -- supporting economic
exploitation, the authority of law, property rights, theft, and the influence of economic valuation on
humanistic values.
My study necessarily generalizes to adapt to these complexly related parts, using a broad definition of
economic, including economic models of framing an issue -- profit and loss, risk and investment -- even with
no strictly financial subject. Indeed, Twain employs this language regularly to describe interpersonal,
political, and religious interactions. The word money serves as shorthand for several different but closely
related and frequently conflated things: currency, the different species of money like gold and coins, which
are symbols of exchange value; property and wealth, which currency represents; ownership as a concept,
and its logical compliment -- robbery.
The foundation of my method is close-textual analysis, with attention to the historical/cultural context of the
works, and to a lesser extent, its biographical context. Since bonds between the larger US homicidal economy
and economics in Twain's texts are sometimes submerged or overlaid, visible only with dose inspection, I rely
on the emergence and repetition of patterns, and the intersection of these within and among the texts to
reinforce my argument, so that it has a cumulative power beyond the individual interpretations of specific
sections and subjects.
Carr, Gerald L. (2004) "Northern Tutchone (Athabascan) poetics." Ph.D. Dissertation, State University of New York
at Buffalo. 261 pp.
Storytelling is an art form that has been in rapid decline among Yukon First Nation peoples. However, in the
current political environment, storytelling has been stimulated through language revitalization efforts. In this
context, an ethnopoetic survey was conducted among the Northern Tutchone-speaking people of the Little
Salmon/Carmacks First Nation, located in the central Yukon Territory, Canada. Ethnopoetics entails two
goals: first, the textualization and translation of verbal art and, second, the analysis of its constitution.
Analysis of rhetorical structure here was initiated by defining and demarcating the line. To do this, I have
drawn on conversation analysis, ethnopoetics and other areas of anthropological linguistics that analyze
naturally-occurring language data. In the Northern Tutchone texts, the ends of lines are signalled by a
convergence of features constituted in the fields of morpho-syntax, pragmatics, and prosody. Regarding
levels of organization above the line, it appears unlikely that storytellers follow models or templates
comprised of verses and stanzas, or acts. Instead, building on performance-centred approaches and dialogic
anthropology, I conclude that the deployment of linguistic and social resources by storytellers in the
evocation of structure can be seen as a literary device that creates emergent structures to serve
rhetoric/poetic needs in the moment and context of performance. The use of these resources may or may not
be textualized as higher levels of organization in analysis.
One of the most significant domains of storytelling resources is the evidential system. Defining evidentiality
broadly, as metapragmatic commentary instead of strictly a grammatical feature, can better account for the
assertions storytellers are making about the truthfulness and importance of their stories. When the totality of
evidential reflection is considered, we see a relationship between evidentiality and genre. Since all stories are
'true,' the difference between genres is based on how their truthfulness is established and how confident the
storyteller feels she or he is about relaying the content accurately. Furthermore, this discrimination is not
arbitrary; it patterns along the lines of categories in Dene epistemology.
Carranza-Mena, Douglas G. (2003) "Indigenous communities and the ethnography of governmentality in El

Salvador." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of California, Santa Barbara. 340 pp.
In this dissertation, I develop an ethnography of governmentality that addresses the deployment of politics
and imaginings on the mode of governing of Salvadoran state. I consider the ideas and the influence of the
Enlightenment in pre-independence days. I also examine the effects of pastoral power and policing of the
Indigenous population through measures implemented in the realm of education, statistical administration,
and genocide. Moreover, even though it has been said that civil society and the public sphere (in the
traditional sense) did not emerge in Central America until this century, I show the emergence of a different
kind of public space, the process of its construction and its implications for public life since the 19th century.
In addition, I examine the recycling of colonial and modern European techniques of governing in El Salvador
that led to dictatorships and to a special notion of democracy. In particular, I critically examine the
techniques employed by the newly created Salvadoran state and argue that they are a hybrid of earlier
Spanish Colonial measures and modern European methods to assert domination over the indigenous
population. Furthermore, the continuing unfolding of these techniques and the over-exploitation of the
indigenous communities led to an indigenous insurrection in 1932 that has been misrepresented by the
official discourse of the state and has also been discursively appropriated by the left. Both discourses have
created the invisibility of indigenous people in contemporary times and have provoked a theoretical
reinterpretation of the rural aimed at supporting the modernization of the state and the implementation of
capitalism. Finally, I explore the effects of globalization and sustainable development in civil society through
the deployment of contemporary administrative techniques and financial support. Sustainable development
has come to substitute the developmental theories and policies of the 1960s and 1970s. This replacement goes
hand in hand with capitalism and its influence in determining the spaces of struggle.
Carroll, James T. (1997) "Americanization or indoctrination: Catholic Indian boarding schools, 1874-1926." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of Notre Dame. 319 pp.
This dissertation examines the role of four Catholic Indian boarding schools -- Fort Totten Indian Industrial
School (Devils Lake reservation), Fort Yates Indian Industrial School (Standing Rock reservation), Saint
Francis Mission (Rosebud Reservation), and Holy Rosary Mission (Pine Ridge reservation) -- from the
inauguration of the peace policy (1870) to the start of the Meriam investigation (1926). Particular emphasis
is placed on the unique role that Catholic boarding schools played in the program of Indian assimilation.
Institutionally, Fort Totten and Fort Yates were under the jurisdiction of the Bureau of Indian Affairs and
Saint Francis and Holy Rosary Missions were contract schools under the auspices of the Bureau of Catholic
Indian Missions.
The schools were staffed by religious sisters -- Grey Nuns of Montréal, Benedictine Sisters of Pontifical
Jurisdiction, and the Sisters of Saint Francis -- who were recent immigrants to the United States. This
immigrant background significantly influenced the program of assimilation that was implemented at the four
schools. The sisters struggled to create a cultural 'middle ground' that fulfilled the mandates of the federal
government, but still allowed some integration of Sioux culture. The Indians, for their part, were strong
supporters of these schools and favoured them over other government and Protestant alternatives.
The overall success of these schools was predicated on prudent leadership and a willingness to search for
creative responses to the cultural challenges that emerged during this 50-year period. As a result, both
Indian student and religious sister struggled to create a 'middle ground' between European and Sioux
cultures; these schools were an important part of frontier Catholicism; and through a process of selective
accommodation the students created a bicultural environment that was tacitly acknowledged by the religious
staff.
Cashin, Jeanne. (2000) "Trauma and multigenerational trauma caused by genocide and oppression: A comparison of
western and Native American healing methods." Ph.D. Dissertation, Union Institute (The). 178 pp.
This dissertation examines trauma and multigenerational trauma that is caused by genocide and oppression.
The specific focus is on oppression and genocidal traumatic effects with a comparison of healing methods
from the dominant western culture and Native American culture. The interpretive material helps to define the
literature from western culture on the nature and effect of trauma on people and groups. The literature
reviewed covers the topics of the psychology of trauma and multigenerational trauma, history of trauma
studies, biological origins of traumatic states, neurobiology, emotional responses, trauma transmission,
healing methods, psychotherapy, body-centred therapy, Hakomi, and EMDR. The comparison information
with Native American healing was conducted in open-ended interviews of nine native people who are
involved with native communities in many areas of helping and healing. The research used was qualitative,
heuristic, and decolonizing, using augmentation from interpretive material from Native Americans. The
results of the interviews were sorted by topics and the depth of information gathered. The themes for
discussion were: Multigenerational and Historical Trauma; Silence and Talking, Coming Together;
Individual Healing; Healing Between Native and White People; Healing as a Tribe; and, Healing Sacred
Sites. The findings from the interviews were augmented by interpretive material from Native American
authors, artists and poets. The research suggests different modes of healing within the two cultures,
specifically in the area of individual healing of western culture compared with group healing of tribes. The
key finding suggests group healing vs. individual healing. Groups appear to be a primary value of native
people while individual healing is a strong focus in western culture. The study implies that healing methods
reflect specific cultural values, norms, cultural beliefs, spiritual beliefs, and predispositions in both cultures.
Cassidy, Barbara E. (2002) "Getting rid of the Indian problem: Aboriginal suicide as a manifestation of genocide."
Ph.D. Dissertation, York University. 267 pp.
This dissertation explores the possible links between aboriginal suicide and genocide. I am not attempting to
prove anything but rather to explore the possibilities that aboriginal suicide is less a health-related problem
and more of a political issue. It is a hypothesis-generating dissertation, not a dissertation designed to result
in a concrete solution.
The introduction states what my goals are in the dissertation by discussing my own personal narrative. I also
provide an alternative definition for 'environment' as being not merely the physical realm but also the mental,
emotional and spiritual realms as well. The methodology chapter discusses the issue of ethics in writing
about such a personal and potentially volatile subject. There is an overview of 'western' suicide theories,
along with some theories which arose from the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples in 1996. I further
discuss the issue of aboriginal identities and how the lack of aboriginal identity due to colonialism
exacerbates aboriginal suicide. Then comes a discussion of environmental racism which deals with
aboriginals connections with the land or, more specifically, the loss of land. I provide an analysis of
'ethnostress', a concept that can be used for either individuals or groups. The first chapter on genocide
focuses on the UN Convention on Genocide, 1948 and how each of the five criteria which constitute
genocide, according to the UN, relates to aboriginal suicide. The second chapter on genocide examines
genocide in Canada itself and the problems which have arisen as a result of Canada's signing the UN
Convention's definition of genocide yet includes only one criterion (the actual killing of a group). In a
dissertation such as this, there can be no clear-cut solutions although I present the notion of self-
determination as being a possible way of ending or modifying aboriginal suicide.
Ceppetelli, Gary E. (1987) "The effect of transportation policies on the socioeconomic viability of remote northern
Manitoba native communities." M.C.P. Thesis, University of Manitoba (The).
Chanteloup, Francoise N. (2002) "Considering the myth of the drunken Indian." Ph.D. Dissertation, Carleton
University. 179 pp.
This project explores the contribution of myth as a way to expand our current understandings of concepts of
alcohol and alcoholism. The paper considers the relationship between aboriginal peoples and alcohol from
the perspective of myth and explores the existence of fundamental differences between aboriginal and non-
aboriginal concepts of alcohol and uses of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA). Designed for Europeans, Alcoholics
Anonymous has gained currency among many other groups as a viable treatment option. Among aboriginal
peoples, the use of AA continues with significant controversy. The transcripts of the public hearings of the
Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples (1997) were analyzed so as to explore narratives of alcohol. In
particular, the myth of the drunken Indian, generally understood as stereotype, is considered as a story thus
permitting an exploration of the way in which this myth can be thought of as articulating important ethics
inherent in an aboriginal worldview. Three myths were identified. Firstly, it is argued that the drunken Indian
is a part of western society's alcohol mythology. It tells the story of how aboriginal peoples became
alcoholics because of an immoral and lazy disposition. Secondly, the myth of the drunken Indian recounted
by the dominant society is the antithesis of that narrated by members of mainstream Alcoholics Anonymous
about themselves. Specifically, the myth of individualism tells the story of alcoholism, a bodily disease,
resulting from the notion of radical individualism. Thirdly, another fundamentally different myth of the
drunken Indian told by aboriginal peoples about themselves. This myth narrates alcoholism as the result of
'diseased' relations between aboriginal peoples and their historical oppressors. It is within this context that
we might reconcile both acceptance and rejection of a 'drunken Indian' by aboriginal peoples. Alcohol has
been a real part of their experience whether or not there has been involvement with the substance on an
individual level, and is heavily implicated in their relationship with the dominant culture. As such, the
discussion also considers alcohol within the context of symbol and the way in which it encapsulates an entire
history of relations.
———. (1994) "modeling drinking behaviour among aboriginal and non-aboriginal males and females in the Yukon:
An analysis of the Yukon Alcohol and Drug Survey." M.A. Thesis, Carleton University. 236 pp.
Due to the descriptive nature of explanations proposed to account for aboriginal drinking behaviour, this
study examined factors associated with heavy drinking among male and female aboriginal and non-
aboriginal residents of the Yukon.
Arguing that the existence of social control mechanisms, specifically the presence of a stake in conformity,
contribute to drinking behaviours, statistical and hierarchical regressions were performed on drinking, 5+
drinks on any one occasion, the maximum number of drinks on any one occasion, and quantity-frequency.
Hierarchical regressions were performed using the variables indicating stake in conformity in addition to
demographic variables. Stepwise regression was performed for the entire sample also using the variables
indicating stake in conformity as well as gender and ethnicity.
Considering that the study was biased against assessing aboriginal situations, it is striking that the drinking
of aboriginal females was more successfully predicted by the variables than drinking by aboriginal males and
non-aboriginal males and females. Furthermore, the fact that respondent characteristics associated with
heavier drinking are markedly different among aboriginal peoples and on-aboriginals has important
implications for research and policy initiatives.
Chapeskie, Andrew J. (1986) "This land is whose land? Aboriginal territories, aboriginal development and the
Canadian state." M.A. Thesis, Carleton University. 250 pp.
Aboriginal peoples in Canada have not yet been able to alter significantly a pervasive Eurocentrism in the
Canadian legal system to the point where that system would recognize them as distinct peoples with
aspirations to determine the ongoing development of their territories. Given the relatively recent evolution of
collective rights norms in the international legal system and the long tradition of the assertion of the right by
aboriginal peoples to self-determination, it is natural that international fora are being made a focus of
increasing activity by those peoples to achieve recognition of their status as subjects of international law. The
contributions by aboriginal peoples in Canada to the evolution of international human rights concepts have
been notable and any possibility of further long term significance change in the international system will
depend upon their increasing involvement in the process.
Chartrand, Larry N. (2001) "The political dimension of aboriginal rights." LL.M. Thesis, Queen's University at
Kingston. 124 pp.
This thesis critically examines the Supreme Court of Canada's interpretation of s. 35 of the Constitution Act,
1982. In particular, the author examines the Court's legal tests for interpreting the meaning of 'aboriginal
rights.' The author focuses his critique on the Court's inability to understand that each aboriginal right
claimed includes a jurisdictional quality (political dimension). This is true not only for claims that on their
surface involve a jurisdictional element such as an aboriginal right to control gaming, but is also true for all
aboriginal claims including claims for hunting moose.
This jurisdictional quality is present in all aboriginal rights claims because of the collective nature of the
right employed by the community as a whole. Any right possessed by a collective must by its very nature
include an authority to control the exercise by the collective of how the right will be managed. Otherwise, the
right would no longer be considered collective in nature. The author criticizes the Court's failure to
understand the collective nature of Aboriginal rights and the implications of recognizing such rights.
In addition, the author makes the argument that the courts have exceeded their jurisdiction when they apply
the “justification test” formulated by Sparrow to the context of a recognized aboriginal right. Once an
aboriginal right is recognized as being possessed by an aboriginal collective (political society) under s. 35 of
the Constitution, the courts are no longer free to interfere in how conflicts between the exercise of the right,
including the jurisdictional aspect of the right, and federal or provincial government's interests are
accommodated. This is son because the Québec Reference case has held that when two equal constitutional
powers possessed by independent political authorities come into conflict, the matter is a political matter
requiring good faith negotiations. The courts are ill-equipped and do not have authority to interfere in the
resolution of disputes of such a nature. Likewise, the same power relationship exists between an aboriginal
authority exercising power under s. 35 and the federal or provincial governments exercising authority under
s. 91 and s. 92 of the Constitution. Consequently, the Sparrow justification test which allows for one party to
infringe a right as between two equal but conflicting constitutional authorities is inconsistent with the
principles set out in the Québec Reference case. The author concludes that the same result should apply to
the aboriginal context as well as the Québec secession context.
Chen, Xiaojin. (2003) "Life stressors, anger and internalization, and substance abuse among American Indian
adolescents in the Midwest: An empirical test of general strain theory." Ph.D. Dissertation, Iowa State
University. 133 pp.
Agnew's general strain theory (1985, 1989, 1992) has been tested several times since its development in the
last decade. This theory, however, has seldom been applied to minority groups, such as American Indian
population. Using a sample of 212 American Indian 5th to 8th grade adolescents, this analysis tests general
strain theory by tracing the linkage among the measures of perceived discrimination, negative life events,
family conflict, anger and internalization, and early onset of substance abuse. Mediating effects of anger and
internalization were investigated using structural equation models. In addition, the strength of the stressor-
substance abuse relationship was examined across groups with different levels of personal/social resources.
High prevalence of substance abuse and life stressors, such as negative life events and perceived
discrimination were found among these American Indian adolescents. Multiple indicators of life stressors
were found to have positive effects on early onset of substance abuse directly and indirectly through self-
reported anger. Specifically, effects of inconsistent parenting on adolescents' substance abuse were
completely mediated through reports of anger. Negative life events directly affected substance abuse and had
indirect effects on substance abuse through anger. Perceived discrimination led to negative affects such as
internalization symptoms, but did not have significant effects on substance abuse. This study confirmed the
mediating role of anger linking stressors and substance abuse; however, no mediating role of internalization
was found. Furthermore, there was evidence that the strength of the anger-substance abuse relationship
varied across groups with different levels of social/personal resources. With increasing levels of anger,
adolescents with high self-esteem, negative attitudes toward deviance, and low levels of association with
deviant peers were less likely to engage in substance abuse, compared with those with low level of self-
esteem, positive attitudes toward deviance, and high levels of association with deviant peers. The relationship
of life stressors and negative emotion (anger and internalization) was not moderated by social and personal
resource variables. This study provided strong support to general strain theory and broadened its empirical
generality to American Indian adolescents.
Chen, Yi-fong. (1998) "Indigenous rights movements, land conflicts, and cultural politics in Taiwan: A case study of
Li-shan." Ph.D. Dissertation, Louisiana State University (The). 273 pp.
Land rights claims remain the major focus of world indigenous movements. Lands relate to the formation of
indigenous identity, religious practices, and the material base for indigenous cultural survival. From a
spatial/geographical perspective, this dissertation explores the influences of Taiwan's state policies on
indigenous peoples, their cultures, identities, and human-land relationship. The Li-shan area, in central
Taiwan, is the focus of the research due to the fact that the most severe land disputes are in this area, as well
as longest history of economic interactions among indigenous peoples, the dominant Han people, and the
State, in the postwar Taiwan.
The rise of indigenous movements in the mid-1980s in Taiwan indicated that the indigenous peoples remain
the victims of colonialism. Appreciating this fact, the movements made demands against the State in
struggling for 'ethnic space.' Although the movements drew significant concessions from the State, the
majority Han people systematically fought back with appeals which deny the existence of any indigenous
peoples in current Taiwan and requested the abolishment of Aboriginal Reservation Lands.
Political economy, new cultural geography, and post-colonial theories provide the major theoretical
framework for this study. The perpetual uneven ethnic power relationships between the dominant Han people
and the dominated indigenous peoples are examined from the critical perspective of political economy. The
new cultural geography offers the theoretical backgrounds for discussing cultural and identity politics, and
multiculturalism. Post-colonial theories are especially helpful in explaining the social construction of a new
indigenous/Taiwanese culture through the combination of the colonizing and the colonized cultures, as well
as in deconstructing mainstream social values, and in illustrating the geography of resistance.
Finally, I wish to summarize the impacts of indigenous movements on three aspects of mainstream culture.
First, indigenous movements shatter the mainstream definition of social justice and question the superficial
multiculturalism. Second, the indigenous claim of 'natural sovereignty' challenges the ideological myth
enshrined by modern nation-states. Third, indigenous ecological wisdom injects a new and different ethic
between society and nature. The formation of respect of the indigenous 'situated' knowledge through an
appropriate application in eco-tourism will uphold the improvement of ethnic relations.
Chenault, Venida S. (2004) "Violence and abuse against indigenous women." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Kansas
(The). 175 pp.
Numerous studies have documented widespread and disproportionate levels of violence and abuse against
Indigenous women. In spite of the troubling statistics that have been reported in national studies, little is
known about best practices with this under served population in the social work discipline.
This study explores the phenomenon of violence and abuse against Indigenous women using a culturally-
based empowerment framework. Two primary research questions were considered in this study. What is the
lifetime prevalence and incidence of violence and abuse in a college sample of tribal women? The second
question considered in this study was whether significant group differences on four variables associated with
empowerment (self-esteem, sense of belonging, social support and social action) existed between First
Nations college women who had experienced violence and abuse and those who had not.
Data was collected and analyzed (n = 112) using univariate, bivariate and multivariate analysis. The
overwhelming majority of the sample (86%) reported violence and abuse. The most common form of abuse
was emotional abuse (76%) followed by physical victimization (66%), sexual victimization (36%), being
threatened (28%) and being stalked (27%).
Initial analysis reported no significant differences between groups on the dependent variables. Follow-up
analysis reported lower self-esteem scores for those who had experienced violence and abuse in adolescence
and as an adult. Higher self-esteem, social support and social action scores were reported for those raised on
reservations, tribal lands, pueblos and villages.
The majority of the sample (66%) had never reported the incident to the police or talked to a professional
(64%). Slightly over one-half reported talking to a trusted friend or relative (53%) or using a traditional
healer or ceremony (54%) to overcome the incident. Those who had been threatened, stalked or physically
victimized were more likely to report the incident to police. Those who were sexually victimized were more
likely to talk to a trusted friend or relative. Those who had been threatened and sexually victimized were
more likely to talk to a professional and to use a traditional healer or ceremony.
Cheng-Levine, Jia-Yi. (1997) "Neo-colonialism, post-colonial ecology, and ecofeminism in the works of Native
American, Chicano/a, and international writers." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Pennsylvania. 280 pp.
The mind/body, man/woman, culture/nature dichotomies dominant in Western ideologies have subordinated
women, nature, and minority groups and subjected them to exploitation and oppression. In this study, I
examine how Western civilization has affected the environment and, at the same time, degraded the status of
women since the time of imperialist expansion due to the Western patriarchal traditions and colonial
legacies. My thesis centres on the relationships between environmental racism, gender-biased colonial
ideology, and ecological imbalance. I historicize such concepts as nature, development, science, and
technology from the 16th century European colonial expansion to the modern neo-colonial stage of
'maldevelopment', as Vandana Shiva terms it. Influenced by Edward Said's theory of 'contrapuntal reading', I
stress the significance of juxtaposing both canonical and non-canonical literary works. The centre chapters,
for instance, focus on writers such as Leslie Silko, Joy Harjo, Pat Mora, and Ana Castillo, in order to
contrast their representations of the land and culture to the dominant European tradition. I also develop the
definition of multi-culturalism beyond US borders and discuss such writers as Mahasweta Devi and J.M.
Coetzee of India and South Africa. Women as subject and its heterogeneity are my focus. I employ Gayatri
Spivak's theory of the subaltern to support my argument that decolonization, accompanied by the growth of
multi-national capitalism, brings more destruction to the land and women than the previous colonial stage. I
conclude with Amilcar Cabral's theory on national culture; Cabral's theory insists that a nation will not
achieve a total economic and political independence unless its mode of production is in harmony with the
land. The purpose of this dissertation is to help develop the common ground between ecology, literary theory,
and literature.
Cheng, Sheng Yao. (2004) "The politics of identity and schooling: A comparative case study of American Indians and
Taiwan Aborigines." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of California, Los Angeles. 165 pp.
The purpose of this research is to figure out the interaction among indigenous identity, educational
experience, and career aspiration under the context of American Indians and Taiwan Aborigines. Three
major research questions of this study are the followings: (1) Which factors will influence the formation of
Native students' Indigenous identities? (2) What is the relationship between Indigenous identity and native
student's educational experiences? (3) How do Indigenous identities and educational experiences influence
Native students' educational aspiration and cultural aspiration? To interpret these questions, I conducted two
field studies which are one in Taipei and the other in Los Angeles. After three month's classroom
observations and in-depth interviews, I discover that indigenous identities are highly interrelated with their
indigenous blood heritage, tribal language usage at home, traditional ceremony participation,
reservations/tribes visit regularly, and parent's connection with their tribes. Indigenous students who possess
higher Indigenous identities tend to criticize the unbalance of race and ethnicity in the curriculum, pedagogy,
peers interaction, and educational policies which they face in schools every day. In contrast, those students
who keep weaker indigenous identity might feel satisfied with the mainstream curriculum design.
Furthermore, native students who maintain stronger tribal identities like to do something for their tribes and
hope to go back to live in their tribes in the future, but those who just grasp mainstream cultural identities
may not think about doing anything for their tribes. To compare the identity issue between Taiwan and the
United States, the study shows that American Indians live in a more multicultural society than Taiwan
Aborigines so the students don't feel the same degree of stereotype or racial discrimination from their
teachers and peers like Taiwan Aborigines. However, the educational policies for Taiwan Aborigines could
help more indigenous students to go to better schools than those in the United States. Even so, the extra score
policy for Taiwan Aboriginal students also cause some problems between indigenous students and their non-
Taiwan Aboriginal students. Moreover, due to geography, Taiwan Aboriginal students have more
opportunities to visit their tribes, join their traditional ceremonies, and their parents' strong tribal
connection, and urban Taiwan Aboriginal students seem to possess stronger tribal/indigenous identities than
urban American Indian students.
Chilton, Mariana M. (2000) "An ethics of care: Politics and religion in American Indian health." Ph.D. Dissertation,
University of Pennsylvania. 375 pp.
Southern Cheyenne ethics of care, based on notions of humility, social connectedness and active
participation, are almost diametrically opposed to the values of contemporary biomedicine and to the
practice of ethnography. For this reason, many American Indian illness experiences are ignored in the
ethnographic record, and American Indian encounters with biomedical health care systems are often
uncomfortable, ineffective and unjust.
Discourse analysis and experience-centred theories, coupled with four years of ethnographic field research,
bring to light how caring ethics are idealized and practiced in ceremonial healing and everyday life among
Southern Plains Indians in Oklahoma. These caring ethics are viewed in historical context and are
juxtaposed with the coercive rhetoric of care used by the U.S. government and the biomedical system that
define, distance and remove themselves from socially responsible action. A case study of a Cheyenne man's
struggle to survive cancer using traditional ceremonial and hybrid healing practices as well as American
biomedicine demonstrates how caring ethics are enacted and experienced. In the illness experience, ethics of
care as defined in American Indian life, in medical and governmental systems, and in ethnographic study are
impossible to unravel and disconnect. Instead, these various ethical systems conflate, conflict and
complement each other in the individual and community's attempts to overcome sickness and in the attempt to
portray these experiences in ethnography.
By adapting professional approaches to incorporate compassion and spirituality, the practice of medicine
would improve clinical outcomes and the illness experiences of patients. Similarly, in ethnography, a more
intimate approach to the study of religions and healing experiences would enhance ethnographic theory and
refine its applications while not losing site of its ethical responsibility to those they study.
Chirinos, Sally E. (1991 ) "Cultural restructuring among the Lakota: A case study in forced acculturation and human
adaptation." M.A. Thesis, University of Texas at Arlington (The). 121 pp.
During the mid- to latter the nineteenth century, one indigenous group of the Great Plains, known as the
Lakota, saw their world rapidly deteriorate and disintegrate, leading to a severe dysfunctional state. The
culture did not die however, and began to "mend the broken hoop," via several adaptive strategies including
renewal and revival, reformulation, and Pan-Indian solidarity. Contemporary Lakota are becoming a
respected sociopolitical force, utilizing legal and political means to obtain desired goals. This thesis is an
overview and assessment of a contemporary case of acculturation, and of the coping mechanisms human
beings use to survive.
Chowdhury, Md. Khairul Islam. (2002) "Articulation and dynamics of 'Jumma nationalism': The case of the
Chittagong Hill Tracts, Bangladesh." M.A. Thesis, Dalhousie University. 178 pp.
This thesis analyses the process of identity formation known as 'Jumma nationalism' in the Chittagong Hill
Tracts of Bangladesh. Following Stuart Hall, I argue that 'Jumma identity' and the political movement
concerning it are the products of cultural and political work of articulation. My analysis is grounded in
theories of nationalism and ethnonationalism, and I argue that the emergence of an educated middle class in
the CHT and ethnicization of the political system played determinant roles in the development of 'Jumma
nationalism.' Specifically, the nationalist movement in the CHT developed out of struggles with
Bangali/Bangladeshi nationalism; however, it was generally informed by the anti-colonialist and
postcolonialist nationalism of South Asia and other parts of the world. Regarding the phenomena of
ethnonationalism, the case of Jumma nationalism is located at one end of the spectrum, as it is not based on
religious, ethnic or linguistic criteria. Nevertheless, the case found in the Chittagong Hill Tracts is an
example of how far construction of group identities can go.
Christen, Kimberly. (2004) "Properly Warumungu: Indigenous future-making in a remote Australian town." Ph.D.
This dissertation examines cultural preservation and innovation in practice. Based on fieldwork in Tennant
Creek, Northern Territory, Australia, I explore one community's entanglements with national land rights
legislation, transnational interests in mining, and shifts in cultural tourism. In this network of sometimes-
unlikely partners, I trace the emergence of coexisting forms of aboriginality-through material objects,
cultural performances, and unexpected alliances. Within these collaborations -- old and new -- the
Warumungu sense of "properness" recasts contested sets of actions and events that align with -- but don't
necessarily recreate -- an ideal notion of the past. New partnerships and mutually beneficial projects,
although not devoid of power imbalances, are a necessary part of the community's future. Each chapter
confronts the web of issues involved in these future-making activities: refraining performance as part of
commercial ventures, creating new cultural products, rearticulating generational and land-based
relationships, effectively engaging with consultants to display Warumungu culture, and re-narrating painful
as well as joyous pasts for commercial benefit. These local concerns intersect with and redefine global
indigenous debates over commercial land use, cultural reproduction, intellectual property rights, and non-
Aboriginal access to Aboriginal cultural knowledge.
Christensen, Michelle L. (1999) "The role of ethnic identity and family support in the psychological well-being of
American Indian elders: A comparison of men and women in reservation and urban settings." Ph.D.
Dissertation, Loyola University of Chicago. 122 pp.
In the current study, the role that ethnic identity and family relationships played in the psychological well-
being of older American Indian people was explored. The relative importance of these two variables for men
and women and for reservation and urban residents was also investigated. 96 American Indian people over
the age of 55 who were living on one of three Midwestern reservations or in one of two Midwestern cities
were included in the study. A strong family support system was related to fewer symptoms of depression,
anxiety, and psychosomatic complaints for all study participants. There was no greater relationship between
family support and psychological well-being for men or women nor for reservation or urban residents.
Reservation residents did, however, report stronger ties with their families whereas urban men appeared to
have the least connection with their families. Ethnic identity was not significantly related to any measures of
psychological well-being in the current study. However, urban residents reported a stronger sense of ethnic
identity than did reservation residents. The ways in which the findings of the current study converge with and
diverge from the extant literature are discussed.
Christensen, Roger B. (1999) "Risk factors in adolescent problem behaviours among native and non-Native
Americans." Ph.D. Dissertation, Utah State University. 106 pp.
The high incidence of adolescent problem behaviours in the United States raises major concerns. These
problem behaviours include: sexually transmitted diseases, unintended pregnancies, suicide, depression,
substance abuse, crime against persons and property, and delinquency. Consequently, there continues to be a
high level of concern and interest in different ethnic populations of adolescents and their level of risk.
This study evaluated the following problem behaviours: substance abuse, suicide, delinquency, and sexual
intercourse; and the risk factors that increase the probability of these problem behaviours occurring.
Specifically, the study identified the profiles of the population in relationship to the problem behaviours
comparing native and non-Native American adolescents. This study also described how both samples of high
school students reported the connectedness of school, home, and community with their perceived feelings of
belongingness and safety, in addition to their reports of problem behaviour. The prevalences of problem
behaviours in native and non-Native American adolescents were compared, the differences in the importance
of risk factors related to problem behaviours in the two groups were examined, and the extent to which the
risks and protective factors predict problem behaviours in native and non-Native American adolescents also
was assessed.
In comparing problem behaviours between native and non-Native American adolescents, there were
significantly higher incidences of problem behaviours in the Native American sample. Statistical analyses
demonstrated that problem behaviours were not consistently predicted by the risk and protective factors for
the Native American females, but they were predictable for the non-Native American female sample. The risk
factors explained less of the variation in problem behaviour for the males than for the females from both
samples. The risk factors explained less variation in problem behaviours for Native American males than
their non-Native American counterparts.
This research demonstrates the need to develop models to better understand cultural influences on
adolescents in order to improve the intervention and prevention techniques necessary to reduce the number
of youth at risk. There is a particular need to better identify the risk factors of importance to Native
Americans.
Chupik-Hall, Jessa. (2001) ""Good families do not just happen": Indigenous people and child welfare services in
Canada, 1950-65." M.A. Thesis, Trent University. 108 pp.
A disproportionate number of indigenous children in Canada were removed from their families into the child
welfare system beginning in the 1960s, a total consistently higher than that of the non-aboriginal child
population. The reason behind these numerous removals has been attributed previously to jurisdictional
disputes between the federal and provincial governments, cultural misunderstandings, and colonialism. This
thesis explores the impact of the early child welfare services provided by the Indian Affairs Branch from 1950
to 1965 upon the subsequent extension of provincial child welfare services to aboriginal communities. The
Branch provided only minimal preventive child welfare services and used an equality rhetoric which justified
the removal of children. The Branch in essence instructed and encouraged mainstream providers to treat
everyone the same. This thesis demonstrates that these were the two key factors which influenced a policy
that encouraged the removal of a disproportionate number of aboriginal children.
Churchill, Elizabeth. (2000) "Tsuu T'ina: A history of a First Nation's community, 1890-1940." Ph.D. Dissertation,
University of Calgary. 584 pp.
Contemporary First Nations' historiography in Canada emphasizes an 'agential' approach in which native
individuals are seen to resist the imposition of European hegemony. Framed within a narrow Marxist-
inspired context of reproduction and resistance, such studies reveal a paucity of social theory in which
agency and structure are treated as dichotomous factors in history. The agency/structure dichotomy,
however, is very often equated with the opposition between tradition and modernization. The central
difficulty from a theoretical perspective is that these types of formulations leave the historian unable to
conceptualize change and modernization in native cultures through time.
This study, in contrast, presents a revised conceptual framework for the historical development of the Tsuu
T'ina reserve community near Calgary, Alberta. It is intended as a critique of cultural-based perspectives and
economic reductionism. The issue of community identity is not treated as a 'given' but rather as a problem to
be addressed in analysis. Using the structural history approach of Marshall Sahlins, the analysis focuses on
the dialectical relationship between external forces of change and internal factors within Tsuu T'ina reserve
society which resulted in new forms of community solidarity and identity.
The formation of the Tsuu T'ina reserve community is traced in relation to three generations of individuals
between 1890 and 1940. The generational approach provides a means to compare transformations in
religious, political, economic and social dimensions of Tsuu T'ina culture for the time period selected.
Ciborski, Sara. (1990) "Culture and power: The emergence and politics of Akwesasne Mohawk traditionalism." Ph.D.
Dissertation, State University of New York at Albany. 285 pp.
The author offers an interpretive study of efforts by Mohawk (Iroquois) traditionalists to build cultural and
political awareness at Akwesasne, an Indian community located on the US-Canada border. Conceptions that
Mohawks have about Iroquois culture, a specific history of relations with the dominant society, and the
continuing struggle to solve serious social and economic problems in the community -- are all important
contributing conditions to Akwesasne Mohawk traditionalism.
The study is framed by two narratives that raise issues of representation and ethics in the field of Indian-
scholar relations: a narration of the evolution of the author's understanding of traditionalists' efforts, and a
narration of a conflict between some Iroquois traditionalists and a number of prominent scholars in the field
of Iroquoian studies. Traditionalists are defined as those Iroquois people who choose to represent Iroquois
culture and society to both the Indian and non-Indian public. Traditionalist strategies that are considered
include: public elaboration of Iroquois conceptions of culture, tradition, history in journals, media,
conferences, and international forums; leadership in debates internal to the community on culture, identity,
and sovereignty; confrontation of social problems like casino gambling and inadequate education through a
discourse on culture, sovereignty, and community well-being; construction of a sense of mission and cultural
identity through intercultural encounters with non-Indian social activists; contesting of the authority of non-
Indian scholars to define Iroquois culture and write Iroquois history.
The author argues that the cultural expressions and national aspirations of Akwesasne Mohawk
traditionalists are a form of cultural nationalism, insofar as they are responses to the experience of internal
colonialism, a structural relationship to the dominant society suffered by other US racial minorities.
Coffin, Michelle. (2003) "United they stood, divided they didn't fall: Culture and politics in Mi'kmaq Nova Scotia,
1969-88." M.A. Thesis, Saint Mary's University. 188 pp.
The structure and membership of First Nations political organizations can reveal much about the culture of
an aboriginal society. This thesis is an examination of the cultural experiences found within the political
organization of the Mi'kmaq of Nova Scotia between 1969 and 1988. The analysis demonstrates that within
the political realm, the Mi'kmaq of Nova Scotia displayed distinctions with respect to the values placed on
particular aspects of their culture.
The Union of Nova Scotia Indians was established in 1969 to politically represent the Nova Scotia Mi'kmaq
population. By the mid-1970s, however, tensions and divisions were evident that eventually resulted in the
formation of the Confederacy of Mainland Micmacs in 1986. The result was a divided Mi'kmaq political
landscape in Nova Scotia along a geographical boundary -- Cape Breton and mainland Nova Scotia -- with
each organization representing a segment of the provincial population and attempting to control as much of
the sociopolitical space as possible.
The thesis argues that although cultural differences were not solely responsible for the splintering of the first
provincial organization in Nova Scotia, the cultural value placed on language, religion, politics and
economic factors varied between the two organizations.
Cohen, Benita E. (1994) "The development of health services in Peguis First Nation: A descriptive case study." M.Sc.
This study -- a combination of a history, contemporary case study, and ethnography -- describes the
development of community health services in Manitoba's largest reserve, Peguis First Nation, located
approximately 170 kilometres north of Winnipeg. Using documentation (both contemporary and archival),
participant observation, and key informant interviews, the development of health services in Peguis is
explored within the context of the overall development of the community as a whole, and within the context of
the major stages of federal Aboriginal health policy and health services delivery in Canada over the past
century. Beginning with the relocation of the reserve to its present site, the study traces health care in Peguis
from the late 1800s to the summer of 1993. The period before 1980 was characterized by the loss of the
traditional medical system in Peguis, and increasing government hegemony over medical services --
coinciding with a period of social and economic underdevelopment of the community. By contrast, the past
15 years have been characterized by relatively rapid community development due to increased political
organization and a determination to achieve local autonomy. It is within this context that control over health
care has begun to shift back to the community -- beginning with local administration of its Health Centre in
1980 and then, in 1991, the signing of a Health Transfer Agreement with the federal government. Peguis'
experience with Health Transfer is examined in detail. However, it is noted that two of the most innovative
examples of health programming in Peguis have occurred outside the mandate of the Health Transfer
initiative -- the Peguis Mental Health Program and the Traditional Program.
Cole, Donald C. (1981) "An ethnohistory of the Chiricahua Apache Indian reservation, 1872-76." Ph.D. Dissertation,
University of New Mexico (The). 397 pp.
It is the purpose of this paper to explore the interaction of Chiricahua Apache Indian culture and Chiricahua
history. The focal point of this paper is the period 1872-77 when a Chiricahua reservation existed. The scope
of the paper touches the extreme ranges of earliest Chiricahua mythic history and the current reality of
Chiricahua experience. Concentrated study has been made of aspects of Chiricahua culture which served to
bring the people to the reservation and later to drive them from it.
Detailed description has been made of Chiricahua cosmology and the relationships of philosophy to the
maiden's puberty ceremony and boy's war novice complex, both of which required raiding and war for their
fullest expression. Other pertinent aspects of Chiricahua culture, particularly equality of sex role
differentiation, democratic and equalitarian leadership patterns, and influence of age and power in the
society, are explored.
From the earliest mythic times, Chiricahua Apache culture emphasized a universe filled with contending
powers in conflict. To meet this challenge, the society developed a warrior society which came into conflict
with neighbouring Indian groups and European settlers in the Southwest. After centuries of conflict with the
Spanish and Mexicans, the Chiricahuas welcomed Americans into their homeland. Within a generation, the
Americans had also become enemies due to scalp-hunting, mining, and expropriation of lands used by
Chiricahuas as agricultural plots.
During the 1860s, the Chiricahuas were at war with or raiding nearly every other group of people in
Arizona, New Mexico, Chihuahua, and Sonora. By 1869 the people's foes in Mexico had formed alliances of
Yaquis, Tarahumaras, Opatas, Pimas, and Mexican soldiery against them. This alliance temporarily drove
the Chiricahuas from the Sierra Madres into the United States. American generals were at the same time
mounting major offensives in Apacheria and the Chiricahuas were forced to seek peace.
Cochise made a number of contacts with United States officials beginning in 1869 which resulted in the
Cochise-Howard agreement of 1872. This established the Chiricahua Apache Indian Reservation with
Thomas Jeffords becoming the Chiricahuas' agent. The people remained armed and free from military
control. The reservation was beset by periodic troubles during its four years of operation. Records of the
Bureau of Indian Affairs disclose that Jeffords suffered yearly problems with budget and supplies. In spite of
the agent's attempts to solve these problems, they were beyond his ability to do so. Bureau officials never
clearly grasped the difficulty and expense of providing subsistence and self-sufficiency to the Apaches of
Arizona. As soon as war was over, they attempted to cut costs, consolidate reservations, and force Apaches
into preconceived patterns of desirable economic and social activity.
For their part, Chiricahuas were unwilling to give up the lavish distribution of goods attendant to the
maiden's ceremony or the violence of the war novice complex. In order to fulfil these requirements, the
Chiricahuas continued to raid in Sonora. Attempts to suppress raiding from the reservation failed.
Alternatives such as limited gold mining by Apaches and conversion of the agent's personal resources into
annuities for ceremonials also failed.
After the death of Cochise in 1874, the situation on the reservation deteriorated. Chiricahuas split into
factions and raiding into Mexico increased. As the result of diplomatic pressure from Mexico and in
accordance with policies of consolidation, the government ended the reservation and transferred the
Chiricahuas to San Carlos. The majority of them fled into the mountains or to Mexico and ten years of
renewed warfare resulted.
Cole, Peter J. (2000) "First Peoples' knowings as legitimate discourse in education: Coming home to the village."
Ph.D. Dissertation, Simon Fraser University. 329 pp.
This dissertation presents a mutual intercultural conversation about ethics, experience and education, whose
purpose is to share with the academy indigenous epistemologies and methodologies which have existed for
millennia and which, rhizomatically, are in continuous creation and evolution. In this text, indigenous
knowings are not, and never were, alter/native or marginal. As a means of demonstrating this
epistemological standpoint, rather than building on Western ways of taking up histories and theories of
“education”, this research makes central the knowings of its key participants: First Peoples in British
Columbia, as well as Mäori, Koori, Mayan, Kenyan, Malawian, Anishinaabek, and Haudenosaunee.
Drawing upon interviews with Aboriginal people, both university- and non-university-based, as well as on
the published work of indigenous scholars, on a set of conferences concerned with First Peoples and
education, and drawing no less on fiction, poetry, and the measured silences traditional scholarly text finds
itself incapable of representing, this study interrogates from an indigenous standpoint the ethics of research
especially the right of western academics to know “other” cultures by means of what are universally
accepted within the academy as “legitimate” and “ethically approved” research practices. It takes up the
thorny question of what “curriculum” has meant and might mean, and it adds to and enriches an
understanding of how “knowledge” has been understood and acted upon in Aboriginal communities and
contexts concerned with the “upbringing” of children and youth.
Employing a series of conversations in which indigenous epistemologies are foregrounded, the text itself is
composed of poetic, dramatic, and storytelling voices, a rhetorical strategy intended better to reflect the
orality of my own First Nations culture (In-SHUCK-ch/N'Quat'qua Nation of British Columbia) and the
primarily oral cultures of my co-participants. An extended metaphor -- that of a canoe journey -- draws
together these various conversations in a manner that resists the narrative conventions of beginning, middle,
and end. Rather, the text seeks to represent through this literary device, knowledge understood and enacted
as a continuous engagement in storytelling, in conversation. These literary 'tactics' rhetorically accomplish,
then, a significant decolonization, separating Aboriginal being, language and knowing from the violence
wrought upon them by English grammar, syntax, spelling, and other never merely linguistic conventions
which have silenced and absented from serious scholarly attention, indigenous ways of understanding what
'education' was, is, and might yet become for People of the First Nations.
Forcing indigenous people to articulate and understand their educational experiences exclusively in the ways
and means of western academic discourse, it is here argued, constitutes both epistemological racism and
cultural genocide. In resisting any such imperative, trickster discourse, narrative chance and pleasurable
misreadings in this dissertation gesture toward a postpositivist and anti-colonial isomorphing of stories and
epistemologies from indigenous languages into English and back. Indeed, the first and last words of this
dissertation are in my own language, Tl'atl'imx, as a means of imposing a symbolic counter-forcing which
compels listening rather than speaking, and which instantiates however briefly for academic readers a
position of incomprehension, one which, in relation to the education of First Nations Peoples, is long
overdue.
Confer, Clarissa W. (1997) "Turmoil in Indian country: The Civil War experience of the Five Nations." Ph.D.
Dissertation, Pennsylvania State University (The). 242 pp.
Native Americans in Indian Territory experienced the Civil War in a unique way due to their position as
autonomous nations within the United States. The Creek, Cherokee, Choctaw, Chickasaw, and Seminole
nations acted as sovereign entities when forming alliances with the Confederacy. They negotiated treaties
which offered more favourable terms of protection, economic advantages, and political participation than
any previous agreements. However, three of the nations could maintain neither their unity nor their
allegiance to the Confederacy, and the Five Nations became badly divided over the course of the war.
The Cherokee, Creek, and Seminole tribes had a legacy of internal division and factionalization stemming
from the removal crisis in the 1830s. Creeks and Seminoles opposed to the Confederate alliance made by
their nation fled the territory in 1861. They survived a miserable existence in temporary refugee camps in
Kansas for much of the war. The Cherokee faction loyal to Chief John Ross also rejected the Confederate
alliance and joined the Union cause. For the remainder of the war, the Cherokee Nation had northern and
southern governments, under the leadership of Ross and Stand Watie respectively.
The four years of the Civil War proved disastrous for the residents of northern Indian Territory. Both Union
and Confederate armies, as well as guerrilla raiders and bushwhackers, rampaged through the region. While
Indian men served in the Union and Confederate armies, women and children had to survive on their own.
Thousands of families fled their homes, living as refugees in Kansas or the Red River region near Texas. The
Choctaws and Chickasaws remained true to the Confederate cause, but also suffered the ravages of war and
the pressures of hosting refugee populations.
By 1865, farms were abandoned, homes burned, schools and churches closed, and governments
dysfunctional. Thousands of men had died in the war, and tens of thousands of people were homeless. Then in
1866, the federal government further weakened Indian sovereignty under the terms of harsh new treaties. The
experience of the Civil War forced the Five Nations toward the complete loss of autonomy which came with
Oklahoma statehood.
This study blends the techniques of ethnohistory and social history to present an account that places
American Indians within the context of Civil War history while emphasizing their unique experiences. It
incorporates both native and non-native by utilizing oral history, memoirs, letters, government
correspondence, and military reports. The study draws on both scholarship relating to native people as
autonomous participants and from recent work in military history. It advances the literature of Civil War
history and American Indian studies, and reflects the recent trends in each discipline. An awareness of the
position of America's indigenous people in the most critical test the United States has faced will further
scholars' understanding of this crucial period.
Colin, Jennifer. (2004) "Profile of a suicide attempter in the Sioux Lookout District." M.Sc. Thesis, University of
Manitoba (The). 95 pp.
Many First Nations communities in the Sioux Lookout District have been experiencing a high rate of
completed and attempted suicide over the last decade. The objective of the present study is to identify and
profile the demographic features and other characteristics common to those aboriginal individuals living in
the Sioux Lookout District that have attempted suicide. A retrospective chart review of suicide attempts and
completed suicides from the years 1995 to 2000 was undertaken. A total of 150 suicide attempts and 36
competed suicide charts were reviewed. In addition, six semi-structured interviews also took place with key
informants from Nodin Counselling Centre who had substantial experience working in response to the
suicide situation in the region. Chi-square analysis was used to test for differences between completed and
attempted suicides, male and female suicide attempters and first and previous suicide attempters. Odds ratios
were calculated for the significant x2. The dominant profile for a suicide attempter that emerged from the
results is female under the age of 25 who has a history of repeated attempts. She tends to have lived a life
marked by negative experiences such as a history of alcohol abuse, and more than likely a combination of
physical, verbal and sexual abuse. She also experienced a break-up with a partner/boyfriend or a fight with a
significant other, and used alcohol right before the event occurred. This is consistent with much of the
literature that looks at risk factors for suicide attempts. There are several factors that contribute to the
decision to attempt suicide. Having knowledge of these factors can further the development of effective
intervention and prevention programs to address this issue.
Conte, Christine F. (1985) "The Navajo sex-gender system: The impact of economic development in two northern
Arizona communities." Ph.D. Dissertation, New School for Social Research. 400 pp.
The dissertation investigates the impact of economic development, or the penetration of the market economy,
on the Navajo sex-gender system. Previous studies of economic development and sex-gender systems have
been confined to Third World contexts with relatively little attention given to the unique, but related,
experiences of native North Americans. The dissertation contributes to our understanding of these
experiences in two ways. First, it describes two key components of Navajo women's status; their rights and
duties and the values accruing to these rights and duties. Second, through the investigation of specific
hypotheses, it illuminates the relationship between production, reproduction and sex-gender ideology. To
these ends, comparative analysis focuses on 85 households in two culturally and economically diverse
communities in northeastern Arizona. One is a primary node in the regional dendritic market system and a
reservation border town. The other is a hinterlands reservation community and a tertiary node in the same
regional system. Within each community, all aspects of the gender-based division of labour are described at
key loci of production, consumption and distribution. Analysis of women's kin-based resource networks in the
two communities reveals systematic structural differences between them. These differences are linked to
larger market forces and the social relations of particular types of workplaces. Within each community,
women's resource networks are demonstrated to promote economic autonomy for women and, at the same
time, to contribute to socioeconomic stratification among them. A broader range of diversity in sex-gender
values is exhibited in the wage labour centre and is related to both economic strategies and cultural
meanings. Analysis of the descriptive data does not support the hypothesis that participation of the household
in the labour force either diminishes actual decision-making authority for women or encourages patriarchal
values. Instead, women's status is more likely to covary with their financial contribution to the household.
The relationship between resource strategies, religious preferences and other cultural factors and Navajo
women's power and authority in the household is also explored.
Contreras, Sheila M. (1998) "Blood lines: Modernism, indigenismo and the construction of Chicana/o identity." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of Texas at Austin (The). 295 pp.
This dissertation examines the image of the Mexican Indian in three historical contexts: Anglo Modernism of
the 1920s, Chicano cultural nationalism of the 1970s, and Chicana feminism of the 1980s and 1990s. My
research takes a critical perspective on each of these movements, and at the same time theorizes the
transformative potential of textual enterprises that elaborated distinct forms of indigenismo (indigenism). The
three contexts that I address manifest different, although related, representations of the Mexican Indian. In
juxtaposing the work of authors between periods, I foreground the use of the Mexican Indian as a vessel for
authorial critique -- a rhetorical strategy dating back to Enlightenment valorizations of 'the Noble Savage.'
Chicana/o textual projects of indigenismo, then, must be understood in the context of a larger semiotic field
that precedes them. I assess the process by which an 'authentic subject' or the authentication of a claimed
subject position is facilitated by assertions of indigenous identity in Chicana and Chicano literary discourses.
I argue that the mythologization of the Mexican Indian is a strategy that initiates counter-hegemonic
discourse at the same time that it undercuts the emancipatory objectives of its authors. In each of the three
chapters, I acknowledge the radically different contexts of each author, yet bring into relief their common
investment in particular and familiar signifiers of Mexican Indian culture, or 'Indian Mexico.' Further, I
explore the unacknowledged influences of ethnography, Modern Primitivism and Mexican post-Revolutionary
state discourse on Chicana and Chicano indigenismo.
My work insists upon a more acutely critical perspective on representations of the Mexican Indian as cultural
ancestor and foundational trope for resistant Chicana/o discourse. In acknowledging the limitations of
indigenismo as a discursive strategy for a liberatory Chicana and Chicano poetics, I argue for alternative
reading and writing strategies that move beyond a mythologized and dehistoricized Chicana/o Indian
identity.
Conway, Liam A. (2004) "The 'Starlight tours': A study of racist dynamics in a prairie city." M.A. Thesis, University
of Regina (The). 183 pp.
This thesis examines the racist dynamics in evidence when the story of the Starlight tours broke in Saskatoon,
Saskatchewan in 2000. Darrell Night, an Aboriginal man from Saskatoon, filed a complaint against two
Saskatoon Police Service constables for abandoning him on the outskirts of the city on a freezing winter
morning when he was not dressed for the weather. Night came forward with his allegations after the bodies
of two other Aboriginal men were found frozen in the same vicinity where he had been abandoned by the two
constables. The filing of Mr. Night's complaint eventually resulted in the largest Royal Canadian Mounted
Police investigation the province had ever seen, as well as the initiation of a province-wide Aboriginal justice
inquiry. In the wake of Mr. Night's allegations, hundreds of other Aboriginal people around the province
alleged similar treatment at the hands of various police forces using telephone hotlines set up by the Native
Law Centre at the University of Saskatchewan and by the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations. The
thesis argues that, despite attempts to characterize the Starlight tours and the related events as isolated
incidents attributable to rogue elements on the police force, the Starlight tours more accurately represent a
consistent and predictable event given the context of the neocolonial racial order that has developed over
time in Canada. Furthermore, the thesis undertakes an examination of the constitution of this racial order in
the context of colonial policy regarding education and reserve-based agricultural programs, and traces its
evolution to its present neocolonial incantation focusing particularly upon the criminalization of Aboriginal
people by the Canadian criminal justice system. The Starlight tours are placed in this context.
Cook, Samuel R. (1992) "Indian self-determination: A comparative analysis of executive and congressional
approaches to contemporary federal Indian policy." M.A. Thesis, University of Arizona (The). 242 pp.
Scholars of American Indian policy refer to the period from 1960 to present as the Self-Determination Era.
However, President Richard Nixon is commonly credited with making self-determination the fundamental
tenet of contemporary Indian policy through his 1970 message to Congress. The concept of self-
determination embodies three main goals: tribal self-government; cultural survival; and economic
development. Furthermore, Indian participation in tribal activities as well as the federal policy-making
process is a key principle of self-determination. Self-determination, however, is not a single policy, but
rather, a conglomeration of policy approaches originating in different branches of the federal government.
There has been little uniformity in the executive and legislative approaches to contemporary Indian policy.
As this thesis illustrates, congressional approaches to self-determination policy since 1970 have been more
consistent than those of the executive branch.
———. (1997) "Monacans and mountaineers: A comparative study of colonialism and dependency in southern
Appalachia." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Arizona (The). 429 pp.
For scholars of underdevelopment, Appalachia is an enigma. The vast and diverse natural resources of the
region offer the potential for local prosperity, but much of the region is characterized by widespread poverty.
Accordingly, many writers have tended to characterize Appalachia as a homogeneous region, in spite of its
cultural, environmental, and economic diversity. This study assesses the causes and consequences of
underdevelopment in Appalachia through a controlled comparison of two mountain communities: the
Monacan Indians of Amherst County, Virginia, an aboriginal community located in the Blue Ridge foothills;
and a mining community in Wyoming County, West Virginia, located in the rugged plateau coalbelt. Two
mutually related theoretical approaches are used: the internal colonialism and dependency models. This
study is concerned with the relationship between colonial processes within the region and the variable ways
in which these have been related to conditions of economic dependency.
The study begins with the hypothesis that each community is an internal colony, but that the extent of
colonization and dependency may vary between the two, and that the historical processes of colonization and
dependency may also vary profoundly between the two. To test this, several variables are examined,
including who the initial colonizers were, salient cultural patterns of each community prior to and after
colonization, traditional subsistence patterns, and local environmental factors which may have effected
exploitative processes differentially in each community. It is shown that the differences in these variables
between the two communities have had profound effects on their colonial experiences. Although doctrines of
racial/ethnic superiority were used to justify colonial endeavours in both cases, these were much more salient
in the case of the Monacans. While the Monacan's engagement with colonial forces began much earlier than
that of the Euro-American settlers and their progeny in Wyoming County, various social, economic, and
political changes have converged in recent years to allow the Monacans to break away from the bonds of
colonialism and dependency. In Wyoming County, however, land alienation and a corporate controlled state
government have severely crippled the possibility of local grassroots empowerment.
Cooke, Martin J. (1999) "On leaving home: Return and circular migration between First Nations and prairie cities."
M.A. Thesis, University of Western Ontario (The). 172 pp.
This study uses 1991 Aboriginal Peoples Survey data and interviews with migrants to Winnipeg to investigate
the personal characteristics of Registered Indians who have returned to reserves after moving to cities, and
those who made multiple moves between the two areas. Multivariate analyses of the effects of demographic,
socioeconomic, and some community variables on return migration found that return migrants were little
different than those who did not return. While interviews indicated that circulation was common, models
predicting circulation failed to adequately capture multiple moves.
While there is migration to cities for employment and education, other reasons include the attraction of
urban life to youth, health care, and housing issues. Reasons for return migration included the pull of
community, and the supports of extended family. Social integration into the reserve or urban community
seems to be important in return migration. Return on retirement and commuting may be common strategies.
Cooper, Carol A. (1993) ""To be free on our lands": Coast Tsimshian and Nisga'a societies in historical perspective,
1830-1900." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Waterloo. 485 pp.
This dissertation studies the efforts of the Coast Tsimshian and Nisga'a to preserve their identity and cultural
integrity under the fur trade, missionization and industrialization, which were established in rapid succession
on the northern Pacific coast after 1830. The Coast Tsimshian and Nisga'a, two linguistically and culturally
similar tribes, accepted change and deliberately sought innovations, but often they did so in order to survive
as distinct cultures. A complex process of incorporation was involved whereby such developments as the fur
trade, Christianity and participation in the commercial fisheries became part of their tradition and their very
identity. At the same time, the Coast Tsimshian and Nisga'a consciously endeavoured to preserve many of
their traditional economic activities and sociopolitical arrangements.
While the study acknowledges that Coast Tsimshian and Nisga'a societies were profoundly influenced by
contact with Euro-Canadians, it is not primarily intended as an analysis of Native-Euro-Canadian relations.
Rather, it focuses upon the political, economic and social strategies employed by these tribes and by the
corporate groups which comprised them, in order to maximize their autonomy and retain their cultural
distinctiveness under changing conditions. Comparative insights are also offered regarding Coast Tsimshian
and Nisga'a responses to contact. The Coast Tsimshian accepted a greater degree of innovation in their
material culture and their sociopolitical arrangements over time, which is understandable since they had
always been the most receptive of the northern coastal tribes in regard to new economic and spiritual
influences and they alone experienced the unbroken presence of non-Natives in their territory after 1834. In
contrast, the Nisga'a benefited by their isolation, for they were able to carry out more of their traditional
subsistence pursuits and ceremonial functions with less frequent intrusion by Euro-Canadians. Thus, they
could incorporate change in a more gradual fashion than the Coast Tsimshian. Yet, regardless of their
differences, neither group surrendered their fundamental identity as Native Peoples. As the century closed,
both remained committed to preserving their cultural integrity and to retaining the land-base from which
their autonomy and identity flowed.
Copenace, Sherry J. (2001) "A group work approach with aboriginal children exposed to parental violence." M.S.W.
This practicum concentrated on a time limited, structured and closed group work approach with Aboriginal
children between the ages of seven and ten years old who had been exposed to parental violence. All of the
children were living in homes led by single mothers. The majority had sought refuge in women's shelters and
for them the violence had stopped between five months and five years before becoming involved with this
process. The treatment modality was a psychoeducational group work intervention for the children, with the
inclusion of an Aboriginal tradition, a 'mudge.' A total of eight children were involved with this practicum
and all but one child completed the group program(s). Clinical impressions suggested that some of the
clients' objectives were met as many of the children were able to identify their feelings and experiences
related to parental violence, to develop a personal safety plan, and seemed to experience an increase in self
confidence. In general, the children seemed to benefit from a safe, fun and supportive group environment.
Coppersmith, Clifford P. (1996) "Cultural survival and a Native American community: The Chiricahua and Warm
Springs Apaches in Oklahoma, 1913-96." Ph.D. Dissertation, Oklahoma State University. 287 pp.
This study describes how the Chiricahua and Warm Springs Apaches of Oklahoma maintained elements of
traditional culture and tribal identity in the 20th century. Employing ethnohistorical method and the use of
traditional historical sources, the author has attempted to present a more accurate history of the Chiricahua
and Warm Springs Apaches by incorporating their own perspective of the past. This study reviews
Chiricahua and Warm Springs history from pre-history through the 20th century but emphasizes the period
from their release from captivity in 1913 to the present. Findings and conclusions. Despite the federal
government's efforts to erase their existence as a distinct people the Chiricahua and Warm Springs Apaches
of Oklahoma remain a politically organized tribe. While accommodating to the social and economic
requirements of life within the larger Euro-American culture of southwestern Oklahoma tribal members
managed to preserve and pass on distinctive elements of tribal culture such as the Mountain Spirit Dance.
The tribe also maintained its identity by successfully pressing land claims through the Indian Claims
Commission and rejecting federal termination policy. Despite the loss of language and other elements of
traditional culture, the Chiricahua and Warm Springs Apache community continues to exist.
Cormier, Edward F. (1996 ) "A lawless life, unrest and strife? The existence of aboriginal customary law in Manitoba
First Nations communities: An explanatory study." M.A. Thesis, University of Manitoba (The). 118 pp.
The literature dealing with traditional methods of dispute resolution indicate that increasing support is found
for the contention that the application of customary law in First Nations communities is the most promising
route to improving upon the current dismal relationship between First Nations peoples and the Canadian
criminal justice system. There is, however, a lack of information regarding the current state of knowledge of -
- and belief in -- customary law. This is compounded by a lack of clear descriptions of its content. This
research is intended to address these questions through an examination of current attitudes of First Nations
peoples in Manitoba toward customary law. Data were collected through interviews conducted in the
member-communities of the West Region Tribal Council. Respondents are asked to describe what they
believed to be the most appropriate response to several detailed hypothetical instances of deviance.
Respondents were drawn from three age groups: 'older' (56 years and over), 'middle aged' (36-55 years), and
'young' (18-35 years). Analysis of the data showed that the three age groups applied three differing
methodologies for responding to deviant acts. The 'older' group displayed a 'community focus', the middle
aged group a 'family focus' or 'mixed focus', and the young group a 'state focused' approach to deviance-
response. Analysis of the content of customary law shows that context, restoration, prevention, publicity,
group decision-making, and apology/forgiveness are its central elements. Belief in customary methods of
dispute resolution remains strong among the older respondents. It is concluded that while the application of
customary law is a viable and desirable option for justice initiatives in the future, caution must be exercised
in the design of any such programs to ensure recognition of the complexity of this issue.
Correia, Maria S. (1995) "An anthropological reinterpretation of contact, conflict, and crisis at Oka 1990: From
western authority to postmodernity." M.A. Thesis, University of Manitoba (The). 155 pp.
The Oka crisis is the departure point for a study of prolonged and sustained contact between cultures. Based
upon a central tenet which recognizes the bidirectional nature of contact, the textual body of this thesis is
arranged into the following four broad themes: (1) nations and nationalism; (2) the Indian; (3) the Mohawk;
and, (4) Oka as a postmodern crisis. The contact that occurred between civilizations in the Western
Hemisphere (indeed the contact that occurred between cultures around the world) created a mixed reality of
multiple codes, overlapping histories and shared experience and ideology. Nationalism is a product of
modern, Western ideology. The First Nations became nations in the Western sense through a process of
nationalism developed through contact between traditional aboriginal societies and modern European ones.
Conversely, the transplanted European culture and society developed into the North American sociocultural
complex through contact with the indigenous societies and cultures. The critique of colonialism has
questioned Western authority and presentation in almost all Western disciplines, including anthropology. In
the postmodern age, anthropology now acknowledges the differences within cultures and the similarities
between cultures. The formerly colonized continue to criticize and challenge Western authority,
representation, and knowledge. The breakdown of Western authority positions Oka as a postmodern crisis
and reveals Mohawk society to be complex and heterogeneous, struggling against the Canadian nation state
and those who still accept the Canadian master-narratives.
Cosgrove, Sondra K. (2004) "Biology, culture, and environment: The struggle for hegemony in Arizona." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of Nevada, Las Vegas. 164 pp.
This is an examination of the various cultural groups who have attempted to extend hegemony control over
what is now the state of Arizona. Each chapter focuses on the ways different societies adapted to the region's
challenging environment; paying particular attention to those that sought to integrate their neighbours into
their own socioeconomic systems, whether by force or through negotiation. The rise and fall of the
indigenous Hohokam civilization marks the first phase in this struggle for hegemony, while conflicts between
Spaniards and Indians characterize the second. The third, and so far, final cycle concludes with Euro-
Americans seizing the region from Arizona's Hispanic and Native Americans residents.
A brief preface introduces this work's underlying, interdisciplinary methodology, while the body of the text
proceeds chronologically from prehistory to 1886. The first chapter examines the various prehistoric people
who took up residence in Arizona. It describes how the Hohokam Indians were able to adopt a sedentary
lifestyle and then translate their Subsistence success into political power. The chapter concludes with the
collapse of Arizona's prehistoric political economy due to climatic change. Chapter two then provides an
overview of the conflicts, beginning in the 17th century and continuing into the early 19th century, between
Athabascan Indians and Spanish colonists. Throughout this period, both groups endeavoured to exert control
over the Southwest's trade economy, yet each blocked the other's efforts.
Chapter three analyzes the American ideology of Manifest Destiny and its role in westward migration: while
the arrival of Americans in the Southwest and their successful quest to capture Arizona's resources is the
focus of the remaining chapters. A brief summation then concludes this work.
Coupland, Mary Ann. (2004) "Neuropsychological deficits and other variables as predictors in the successful
completion of alcohol treatment with Native American population." Ph.D. Dissertation, Capella University.
168 pp.
Cognitive impairment is overrepresented in substance abuse populations and has been considered as a
possible deterrent in an individual's ability to achieve the objectives established while in substance abuse
treatment. The results of this study indicated that there were deficits in the neuropsychological domains of
executive functioning (abstract reasoning, perseveration), memory (immediate, delayed, working, and visual),
complex motor skills, and intelligence levels (Full Scale Intelligence Quotient, Verbal Intelligence Quotient)
with the Native American participants who were enrolled in a 30-day residential substance abuse treatment
facility. A correlation of these deficits with the achievement of the treatment objectives resulted in the
domains of intellectual abilities, executive functioning, and memory hindering the participants from
achieving their treatment objectives.
Cowger, Thomas W. (1994) "Sovereign nations, shared identity, and civil rights: The National Congress of American
Indians, 1944-64." Ph.D. Dissertation, Purdue University. 282 pp.
The historiography on Native Americans in the 20th century remains uneven and sketchy. Few historians
have investigated the post World War II pan-Indian movements. The focus of the dissertation is on the
activities of the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) during the critical 'termination period', 1944
to the mid-1960s. The general outline of the termination period is well known. Historical scholarship on the
termination period, however, has tended to focus on federal policy and tended to treat Indians as ancillary
members of American society, as people acted upon by legislators and bureaucrats rather than actors in their
own right.
In 1944 to the NCAI first arose as a national reform pan-Indian organization which campaigned fervently
and on the whole successfully against the termination policy. The NCAI founders included important tribal
leaders who recognized the threat posed by termination and fought to maintain Indians' legal rights and
cultural identity. More importantly, the NCAI became prime movers, increasingly, in determining their own
fate.
The dissertation is based on multi-archival research and oral interviews with participants. As the first
systematic study of the NCAI during its early years, it identifies the goals, tactics, and ideology of the
organization. The study analyzes the NCAI's organizational base, internal structure, conflicts, resources, and
leadership, and how these changed over time. In the bulk of the study I explore the ways in which federal-
Indian relations and political events shaped collective action. Demonstrating that the NCAI did not respond
passively to termination and other political events, I show that the organization was an important vehicle of
resistance to changes in federal Indian policy and served as an important instrument for the preservation of
cultural continuity and identity. To provide context I place Indian affairs in the setting of the postwar period.
In these ways this study of the NCAI stands at the intersection of Native American history, the history of
American reform, and the history of the United States since 1940.
Cradock, Gerald A. (1997 ) "First Nations' political economy in British Columbia: A partnership recovered?" M.A.
Thesis, Simon Fraser University. 173 pp.
First Nations role in the fur trade and early settler periods of British Columbia history has been reconceived
in recent scholarship from simple victimization by European colonial expansion to active participation in
commercial partnerships. This work builds upon this insight. First Nations participation in the British
Columbian economy is traced from its roots in the fur trade, its crucial contribution during the initial
settlement and early industrialization periods of British Columbia through to its eventual demise in the early
decades of the 20th century.
By arguing that First Nations possess cultural barriers to successful economic activity non-aboriginal
interests have justified: land cut-offs, the restrictive regulation of water access, fishing, logging, and hunting,
and the repression of First Nations political activity. These policies extinguished an aboriginal entrepreneur
class and severely limited aboriginal employment opportunity. After World War 2, increasingly capital
intensive practices in the fishery, forestry and agricultural sectors prevented First Nations from competing on
an equal footing. Beginning in the 1960s, a well-educated aboriginal cohort emerged that, while unable to
pursue large scale economic activity, did create an expanding and activist aboriginal bureaucracy.
From the 1980s, aboriginal political activity specifically targeted private corporate interests. This strategy
succeeded in bringing the British Columbian government to the treaty table. Meanwhile, federal and First
Nations' initiatives have supported the recreation of an aboriginal political economy. Some members of the
corporate sector have encouraged these developments as a means of stabilising investment conditions.
Consequently, new business alliances are emerging. It is concluded that First Nations political aspirations
are directly dependent upon a healthy aboriginal economy. Furthermore, this economy will necessarily
require partnerships with the non-aboriginal sector as it functions in the provincial, national and global
marketplace.
Craig, Barbara. (1992) "Jurisdiction for aboriginal health in Canada." LL.M. Thesis, University of Ottawa. 227 pp.
The purpose of this thesis is to determine which level of government has jurisdiction for aboriginal health in
Canada -- the federal or the provincial. As background to the consideration of jurisdiction for aboriginal
health in Canada, three things are examined: the existing legal and policy frameworks for aboriginal health;
the development of the delivery of health services to aboriginal people; and the current health status of
aboriginal people in Canada. The distribution of exclusive legislative powers between the federal and
provincial legislatures contained in sections 91 and 92 of the Constitution Act, 1987 is examined and the
'peace, order and good government' power of the federal Parliament is considered. Legislative jurisdiction
over health is considered. The extent of the federal power over 'Indians, and Lands reserved for the Indians'
as a result of subsection 91(24) of the Constitution Act, 1867 is explored. Parallels are drawn between labour
relations and health jurisdictional issues, in an attempt to determine where legislative jurisdiction for
aboriginal health rests. The spending power of Parliament, the Crown-Indian treaty process and the nature
of Indian treaties, and the fiduciary relationship between First Nations and the federal and provincial
governments is examined. The final conclusion is that aboriginal health is a double aspect matter, to which
valid legislation of both levels of government can apply. Although there are spheres of exclusive provincial
jurisdiction, e.g. regulation of health practitioners and hospitals, there is no exclusive federal sphere.
However, the federal government does have concurrent jurisdiction with the provinces over the public health
of aboriginal people. The doctrine of paramountcy applies to give valid federal legislation pre-eminence over
inconsistent provincial legislation.
In this thesis, the term 'aboriginal' is intended to have the same meaning it does in the Constitution Act, 1982,
section 35. Section 35(2) states: 'In this Act, 'aboriginal peoples of Canada' includes the Indian, Inuit and
Métis peoples of Canada.' It is my submission that 'Indian' as it is used in section 35 includes both status and
non-status Indians.
Craig, Daniel. (1980) "The social impact of the state on an Aboriginal reserve in Queensland, Australia." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of California, Berkeley. 293 pp.
Law has many different functions. One of its primary roles in highly differentiated societies is integration.
Legislators in plural societies face the problem of how to incorporate different ethnic minorities into a single
nation-state. This dissertation analyzes the role of law in charting the development of Yarrabah Aboriginal
Reserve in Queensland, Australia. Specifically, it considers the State Government's use of the reserve to
implement a policy of assimilation and evaluates the impact of the Aborigines Acts on the local community.
Queensland's legislation raises a question that has occupied legal scholars for a long time: what is the role of
law in initiating social change as opposed to codifying existing social mores? The Federal Government in
Australia recognizes the Aborigines' right to be different and manage their own affairs. The State
Government however advocates 'one community of Queenslanders.' It opposes the existence of distinct
Aboriginal communities and is trying to incorporate reserve Aborigines into the mainstream of Australian
society. Once considered innovative at the turn of the century, Queensland's laws are now lagging behind the
rest of the country. They force us to reconsider the extent to which a dominant group can, or should, dictate
the course of a minority's development.
This study evaluates the functions of law in terms of (1) its subjective purposes, overt and covert; (2) its
objective consequences, planned and unplanned; and, (3) the public's perceptions of both the legislator's
intentions and the law's effects. The relationship between goals, outcomes, and public opinion is important
because law derives its legitimacy in part from the way in which it is received by those whom it governs. The
consequences of Queensland's Aborigines Acts are evaluated in terms of the four different levels on which the
legislation operates: policies, the laws themselves, local administrators, and the people to whom they
administer.
The dissertation is based upon six months of archival research and 16 months of fieldwork on Yarrabah
(1976 to 1979). It begins with an overview of Queensland's Aboriginal policies from 1859 to 1979. The goal
is to elucidate the ideologies and events that shaped the State Government's attitudes toward indigenes and to
contrast them with Federal policies. The study then describes Yarrabah's evolution from a closed, total
institution under Church administrators to an open institution under the State's Department of Aboriginal
and Islanders Advancement (DAIA). It analyzes the reasons for the Aborigines' rapid conversion to
Christianity and the loss of their traditional culture. In discussing the effects of voluntary and involuntary
resettlement, it elaborates the indigenes' various responses to institutionalization, viz. escape, retreat,
reconciliation, and innovation.
The dissertation describes Yarrabah today in terms of its two constituent subsystems -- white and Aboriginal.
It first considers the DAIA, the bureaucratic nature of its administration, and the extent of its control over the
reserve population. It then describes the Aboriginal community's social organization, which is patterned
according to the constraints of the reserve system. The social consequences of Queensland's laws include
alcoholism, chronic unemployment, health problems, male homosexuality, and steady increases in the
number of single parents and matrifocal families. The Aborigines' responses to the Aborigines Acts include
an emerging sense of ethnic identity and a request to the Federal Government for self-management and land
rights.
The study concludes with an evaluation of Yarrabah's position as an internal colony. It analyzes the
structural reasons for the reserve's failure as a training camp for assimilation. Using Queensland as an
example, it considers the different functions that law can play in plural societies. It suggests that parametric
or enabling laws are better suited to democracies than prescriptive laws.
Crawford, Jessica L. (1994) "Worlds apart: Conceptualizing mental health knowledge from Dogrib women." M.Sc.
Thesis, University of Toronto. 111 pp.
Dogrib women are the recipients of treatment for conditions designated as 'mental illness.' How do they
perceive and talk about this experience, known to health professionals as 'mental illness'? Informants
include: (1) Dogrib women, who have been receiving long term treatment in the mental health system in the
Northwest Territories; and, (2) men and women from related native organizations. Data were collected
during formal and informal interviews and comprise written field notes. The interpretation is guided by a
framework of semiotics contrasting what the Dogrib disclose, with assumptions and approaches in
professional mental health services. The Dogrib women's talk was seen to focus upon: precipitating factors,
healing approaches, involvement of gender and relationships with health care professionals. A system of
conceptualization tentatively referred to as 'fluid boundaries' is used to organize some of the findings selected
for the semiotic reading. Implications for organizing health services, and suggestions for future research are
noted.
Crawford, Rebecca R. (1992) "Identification of the causes and characteristics of suicide among American Indian
youth." Ph.D. Dissertation, Utah State University. 67 pp.
Blackfeet youth suicide attempters and a sample of non-suicide attempters were compared on the Family
Adaptability and Cohesion Evaluation Scales (FACES-III), the Family Environment Scale (FES), the Scale
for Suicide Ideation (SSI), the revised Beck Depression Scale (BDI) and a biographical inventory. The
purpose of this study was to define a set of variables that identify Indian youth with a high potential for
suicide. The study sample consisted of 60 participants between the ages of 15-24, 30 suicide attempters and
30 non-suicide attempters, from the Blackfeet reservation. 15 identified variables were proposed to
differentiate between the two groups. Analyses involving nine variables revealed a significant correlation
between the revised Beck Depression Inventory variable of depression and the Biographical Inventory self-
report variable of suicide attempt. Results indicated that suicide attempters scored higher on the revised Beck
Depression Inventory than did those subjects who did not attempt suicide.
Crelinsten, Rohana. (1999) "Mäori stereotypes, governmental policies and Mäori art in museums today: A case study
of the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa." M.A. Thesis, Concordia University. 86 pp.
Mäori art in New Zealand museums has a long history extending back to the first contacts made between
Mäori (New Zealand's native peoples) and Europeans. The Europeans settled in New Zealand with a
colonialist attitude, leading to the notion that the Mäori people would soon be extinct. This promoted the
vigorous collection of various samples of Mäori material culture. Museums were then established to store
these artefacts. Governmental policies dating back to the turn of the century, gradually influenced the ways
in which museums dealt with these Mäori holdings.
The current situation in New Zealand, particularly at the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa is
largely a reaction to the past. Mäori people are demanding that they have more say in the treatment of their
taonga (treasures). Slowly, through decades of debate and reworking of policies, new standards are
developing for the ways in which New Zealand museums collect and exhibit Mäori art. This on-going process
is a result of the enhanced sense of empowerment of Mäori people in New Zealand today. Art educators in
museums and schools can look to museums such as Te Papa Tongarewa for inspiration and guidance.
Crockford, Cairn E. (1998) "Nuu-Chah-Nulth labour relations in the pelagic sealing industry, 1868-1911." M.A.
Thesis, University of Victoria. 150 pp.
This thesis presents an analysis of Nuu-Chah-Nulth labour relations in the Canadian pelagic sealing industry
from 1868 to 1911. During the life span of the industry the dominant economy within British Columbia
shifted from mercantile to industrial capitalism, and the economic role of aboriginal people changed from
independent commodity producers to a wage labour force.
The process by which one set of labour relations replaces another cannot be taken for granted as the
inevitable by-product of capitalist intrusion and dominance. Labour relations in pelagic sealing developed
out of the existing relationship between Nuu-Chah-Nulth commodity producers and coastal traders.
Strategies employed during labour negotiations represented adaptations of strategies used during commodity
exchange. Despite their efforts, capital investors were unable to apply normal capitalist labour relations in
sealing. They could not do so because capitalist labour relations had not supplanted the older form of co-
operative labour relations.
Culhane, Dara. (1994) "Delgamuukw and the people without culture: Anthropology and the Crown." Ph.D.
Dissertation, Simon Fraser University. 453 pp.
This thesis examines the response of the British Columbia and Canadian judiciary to aboriginal efforts to
obtain legal recognition of aboriginal title and rights, and the role played by anthropology and
anthropologists in this historical process. Specifically, the thesis provides a detailed case study of the longest
and costliest aboriginal title litigation in Canadian history: the Gitksan and Wet'suwet'en case, also known as
Delgamuukw et al v. R. This case is analyzed within the historical and political context of the relationship
between aboriginal and non-aboriginal peoples in Canada. Drawing on current theoretical work in the fields
of anthropology and law, and cultural critique, the thesis argues that law and legal discourse are embedded
in historical and contemporary relations of power and resistance, and shaped by the cultural and political
context in which they are practiced. Law is analyzed as a form of sociocultural reflection, and the courtroom
as a site of political struggle. A critical analysis of the use of the theories and data of social science to
legitimate various ideologies and strategies in the legal forum provides an original contribution to the
theoretical and substantive study of aboriginal and non-aboriginal relations in Canadian society, and to
theoretical development within the discipline of anthropology. Anthropologists have served as researchers
and as expert witnesses on behalf of both the Crown and aboriginal litigants. This thesis focuses on
theoretical analyses and substantive evidence presented on behalf of the governments of Canada and British
Columbia to support the Crown's claims and counter-claims to land title and sovereignty as against
aboriginal peoples. That is to say, this thesis locates itself within the field of anthropological analyses of
'western' cultures, rather than the traditional anthropological focus on the representation of aboriginal
cultures. The methodology adopted is based In a critical hermeneutic, or dialectical, reading of the texts of
anthropologists' opinion reports submitted to courts, transcripts of trials, and reasons for judgment. The
thesis argues that an examination of the theory and practice of Canadian law in relation to aboriginal
peoples and aboriginal land title from a critical anthropological perspective illuminates the inter-
relationship between culture, power, history, and law. In conclusion it is argued that anthropologists may
make a valuable contribution to disciplinary and public debates on aboriginal issues by turning our attention
to an analysis of Canadian society's relationship to aboriginal peoples.
Cummings, Tracie Ku'uipo. (2004) "Hawai'ian sovereignty and nationalism: History, perspectives and movements."
M.A. Thesis, University of Hawai'i. 219 pp.
This thesis analyzes three divergent perspectives regarding the current status of the Hawai'ian nation and
aboriginal Hawai'ians. The disparities over perspectives of the political and legal status of the Hawai'ian
nation and aboriginal Hawai'ians are linked to the disparity over the root of legitimate control, influenced
through significant legislation, international and domestic laws, and informs the actions of nationalist and
anti-nationalist initiatives in Hawai'i. Some nationalists look to International Law and appeal to the
International Court of Arbitration in the face of American occupation. Others follow the de-colonization
process already laid out by international instruments. Yet others prescribe to a strategy that centres on
aboriginal Hawai'ian needs and efforts of reparation and reconciliation through U.S. domestic laws. Each
avenue has positive and negative aspects, which will affect the future of aboriginal Hawai'ian as well as
everyone in Hawai'i.
Cunningham, Alain M. (1995) "Canadian Indian policy and development planning theory." Ph.D. Dissertation,
University of British Columbia (The). 371 pp.
This thesis addresses questions of how development planning theory has influenced policy-making for Indians
in Canada and how it could be improved for making better policies in the future. These questions are
considered around a nexus of central state-Indian relations. There is a focus on the multi-dimensional
problems of poverty faced by many reserve communities, especially of those located in more rural and remote
regions. The thesis criticizes the serious dualism within and between prevailing development doctrines and
proposes remedies through a 'relational' approach.
An original typology categorizes 'substantive' development planning theories into two opposing doctrines.
The more dominant liberal assimilationist doctrine centres on modernization theory and internalizes blame
on Indians for their 'own' problems, but is challenged by radical autonomist doctrine which centres on
underdevelopment theory and its 'internal colony' variant, and contrarily externalizes blame onto the state. A
third body of reformist planning is grounded in the practices of welfare statism.
Relational analysis of the history of Indian policy shows that underdevelopment of Indian communities has
been caused by the interaction of both external and internal causes. Liberal doctrine strongly influenced the
central state's assimilative agenda during the 'traditional' era of Indian policy, including its oppressive
'reserve system' and landmark 1969 White Paper. It is agreed that radical criticism properly reveals the
racism and economic exploitation underlying state-sponsored process of 'internal colonization', and also
helps to explain the consequent rise of Indian ethnic nationalism. However, it is concluded that radical
criticism does not adequately explain events in the 'contemporary era' where Indian leaders have more
influence over policy-making, but have expended much of their energies pursuing a 'modernist' nationalist
agenda in a power struggle with the central state. The resulting policy vacuum between the deadlocked
liberal state and radical Indian positions has been filled by default with misguided reformist programs of
welfare statism, with terribly destructive effects in many reserve communities.
The criticism of current development theories when applied in practice is reinforced by their criticism as
theories. The deficiencies of current 'substantive' development theories are shown to be endemic because of
shortcomings in their underlying 'process' planning theories. In particular, the reductionist dualism of
extreme liberal and radical development doctrines, which contributes to polarization in practice, is revealed.
Instead of the current practice of applying single explanations and prescriptions to Indian policy-making, a
relational approach is advocated which selectively combines liberal, reformist, and radical perspectives.
The thesis concludes with an exposition of how a relational approach can be applied to examine widespread
poverty and dependency in reserve communities as an interconnected 'external/internal' problem, and,
leading from this, to propose mutually-reinforcing state and community actions.
D'Aoust, Ian L. (1998) "The idea of barbarism in the American mind: Progress, liberty, and the American Indians,
1750-1835." Ph.D. Dissertation, Yale University. 274 pp.
The 18th century idea of barbarism was instrumental in determining how Native Americans were perceived
and treated in the Revolutionary era. The present scholarly tendency is toward viewing American Indians as
anthropologically exceptional, with the presumption that special ideas and interpretive theories were applied
toward understanding the natives' societies and ways. In the 18th century, however, no such exceptionalism
obtained. Those ideas by which Thomas Jefferson and John Adams understood natives were those by which
they explained the histories and genesis and mores of their own societies.
Barbarism in the 18th century consisted of a series of mores and vices to which all peoples were prone. The
Indians did not embody the barbaric mores, exactly, rather they exhibited them to a much greater degree
than did other peoples. The scholarly tendency to believe that Indians needed to forsake completely their
national, Indian character in order to be assimilated and civilized into American culture rests upon a
misapprehension of the 18th century idea of barbarism. Indians, like the ancient, aboriginal French,
possessed a distinct national character and a distinct human character which existed independent of their
barbarism. An assimilated Indian would have remained an Indian, as a Frenchman remained French, but
both would be civilized.
The intellectual trends of the 18th century informed the genesis of civil society as much as they informed an
idea of barbarism. The cyclical theory of history, the growth of human reason, the idea of telos, the necessity
of law, the problem of property, and the requirement to labour all applied equally to Indians as to Americans
and all others. The irony of 18th century American Indian history is that the policies that the Jeffersonians
used in attempting to assimilate the Indians were crafted from the same conjectured histories they employed
to explain their own genesis and civilization. What worked for the Americans failed when applied to the
natives, and the Jeffersonians could not explain this failure without reneging on the ideas of republicanism
and the Revolution.
Dabulskis, Susanne E. (1997) "Outsider research: How white writers 'explore' native issues, knowledge, and
experiences." M.A. Thesis, University of Toronto. 159 pp.
This thesis explores the perceptions of six non-aboriginal, employed knowledge producers (academics, film-
makers, journalists) who are of Euro-Canadian background, and whose work is primarily on aboriginal
issues and peoples. The author, also an outsider researcher of Euro-Canadian descent, begins by noting that
a cultural genocide is presently occurring in Canada with respect to aboriginal people. Through exploring in
depth aboriginal views on knowledge production, including the concept of writing as resistance, the thesis
shows how aboriginal peoples have clearly articulated their need to 'tell their own stories' and how critical
are the issues of access and appropriation to the aboriginal communities faced with cultural genocide.
Exploring the views of white knowledge producers using qualitative research methods, the thesis is able to
show that, often, white writers defend their 'right' to work on aboriginal issues through relying on a
conceptual framework of cultural difference. That is, aboriginal peoples are seen as culturally different from
the mainstream, as peoples who require 'help' in telling their stories. The thesis concludes that white
knowledge producers will contribute to cultural genocide unless they become critically aware of aboriginal
views, and of the impact of their own activities on a continuing cultural genocide. Relying on roles such as
facilitators or bridges between cultures enables white knowledge producers to minimize the continuing
oppression of aboriginal people in which they play a part. The study is grounded in critical race theory, and
is a reflection of the discourse of cultural difference and its relation to the knowledge production of dominant
groups within society. The importance of social responsibility, tracing one's power and privilege as it enters
into exchanges between Native and non-Native people, and recognizing one's complicity as Euro-Canadian
group members in a racist society like Canada's, is emphasized.
Dahl, Kathleen A. (1990) "Sovereignty, environmental use and ethnic identity on the Colville Indian reservation."
Ph.D. Dissertation, Washington State University. 264 pp.
Over the past two decades, there has been a world-wide upsurge in ethnic and nationalist sovereignty
movements, including the efforts of tribal and indigenous groups to maintain or re-establish autonomous
control over their own territories, resources and destinies. American Indian tribes, as participants in these
sovereignty movements, are regaining political and economic authority over their lands and people. The
Colville Confederated Tribes and the Colville Indian Reservation in Washington state provide a case study of
one Native American group's long and difficult quest for sovereignty. Using an ethnohistorical approach
focusing on the Colville Tribes' use of the environment, this dissertation examines some important economic
and environmental upheavals experienced by the Colville Tribes since the establishment of the reservation in
1872, and analyzes the impact of these changes on ethnicity and tribal identity. Major works by
anthropologists Charles F. Keyes, Leo A. Despres and John H. Bodley provide theoretical foundations for
this analysis. The following historical periods and/or events are examined: the establishment of the Colville
Reservation and its subsequent allotment (1870-1910); the era of the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934
(1925-40); the construction of Grand Coulee and Chief Joseph Dams on the Columbia River (1933-55); the
termination period (1953-71); the Indian Self-Determination Act (1971-89); and the 1990s and the future.
This dissertation ends with a summary of the characteristics that distinguish Colville tribal identity from that
of non-Indians, as well as a discussion of the relevance of Marxist theory to American Indian ethnicity and
sovereignty, and the preferability of the term and concept of 'adaptation' as opposed to 'acculturation' when
examining ethnic change. It is argued that an Indian tribe's ethnic identity is no less valid for having
changed.
Dale, William S. J. (1936) "The Mäori of New Zealand: A socio-educational study in race relations." Ph.D.
Dissertation, Yale University. 411 pp.
This study is introduced by a brief survey of the impacts on native life in New Zealand. From the historical
data presented the inferences are drawn that the development of the native is, in a large measure, one which
he himself prefers to control. The four sections which comprise the main thesis, that the Mäori of New
Zealand can only develop when in a position to control the forces which shape his life, are set out in order of
history, and concern themselves with the following detailed survey:
Section One: Primitive education in New Zealand, in which are shown the influences brought to bear on the
child almost from birth; the delimitation of the duties according to sex and birth (breeding); the relation
between the life of the child and the social organization wherein he is to take a place; the positive
educational institutions which are brought to bear upon him; and, the relation between the individual and the
village as a reflection of this system. A summary of the section shows the relation between the psychological
and the practical.
Section Two: The transition period, when the native first saw the white man as a permanent factor in his life.
The contribution of the sealer, the whaler and the trader in the adjustment of the native to a new mode of
living and a new set of concepts. The work of the missionaries as a definitely educative factor in the life of the
people. The section concludes with an examination of the psychological effects of theses impacts.
Section Three. In this section a critical examination is made of the system of native education, keeping in
mind the definition of the terms as set out in Section One. The historical bases for the system, and the critical
periods are considered for their effects on the people as a whole. The question is also considered from the
native angle and a short consideration is developed of the factors which the native has placed in the way of
development of the factors which the native has placed in the way of development from the pakeha aspect.
The merits of living or learning as the basis for an educational policy to be applied to the Mäori form the
central thought.
Section Four. How best to meet the needs of the people is developed in the last section. If the thesis that self-
determination is the mainspring of action in the development of the Mäori people then, in the light of modern
psychology, educational and sociological principles the shaping of the pattern for the educational growth
and development must be in accordance with this aim. The system should include not only schooling, but a
development plan that takes in the whole matter of living -- socially, economically, and spiritually.
Dalla, Rochelle L. (1996 ) "American Indian Navajo adolescent parenting: Multiple perspectives within context."
Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Arizona (The). 398 pp.
In this descriptive investigation, Navajo Native American teenage parenting was examined. Two goals were
addressed. To begin, despite high rates of teenage parenting on the Navajo Reservation, in comparison with
the country in general, no literature exists examining this topic. In response, the first goal was to examine
Navajo teenage parenting from a broad, inclusive perspective. Bronfenbrenner's (1989) Ecological System's
Theory comprised the theoretical foundation for accomplishing this task.
Second, this investigation was conceptualized in reaction to the extant teenage parenting literature which
paints an oversimplified picture of youthful parenting, and which largely characterizes adolescent mothers as
"deviant." In this investigation, teenage parenting was examined through the lives of those women
experiencing it, divorced from the typically applied "medical model" framework. Principles of Postmodern
Feminism provided an alternative perspective from which to view teenage parenting.
To capture the essence of the ecology of teenage parenting on the Navajo Reservation, three groups of
participants were included: Navajo adolescent mothers provided an individual/personalized perspective,
their own mothers provided an historical/cross-generational perspective, and community members provided
a global/community wide perspective. Each participant was interviewed at length; data were recorded,
transcribed and then analyzed using Phenomenological Descriptive Analysis (Colaizzi, 1978).
Data analysis resulted in the teenage mothers being classified according to their expressed degree of
identification with two roles, namely, those of mother and adolescent. Results suggested that role
identification may be a powerful construct, or developmentally structuring attribute (Bronfenbrenner, 1989),
from which to examine individual orientations and reactions toward teenage parenthood.
Grandmothers were classified according to the amount of support each provided her teenage daughter and
grandchild(ren) and was significantly affected by the youths' role identification. Community members
concurred that teenage parenting was not condoned, but that teenage mothers were supported by their
families or extended kin.
Results from this investigation (a) affirm the heterogeneity both within and among teenage parenting
populations, and their families, and (b) may be utilized to enhance existing models of adolescent parenting
which overlook key individual differences.
Dames, Vivian L. (2000) "Rethinking the circle of belonging: American citizenship and the Chamorros of Guam."
Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Michigan. 704 pp.
In this dissertation I explore a fault line in the historicity of inclusion and exclusion in the “circle of
belonging” as equal citizens in the United States through a case study of the experience of the Chamorros of
Guam as US citizens and as an indigenous people in an unincorporated territory seeking decolonization. The
Guam case raises important questions, from an indigenous perspective, about the meaning of citizenship,
equality, national identity, and difference which are absent from the American story. The central questions
are: What is the significance of the Guam story in terms of theorizing and historicizing national citizenship?
In what ways did the grant of formal citizenship serve to integrate the Chamorros of Guam into the national
community and to foster a common sense of “being American”? What is the relation between being a citizen
and being indigenous as national identities? These questions are explored using an interdisciplinary
narrative approach to analyzing text from multiple sources with attention to the themes of indigenous
resistance, formation, and reformation of collective identities. This process is examined diachronically, from
pre-contact to the present, and synchronically, through three recent episodes of opposing claims to national
political, civil, and social rights. This research debunks the myths of the United States as an immigrant
country and as “One Nation Under God” and reframes Guam's quest for commonwealth as not only about
the claiming of individual and collective rights but as creating a political opportunity for the United States to
develop an alternate model of belonging, one that values “deep diversity”, including more diverse forms of
cultural and political membership, and that accommodates rather than subordinates national identities. I
argue that the success of this project of decolonization with inclusion requires a renarrativization of the
Chamorros as a national, not ethnic, minority. Such a reworking would more clearly differentiate Guam's
ambiguous history of “incorporation” and the desire of the people of Guam for greater autonomy within a
mutually negotiated relation with the United States. Rejecting this opportunity in the name of common
citizenship is likely to promote growing alienation among some Chamorros in Guam and may jeopardize US
interests in the Asia-Pacific region. A fully integrative, multicultural citizenship for these Americans requires
both universal rights, assigned to individuals regardless of group membership, as well as certain group-
differentiated rights or “special status” for the Chamorros.
Dana, Pamella J. (1996) "Commercial enterprise ownership among Aboriginal Australian women: Economic control
through entrepreneurship." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Southern California. 209 pp.
The growing influence of Aboriginal women as emerging entrepreneurs presents them as a significant
component of the Australian economy. Moving from traditional subsistence providers through welfare
dependence, Aboriginal women today are positioning themselves in the normally male dominated, non-
Aboriginal world of commercial enterprise. These commercial entrepreneurs are found throughout Australia
where they own a diverse range of ventures from rural bee farms to urban movie production companies. Yet,
despite their numbers, few non-Aboriginal Australians have heard of even one commercial enterprise effort
accomplished by Aboriginal women.
This study takes a first time look at the phenomenon of Aboriginal women commercial entrepreneurs, and
investigates the various cultural, social, economic, and educational factors which affect them in the
entrepreneurial process. Through interviews with 76 Aboriginal Australian women entrepreneurs, the
research focuses on the reasons advanced for commercial enterprise ownership, the impact which social and
cultural factors have had on entrepreneurial endeavours, the educational and economic issues affecting
entrepreneurship, the varied strategies the women develop to succeed in enterprise ownership, and the
prospects they offer to national development efforts.
This study concludes that while social and cultural factors are vitally important to Aboriginal women in their
entrepreneurial choices and commercial endeavours, the women's motivation to be economically
independent, in control of income, and able to care for domestic needs will supersede the social stigma they
risk from entrepreneurship. Yet, there are greater institutional factors which detrimentally affect, if not
outright impede, the entrepreneurial aspirations of Aboriginal women. In particular, the lack of capital
available to Aboriginal women has been recognized as a leading factor affecting their long-term success in
commercial enterprise. Policy recommendations and future research needs are identified in response to the
critical findings of the study.
Danelski, Christine M. (2003) "Trauma and typology: 'The Last of the Mohicans' and its filmed versions (1909-92)."
Ph.D. Dissertation, Claremont Graduate University (The). 193 pp.
This study compares The last of the Mohicans by James Fenimore Cooper with five of its filmed versions:
Leather stocking (1909), The last of the Mohicans (1920), The last of the Mohicans (1932), The last of the
Mohicans (1936) and The last of the Mohicans (1992). These comparisons demonstrate and comment upon
how American ideas about race and gender have been constructed and reconstructed since the 19th century.
Film adaptations are not only a reworking of the original text, but may include any cultural references that
have accumulated around the original or subsequent versions at the particular time the adaptation is made.
Adaptation is fundamentally a phenomenon of repetition. It formally announces its self-consciously
referential status most often by claiming the original text's title as its own. I situate film adaptation next to
two other modes of repetition -- trauma and typology -- phenomena of compulsive repetition -- to understand
why this particular narrative has been revised so many times.
While traumatic repetition is involuntary and due to disassociation, typological exegesis is deliberate and
formal, fundamentally a narrative technique which recycles narrative in response to cultural anxiety around
issues of identity and historical culpability. I locate the impetus for The last of the Mohicans repetition in an
anxiety about national origins and identity, specifically guilt concerning the extirpation of indigenous
peoples during the colonization of North America. This extirpation is the trauma that the repeated narrative
continually represses. The trauma of the 'massacre' by Native Americans of the British and colonials after the
French victory at Fort William Henry in August, 1757 is substituted for the trauma of the extirpation of
Native Americans during the 18th and 19th centuries. Moreover, more often than not, the trauma of the Fort
William Henry 'massacre' is evaded as well. This historical and cultural analysis tracks the colonial and
national treatment of Native Americans, the development of the Hollywood studio feature and how
colonialism, masculinity and race are depicted and re-enacted in these six texts.
Danielson, Dale L. (1992 ) "Comorbidity of substance abuse and other mental disorders among Native Americans."
Ed.D. Dissertation, University of Tulsa (The). 117 pp.
The purpose of this study was to examine the rate of comorbid mental disorders in a sample of Native
American substance abusers. The subjects were 90 Native Americans currently receiving treatment for
substance abuse problems. None had been previously diagnosed with any other mental disorder. The subjects
were asked to complete a questionnaire about family environment and family substance abuse in the family of
origin. They were also given either the Diagnostic Interview Schedule Screening Inventory (DISSI) for the
adults or the Diagnostic Interview for Children and Adolescents-Revised (DICA-R) for adolescents. This was
done to screen for DSM-III-R diagnoses.
The results were compared with the rates of comorbidity of substance abuse and other disorders from the
National Institute of Mental Health Epidemiological Catchment Area Studies. The present study showed a
significantly higher rate of comorbidity of substance abuse and other mental disorders (p < .001) than the
ECA Study using the Chi Square method. The comorbid rates for substance abuse and depression and
antisocial personality disorder were also significantly higher (p < .001) than the ECA Study.
It was hoped the data from the questionnaire would yield information regarding the aetiology of comorbidity
in this population. It was predicted that a warm nurturing environment in childhood would result in less
comorbidity. In order to test this, the adjectives from the questionnaire regarding parental caretakers and
home environment were subjected to a factor analysis. Four factors were extracted and compared on rates of
comorbidity. The four factors were nurturing, uncaring, authoritarian, and strife-filled. In general, the results
did not support the hypothesis. However, low scores on the nurturing factor were correlated with drug abuse
disorders, generalized anxiety disorder, depression and antisocial personality disorder. There was no
significant relationship between comorbidity and caretaker's drinking.
Recommendations were made for further study, including epidemiological studies to get getter figures on the
incidence and prevalence of mental disorders, including comorbid disorders in the Native American
population. In addition, the results appear to support the need for more individualized assessment and
treatment planning for dual diagnosis in Native American substance abuse treatment programs.
Dark, Alx V. (1998) "Public sphere politics and community conflict over the environment and native land rights in
Clayoquot Sound, British Columbia." Ph.D. Dissertation, New York University. 421 pp.
Based on seven months of fieldwork and subsequent archival research, this dissertation provides a social
history of a 20 year conflict over logging and native land rights in Clayoquot Sound, which lies on the west
coast of British Columbia, Canada. Due to an early alliance between local environmentalists and Nuu-chah-
nulth (formerly Nootka) Indian political leaders, who were pressing for government recognition of Nuu-chah-
nulth aboriginal title, the two political issues of environmental protection and native land rights have been
closely associated in Clayoquot Sound politics. In later years, counter-environmental organizations (known
collectively as the Share Movement) also formed in the area to oppose reductions in logging, in a series of
political processes which generated friction between environmentalists and Nuu-chah-nulth leaders. In
recounting this history of alliances and opposition between local people, my theoretical purpose is to
examine assumptions in social movement theory about the nature of political relations. I argue that local
residents and representatives of government and industry construct and contest social movements and
government authority through public political 'dramas', such as planning committees and protests. These
social dramas provide a public sphere through which residents and institutional representatives enact,
experience and contest political authority and the legitimacy of political relations. Expanding further on the
cultural construction of political relations, I argue that political interaction between residents has been
organized through discourses about social difference (particularly class, urban-rural differences and race,
but also including gender). Finally, new definitions of 'community' arise from these discourses when residents
of the Sound interpret opposition by other residents as an expression of the coercion or co-optation of local
groups by government and industry (seen as external and therefore illegitimate political forces). Increases in
violence and harassment over logging issues in the 1990s can be interpreted in part as a response arising
from these new conceptions of the local community, besieged not only by conflicts over these land policy
issues, but also disrupted by larger economic and social changes.
Daschuk, James W. (2002) "The political economy of Indian health and disease in the Canadian northwest." Ph.D.
dissertation, University of Manitoba (The). 511 pp.
The dissertation identifies the origins of the present disparity of health conditions between Indian
communities and mainstream society in western Canada. It examines the relationship between economics and
health of Indian populations in the Canadian northwest from the early 1eighth century to the end of the 19th
century. It documents the development of the fur trade in relation to changes in the geographical distribution
of aboriginal societies resulting from the differential impact of introduced European diseases. For a period
of 150 years, infections that came as a consequence of trade were the primary source of mortality due to
illness among First Nations. In addition, social pathologies resulting from European trade strategies affected
the well being of communities in the northwest. Climate and environment contributed to the differential
success of many groups integrated into the global economy through the fur trade.
Canada's acquisition of the northwest changed this pattern. Its commitment to the terms of treaties opened
the west for agricultural development and settlement. The Dominion's development strategy, the National
Policy, coincided with the extinction of the bison, undermining the ability of plains Indians to compel the
government to deliver on their treaty commitments. To facilitate the implementation of its economic and
political order, the Dominion used its famine relief strategy as a means to subjugate them. By the early
1880s, tuberculosis emerged as a full blown epidemic among the Indians of the plains. The spread of
tuberculosis through the Indian population of the plains was the result of the protracted period of
malnutrition. Punitive measures imposed after the brief armed resistance to Dominion hegemony further
weakened the population already largely infected with the disease. Severe mortality weakened the population
already largely infected with the disease. Severe mortality resulted from the spread of acute infectious
disease among the compromised population. Within 15 years of signing treaties many plains populations
declined to their demographic nadir.
Daubenmier, Judith M. (2003) "The Meskwaki and Sol Tax: Reconsidering the actors in action anthropology." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of Michigan. 394 pp.
In 1969, Native American activist Vine Deloria, Jr. stunned anthropologists with a blistering critique of their
profession in his book Custer died for your sins. Deloria labelled anthropologists a “plague of locusts” that
descended upon Indian communities each summer, living off grant money and gathering information for
books that were irrelevant to poor Indians. Deloria's critique, however, overlooked an effort 20 years earlier
to practice anthropology in a more ethical manner, called “action anthropology.” In 1948, some residents of
the Meskwaki settlement near Tama, Iowa, delivered their own grass-roots critique of anthropology to
graduate students from the University of Chicago. Through subtle hints and blunt questions, they
demonstrated their resentment at being studied and their expectations of reciprocity from the researchers. In
response, University of Chicago anthropologist Sol Tax and his students committed themselves to
collaborating with community members on goals they set. In the encounter, Meskwaki individuals
manipulated their would-be helpers and set limits on their behaviour. Previous analyses of action
anthropology on the Meskwaki settlement focused on its scholarship program and arts and crafts project on
the settlement, but the project's influence went beyond that. Some settlement residents said contact with the
anthropologists deeply influenced them by allowing them to come to know whites for the first time or making
it possible for them to attend college. A decade of carrying out action anthropology on the Meskwaki
settlement also helped to mold Tax's views on federal Indian policy and to establish his credentials as a
consultant in that field. Tax spent much of the rest of his career promoting themes that emerged in his
experiences at Tama -- self-determination for Native Americans, leadership development in Indian youth,
higher education for Indians, and cultural freedom. Until now, knowledge of Tax's contributions to Indian
activism of the 1960s has been limited to his organization of the 1961 American Indian Chicago Conference.
Tax's career, however, had other links to Indian political activity. A close examination of the effects of Tax's
relationship with the Meskwaki shows his influence on Bob Thomas, who developed the concept of internal
colonialism, as well as Tax's role in summer workshops for youth that brought together many of the next
generation of Indian leaders. Thus, the encounter between the Meskwaki and Chicago anthropologists
emerges not only as another way of doing anthropology but also as another source of 1960s Indian activism.
Davies, Sarah J. (1996) "Appropriate planning for Aboriginal self-determination." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of
South Wales.
This thesis investigates the practice of Aboriginal community planning in order to establish how planning by
Aboriginal people can empower them to pursue aspirations for collective self determination. Planning
empowers people if it adds to the information, knowledge and control they have over decisions that affect
their lives. However, much of the planning that is undertaken by governments acts to perpetuate Aboriginal
oppression. The study used action research methods through which the researcher worked as planning
facilitator with Irrwanyere, a large extended Aboriginal family whose ancestors lived in the Simpson Desert,
and Wallaga, a smaller group of Aboriginal people who live on the far south coast of New South Wales.
Investigation of the basis for community self definition was a necessary starting point for establishing how
planning can be appropriate to each group's aspirations for self determination. 'Country and culture'
provided a central structuring principle for the vision, goals and strategies articulated in each planning
process and for addressing issues related to sustainable development. Each case study implemented a
participatory, developmental planning process and also documented community plans for use in
communication and negotiation with stakeholders. The study found that planners need a wide variety of skills
to be effective in such contexts but foremost the capacity to work with the authority and skills of community
members. It confirms that planning needs to be an on-going, flexible and adaptive process, integrally linked
to management, if it is to achieve its potential for Aboriginal empowerment. The study establishes the
difficulties that Aboriginal people have in obtaining long term support from governments for their planning
and particularly for implementing approaches to community development that are structured around
sustaining their relationships to land and natural resources. It concludes by proposing a strategy for
improved government support for community based planning by Aboriginal people which would also
facilitate Aboriginal participation in government planning processes and the negotiation of regional
agreements about Aboriginal rights, aspirations and resources for self determination.
Davis, Michael G. (1988) "The cultural preadaptation hypothesis: A test case on the southern Plains." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of Oklahoma (The). 264 pp.
Recent contributions to the Americanist literature suggest that ecological adaptations and cultural
evolutionary statuses constitute levels of preadaptation for contact with large-scale societies. These studies
suggest that those sociocultural systems farthest removed from the universal human heritage of hunting and
gathering and with the highest levels of sociopolitical organization have an evolutionary-based advantage in
contact situations. The cultural preadaptation literature is reviewed and a testable hypothesis formulated.
This preadaptation hypothesis is tested diachronically from the earliest recorded contacts through the early
1980s using southern Plains Indian materials. The hypothesis was not supported by the data reviewed.
Davis, Tracy R. (2001) "The role of First Nations in oil and gas development under federal regulatory regimes:
Options for change and lessons from New Zealand." LL.M. Thesis, University of Ottawa. 144 pp.
The objective of this thesis is to determine what role First Nations have under federal oil and gas regulatory
regimes and to make recommendations to enable them to participate in oil and gas development. The author
argues that there are persuasive legal and policy grounds to support an active role for First Nations in oil
and gas development within their traditional territories. This position is supported through a comprehensive
analysis of three federal oil and gas regimes (Northern, Offshore and Indian Reserve Regimes), their
legislative frameworks, and recent developments in aboriginal jurisprudence and policy. An assessment of
what role First Nations have under the federal environmental assessment regime is undertaken to supplement
the overall analysis. The thesis is further supported by an international comparative component that
highlights contemporary resource management issues in New Zealand.
De Macedo, Patricia M. (1995) "First Nations and the establishment of protected areas in British Columbia: A case
study of the campaign to protect the Kitlope watershed." M.R.M. Thesis, Simon Fraser University. 110 pp.
Although native groups have historically been marginalized in protected area planning processes and
establishment, there have been several instances in which First Nations have sought permanent protection for
portions of their traditional territory. In doing so, they have utilized a variety of mechanisms, including direct
action campaigns, litigation, treaty negotiations and government-initiated processes. First Nations' concerns
regarding land tenure and aboriginal rights, designation options, joint-management and exclusion from
decision-making, often arise during these processes. At times, aboriginal groups have joined with
environmentalists to further their cause, however due to the often different priorities of the two groups, these
coalitions are sometimes unsuccessful. In the campaign to protect the Kitlope watershed in north-western
BC, the Haisla First Nation and Ecotrust, an environmental organization, formed such a coalition. The two
groups successfully achieved protection of the watershed with a minimum of confrontation with industry and
without the massive public attention of many other environmental campaigns. The Haisla Nation's role in the
campaign was distinctive in comparison to other campaigns involving First Nations and contributed greatly
to the Kitlope's protection. Other factors that influenced the final result were the favourable political climate,
the low timber values, the high ecological values of the area and effective campaign management by the
Haisla and Ecotrust. The government-to-government relationship of First Nations to the province is not
recognized nor is aboriginal traditional ecological knowledge incorporated into the site selection or gap
analysis processes. Finally, there is a lack of coordination with treaty negotiations, a link which may be of
considerable importance to the continued viability of existing protected areas.
De Vere, Katherine M. (1995) "Aboriginal diversity and politics in Canada." M.A. Thesis, University of Windsor. 162
pp.
In assessing the progress toward a mutually acceptable agreement on aboriginal issues between native
Canadians and Canadian governments, it is apparent that several obstacles have come to derail the process.
This study attempts to identify one of those impediments: diversity within the native Canadian community.
This study outlines two particular types of diversity within the native Canadian community: historically-
based diversity and legally-based diversity. It also outlines the role that native Canadian organizations such
as the Assembly of First Nations and the Native Council of Canada have played in articulating this diversity.
The primary findings of this study are: (1) There is certainly historically-based diversity within the native
Canadian community; (2) there is certainly legally-based diversity within the native Canadian community;
and, (3) legal divisions within the native community, particularly those which dictate whether an individual
or group is granted status, have influenced the level of diversity within the native community by creating
different interests and agendas for status and non-status Indians respectively.
The conclusions of this study are that there is a significant amount of diversity which exists within the native
Canadian community, and that therefore there are a variety of interests held therein. In order for a mutually
acceptable agreement to be reached on native issues, Canadian governments must recognize the existence of
this diversity when formulating policies which affect native Canadians. Similarly, native Canadians must
recognize that diversity within their community makes devising a policy which will be acceptable to all is
virtually impossible.
Dean, Bartholomew C. (1995) "Chanting rivers, fiery tongues: Exchange, value and desire among the Urarina of
Peruvian Amazonia." Ph.D. Dissertation, Harvard University. 353 pp.
This is an ethnographic investigation of the Urarina, an indigenous Amazonian society inhabiting the
Chambira Basin of northeastern Peru. It is both a contribution to the political anthropology of social
inequality and to our basic understanding of symbolic forms. The interplay between the cultural and the
material conditions of Urarina society is the dissertation's primary focus: it is an exploration of the ways in
which the Urarina people organize their lives with regards to both subsistence and petty-commodity
production. Broadly speaking, the dissertation is an analysis of the historical reproduction of Urarina society
as it has both been inspired by, and resisted the violence of the colonial and post-colonial encounters. As
such, it explores the Urarina's involvement in regional and global political-economies, namely petty-
commodity production mediated through relations of debt-peonage. Turning to the 'internal' dynamics of
Urarina society, the dissertation critically examines how affinity and consanguinity are both mediated and
constituted by larger processes of marital and communal exchange, the creation of value and interpersonal
desire. Taking as its point of reference the circulation of phenomena and objects as diverse as narcotic
trance, palm-bast cloth, hunted bushmeats, myths, and shamanic wizardry, the dissertation investigates the
processes of detachment, transformation and equivalence corresponding to the Urarina's engagement with
market relations and the resultant commoditization of social life. The aim of examining the Urarina's
involvement in supra-local economic arrangements is to deepen our appreciation of the ways in which local
actors determine and are shaped by large-scale economic systems. Indeed, the thrust of this dissertation is to
expunge the idea of the isolated Amazonian society by attending to the region's long engagement with
purveyors of international capital, and its responses to the overtures of the 'outside world.' Finally, by
exploring the interplay between social practice, systems of belief, political oratory, and mythopoeic
discourse, the dissertation elucidates the Urarina's profound ambivalence towards their own position vis-à-
vis an assimilationist, self-aggrandizing national society.
Debassige, Brent D. L. (2003) "Navigating the rapids and stumbling through the bush: A study in understanding
resiliency through the lens of Anishnaabe." M.Ed. Thesis, Queen's University at Kingston. 183 pp.
I do not pretend to know about the hardships that my ancestors have faced, and I cannot expect my readers to
appreciate the dismemberment of a culture and way of life. I can only attest to the trials and tribulations that
I have faced, which pale in comparison to my people. I have had opportunities that not all of my people can
appreciate, and I try to be thankful for these things. I managed to accomplish a feat with which some
aboriginal people are having difficulty. I successfully completed a high school diploma, a college diploma,
and a university degree. I am Anishnaabe and I am a success, or am I?
The purpose of this qualitative study was to investigate resiliency (educational and cultural) amongst
Anishnaabe secondary students. To accomplish this purpose, I talked to four participants -- two school
completers and two school leavers -- (ages 21 to 32) about their relationship to culture and their perceptions
of their academic success.
The data displayed a moderate Anishnaabe cultural connection amongst the participants during elementary
school and a limited cultural connection during each participant's high school experience. However, upon
completion of high school, the high school completers maintained a limited cultural orientation, whereas the
non-completers strengthened their connection with traditional Anishnaabe culture.
I have created a thesis that is both symbolic in style and representational in meaning. Defying convention, I
have a constructed a thesis that was as much a process of self-exploration as it was conventional research.
the bulk of the thesis deals with resiliency through the eyes of my participants as well as through subjective
representation. In the context of holistic thought, I have facilitated a process of putting together a
collaborative work that draws on different ways (i.e. academic writing convention [linear] and storytelling
and experience-related writing [holistic]) of thinking and writing. Although the thesis may feel 'disjointed',
the intentional abruptness in the writing may permit some readers to experience the discomfort of turning the
proverbial holistic switch to the linear academic convention. many First nations students are expected to
switch immediately to an academic environment that may be conducive to mainstream cultural, but not
necessarily individual, maintenance. I hope this thesis helps readers relate, understand, and be confused,
because then varying degrees of aware ness have been achieved.
DeHart De Galicia, Monica C. (2001) "What is 'ethnic' about ethnic development? Cultivating community and local
power in Totonicapan, Guatemala." Ph.D. Dissertation, Stanford University. 245 pp.
This dissertation interrogates what is 'ethnic' about ethnic development in the context of the innovative
programs of Cooperación para el Desarrollo Rural de Occidente (CDRO) in the rural indigenous
communities of Totonicapán, Guatemala. CDRO is an explicitly Maya K'iche' organization that creatively
combines traditional cultural practice and modern technologies to construct a unique development model.
Through this structure, CDRO seeks to cultivate local power relative to the Guatemala state and the global
market. My research provides a detailed analysis of how CDRO uses specific components of local culture --
namely, the pop ('woven mat') organizational system and the community as a collective actor -- as concrete
tools for the development process. However, I problematize the notion of a stable, pre-existent ethnic identity
as the starting point for ethnic development by putting CDRO's notions about culture in conversation with
local perceptions of ethnicity in three Totonicapán communities. Based on my ethnographic study of one
model CDRO community and two non-CDRO communities, I argue that 'authentic' ethnic practice is
constantly redefined within the development process. Dynamic interpretations of local culture and its
relationship to development provide a means through which the rural communities strategically organize and
project their collective identity in their articulations with broader political and economic arenas. This study
also examines the concepts of 'local' and 'ethnic' in the context of two of CDRO's most compelling
development projects: it's gender program and its goal of cultivating poder local (local power). I analyze
attempts to develop a gender policy that complies with international development gender priorities, but which
is grounded in local cultural tradition rather than Western feminist theory. Additionally, I demonstrate how
emphasizing the 'local' offers CDRO a powerful political tool that is simultaneously attractive to the rural
ethnic community, global capital, and the development system, yet also reveals ways in which CDRO's
project has been formulated in conversation with the larger processes it appears to oppose. Throughout the
study, I point to how ethnic development functions as an important vehicle for subverting traditional
development priorities and for laying claim to new identities that disrupt the historical associations between
local/ethnic and development.
Dempsey, Catherine L. (2001) "Post-traumatic stress disorder symptomatology among American Indian Vietnam
veterans: Mediators and moderators of the stress-illness relationship." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of
Colorado at Boulder. 266 pp.
Results from the National Vietnam Veterans Readjustment Study (NVSRS) reported high rates of post-
traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among Vietnam Theatre veterans compared to rates in the Vietnam Era and
others of the veterans' generation. Prevalence rates were even higher among minority groups, specifically
Blacks and Hispanics. Results from the American Indian Vietnam Veterans Project (AIVVP) suggested that
American Indian Vietnam veterans were also at increased risk for PTSD. However, not all American Indian
veterans with high levels of trauma exposure developed PTSD, which suggests that other contributing factors
specific to American Indian populations may also affect their vulnerability to PTSD outcomes.
The objective of this study was to identify potential predictors of PTSD symptomatology across three military
timeframes and to examine the relationships among personal resources, trauma, and PTSD symptomatology
in American Indian Vietnam veterans. It was hypothesized that high levels of social support and ethnic
identity may enhance one's psychosocial resilience to stress, resulting in positive health outcomes. This study
was based on AIVVP data collected by the National centre for American Indian and Alaska Native Mental
Health Research (NCAIANMHR) at the University of Colorado Health Sciences centre.
Interviews with 621 American Indian Vietnam veterans living on or near their reservations assessed
predisposing factors, characteristics of military service, military and non-military trauma, personal
resources, and PTSD symptomatology. The results of hierarchical linear regression analyses showed a
strong relationship between social support and PTSD symptomatology across all time flames. Although
results did not support the stress-buffering hypothesis, combat trauma and social support during the military
interacted significantly. In addition, post-military social support appeared to mediate the relationship
between trauma and PTSD symptomatology. Identifying a relationship between social support and PTSD has
implications for the development of interventions used to treat PTSD in ethnic minorities. The impact of
personal resources on PTSD symptomatology may be important for traumatic survivors and long-term
strategies for victims of PTSD.
Dennis, Jeffrey W. (2003 ) "American revolutionaries and Native Americans: The South Carolina experience." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of Notre Dame. 359 pp.
This dissertation examines the impact of Native Americans upon American Revolutionary leaders and the
course of independence in South Carolina. Throughout British North America, members of the colonial elite
engaged with Indians. In the lower South, this interaction was especially extensive and significant to the
creation of the United States. Without their experiences with Native Americans, Thomas Sumter, Francis
Marion and Andrew Pickens would be unknown today; William Henry Drayton may have remained a
loyalist; and Henry Laurens, Christopher Gadsden and William Moultrie might not have achieved the status
and skills needed to help guide their state and nation through the Revolution. Key theatres for South
Carolina's colonial-native experience included the Anglo-Cherokee War, frontier trade and diplomacy, and
western land speculation. Besides helping to facilitate self-sufficiency, relations with Native Americans
helped shape the manner in which leading colonists approached the Revolution. Specifically, conservative
members of the southern elite such as Henry Laurens and John Rutledge identified their patriotism with
greater tolerance towards Indians than radical leaders such as Christopher Gadsden and William Henry
Drayton. The radicals rose to power with the coming of the Revolution and independence. During 1776, they
equated love of country with enmity towards Indians. Great violence was visited upon the Cherokees that
year; additional attacks were mounted thereafter. This violence expressed a deepening racism against
Indians in a region where racism against Africans already was deeply embedded. Following the war, some
conservative revolutionaries such as Andrew Pickens worked to protect the southern nations. Concerned with
national honour, during the late 1780s and 1790s, this leadership envisioned a strong central government
that could order the frontier and promote coexistence between natives and settlers. With the election of 1800,
however, southern radicals regained command. The southeastern nations eventually were removed. Leading
manuscript sources for this dissertation include records from the British Colonial Office, the Lyman
Copeland Draper collection, and various materials from the Charleston Library Society, South Caroliniana
Library, and South Carolina History Society. Many published documents and contemporary sources also are
included.
Desmarais, Diedre. (1998 ) "The Native Women's Association of Canada's struggle to secure gender equality rights
within the Canadian constitution." M.A. Thesis, University of Regina (The). 158 pp.
This thesis examines the evolution of the Native Women's Association of Canada as they embraced the
challenge to secure aboriginal rights for all First Nation women in Canada's Constitution. Between 1978 and
1995, the Native Women's Association vigorously pursued what they believed was their right to participate in
Constitutional negotiations as equal partners. They did not acknowledge present day First Nation political
organizations as being true First Nation governing bodies.
Thousands of Canadian First Nation women have been denied their rights as aboriginal persons due to the
Indian Act and a consequence of that legislation has meant that First Nation women have been marginalized
in Canadian society. Present day First Nation political governing bodies are a product of that legislation and
many political leaders sought to legitimize denial of aboriginal rights to First Nation women citing that true
self government meant the right to determine membership. The Native Women's Association of Canada chose
to challenge that premise using the very political tools which denied their right to now reassert them.
This thesis explores that struggle by examining the approach and position taken by both the national political
organizations and the Native Women's Association of Canada concluding that true self government does
mean determination of membership but that the women's rights to equality was of primary importance.
Devrome, Robert J. (1991 ) "Indian education: Resistance to internal colonialism." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of
Alberta. 165 pp.
This thesis is about the asymmetrical relations between Canada and the Indian Nations. It reviews colonial
and internal colonialism theory to describe the social, legal, political and economic relations between
superordinate and subordinate cultures. The history of the development of Canadian Indian policy is
described to explain the powers of the Canadian Government over Indian people and the education of Indian
children. Internal colonialism theory is used as a framework for the analysis of the relationship. It is also
used to show how the legal and administrative powers of Canada affect the individual and collective social,
civil and political rights of Indian people. The historical relations between the Joseph Bighead Cree and
Canada are described to show the realities of the asymmetrical relationship, and to provide a historical
context to the resistance of the Band to the structures that control them. Resistance theory is used in this
thesis to explain the social and political measures taken by the Joseph Bighead Band Government to change
the relationship with Canada. The self-defined aboriginal rights and powers of the Band are described. The
ideological support for the resistance, by the parents, students and Elders of the Band, is also described to
show the level of commitment to change that exists among the Joseph Bighead Cree.
Dickson, Elizabeth J. (1988) "Indians, law and land claims problems and postulates regarding juridical self-
determination for the Dene Nation." M.A. Thesis, Simon Fraser University.
DiNova, Joanne R. (2003) "Spiralling webs of relation: Movements toward an indigenist criticism." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of Waterloo. 295 pp.
This dissertation builds on indigenous theory as evident in the writing of Willie Ermine, Gregory Cajete,
Craig Womack, Jace Weaver, Laurie Anne Whitt, Linda Tuhiwai Smith, Viola Cordova, Dennis McPherson,
and others. It works toward a criticism that, in accordance with the precepts of such theory, is community-
oriented. It argues for an examination of literature in terms of its function for (or against) the community, in
the expansive sense of the term. The examination of texts includes, perhaps emphasizes, critical writing about
native literature and people, such that, in many ways, the dissertation is more meta-critical than critical. It
seeks less to produce exhaustive criticisms of literary works, than to suggest the preparatory need for a re-
examination of prevailing approaches to indigenous literature. It does, however, engage in some limited
examinations of selected works of literature from an indigenist position.
In dealing with indigenous literature, the dissertation suggests that aboriginal theory offers a compelling
alternative to mainstream approaches. Postmodernism (which prevails theoretically in literary criticism) is
characterized by fragmentation, but aboriginal theory, which informs much of the literature, takes a fluid
view of language and existence and emphasizes a vibrant and pervasive connectedness. The criticism that
emerges in this dissertation, then, evaluates critical and literary texts according to the discursive action of
the text for (or against) the community. In addition to examining texts for social function, however, this
criticism reads from and looks for an indigenous worldview and attempts to establish connections of its own
to all of Creation. In other words, the dissertation seeks to infuse the practice of criticism itself with the
aboriginal worldview evident in the literature.
Dion-Buffalo, Yvonne. (1996) "Four generations: A story of a family of Plains Cree women." Ph.D. Dissertation,
State University of New York at Buffalo. 239 pp.
Canadian Indian history is about the gradual and ongoing dispossessions of land, natural resources, rights of
self-determination and other things of value to the indigenous peoples since the arrival of the Europeans. The
losses to indigenous nations included the great buffalo herds and access to other hunting and fishing
resources. Among the stories central to this history is that of the Indigenous women who were enfranchised
after Confederation in 1869. Their day-to-day experiences have gone largely unwritten and the impact of
enfranchisement on their lives remains generally obscured. I have re-examined this issue and how it has
impacted four generations of a family of Plains Cree women living in the prairie provinces of Alberta and
Saskatchewan. In 1946, when Monica Dion-Buffalo married nonstatus Indian and World War II veteran
George Gladeau, she lost her Indian status under Canadian law. She was removed from the Hobbema
membership rolls as were numerous Indian women despite protests from various Indian communities across
Canada. She experienced George Gladeau's family's history of displacement from the Passpasschase reserve
in 1888 -- a people wrongfully deprived of both land and rights as Indigenous nations. Canada has made
little attempt to retrieve the voices of these dispossessed peoples and to hear what has happened to them.
Their stories were muted and their voices relegated to the margins of western society. It can even be said
with some truth that within the native circle they are looked down upon. Sometimes their misdeeds appear in
newspapers with no adequate social context given to their stories. They do not write about themselves for the
most part because they do not have access to a literary education nor to publishers, increasingly, because
they have forgotten significant pieces of their history. The people within these stories do not understand what
has happened to them and how things got to be the way they are. This dissertation explores one Cree family's
history. First, a background was provided for the personal stories which were framed within an Indigenous
framework. Moving beyond literature read from many different western disciplines, a deliberate shift to
native oracy was made. The development of such a frame includes the evocation of cultural and personal
memory. This dissertation is a work in process and is the production of a distinctive form about the
traditional lives and experiences of four generations of Plains Cree women.
Dion, Susan D. (2002) "Braiding histories: Responding to the problematics of Canadians hearing First Nations post-
contact experiences." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Toronto. 300 pp.
What is remembered and forgotten in the study of aboriginal people and the study of Canada contributes to
an understanding of history that allows, indeed encourages, Canadians to distance themselves from and
abdicate their responsibility for attending to the ongoing conditions of injustice that are a part of the day-to-
day lived experiences of First Nations people in Canada. The Braiding histories project investigates and
describes how teachers and students comprehend and make use of texts that detail post-contact histories
between First Nations people and Canadian communities. It is a two part study that addresses both what it
means to (re)tell and the problematics of hearing. The first strand of this thesis addresses issues and
challenges in producing texts that contribute to a reformation of historical memory. Investigating dynamics
of denial, I explore the problematics of non-Aboriginal people hearing First Nations post-contact experiences
and investigate the pedagogical possibilities and difficulties of presenting testimony bearing on post-contact
First Nations -- Canadian History. Reflecting on the process of writing a series of stories titled Braiding
histories: Learning from the lives of First Nations people I think carefully about questions of (re)presenting
the lived experiences of Aboriginal people in the service of pedagogy. The second strand of the study is a
critical ethnography involving an investigation of what happened when the Braiding histories stories were
taken up in intermediate history classrooms. Using questions initiated by post-structural theory as a guide, I
look at how the teachers' understanding of their responsibilities as teachers, the structure of the school and
the history class in particular affect their approach to teaching the stories. The work of the project reveals
multiple and complex ways in which discourses of professionalism construct an approach to the stories that
reproduces dominant ways of knowing. The research contributes to an understanding of the force of
discursive practices in classrooms and opens up new possibilities for disrupting teaching and learning in
schools.
Dockstator, Mark S. (1994) "Towards an understanding of aboriginal self-government: A proposed theoretical model
and illustrative factual analysis." D.Jur. Dissertation, York University. 218 pp.
Aboriginal self-government will continue to be a major issue in Canada. This dissertation presents the
necessary theoretical background that, although developed from the philosophical teachings of aboriginal
society, serves as the basic framework for a more complete and comprehensive understanding of both the
aboriginal and the non-aboriginal perspective to self-government.
The work is divided into two parts: theoretical model and historical application. The first part sets out a
model based on traditional aboriginal philosophy which analyses the interaction between aboriginal society
and western society. In these five hundred years, the relationship has proceeded through five stages --
separation, amalgamation, divergence, dysfunction, and negotiation -- from the arrival of the first Europeans
in North America to the present negotiations on aboriginal self-government. In every stage, the
characteristics inherent in aboriginal society and western society are discussed, along with the internal
institutions in each society and the way these institutions affected their relationship. From the aboriginal
perspective the model is important in presenting the broad philosophical principles of both aboriginal and
western society which must be understood before there can be any useful discussion of the detailed
institutional arrangements of self-government.
The second part looks at several historical events chosen to illustrate the stages and characteristics of the
model: the Royal Proclamation of 1763, the constitutions of the United States and Canada, the Indian Acts of
1876 and 1927, the White Paper of 1969, the Supreme Court of Canada decisions of Calder (1971),
Nowegijick (1983), and Mitchell (1990), the Constitution Act of 1982, and, finally, the Charlottetown Accord
of 1992. Again, both the aboriginal and the western perspective of these events are discussed, leading to the
conclusion that, by the early 1990s, the basis for a common understanding of the self-government concept
had been established.
Doerr, Neriko M. (2000) "Learning to be different: The creation of subjects at a secondary school in Aotearoa New
Zealand." Ph.D. Dissertation, Cornell University. 476 pp.
This dissertation investigates the process of the creation of national subjects and the sense of differences in
an educational setting in Aotearoa New Zealand in the 1990s. Aotearoa New Zealand is a former British
settler colony coming to terms with three major shifts: its redefinition of nationhood from an 'England in the
South Seas' to a 'Pacific country;' the re-positioning of the indigenous people, Mäori, and the descendants of
the settlers, Pakeha; and an ongoing dismantling of the welfare state. I argue that, amidst these changes, the
sense of nationhood and ethnic, class, and gender differences are inculcated in students through diverse
practices at school. Each chapter illuminates different facets of this process with detailed analyses of
everyday practices, observed during a long-term ethnographic fieldwork at a secondary school, Waikaraka
College (an alias). First, this dissertation discusses the effects of schooling and argues that the school creates
interchangeable subjects by constantly shuffling students into groups and by forcing them to temporarily
form groups within the given mix of students. Through this process, school transforms students from the
family-based relationship of unique individuals to being national subjects and labour power that are based
on the interchangeability of individuals. Second, this dissertation examines the process by which students
label themselves and its link to the students' positions at school. For example, most students in the bilingual
(Mäori/English) classes identify themselves as being Mäori, while some students outside the bilingual class,
who are potentially considered as Mäori, describe themselves as having Mäori in them. Third, this
dissertation is concerned with the emerging relationship of nationalism and the market. Due to the free
marketization of education, many schools began seeking more non-governmental sources of income, such as
accepting foreign students with high fees. This internationalization of the student body, paradoxically, led to
the strengthening of New Zealanders' sense of nationhood through the foreign students exoticized cultural
performances, which were used to justify this sale of schooling as exposing students to 'different cultures.'
Through these analyses, this dissertation illuminates the minute processes of identification at school and their
relationships to the changing social landscapes.
Donald, Dwayne T. (2003) "Elder, student, teacher: A Kainai curriculum metissage." M.Ed. Thesis, University of
Lethbridge. 206 pp.
Aboriginal education is an ambiguous field of study that presents many challenging dilemmas for educators
today. A major part of this ambiguity stems from the tendency to emphasize traditional cultural values,
Aboriginal identity, and experiences as distinct and unique, and therefore essentially different from
mainstream approaches to education. By drawing upon the memories and narratives of my own Métis family
as well as the history and memories of the people of the Kainai community from the Blood Reserve in
Alberta, I confront some of these dilemmas in both personal and collective ways. Following Eduoard
Glissant, Francoise Lionnet, and Mark Zuss, I explore the character of the Kainai community as a métissage
of texts and genres which overlap, interact, juxtapose, and mix the textual contributions of an elder, a
student, and a teacher (myself) to create a more complicated portrait of the Kainai community that stretches
beyond the 'us versus them' binary. These texts are then interpreted using a (post)colonial framework largely
based upon the works of Frantz Fanon, Gerald Vizenor, Homi Bhabha, and Neal McLeod.
Dorsett, Shaunnagh G. (1996) "The Crown's fiduciary duties to indigenous Australians." M.A. Thesis, University of
Calgary. 259 pp.
In Canada and the United States, the Crown or government's fiduciary obligation to Indigenous peoples can
be a powerful tool in protecting aboriginal rights. Since the recognition of native title in Mabo v. State of
Queensland (No. 2) (1992) 175 C.L.R. 1, attention has turned to the issue of how native title is to be protected
and whether the fiduciary principle could similarly provide protection for aboriginal rights in Australia.
However, significant differences exist between the legal systems of Canada, the United States and Australia.
These differences make it unlikely that the fiduciary principle will play a major role in Australia in the
protection of aboriginal rights. In Australia, the fiduciary principle should be recognized as merely one of a
number of appropriate mechanisms for the protection of these rights. Although North American experiences
in the protection of aboriginal rights can provide a useful guide, care should be taken in applying
jurisprudence from other jurisdictions.
Doty, Colleen. (1996) ""For the peace of the community and the good order of society": Regulating aboriginal
marriage relations in British Columbia, 1870-1940." M.A. Thesis, Simon Fraser University. 121 pp.
Primarily using missionary and Department of Indian Affairs records, this thesis explores the confluence of
interest of three different groups of men who were united in their efforts to reform aboriginal marriage and
sexual relations in British Columbia. Between 1870 and 1940, missionaries, government agents, and Indian
men lobbied the federal government to initiate reforms that would regulate the relationships between native
men and women. Although these groups had different objectives to reforming the sexual relations of Indian
people, they agreed that the intimate relations of aboriginal people were fundamentally tied to the betterment
of society as a whole. These moral reformers believed that the state of marriage relations was highly
reflective of the state of society in general. In this way, the family was regarded as a microcosm of society.
Not only did the institution of marriage regulate the sexual, gender, economic, and/or rank and status
relations between the specific parties involved, but moral reformers of the late 19th and early 20th century
believed that the institution of marriage regulated 'larger' societal values. Because of this conviction,
missionaries, government agents, and Indian men -- all hoping to improve their society and community
appealed to the state for greater intervention into the sexual relations of Indian people.
Dowling, Peter J. (1998) "''A great deal of sickness'': Introduced diseases among the Aboriginal people of colonial
southeast Australia, 1788-1900." Ph.D. Dissertation, Australian National University. 370 pp.
Palaeopathological studies have sought to build up a picture of Australian Aboriginal health before
European settlement in 1788, and epidemiological studies of Aboriginal health in the 20th century are now
legion. But, despite a growing body of literature on Aboriginal history in the intervening colonial period, this
remains an under-studied period from the viewpoint specifically of Aboriginal health.
This thesis is a contribution to filling that gap through an examination of documentary and skeletal evidence
on the changing bio-medical situation experienced by Aboriginal populations of Southeast Australia from
1788 to 1900. This thesis examines one of the major biological components of this change -- the diseases that
were introduced into Australian Aboriginal populations during the process of colonization. The
epidemiology, timing, diffusion of diseases are considered with specific attention given to infectious and
respiratory diseases that were responsible for causing major epidemics of morbidity and mortality.
A medical model for the contact period in the late 18th and 19th centuries is proposed. This model considers
three major stages in the disease environment of Aboriginal populations in Southeast Australia; a pre-
contact stage with endemic pathogens causing chronic diseases and limited epidemics, an early contact stage
where introduced exotic human diseases cause severe epidemics of infectious and respiratory diseases among
Aboriginal populations, and a third stage where remaining Aboriginal populations were institutionalised on
government and mission settlements and were subjected to a high level of mortality from the introduced
diseases.
The major epidemic diseases during the early contact stage were smallpox, syphilis, tuberculosis, influenza,
and measles. Each of these diseases were responsible for excessive morbidity and mortality. During the
period of institutionalization infectious and respiratory diseases were responsible for over 50% of recorded
deaths on eight separate Aboriginal settlements in Southeast Australia. The major diseases recorded as
causes of death were tuberculosis, bronchitis, pneumonia, diarrhoea and dysentery.
Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Australian infant mortality rates are calculated to provide an indicator to
compare the state of health of the two populations. Aboriginal rates were high when compared to the non-
Aboriginal populations of Victoria and South Australia. The rates reveal a substantial health differential
between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal populations. Aboriginal infant mortality has improved into the latter
quarter of the 20th century but the corresponding improvement in non-Aboriginal infant mortality has been
at a much higher rate. The gap between the health status of each has widened rather than narrowed over the
last 100 years.
Downing, Paul J. (1995) "Applying a post-modern framework to native self-government in Canada." M.A. Thesis,
Concordia University. 122 pp.
Due to their historical occupation of this country prior to European settlement Aboriginal people have
special status in this country. Long viewed as wards of the Canadian state, Aboriginal people are no longer
willing to remain in that position. Today natives are exerting pressure on the Canadian state to recognize
them as self-governing people. This demand for self-government is one of the most complex issues facing the
Canadian state and threatens the sovereignty of the nation-state. To date, a number of attempts have been
made at arriving at a working form of native self-government. The Canadian state has been unsuccessfully
trying to develop a universal concept for self-government, applicable for all natives and binding to all ten
provinces. Instead what it should attempt is a community-based post-modern approach. Where each native
community is consulted as to what type of self-government that particular community wishes to realize.
Doyle-Bedwell, George H. (1998) "Whose face anyway? Images of First Nations protest and resistance in Kahnawake
and Kanesatake, Kanien'kehaka territory 1990: A study in the social construction of voice and image." M.A.
Thesis, Dalhousie University. 164 pp.
Many images are presented in the mass media coverage of an event. In the case of print media, those images
are found both in print and in photographs. I argue that, following the ideas presented by Berger and
Luckmann (1966) and Herman and Chomsky (1988), the images are neither made by nor are they
representative of the persons being reported on. This is especially true of images of First Nations protest.
Although other writers, Baylor (1996) and Miller (1993) for example, have presented a similar theme, never,
has this topic been written from a perspective that honours a mixed blood Mi'kmaw perspective while
exploring the subject in a Canadian context. Furthermore, I use personal experience methods in the design
and writing of this thesis in conjunction with my mixed blood Mi'kmaw voice. That combination means that
my thesis is also a personal story. Therefore, I wrote it in a story-telling manner.
I compared the images via a content analysis design, both in text and photograph, of the resistance to
colonial oppression by the Kanien'kehaka (Mohawk) at Kahnawake and Kanesatake (commonly known as the
'Oka Crisis') in the Summer of 1990 as presented in the Micmac News, Windspeaker, and Maclean's
magazine. My research was designed as a case study, therefore, it provides an understanding in depth rather
than in breadth.
My results support the Berger and Luckmann and Herman and Chomsky theses, that there was a definite
difference in the reporting of content and cultural context in the three periodicals. Furthermore, the
Maclean's coverage presented a stereotypically violent image of First Nations people. The Micmac News and
Windspeaker expressed information from a personal experience perspective as would be expected from First
Nations Traditions.
Since the Maclean's images represent stereotypical views of First Nations people, I suggest, following Baylor
and Miller, that those images act as a detrimental agent in First Nations and Euro-Canadian relations.
Stereotypical images, after Miller (1993) and Seigal (1989), may, if internalised (as I did), have a detrimental
effect on health. Therefore, i invite future researchers to explore the role of media images as an issue of First
Nations peoples' health.
Dreyer, Doris. (2005) "Impact and benefits agreements: Do the Ross River Dena benefit from mineral projects?" M.A.
Thesis, University of Northern British Columbia. 136 pp.
Impact and Benefits Agreements (IBAs) are arrangements between indigenous communities and industry to
secure long-term local benefits from resource development projects. These local benefits include matters
such as employment, training, economic development, business opportunities, social, cultural and community
services, environmental protection, and cash payments. Despite the increasing use of IBAs in remote regions
such as Alaska and the northern regions of Australia, Canada and Russia only limited information is
available about key requirements for successful IBAs. This thesis presents a case study undertaken in
collaboration with the Ross River Dena First Nation (Yukon). The study analyses the success of two IBAs
negotiated by the Ross River Dena for mineral projects, through the use of a theoretical IBA framework
developed from a review of current IBA literature. As the two analysed IBAs differed in outcomes, it was
possible to suggest criteria for success and failure of the agreements. These criteria can be used as
hypotheses in further study and issues of caution for other indigenous groups entering IBA negotiations with
industry.
Drzewieniecki, Joanna E. (1996) "Indigenous politics, local power, and the state in Peru, 1821-1968." Ph.D.
Dissertation, State University of New York at Buffalo. 544 pp.
This study uses a historical structural approach to analyze indigenous politics in the Peruvian Andes from
1821 to 1968 with particular attention to the distribution of power in the sierra, the political culture of
indigenous people and other Peruvians, and indigenous people's repertoire of political strategies. It is argued
that elite power was limited by various geographical, ecological, economic, and political factors that
provided indigenous people with opportunities to limit domination and advance their interests. Particular
emphasis is given to the role of elite conflicts, the considerable variation over time and space in the economic
situations of all sectors of sierra society, and the strength of indigenous political organization. Addressing
current debates regarding 'Andean culture,' this study concludes that the political behaviour of indigenous
people had its sources in the dynamic interaction of evolving institutional and cultural structures with roots
in Andean, Spanish, and Peruvian criollo traditions. Structures such as indigenous political organization and
legal norms, dualism, factionalism, reciprocity, kinship structure, and Peruvian legal culture were
continually recreated and modified in daily political interactions and had an impact on political behaviour
throughout the period. The term 'Andean culture' continues to be useful once it is redefined to take into
account cultural change and when it is linked to ethnicity. An analysis of indigenous strategies in the
Republican period based on selected cases shows that indigenous people had a basic repertoire of political
strategies for dealing with the rest of Peruvian society including the maintenance of their own political
institutions, alliance formation, negotiation, lodging of complaints, use of the Peruvian legal system, and
selective use of violence. New findings include the influence of intra-community political behaviour on
dealings with outsiders, the importance of traditional authorities in limiting abuses against indigenous
people, significantly greater intra- and inter-community cooperation on abuses than on land issues, the high
salience of political autonomy as a community goal, and the benefits of alliances on the local and national
levels. The evidence supports other recent research which demonstrates that indigenous political strategies in
the 19th and early 20th centuries were much more effective than previously hypothesized.
DuBois, Joan M. A. (2004 ) "Government termination policy and Canadian Indians: A fourth policy reality." M.A.
During the past thirty years Canadian 'Indian' policy has undergone significant changes. There is consensus
amongst First Nations people that the 1969 White Paper, although formally retracted by the federal
government in the early 1970s, has provided the framework for subsequent Canadian 'Indian' policy.
In this thesis a distinction is made between 'Indian' and' Aboriginal' policy whereby 'Indian' policy refers to
those groups of people legally defined as Indian according to the Indian Act. The policy distinction is needed
because it is these indigenous peoples that were the focus of the Statement of the Government on Indian
Policy (commonly known as the 1969 White Paper). While the literature shows that Indian policy was
formulated according to three policy goals (civilization, protection, and assimilation), this study will
investigate the extent to which termination and genocide was a fourth, and continued, federal Indian policy
objective. Indian termination policy has usually been discussed in reference to the American Indian
experience. Although termination and genocide are rarely allowed to enter into First Nations and indigenous
'Indian' discourse in Canada, First Nations and non-First Nations writers state that genocide has and
continues to be the indigenous experience in Canada.
As a fourth policy reality in Canada and part of the socio-political ideology of the indigenous 'Indian' or
First Nations in Canada, termination can be termed as the process and procedure in Indian policy while
genocide is the ideological frame of reference. In order to assess to what extent the 1969 White Paper has
influenced 'Indian' policy during the last ten years in Canada, a comparative analysis between the 1969
White Paper and the 1994 Manitoba Framework Agreement, First Nations Governance 2001, and the First
Nations Land Management Act will be included.
Early in the literature search, attention was paid to reviewing Indian policy documents and written materials.
Sally Weaver's 1981 work on Canadian Indian policymaking and the 1969 White Paper served as starting
points. I determined that 1982 would be the 'cut-off' year whereby Indian policy sources written before 1982
would be included. This cut-off date took into consideration the 1982 patriation of the Constitution as I
assumed that the new constitution would have ramifications for Indian policy. Post 1982 policy literature was
also reviewed and a further distinction was made resulting in the placement of Indian policy as part of
overall Aboriginal policy. First Nations policy becomes increasingly part of the discourse as a component of
Aboriginal policy or Indian policy and the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples is included as a
definitive example of Aboriginal policy.
A select grouping of policy documents pertaining to Indians, as defined by the Indian Act, are part of a
comparative analysis that also takes into account Canadian public policy-making in general. It is in this
section of the thesis that Indian termination policy is revealed as one of the three historic policy objectives of
the federal government.
'Generic' policy terms and analyses are applied to Indian policy and this discussion forms much of the thesis
chapters. By bringing public policy-making into the analysis of
Indian policy, any similarities across documents become apparent. The comparative analysis method was
necessary in order to determine the extent that the 1969 White Paper has been incorporated into subsequent
Indian policy.
My research shows that, although formally and publicly retracted by the federal government, the 1969 White
Paper policies were incorporated into future Indian policy initiatives. The important point is that the White
Paper policy proposals would not necessarily find their way into the most recognizable form of Indian policy,
the Indian Act, but would be manifest in related legislation pertaining to Indians and Indian lands. The study
concludes by showing that termination, and ultimately genocide will be a realized policy objective by
termination of 'Indian' ties to Reserve land.
Dudziak, Suzanne. (2000) "The politics and process of partnership: A case study of the Aboriginal Healing and
Wellness Strategy." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Toronto. 420 pp.
This dissertation explores new aboriginal-Canadian relations that seek to move beyond colonial social
relations and discourses. While both aboriginal and Canadian societies may desire a just and workable
relationship, competing visions and understandings of what constitutes the post-colonial operate as a sub-
text in actual policy negotiations between aboriginal and Canadian governments. Cultural difference, as
articulated through aboriginal epistemology and embodied in the aboriginal vision of co-existence, emerges
as an unexplored terrain in liberal discourse. This helps to explain why many attempts at dialogue fail at the
negotiating table. In addressing the issue of difference I argue that while liberal discourses may recognize
aboriginality as part of a pluralistic worldview, the failure to enter into and embrace the content of that
difference prevents new, truly bi-cultural relations from emerging. Because the content of difference is not
entered into, an important epistemological dimension is left out of most analyses of aboriginal-Canadian
relations. A discussion of aboriginal epistemology and postmodern positions on the issue of difference offers
a partial resolution and way forward. Following Leonard, a move from domination and oppression requires
a dual commitment to difference and to solidarity that is based on a different ethic, that of interdependence.
To understand the implications of this possibility for aboriginal-Canadian co-existence, I analyze the
development of the Aboriginal Healing and Wellness Strategy as a case study in joint policy-making
involving a partnership between aboriginal organizations and government ministries in Ontario. As a unique
exercise, this partnership provides an instructive example of how such relations can be constructed when
aboriginal difference is taken into account and employed. Based on participants' accounts and my own
engagement with aboriginal epistemology, this case study reveals key dynamics in terms of the politics and
the processes that can facilitate and impede movement towards an aboriginal post-colonial vision of co-
existence. The journey from the colonial to the post-colonial involves a shift from dichotomous ways of
conceptualizing difference in relation to sameness towards a more wholistic, inclusive and dynamic
conception that incorporates difference and commonality discovered in the process of co-operating together.
Duran, Bonnie M. (1997) "The struggles and outcomes of colonial and indigenous discourse about Indians and
alcohol: A historic and contemporary analysis." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of California, Berkeley. 220
pp.
Alcohol-related problems continue to be a major source of morbidity and mortality among Native Americans
in the United States. While the predominant amelioration theories and approaches used in Public Health are
important sources of intervention, they do not go far enough in illuminating the socio-cultural history of the
problem nor do they describe the popularity or content of current amelioration efforts found in grass roots
'Indian Country.' Public health theories and approaches have been relatively ineffective both in preventing
the problem and in reducing consequences for Indian people and society in general. Using a poststructuralist
framework, this study traces the origins and functions of the drunken Indian stereotype in colonial America,
and Native American resistance to those constructions. Secondly, it investigates present-day American Indian
collective action related to alcohol, and explains its inherent aims, mechanisms of change, and relationship
to older, colonial struggles. This research found that historically, alcohol was used as a metonomy by both
sides of the Indian/White power struggle to define the meaning and value of ethnic identity, and to provide
the colonization and its resistance's moral grounding. Alcohol, as a polysemic cultural artefact, played a
profound role in the production, colonization and subjection of Native people both materially and
symbolically. Contrary to popular culture beliefs, Native people have mounted successful alcohol-related
amelioration efforts throughout history. Alcohol continues to be an important cultural artefact for Native
Americans in the battle over wellness and a self-determined identity. The discourses of current Indian
collective action challenges expert, popular and Native specific views on alcohol meanings and norms, racial
essentialism, cultural identity, and racial hierarchy. The Sobriety Movement positively effects adherents by
providing prescriptions about a substance-free cultural identity, bi-culturalism, and social support networks
to support these changes, while uncovering the discursive processes of internalised oppression and cultural
shame. The movement is beneficial in both Indian Country and American culture by supporting normative
belief and behavioural changes, multiculturalism, and a less divisive conception of racial research and
practice are discussed.
Dyer, Linda C. (1994) "Assessing depression in American Indian children." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of
Wisconsin -- Madison (The). 83 pp.
American Indian people are perhaps the most severely disadvantaged group within the United States. Indian
adolescents exhibit higher rates of suicide, alcoholism, drug abuse, high school drop-outs, and out-of-home
placements than any other group. Recent research efforts are beginning to explore depression and suicide in
Indian adolescents. However, the research on Indian children is almost completely missing. The purpose of
this pilot study is to assess depression in American Indian children and compare the results with the current
findings of childhood depression in general. The Children's Depression Inventory (CDI; Kovacs andeck,
1977) and the Reynolds' Child Depression Scale (RCDS; Reynolds, 1989) were administered to 33 American
Indian children aged 8 to 12 years. A boarding school environment was used to access a variety of different
tribes. The Teacher Report Form (TRF; Achenbach and Edelbrock, 1986) was administered to teachers, with
a focus on the distress index scales. Differences between the younger group (8 and 9 year-olds) and the older
group (11 and 12 year-olds) were examined for age-related distinctions. The Children's Action Tendency
Scale (CATS; Deluty, 1979) was also administered. The CATS explores behavioural tendencies of
aggression, submission, and assertion and was used to compare the personality characteristics of children
diagnosed with depression. The Children's Hassles and Uplifts Scales (CHS, CUS; Kanner, Feldman,
Weinberger and Ford, 1987) were also given to examine possible relationships to adaptational outcomes.
The efforts of this pilot study were to gain a better understanding of depression in American Indian children,
hopefully leading to future research on prevention before Indian children reach the critical ages of
adolescence.
Edmonson, Jimmie R. (2000) "Hopelessness, self-efficacy, self-esteem, and powerlessness in relation to American
Indian suicide." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of North Texas. 118 pp.
The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between the independent variables of age, gender,
residence, tribal affiliation, and perceived government control over tribal rights and the dependent variables
of hopelessness, self-efficacy, and self-esteem. These attitudes are then explored as to their relationship to
possible feelings of powerlessness among American Indians.
The survey instruments used are the Beck Hopelessness Scale consisting of 20 items (Beck, Weissman, Lester,
and Trexler, 1974), (Reproduced by permission of publisher, Psychological Corporation), the Self-Efficacy
Scale consisting of 30 items (Sherer, Maddox, Merchandante, Prentice-Dunn, Jacobs, and Rodgers, 1982)
(Reproduced by permission of Dr. Ronald W. Rogers), the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale consisting of 10
items (Rosenberg, 1972) (Reproduced by permission of Dr. Florence Rosenberg) and a demographic
questionnaire consisting of 6 items. These instruments were administered to 60 American Indians that make
up the sample population of 25 respondents from tribal lands (reservation setting) and 35 respondents from
an urban setting.
Statistical analysis consists of crosstabulations using Chi-Square and t-tests (used to verify Chi-Square) to
determine the significance of the relationship of the independent variables to the dependent variables
previously mentioned. 15 hypotheses (page 10) were tested to explore the relationships between the above
independent variables and the dependent variables. Out of the 15 hypotheses that were investigated two were
supported. The two hypotheses are hypothesis 10 and 11. Hypothesis 10 states: American Indians who live on
a reservation have more hopelessness than those who live in an urban setting. This hypothesis was indicated
to be marginal by Chi-Square analysis but when a t-test was conducted it was shown to be significant.
Hypothesis 11 states: American Indians in urban residency will have more self-efficacy than reservation
residents.
While the data provided minimal support for the theory that hopelessness, self-efficacy, and self-esteem have
a relationship to feelings of powerlessness and thus suicide in the American Indian population the outcome of
the study provides pertinent data for future research.
Edwards, Yvonne J. (2002 ) "Healing the soul wound: The retraditionalization of Native Americans in substance
abuse treatment." Ph.D. Dissertation, California Institute of Integral Studies. 432 pp.
Contemporary Native Americans suffer from a soul wound that is the historical legacy of trauma since the
arrival of Columbus in 1492. Many Native Americans believe that healing this wound requires indigenous
interventions and the retraditionalization of those individuals seeking help. On a deeper level, this soul
wound represents the loss of one's soul and a sacred world.
This research investigates the transformational experiences of Native Americans during the course of their
retraditionalization and treatment for drug and alcohol dependence. 12 graduates of the residential
treatment program at Friendship House in San Francisco were interviewed about the kind and quality of
their healing experiences in this particular program, which provides a comprehensive matrix of Native
American medicine as well as western models of psychological treatment. The purpose of this study was to
understand and document the experience of substance abuse recovery from the perspective of the Native
Americans in treatment.
12 themes emerged from the data analysis (a) feeling cared for; (b) spiritual experience; (c) insight; (d)
making a commitment; (e) empowerment/self-esteem; (f) releasing emotional pain; (g) remorse; (h)
reconnecting to traditional values; (i) forgiveness; (j) relief; (k) safety; and, (l) gratitude. When these themes
were applied to the grounded theory Conditional Matrix, two models of recovery emerged: (a) the Trauma-
Resolution Model; and, (b) the Self-Esteem Model.
The results of this research suggest that substance abuse treatment that includes a retraditionalization
process provides a necessary spiritual foundation in a spiritual setting so that some Native American clients
are able to heal their soul wound, their childhood traumas, and their addictions to drugs and alcohol.
Elias, Brenda D. (2004) "The influence of the social environment on the health of Manitoba First Nations
communities." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Manitoba. 625 pp.
Manitoba First Nations communities are assuming control over health services, and the way health
information is collected is critical to shape the health and social policies and programs that First Nations
peoples will create. Although identifying poor health and associated risk factors is critical for formulating
health-promoting interventions, the potential still exists that this approach can stigmatize Aboriginal peoples
for the state of their health. It is therefore time to move beyond a biomedical model of individual risk factors
to an approach that can take into account the characteristics of, and processes occurring at, the levels of the
individual and the broader environment. This study is the first ever to take a multilevel approach to
understanding the health of First Nations communities. Of particular interest is the way that the social,
cultural, geographic, economic, health status, risk factor, and health service environment of First Nations
communities independently influences health risk, health status, and preventative health practices. The
primary database used in this study is the Manitoba First Nations Regional Longitudinal Health Survey
(1997). First Nation community level characteristics were derived from this survey and a number of other
data sources. The data was analyzed using multilevel logistic regression modeling techniques. A major
finding of this study is that community level factors, independent of individual characteristics, explain higher
rates of health risk factors, poorer health status, and preventative health practices. Another important finding
is that different social environments and elements of these environments, along with different individual
social characteristics, account for the variation in health risk factors, health status, and preventative health
practices within and between Manitoba First Nations communities. In light of these findings, this study
proposes a number of multilevel social determinant pathways that First Nations policy makers, health
directors, health service providers, researchers, and program developers may consider when addressing the
health of First Nations peoples.
Else, 'Iwalani R. N. (2002) "Modeling psychopathology: The role of culture in native Hawai'iian adolescents." PH.D.
Dissertation, University of Hawai'i'. 170 pp.
This dissertation examines the unique history of native Hawai'ians and the literature on the sociology of
mental health. It examines the role of Hawai'ian culture, along with other structural and explanatory
variables, in understanding the internalizing symptoms of depression and anxiety in a sample of native
Hawai'ian adolescents. This study reviews theories regarding rapid social change, and models that aid our
understanding of cultural loss and presents a theoretical model of how Hawai'ian culture is affected by
structural variables and where culture was learned and how culture, in turn, affects major life events and
support, and how these variables are linked to internalizing symptoms.
Existing data from the Native Hawai'ian Mental Health Research Development Program (NHMHRDP) was
used. These data included information from five high schools on three islands from the state of Hawai'i. Only
Native Hawai'ian students with complete information on the study's variables were included in the analyses
(n = 2,142). Group comparisons and structural equation models were used to examine the role of Hawai'ian
culture in internalizing symptoms.
There were significant differences found in categories of gender, socioeconomic status, and in the
combination of the two. Univariate and multiple regression models indicated that major life events and
family support accounted for the most variation in depression and anxiety. Hawai'ian culture was
significantly related, both directly and indirectly, to depression and anxiety, although it explained a small
amount of variation on both outcomes. When the relationship between the variables was examined with
structural equation modeling, the model for native Hawai'ian females had the best overall fit for the data and
the variables used. Despite this, only small amounts of variance were accounted for in depression (12%) and
anxiety (6%).
Exploring other sociological concepts of anomie, social integration, alienation, and the subtle effects of
racism and discrimination could be fruitful areas of further research in how Hawai'ian culture affects not
only psychopathology, but also overall health and wellness.
Emberley, Julia V. (1990 ) "Thresholds of difference: Feminist theory, post-colonialism and native women's writing."
Ph.D. Dissertation, York University.
This thesis involves a critical examination of post-colonial theory, its relationship to current trends in
feminist practice and its applicability to a selection of native women's writings in Canada. In the first part of
the Introduction I discuss the recent move within feminist practice towards a materialist mode of analysis: a
repositioning of the sociosymbolic relations between sexual difference, class, race and colonialism. The
second part addresses post-colonial theory and its commitment to cultural intervention as a critical ground
for examining the first worldist ideological centring of a 'Third World.' The articulation of a materialist
feminist practice with post-colonial theory constitutes the theoretical basis of this thesis for the production of
a feminism of decolonization. The first two chapters of this thesis examine post-colonial theorists Edward
Said and Nawal el Saadawi in terms of the contradictions their work holds for a feminist practice applied to
Native women's literature within Canada. In chapter three I examine native women's subjectivity as it is
constituted by the Canadian state and interpreted by feminist analyses in the human sciences. Chapter four
explores the possibility of an alternative method of interpreting native women's subjectivity in colonial
archival history, making use of the New Historicist approach in the work of cultural critics Dominick
LaCapra and Gayatri Spivak. Chapters five and six examine a select group of native women's writings in
Canada which specifically address questions of political and literary representation. Chapter five provides a
critical reading of Jeannette Armstrong's novel Slash, while chapter six includes Maria Campbell's Halfbreed
and Beatrice Culleton's In search of April Raintree. In conclusion, this thesis returns to a set of theoretical
problematics involving the textual violence of ideological containment, its productive and debilitating effects
on native women's writings and the constitution and effacement of native women's subjectivity. The work of
Gayatri Spivak and Teresa de Lauretis provide a point of departure for this discussion which involves a
double movement of investigation into the 'decolonization' of feminism, a critique of its colonialist
assumptions, and the feminism of decolonization at work in native women's writing.
Ennis-McMillan, Michael C. (198) "Drinking water politics in rural Mexico: Negotiating power, justice, and social
suffering." Ph.D. Dissertation, Michigan State University. 373 pp.
This dissertation analyzes political aspects of managing a drinking water system in a rural mestizo
community located in the Valley of Mexico. The study draws from political economy perspectives in medical
anthropology to analyze how stratified social relations influence the suffering associated with inadequate
drinking water supplies. Based on 21 months of fieldwork (1993-96), the analysis examines how differing
groups compete for authority over managing scarce drinking water resources in a semiarid environment. The
research methods included participant observation, archival analysis, and interviews with local authorities.
Community residents with ties to agriculture (i.e., campesinos or peasants) draw on an extensive history of
communal management of surface water for irrigation, and have applied similar practices for managing
groundwater for household consumption. All households have rights to drinking water, provided members
abide by customary monetary and nonmonetary obligations (e.g., civil and religious cargo service, festival
sponsorship involving mayordomias, and obligatory corvee labour or faenas). Recent in-migration from
urban areas and social stratification have challenged local efforts to provide a just distribution of drinking
water. Local authorities deploy their organizational power and resist market-based water management
practices that favour wealthier households. The study examines conflicts and negotiations among residents
regarding: rights and duties associated with drinking water as a communal resource; centralization of water
authority among residents with ties to agriculture (i.e., irrigation users and ejidatarios); women in cargo
service; and withdrawing drinking water as a sanction to those who refuse to fulfil customary obligations.
During water shortages, residents said they were 'suffering from water,' a local idiom that referred to bodily
distress that did not correspond to biomedical categories of disease used by public health programs. The
study analyzes this distress as a form of social suffering that reflected the inequalities people faced in a
socially and ecologically marginal setting. The study examines how differing interests based on
socioeconomic stratification, migration, and gender shaped local views of water-related suffering. The
dissertation discusses implications of conceptualizes drinking water as a crucial but contested and unequally
distributed resource for human health in a changing ecology.
Erickson, Sandra L. (1999) "Probability profiling with urban American Indian youth: Determining priorities for
suicide prevention." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Minnesota. 231 pp.
Urban American Indian youth are among the highest risk for suicide in the US, with overall rates as high as
1 in 4 having attempted prior to age 18. It is the second leading cause of death for this population. The
purpose of this analysis was to develop probability profiles of risk and protective factors associated with
suicidal involvement in a population of early and middle adolescents to determine priorities for suicide
prevention in clinical and programmatic settings.
Between 1995 and 1998, 569 urban American Indian youths ages 9-15 were assessed using the Urban Indian
Youth Health Survey, a confidential, self-report survey examining health-compromising behaviours,
protective factors, social, contextual, and demographic information. Responses of youths reporting a past
suicidal attempt were compared to those without a history. Probability profiles were created based on odds
ratios derived from logistic regressions. These profiles predict the likelihood of a past suicide attempt given
risk and protective factor combinations.
In this urban sample, a history of attempting suicide was reported by 21.7% of females and 8.4% of males.
Past suicide attempts were significantly associated with substance use and violence perpetration. Positive
affect, family connections, and positive perceived self-image were protective against a past suicide attempt.
Using logistic models, the probabilities of a history of a suicide attempt increased dramatically as exposure
to risk factors increased, i.e., up to a six-fold increase with both risk factors present. More importantly, the
risk factors were more than offset by the cumulative effect of protective factors.
Given that the most accurate prediction of future suicide attempts is a past attempt, probability profiling
dramatically improves the assessment of at-risk young people. Moreover, it identifies a set of risk and
protective factors for suicidality in urban American Indian youth which are amenable to intervention at
individual and population levels. Though it is yet to become the norm in clinical practice, this analysis
highlights the merits of including protective factors in comprehensive assessments, particularly with highly
vulnerable populations such as urban American Indian youth. From a programmatic perspective, probability
profiling can provide a guide for prioritizing interventions most likely to succeed.
Escárcega, Sylvia. (2003) "Internationalization of the politics of indigenousness: A case study of Mexican indigenous
intellectuals and activists at the United Nations." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of California, Davis. 359 pp.
This dissertation documents the politics of indigenousness in the international struggle for human and
indigenous rights. Two different processes are used as case studies in which to reflect about the construction
of indigeneity, apart from the dynamics at the United Nations Working Group on Indigenous Populations.
One is the internationalization of the indigenous movement from Mexico since 1997 and the other one,
parallel to the first one, is the empowerment of indigenous women. Lobbying and organizing at the
international arena promotes particular ways in which the meanings and attributes of indigeneity are
negotiated. The discourses on indigeneity forged in international dynamics are important to understand
because today many indigenous struggles for rights, even the most local ones, appeal to international legal
instruments to exert pressure on governments and to validate claims for peoplehood. The premise in this
dissertation is that indigenous intellectuals and activists can challenge and transform hegemonic practices
and discourses, even international law, using their own perspectives. The definition of 'indigenous peoples' is
a delicate issue because claims to peoplehood are dependent on it. Indigenous Peoples have argued for the
right to self-identification and self-definition to define their own boundaries of 'indigeneity,' and, yet, there
are certain cultural images mobilized around the international idea of indigeneity -- closeness to nature,
historicity, collectivity, distinctiveness, self-determination, and so forth. Thus, 'authenticity,' 'legitimacy,'
'representativeness,' and 'rootedness' are factors that arise to determine who is indigenous (politics of
containment). The apparently essentialized cultural images of indigeneity are measured against such factors,
yet, in the process, they are also negotiated and changed (politics of flexibility). I argue that despite
anthropological critiques of essentialism, the use of specific criteria for the identification of indigenous
rights-bearers is crucial for all international actors. At the same time, flexibility to accept alternative ideas is
another necessary strategy used in the international arena. In this context, self-defined cultural authenticity,
legitimacy, representativity, and rootedness, more than being retrograde strategies for identifying rights-
bearers, effectively localize and particularize human rights struggles in resistance to neo-liberal and
assimilationist practices of states and other global agents, creating a moral and powerful arena for debate.
Eshkakogan, Nicole A. (2004) "The double estrangement of aboriginal elders in Canada: The case of Sagamok
Anishnawbek First Nation." M.A. Thesis, University of Alberta. 151 pp.
This thesis presents the double estrangement of aboriginal elders in Sagamok Anishnawbek First Nation. It
identifies how the estrangement of aboriginal elders from mainstream Canadian society and from their own
community stems from an on-going program of enforced cultural colonization. This study has a twofold
objective: (1) to present the extent of aboriginal elders estrangement from Canadian society and within their
own communities; and, (2) to identify how aboriginal elders have become external and at a tangent within
their own community. I present the issues of colonization and how it has caused the estrangement of elders,
and has affected the development of intergenerational relationships. Based on the words of the Anishnawbek,
I articulate and present: (1) the ways in which elders and their younger community members interact with
one another; (2) the defined social, cultural and traditional roles (or lack there of) of elders in the
community; and, (3) how formal education, tribal nepotism and the loss of language contribute to elder
estrangement.
Eudaily, Sean P. (2002) "The present politics of the past: Indigenous legal activism and resistance to (neo)liberal
governmentality." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Maryland College Park. 290 pp.
Indigenous political movements that challenge liberal governmentality (Foucault 1991) have developed in a
number of (post)colonial settler states. These events run directly counter to social science predictions about
the decreasing salience of ethnic identity and the lessening of ethnic conflict in such 'advanced' western states
(Gurr 2000; Heisler 1990). What are the implications of this development for the theory and practice of
multicultural democracy? This dissertation applies Jacques Derrida's framework of 'spectropolitics' (1993)
to (post)coloniality in order to investigate the emergence of indigenous peoples' movements, advances a
poststructural approach to the analysis of liberal politics based upon the historical sociology of Michel
Foucault, and critically engages the literatures on ethnic politics, critical legal studies, and Multicultural
democracy. In addition, two historical case dossiers (the Mabo v. Queensland decision and its aftermath in
Australia; and the diverse legal strategies of First Nations activism in Canada following the Delgamuukw v.
BC decision) focus on the 'strategic space' in which new indigenous political identities are produced and
performed.
Evans, Susan E. (2001) "Looking for spirits in all the right places: An examination of native and non-native substance
abuse recovery strategies in British Columbia." M.A. Thesis, University of Victoria. 151 pp.
Canadian native peoples are taking back control of community social and health programs through the
Federal Health Transfer process. Questions of program efficacy need to be addressed to assist in the
planning and implementation of effective alcohol and substance abuse recovery strategies. Culturally-
relevant treatment is recommended for native peoples to reclaim their cultural/spiritual identity and to heal
from the spiritual bankruptcy of addiction. Using content analysis and qualitative evaluation of
documentation and ethnographic interviews, this study examines the values embedded in the symbolic
healing strategies of native and non-native outpatient and residential treatment centres across British
Columbia. Considerable difference in the value placed on spirituality is found between native and non-native
healing philosophies. Regionally distinct, syncretic healing models are utilized in Native urban and reserve
programs which combine local traditions with practices adopted from Plains peoples. These syncretic models
are creating controversy in coastal reserve communities.
Evtushenko, Melanie. (2004) "Recognizing Aboriginal voice in federal government exhibitions: A case study of
'Transitions: Contemporary Canadian Indian and Inuit Art'." M.A. Thesis, Carleton University. 107 pp.
'Transitions: Contemporary Canadian Indian and Inuit Art' is a government-organized internationally
touring exhibition, which explores new forms of aboriginal art. The innovative approaches of the curators,
the artists and the subject matter of the artworks challenge past stereotypical images of aboriginal art. This
thesis examines the increasing presence of aboriginal voice in the presentation and curatorship of
government-organized exhibitions, not only as a tool for empowering aboriginal peoples, but also as a means
of increasing cultural exchanges between different aboriginal groups. The exhibition's collaborative
approach to curatorship is one of its distinguishing features, rendering 'Transitions' a valuable contribution
to the discourse on the display and organization of aboriginal art. The study demonstrates the changing role
of the Canadian Government in the presentation of aboriginal art, as well as the effect displaying
contemporary works has on identity formation.
Faiman-Silva, Sandra L. (1984) "Choctaw at the crossroads: Native Americans and the multinationals in the
Oklahoma timber region." Ph.D. Dissertation, Boston University. 512 pp.
This thesis uses anthropological and historical methods to examine the Oklahoma Choctaw political-
economy vis-à-vis Weyerhaeuser Corporation, a multinational wood products company. Choctaw history is
documented beginning with tribal life in Mississippi, through forced removal to Indian Territory, and
eventual tribal land allotment. Loss of land resources undermined the traditional Choctaw subsistence base,
transforming the Choctaw into part-time wage labourers for the timber industry. The history of the entry of
Weyerhaeuser and its predecessor, Dierks Forests, Inc., into the Oklahoma timber region is documented.
Rural Choctaw of today are analyzed as a class of exploited labourers in a situation of satellite dependent
development. Social and economic conditions of 50 rural timber region Choctaw households are summarized
from detailed interview data. Household budgets, land holdings, non-wage subsistence activities, residence
patterns, kinship networks, and religious and tribal affiliations are examined. The Choctaw subsistence
strategy, combining part-time wage labour supplemented by domestic subsistence activities and public
assistance, is shown to be a response to domination of the tribe's means of subsistence by whites, most
recently the multinational corporation, Weyerhaeuser. Weyerhaeuser's production strategy, nationally and
locally, is examined. Corporate practices, such as vertical and horizontal corporate integration, scientific
tree cultivation, and the use of part-time non-unionized labourers, give Weyerhaeuser access to capital
resources, land, cheap and abundant labour, and technological expertise. Welfare and taxation systems, and
Choctaw domestic subsistence activities, contribute to making Weyerhaeuser a highly profitable timber-
extraction enterprise. Similarities with other Third World instances of satellite dependent development are
noted. Proposals are offered for alternative tribal development strategies using small-scale, labour-intensive
methods and existing tribal resources, including tribal land, labour, and community-based tribal institutions,
mainly the Choctaw church communities.
Fairweather, Joan G. (1994) "Is this apartheid? Aboriginal reserves and self-government in Canada, 1960-82." M.A.
Thesis, University of Ottawa. 149 pp.
South Africa's notorious apartheid policy has become an easily identifiable analogy for countries where
indigenous populations have been dispossessed of their land and their traditional social structures destroyed.
The question 'Is this apartheid?' challenges the historical validity of parallels drawn between Canada's
native policies and apartheid.
The 'civilising' missions of European intruders on the shores of what were to become Canada and South
Africa followed distinctive paths in their relationship with indigenous populations. While slavery and wars of
conquest paved the way for racial conflict in Southern Africa, mutual cooperation epitomized aboriginal
relations in colonial Canada. While reserves in Canada were designed to prepare indigenous people for
assimilation into the dominant society, South African reserves became reservoirs of cheap African labour
under the National Party's apartheid government which came to power in 1948. The years 1960-82 marked a
critical period in the history of both Canada and South Africa. First Nations communities renewed assertions
of aboriginal land rights and self-government. Unlike native Canadians, who asserted their aboriginal and
treaty rights within the democratic and constitutional structures of Canada, African resistance repudiated the
legitimacy of the apartheid government and fought for the fundamental right of all South Africans to
democracy and for an integrated, non-racial state.
Three core characteristics of apartheid (the lack of labour rights, the lack of democratic rights and the lack
of freedom of association) provide the criteria in addressing the question 'Is this apartheid?' The conclusions
are clear: while Canada's First Nations have been seriously disadvantaged by paternalism, assimilationist
policies and injustice, they have not experienced apartheid. Government policies and aboriginal problems
are not addressed by equating Canada with apartheid South Africa. They are Canadian problems with
Canadian solutions.
Faux, Catharinah. (2001) "The 'noble savage' in western thought: Re-constituting colonial stereotypes in sentencing
aboriginal sex offenders." M.A. Thesis, Carleton University. 84 pp.
This thesis will reveal how juridical efforts to address the failure of 'conventional' sentencing dispositions to
adequately deal with sexual violence in aboriginal communities can be informed by the colonial ideological
trope of 'noble savagism.' Through an analysis of the development of the 'noble savage' stereotype and the
ideological effects of this perspective on aboriginality, this thesis will reveal how judicial attitudes as
expressed in sentencing aboriginal sex offenders show an ambivalence that can be linked to historical
understandings of aboriginality. The presence of 'noble savagism' in these juridical discourses suggests a
need for greater judicial attentiveness to the assumptions that are guiding the way they relate to the
aboriginal peoples that appear before them. By examining how the ambivalence of 'noble savagism' can be
reproduced in contemporary juridical discourses, this thesis will raise some important questions that suggest
areas for future research, exploring some issues that arise in judicial attempts to take culture into account in
the sentencing process. For while culture and the needs of aboriginal communities are being considered in
sentencing dispositions, some judges seem to be unaware of the potential dangers in failing to exercise
caution in interpreting the relevance of aboriginality to the sentencing process.
Feit, Harvey A. (1978) "Waswanipi realities and adaptations: Resource management and cognitive structure." Ph.D.
Dissertation, McGill University. 1,735 pp.
Each of the two 'new' paradigms for ecological anthropology, ecosystems analysis and ethnoecology,
explores only one pair of phenomena relevant to cultural ecology, environment and action, and environment
and belief respectively. This study argues that ecological analysis is weakened by the exclusion of any one of
those three orders of phenomena as objects of study. A detailed analysis of cognitive and behavioural data on
the resource management of Waswanipi Cree hunters shows how religious beliefs incorporate both cultural
logics and realistic models of environmental relationships; and, how action informed by those beliefs can
effectively manage hunting, animal populations, human population distributions, and subsistence. Beliefs are
formulated as recipes that apply to diverse situations so that actions informed by these are responsive to
changing conditions. Decisions concerning alternative goals, situations and strategies are shown to be
socially located with the men who are the 'owners' of hunting territories.
Feldman, Alice E. (1998) "Othering knowledge and unknowing law: Colonialist legacies, indigenous pedagogies, and
social transformation." Ph.D. Dissertation, Arizona State University. 265 pp.
This study examined indigenous peoples' attempts to use law in a transformative fashion in three legal
contexts: (1) litigation; (2) legislative hearings; and, (3) international human rights standard-setting. It
followed the mobilization of the Apache Survival Coalition, a group of traditional San Carlos Apaches and
their advocates, to protect a sacred religious site from desecration due to the development of an international
observatory. It explored the Coalition's efforts, along with indigenous peoples across the country and around
the world, to apply, change, and create new laws to protect their traditional cultures and ensure the survival
of their peoples.
Central to the Coalition's sociolegal strategies was the use of these contexts as opportunities to educate law-
makers and government representatives about their religious beliefs in order to gain access to the decision-
making process and halt construction of the observatory. This constituted a formidable goal for indigenous
peoples because the justifications for colonialism have historically relied upon their inferiorization and
vilification to justify their conquest. The vast bodies of 'knowledge' and 'fact' produced by intellectual,
administrative, and cultural institutions which support of this premise have ingrained this colonialist
mythology within the social fabric and legal systems.
In addition to distorting and narrowing legal principles to delegitimize indigenous peoples' claims,
mainstream actors also demonstrated a profound unwillingness and, in many cases, inability to learn from
native peoples on their own terms. These reactions attested to the need to police the boundaries of knowledge
to maintain the logic and legitimacy of colonialist hegemony. Moreover, the anti-dialogic and adversarial
structures of law prevented the transcendence of this resistance to encourage relationship-building and
cooperative responses to common problems. It is argued that the incorporation of concepts of critical
pedagogy within sociolegal scholarship and practice would engender crucial opportunities for the active
engagement of the traditional beliefs and practices indigenous peoples are successfully mobilizing outside the
contexts of formal, western law.
Fenelon, James V. (1995) "Culturicide, resistance, survival: The cultural domination of Lakota Oyate." Ph.D.
Dissertation, Northwestern University. 612 pp.
The 'culturicide' thesis develops analytical frameworks for explaining cultural domination within the case
study of 'Lakota Oyate' over a 200-year period. I argue that primary modes of domination by groups of
people are through sublimation and elimination of societal integrity and cultural practices of the dominated
group. Indigenous people experienced such domination by the United States during its conquest of the central
plains Indians. I find the Culturicide process of selective extermination, inferiorization and coercive
assimilation of the Lakota, identifies three broad phases: 'conquering' modes for socio-political domination,
'profiteering' modes for socioeconomic dominance, and 'culturicidal' modes for social systemic domination
and maintenance of inequality. I review rationales for historical domination of indigenous nations in
'America', with ideological concepts of racial ethnicity as base justification for genocidal policies. Discussion
of terminology and theoretical frames of cultural domination (Smelser, 1992), precedes specification of
instruments for identifying Culturicide. Weber's (1956) domination through institutional legitimation
develops Gramsci's (1929) hegemony, placed in Toynbee's (1953) historical analytical frames. Resistance is
identified cross-culturally by Scott (1990) and Clifford (1988), politically by Deloria (1983) and Cornell
(1988), with systemic analysis by Hall (1984) and Thornton (1987). Wolfs (1982) interdisciplinary
perspectives confirm my observation of shifting dominance patterns over changing temporal and spatial
conditions, with adapted resistance and limited cultural survival (Snipp, 1989). Seven case chapters use
historical-comparative frames in four time periods: 'The Great Sioux Nation' (U.S. policy), 'The Lakota
Ghost Dance' (1890 conflict), 'Dominating the Dakota' (20th century policy), 'Spirituality and Sovereignty'
(1993); documenting cultural survival, Lakota resistance, and indigenous 'nations' struggles. Data sources
employ historical texts, discussions, cultural representative interviews, existing archival records, oral
tradition sources, participant observation, and Native scholar accounts. My conclusions review theoretical
applications to Lakota Oyate case studies, elaborate on proven applications of Culturicide processes with
analytical frames, extending discussion of cultural domination to contemporary struggles of indigenous
'nations' in maintaining cultural survival. I develop the Ethnic Conflict Frameworks for multi-modal analysis,
finding further connections to pan-ethnicity domination over racial 'minorities' in the United States (Morris,
1992), the 'Americas' (Ortiz, 1984), and internationally.
Fereira, Darlene A. (1990) "Need not greed: The Lubicon Lake Cree Band land claim in historical perspective." M.A.
Thesis, University of Alberta. 195 pp.
The Lubicon have become a household word in Canada, particularly in Alberta. Yet, after more than 50
years of negotiations with two levels of government, the band is still without a reserve and is facing a dire
future. The historiography on land claims in Canada suggests that, with few exceptions, native peoples have
not been treated fairly in dealings with government officials. This thesis looks at this historical trend and
relates it to the Lubicon experience. It is argued that although the Lubicon have been active participants and
skilful players in the on-going struggle, their story reveals a familiar pattern in the history of native-white
relations, which can be characterized as an opposition of views and values, with those of the dominant
society usually taking precedence.
Ferguson, Lara G. (1997) "Deconstructing fetal alcohol syndrome: A critical inquiry into the discourse around alcohol,
women, ethnicity, aboriginals and disease." M.A. Thesis, Carleton University. 254 pp.
An inductive methodology, known as grounded theory, was utilized in an attempt to inform, and challenge
current theory and practice governing contemporary prevention efforts specifically targeting pregnant native
women. Various strands of the picture are filtered through a critical lens in an attempt to deconstruct the
problematization of FAS within aboriginal communities. The three primary strands identified were the
relationships of alcohol to women; alcohol to ethnicity; and alcohol to natives. The deconstruction of the
problem of FAS yields implications on two levels: (1) epistemologically, the relationships between social
control and language and discourse, and ideology, knowledge and power, are identified as being of concern,
needing to be critically challenged and reconstructed; and, (2) on an applied level, it is argued that there is a
need for a more comprehensive approach to prevention efforts, with clearly defined goals that are both
culturally relevant and adopt a more holistic approach to prevention.
Ferreira, Mariana K. L. (1996) "Sweet tears and bitter pills: The politics of health among the Yuroks of northern
California." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of California, Berkeley. 284 pp.
'Sweet tears and bitter pills' is a critical project on health and healing among the Yuroks of northern
California. It considers the experiences of 16 Yurok families, traced back to the early 1800s, living in the
midst of the fur trade, the gold rush, the American invasion, the relocation and termination periods.
Oppressive life conditions have produced despair, substance abuse, delinquency and premature death. Yurok
women point to incarceration on reservations and in boarding schools and mental homes, forced labour in
fish canneries and logging camps, and to the introduction of alcohol, drugs and casinos, as spaces of the
origin and distribution of illness.
This dissertation indicates the ways in which specific health effects relate to macro-level politics and
economics. It situates 'diabetes' within a broader debate that encompasses power relations in the delivery of
health services. I argue that diabetes is a physiological response to adverse life experiences, rather than a
disease in itself.
It is now recognized that diabetes mellitus type II is prevalent in traumatized, migrating, modernizing and
socioeconomically disadvantaged populations. The latest studies inform us that Native Americans are
increasingly at risk. While current research focuses on obesity, nutrition, individual health behaviours and
genetics, social issues are confined inside a medical world of individualized treatment and community
distress is separated from the potentially disruptive political arena.
Alternatively, the operation of United Indian Health Services (UIHS) by Yuroks and other northern
California populations is a current attempt to exercise tribal sovereignty. The creation of UIHS is an instance
where solidarity among different medical systems informs a comprehensive interpretation of social well-
being.
Fisher, Andrew H. (2003) "People of the river: A history of the Columbia River Indians, 1855-1945." Ph.D.
Dissertation, Arizona State University. 307 pp.
Due to state weakness and native determination, many American Indians along the Middle Columbia River
never moved to reservations or remained there only temporarily. This dissertation uses archival and
ethnographic evidence to explore the history of off-reservation communities in the region and describe how
their experiences shaped a distinct ethnic consciousness among so-called Columbia River Indians. Generally
defined in opposition to recognized tribal categories, this identity gradually coalesced around a shared
heritage of aboriginal connection to the river, resistance to the reservation system, adherence to cultural
traditions, and relative detachment from the institutions of federal control and tribal governance. Although
most 'River People' eventually enrolled in recognized tribes and moved to reservations, their largely untold
story highlights the persistence of native people in off-reservation settings and challenges ahistorical
concepts of tribal identity. Moreover, by focusing on interactions within and between Indian communities,
this study transcends the usual emphasis on Indian-white relations and underscores the importance of native
social networks to the construction of new ethnic categories.
Fiske, Jo-Anne. (1981) "And then we prayed again: Carrier women, colonialism and mission schools." M.A. Thesis,
University of British Columbia (The).
———. (1989) "Gender and politics in a Carrier Indian community." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of British
Columbia (The).
This thesis presents an analysis of the political processes of a Carrier Indian community in British Columbia.
Its primary goal is to account for women's central role in public decision making. It argues that women's
public presence results from three tightly interwomen factors: women's economic autonomy, the prevailing
ideology of respect for older women's knowledge and wisdom, and the socioeconomic structure, in which
public and private are essentially undifferentiated. These factors coalesce to provide economic and cultural
foundations for women's unique political strategy: the formation of voluntary associations that interact
successfully with the formal political structure to influence public decisions and to advance family and
community interests. Women's voluntary associations compete successfully with the elected council in
obtaining limited economic and political resources and provide a special forum in which women retain and
advance family honour and political fortunes. The findings support the view that in conditions of political-
economic marginality a domestic sector of production exists along side capitalist production. The domestic
sector protects and even enhances, women's personal autonomy and social influence.
Fitch, Diane C. (2002) "Analysis of common risk factors for violent behaviour in Native American adolescents
referred for residential treatment." Ed.D. Dissertation, Texas Southern University. 107 pp.
The literature does not adequately address issues of aggression and violence in Native American adolescents,
and there are no known studies of relationships of specific risk factors for violent behaviour in Native
American youth. The purpose of this study was to measure the absence or presence of three specific groups of
identified risk factors for violent adolescent behaviour (Historical, Social/Contextual, and
Individual/Clinical), derived from the existing literature, and set forth in the Structured Assessment of
Violence Risk in Youth (SAVRY) (Bartel, Borum and Forth, 1999), in a group of 82 Native American
adolescents, ages 12-17, already identified with behavioural problems and referred for residential treatment,
and to analyze the relationships of these groups of risk factors to violence already committed by these youth.
Bivariate and multiple linear regression were used to analyze the relationship(s) of each of the referenced
groups of risk factors and six 'protective factors' to violence already committed by members of this group of
Native American adolescents. A significant positive linear relationship was found between total SAVRY
scores, and each of the three groups of identified risk factors for violent adolescent behaviour as set forth in
the SAVRY, and violence already committed by members of this group of Native American youth. Ancillary
findings demonstrated that the inverse relationship of protective factors to violence committed by this group
of Native American youth was stronger than any of the positive relationships of SAVRY risk factor groups (or
combinations of risk factor groups) to violence committed by members of this group of adolescents. Female
participants scored higher than their male counterparts in all of the SAVRY risk factor groups, and on total
SAVRY scores. Consequently, female SAVRY scores on the referenced risk factor groups were more highly
correlated with violence committed than were the male SAVRY scores in this sample of Native American
youth. Female participants also scored 62.5% higher in protective factors than the males, but lower in
Violence Committed. For both male and female participants, higher scores on protective factors correlated
with lower scores on Violence Committed. Recommendations for further study and implications for Native
American communities, counsellors, and agencies were discussed.
Fitton, Lori J. (1999) "Is acculturation healthy? Biological, cultural, and environmental change among the Cofán of
Ecuador." Ph.D. Dissertation, Ohio State University (The). 223 pp.
Economic development of tropical rainforests affects the health of indigenous populations. Environmental
and cultural change can deplete natural resources, undermine traditional subsistence, increase population
densities, and disrupt social systems, thereby modifying health and disease patterns of native populations.
Although acculturation can bring increased opportunities for health education and access to western
medicines, it can cause the estrangement of indigenous groups, resulting in lifestyle deterioration and an
overall reduction in health.
This research examines cultural and biological variation among the Cofán, an indigenous Amazonian group
of northeastern Ecuador. Two closely related Cofán villages, Dureno and Zabalo, undergoing varying rates
of acculturation and environmental pressures were chosen. As a transitional population, the Cofán present
an opportunity to examine intrinsic and extrinsic factors related to acculturation. This study combines
cultural and biomedical data to examine how these domains interact and change in response to acculturation
and environmental degradation. Anthropometric measures, blood pressure, fecal samples, dental exams and
blood samples determined physiological variability. Social assessments included lifestyle, health, and
nutrition questionnaires designed to determine participation in non-Cofán lifeways, general health
knowledge and lifestyle stress, unusual health conditions, and dietary diversity.
Results show that environmental degradation and culture change in and around the village of Dureno are
contributing to a decline in health, as seen with higher parasite loads and blood pressure. Residents of
Zabalo escaped environmental degradation by moving further into the rainforest however, they too are
affected by culture change. Zabalo residents selectively incorporate elements of the dominant society into
their lifeways and supplement their indigenous lifestyle with an ecotourism business. Although not as
environmentally destructive, ecotourism may have sociocultural and health costs for this population, such as
higher levels of lifestyle stress.
These results demonstrate the complex interplay between environment, culture, and health. The extent to
which progressive acculturation will alter the health and disease status of this population, and specific
causative elements, are conjectural at this time. However, by reaffirming their cultural identity and regaining
control over their lives, the Zabalo Cofán may be reducing the psychological stress of change, thus reducing
their risks of developing chronic conditions such as hypertension.
Fitzpatrick, Darleen A. (1986) "We are Cowlitz: Traditional and emergent ethnicity." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of
Washington. 417 pp.
Cowlitz are a Coast Salish group of southwestern Washington who are defined by where they are from, their
line of descent and, at one time, their level of prestige vis-à-vis other groups along the Coast and in the
Interior. The general problem for this dissertation is to probe the interconnection between the culture of an
ethnic group and the boundaries which surround it. In other words, culture is a problematic feature of
ethnicity. I suggested Coast Salish ideology, which centres upon a class/prestige system and a code of ethics
links social structure with culture. These features initiate Cowlitz ethnic boundaries and the development of
related cultural signs which both transmit and communicate Cowlitz collective ethnic identity as well as
salience of ethnicity. Secondly, a modest semiotic analysis of culture distinguishes the cultural signs Cowlitz
express, some of which are not attached to the ideology, and help us to understand their meaning: culture is
not solely a matter of symbolic content, it isn't always systematic but it is meaningful and experiential.
Cowlitz institutionalized a gathering, the Meeting, in 1915 which occurs today on a biannual basis. At the
Meeting, held in the aboriginal area, Cowlitz principally discuss the land rights suit and distribution of the
Indian Claims Commission award, related issues, and federal acknowledgement as an American Indian tribe.
The Meeting proper is an event involving social structural and cultural content alluded to above. The class
system is operative. And, the Meeting has generated emergent Cowlitz ethnicity. However, Cowlitz ethnic
identity is forged on an anvil of their own creation with one another as against tradition.
Fixico, Donald L. (1980) "Termination and relocation: Federal Indian policy in the 1950s." Ph.D. Dissertation,
University of Oklahoma (The). 328 pp.
This study of federal Indian policy from World War II through the John F. Kennedy administration is
concerned with the serious repercussions of this critical period of federal-Indian relations. During 1945-63,
the United States Congress initiated legislative action abrogating federal recognition of Indian groups and
responsibilities to Native Americans. Concurrently Congress funded the Bureau of Indian Affairs to establish
the Relocation Program, which assisted and supervised those Indians willing to remove from rural
communities and reservations to metropolitan areas for economic development.
The zenith of termination and relocation in federal-Indian relations occurred during the 1950s. More
specifically, between 1954 and 1960, over 61 tribes, groups, communities, rancherias and allotments were
terminated, and relocation effected one-half of the current total Indian population living in urban areas.
Certainly termination and relocation were not new concepts in federal-Indian relations, but they were
interpreted ambiguously; having positive and negative effects. Termination was emphasized more in this
study because of its greater degree of complexity and controversy.
Termination has been interpreted as being good and bad for Native Americans, but in retrospect the latter
has been identified more. This policy represented liquidation of reservations and dissolution of treaties.
Negation of Indian rights, withdrawal of federal responsibilities to the native population and reduction of the
Bureau of Indian Affairs have also been depicted as forms of termination for the purposes of mainstreaming
Indians. Finally, termination has been defined as extinction of Native American cultures as the ultimate move
towards transforming the Red Man into a white American. Critics argued that termination was Indian
genocide.
In contrast to the negative views of termination, the federal government and Anglo-American viewpoints have
suggested that the Indian way of life was no longer viable -- especially in the 20th century. Essentially
termination would liberate Native Americans from their trust status as 'second class' citizens to enjoy equal
opportunities and privileges that other Americans were guaranteed by the Constitution. In order for
Amerindians to survive in a modernized society after World War II, Indian cultural methods of livelihood had
to be altered. Emphasis on education, acculturating materialistic items of white American culture, and
competing with other Americans for jobs and positions in society were viewed as Americanization of Indians.
Unfortunately, too often literature about American Indians has been written from the non-Indian viewpoint
with disregard for the viewpoint of the people who are the subject. In studies of federal-Indian relations, the
perspective of the federal government has tended to neglect the responses and views of Native Americans. To
provide the best comprehensive study of federal-Indian relations during this critical period, the viewpoints of
the federal government, public opinion of non-Indians, and the Indian point of view were provided to yield an
overall balanced perspective. This was essential for understanding the problems of American Indians in this
recent past as they prepare for the future.
Flanagan, Tara D. (2002) "Pathways to resilience in First Nations youth from a remote community: A case for the
ameliorative effects of intelligence and social perspective coordination." M.A. Thesis, McGill University. 57
pp.
Variables that promote resilience, adaptive functioning despite adversity, were examined in 37 First Nations
adolescents from a remote region in Northern-Québec. Intelligence, and social perspective coordination, the
ability to negotiate the self's and other's points of view in social situations, were offered as moderators of the
effect of stress on competence. Competence was defined as developmentally-appropriate functioning in
academic, behavioural, and social domains, and stress was operationalized as a combination of negative life
events and demographic stressors. Better intellectual functioning and perspective coordination abilities were
commensurate with elevated levels of academic performance and positive classroom behaviours.
Additionally, intelligence served a protective function in the relationship between stress and fighting
behaviour. In the context of high stress, students with high levels of intelligence were involved in significantly
fewer physical fights than their less intelligent peers. These results highlight the potential for adaptation in
First Nations youths, and suggest a direction for future research that accentuates adaptation instead of
pathology.
Fleury, Anthony G. (1998 ) "Violence and public as antitheses: The rhetorical structure of Once were warriors." Ph.D.
Dissertation, Pennsylvania State University (The). 204 pp.
Once were warriors is a Communicado film, released in New Zealand in 1994 and internationally in 1995.
Lee Tamahori directed, and Robin Scholes produced, Riwia Brown's adaptation of Alan Duff's 1990 novel of
the same title. The rhetorical criticism of the film presented in this thesis is a close reading of the form of the
film. The meaning of the film is found in the viewer's experience of the form of the text as a whole, in the
process of apprehension of the unfolding narrative.
Viewer experience of Once were warriors is an enactment of a public sensibility -- in the course of the film
the audience comes to feel conditions of publicness. The enactment of public sensibility is evoked in a
rhetoric of narration that implicates viewers in the main character's commitments. As viewers, we feel Beth
Heke's investment in a community in her re-emergence into a traditional Mäori culture. The significance of
her commitment to that community is demonstrated in the connection of her personal past to the past of the
community, and in the contextualizing of her hopes for her family into the future of that community. The
rhetoric of narration of Once were warriors develops audience experience of this Mäori culture as dynamic
and processual, folding past and future into the present. We feel Beth's investment in that rhetoric of
dynamism. We also experience her investment in the way Mäori culture is contrasted with the culture of
violence in which she had been living. Viewers of Once were warriors are invited to participate in Beth's (1)
emotional investments in her family; (2) recognition of her situation of domestic violence as a social
experience; and, (3) emergence from that situation through public articulation and reinvestment in a dynamic
cultural tradition. The film implicates us in the commitments of time, voice, and relationship that are
constituents of a public sensibility; as it positions us to doubt the antithetical commitments that are central to
violence. The film refashions a conventional understanding of public and private as opposites, to develop
public and violence as opposites.
Fogarty, Jane C. (1998) "Towards an Australian republic: Constitutionalising indigenous land rights." LL.M. Thesis,
Australia's Indigenous people have been dispossessed of their ancestral lands since colonization began in
1788. Most Australians were unprepared for the High Court's decision in the 1992 Mabo case that
established native title in Australia, despite the fact that such title had been recognized much earlier in other
common law jurisdictions. However, the more that spiritual connection to the land is asserted by Aboriginal
claimants, and requirements for the land's protection and ownership, the less the legal system will
acknowledge it, as illustrated in the ridiculing of 'secret women's business' in the Hindmarsh (Kumarangk)
Island matter.
As Australia is contemplating becoming a republic, it is timely to consider whether a new constitution would
better protect Indigenous land rights. If we consider Aboriginal rights in Canada's constitution, the
protection of individual rights in the United States constitution and developments of Indigenous peoples'
rights at the international level we may understand more clearly whether constitutional entrenchment would
be a suitable solution for Australia.
Forand, Nancy A. (2001) "Mayas in the age of apocalypse: Folk evangelicals and Catholics in Quintana Roo." Ph.D.
Dissertation, State University of New York at Albany. 459 pp.
Since the introduction of Christianity in the 16th century, rural communities in Mexico have practiced
distinctive forms of religion that have grown out of the interaction between European and indigenous belief
systems. This work is the outgrowth of a two-year comparative study of folk religions among the Yucatec
Maya of Quintana Roo, including new forms that have emerged in the wake of 20th century Protestant
evangelization.
Poor farmers in the villages of Saban and Huaymax experience modernization in terms of a degrading
ecology, land shortages, and poverty. The farm community is economically dependent on the tourist industry
in Cancun, where farmers work seasonal wage-labour jobs in the construction industry. In a general state of
economic crisis, Saban and Huaymax are also locked in a bitter struggle over political autonomy and the
control of land. Conversion to Presbyterianism and Pentecostalism has introduced additional layers of social
complexity and conflict.
This study uses a community of practice approach to explore new identities, practices, and ways of speaking.
It investigates the uneasy relations among the religious groups in terms of complex interactions between
competing ideologies that contribute to an apocalyptic worldview. Pivoting around a corpus of polyvocalic
discourses in the Yucatec Maya language (which includes prayer, testimony, song, gossip, life history, and
social commentary), the analysis pinpoints the kinds of stresses and strains that religious pluralism has
introduced.
The research reveals that two factions of Catholicism (traditionalism and the Legion of Mary) are becoming
increasingly polarized, while Presbyterianism and Pentecostalism have developed a symbiotic relationship.
On the whole, relations between Evangelicals and Catholics are tense, in part because ancestral authority
has been directly challenged by belief in the literal truth of the Bible. Evangelicals charge that traditional
practice is “idolatrous,” while traditionalists worry about breaching the divine contract of their ancestors.
Generally heightened tensions within the community, in turn, are believed to herald the prophesied global
destruction. A battleground of ideological and moral combat, the community emerges as a microcosm of a
world plagued by conflict.
Forbes-Boyte, Kari L. (1997) "Indigenous people, land and space: The effects of law on sacred places, the Bear Butte
example." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Nebraska -- Lincoln (The). 248 pp.
Conflicts over access to and utilization of Native American sacred sites is an ongoing dilemma. Although the
American Indian Religious Freedom Act (AIRFA) was passed by the United States Congress in 1978 in
recognition of Indian rights to religious freedom, this Act has done little to actually protect sacred sites.
AIRFA can be described as a cooptation technique. Cooptation occurs in a power system when the power
holder intentionally extends some form of political participation to those considered a threat to the existing
state. But, this political participation never leads to the empowering of the people considered threatening. In
fact, Indian oppression continues today through due process and federal and state statutes.
This study addresses the 'politicized' nature of AIRFA. Bear Butte, a Lakota holy ground was chosen to
illustrate AIRFA as a cooptation tool. Bear Butte is at the forefront of contested realities of space between the
Lakota Sioux and South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks. The Lakota contend that they have legal sovereign
rights to the Butte and feel that any activity, other than religious, desecrates the site. The battle over control
of this sacred place has occurred at the judicial level, with the case Fools Crow vs. Gullett. It continues, after
Lakota lost their case, at the administrative level, with the Lakota questioning multiple-use policies that
equate tourism and the construction of a water pipeline with their religious freedom.
Through a critique of litigation and mitigation strategies surrounding Bear Butte, this study demonstrates
that society and society's laws are not consensual and justice is not always the end result. The study
concludes that without adequate Congressional, judicial, and administrative protection, Indian people will
continue to be victims of cultural genocide and remain a marginalized minority within the United States.
Ford, David A. (1996) "Sustaining colonialism: Canadian print media and the representation of the Mohawk nation."
M.A. Thesis, Carleton University. 144 pp.
This thesis explores the role of print media in helping to sustain the inequalities in cultural, economic, and
political power faced by indigenous Peoples in Canada. Using a discourse analysis, the thesis examines
coverage in Le Devoir, The Globe and Mail, The Gazette, and La Presse of the 1994 tobacco tax rollback
issue involving the Mohawk nation. The discourse analysis model facilitates a qualitative assessment of the
tone and nature of the coverage, the juxtapositions of different themes and ideas, and the contextual
embeddedness of news facts. The qualitative data suggests that all four newspapers actively participated in
the production of hegemonic discourse which placed the majority of blame for the cigarette trade on Mohawk
individuals, stigmatised the entire Mohawk Nation, and trivialised that nation's political position of
sovereignty. The manner in which these mainstream newspapers represent the Mohawk nation suggests
continued adherence to colonial ideas and assumptions about indigenous peoples.
Fortier, Yvonne T. (1999 ) "Steps to community wellness: Creating a therapeutic environment for Native American
children of alcoholics." M.A. Thesis, Prescott College. 50 pp.
Native American children of alcoholics (NACOAs) experience a number of risk factors for healthy physical
and psychological development. While Western approaches to treatment may be helpful to women and
children living in a residential setting, the complexities of problems facing contemporary Native American
cultures may benefit from the addition of traditional elements to effect a culturally relevant, therapeutic
environment. Native American children can receive a comprehensive system of care within a facility focused
on the primary treatment of the alcoholic mother. This research study emphasizes the problems and patterns
of intergenerational substance abuse and the effects on infants and children. Realistic goals for a children's
therapeutic program are drawn from needs that are identified within this population. Historical, cultural and
theoretical implications of substance abuse in Native American communities are examined in relation to the
effects on pregnant and parenting women. This study explores the adverse effects of alcoholism of a family
member on a child, and proposes a program to implement culturally appropriate services for NACOAs in a
residential treatment facility.
Fouberg, Erin K. (1997) "Tribal territory and tribal sovereignty: A study of the Cheyenne River and Lake Traverse
Indian reservations." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Nebraska -- Lincoln (The). 306 pp.
Tribes in the United States no longer hold the distinction of being sovereign states in the world system of
states. Instead, the federal government has deemed them 'domestic dependent' sovereigns. This study
questions the meaning of 'domestic dependent' sovereignty. A new conceptualization of sovereignty is offered
which helps explain the erosion of tribal sovereignty. Three types of sovereignty, territorial, membership, and
issue are distinguished. Studies of the Cheyenne River and Sisseton-Wahpeton Sioux Tribes in South Dakota,
are used to demonstrate how tribal sovereignty has eroded over time. This analysis is set in the context of
world systems theory.
The erosion of all three types of tribal sovereignty began with the erosion of tribal land bases. The
establishment of reservations, the allotment of those reservations, the opening of those reservations, and for
the Sisseton-Wahpeton Sioux Tribe, the diminishment of their reservation directly affected tribal territorial
sovereignty. The United States Supreme Court has continually recognized tribal membership sovereignty;
however, federal law has worked to erode tribal membership sovereignty slowly. As territorial and
membership sovereignty have eroded, maintenance of tribal sovereignty over specific issues has become
more important. Several recent decisions by the United States Supreme Court have set a precedent for the
further erosion of tribal issue sovereignty.
Despite the erosion of all three types of tribal sovereignty, tribes remain sovereign entities. Tribal
governments have the authority to govern as they do because they are sovereign. Sovereignty is a legal status
that sets tribes apart from other entities, and it needs to be recognized. The Cheyenne River and Sisseton-
Wahpeton Sioux Tribes demonstrate that the ability of a tribal government to govern is not dependent upon
having complete sovereignty. Whether tribes can act upon their eroded sovereignty depends on their ability.
Future challenges to tribal territorial, membership, and issue sovereignty will stem from continued demands
on tribal lands and resources, as well as an increasing reluctance by non-Indians on reservations to live
within the jurisdiction of tribal governments. In order for the tribes to meet these challenges, it is essential
that they first regain lost tribal lands and then re-establish the Indian character of those lands to maintain
and reclaim tribal territorial, membership, and issue sovereignty.
Fox, Gretchen E. (2006) "Going back in the water: Renegotiating what it means to be a Mi'kmaq fisherman after the
Marshall Decision." M.A. Thesis, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (The). 68 pp.
After centuries of struggle with the Canadian state over access to natural resources, Mi'kmaq First Nations
recently won a significant legal victory. In a 1999 ruling, the Supreme Court of Canada upheld 18th century
treaties guaranteeing Mi'kmaq and their descendents the right to fish for profit in their traditional territories.
This landmark ruling fundamentally reconfigured the landscapes where conflicts over Native rights and
nature are waged. As a result, Mi'kmaq communities today are experiencing shifts in personal and collective
constructions of meaning, practice and identity in the context of fisheries. Some community members
advocate communally-based fisheries where profits are re-invested in the community, while others are
approaching commercial fisheries in more individualistic ways. This paper explores the local and supralocal
conditions under which Mi'kmaq people are relating to changes in the fisheries, drawing on social practice
theory to consider how fishermen's identities are being reshaped through contentious practices and meaning-
making.
Foxen, Patricia. (2002) "K'iche' Maya in a re-imagined world: Transnational perspectives on identity." Ph.D.
Over the past two decades, large-scale transnational migrations between Central America and the United
States have had a significant impact upon both home and host societies. In Guatemala, cross-border
movement was spawned by the brutal civil war that devastated many indigenous communities in the early
1980s. Over time, this flow resulted in the formation of complex transnational networks and identities that
span home and host locations. This thesis examines the manners in which a community of K'iche' Indians
straddled between the highlands of El Quiché, Guatemala and an industrial New England city have
responded to the deterritorialization caused by the confluence of violence and displacement. It describes, on
the one hand, the context of post-war reconstruction in El Quiché, which is shaped by a fragile institutional
peace process and an emerging ethnopolitical movement that emphasizes a pan-Maya identity. On the other
hand, it depicts an inner-city space in the US where K'iche' labour migrants lead hidden, marginal lives,
seeking to obscure any overt form of collective organization or identity. By examining the flows of people,
money, commodities and symbols between these contrasting environments, the thesis shows how K'iche's in
both communities maintain concrete and imaginary connections with each other despite the many ruptures
caused by violence and dislocation. The thesis also teases out the manners in which today's cross-border
movements, which involve ever larger distances, absences, and cash inflows, are both inscribed in, and differ
from, previous local strategies of, and discourses on, internal movement and migration within Guatemala,
which have long formed part of K'iche' culture. Specifically, it shows how K'iche's draw on their 'mobile' past
in order to maintain a sense of continuity in the present and elaborate viable identities and strategies for the
future. Overall, the thesis argues that the multiplicity of strategies and discourses developed by K'iche's to
cope with the uncertainty and liminality engendered by transnationalism is rooted in a longer history of
hybridity that has enabled communities, families and individuals to anchor their identities at home, and yet
move fluidly beyond the boundaries of community, thereby elaborating flexible identities that both
incorporate and resist outside change.
Francisconi, Michael J. (1995) "Economic trends and everyday life on the Navajo Nation, 1868 to 1995: The history
of the informal economy of the Diné." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Oregon. 337 pp.
Since 1868 three major revolutions have integrated the Diné into the world capitalist system. First, the
establishment of military peace and the political control by the US Government allowed entry of mercantile
capital through the establishment of trading posts. Second, the stock reduction of the 1930s, which destroyed
herding as the economic foundation of Diné society, resulted in money from government assistance or wage
labour becoming central to economic life, increasing Diné dependence on the outside economy, and, third,
the importation of highly capital intensive extractive industries onto the Navajo Reservation after World War
II. A qualitative methodological approach is used utilizing oral interviews with Diné subjects between the
ages of 18 and 80 in the Tsaile-Wheatfields area of the Navajo Nation. A neo-Marxist theoretical approach is
employed, beginning with a careful rereading of the classic works of Marx, Lenin, Luxemburg and Frank.
The three revolutions have resulted in underdevelopment and high unemployment among the Diné. The Diné
have developed a multi-strategy economy in order to survive. Both the formal economy and the informal are
covered; the latter is of special importance and is a direct result of the interaction between the capitalist
system and the everyday effects of underdevelopment.
The results of this research indicate that the tension created is between the needs of the larger economy and
the survival of a people whose society and culture is continually battered by international capitalism. The
non-capitalist modes of production, i.e. kinship and informal production, are now recreated by the capitalist
system itself. The informal modes of production both strengthen capitalist penetration and offer people a
resistance to that penetration. The corresponding ideologies are both espoused by a Dine' elite who benefit
from capitalism, and the poor Diné who are victimized by capitalism. Diné ideology is a complex
contradiction, that can be and is used both for justifying the increasing capitalist penetration which benefits
Diné economic and political elites as well as the unionized labour in the extractive industries, and as a tool
of resistance for the majority of poor Diné including the petty traders.
Franco, Jere. (1990) "Patriotism on trial: Native Americans in World War II." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of
Arizona (The). 258 pp.
The Indian New Deal of the 1930s changed official policy from assimilationist attitudes to acculturation on
the reservation and an emphasis on tribal culture. John Collier's program included self-determination in
tribal matters and advancements in health, education, and the economy. Despite improvements in these
areas, many critics charged that Collier's administration increased bureaucracy and hampered Indian
attempts at decision making. The American Indian Federation, one of Collier's most relentless critics and a
group with extreme right-wing, Fascist connections, succeeded in publicizing the Indian Bureau's
deficiencies but failed to gain many followers among Indians. Native Americans appeared oblivious, puzzled,
or overtly hostile to this group which undermined its own efforts with its blatant racism, anti-Semitism, and
un-American attitudes which struck at the very heart of American Indian patriotism. This deep-seated
patriotism, manifested in World War II by a n99% registration for the draft, accompanied a resurgence of
tribal sovereignty as Indians demanded the right to refuse to enlist. Based on government violation of treaty
rights, this refusal emerged as a philosophical argument, because Native Americans enlisted in numbers
comparable to their white peers. Politicians critical of the Indian New Deal exploited the Indian war effort to
push their own agenda of reversing the Indian Reorganization Act. The enormous wartime sacrifices and
contributions offered by civilian Indians further convinced the public and politicians that Native Americans
no longer needed supervision. In postwar America Indians who had willingly given labour, resources, and
finances found that their role in America's war would be all too easily forgotten. The Indian veteran and his
civilian counterparts soon realized that their fight for freedom did not end in Europe or in the Pacific. When
they returned to their homes and encountered injustices which had always existed, Native Americans refused
to passively accept these situations. In the 1940s American Indians asserted their rights and began the fight
for equality which would continue for the next three decades.
Fraser, Sarah J. (2002) "Negotiating for the future: Joint ventures and the economic participation of First Nations in
Canada." M.D.E. Thesis, Dalhousie University. 55 pp.
Like other Aboriginal communities in Canada, the Membertou First Nation in Nova Scotia has a history of
dependence on federal transfers. To address various socio-economic ills, including very high unemployment
and a $1.4 million debt the band had accrued by 1984, the band council has begun to improve its
administration and has focused its development efforts. The Membertou Development Corporation, the
business arm of the band, was created to orchestrate and publicize the changes in the business philosophy of
the band and build relationships with private business interests. This strategy has led to recent agreements
with Sodexho-Marriott, SNC-Lavalin, Ledgers.com and Clearwater Fine Foods (Membertou, 2001).
Membertou has chosen to include joint venture agreements in its economic development efforts. Joint
ventures are promoted as a good way to bring First Nations into the wider economy and are used by many
First Nations to foster economic growth and employment of people living on reserves. Although the
metropolis/hinterland theory predicts that closer ties to the mainstream economy will further retard the
development of a peripheral economy, under certain circumstances joint ventures may be an appropriate
mechanism for the economic development of First Nation communities. This thesis examines the potential of
joint venture agreements made by the Membertou First Nation as a development tool.
Freed, Craig D. (1997) "Increasing local control of Canadian and American native education systems: Empowerment
of an emerging generation?" Ph.D. Dissertation, Arizona State University. 178 pp.
The purpose of this study was to determine if allowing more local educational control on Native
reservations/reserves in the United States and Canada results in increasing empowerment for students. Using
four elements of an educational program design, the basis of which is found in articles by Dr. James
Cummins, the research attempted to determine their effect on academic achievement and the dropout rate.
The research also attempted to determine if these elements of empowerment are actually being practiced in
native controlled districts. These four elements are: (1) Cultural and language inclusion in the curriculum;
(2) Parent and community participation in the schools is encouraged; (3) Look for ways to improve the
school structure to be more responsive to student needs; and, (4) Teach the use of language to generate more
knowledge by students.
This research adjusted the last element to be an examination of analytical thinking skills, as they are taught
or not taught, to native students. Besides Cummins' examination of these four elements' existence within the
school organization, there was also an inquiry into dynamic societal power relationships and the affect the
changing focal point of control on native education decision makers has on the empowerment of students.
The research into these relationships was explored using multiple-case examination of school sites in Canada
and the United States by a survey instrument and by a case study done in the southwest United States. These
research methods were employed in the fall of 1996 and the spring of 1997.
Findings of the research have given no indication of an existence of a relationship between increasing local
autonomy in native schools and increased empowerment of students through the indicators of academic
achievement and changes in the dropout rate. The case study indicated that there was no consensus in the
community what the educational system needed to teach young people in the American Indian community.
This lack of consensus may have had a direct relationship on the inability of the school system to impact
student lives in a positive manner.
Recommendations for improving the performance of working toward the goal of student empowerment
include a recognition that peoples arising from a long history of subjugation are ill equipped to administer
and develop entire school systems in a very short period of time. A consensus must be developed in the
community to determine what it is that the educational system should be doing to educate young people.
There is also a critical need to encourage more innovation in teaching strategies on reservations/reserves.
Working with the community to empower young people, should be a high priority for school systems on
reservations and reserves.
Freed-Rowland, Gretchen W. M. (1993) "North American indigenous women of the First Nations: Our own voices,
our own songs, our own landscapes." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Oregon. 315 pp.
This document contains the oral narratives of six North American indigenous women who engaged in
dialogue over the major questions and challenges they faced in their daily lives as university students,
professional women, and as Native American Indian women having to transit the landscapes of two or more
cultures simultaneously. Through the use of multiple, qualitative research methodologies data were gathered
over a four-year period. Participant observation, interviews, field notes, and the collection of written
artefacts were the techniques employed.
Emerging from these narratives were 28 categories such as: personal stories, education, tribal identity,
community, parenting, family, spiritual understanding and practice, issues of power, self esteem, gender,
cross-cultural interactions, which were interpreted through the Relation Model for critical thinking. These
categories were successfully collapsed under more global categories of culture: (a) identity and self; (b)
family and extended family; (c) community/internal and external; and, (d) education/within and without.
Emerging from these narratives are themes that have long held cultures, tribal groups and families together.
Their voices speak to dynamic movement, interaction, and interdependence grounded in reciprocal
relationship. Ultimately, responsibility to oneself, ones family and one's relatives and culture are intricate
webs of reciprocity tying together all facets of one's life. Continuity of 'the people' becomes a theme these
women self identify as of major importance. For these women curriculum and instruction, theory and praxis
are not separate from their daily lives. Instead these are experienced as a web of meanings to be interpreted,
negotiated and acted upon as a way of living. This collaborative effort presents a different model for applying
ethnographic participatory research. It offers insights into the lives of contemporary 'urban' Native American
Indian women through their eyes, their words, and their landscapes. Finally, it serves as a model for
breaking down Eurocentric-male dominated process that fails to allow for the emergence of women's voices
and women's ways of knowing and doing into the text and canon.
Freeman, Melissa L. (2006) "Urban dreaming." M.Arch. Thesis, Dalhousie University.

This thesis focuses on the architectural implications involved in blurring the boundaries which isolate centre
and margin. Within the context of the city, the social segregation of Indigenous and non-Indigenous
Australians in Sydney is seen amplified at the scale of the suburb in Redfern. By studying the disparate
existence of a residential block owned by the Aboriginal Housing Company (AHC) in relation to the
gentrifying surrounding community, the continuing Aboriginal struggle for emancipation and cultural
presence is made transparent.
The area of study included in this thesis involves in-depth research into Indigenous Australian building
traditions and a sensitivity to the Aboriginal belief in the Dreamtime. Recognising the greater dysfunction
between the Block and the surrounding suburb, the research approaches community development from a
perspective that celebrates a healthy Indigenous identity, and a sensitive transition between the physical
boundaries which segregate two cultures. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)
French, Jan H. (2003) "The rewards of resistance: Legalizing identity among descendants of indios and fugitive slaves
in northeastern Brazil." Ph.D. Dissertation, Duke University. 459 pp.
This dissertation explores how law can inspire ethnic and racial identity formation and how these
transformations, in turn, can shape the meanings of the law itself. It examines the relationship between law
and identity among mixed-race rural workers engaged in land struggles made possible by new legal
provisions. The crux of these struggles has been the collaborative revision of racial and ethnic self-
identification by two neighbouring groups in the process of receiving government recognition -- one as an
indigenous tribe and the other as a community of descendants of fugitive slaves. This dissertation addresses
issues of law, racial and ethnic identity, and culture by considering the ways in which these two communities
have positioned themselves in relation to one another and to new legal categories and processes of
recognition.
This dissertation uses the methodological tools of ethnographic, historical, and legal research to examine
how laws are used by political movements to make cultural differences organizationally relevant in new
ways. The juxtaposition in space and time of these two struggles in the Brazilian context, where racial and
ethnic identity is often mutable even if sometimes expressed in essentialized terms, is ideal for thinking about
how such developments operate on the ground and in the discursive and cultural practices of the people
assuming these new identities.
This dissertation argues that through the process of legalizing identity law operates as a powerful social
force, not only by imposing categories and ordering social relations, but also through the provision of
structures for self-identification and mobilization.
By examining two local examples, as they are constituted through law, social movements, and anthropology,
this dissertation assesses the fit between the values and interests of a political regime, as concretized in a
constitution, administrative practices, and laws and policies that are enunciated through legislative
enactment. As such, it contributes to the ongoing debate about how to conceptualize the meanings of 'rights,'
'difference,' and 'multiculturalism' in a democratizing polity, and shows that rights are not just what the law
provides, but are created through the process of governmentality as well as in the process of their pursuit.
Frias, Jose. (2001) "Understanding indigenous rights (the case of indigenous peoples in Venezuela)." LL.M. Thesis,
McGill University. 106 pp.
On December 15, 1999, the people of Venezuela approved a new Constitution, which is the first Venezuelan
constitution to entrench the rights of indigenous peoples. The purpose of this thesis is to analyze the different
theoretical issues raised by the problem of rights for indigenous peoples. It is argued that indigenous rights
are collective rights based on the value of cultural membership. This implies both an investigation of the
value of cultural membership and of the criticisms that the multicultural perspective has offered against that
point of view.
Indigenous peoples have the moral right to preserve their cultures and traditions. It is submitted that
indigenous peoples have a double moral standing to claim differential treatment based on cultural
membership, because they constitute cultural minorities and they were conquered and did not lend their free
acceptance to the new regime imposed upon them. Therefore, they constitute a national minority, with moral
standing to claim self-government and cultural rights.
Fryberg, Stephanie A. (2003) "Really? You don't look like an American Indian: Social representations and social
group identities." Ph.D. Dissertation, Stanford University. 90 pp.
Social representations provide the images and the language for answering the questions, "Who am I," "Who
are we," and "Who are they?" (Moscovici, 1988). Five studies examined the psychological costs and benefits
of social representations on minority groups, in this case American Indians, when the widely shared
representations are limited in scope. The following questions were addressed: (1) What are the currently
prevalent social representations of American Indians? (2) What are the consequences of explicitly priming
these social representations for American Indians' self-esteem, collective self-efficacy, and achievement-
related possible selves? (3) Does ethnic identification mediate this relationship? and (4) What are the
consequences of explicitly priming prevalent representations of American Indians for European Americans'
self-esteem? Study 1 content analyzed articles from major newspapers and Hollywood movies and revealed
that almost all representations of American Indians could be categorized into one of three major categories:
the romanticized Indian, the broken Indian, and the Progressive Indian. In Studies 2 and 3, American Indian
high school students were primed with a prevalent social representation of their group (i.e., Pocahontas,
Chief Wahoo, or Negative Stereotypes) and then completed state self-esteem or collective self-efficacy
measures. In both studies, American Indian students primed with social representations showed depressed
self-esteem and collective self-efficacy when compared to American Indian students in the control (no social
representation) condition. In study 4, American Indians attending a predominantly American Indian
university with an American Indian mascot were also shown a social representation of American Indians
(either Chief Wahoo, Chief Illiniwek, the Haskell Indian, or an American Indian College Fund
advertisement). Participants in the mascot conditions reported fewer achievement-related possible selves
than did American Indians in no-prime control condition or the advertisement. Finally, in Study 5, European
Americans were explicitly primed with social representations of American Indians (i.e., Pocahontas, Chief
Wahoo, or Negative Stereotypes). They reported heightened self-esteem when compared to European
Americans in the no-prime control condition. This boost in self-esteem for European Americans suggests that
the dominant social representations of minority groups have significant implications for the psychological
functioning of both minority and majority group members.
Fuchs, Denise. (2000) "Native sons of Rupert's Land 1760 to the 1860s." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Manitoba
(The). 257 pp.
In the period from 1760 to the 1860s, native sons of the fur trade of Rupert's Land were distinctly shaped by
the disparate traditions of both their European fathers and aboriginal mothers. The success of the fur trade
depended on the economic interdependence and mutual cooperation of these two sets of strangers. Their
progeny, like their fathers and mothers, aided the British-oriented companies in whose employ they served.
The examination of the attitudes which informed the manner in which native sons were depicted in the
records and their educational achievements and careers within the fur trade revealed that cultural and racial
biases affected their lives, in both subtle and direct ways. These cultural and racial biases became more
obvious from 1820 onward. Social, economic and political changes and the concomitant shifts in attitudes
toward the native sons shed light on the particular circumstances which characterized their lives.
From the 1790s onwards, native sons began to contribute their labour to the economy of the posts in
significant ways. Fathers became more cognizant of the need to prepare their sons for larger roles in the fur
trade and began acculturating them further to the European side of their heritage. A British-based education
was sought for them. Towards the end of the 18th century and in the first two decades of the 19th century,
some native sons could obtain clerkships and become managers of small posts.
The attention to race and class, heightened by the arrival of white women in the 1820s, resulted in the
imposition of social barriers dependent on rank and education that excluded some of the native sons and
their aboriginal or mixed-descent relatives from circles that had formerly included them Additionally, the
newly amalgamated company's adoption of a more rigid hierarchy and the increased emphasis on upward
mobility posed difficulties and challenges for the native sons in the three decades following the 1821 merger
of the Hudson's Bay Company and the North West Company, when limits were imposed on their movement
within the company. In the 1850s and 60s a shift in attitude occurred and restrictions began to be eased
allowing some native sons to advance in the company.
Fujikane, Candace L. (1996) "Archipelagos of resistance: Narrating nation in Asian-American, Native Hawai'ian, and
Hawai'i's local literatures." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of California, Berkeley. 252 pp.
This dissertation, 'Archipelagos of resistance: Narrating nation in Asian American, Native Hawai'ian, and
Hawai'i's local literatures,' examines the narrative structure of nationalisms. Because nationalist movements
often formulate their own 'official' narratives of national struggles along a linear, developmental emplotment
of history, I use a model of archipelagic configurations of nations to resurrect counternarratives that
articulate national struggles in different ways. I ground this theoretical model in the specificities of the crisis
occurring in Hawai'i as competing nationalisms there erupt at the borders of what can be imagined as an
'Asian Pacific American' nation. While Asian Americans increasingly use the term 'Asian Pacific American'
to broaden their bases of coalitions with peoples from the Pacific Basin, the term elides and even reinscribes
the particular colonial histories of peoples in Hawai'i. Native Hawai'ian nationalists and Hawai'i's local
cultural nationalists contest being easily named with continental American identities, even as they often find
themselves in conflict over competing claims to Hawai'i as homeland. This peculiar crisis between the native
and the local in Hawai'i affords us the opportunity to analyze the ways in which anticolonial nations
negotiate their relations with each other, extending postcolonial theories that focus solely on a binary
relationship between imperial nation and anticolonial nationalism. Since cultural nationalism and its claim
to the 'realm' of the aesthetic are rendered by nationalists asymmetrical to nationalism and its reclaiming of
an occupied homeland, Asian American and local cultural nationalists produce highly ambivalent narratives.
The instability of nationalist narratives is crucial to political movements since it prevents the homogenizing
of constituencies by mobilizing peoples around archipelagic formations of multiple loci of resistance from
which Asian American, native Hawai'ian and local writers contest American imperialism. Analyzing the
narratives of Asian American writers David Hsin-Fu Wand, Maxine Hong Kingston, Jessica Hagedorn,
Hawai'i's local writers Darrell Lum, Eric Chock, Gary Pak and Lois-Ann Yamanaka, and native Hawai'ian
writers Leialoha Apo Perkins, Haunani-Kay Trask, Mililani Trask and Charles Ka'ai'ai, the dissertation
sketches out articulations of national identity that allow for more complex anticolonial alliances against
imperial nations.
Fuller-Tarbox, Elizabeth. (2001) "A new look at Louis Riel through his visionary experiences." M.A. Thesis, Carleton
University. 110 pp.
Louis Riel is an integral part of Canada's identity and its heritage. As the leader of the Metis people, he led
two rebellions against the Canadian government over their language, religious, and land claims rights. Since
his execution for treason in 1885, Louis Riel has been given various labels ranging from traitor and madman
to a Father of Confederation and yet there is still much mystery and controversy surrounding this man. In
December of 1875, Riel claimed to have begun experiencing a series of 'visionary experiences' that he
believed were direct communications from his God. Shortly thereafter he declared himself a 'Prophet of the
New World.' These experiences became the determining factor in this man's actions for the remainder of his
life. What this thesis will explore is the possibility that components of these experiences clearly showed that
Riel was engaged in prophetic behaviour. It will also seek evidence that the same visionary experiences might
well have been park of a revitalization movement much in the same manner as Handsome Lake and the
Iroquois. The purpose is to give further insight into Louis Riel and the events surrounding his life.
Funk-Unrau, Cornelius. (2001) "If the Lubicon lose we all lose: A case study of interchurch advocacy and intervention
in an aboriginal land rights conflict." Ph.D. Dissertation, Syracuse University. 231 pp.
This dissertation is a qualitative study of an attempt to develop and maintain a particular type of aboriginal
rights advocacy relationship, namely the effort of the a regional interchurch coalition, based in Edmonton
Alberta, to develop a solidarity relationship with the Lubicon Cree of northern Alberta and to advocate for
the resolution of the Lubicon land rights struggle. Ethnographic research methods included participant-
observation of the Edmonton Interfaith Coalition on Aboriginal Rights (EICAR) from 1997 to 1999, analysis
of media and interchurch documentation on the Lubicon struggle and semi-structured interviews with 31
interviewees. After a brief history of the Lubicon conflict, the study examines the convergence of several
political discourses which provided the political space for the creation of a new advocacy network and a new
type of relationship with specific aboriginal societies such as the Lubicon. This particular solidarity
relationship conveyed a commitment to act on behalf of the Lubicon and the moral justification for doing so,
but also confronted non-aboriginal supporters with the tensions between standing with Lubicon while
simultaneously acknowledging the many factors that separated them from each other. The study analyzes two
specific collective actions -- a blockade of Lubicon territory in 1988 and the establishment of a
nongovernmental commission of inquiry in 1992 -- as attempts to enact this solidarity relationship. The
blockade is a collective action which was developed and implemented by the Lubicon who then invited
interchurch and other supporters to stand with them in solidarity. The commission exemplifies an attempt to
set up an intermediary structure with overlapping advocacy and mediating roles. The study then examines the
impact of both actions on the power and cultural differentials separating the Lubicon from their non-
aboriginal supporters and concludes that the maintenance of a strong advocacy and solidarity relationship
requires not only the willingness to empower the Lubicon in various collective actions but also a sensitivity to
the cultural boundaries between the two parties and the willingness and opportunity to sustain ongoing
supportive relationships across cultures.
Furniss, Elizabeth M. (1997) "In the spirit of the pioneers: Historical consciousness, cultural colonialism and
Indian/white relations in rural British Columbia." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of British Columbia (The).
337 pp.
This dissertation is an ethnography of the cultural politics of Indian/white relations in a small, interior
British Columbia resource city at the height of land claims conflict and tensions. Drawing on the theoretical
approaches of Nicholas Thomas (1994) and Raymond Williams (1977, 1980), I show how the power that
reinforces the subordination of aboriginal peoples in Canada is exercised by 'ordinary' rural Euro-
Canadians whose cultural attitudes and activities are forces in an ongoing, contemporary system of colonial
domination. In approaching these issues through in-depth ethnographic research with both the native and
Euro-Canadian populations and in exploring the dynamics of cultural domination and resistance at the level
of a local, rural community, this dissertation stands as a unique contribution to the ethnographic study of
colonialism and native/non-native relations in Canada.
The dominant Euro-Canadian culture of the region is defined by a complex of understandings about history,
society and identity that is thematically integrated through the idea of the frontier. At its heart, the frontier
complex consists of an historical epistemology -- a Canadian version of the American frontier myth (Slotkin
1992) -- that celebrates the processes through which European explorers 'discovered' and 'conquered' North
America and its aboriginal inhabitants. Central to this complex is the Indian/white dichotomy, a founding
archetype in Euro-Canadians' symbolic ordering of regional social relations and in their private and public
constructions of collective identity. Also central is the Euro-Canadians' self-image of benevolent paternalism,
an identity that appears repeatedly in discourses of national history and native/non-native relations.
Facets of the frontier complex are expressed in diverse settings: casual conversations among Euro-
Canadians, popular histories, museum displays, political discourse, public debates about aboriginal land
claims, and the town's annual summer festival. In each setting, these practices contribute to the perpetuation
of relations of inequality between Euro-Canadians and area Shuswap, Tsilhqot'in and Carrier peoples, and
in each setting area natives are engaging in diverse forms of resistance. The plurality of these strategies of
resistance, rooted in different cultural identities, biographical experiences and political philosophies, reflects
the creativity in which new forms of resistance are forged and tested in public contexts of native/Euro-
Canadian interaction.
Gagne, Natacha. (2004) "Mäori identities and visions: Politics of everyday life in Auckland, New Zealand." Ph.D.
Indigenous peoples around the world have been involved, especially since the 1970s, in nationalist or
sovereigntist movements, as well as in struggles for decolonization, self-determination, and recognition of
their rights. Mäori of Aotearoa/New Zealand are engaged in just such processes and, particularly since the
1960s and 1970s, as part of the Mäori "cultural renaissance". Since about 70% of Mäori live in urban areas,
cities -- Auckland in particular -- have become important sites of affirmation and struggle. This study, which
falls within the field of urban anthropology, is an investigation of what being Mäori today means and how it
is experienced, in particular in the city. The sense of place of Mäori living in Auckland and the appropriation
of space in the urban context are important dimensions of this study. It explores the complexity of Mäori
relationships to the urban milieu, which is often perceived as an alien and colonized site; the ways they
create places and spaces for themselves; and the ongoing struggles to (re)affirm Mäori identities and cultural
aspects considered important elements of these identities. The focus of this research is on everyday life and
"ordinary" Mäori (in contrast to elites). It reveals the significance and importance to Mäori affirmation and
resistance of the extended family and certain types of "city houses" which are based on "traditional" marae
(Mäori traditional meeting places) principles. In contrast to many studies that have stressed the assimilation
pressures of the urban milieu and global forces on indigenous societies, this research underlines processes of
(re)affirmation. It shows how indigenous visions, and ways of being are maintained and even strengthened
through changes and openness to the larger society. Coming to understand these processes also led to the
exploration of Mäori realms of interpretation or figured worlds, the heteroglossic and complex ways people
engage in or relate to these figured worlds, and to figured worlds of the larger society. This study is, thus, at
the very core of today's debates concerning decolonization, political autonomy for indigenous peoples, and
the study of nationalist movements or movements for self-determination.
Galindo, Marcus E. (2003 ) "The journey of education: Characteristics of Shoshone-Bannock High School and
community members on the Fort Hall Indian Reservation." Ph.D. Dissertation, Utah State University. 137 pp.
This dissertation examined personal, cultural, school, and family factors that contribute to the decision of
Native American students to remain in school until graduation or to drop out. 181 participants who had
either graduated or dropped out of school completed a 140-item questionnaire. Participants lived on the
Shoshone-Bannock Indian Reservation located at Fort Hall, Idaho. Factors examined in the survey
instrument included substance abuse by self or family members, peer pressure, trouble with the law, self-
esteem, teen pregnancy, family structure, socioeconomic status, parents education, academic achievement,
teacher attitudes and expectations, school attendance, tribal self-identity and pride, and bilingualism. This
research was based on the assumption that issues and processes in Native American education must be
addressed by Native people themselves in order for positive change to occur. In addition, the research looked
for factors that seem to keep Native Americans in school. The analysis suggested that respondents who were
at a higher risk of dropping out of school had a negative self-attitude, frequently skipped school, and had
negative attitudes about their teachers' expectations. These results differed significantly from those of Native
Americans who had positive self-attitudes, positive attitudes about their teachers' expectations, and positive
family influences. Themes of poverty, self-esteem, and teacher attitudes repeatedly surfaced. Graduates
frequently reported that positive family expectations (including teachers) kept them in school. This
dissertation provides important information for those involved in Native American education. In addition,
this dissertation brings together the views of the Native American, specifically the Shoshone-Bannock people,
in the journey of education. Together, the review of literature and data collected on the Shoshone-Bannock
Indian reservation provide a valuable resource for teachers, parents, and community members now involved,
or soon to be involved, in Native American education.
Garrity, John F. (1998) "The ethos of power: Navajo religious healing of alcohol and substance abuse." Ph.D.
Dissertation, Case Western Reserve University. 255 pp.
Three distinct religious healing traditions coexist within the contemporary Navajo health care system. This
study investigates the differential therapeutic engagement of alcohol and substance abuse within the three
religious healing traditions as to the kinds of power, social networks, and personal meaning they offer to
Navajo people who suffer. Ethnographic research indicates that, among these three, Native American Church
and Pentecostal Christian healing are more actively involved in the treatment of alcohol and substance abuse
than is traditional Navajo healing. These two more recent healing traditions are explored as a religious
response to the contemporary Navajo crisis of alcohol and substance abuse. Analysis situates them in the
context of the vast socioeconomic changes taking place in Navajo society today as it continues its transition
from pastoralism towards wage labour subsistence. These changes, together with the prevalence of alcohol
abuse itself, profoundly disrupt traditional kinship networks and diminish the opportunity for many Navajos
to participate in traditional religious life. Part of the therapeutic efficacy of Native American Church and
Christian healing lies in their synthesizing elements of traditional meaning with those of the contemporary
Navajo sociocultural milieu. The new kinds of power, social networks, and personal meaning proffered by
these traditions facilitates an ethnopsychological transformation of self, a revitalized sense of community,
and a new vision of the possibilities of the future for Navajo people who suffer. It is further demonstrated that
the dominant theoretical emphasis on harmony and beauty in anthropological research is inadequate for
understanding contemporary Navajo culture and religion. Instead, the essence of Navajo culture and healing
can be more accurately comprehended in terms of the ethos of power. This power is conceptualized and
experienced as a power of the sacred. This power is not inherently good or evil, rather, power becomes
dangerous only if it is uncontrolled. Navajo patients frequently experience distress in terms of feeling out of
control, or controlled by something, such as a spirit or alcohol. Conversely, the therapeutic efficacy of all
three religious healing traditions lies within restoring the proper control of sacred power. In this sense, it is
the ethos of power which sustains and unifies Navajo culture.
Garwood, Nicki. (1995) ""Why do you want to help me? I've never even been to your home...": A journey in cross-
cultural social work with aboriginal people." M.S.W. Thesis, McGill University. 191 pp.
The following thesis describes the experiences of a non-native, female, social worker as a participant-
observer among First Nations people. The setting was that of an Intensive Drug and Alcohol Abuse
Prevention Program for male aboriginal ex-offenders, held over a period of four months in 1993. The
environment was a secluded camp site, situated to the northeast of Montréal. The material describes, in
narrative form, the interactions between non-native and Mohawk workers, and between non-native worker
and native clients of various cultural backgrounds. Also considered are general issues which affect First
Nations peoples, such as alcohol and drug abuse, grief and loss, sexual abuse and the resurgence of
traditional native spiritual practices. Implications of the work reflect on effective cross-cultural
communication, and the importance of facilitating appropriate healing processes for First Nations peoples.
Geddes, Russell D. (1984 ) "The pursuit of aboriginal rights: The negotiation of comprehensive claims in Canada."
In the past 15 years, comprehensive claims have become a highly politicized issue in the Canadian north.
This thesis examines the legal basis of comprehensive claims and the dual objectives of preservation and
integration sought by native groups through settlements of these claims. It also outlines the evolution of the
federal claims policy, beginning with a treaty-making process and culminating in a negotiation process to
resolve comprehensive claims. While Ottawa has adhered to the negotiation process, the government has
been inconsistent in settling these native claims. However, it has not been a lack of government willingness to
respond to comprehensive claims, but rather the negotiations have been tempered by the particular political
and economic climates in which each claim arises. The claims negotiation process of James Bay, the
Mackenzie Valley and the Yukon were chosen to test this hypothesis. The paper outlines the development of
each of these claims and identifies the determining factors involved in each negotiation process. In
concluding, the timing of the claims, the problem of overlapping boundaries, and the interface of territorial
claims with political development have been particularly influential in explaining the divergences in the
negotiation of comprehensive claims.
Geier, James A. (1986) "The legacy of colonialism: A comparative historical analysis of internal colonialism in the
United States and South Africa." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of California, Riverside. 220 pp.
This dissertation examines the applicability of the internal colonial model, as developed by Robert Blauner
and others, to the societies of the United States and the Republic of South Africa. It utilizes an historical
comparative mode of analysis to examine the mechanisms of subordination of racial and ethnic minorities on
behalf of dominant group interests from the 17th through the 20th century. The major focus is on the racial
and class interests of dominant group members relative to land and labour issues. Formal legislation is used
as an indicator of these interests and its impact on minority group statuses and structural locations is
assessed. Land and labour are discussed in terms of their contribution to the growth of capitalism and their
use as mechanisms of social control in the two countries. The major conclusion reached is that a combination
of internal colonial and class analyses offers the most powerful explanation for the persistence of racial and
ethnic inequality in modern industrial societies. This method of assessing the independent and interactive
effects of race and class offers a severe challenge to traditional assimilationist explanations.
Genka, Yoko. (2004) "Imag(in)ing Okinawa: Representations from within and without." Ph.D. Dissertation, George
Mason University. 215 pp.
This dissertation delineates the problem of representation of an Asian island group, caught between
conceptions and preconceptions imposed from without on the one hand, and a dialectics of identity politics
from within on the other hand. Special emphasis is placed on the distortion in the representation of the
Others that results from the already established framework of representation and from the prevailing
discourse that legitimizes the framework itself. Such distortion seems to be a problem of identity for those
who are forced to play the role of Others to a Western Self, and who thus feel forced to correct such distorted
images within the prevailing discourse.
Through her own theoretical interest in representation, the author came to think of her birthplace, Okinawa,
today a Japanese prefecture in the Ryukyu archipelago, as an excellent locale for analysis. 20th century
Okinawa offered the perfect setting for examining the interplay and dynamics of representation, since both
Japan and the United States have repeatedly and insistently intervened in the representation of Okinawan
culture so as to legitimize their respective claims on the island chain. The analysis of cultural images and
representations there reveals what kinds of framework are selected for a particular discourse to prevail.
Presumably, such an analysis made by an Okinawan who also studied within the framework of a Western
discipline might somehow shed light upon current and disturbing issues of representation, and particularly
upon the process though which the Others are necessarily caught within a specific discourse of
representation.
Ghere, David L. (1988) "Abenaki factionalism, emigration and social continuity: Indian society in northern New
England, 1725 to 1765." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Maine. 332 pp.
The Abenaki tribes experienced an important political transition during the period from 1725 to 1765. Tribal
structures, already disrupted by epidemic diseases and trade dependence, experienced escalating Anglo-
French diplomatic pressure and English settlement expansion at a time of Abenaki military weakness. While
Euroamerican actions and policies certainly shaped the Indians' diplomatic situation and influenced their
internal tribal politics, tribal leaders responded with both independence and ingenuity to control events in a
manner that they perceived to be in the best interests of their respective tribes. The relative consistency of
Abenaki spokesmen at conferences fostered the perception of the tribes as structured political units and
obscured the tremendous dissension and factionalism within each tribe. The nature of consensus politics and
the fluidity of Abenaki band membership controlled the divisive forces for a time, but eventually all of the
tribes splintered into separate political entities or gradually disintegrated into family bands, some of which
merged into other tribes. The Penobscot tribe reunited after the French and Indian War and, ultimately,
absorbed many of the remnants of the other tribes. Other Abenaki family bands and lineages continued their
separate residence in northern New England for many decades.
Abenaki factionalism resulted primarily from the internal political disputes over the most effective policy for
diplomatic relations with the English. Some Abenakis believed peaceful co-existence and increased economic
interaction were the best means of maintaining their land and lifestyle. They pursued their goal with a variety
of diplomatic tactics and adaptive strategies, always seeking neutrality during Anglo-French disputes. Other
Abenakis believed that only constant resistance to English settlements and English policies would preserve
their land and way of life. Their diplomatic tactics and adaptive strategies were designed to further these
goals and they perceived Anglo-French conflicts as opportunities to secure French assistance. Proximity to
English settlements and limited subsistence options accentuated the divisive effects of factionalism and,
within each tribe, young warriors tended to support the confrontational faction while older men were more
conciliatory.
Abenaki political dissension and tribal disintegration obscures an underlying social continuity. All Abenaki
decisions, whether they concerned subsistence, emigration, trade, treaty commitments, initiating warfare or
concluding peace, were determined at the family band or lineage level. The fluid nature of Abenaki social
organization allowed individuals and families to change political factions or even village residence without
greatly disturbing social relationships. Social continuity enabled the Abenakis to survive this period of
factionalism, migration and military defeat.
Gibson, Virginia V. (1996) "Resources, conflict, and culture: The sour gas plant dispute between Unocal Canada and
the Lubicon Cree nation." M.A. Thesis, University of Alberta. 184 pp.
A dispute between Unocal Canada, an oil and gas company, and the Lubicon Cree nation, an aboriginal
band, over a sour gas plant was adjudicated by the Energy Utilities Board (EUB) of the Province of Alberta
in 1994. Qualitative social science methods are used in this study to explore the perspectives of all parties to
this dispute. It is established that current risk communication and management strategies have not
adequately identified or resolved the issues arising from the cross-cultural differences underlying the dispute.
A case study approach is used to explore themes such as: differences between Unocal, the Lubicon and the
EUB that hinder effective cross-cultural communication, methods of designing cross-cultural communication
to accommodate these differences, the performance of EUB dispute resolution processes in cross-cultural
contexts, and the potential for other risk management and dispute resolution processes that accommodate
cultural differences. A cross-cultural model of communication and conflict resolution is used to outline the
differences between participants and the cultural contexts of the parties to the dispute. The results of this
study show that successful cross-cultural communication and conflict resolution must address and
accommodate cultural differences.
Giesler, Patric V. (1998 ) "Conceptualizing religion in highly syncretistic fields: An analog ethnography of the
Candomblés of Bahia, Brazil." Ph.D. Dissertation, Brandeis University. 1,163 pp.
One of the outstanding problems in the study of religion is its very often tremendous internal variability,
variability within what is conceived of as one, same, 'religion.' Accordingly, the question that the dissertation
addresses is how to conceptualize, study, and describe a particular religion in the context of such internal
variation? And it responds through a comprehensive ethnography of a case exemplifying the problem, the
African-derived spirit possession religion, Candombleé, of Bahia, Brazil. Candomblé is embedded in a
context of highly syncretistic religious variability, shaped by InterAfrican, Amerindian, and Popular Catholic
influences. Typically, the problem is approached, 'digitally,' as in a 'digital ethnography,' where the religious
variability is collapsed into a discrete unit, and the 'religion' is defined by a single and presumably uniformly
shared set of beliefs, rituals, religious experiences, and social organization. But it is argued here on the basis
of extensive field research on the Candomblés (1971-74, 1976-77, 1980-81, 1990-94), entailing surveys and
comparisons of a large number of case studies of the most diverse variants, participant observation in more
than 300 rituals, and the intensive interviewing of more than 100 leaders and 100 adepts in 141 Candomblé
centres, that in the case of the Candomblé, such a 'religion' does not exist. Such a Candomblé (singular) does
not exist. What exists is a field of variants, 'Candomblés' (plural), that resemble one another to varying
degrees. They share a family resemblance in Wittgenstein's sense, not a single defining set of distinctive
features.
Thus, the solution to the problem executed here is to address religious variability directly, and conceptualize
the Candomblé religion as a field of variants, study the field's internal variability, its structure, history,
character, and dynamics, and describe it analogically, an 'analog ethnography,' through a comparison of the
beliefs, rituals, religious experiences, and social organization of its variants. The dissertation reveals, for
instance, that the field is modelled on the most conservatively African exemplars, such that the other
Candomblés vary syncretically in relation to them. The same applies to the rich transmutations of Candomblé
ethnopsychology across the field, which is a major focus of the ethnography. It is concluded that if religious
variability is not taken into account, the character of religious organization, its expression, and cultural
history, in general, will be misrepresented, and our attempts to discover associations and correlations with
other social, cultural, historical, and psychological phenomena will suggest connections when there are
none, or none when there are.
Gilats, Andrea S. (1997) "American Indian lives, lands, and cultures: The story of an intercultural educational travel
program." Ph.D. Dissertation, Union Institute (The). 174 pp.
This is a true story about the issues, challenges, problems, and processes associated with conceiving,
constructing, delivering, and sustaining an educational program of study tours in Indian America aimed at
adult lifelong learners. It is a story of engagement, collaboration, exchange, trial, error, and reflection as
told by a non-Indian educator working within a large public university. It recounts a search for approaches
and working methods in which (1) partnership and dialogue with tribal communities shape program content,
presentation, and faculty selection; (2) power and control are shared in order to preserve cultural integrity
and dismantle stereotypes both in tribal communities and the academy; (3) tribal communities and their
members take authority for deciding which aspects of their cultures are shared with outsiders and how and
where that sharing takes place; and, (4) the resulting programs further these communities' economic,
cultural, and political goals for tourism. This story is written with the intention that the research, thought,
and feeling that inform it will improve and enrich the educational program that is its subject, and that it will
be useful to tribal communities and educational institutions that wish to develop similar educational and
cultural programs. There is an artefact associated with this story. This artefact is American Indian Lives,
Lands, and Cultures (AILLC), a program of study tours "owned" and operated by the University of
Minnesota. The goal of this program is to broaden and deepen knowledge about continuity and change in
American Indian cultures by providing a variety of tourist-students access to historical Indian lands and
contemporary tribal communities, and opportunities to learn from living American Indian educators,
scholars, artists, and elders. This story is complemented, countered, and contextualized with quotations from
American Indian writers, artists, and philosophers, and with excerpts from the author's visual and written
travel journals.
Gilby, Stuart C. (1996) "Variations on a theme: Environmental racism and the adverse effects of natural racism
extraction on the aboriginal peoples of Canada." Ph.D. Dissertation, Dalhousie University.
This study examines the manner in which Canada has taken land from indigenous peoples to exploit the
country's natural resources. The process has benefited the larger, European derived society at the terrible
expense of the numerous indigenous nations of what is now Canada. The author compares this process to the
practice of environmental racism in the United States, and the intersection of issues of race and resource
allocation in the international sphere. In all three situations the rights and values of minorities are sacrificed
to increase the wealth of a larger, more powerful race or ethnic group. The history of the clash between
European and indigenous cultures in Canada is sketched. The role of government and the courts in assisting
with the subjugation of native peoples is examined. Specific cases are discussed which clearly illustrate the
enormity of the adverse impacts of resource development visited on various First Nations. The most extensive
examination is of the difficulties faced by the Crees of James Bay in their ongoing struggle against hydro-
electric projects and forestry. Particular emphasis is placed on the words and experience of individual
natives who have suffered the direct and immediate effects of policies and practices that are rooted in racism.
The study finds some hope for change to our history of the dispossession of aboriginal peoples, the
destruction of their economies and the severe damage done to their cultural and spiritual values. The hope is
tentative, but the perseverance of natives and the change in direction taken by some governments do offer a
chance for an equitable sharing of the wealth of the land.
Gill, Nicholas J. (2000) "Outback or at home? Environment, social change and pastoralism in Central Australia."
Ph.D. Dissertation, University of New South Wales.
This thesis examines the responses of non-indigenous pastoralists in Central Australian rangelands to two
social movements that profoundly challenge their occupancy, use and management of land. Contemporary
environmentalism and Aboriginal land rights have both challenged the status of pastoralists as valued
primary producers and bearers of a worthy pioneer heritage. Instead, pastoralists have become associated
with land degradation, biodiversity loss, and Aboriginal dispossession. Such pressure has intensified in the
1990s in the wake of the Native Title debate, and various conservation campaigns in the arid and semi-arid
rangelands. The pressures on pastoralists occur in the context of wider reassessments of the social and
economic values of rangelands in which pastoralism is seen as having declined in value compared to 'post-
production' land uses. Reassessments of rangelands in turn are part of global changes in the status of rural
areas, and of the growing flexibility in the very meaning of 'rural.' Through ethnographic fieldwork among
largely non-indigenous pastoralists in Central Australia, this thesis investigates the nature and foundations
of pastoralists' responses to these changes and critiques. Through memory, history, labour and experience of
land, non-indigenous pastoralists construct a narrative of land, themselves and others in which the presence
of pastoralism in Central Australia is naturalised, and Central Australia is narrated as an inherently pastoral
landscape. Particular types of environmental knowledge and experience, based in actual environmental
events and processes form the foundation for a discourse of pastoral property rights. Pastoralists
accommodate environmental concerns, through advocating environmental stewardship. They do this in such
a way that Central Australia is maintained as a singularly pastoral landscape, and one in which a European,
or 'white', frame of reference continues to dominate. In this way the domesticated pastoral landscapes of
colonialism and nationalism are reproduced. The thesis also examines Aboriginal pastoralism as a
distinctive form of pastoralism, which fulfils distinctly Aboriginal land use and cultural aspirations, and
undermines the conventional meaning of 'pastoralism' itself. The thesis ends by suggesting that improved
dialogue over rangelands futures depends on greater understanding of the details and complexities of local
relationships between groups of people, and between people and land.
Gill, Sheila D. (1999) "Who can be a citizen? Decoding the 'law of the land' in contemporary Manitoba politics." M.A.
Thesis, University of Toronto. 177 pp.
This thesis decodes key aspects of the 'law of the land' operating in contemporary Manitoban society.
Focusing on 'white' elite political performances of the official national story, I contend that (a gendered,
classed, heterosexed) racism underwrites the shifting and disparate instances of what and who a Canadian
citizen can be, both in the letter of the law, and in the diverse lived realities of the 1990s. Combining
discourse analysis with tools of critical geography, my work speaks back to the decreed unspeakability of
racism in Manitoba's Legislature. I contend that the 1995 prohibition on the use of the word 'racist' in the
House is consistent with the amnesic context of (post)colonial Canadian society and its celebrated 'anti-
racist' nationalism. In response to the extremity of systemic violence experienced by First Nations peoples in
the Canadian past and present, my analysis gives priority to the ordering of aboriginal/non-aboriginal
relations in Manitoba.
Gillon, Kirstin E. (1997 ) "The practical utility of international law in the negotiation and implementation of
aboriginal self-government agreements." LL.M. Thesis, McGill University. 143 pp.
The aim of this thesis is to evaluate the practical utility of international norms to indigenous peoples. In
recent decades, indigenous peoples have looked increasingly to international fora to secure what they see as
their rights. It becomes important, then, to evaluate the potential utility of these efforts. Two conclusions
dominate my assessment of the role of international law. Firstly, the lack of enforceability of the norms
means that international law is unlikely to achieve change in the face of state resistance. Secondly, the
vagueness of the norms, coupled with the complexity of self-government regimes, severely limit the principles'
ability in achieving specific change. Instead, the utility of international law is seen to lie in changing attitudes
amongst the general public and governments, by establishing common standards of treatment to which all
indigenous peoples are entitled, creating new channels of communication and broadening the context of
indigenous disputes.
Gilman, Deborah A. (1998 ) "Culturally relevant aboriginal child welfare: Principles, practice, and policy." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of Manitoba (The). 281 pp.
Aboriginal workers appear to bring a holistic approach to their practice of child welfare. The theory of
reasoned action (Ajzen and Fishbein, 1980) predicts a relationship between individuals' characteristics such
as ethnicity and their beliefs, attitudes, behavioural intentions, and behaviours. Based on this theory, the
study compared the intended interventions of 26 aboriginal workers from aboriginal child welfare agencies
and 32 non-aboriginal workers from agencies serving rural and remote areas. Workers responded to
questionnaires consisting of rating scales and open-ended questions requiring written responses. Results
indicated that aboriginal workers rated a set of mainstream social work practice principles as less frequently
relevant to their practice. A repeated-measures multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) indicated that
aboriginal and non-aboriginal workers would respond differently to four aboriginal child welfare vignettes.
Specifically, aboriginal workers indicated that they would be more likely than non-aboriginal workers to
employ less intrusive interventions. They were also more likely to favour some short- and long-term
interventions. Workers did not differ in their intentions to employ within-family interventions. Given that non-
aboriginal workers reported completing significantly higher levels of education than aboriginal workers,
analyses of covariance were conducted with education as the covariate. For the practice principles, a
MANCOVA indicated no difference between the two groups with respect to relevance ratings. However, a
repeated-measures MANCOVA indicated that aboriginal and non-aboriginal workers still differed with
respect to their intended interventions. Also, a MANCOVA indicated that aboriginal and non-aboriginal
workers differed with respect to their intentions to intervene at varying levels of intrusiveness. Five
aboriginal workers were interviewed to provide a context for the findings. The results suggest that education
influences a worker's assessment of the relevance of practice principles. However, the application of these
principles is more complex and appears to be influenced by a worker's ethnicity. With respect to culturally
relevant aboriginal child welfare policy, recommendations were made to alter time constraints imposed on
aboriginal child welfare cases and to support interventions that aim to strengthen aboriginal families.
Giroux, Sharon S. (1997) "The experiences that contributed to the attrition decisions of Lac du Flambeau high school
students." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Minnesota. 430 pp.
Chippewa elders and tribal council members at Lac du Flambeau, Wisconsin were concerned that the
economic prosperity and future cultural longevity of their tribe could be in jeopardy as a result of the very
high attrition phenomena among their high school youth. According to Valliere (1990), the high school
attrition rate among younger members of the Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Indians varied
between 53% and 73% over the past decade.
The purpose of this study was to help others understand the lived experiences of Chippewa high school
students as they left the reservation (a majority learning environment) to attend public high school off the
reservation (a minority learning environment) and also what events transpired that contributed to their
attrition decisions.
As part of this qualitative study, interview sessions with six Chippewa youths (three males and three females
between the ages of 16 and 20) along with their parents or guardians were conducted on the Lac du
Flambeau reservation in the fall of 1993. Other secondary resources and documents were examined for
purposes of corroborating the testimonies of those individuals who had terminated their secondary
education.
In analyzing the content of the testimonies, ten primary patterns and themes emerged. These included the
effects of racism, fear, severe punishment, political and spiritual issues and peer pressure. A dichotomy
existed between lighter and darker-skinned Indians. While most Chippewa families were profoundly
committed to education, labelling, tracking, and sorting devices contributed to their sense of shame and an
erosion of their cultural identity. Domestic issues and family concerns burdened young Chippewa students.
Internal strife among members of the Chippewa community itself served to further alienate young people
from their educational or career pursuits.
Though alternative education programs on the reservation contributed significantly to the graduation
accomplishments of Chippewa youths, these were discontinued due to a lack of funding. Though many Indian
families prefer to have their children integrate academically and socially into the predominantly all-white
high school off the reservation, others have called for the construction of an Indian high school on the
reservation.
Giuliano, Pearl E. (1995 ) "Anishnawbe women and the meaning of food: A qualitative study." M.Sc. Thesis,
University of Guelph. 155 pp.
This thesis is an investigation of the meaning of food for nine Anishnawbe women in Pic River, Ontario. The
women's experiences and perspectives are the focus in this feminist, participatory action research process.
Unstructured and semi-structured interviews, group story writing and discussions encouraged the women to
reflect on, and analyze, food and eating. Learning needs were identified and an action plan initiated. The
main findings discuss the impact of acculturation on food consumption; the high prevalence of obesity, and
the women's knowledge of food and nutrition; the high prevalence of overeating and emotional eating; the
healing and empowerment of the women; and the impact of ethnostress. Conclusions drawn include the
importance of understanding history; overeating and emotional eating are symptoms of underlying problems;
and a qualitative approach encouraged the women to voice their experiences, promoting critical thinking and
identification of learning needs. Ten implications for health care providers are also presented.
Givens, David T. (2000) "Guam: An analysis of an American colony with particular emphasis on the integration of the
pre-contact class system into the modern society." Ph.D. Dissertation, Michigan State University. 642 pp.
Guam is one of the United States' few remaining territories. While the people of Guam are Americans in
every sense of the word, Guam hosts several subcultures. The dominant one is the Chamorro-Guamanian.
Interestingly, the Chamorro-Guamanians seem to have maintained several important parts of their
prehistoric culture to this day.
This paper has, essentially, two purposes. The first is an exploration of the history of Guam from its earliest
human habitation to the present with particular emphasis on its evolution as one of the United States' few
colonies. The second is to explore the hypothesis that the prehistoric social structure of the island is still in
effect in many ways. Some aspects of it seem continuous throughout all of Guam's history but at the very least
the pre-contact social structure is a useful tool in analyzing Guam's current society.
To serve these two purposes there is a comprehensive history of Guam.
The first chapter is about the prehistoric colonization of the island by man. Human habitation of the island of
Guam may have begun as early as 6,000 years ago with the Prelatte culture. Evidence of the Latte culture
begins about 1,800 years ago. It was probably the result of forced immigration or conquest. It became a fully
developed Oceanic culture and is discussed in some detail. Particular emphasis is placed on the social
stratification of the culture and the likelihood that the lowest class of the Latte culture were the remnants of
the Prelatte.
The second, third and fourth chapters are the history of the Spanish discovery and colonization of
Micronesia. It followed the tradition of Spanish colonization but did not really become a mature Spanish
colony. It was a backwater of the empire. With minor adaptations, it maintained its pre-contact social
structure.
The fifth chapter is the story of the acquisition of the island of Guam by the United States at the end of the
Spanish American War and the first American period. Guam went through a period of Americanization
during which time the Chamorro-Guamanians became integrated into the American culture. For the most
part this was voluntary. But still, they kept much of their pre-contact social structure.
The sixth chapter is the story of Guam's conquest by Japan during World War II and the American invasion
and reconquest near the end of that war. It continues through reconstruction up to the signing of the Organic
Act of Guam in 1950. This act began Guam's development into a largely self-governing unincorporated
territory of the United States.
The seventh chapter is the history of Guam under the Organic Act. It brings the history up to the end of 1998.
'Discussion' discusses Guam's various colonial experiences and the preservation of the pre-contact system of
social stratification. It illustrates modern social stratification with the discussion of the current government
and economy. It also discusses two of Guam's thorniest problems -- land tenure and future political status in
the light of Guam's history.
'Conclusions' reviews the scope and conclusions of the work.
Glazier, Edward W. Jr. (2002) "A sociological analysis of fishing Hawai'ian-style." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of
Hawai'i. 355 pp.
Small boat fishing in Hawai'i is a macro-social phenomenon, with some 10,000 vessel captains and many
more crew participating directly, and thousands of ohana members involved secondarily. Hundreds of
thousands of people enjoy eating the fish. This analysis examines recreational, various levels of commercial,
and subsistence-customary small boat fishing as enacted in the Islands. Native Hawai'ian and local fishing
customs, operational opportunism and fluidity, and unique marketing options underlay extensive overlap of
categories, befitting an overarching paradigm I term Hawai'ian-Style fishing. Involvement in each sub-type
incurs implications and consequences, both enabling and constraining. Recreational fishing tends to be
subjugated by avid participation in mainstream land-based work but is an important outlet for responding to
stresses of modern life, and for Native Hawai'ians a means for practicing fishing traditions. Persons engaged
in avid commercial fishing deal with difficult market conditions but persist largely for the many social and
personal benefits of self-employment on the ocean. As the oldest and most encompassing form of fishing in
Hawai'i, subsistence-customary fishing can be seen as an important and meaningful adaptive response to
post-contact social disruption and modern economic challenges, with ideological linkages to a deeper
history. Structuration theory as advanced by Willis (1977) is used to conceptually guide empirically-based
description and explanation of how and why Native Hawai'ians so avidly persist in small boat fishing,
especially subsistence-customary fishing, and why that participation must be seen as constraining in the
long-term under conditions of modern capitalist society.
Godfrey, Anthony. (1985) "Congressional-Indian politics: Senate survey of conditions among the Indians of the
United States." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Utah (The). 451 pp.
Historians of federal Indian policy have maintained that the sources of federal authority over American
Indians rest in the Constitutional provisions which vest Congress with 'plenary' power over all Indian tribes,
their governments, their members, and their property. Yet, historians have ignored congressional-Indian
relations in their writings. To redress this problem, a study which analyzes congressional-Indian politics to
determine how Congress uses its plenary power over America's native peoples is warranted. Whether
Congress acts in behalf of political interest, special interest, regional interest, national interest, or in the
interest of Indians is a consideration of equal importance. This study, then, focuses on the history of an
important Senate investigation into Indian conditions known as the Senate Survey of Conditions Among the
Indians of the United States. During its life span from 1928 to 1945, the Senate Survey investigation was
chaired by three senators: Lynn J. Frazier (R-North Dakota), Burton K. Wheeler (D-Montana), and Elmer
Thomas (D-Oklahoma). They visited Indian reservations in 23 states and the territory of Alaska, amassing
23,000 pages of testimony, probing various elements of Indian policy. They actively participated in the
decision process, ultimately influencing the decisions behind the three major shifts in Indian policy in the
20th century, namely, the demise of allotment policy instituted by the Dawes Severalty Act of 1887, the rise
and fall of the concept of cultural pluralism embodied in the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934, and finally
the emergence of termination policy with the waning of the Indian New Deal. In addition, the Senate Survey
inquiry explored other such substantive national policy problems as health and education needs on
reservations, reimbursable debts, reservation resource development, devastating Depression conditions,
tribal land claims against the federal government, and other critical policy issues. Finally, a study of the
Senate Survey illuminates the interplay and tension between Congressional committees and other policy-
makers, such as the Indian Bureau, Indian tribes, and private advocates for Indians. Indeed, this study
demonstrates that in the Age of Roosevelt congressional-Indian policy involved a complex interplay of
ideology, personality, bureaucracy, and politics.
Godfrey, Kathleen. (1998 ) "Visions and re/visions of the Native American." Ph.D. Dissertation, Arizona State
University. 192 pp.
The 1800s saw the burgeoning of women authors in the United States, many of whom wrote within the genre
of the sentimental novel. Recent theorists Jane Tompkins and Cathy Davidson have argued that sentimental
novels, rather than reinforcing the status quo, re/vision in radical and revolutionary ways contemporary US
culture. Although critiques of US culture were varied, one area of women's criticism is the focus of this study,
the question of Native Americans' status and treatment by the federal government and by US Anglo-American
culture in general. While 'feminine' qualities like nurturance allowed women to sympathize with and defend
the ethnic Other, women were not innocent in the rhetoric and practices of domination and colonization.
Women's use of sentimental novels and gender inscriptions did not escape inflicting the domination which
many of these women deplored in Anglo society. This study traces the interplay of the sentimental novel and
social reform in three novelists: Helen Hunt Jackson in Ramona, Willa Cather in The song of the lark and
Death comes for the Archbishop, and Barbara Kingsolver in Pigs in heaven. The purpose of this study is to
explore the variety of authorial positions in white women's portrayals of Native Americans and the range of
female complicity in the perpetuation of the dominant culture's racist perspectives. Through the critical lens
of postcolonial theorists Edward Said and David Spurr, the inherent instability and tension between social
reform and inherited constructs of race that undercut the sentimental novel's reformist project emerge.
Gold, Mitzi. (1995) "Selected risk factors associated with suicidality among adolescents in Hawai'i." Ph.D.
Dissertation, Saybrook Institute. 203 pp.
This study identified select psychological and behavioural factors that significantly contribute to suicidality
of public high school students on Oahu in Hawai'i. The data of this study were collected by the Hawai'i State
Department of Health in 1990 using the computerized Teen Health Advisor (THA) survey. The THA survey
was completed by 1,335 male and female 10th grade students. A secondary data analysis compared 870
students of four major ethnic groups: part-Hawai'ian, Filipino, Japanese, and Caucasian.
The risk factors considered were gender, ethnicity, consumption of alcohol, depression, and the experience of
sexual abuse. The criteria variables were suicide attempt and the recency as well as frequency of suicidal
thought.
Chi-Square analysis and multiple logistic regression analysis were used to ascertain the extent to which the
risk factors are associated with and predict suicidality.
In general, the findings indicated that gender, ethnicity (for all four ethnic groups), depression, use of
alcohol, and experience of sexual abuse were all significantly associated with suicidality. Logistic regression
analysis showed that three of the five predictor variables, namely alcohol use, depression, and sexual abuse
can predict suicidality among part-Hawai'ian and Caucasian female respondents. In contrast, there is
statistical evidence to support a significant association between depression and suicide attempt among males,
specifically part-Hawai'ian males. Therefore, there is a stronger foundation of results for part-Hawai'ian and
Caucasian respondents compared to Japanese and Filipino respondents. Hence, other risk factors are
involved in suicide attempts for these two ethnic groups.
In sum, the study suggests that professionals and programs dealing with adolescents should more carefully
consider suicide risks associated with not only gender but also ethnic group affiliation, depression, alcohol
use, and the possible experience of sexual abuse of the adolescent.
Gomme, Graham E. (1990) "Interest group/government intermediation in the Yukon Indian Land Claim." M.A.
This study gives some insight into political development in the Yukon by analyzing how four interest groups
relate or associate with the various parties negotiating the Land Claim Settlement. The interest groups of
choice are the Yukon Outfitters Association, and Association of Yukon Communities, the Yukon Fish and
Game Association and the Yukon Chamber of Mines. The governing parties involved in territory-wide
negotiations are the Council for Yukon Indians, the Yukon Territorial Government and the Federal
Government. This study utilizes four models of interest group intermediation to assess what type of
relationship each group maintains with the various governing bodies. Societal corporatism seems to be the
model that best describes each of the four relationships and the land claim process in general. Unlike
pluralism and consociationalism, societal corporatism displays more pro-active government involvement
with interest groups. As well, this type of interaction promotes formal institutions and agreements which
bring government and interest groups together.
Gone, Joseph P. (2001) "Affect and its disorders in a Northern Plains Indian community: Issues in cross-cultural
discourse and diagnosis." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. 171 pp.
Situated within an NIMH-sponsored study of psychiatric epidemiology in an American Indian community on
the Northern Plains, this study examined the cultural patterning of reported experience in the context of
standardized diagnostic interviewing. More specifically, analytic attention to the discursive construction of
self among Indian respondents promised insight into the unusually low rates of statistical concordance
between diagnoses obtained by community members employing the Composite International Diagnostic
Interview (CIDI) and a non-resident clinician employing the Structured Clinical Interview for the DSM
(SCID). Interviews with 75 tribal members from a single reservation revealed that respondents diagnosed
with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) when interviewed by a community member using the CIDI were
much more likely to be diagnosed instead with a depressive disorder when interviewed by an outside
clinician using the SCID. It is argued here that the 'lay' interviewers found higher rates of PTSD and lower
rates of depressive disorder because they invoked (and could not circumvent) the local cultural discourse
linking trauma and fortitude. As a result, CIDI responses were channelled into culturally appropriate self-
representations that primarily associated personal distress in terms of the traumatic social disruptions that
respondents had experienced as opposed to the more direct acknowledgment of relatively decontextualized
and internalised mood states that the community emphasis upon fortitude precludes in such discursive
encounters. In contrast, as a non-tribal interviewer and a trained clinician, I disrupted this local cultural
discourse by actively contesting and reorganizing the respondents' own constructions of their distress into
established psychiatric categories, thereby facilitating a displacement of CIDI PTSD diagnoses among this
sample by the substantial increase in SCID depression diagnoses. Insofar as sustained attention to the
sociolinguistic practices of a cultural community may illuminate perplexing epidemiological findings,
including the difficult challenges posed by incommensurate ontologies of distress, the implications of this
kind of analysis for cross-cultural psychiatric epidemiology are discussed.
Gonzales, Loretta L. (2002) "Suicide factors among ethnic minority youth." M.S.W. Thesis, California State
University, Long Beach. 119 pp.
This thesis explores the literature on normal and abnormal youth development. It further explores the
behaviour of youth in crisis, specifically suicide. The special circumstances and stressors of ethnic minority
youth are particularly examined through the extant literature. Implications of research and social work
practice are discussed. The literature indicated that Native Americans/American Indian/Alaskan Native youth
have the highest rate of youth suicide, among the ethnic groups researched. Chicano/Latino/Hispanic youth
were the next highest group, followed by Asians. African American youth had the lowest rate of youth suicide.
Good, Catharine L. (1993 ) "Work and exchange in Nahuatl society: Local values and the dynamics of an indigenous
economy." Ph.D. Dissertation, Johns Hopkins University (The). 538 pp.
This dissertation analyzes the successful development of Indian-controlled commerce in crafts for tourists.
Nahuatl-speaking villagers from the Balsas River Valley (Guerrero State, Mexico) have long been merchants.
Since the early 1960s they began making bark cloth paintings (amate) and selling them as itinerant vendors.
They have become successful entrepreneurs, operating in diverse markets throughout Mexico and handling
substantial cash income. This study focuses on the social organization of their commerce and the cultural
assumptions underlying how the merchants reinvest their wealth. Contrary to much of the ethnographic
literature on peasants, modernization, ethnicity and nationalism in Latin America, it argues that Nahuas have
not assimilated into Mexico's post-Revolutionary national culture. The merchants have invested some of their
wealth in housing, livestock, farmland and commerce to secure their economic base. They invest major
portions of it in exchange relations which strengthen social relationships and reciprocity networks
throughout the region. This has enabled them to maintain and reproduce their collective identity as a Nahuatl
people. The analysis traces how Nahua theories of work, exchange and history enable them to interact with
tourists in urban areas while reformulating their own cultural identity. The dissertation explores the
following aspects of life in this Nahuatl region: domestic organization, milpa agriculture, artistic production,
commercial strategies, community government, house construction and mortuary practices. It documents how
money obtained through trade with international tourism stimulates expanding local-level gift exchange in
the Balsas River Valley. The dissertation includes a critique of the conceptual stereotypes about Indians
prevalent in much of the scholarship in Mesoamerica. It draws on comparative ethnography from Melanesia
and the Andean region and argues for reformulating the theoretical approaches used in Mesoamerica to
study economy, culture, and processes of culture change. The data presented will be useful for comparative
research on indigenous peoples, informal sector activities, micro-enterprises, arts and crafts production,
tourism, the social organization of work, the effects of money and commodities on native economies, and gift
exchange systems.
Goodluck, Charlotte T. (1998) "Understanding Navajo ethnic identity: Weaving the meaning through the voices of
young girls." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Denver. 288 pp.
The purpose of this dissertation is to explore the meaning of ethnic identity of Navajo girls from a qualitative
phenomenological approach. The sample consisted of 20 Navajo girls, between the ages of 9 and 15 years
old. The average age of the girls was 13. 16 lived in Flagstaff, Arizona, and four resided on the Navajo
Nation. The method of data collection included in-depth interviewing, participant observation, and prolonged
engagement. A demographic and grand tour questionnaire were completed. The data was analyzed using
NUDIST, a qualitative computer software package. The method of analyze consisted of categorizing the raw
data into codes, categories, sub-categories, and themes then clustered them into common textural
descriptions of the meaning of ethnic identity into higher levels of abstraction capturing the essence of the
phenomenon. Implications for social work theory indicate that the Orthogonal Cultural Identification Theory
matches some of the experiences. Stage theory is not a good match, as it is linear in format. Implications for
social work practice, assessment, intervention, and education are discussed. 'Four Worlds of the Navajo
Female Ethnic Identity' included: (a) personal identity (appearance, growing up in many worlds, living with
differences, feeling unique, and name calling); (b) ethnic identity (ethnic ambiguity, stereotypes, racist
experiences, confusion, and duality); (c) tribal identity (family, language, and religion); and, (d) moving
between worlds (geographic relocation, changing girl, and visits to grandmother). Metaphors included
weaving (integration), pottery (development), dance (collective identity), and corn pollen journey (tribal and
spiritual) to express their feelings about the meaning of culture and ethnicity. Beauty, humour, balance, and
being human are key elements of their stories. The 'Hozho System for Navajo Girls' Ethnic Identity Model'
was generated from the data and is discussed as a new theory for Navajo female identity. This model is based
on a circle organizational structure reflecting the values and beliefs of Native American culture. The
meaning of ethnic identity is multidimensional and is considered a dynamic and on-going process.
Goodman, Gail D. (2003) "Elements of culture pertaining to schooling in the O'odham-Piipaash Indian community."
Ed.D. Dissertation, Arizona State University. 534 pp.
This ethnographic study involving fifteen members of the O'odham-Piipaash Tribe living in the Salt River
Pima-Maricopa Indian Community of Scottsdale, Arizona, investigated the research question: What do
community members mean when they say we want our culture in our schools. The study found that there was
consensus that the language and history of the Tribe should be taught in all community schools, but that
school was seen predominantly as a place where students learn skills that they will need in the job market
and not a place where students learn to be Indian. There was also consensus that older students be given the
option to choose whether or not to study Native American subject matter.
Major portions of the transcribed interviews conducted in this study are contained in Appendix C. The study
findings are organized around the major headings of: Culture with a capital C; History; Community; and
Schools. Some topics discussed include the concept of land as sacred space, culture as a system, culture
change and the impact of capitalist modernity, personal choice and respect as aspects of traditional culture,
traditional versus modern identity construction, and the idea of Tribe versus the idea of pan-Indianism, and
suggests that some of the findings of past research on Indian societies be re-examined. Several language-
issues are examined including the notion of language as a cultural repository rather than a communication
system. The necessity for well prepared language teachers is also discussed.
Coping with a history of genocide using the models of post-traumatic stress disorder and learned
helplessness, the lingering effects of colonization, psychologically and legally; issues of sovereignty in the
courts; stratified social systems and caste-like minority status and how these impact school performance are
all explored.
The concept that Native Americans are visual learners/thinkers is unpacked separating out the components.
Piagetian concrete operational thinking is distinguished from visual-global/holistic, visual-metophorical, and
visual-spiritual learning and thinking. It is critical for educators to understand the multidimensional nature
of traditional Native American learning environments, which this study discusses in depth.
Goodtrack, Terry L. (1997) "Accountability of First Nation governments' 'four dimensions'." M.A. Thesis, Carleton
University. 212 pp.
The research question examined was: 'What are the influencing factors which could assist a First Nation to
put an adequate accountability framework in place?' A model was developed which included four dimensions
to accountability: public service; fiscal; performance and professional. Four First Nation Governments
considered to be accountable were selected and assessed against this model. Each First Nation had a strong
accountability framework despite their geographic location and population size.
It was found that First Nation Governments can establish an adequate system of accountability without
mirroring each other. Secondly, a number of factors are important to put an effective accountability system in
place: political will; training and experience of individuals in key positions; stability in key government
positions; codification of laws and regulations and the education level of community members. Thirdly, there
are factors worthy of further examination; culture as it relates to government elections and institutions; the
existence of government businesses; and the community's belief that it is self-governing.
Gordon, Colin L. (2003) "Portrait of a Native American charter school." Ed.D. Dissertation, Brigham Young
University. 213 pp.
After many of years participating in an educational system designed and supervised by the dominant white
majority, Native Americans in many states have the opportunity to design and direct their own schools, as a
result of charter school legislation. Charter schools are public schools that are designed to meet a specific
need and, in the case of Native American charter schools, the goal is not only to educate students to succeed
in American society, but also to help them understand their Native American heritage and culture. A Native
American charter school is thought by some to be a better educational entity than the traditional public
school.
This research examines one Native American charter school located on the Salt River Reservation adjacent
to Scottsdale, Arizona. This study identified 15 needs of the students attending the charter school. These
needs were further divided into three categories: academic improvement, social skills development, and
coping with and overcoming serious social problems. The study further identified what the school was doing
to meet those needs and the level of success the school was achieving.
This study found that students at the school are beginning to improve academically, although progress is
slow. The study also found that these students are more likely to develop social skills at this school because it
provides an atmosphere where they feel more comfortable and accepted. The potential for social skills
development is further increased by the opportunities Native American students have to participate in a wide
range of school activities, some of which relate to the students unique culture and some that are enjoyed by
many students in traditional public schools.
Lastly, this study found that school and tribal leaders are trying to address the serious social problems that
have become part of reservation life. These include alcohol and drug abuse, teenage pregnancies, gang and
gang related violence, suicide, and health problems. However, the study could not determine if these
programs were successful. A study of much longer duration would be required to determine if the school was
successful in helping the students overcome these problems.
Gordon, Gary L. (1996) "A qualitative study of the meaning of work and workplace experiences among Native
Americans in upstate New York." Ph.D. Dissertation, Syracuse University. 224 pp.
Despite the generally poor economic conditions they experience, little research has attempted to examine
Native Americans in the workplace. Native Americans in the northeastern United States have been
particularly ignored. This study attempts to rectify these deficiencies. In-depth interviews were conducted
with ten Native Americans in upstate New York in an effort to more fully understand the meanings they attach
to work and to workplace experiences.
A qualitative research approach was used. The primary theoretical orientation of the study is symbolic
interaction: the participants interpret their experiences on the basis of their interactions with others and act
on those interpretations. Understanding what those interpretations are and how they are developed is
important to this study. Data analysis followed a grounded theory approach.
Four important findings emerge within this study. The first of these findings is the identification of a work
ethic that is based upon a sense of personal ethics. The participants possess a strong work ethic in which
work effort reflects a perceived responsibility to the employer. The second finding emphasizes the importance
of money to the participants and the multiple roles money plays. The third finding focuses on the factors
which influence the perceptions of co-workers and superiors (owners/managers) in the workplace. The last
finding identifies a generalized lack of perceived discrimination in the workplace. Those participants who
perceive discrimination become more sensitive to its cues.
The most important variables influencing the meanings assigned by the participants are first, a set of values
that are considered common among Native Americans and, second, the participants' early experiences with
economic deprivation.
Gosek, Gwendolyn M. (2002) "Towards an understanding of suicide among aboriginal people." M.S.W. Thesis,
University of Manitoba (The). 235 pp.
Suicide rates among the aboriginal people of North America have increased at an alarming rate over the past
three decades. While not all aboriginal communities reflect the increasing rates, the overall increase,
especially among the 15-24 year-old group, is a grave concern at the societal, community, family and
individual levels.
While the concerns related to suicide in aboriginal communities are documented in the literature, the
information is generally researched and presented from a mainstream perspective or approach. The
objectives of this study were to develop an overview of suicide in aboriginal communities from an aboriginal
perspective and to explore the use of the Medicine Wheel as a culturally appropriate approach to
understanding and working with suicide with aboriginal people. The process included a literature review of
Durkheim's theory on suicide. The literature review also includes an overview of aboriginal and mainstream
society's world views, an overview of the occurrence of suicide in the aboriginal communities and of the
Medicine Wheel concept. The purposes of the literature review were: (1) to provide a basis for determining
the incidence and factors associated with aboriginal suicide; (2) to compare the world views of mainstream
society and aboriginal people; (3) to develop an understanding of Durkheim's theory as it is applied to
aboriginal suicide; and, (4) begin to conceptualize the Medicine Wheel in relation to an aboriginal world
view. An important aspect of this study included interviews with traditional elders and aboriginal community
leaders in order to develop a deeper understanding of the aboriginal view of suicide in the community and of
the Medicine Wheel concept.
Although the interview responses were supportive of the literature review of suicide among aboriginal people
in many respects, there were differences in the emphasis placed on contributing factors. The research
available on aboriginal world view indicates a contrast between the world views of mainstream society and
aboriginal people. These differences in world views present a challenge to applying a Durkheimian approach
to suicide in the aboriginal context. The challenges of applying Durkheim's concept of anomie and the
possibility of incorporating the Medicine Wheel concept are discussed in terms of implications in the field of
social work.
Gould, Roxanne J. (2004) "Creating an indigenous educational movement: Listening to the voices of Mäori leaders."
Ed.D. Dissertation, University of Minnesota. 218 pp.
This qualitative case study examines Indigenous education that has been successful in reversing the negative
effects of colonization. The Mâori educational movement in New Zealand is viewed as the movement to
emulate by Indigenous communities throughout the world. This study will explore how this movement was
created, how it has been sustained, and the cross-cultural implications for Indigenous education in the
United States. A chronology will be provided to outline the history of Mâori education, from the creation of
the first Mâori mission school in 1816 to the present. Policies of assimilation, biculturalism, and
multiculturalism, and the impact of Mâori education will also be discussed. Questions answered in this study
are: (1) What is the history of the Mâori educational movement? (2) What was the impact of the Mâori
educational movement? (3) What strategies did the Mâori educational leaders use to create change? (4)
What can Indigenous nations within the United States learn from the Mâori educational movement? The
assumptions are that differences exist in the colonizing process and governments of New Zealand and the
United States, but the negative effects of early education on the Indigenous populations of both countries are
similar. Therefore, transferability from the Indigenous educational movement in New Zealand to Indigenous
communities in the United States has possibilities.
Gourneau, Jessica L. (2002) "Development of the American Indian Biculturalism Inventory -- Northern Plains." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of North Dakota (The). 104 pp.
American Indians' 'place' in the context of the Majority Culture has never been clear to either them or their
non-Indian counterparts. Many authors of cross-cultural literature suggest the experience of 'living with one
foot in two canoes' is stressful, confusing, and can even lead to reduced life success and increased
psychopathology. This study attempted to develop a factor-analytically devised inventory intended to aid in
identification of bicultural identification in hopes it may contribute to greater understanding between cultural
orientation and healthy or maladaptive American Indians' functioning.
198 American Indian and Caucasian students and community members from four year, non-tribal institutions
of higher learning and tribal colleges in North and South Dakota provided data for the refining of the
American Indian Biculturalism Inventory-Northern Plains (AIBI-NP). The AIBI-NP was designed to measure
participants perceived level of cultural identification within both American Indian and Majority Culture
perspectives.
Results of Factor and Item Analyses produced a 25-item scale that suggested a two-factor solution. The
nature of these factors were interpreted to represent an American Indian Cultural Identification Factor or
subscale 1, and an European American Cultural Identification Factor or subscale 2. Suggestions for
interpretation of subscale scores, study limitations, future research directions, as well as the potential
applicability for scales such as the AIBI-NP are discussed within.
Gouveia, Grace M. (1994) ""Uncle Sam's priceless daughters": American Indian women during the great depression,
World War Two, and the post-war era." Ph.D. Dissertation, Purdue University. 231 pp.
This project traces Indian women's roles in reservation and off-reservation communities from 1930-1960.
The topics include: women's entrance into the reservation's wage economy and tribal politics; their service in
the armed forces and war-related employment during World War II; increased participation in tribal politics
as district representatives and tribal chairwomen in the 1940s and 1950s; and their movement to urban areas
and subsequent involvement in establishing Indian organizations and community centres. The project fills a
gap in the literature on both American women's and American Indian history, not only by analyzing women's
changing roles within their traditional environment but by comparing Indian women's experiences with those
of other minority and white women during the same three decades.
Graben, Sari M. (2004) "The Nisga'a Final Agreement: Legitimizing the state's authority to govern the Nisga'a
Nation." L.L.M. Thesis, Queen's University at Kingston. 162 pp.
By virtue of their status as distinct nations, aboriginal peoples should have been recognized as constituent
parties to constitution building in Canada. Nevertheless, First Nations did not participate in negotiations to
join Canada or the adoption of the terms of the Constitution Act, 1867, the legal event in which the state
codified its jurisdiction to govern aboriginal peoples. Consequently, the enforcement of this jurisdiction on
aboriginal peoples such as the Nisga'a Nation, which had and continues to assert the right to self-
government, brings into question the moral legitimacy of the state's legal authority. This thesis proposes that
state illegitimacy is rectified by consensually incorporating First Nations as constituent entities into a legal
relationship with the state through a process of constitution building by treaty. It examines the Nisga'a Final
Agreement and argues that it creates legitimacy for state governance by linking the status of the Nisga'a as a
nation with the political authority necessary for the Nisga'a to consent to the application of state governance.
Through an analysis of the treaty's terms and the relationship it creates between the parties, we see how the
authority of the state to govern the Nisga'a Nation is legitimated through treaty-making. By recognizing
Nisga'a political authority and rejecting its past relationship with the state, the treaty subverts the traditional
colonial authority used to effect state governance. Moreover, by imposing a new political relationship
founded on the institutions and principles of federalism, the treaty creates the central document for Nisga'a
consent. The effect of the new relationship is to require a new reading of s. 35(1) of the Constitution Act,
1982 and s. 91(24) of the Constitution Act, 1867 in a manner which permits modern treaties to be
incorporated into the Canadian constitutional canon and in a manner which limits the scope of the state's
authority in accordance with the agreed terms of the Nisga'a Final Agreement.
Graham, Barbara L. (2001 ) "Resilience among American Indian youth: First Nations' youth resilience study." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of Minnesota. 68 pp.
The current work begins the empirical study of spirituality as a protective process that promotes resilience
among American Indian youth, especially under adverse life conditions. The role of spirituality was
investigated in a school sample of 54 high-risk American Indian adolescents and focused on school-based
competence. Relationships between spirituality, enculturation, well-being and adversity were also examined.
Results indicated that spirituality reported by adolescent students was related to competence in the school
context as reported by teachers and peer social competence as reported by the students. Spirituality was
strongly related to enculturation, consistent with the widely held theoretical assertion that spiritual beliefs
are an integral part of American Indian culture. Gender differences indicated that girls had higher academic
competence than boys and also higher enculturation scores. Enculturation differences for gender suggest that
embracing traditional values and beliefs may be easier for girls than boys in this sample. The rate of
negative, independent life events experienced by students and/or their families within the past year was high
for all participants and competence did not vary substantially by recent life events. Students identified by the
principal as 'resilient' were more competent at school according to teachers. This study was limited by the
small sample size, though there was a high participation rate. Results were encouraging in indicating that
most of the measures had good psychometric properties within this high-risk sample of Indian youth, and that
spirituality was associated with competence and enculturation. Larger studies of adolescents followed over
time are needed to further examine the possible role of culturally-related spirituality in the academic success
of American Indian students. Such students often have high risk for academic failure and school drop-out.
Further study of culturally-grounded protective factors may provide new ideas for culturally sensitive and
specific intervention strategies to promote academic success and positive connections to schools that could
reduce drop-out.
Gralewicz, Renee M. (1997) "Federal policies and their effects on Indian health: A southern Alberta plains case
study." Ph.D. Dissertation, Washington State University. 2003 pp.
This dissertation uses critical medical anthropology to assess the impact of the nation state on American
Indian health in both Canada and the United States, using the Tsuu T'ina as a case study. The Tsuu T'ina
Nation of southern Alberta, Canada lived among the Blackfoot Confederacy for hundreds of years. These
people, the Beaver People, currently own and occupy lands near Calgary and are one of five tribes who
signed Treaty 7 in 1877.
Like other Treaty 7 tribes, the Tsuu T'ina have one health clinic, unimproved roads, and mass
communication. Unlike other tribes, they have close proximity to a major city which offers mass transit and
numerous health care facilities. Notwithstanding, the Tsuu T'ina have an infant mortality rate of 24.7, which
is higher than all the other tribes and four times greater than the All Albertans' rate of 6.4 infant deaths per
1000 live births. Causes for high infant mortality rates are many and usually linked to socioeconomic status
which itself is linked to oppression and discrimination. These linkages stem from the historical and
contemporary relationship between the Tsuu T'ina Nation and the Dominion. Differing world views and
differing interpretations of treaties characterize the Aboriginal-Dominion and Native American-US
relationships.
This dissertation assesses the historical relationship and its contemporary influences on Tsuu T'ina Nation
health. By focusing on the Tsuu T'ina, I add to the limited literature of this nation. Their relationship with
their neighbours, the Blackfoot Confederacy and the Nakoda (Stoney), directly influenced their reserve
location and continues to affect their political lives within the region.
Grandin, Greg J. (1999) "The blood of Guatemala: The making of race and nation, 1750-1954." Ph.D. Dissertation,
Yale University. 491 pp.
This dissertation traces the cultural, political, and economic formation of the K'iche'-Maya population of the
highland city of Quetzaltenango from 1750 to 1954. It examines how Maya elites contributed to the formation
of the liberal state through their development of an alternative indigenous nationalism that linked the
'progress of the nation' to the 'regeneration of the race.' Unlike non-indigenous political elites, who viewed
national and Indian identity as mutually exclusive -- with the progress of the nation depending on the
suppression of the Indian -- Maya elites viewed these identities as mutually dependent; one could not go
forward without the other. The final chapter treats Guatemala's celebrated 1952 agrarian reform and
describes how the alternative nationalism of the K'iche's collapsed under the weight of dependent capitalism
and class struggle, which divided the K'iche' community along economic lines.
The dissertation's title has a double meaning. It first refers to the contestation which took place throughout
Guatemala as to what constituted national identity. Paradoxically in the late 19th century, as latinos
increasingly stressed the cultural content of race, urban hispanicized Quetzalteco K'iche' artisans and
merchants insisted on defining race by blood. But this contestation over national identity failed to be resolved
in a country rent by class and cultural divisions, and herein ties the title's second meaning. In 1954, the most
serious effort by latinos to create an integrated nation collapsed under the combined weight of political
division, class struggle, and foreign intervention. For the next four decades Guatemalan blood flowed as the
most repressive state in the hemisphere slaughtered over 100,000 of its citizens.
Rather than viewing modern pan-Maya movement as an entirely new occurrence emerging from the ruins of
a failed national project, my research places the movement's origins and development within the social
processes of 19th century state formation -- the very processes that spawned the project that the movement
now seeks to displace.
Graves, William H. (1982 ) "The evolution of American Indian policy: From colonial times to the Florida Treaty
(1989)." Ph.D. Dissertation, Florida State University (The). 253 pp.
The study analyzes the evolution of American Indian policy. It surveys the European background then focuses
on North America, examining the colonial Indian policies of Spain, England, France, Holland, Sweden, and
Russia, which set the stage for American policy. In a series of wars to control eastern North America,
England triumphed. British Imperial Indian policy became the basis for American policy. During the
Revolution most Indians supported England, thwarting American desires to use or neutralize them. After the
war America considered the Indians defeated powers, dictating terms to them. This proved unfeasible and the
United States adopted the pre-revolutionary British policy. In the 1790s, problems developed including state
resistance to federal authority in Indian affairs, Indian refusal to be slowly dispossessed, British intrigues in
the Northwest, Spanish machinations in the Southwest, and in establishing means to regulate Indian affairs.
Acts were passed to provide regulation. The factory system was created and trade and intercourse acts were
adopted to regulate Indian affairs. Early expeditions to defeat the Indians were unsuccessful. State versus
federal problems remained unsolved as did English and Spanish concerns. The turning point was the War of
1812. England was defeated. The Indians east of the Mississippi River were militarily broken. Between 1810-
13 America seized Spanish West Florida neutralizing that area. Two problems remained: the jurisdictional
question and Spanish-Black-Indian troubles in East Florida. America purchased East Florida from Spain in
1819 ending colonial concerns there. The jurisdictional problem would only be solved by dispossessing the
Indians in the troublesome states. By the 1820s, American Indian policy had entered a new phase. All
colonial concerns were ended and America was free for the first time to adopt its own Indian policy.
Graybill, Andrew R. (2003) "Instruments of incorporation: Rangers, Mounties, and the North American frontier,
1875-1910." Ph.D. Dissertation, Princeton University. 302 pp.
During the last third of the 19th century, Texas and western Canada experienced parallel social and
economic transformations, characterized by the massive expansion of railroads and the rapid increase of
white settlements. To smooth the advent of industrial modernization in these resource-rich hinterlands and to
pull the regions more tightly into the political orbits of Austin and Ottawa, officials in each capital turned to
rural police for assistance, at virtually the same moment in the early 1870s. This dissertation uses these
famed constabularies -- the Texas Rangers and the North-West Mounted Police -- as a frame through which
the consider the complex process of incorporating North American frontiers and its consequences for rural
people.
The Mounties and the Rangers performed four central duties in establishing state sovereignty and promoting
economic development at the edges of the Great Plains. First, the police subjugated indigenous groups by
denying Indian access to the bison and forcing natives to accept confinement on reservations. The
constabularies then facilitated the commodification of frontier resources by breaking the hold of Mexicans
and Métis on natural assets such as land, cattle, and minerals, in the process creating a mixed-blood
proletariat. In the 1880s the two forces sped the rise of bonanza ranching by defeating the challenge of
homesteaders to range lands coveted by cattlemen and ranching syndicates. Finally, the police broke turn-of-
the century strikes at the largest coal mines in Texas and Alberta, ensuring a steady supply of fuel for
smelters and locomotives.
In shifting the focus of incorporation from the core to the periphery, this dissertation casts new light on the
process of frontier absorption and its implications for people living on the margins. However, in situating the
insurgencies of such groups in historical context this thesis resists the temptation to romanticize them as
noble victims trapped in a losing struggle against the expansion of capital. Moreover, the comparative
perspective allows for the telling of a more common North American history while serving also to challenge
the narratives of historical exceptionalism that characterize the scholarship on Texas, the Canadian prairies,
and the West in general.
Green, Adam J. (1999) "Humanitarian, MD: Dr. Peter H. Bryce's contributions to Canadian federal native and
immigration policy, 1904-21." M.A. Thesis, Queen's University at Kingston. 129 pp.
The purpose of this thesis is to examine the prominent role Dr. Peter H. Bryce, who served as the Chief
Medical Officer for the Federal Departments of Native Affairs and Immigration from 1904 to 192 1, played
in two specific areas during his 17-year federal career. While holding this position, Dr. Bryce amassed large
quantities of statistical data concerning the health and welfare of both Canada's natives and Canada's
incoming immigrants. These findings led him to publish a number of both governmental and private reports
which outlined detailed and progressive programs for change to Canada's health system. Peter Bryce, who
had begun his career after having been raised in a good home which stressed education, and had received
medical training in Paris, ended it having secured many rights for the Canadian health officer. By the early
twenties, Bryce had placed federal health standards on a road which improved the life of new immigrants,
decreased incidences of communicable disease, and which would ultimately recognize the medical needs of
Canadian natives.
Green, Joyce A. (1997) "Exploring identity and citizenship: Aboriginal women, Bill C-31 and the Sawridge case."
Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Alberta. 270 pp.
This dissertation examines the problem of contemporary citizenship as the way in which people understand
themselves to be citizens, not simply as autonomous rights-bearing individuals in relation to the modern state
but also, and perhaps especially, as members of communities, of societies. I begin by locating aboriginal
nations in the colonial state and investigating the assumptions that are encoded in law, politics and culture.
Next, I review the development of the Indian Acts and especially their impact on women. I turn to the
particular arguments about the constitutionality of the Indian Act advanced in the Sawridge case. Then, I
review the liberal democratic picture of universal citizenship and examine how citizenship is differentially
constructed and experienced. I consider the claims of indigenous nations to control citizenship in a context of
decolonization, while continuing to endure the superordinate structure of the state. I interrogate questions of
racism and sexism on the part of both colonial and aboriginal governments, and consider the legitimacy of
rights discourse and its applicability across cultures and in opposition to traditions. Finally I examine in
detail the problems facing a segment of the Canadian population whose citizenship has been constrained;
Indian women who have, by colonial history, colonial legislation, and by both colonial and indigenous
patriarchy, been involuntarily exited from their communities of origin, and how this reality and their
resistance to it raises questions about what citizenship is relative to Indian government in Canada, and
relative to indigenous people as Canadians.
Gregg, David W. (2000) "Technology, culture change, and the introduction of firearms to northwest Alaska, 1791-
1930." Ph.D. Dissertation, Brown University. 245 pp.
To better understand the interrelations between technological and cultural change, this research asks why,
after a thousand years of successful adaptation in their Arctic environment did the Iñupiaq people of
Northwest Alaska in less than a century discard effective, aboriginal weapons -- spear and lance, harpoon,
bow and arrow -- in favour of what were at first unreliable, inaccurate, and expensive firearms? Drawing
upon all available data -- archaeological, historical, and ethnographic -- this empirical study examines the
material, social, and symbolic associations of firearms at 12 specific places and times in the Iñupiaq cultural
area. Based on the data, the adoption of firearms is described as having taken place in three, roughly
chronological phases -- the First Gun, Accommodation, and Traditional Phases. In the first phase, the initial
acceptance of firearms by the Iñupiat was predicated on local social and symbolic meanings and
circumstances of contact. In the second phase, a period of experimentation followed the initial exposure,
through which the Iñupiat arrived at new uses, meanings, and associations for firearms. Eventually,
improved firearms technology and changing local economic, social, and environmental circumstances made
firearms-use for subsistence easier and more reliable, and firearms became ubiquitous subsistence tools. In
the study area today, firearms-use and skill is valued as a traditional part of Iñupiaq culture. This study
demonstrates that even wide-spread technological change take place at the level of individual decision-
makers. As the experience and perceptions of individuals change, their motives and the meanings of new
technology can change as well, even over a relatively short time frame. The origins of Iñupiaq firearms-use
in the mid 19th century lie in local Iñupiaq culture and the details of contact, not in western understandings
of functionality based on comparison to aboriginal tools, or on the close, present-day association of firearms
with 'traditional' Iñupiaq hunting.
Grenier, Guylaine. (2001 ) "Le droit des peuples autochtones à l'autonomie gouvernementale dans le contexte de
l'accession du Québec à la souveraineté." LL.M. Thesis, McGill University. 125 pp.
['The rights of aboriginal peoples to governmental autonomy within the context of Québec's accession to
sovereignty']
To date, the debate concerning the aboriginal and treaty rights of the aboriginal peoples of Québec has
focused primarily on the assertion of the territorial integrity of Québec on the one hand, and the assertion
that those rights can prevent secession or force partition, on the other. Understanding the historical and
contemporary relationship between aboriginal peoples and the governments of Canada and Québec is
necessary if a rapprochement between these adversarial positions is to be achieved. This paper explores the
legal and historical basis of aboriginal rights, focussing on self-government and the fiduciary relationship
between aboriginal peoples and the Crown. It discusses international law principles under which Québec will
seek recognition as an independent state and the relevance of aboriginal rights to that recognition. Finally, it
urges that the current debate provides an opportunity to establish a new partnership between Québec and
aboriginal peoples, to their mutual benefit.
Greymorning, Stephen. (1992) "Indigenous North Americans and the ethnocentrism of the courts: A cross analysis of
American culture and law with Canadian culture and law." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Oklahoma (The).
229 pp.
Historically, the exercise of Anglo-European dominion in North America has been rooted upon cultural
supremacy, and ideology which has shaped law and politics regarding indigenous peoples in North America
for more than two centuries. The purpose of this study was to compare the decisions of the United States
Supreme Court, from the Cherokee cases of 1823 and the 1830s, with the decisions of the Canadian Supreme
Court from the Calder and Paulette cases during the 1970s. These decisions have represented strong
statements on federal policy regarding the rights of aboriginal peoples, and in both countries these
statements have been coloured by the values of Anglo-European culture to the point of showing little to no
sensitivity for the culture and values of indigenous peoples.
While aboriginal rights was recognized within American politics and law more than 150 years ago, the
existence of aboriginal rights within Canadian law was not established until the 1970s. Rather than interpret
Canada's tardiness as a hindrance, it was hypothesized that this could ultimately be beneficial for indigenous
Canadians in ways not realized by indigenous Americans. One way this is being demonstrated is the impact
that Indigenous people are having in Canada's constitutional efforts. That notwithstanding, if any political
gains realized by indigenous North Americans are to have lasting significance, then North America's political
leadership must do more than just acknowledge the long history of ethnocentrism that has dominated courts
and governments and controlled the affairs of indigenous North Americans; they must also work to effect
lasting change. To this end the present study hopes to contribute to an understanding of the role that
ethnocentrism has played in maintaining a colonial control over North America's indigenous peoples.
Grobe, Patricia. (2001) "Attachment and delinquency among First Nations adolescents from a remote geographic
location." M.A. Thesis, McGill University. 36 pp.
Attachment theories emphasize the importance of a secure attachment at all stages in life. In secure
attachment relationships, individuals are confident that during times of real or perceived distress they can
rely on the attachment figure to provide desired security. Conversely, individuals with insecure attachments
feel they cannot rely on their attachment figures and thus will not be comforted in times of need. Lack of
secure attachments can lead to psychological and behavioural difficulties. In the present study, maternal and
peer attachments were investigated and related to levels of self-reported delinquency among 84 First Nations
adolescent students, ages 11 to 17 from a reserve in a remote geographic location. The results from the
present study appear to be congruent with the literature which reports that insecure attachments in youths
lead to higher rates of delinquent behaviours. High levels of secure attachments in the participants resulted
in low levels of reported delinquency, however the relationship between attachment and delinquency in
adolescent participants was found to be dependent on the grade in school and gender interaction.
Groom-Hall, Mary. (2003) "Indigenous language revitalization in Montana: Perspectives from four nations." Ed.D.
Dissertation, University of Montana. 194 pp.
This qualitative case study examines the experiences of 19 Native American people who are involved with
indigenous language revitalization in the state of Montana. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with
both teachers of the languages and professionals who were responsible for initiating and directing language
preservation programs. Data was collected from one-on-one interviews, from participant-observation at
various cultural sites, and from conversations held with community members adjacent to study sites. Four of
Montana's six reservations were visited; teachers and professionals from six language groups participated in
the study. Questions focused on individual stories and the meanings inherent in the language. Participants
discussed the ways in which cultural and moral teachings were imparted to them as children through their
Native languages; some later language learners spoke of regaining their identities as American Indian
people through adult acquisition of their languages. The significance of their involvement with language
revitalization through teaching, program development, or both, was expressed by many participants. The
importance of language was found to permeate all aspects of personal, spiritual, community, and cultural life
for the participants. Data revealed three emergent categories of language and its meaning to the
participants: language and (a) its meaning to the self; (b) its meaning to the culture and community; and, (c)
its specific meanings among teachers and language preservationists. These three themes emerged from first,
participants' responses about their own language-learning experiences and how language had affected their
personal identities. Second, the role of language that participants observed or hoped for in their communities
amplified the culture and community aspects of the data, and finally, since most participants interviewed
were involved in the language education process in some way, specific concerns of educators emerged as the
third important theme. Given the need for public education to respond more fully to laws requiring
integration of Native American curriculum into the education system, sensitivity to and support for
indigenous language teaching is an implication of the study. Recommendations for further study include the
role of indigenous languages in empowerment and resilience, gendered communication and generational
differences, and indigenous rhetorical structure.
Gulig, Anthony G. (1997) "In whose interest? Government-Indian relations in northern Saskatchewan and Wisconsin,
1900-40." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Saskatchewan (The). 298 pp.
American and Canadian Indian policy in the late 19th and early 20th centuries generally focused on
'civilizing' Indian peoples. In other words, the government wanted a more sedentary, less dispersed Indian
population who would likewise require less land for traditional hunting and gathering activities and might be
more easily assimilated when time and circumstance required. Such policy, however, was best suited to
agricultural regions. In forested regions or other areas which were not suitable for commercial cultivation,
conflict arose as aboriginal groups tried to maintain their traditional practices while other interest groups
sought to access the same resources. Increasing use of these non-agricultural areas by sport hunters,
commercial fishing industries, logging enterprises, tourists, and in some cases prospectors and land
speculators, grew in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. These interests not only competed for the same
resources from which the Indian population secured its subsistence, but they also influenced the governments
of the United States, Canada, Wisconsin, and Saskatchewan to regulate traditional Indian hunting and
gathering activity.
Conservation commissions in both the United States and Canada went about the business of re-shaping the
public perception of the acceptable use of fish and game. Traditional subsistence activity had little, if any
place in these new fish and game management strategies. This was the case even though Indians in both
northern Saskatchewan and Wisconsin negotiated treaties which they believed upheld their access to vital
resources. The conflict over resources became acute in the early 20th century when governments in both
places actively interfered with traditional activities. Such interference had the most dire consequences for the
Indian people in both areas.
The case studies presented here illustrate the historical antecedents of conflicts which still exist today. The
Indian concern for continued access to natural resources has rarely been heard in its historical context. This
study places the historic confrontation between Indian subsistence resource users and government resource-
managing agencies in the context of the early 20th century conservation movement. The two areas studied
here have striking similarities. The governments refused to uphold treaty promises and rarely listened to the
Indians' demands for continued access to natural resources. This study explains how governments managed
resources in their own interest and relates not only the struggle for access to resources, but also how Indians
responded to government interference in their way of life. It is important to move beyond a comparative
analysis of two similar tribal populations in a cross-border analysis. By examining two disparate tribal
groups who negotiated similar treaties in two different eras but in distant geographic locations, a better
understanding of governmental conservation motives and actions, as well as the impact of such governmental
activity on Indian people, may be achieved. This study is a unique look at the impact of the early conservation
movement on the subsistence needs of Indian peoples in North American non-agricultural regions.
Gullickson, David P. M. (1990) "Uranium mining, the state, and public policy in Saskatchewan, 1971-1982: The
limits of the social democratic imagination." M.A. Thesis, University of Regina (The). 219 pp.
The purpose of this thesis is two-fold: first, to document and analyze the rationale for, and elements of, this
uranium development strategy; and second, to examine the social composition of the supporters and
opponents, beneficiaries and casualties, of this social democratic province-building initiative. This thesis
adopts a post-Marxist approach to the study of the liberal democratic state in a dominion capitalist society
such as Canada.
The province's strategy was comprised of five elements: the pursuit of nuclear capital to locate uranium-
related processing facilities in the province; the erection of a profit-sensitive uranium royalty structure; the
creation of a provincially-owned uranium exploration and mining corporation; the appointment of two quasi-
judicial boards of inquiry; and the implementation of comprehensive surface lease agreements with mine
developers. Furthermore, the thesis advances the view that this strategy was implemented in pursuit of 3
overarching objectives: to strengthen the provincial government's capacity to plan, pace, participate in and
benefit from the uranium industry's expansion; to maximize the investment and employment opportunities
available to Saskatchewan businesses and workers as a consequence of this process; and, from within a
narrow "environmental management perspective," to ensure that this expansion proceeded without undue
harm to worker health and safety or the environment.
Gunther, Vanessa A. (2001) "Ambiguous justice: Native Americans and the legal system in southern California, 1848-
90." Ph.D. dissertation, University of California, Riverside. 208 pp.
Since the inception of the United States, law has been a pervasive force in the development of the nation.
However, while law helped to shape American culture, it was also used to attempt to destroy the cultures of
native peoples. In southern California this destruction was acute because of the close proximity between
native people and the whites that invaded their lands. Prior to the American annexation of the state in 1848,
California had already established a pattern of disenfranchisement and dispossession. The mission fathers
exploited the labour of the Indians, and in return had stolen native lands for their own use, all under the
guise of Spanish law. The first California legislature continued this pattern of abuse with the passage of laws
in the 1850s that compelled Native Americans to provide labour and access to their resources, while denying
Indians any standing within the government of the new state. The result was the creation of a sub-class of
people living within the state. The debased position of Indians within the new society was exacerbated by the
prejudices of the white men who sat on the bench of the local and state courts. In many instances these
individuals used the law to harass Indians within their jurisdictions, compel native people to labour for the
communities the justices served, or forced them to leave their traditional homes. This upset traditional
subsistence patterns of survival and prevented native people from being able to survive within their own
lands. In addition to being attacked in the courts, Native Americans fell victim to European diseases and
developed addiction to alcohol provided by whites. Combined, these factors tore at the fabric of traditional
native life and upset the balance that had existed between men and women. The number of crimes in which
native women suffered at the hands of their brethren increased over time. Despite the supposition that native
people had no understanding of the white courts and were unable to comprehend the nuances of the white
legal system, as the century progressed, many Indians used white courts to assert their rights.
Gurr, Barbara A. (2004) "Win oye ya: An examination of American Indian women's responses of resistance to
colonization." M.A. Thesis, Southern Connecticut State University. 111 pp.
Despite the concerted and deliberate efforts of the United States government and culture, American Indian
nations survive today as distinct cultures. In many ways, and on many fronts, American Indian women are
responsible for this continued survival and burgeoning renaissance. Women such as Anna Mae Aquash,
Janet McCloud, Winona LaDuke and organizations such as Women of All Red Nations (WARN) and the
Indigenous Women's Network act as both the agents of change and the keepers of tradition in Indian Country
as they resist the continuing colonization of their peoples. Quite often American Indian women's activism
comes from a motherist stance similar to that described by Patricia Hill Collins as "motherwork" and
stemming in part from the historical denial of their motherhood opportunities and responsibilities through
boarding schools, coerced sterilization, and continuing removal of children from their natal families. Relying
on traditional understandings of women's power and influence among their people, American Indian women's
resistance to genocide and ethnocide can be found in art, music, and political and community activism from
Pine Ridge Reservation to the 1995 United Nations Conference for Women.
Gutiérrez, Gabriel. (1997) "Bell towers, crucifixes, and cańones violentos: State and identity formation in pre-
industrial Alta California." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of California, Santa Barbara. 470 pp.
This dissertation examines ethnic identity formation and state development in Alta California during the late
Spanish colonial and early Mexican national periods. The extant historiographies of California Indians,
Chicano/a ethnic identity formation, and Spanish Mexican nation building have produced conventional
notions of Indian population decimation upon European contact, the rise of a Chicano/a population in the
post Euro-American conquest era through downward social mobility (proletarianization and barrioization),
and a presumed failure of Spanish Mexican frontera institutions. This study builds on recent studies and
poses new questions regarding Alta California Indian population decline, the origins of Chicano/a identity
formation, and the roles of Spanish Mexican institutions and elites in preindustrial Alta California.
By utilizing court documents, government papers, personal letters, diaries, and other archival documents in
the Santa Barbara Mission Archives Library, Santa Barbara, California and The Huntington Library, San
Marino, California, this study concludes that Census records and other documents used to record ethnic and
racial identity formation and transformation in Mexican and preindustrial California must be complemented
with archival documents that demonstrate Indian Mexican human agency. In short, archival documents and
secondary sources need to be re-examined and critically assessed.
Finally, Alta California Indians Mexicanized themselves by responding to Spanish Mexican pressure to
acculturate or assimilate into mainstream society. Spanish Mexican attempts to construct social, political,
and ideological parameters and to convert Indians were tied to an attempt to reconstruct an Indian world
view, make republicans of them, establish a working consumer class and establish social order through
ideological conversion. An examination of Indian Mexican involvement and contributions to the military, as
workers, and as consumers contributes to our understanding of the origins of Chicano/a history and identity
in the present day American Southwest.
Gutwein, Geraldine M. (2003) "Native American women and literacy: Looking through and beyond a thematic view
of the landscape of literacy in six Lakota women's lives." Ph.D. Dissertation, Indiana University of
Pennsylvania. 207 pp.
This qualitative study explores literacy narratives of six Lakota women of the Cheyenne River Sioux
Reservation in South Dakota. The four research questions focus on the emergent themes, the value of literacy,
the role of literacy and the political and cultural implications of literacy in their lives. The themes of family
and familial support, communication, and internalised oppression are dominant themes that reveal the
complex issue of literacy in six Lakota women's lives. The value they place on literacy and the role it has in
their everyday lives expands on the political and cultural implications of literacy.
The close analysis of the audio-taped interviews reveals several things about the women's literacy
development. First, the women attribute much of their literacy development and success in school to family
and family support. Second, the women's concerns about written communication in the workplace are closely
connected to a fear of being misunderstood, or creating responses that negatively affect the recipient of the
transaction. Third, the consequences of internalised oppression create negative feelings; however, these
negative feelings have not hindered them from achieving their goals in literacy and education.
The women place an important value on literacy for themselves and their children and grandchildren. The
value they place on literacy has much to do with their sense of self-worth and their ability to achieve
academically in environments that did not always honour their cultural background. Becoming educated
women is a political act; it is an act they believe works to breakdown negative stereotypes and preconceived
notions of Native Americans. While each woman's story is different, the women who participated in this study
are very much aware of the struggles people from underrepresented groups encounter when they are further
marginalized through an inability to function in a society that values written literacy.
Haig-Brown, Celia. (1991 ) "Taking control: Power and contradiction in First Nations adult education." Ph.D.
This dissertation is an ethnography. It explores the ways that people within a First Nations adult education
centre make sense of taking control of education. Michel Foucault's open-textured analysis of power frames
the research. He argues power not only represses but also "forms knowledge and produces discourse."
Control and power as used by the "new" sociologists of education, and the National Indian Brotherhood in
its policy statement Indian Control of Indian Education further locate the study.
Extensive use of the participants' words allows a consideration of meanings inscribed in discourse. The study
is based on a year of fieldwork including interviews, observations and the researcher's direct participation as
a teacher in the centre. It places expressions of people's understandings of control within a series of
contextualizations. The centre exists in contemporary Canadian society. Documentary evidence of British
Columbia's First Nations efforts to control formal education and re-presentation of the centre's twenty years
of growth and development illuminate an historical context. The study examines the current significance of
the building where students find "a safe place to learn." Biographies, furnishing additional context for
people's words, situate the study in relation to life history. Their engagement in a variety of the centre's
programs provides the immediate context. Students and teachers explore what it is to be First Nations people
seeking knowledge which will enable them to make choices about employment and education in First Nations
or mainstream locations.
References to the document Indian Control of Indian Education reveal its continuing significance for those
people who are taking control. Study participants identify as crucial many of the issues raised within the
document such as Native values, curriculum, First Nations and non-Native teachers, jurisdiction and
facilities. At the same time, their discourse reveals the complex process of refining the original statements as
policy translates to practice and people ponder the implications. A final chapter, something of an epilogue,
argues that the dialectical contradiction is a useful analytical tool for examining the dissonances which arise
in attempts to meet First Nations needs and desires within a predominantly non-Native society.
Hales, Brent D. (2000) "Looking across the generations: An intergenerational examination of problem behaviours
among American Indian adolescents." Ph.D. Dissertation, Iowa State University. 117 pp.
The purpose of this study is to examine the intergenerational transmission of problem behaviour among
American Indian youth in a family context. The models used in the study replicate in part, intergenerational
models of Caspi and Elder (1988), Elder, Caspi, and Downey (1986) and Whitbeck et al. (1992b). The effects
of intergenerational parenting, parental antisocial behaviour, the presence of a male paternal figure, both
mother's and target's age, and target's gender on the target's problem behaviour are examined. Support is
observed for the intergenerational transmission of parenting practices and problem behaviours. Having and
male paternal figure present in the household, mother's age, and target's age are also found to impact the
target's problem behaviours.
Halkow, Yvonne L. (1996) "Personal impact of residential school experiences on First Nations people." M.Sc. Thesis,
University of Alberta. 212 pp.
This is a qualitative, interpretive study that explored the memories of residential school experiences provided
by 11 First Nations participants. Personal interviews were conducted, transcribed and analyzed for common
themes. Narratives were written from each participant's interview transcript and related stories about
residential school experiences using their own words for the most part. Discussion of the findings was
organized around the interpretive framework of the symbolic interactionist perspective. Three common
themes emerged: (a) having no choice: exemplified by participants reports about the institutional nature of
residential schools and the maltreatment participants experienced; (b) emotional pain: expressed by
participants related to their experiences; and, (c) survival skills: employed by participants to deal with
residential school life. Incongruencies inherent in the differences between First Nations culture and Euro-
Canadian culture appear to have resulted in the formation of incoherent, confused self-definitions by First
Nations people who attended residential schools. Quotations from participant narratives highlighted these
themes. Participants' memories of their residential school experiences were found to be similar to other
accounts of residential school experiences related by First Nations people, providing validation to the
findings of this study.
Hall, Anthony J. Tony. (1984) "The Red Man's burden: Land, law, and the Lord in the Indian Affairs of Upper
Canada, 1791-1858." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Toronto.
This work relates the history of Indian affairs in the Upper Canada area between 1791 and 1858. These
years, which began with the creation of Upper Canada as a distinct jurisdiction within the British empire and
ended with the passing of legislation designed to remove from some native people legal recognition of their
aboriginal status, saw the emergence of an Indian 'civilizing' policy. Civil and ecclesiastical authorities
sought to settle native people on reserves where they would be instructed in farming and Christianity. It is the
analysis of efforts both to articulate and to implement this course that constitutes the major subject of the
thesis. Such a study is fruitful in several respects. It illuminates the origins of an Indian policy that was later
to be extended throughout the dominion of Canada and applied for more than a century. Furthermore, the
record of the formulation of this approach to Indian affairs describes models that some of the province's most
ambitious social architects were attempting to impose not only on native people, but on the colonial
population as well. Finally, the energies directed at transforming the lives of native people were often
extended into other spheres of activity in the colony. This process is particularly apparent among the
Methodists, whose involvement with aboriginal people became significant in their advancement of more
general educational policies and their promotion of the goal of Canadian expansionism. A chapter is devoted
specifically to native people. Attention is focused on the ethnic diversity of aboriginal groups in the province,
the frequency of their many moves throughout the Upper Canadian vicinity, and their reaction to all the
'civilizing' endeavours directed at them. Another subject developed throughout the work is the inter-
relationship of Indian affairs in Upper Canada with developments elsewhere in North America and in
Britain. It is argued that important roots of Upper Canadian Indian policy lay in Britain's earlier colonial
experience in the Thirteen Colonies. And in the first half of the 19th century the trans-Atlantic world of
evangelical Protestantism provided the larger theatre in which missionary enterprise among the Indians of
Upper Canada found much applause and support. Indian affairs touched the life of Upper Canadian colonial
society and its relationship with the outside world at a number of vital points.
Hall, Robert A. (1987) "The relationship between Aborigines, islanders and the armed forces in the Second World
War." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of New South Wales.
During the Second World War, the Services faced a dilemma concerning the enlistment of Aborigines and
Torres Strait Islanders: would they conform to the Commonwealth government's assimilationist policy and
permit the enlistment of Aborigines who met enlistment criteria, or would they maintain their conservative
ethos, arguing that Aborigines should not be admitted to military service? Aborigines and Islanders had
much to gain from admission. Military service offered employment, overseas travel, trade training and other
benefits. But most importantly, it offered a persuasive argument for the extension to Aborigines of 'citizens'
rights'. While Aborigines and Islanders sought enlistment, the Services struggled with their dilemma. The
absence of an Aboriginal representation within the digger myth suggests that Aborigines were generally
unsuccessful in making a contribution to the war effort and that the Services resolved their dilemma by
excluding Aborigines from service.
To investigate this issue, the development of Service policies in regard to the enlistment of non-Europeans
was examined and the extent of Aboriginal and Islander enlistment was assessed. The formation of other
relationships between the Services and Aborigines was also examined.
Aborigines and Islanders made a significant contribution to the war effort, but the moral value of this
contribution as a means of securing improvements in conditions for Aborigines was not able to be translated
into political pressure because of lack of publicity given to the Aboriginal contribution. Throughout the war,
the Services remained undecided about the question of the admission of Aborigines. They resolved their
dilemma by maintaining the fiction of opposition to Aboriginal enlistment in their official policies while at the
same time enlisting Aborigines, forming segregated Islander units, employing Aborigines in de facto military
roles and employing Aborigines as civilian labourers.
Although formal Service policies denied Aborigines the right to enlist, many did so. Once enlisted, relations
between black and white servicemen were marked by an egalitarianism seldom seen in pre-war race
relations. Throughout the war, Service policy makers in senior Headquarters saw Aborigines as generally
unsuitable for enlistment on the grounds that white Australians would not tolerate service with them.
———. (1987) "The relationship between Aborigines, islanders and the armed forces in World War II." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of New South Wales.
During World War II, the Services faced a dilemma concerning the enlistment of Aborigines and Torres
Strait Islanders: would they conform to the Commonwealth government's assimilationist policy and permit
the enlistment of Aborigines who met enlistment criteria, or would they maintain their conservative ethos,
arguing that Aborigines should not be admitted to military service? Aborigines and Islanders had much to
gain from admission. Military service offered employment, overseas travel, trade training and other benefits.
But most importantly, it offered a persuasive argument for the extension to Aborigines of 'citizens' rights.'
While Aborigines and Islanders sought enlistment, the Services struggled with their dilemma. The absence of
an Aboriginal representation within the digger myth suggests that Aborigines were generally unsuccessful in
making a contribution to the war effort and that the Services resolved their dilemma by excluding Aborigines
from service. To investigate this issue, the development of Service policies in regard to the enlistment of non-
Europeans was examined and the extent of Aboriginal and Islander enlistment was assessed. The formation
of other relationships between the Services and Aborigines was also examined. Aborigines and Islanders
made a significant contribution to the war effort, but the moral value of this contribution as a means of
securing improvements in conditions for Aborigines was not able to be translated into political pressure
because of lack of publicity given to the Aboriginal contribution. Throughout the war, the Services remained
undecided about the question of the admission of Aborigines. They resolved their dilemma by maintaining the
fiction of opposition to Aboriginal enlistment in their official policies while at the same time enlisting
Aborigines, forming segregated Islander units, employing Aborigines in de facto military roles and
employing Aborigines as civilian labourers. Although formal Service policies denied Aborigines the right to
enlist, many did so. Once enlisted, relations between black and white servicemen were marked by an
egalitarianism seldom seen in pre-war race relations. Throughout the war, Service policy makers in senior
Headquarters saw Aborigines as generally unsuitable for enlistment on the grounds that white Australians
would not tolerate service with them.
Hamilton, Jennifer A. (2004) "Indigeneity in the courtroom: Law, culture, and the production of difference in North
American courts." Ph.D. Dissertation, Rice University. 205 pp.
This dissertation considers how culturalist arguments are being deployed and interpreted in legal cases
involving indigenous peoples in both Canada and the United States. Focusing specifically on three court
cases, it asks how a certain kind of difference, indigeneity, is produced in both legal and extra-legal spheres.
Rather than having a specific referent that is indigenous cultural practice and epistemology, indigeneity
references the idea that indigenous difference is produced in particular contexts, in response to a variety of
sociopolitical forces.
The dissertation closely examines these three recent cases involving indigenous peoples, one from the U.S.
and two from Canada. In each of these cases, the courts deploy the idiom of indigenous difference,
indigeneity, in purportedly novel and unexpected ways. The dissertation argues that despite their superficial
novelty, these cases are not especially anomalous; they are, in fact, part of continuing processes which rely
on reductive multiculturalist discourses of indigeneity to continue to manage and even deny the existence of a
colonial past and a postcolonial present.
Hammond, Wayne A. (2000) "Canadian native adolescent solvent abuse and attachment theory." Ph.D. Dissertation,
The purpose of the present study was to examine the perceived patterns of attachment of three naturally
occurring groups of Native adolescents -- 56 solvent users, 80 poly-substance users, and 88 non-substance
users -- and their attachment relationships to their parents and peers as well as to explore their perception of
well-being and social adaptation based on early experiences with attachment figures. Attachment
characteristics were assessed using the Adolescent Attachment Questionnaire (AAQ) and the Inventory of
Parent and Peer Attachment (IPPA). Perception of well-being and social adaptation characteristics were
assessed using an ad hoc Solvent Abuse/Attachment Questionnaire, the Family Environment Scale (FES), the
Culture-Free Self-Esteem Inventory (CFSEI-2), the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI-II), the Beck
Hopelessness Scale (BHS), the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory -- Form Y (STAI), and the Personality Inventory
for Youth (PIY).
The results of the study supported the hypotheses that Native adolescents who abuse solvents would
demonstrate the greatest degree of an insecure attachment pattern, show an insecure attachment towards
both parents and peers, and exhibit greater degrees of maladaptive cognitive and affective difficulties,
deficits in interpersonal and social skills, and higher levels of dysfunctional family characteristics and
antisocial behaviour. Native adolescents who started to abuse solvents before age six were at the greatest
risk of severe solvent use in their teenage years and reflecting a disorganized attachment pattern. However,
as the age of onset for solvent use increased, the solvent users presented with a similar type of insecure
attachment (preoccupied as opposed to disorganized) reported by the poly-substance users and lower levels
of negative perceptions of well-being and social adaptation than those who started before age six.
Results are discussed in relation to previous studies of attachment and developmental processes thought to
characterize high-risk adolescents and theoretical explanations are offered for the differences in the degree
and type of insecure attachment patterns and perception of well-being and adaptation in the three groups.
Finally, the implications for practice, theory, and future research are outlined.
Hannibal-Paci, Christopher J. (2000) ""His knowledge and my knowledge": Cree and Ojibwe traditional
environmental knowledge and sturgeon co-management in Manitoba." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of
'Cree and Ojibwe traditional environmental knowledge and sturgeon co-management in Manitoba' takes an
interdisciplinary approach to synthesis of Indigenous sturgeon knowledge, history, and social and scientific
knowledge. To some degree this research has been driven by information needs for a specific purpose: the
viability of sturgeon is threatened, domestic harvest information is lacking, and the knowledge of the
sturgeon and Aboriginal relationships is incomplete. The methodology bridging these gaps generates new
knowledge for sturgeon conservation efforts, a significant contribution; however, the object of the thesis was
more concerned with creating a space from which to consider Indigenous knowledge in sturgeon research.
The thesis concludes that to better manage the fishery now and in the future requires a greater appreciation
of the marginalized knowledge of fishers and an appreciation for the environmental history of the sturgeon
problem. What distinguishes this approach from others is a concern for solving a natural resource problem
by including history and culture into what has mostly been a scientific discussion. While integrating TEK into
co-management may resolve the sturgeon problem in Manitoba, in practice such integration and its outcome
remain tentative. Successful sturgeon co-management has yet to be undertaken. There is a struggle over
management options for remnant sturgeon populations in Manitoba. Sturgeon populations are so severely
impacted they require interim special protection. Meanwhile, federal and provincial governments are
recognizing the inherent rights of First Nations to natural resources. Governments are obliged to manage
fisheries with First Nations' interests in mind. The argument is made in the thesis for the necessity of sturgeon
co-management both as a means of overcoming previous failures and as a way to decolonize the fisheries.
The theory and methodologies used in the thesis are applicable to other environmental studies.
Hanson, Randel D. (1998) "From environmental bads to economic goods: Marketing nuclear waste to American
Indians." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Minnesota. 270 pp.
Advancing scholarship on the Cold War's environmental and social legacy and Indian-White relations in the
late 20th century, this dissertation argues that we are entering a new phase in Indian-White relations. New
approaches to nuclear waste storage in our broader post-liberal governmental context include marketing
them to Indian peoples as a means of economic development due to the unique legal status of reservations as
sovereign nations. Whereas the colonizing, primarily agricultural period was based on an expanding
dispossession of Native lands, industrialization witnessed a concerted re-focusing of attention on Native
lands for the extraction of natural resources. In our present post-industrial era, neither land nor resources as
such are being sought (although aspects of both continue); rather, it is the 'permission' to store nuclear and
toxic wastes on Native lands.
Chapter One explores how nuclear materials are usefully conceived as possessing a social life (social
biography). The marketing of nuclear waste to American Indians is framed as one instance in the broader
social life of nuclear materials.
Chapters Two and Three establish the historical context for US-Indian relations. Chapter Two explores the
period of initial contact by Europeans with American Indians in North America through World War II,
tracing changes from how Indian nations were treated as political sovereigns by various European nations to
the gradual nationalization of American Indian lands and American Indians by the US. Chapter Three
explores expanded American Indian sovereignty in the wake of World War II in relation to
internationalization processes, decolonization, and civil rights movements.
Chapter Four investigates Reagan's 'New Federalism' and the privatization of federal governmental
responsibilities surrounding nuclear waste, proceeding to show how this policy shift translated into
marketing it to American Indians.
Chapter Five explores the history of US-Indian relations in relation to nuclear technologies, tracks the
changing nature of the US environmental movement, and examines these changes in Indian Country.
Chapter Six examines the cultural and political conflicts surrounding the consideration of the storage of
nuclear waste on the Mescalero Apache Reservation.
Hapke, Holly M. (1996) "Fish mongers, markets, and mechanization: Gender and the economic transformation of an
Indian fishery." Ph.D. Dissertation, Syracuse University. 232 pp.
This dissertation examines the impact of global economic processes such as the emergence of an export
economy and industrialization of production, on local fishing communities in Kerala, India. The approach I
have taken has been to analyze the marketing and distribution of fish locally in Kerala and to assess the
impact of mechanization-driven development on small-scale traders. Following Barbara Harriss, Clifford
Geertz, and Florence Babb, I argue that an analysis of marketing processes is central to an understanding of
development and economic transition and that State policies for fisheries development in this region have
been inadequate, in part due to their failure to envision production and distribution as a single process and
in their utter neglect of women's roles in the fish economy. My analysis of market processes in Kerala draws
on work in both economic anthropology and economic geography and combines analysis of spatial factors
such as location, structure and periodicity with sociological inquiry through the conceptual framework of
'place.' To this end, analysis of factors such as gender, caste-religion, and native place has been crucial to
understanding the social relationships that constitute marketplace transactions in this region and the central
role they play in mediating economic change and its the impact on particular groups of fish traders. The
framework I construct for analyzing the impact of economic transition on small-scale traders is further
grounded in an analysis of the household as the primary unit for production and provision of subsistence
needs and, as such, as an important institution through which individuals are linked to the larger economy.
An examination of gender and the manner in which it shapes how petty trading households are linked to
market networks figures prominently in this research. My principal conclusion is that mechanization has
changed the geography of fish production in Kerala toward greater centralization of landings in particular
places. This, combined with an ecological crisis associated with overfishing, has transformed distribution
systems in such a way that women fish traders' relationship to the market has undergone a qualitative change
from household-based production and distribution to commercialized exchange. This change, I argue, has
worked to marginalize women within distribution at the same time their labour in this activity has become
increasingly important for household survival. This experience of women fish traders, in turn, requires a
rethinking of development initiatives such that the needs of the household are privileged over the so-called
needs of the state.
Hare, Jan. (2001) "Aboriginal literacy: Making meaning across three generations in an Anishinaabe community."
Ph.D. Dissertation, University of British Columbia (The). 157 pp.
The changing functions, uses, and value of literacy in the lives of three successive biological generations of
Anishinaabe residing in the same community form the basis of this study. Aboriginal people need and value
western notions of literacy for participation in mainstream society. They are, at the same time, aware that
western literacy has been imposed upon them, damaging their own forms of literacy which are closely rooted
in their cultural traditions. The study describes three prevailing ideas about literacy among these seven sets
of Anishinaabe families. The cultural traditions rooted in their relationships with land and family represent
the understandings of aboriginal literacy for the first generation of Anishinaabe, the oldest of this study.
These aboriginal women and men have constructed broader meanings for literacy that include print
traditions and dominant languages, but also respect aboriginal ways of knowing and incorporate cultural
practices that give meaning to how people live and make sense of their world. A shift in cultural traditions
and language is apparent as members of the second generation discuss their understandings of literacy
within the contexts of family, school, and society. Formal schooling attempted to supplant aboriginal literacy
with the traditions of print in official languages that characterize western literacy. Western literacy becomes
the means by which members of the second generation have re-asserted their rights to self-determination.
The third generation, the youngest of this study, experience a greater orientation towards western literacy.
The features that distinguish aboriginal literacy are in decline. At the same time, their hold on western
literacy allows them to assert their identities and prepare for a future beyond their community. The thesis is
intended to challenge western notions of literacy, which privilege the written word and English/French
languages, arguing for broader conceptions of literacy which include languages, narrative traditions, and
rich symbolic and meaning-making systems of aboriginal culture.
Harris, Heather A. (2003 ) "Remembering 12,000 years of history: Oral history, indigenous knowledge and ways of
knowing in north-western North America." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Alberta. 446 pp.
Western academia has a long history of ignoring or denying indigenous methods of creating knowledge.
Anthropology, in particular, has claimed the authority to represent indigenous people and their knowledge
implying the invalidity of indigenous exegesis. In this thesis I attempt to reassert an indigenous voice by
challenging western epistemological traditions which often deny the systems of theory employed in
indigenous ways of creating knowledge. I utilize late Pleistocene-early Holocene oral histories of the Gitxsan
and related peoples to illustrate my contentions. Many western scholars have presented these narratives as
'myths.' I contest that representation, contending that the Gitxsan and related peoples have their own
methods for validating oral histories. I also present corroborating western archaeological and
paleoenvironmental evidence which reinforces my contentions. I conclude that the Gitxsan and related
peoples have been able to maintain an oral historical record that reaches back through 12,000 years.
In this dissertation I argue that the position of the indigenous scholar within the western academy is
paradoxical. Working within divergent western and indigenous worldviews, and the theories, methods and
ethics which derive therefrom, makes the position of the indigenous scholar problematic. I present the idea
that, within the range of indigenous and western worldviews, each has general principles which can be
contrasted. Indigenous perspectives and approaches to knowledge creation are generally holistic, subjective
and experiential while western ones include the principles of reductionism, objectivism and positivism with
associated dualistic and evolutionary concepts. These principles have contributed to a situation in which the
West has come to dominate much of the indigenous world politically and ideologically. In recent years,
indigenous scholars have contested the representation of indigenous people and their knowledge by western
scholars and have embarked upon a process of decolonization. That decolonization process has resulted in
the development of indigenous scholarship based upon indigenous research agendas. Such research agendas
call for new approaches to ethics, theory and method and new relationships with non-indigenous scholars
studying indigenous topics.
This dissertation concludes with discussions of: the possibility of establishing the study of culture from an
indigenous perspective; advancement of indigenous theory and method; the development of new approaches
to the ethics of research in indigenous communities by both indigenous and non-indigenous scholars; and
how indigenous scholars must negotiate a space in the western academy and the indigenous community.
Harrop, Alan R. (2000) "Native Indian Status as a risk factor for injury-related mortality in Alberta children." M.Sc.
Thesis, University of Calgary. 109 pp.
OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to examine Indian status as a risk factor for mortality from
injury among Alberta children, aged 0-19 years.
STUDY DESIGN: This was an observational population-based epidemiologic study of injury mortality in
Alberta children over a 10-year period from 1985-94. Mortality data obtained from Alberta. Vital statistics
(pertaining to all Alberta children) were linked to Alberta First Nations Mortality Database data (pertaining
to Indian children) to create Indian and non-Indian comparison groups. Mortality rates and relative risks
were calculated for all injuries combined as well as for various subtypes (by intent and mechanism of injury).
Patterns over time were also examined.
RESULTS: After stratifying for age and gender, the relative risk for injury mortality for Indian versus non-
Indian children was found to be 4.6 (95% CI: 4.1-5.2). Indian children were also found to be at increased for
death from all intent of injury subtypes: unintentional (RR: 4.0, 95% CI: 3.5-4.6), suicide (RR: 6.6, 95% CI:
5.2-8.5), homicide (RR: 5.1, 95% CI: 3.0-8.5) and intent unknown (RR: 8.3, 95% CI: 4.9-14.0). Injury
mortality rates appeared to decrease over the study period in both Indians and non-Indians.
CONCLUSION: While death from injury is in decline among Alberta children, Indian children are at
significantly increased risk for death from unintentional and intentional injury.
Hart-Wasekeesikaw, Fjola. (1996) "First Nations peoples and experiences with cancer." M.N. Thesis, University of
The purpose of this descriptive, ethnographic study was to explore the experiences of First Nations people
diagnosed with cancer and elders' perceptions of cancer. The medicine wheel was the conceptual guide for
this study. 46 informants living in four Anishinaabe communities were interviewed using semi-structured
interview schedules. Content analysis of First Nations experiences with cancer occurred at various levels
using three data sets: the individual with cancer, her/his family and community. The cancer experience was
metaphorically characterized by 'the stranger.' Some examples of the themes are presented. In 'The presence
of a stranger: The elders speak', the elders provided a historical perspective of the development and
prevention of cancer in First Nations communities. 'Becoming aware: The stranger in the body' describes the
informants' experiences when they sensed they had cancer. In the theme 'Making the stranger known: The
healing journey', the informants identified traditional Indian medicine as one way to manage cancer in their
communities. Some of the findings revealed that cancer is thought to be a new disease affecting Anishinaabe.
Food is considered to be the primary cause of cancer and the loss of traditional values is at the core of
cancer in First Nations communities. A range of metaphors reflected First Nations peoples' understanding
about cancer. The most common metaphor used by the Anishinaabe in this study was 'manitoch' which, in the
Ojibwa language, Saulteaux, means cancer-as-worm. Informants suggested that Western medicine is limited
in its ability to cure cancer. First Nations people with cancer consulted one or more Indian medicine healers
before, during, or after obtaining medical cancer treatment. Spiritual visions and dreams were important to
First Nations people.
Hattori, Anne P. (1999) "Colonial dis-ease: United States Navy health policies and the Chamorros of Guam, 1898-
1941." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Hawai'i. 376 pp.
Studies of early 20th century Guam history frequently hail the introduction of western health projects as a
prominent example of the blessings of U.S. naval colonialism on the island. This colonialist interpretation
has privileged stories of native disease, tropical health hazards, colonial benevolence, and military medical
heroics. This research project re-examines the histories of medicine and health care experienced by both
Chamorros and Americans on Guam in the context of colonialism. In an analysis of cases involving leprosy,
midwifery, hospitals, and hookworm treatment programs, this study illustrates that the navy's introduction of
western medicine and scientific technologies concomitantly influenced Chamorro cultural values, gender
relationships, class delineations, political struggles, and economic expectations. Episodes marked by tension,
uncertainty, conflict, and dissension, as well as displays of indigenous acceptance, rejection, appropriation,
syncretism, and ambivalence should inform our understanding of the spectrum of naval health policies on
Guam. Colonial dis-ease informed the relationships between Chamorros and Americans, as well as between
navy officers and enlisted men, American men and Chamorro women, elite and non-elite Chamorro people,
children and adults, and other cross-sections of society on Guam.
Haughney, Diane. (2001) "Neoliberal restructuring, democratic transition, and indigenous peoples in Chile: The
Mapuche movement in the 1990s." Ph.D. Dissertation, City University of New York. 462 pp.
Sustained economic growth and a decade of stable, elected government make Chile a frequently cited
example of effective neoliberal reform and successful transition from authoritarian rule. This dissertation
analyzes the political consequences of neoliberal economic restructuring for processes of democratization by
focusing on the conflict between Mapuche organizations and the Concertación government, which has
supported industrial and infrastructure projects on indigenous lands.
The military dictatorship (1973-90) carried out a profound structural transformation of economy and state,
sharply reducing the state's entrepreneurial, redistributive, and regulatory functions and enlarging the role
of the market in the provision of social services and the distribution of goods. This neoliberal restructuring
broke with a 40 year pattern of import substitution industrialization and a strong welfare state. In the name
of free market principles and national security, the military regime also imposed individual private property
on indigenous communities and denied the existence of indigenous peoples in Chile. In the early 1980s, key
opposition figures had criticized the social and economic consequences of neoliberal restructuring. By 1990,
when the Concertación, the centre-Left party coalition that included many of those very critics, became the
first democratically elected government in 17 years, party leaders chose to keep the main principles and
policies of the neoliberal economic model, accepting it as the only viable path to development and
modernization.
The new democratic government pledged to reform indigenous policy by making a clear break with the
military dictatorship's denial of ethnic diversity and its effort to open indigenous lands to non-indigenous
owners. The 1993 indigenous law recognized indigenous cultures, established the protection of indigenous
lands, and created a state agency for indigenous development. The law did not, however, provide for a
comprehensive restitution of lands usurped from indigenous communities, nor did the Chilean Congress pass
a constitutional amendment that would have granted official recognition to indigenous peoples. This
dissertation's detailed case studies of the controversies involving the Biobio River hydroelectric projects and
logging companies show that the Concertación government supported national and transnational
corporations rather than upholding the 1993 law's protection of indigenous lands and cultures. The
Concertación government tried to channel indigenous demands into economic and social assistance
programs, while remaining closed to demands for collective rights that conflicted with the interests of large
corporate capital and notions of national security based upon national homogeneity.
This dissertation shows how, in response, sectors of the Mapuche movement have raised demands, not only
for the recognition and protection of their lands, but also for collective rights as indigenous peoples,
challenging the liberal conception of participation, representation, and equality as political rights exercised
by atomized individual citizens. These sectors assert that the collective rights of indigenous peoples should be
part of the conception of a democratic society, and that democratic society should allow diverse approaches
to development.
Hauswald, Lizabeth G. (1984) "The Navajo way: Continuity and discontinuity in contemporary society." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of California, Berkeley. 373 pp.
This dissertation is a study of social change on the Navajo Reservation. Open-ended interviews on
childrearing, personal network, marital relationships, and the impact of separation and divorce on families
were conducted with 92 adult informants, including 85 women and 7 men. A structured questionnaire was
administered to 282 adolescents enrolled in the Window Rock, Arizona public schools. Information on urban
and rural household and residence patterns, cultural knowledge, and religious participation was used to
analyze the impact of change on Navajo families.
Navajo informants' perceptions of separation and divorce, family violence, and generational
misunderstandings reflect anxiety about cultural discontinuity and change in contemporary society. I analyze
from a psychocultural perspective how individuals negotiate the stress and choices available on the Navajo
Reservation today. Epidemiological evidence of maladjustment appears in statistics on morbidity and
mortality, alcohol abuse, and homicide and suicide. Historical change in subsistence, residence, education,
and religion has led to variation in the organization of Navajo domestic groups. In some instances, this
change has resulted in a break in affiliation and interaction between family members and kinsmen. In
problem families, subsequent impacts on childrearing and socialization lead to generational conflicts and
irresolution in both adults and children as to appropriate roles and behaviours.
Families that have successfully adapted to social and cultural change may exhibit either traditional or
modern attitudes, or may integrate them in a bicultural orientation. Data on kinship, marriage and
childrearing help determine which factors lead to successful adaptation in contemporary society. Continuity
in kinship affiliation and religious participation are of particular importance in providing a stable
childbearing environment. Parental confidence in childrearing and the teaching of clear values and goals
provides children with the ability to flexibly adapt to a variety of social environments.
Hawker, Ronald W. (1998) "Accumulated labours: First Nations art in British Columbia, 1922-61." Ph.D.
In this dissertation I chart the conflicting and shifting assertions of meaning for Northwest Coast objects in
Canada through a series of representational projects implemented between 1922 and 1961, beginning in
January 1922, with the prosecution by the Department of Indian Affairs of participants in the Cranmer
potlatch. The intersection between the concept of the 'fatal impact' or death of First Nations societies under
European modernization, federal assimilationist policies, the government's exercise of disciplinary control,
and the expansion of public museum collections was explicitly illustrated when the Lekwiltok, Mamalillikulla,
and the Nimpkish peoples surrendered over 17 cases of ceremonial objects in exchange for suspended
sentences for violating the potlatch ban.
The dissertation concludes by examining the Gitanyow agreement, engineered between 1958 and 1961, in
which Gitanyow laws, histories and territories would be published by the government of British Columbia in
exchange for the removal and replication of four crest poles. The raising of the poles' replicas in 1961
coincided with Canadian parliament's approval of the enfranchisement of First Nations people, the
theoretical end to the era of assimilation in Canada.
These events bookend a period in which representation continued to be entwined with political and social
conditions created by the Indian Act that depended on promulgating views that First Nations lifeways were
vanishing. However, production of Northwest Coast objects retained significance throughout this period,
such objects playing complex and multifaceted roles. Because of the symbolic and financial value many Euro-
Canadians attached to First Nations objects, 'art' proved an avenue for communicating First Nations-related
social, political and economic issues.
The objects produced or displayed between 1922 and 1961 operated through the projects I describe in the
intertwined transformative processes of identity construction and boundary marking among individual First
Nations groups and within Canadian national identity. Through these projects, important steps were taken in
formulating two major characteristics of the post-1960 period: (1) a burgeoning market in Northwest Coast
objects constructed as 'traditional'; and, (2) First Nations activism for land claims and self-determination
using 'tradition' and 'art' as a platform in activism for land claims and self-determination.
Hawkes, Susan L. E. (1995) "Co-management and protected areas in Canada: The case of Gwaii Haanas." M.R.M.
The notion of co-management springs from recent critiques of conventional approaches to common property
resource management. These state-level approaches have long been aimed at avoiding the 'Tragedy of the
Commons.' However, a growing number of critics are questioning both their effectiveness and the
fundamental assumptions on which they are based. At the same time, traditional, community based
approaches to the management of common property resources are being 'rediscovered.' Over the past two
decades, several co-management agreements have been negotiated with First Nations for fish and wildlife,
particularly in the North. More recently, four such agreement have been negotiated for protected areas. One
of these is the 1993 Canada-Haida (Gwaii Haanas) Agreement, reached between the Government of Canada
and the Council of the Haida Nation after six years of complex negotiations. In terms of shared decision-
making power, it is the most far-reaching co-management in Canada to date. Evaluative criteria against
which to measure the Canada-Haida Agreement were developed from a literature review on common
property resource management. A case study approach is used to describe the Agreement in its political,
cultural and biophysical context. This case study is based on a series of multiple, semi-structured interviews,
augmented with literature when necessary. Based on ten criteria, or principles of success, it is determined
that the Agreement is likely to be successful (to achieve its goals) in the long term. However, the criteria
concerning the Agreement's enforcement and decision-making provisions and the representation of third
parties, are not clearly met.
Hawkins, Carol A. (1997) "Urban circle training centre: An English language program." M.Ed. Thesis, University of
This practicum experience is a study of an English language program developed at Urban Circle Training
Centre, a program designed to employ Aboriginal women in banking, business and retail sectors. A problem
arose when the materials to teach a 12 week English language program to this group of women was
inappropriate and ineffective. The 14 women studied between the ages of 18-55 years were all on social
assistance living in Winnipeg. The students were attending Urban Circle Training Centre to improve their
skills and find employment.
The major objective of the English language program was to develop both written and oral language skills in
a program which integrated Aboriginal perspectives so that the students were better prepared for
employment in the retail, business, and banking sectors of our community. Needs assessment questionnaires,
evaluations and a review of literature were the primary sources of data collection.
The results indicated (a) the topics were relevant; (b) Students oral and written communication skills
improved; (c) Workplace employers found the students were prepared to meet the demands of the workplace;
and, (d) Students found the format was interesting.
From this practicum, I learned (a) the importance of relevancy in program planning; (b) the importance of
critical reflection in learning; (c) the need for effective oral and written communication skills in the
workplace; (d) that a meaningful experience can be created by developing an interesting program; (e)
students move towards a greater degree of self direction in learning; (f) the artistry of education; (g) how to
design, implement, and evaluate an English language program; (h) more about Aboriginal culture; and, (i) to
be prepared to change the direction of the course to meet the changing needs of the learners.
Hayes, Howard J. (1997) "Indian women, domesticity, and liberal state formation: The gendered dimension of Indian
policy reform during the assimilation and allotment eras." M.A. Thesis, University of Arizona (The). 89 pp.
The question this thesis asks is: How have non-Indian conceptions of masculinity and femininity shaped
federal Indian policy during the late 19th century? The answer to this question lies, I will argue, in the
process of liberal state formation itself; a process which necessarily involves the continued reproduction of
gender hierarchies and systems of male power that privilege men and masculinity over women and
femininity. This public/private dichotomy, and the system of gender relations it supports, restricts women's
social role to within a highly circumscribed private sphere separate and distinct from the public sphere of
economy and state occupied by men. Therefore, as a reflection of the overall process of liberal state
formation, the process of incorporating Indian peoples into the American social, economic, and political
mainstream undertaken during the assimilation and allotment eras, necessarily entailed the reproduction of
Euro-American gender hierarchies within Indian societies.
Haynal, Patrick M. (1994 ) "From termination through restoration and beyond: Modern Klamath cultural identity."
Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Oregon. 426 pp.
The Klamath Tribes of Oregon were terminated from federal status in August of 1961. Earlier work
documented the adverse social, economic, and cultural affects termination produced. This dissertation seeks
to document what strategies the Klamath employed to achieve the reaffirmation of their subsistence treaty-
rights and the restoration of their federal status and if these two political victories have improved tribal
social conditions and stimulated a cultural revival. The data used to answer the research questions posed
were gathered by using the historical and participant-observer methods and by conducting interviews with
tribal members. In order to employ the historical method, pertinent published and unpublished documents
from tribal and other sources were examined. The participant-observer method involved the researcher's
attendance at various tribal government meetings, General Council sessions, and cultural events. The
collected data were then interpreted within the framework of a model labelled as reformative adaptation.
This model makes use of the acculturation and cultural renascence processes in a way which demonstrates
that both processes are simultaneously shaping modern Klamath culture change. The data collected reveal
that the Klamath used political activism, a primary component of the cultural renascence process, to secure
the reaffirmation of treaty-rights in federal court and the restoration of their federal status by an act of
Congress. Specifically, the Klamath used transcultural techniques which involve acculturating to the
dominant society's political system and using strategies whose origins lay within the dominant society -- such
as lobbying local, state, and federal politicians, bringing suit in federal court, letter writing campaigns, and
the use of the mass media -- in order to obtain their political victories. Further analysis of the data
demonstrates that the Klamath have been able to use the federal funds and programs, which restoration
provides access to, to begin improving tribal social conditions. Finally, the data reflect that the Klamath
political victories have strengthened Klamath cultural identity, which in turn has stimulated the emergence of
a 'neotraditional culture.' A neotraditional culture being a mosaic of indigenous, pan-Indian, and western
cultural patterns along with contemporary innovations.
Haynes, Jeanette. (1997) "An oral history of the social construction of Cherokee identity." Ph.D. Dissertation,
Ethnic identity issues were investigated within a small community of mixed-blood Cherokee in northeastern
Oklahoma utilizing the qualitative method of oral history interviewing. The study was conducted to
investigate how individuals make meaning of their identity and what influenced their ethnic identity
formation. The 17 participants were between the ages of 58 and 83; eight women and nine men. They were
selected on the basis of having attended school in the community and having Cherokee (blood) ancestry.
Blood quantum ranged from 7/8ths to one 64th Cherokee: two participants were not enrolled with the
Cherokee Nation. Two interviews were conducted with each participant and a third interview was conducted
with eight.
To conduct a holistic study, the environment or external factors that influenced the individual were
investigated as well as the elements of time and history. Four areas were studied: national attitudes and
policies toward Native Americans, socialization and attitudes in the home, cultural issues in the school, and
attitudes toward Native Americans in the community.
Analysis was done by employing the constant comparative method from Glaser and Strauss (1967). Using a
theoretical framework of Identity Politics and Spring's (1996) theory of Ideological Management, the data
revealed that the participants' present identities were affected by historical issues and constructs of
assimilation, low native population, patriarchy, loss of the Cherokee language, Christianity, silencing, shame
and pride, social acceptance, social class and social status, information, curriculum, and media images,
physical appearance and stereotypes, and identity and definitions.
Hazlehurst, Kayleen M. (1990) "Political expression and ethnicity: The state of the art in the Mäori world." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of Toronto. 535 pp.
This thesis explores ethno-politics and the indigenous experience in contemporary New Zealand, against a
background of tradition Mäori social organization and the history of Mäori and Pakeha (Euro-New Zealand)
relations from the mid 19th century until the early 1980s.
Rapid population growth and urbanization of the Mäori created new contexts for inter-tribal leadership and
new domains of activity in the national political arena. Radical demands were articulated and sustained
through the 1970s for a more equitable share of power and resources.
Involvement of the Mäori in the country's parliamentary and party political system provided the training
ground and spring board for modern Mäori politicians. Mäori MPs moved easily in the two worlds of Mäori
and Pakeha politics, and several styles of Mäori political leadership may be discerned in the complex of
political structures and networks.
In 1980 a long serving MP, Matiu Rata, broke with the Labour Party to form the first Mäori political party,
Mana Motuhake. The thesis examines the formation of this party, its first by-election campaign and a
subsequent quest for parliamentary seats in the 1981 general election. Mana Motuhake's political strategies,
goals, rhetoric, operational modes, and structures are analysed, with particular emphasis on the nature and
limits of its appeal to the Mäori electorate.
The reaction of the other parties to the formation of Mana Motuhake, and the perceived meaning of these
developments for future power sharing between Mäori and Pakeha are documented. The emergence of Mana
Motuhake is presented as a case study in political ethnicity. It is also viewed comparatively as a fledgling
party attempting to redefine political agendas and generate new allegiances within a stable democratic
system.
Heaman, Maureen I. (2001 ) "Risk factors for spontaneous preterm birth among aboriginal and non-aboriginal women
in Manitoba." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Manitoba (The). 284 pp.
In the province of Manitoba, the incidence of preterm birth (PTB) has been increasing and is about 17%
higher among aboriginal than non-aboriginal women. The purpose of this study was to identify risk factors
for spontaneous PTB in Manitoba women, and to compare risk factors among aboriginal and non-aboriginal
women. A case-control study was conducted at two tertiary care hospitals in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Cases
were women who delivered a live singleton infant at less than 37 weeks gestation following spontaneous
labour, while controls delivered between 37 and 42 weeks gestation. A ratio of two controls per every case
was used, and stratified sampling by race was employed. An interview was conducted with each subject on
the postpartum unit and information was collected from the health record. Data were analyzed using SPSS
and SAS. There were 226 cases (36% aboriginal) and 458 controls (38% aboriginal). Using stratified
analyses, adjusted odds ratios (AOR) and 95% confidence intervals were calculated. Significant risk factors
for PTB across both strata, after controlling for race, included: previous PTB, two or more previous
spontaneous abortions, hospitalization during pregnancy, gestational hypertension, vaginal bleeding after 12
weeks gestation, smoking in the month prior to pregnancy, short stature, low total weight gain during
pregnancy (less than 20 pounds), and inadequate prenatal care. Risk factors for non-aboriginal women
included abuse during pregnancy, low support from others, low self-esteem, rupture of membranes (ROM)
before labour, and moving two or more times in the last year. Risk factors for aboriginal women included
ROM before labour, high perceived stress, and anemia, while age less than 19 years and single marital status
were protective factors. After adjusting for other factors in a multiple logistic regression model, significant
modifiable risk factors included smoking prior to pregnancy (AOR 1.69), low weight gain (AOR 3.41), and
inadequate prenatal care (AOR 3.36). The population attributable risk was 24.5% for smoking prior to
pregnancy, 22.3% for low weight gain, and 15.9% for inadequate prenatal care. This study identified some
modifiable risk factors for PTB which can be targeted for public health interventions, and contributed to our
understanding of differences in risk factors among aboriginal and non-aboriginal women.
Heber, Robert W. (1989) "Chipewyan ethno-adaptations: Identity expression for Chipewyan Indians of northern
Saskatchewan." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Manitoba (The).
Chipewyan Indians of northern Saskatchewan, Canada are experiencing rapid social and cultural change.
One area of change is in social identity expression as ethnicity. This study makes use of an ethnohistorical
approach to trace continuities and change in expressions of ethnicity for Chipewyan Indians from prehistoric
to contemporary times. Comparisons are made in ethnohistorical processes and ethno-ecological adaptations
between sub-populations of Chipewyan to determine similarities and differences in ethno-adaptation by
regional groups within the Chipewyan collective. Research was carried out for this study using historical
information supported by ethnographic observations of two regional Chipewyan populations, the Buffalo
River people of the Upper Churchill River and Caribou-Eater Chipewyan of the Athabasca Basin. The
research demonstrates that while Chipewyan Indians share common features of ethnicity, sub-populations
express distinct identity features that can be traced to different adaptive processes over space and time.
Heckler, Serena L. (2001 ) "The ethnobotany of the Piaroa: Analysis of an Amazonian people in transition." Ph.D.
Dissertation, Cornell University. 356 pp.
This work is a comparative study of the ethnobotany of three Piaroa communities situated in the Manapiare
Valley region of Estado Amazonas, Venezuela. In order to navigate a successful transition from a subsistence
economy to one based upon cash, indigenous Amazonians must adjust their social workings in many
profound ways. This work examines Piaroa use of botanical resources as a measure of such intense social
adjustments. The three communities are compared with respect to how several aspects of acculturation,
including sedentarization, involvement in a market economy and women's roles affect Piaroa Traditional
Ethnobotanical Knowledge (TEK). The study found that TEK and use of wild plant resources is decreasing
dramatically in response to social changes. Agriculture, however, is increasing in importance due to a focus
on cash agriculture as a means of entering the market economy. Despite increased importance, the plant
diversity of the average garden decreases in cash gardens, subsistence gardens and home gardens. This is
partly due to labour constraints on the part of men, who focus their attention on market agriculture and
manual labour. It is also due to women's tendency to no longer view the garden as their main creative act
and the means by which their success as women is measured. The prominence of home gardens as loci of
innovation greatly increases. Even though the overall emphasis on agriculture decreasing in diversity certain
women remain 'hobbyists' and maintain complex and diverse agricultural systems. This practice was more
common before intensive contact with Venezuelan national culture. Contrary to conventional wisdom, the
traditional swidden/fallow agriculture is more than a subsistence system limited by ecological constraints.
Traditional agriculture is far more elaborate than necessary for basic subsistence, providing additional
benefits such as aesthetics, status and personal pleasure to the Piaroa. Throughout the course of the work, it
is questioned whether or not TEK is of significant value in helping the Piaroa enter the market economy.
Rather it is suggested that TEK is a fundamental part of Piaroa culture and that to separate it from the
cultural framework is to deprive it of meaning.
Herman, A. Douglas K. (1995) "Kalai'aina: Carving the land: Geography, desire and possession in the Hawai'ian
islands." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Hawai'i. 587 pp.
Kalai'aina (lit. 'carving the land'), the Hawai'ian word for 'politics,' reflects the pre-western tradition of
dividing the control of land in the Islands. This linguistic link between land and power is extended to include
geographic representation, the discursive 'carving the land.' Reflecting these three readings of 'kalai'aina,'
the colonization of the Islands is then analysed in terms of the land in ways that enable the dispossession of
the Hawai'ian people. Colonialism is considered as the re-constitution of society and space as found in
language, religion, scientific epistemologies, geographic thought, sacred spaces and symbolic landscapes.
The discussion is framed within a consideration of geography the discipline and geography the practice, seen
as re-writing the earth into a hegemonic and culturally specific world view. The first part then looks at the
encompassing of the islands into western geographic discourse and texts, resulting in desire for the
'underutilized' land and the 'strategic' location. The feminising aspect of this desire is strongly evoked. The
second part then approaches the representations of bodies -- of native Hawai'ians, and later of imported
labourers. The interplay of geography with racial science, the depopulation of the indigenous people from
introduced diseases, and the emergence of a socio-ethnic hierarchy with a white elite are elucidated. The
interplay between science, religion, and geography, and the way these three are intertwined results in the
Western definition of 'knowledge' and the constitution of the world. Indigenous knowledge is cast as
superstition and ignorance. Hawai'ian language itself is re-formed to fit western needs. A study of Hawai'ian
place names continues on this theme, looking more closely at language and land. Finally, colonization is
read in terms of a change in the 'law,' from the kapu system of old to the government of the United States.
Language, history, and landscape are re-read to show that, despite two centuries of discourse to the
contrary, the management of power, of control of land, and of sacred space has not substantially changed in
structure, despite the shift in sovereignity.
Hermes, Suzanne S. (2001 ) "A cosmological and psychological portrayal: An integration of psyche, culture, and
creativity." Ph.D. Dissertation, Pacifica Graduate Institute. 280 pp.
Carl Jung was one of the first therapists to propose that the symbolism produced by his patients and
symbolism found in varying world cosmologies had commonalties. These universal symbolic elements have
been shown to correspond to the cosmic archetypes found throughout worldwide cultures and are often
demonstrated through ritual, imagery, and the creative arts.
This dissertation is a phenomenologically based discourse using a hermeneutic method to explore the
impressions of the culturally relevant creative arts with Native American Indians who demonstrate significant
at-risk behaviour. Past programs that focused on pathology and symptomatology have not been effective in
ameliorating the tragic legacy of the American Indian. Despite what appears to be much investment of
money, time, personnel, and programs, Native American Indians still suffer from some of the highest rates of
at-risk behaviour, to include suicide, domestic violence, accidents, ill-health, and poverty in our country. The
focus has for too long not served the needs or worldviews of Native Americans.
This author believes that risky behaviour, which has been part of the Native legacy, is a mask that has been
used in attempt to cover and at times to soothe the incredible soul wound that has been oozing for
generations. The medicine for such a wound has been sought through the ways of Western medicine. This,
however, is not the only source of healing. There is within the ancient psyche of Native America an extremely
strong cultural heritage. By integrating this heritage within an application of the analytical psychology of
Carl Jung, a powerful collaboration can transpire.
A culturally relevant creative arts program is one means to illustrate the symbolism, imagery, cosmology,
poetry, art, and music of a civilization that has thrived on the symbolic languages of the soul. Tribes have
within their own structures a wealth of resources that need only to be revived in order for their power to be
realized. Besides culturally relevant arts, sweat lodges and talking circles were also implemented, as a means
of accessing the wounded psyche and empowering those at risk through culturally relevant experiences.
Utilizing a hermeneutic methodology that cultivates a cross-fertilization of cross-cultural ideologies,
authentic visions based on the strengths and not the pathologies of American Indians were established.
Culturally specific integration of cross-cultural relationships allowed for empowerment of individual and
community resources.
The analytical psychology of Carl Jung opened wide the doors of inquiry, as each culture draws on the
symbolic life of their own roots. To Walk In Beauty for the contemporary Native American is to be able to
walk not only in two worlds, but also in the all inclusive millennium moccasins. This study has given us a
base to work with Native Americans, as well as other cultures that are experiencing transformation, in order
to resonate with their more authentic self.
Hertzler, Douglas C. (2002) "Agrarian cultures of solidarity: Campesino unions and the struggle for land and
community development in Santa Cruz, Bolivia." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Iowa (The). 444 pp.
Recent social movements theory has led researchers away from an emphasis on class as the basis for
understanding of collective actors and brought into focus the far greater diversity of social categories around
which people mobilize in order to reach group goals and shape social change. Some theorists, however, have
moved beyond the critique of class reductionism to assert that conceptualizations to contemporary social
movements and their participants.
The main finding of this dissertation is that class solidarity remains relevant to rural social movements in
Bolivia, even during a period of growing consciousness of the history of colonialism, racism, and their
collective experience as dominated aboriginal cultures. This dissertation analyzes the efforts of Andean and
native lowland peasant settlers, who speak primarily Quechua and Spanish, to build and maintain
organizations that democratize their own communities while challenging a profoundly unjust distribution of
power, land, and other resources. It presents evidence that rural people are readily able to organize
themselves across divisions of ethnicity/race/culture, on the basis of perceived similar material position in a
system of inequality. It also examines how contemporary concepts of class, ethnicity, 'race,' and nation have
been shaped through their shifting use in the course of Bolivia history, and how these social categories
constructed by elites are sometimes contested or transformed in the discourse of non-elite actors in the local
context. Dominant constructions of gender limit women's political participation, but these gender
constructions are contested as women form their own organizations and struggle for a greater role within the
settlers' unions.
Through an approach centred on local and regional history of movement organization, this dissertation aims
to provide a basis for understanding the large-scale rural protests that have occurred in Bolivia in recent
years. In keeping with anthropological approaches to political economy, it contextualizes social relations in
the tropical lowland region by tracing concrete international economic and political linkages and
demonstrating their embeddedness in historical struggles for land and power from the colonial era to the
present.
Hess, Elizabeth A. (1985 ) "Native employment in northern Canadian resource towns: The case of the Naskapi in
Schefferville." M.A. Thesis, McGill University.
This thesis examines the employment experience of the Naskapi Indians in the 25 years following their
relocation to Schefferville, Québec, in 1956.
To examine the underlying causes of the concentration of unemployment and underemployment among the
native segment of the labour force, the thesis develops a 'conjunctural approach' which views the employment
situation of the Naskapis as a historical and geographical conjuncture of two dynamics: multinational
resource capital and the native subsistence ecology, which interact at the point of the labour process.
Within this context, the thesis focuses on two principal factors in the Naskapi's marginal participation in
wage labour. The first is the conditions of profitability which necessitate capitalobility and the consequent
instability of employment in northern resource industries. The second is the hierarchical and segmented
nature of the labour process, which shaped the marginal position of the Naskapi within the labour force.
Hess, Franke S. (1990) "Explaining international movements: A study of global activism among the world's
indigenous peoples." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Maryland College Park. 456 pp.
The estimated 300 million indigenous people of the world are, according to indigenous representatives to a
1974 world conference, distinct ethno-cultural groups descended from aboriginal, pre-colonial inhabitants of
an area who do not now control their own political destiny. The movement to internationalize concern for
their survival draws attention to a broader pattern of dominance by western political and economic
institutional actors and the marginalization of non-western peoples and cultures. As 'conquered' peoples,
indigenous groups are among the most vulnerable. This pattern of dominance is not only physically
destructive, but also frustrates basic human needs for recognition, positive group identity, and self-esteem,
leading to profound social-psychological alienation and a host of attendant social problems. The questions
raised by these developments centre fundamentally on the relationship between subjugated peoples and the
state on a global scale. Part of the problem, I conclude, is that the boundaries of ethnic identity have served
to define a core moral community, which, when channelled into state-building activity, produces
institutionalized patterns of dominance and subjection parallel to the boundaries of ethnic identity. Dominant
ethnic groups will regard members of their own group with moral preference, leaving non-dominant groups
vulnerable to the destructive force of moral exclusion at worst, and second-class political and economic
status at best. In order to rectify this situation, the state, and the community of states must redefine the basis
of moral community by expanding its boundaries through the promotion of legal protections, including
cultural, social, economic and political rights given the force of national and international legal recognition.
Through a series of international conferences, and by appealing directly to international institutions,
indigenous activists are cultivating increasing support for such a program of legal protection. I analyze these
developments from the perspective of an international movement directed toward the normative basis of an
international political community. To account for normative global movements, which might also include the
anti-slavery activism of the 19th century, or recent efforts by environmental and peace groups, I develop a
'world society' model of international politics.
Hicks, Bentley G. (1995) "Interests and the public interest in law and public policy: A case study in aboriginal policy
in Canada." M.A. Thesis, Carleton University. 178 pp.
This thesis is an examination of the current state of federal aboriginal policy within Canada. It assesses the
degree to which current aboriginal policy initiatives take cognizance of broader non-aboriginal concerns,
and the extent to which these concerns might be considered expressions of a 'public interest.' The thesis
analyzes aboriginal self-government and comprehensive land claims policy in order to determine where and
to what extent they make provision for the consideration of other interests that might bear on the
implementation and application of these policies at the broader social level.
The thesis considers the crisis of legitimacy that is affecting all aboriginal policy initiatives that relate to self-
determination. Recent attempts by the federal government to reconcile underlying aboriginal sentiments for
self-determination with non-aboriginal concerns regarding the political integrity of the established Canadian
order have had, at best, modest success. New methods both of identifying and reconciling aboriginal and
non-aboriginal interests must be found, if future aboriginal policies are to ward off increased social and
cultural isolation.
Hildebrand, Denise. (2003) "Staff perspectives of the Aboriginal residential school experience: A study of four
Presbyterian schools, 1888-1923 ." M.A. Thesis, University of Manitoba (The). 353 pp.
Despite the growing body of literature regarding residential schools, few studies have focused on the men
and women who staffed the schools. This study is a detailed examination of the staff members of four
Presbyterian-run boarding schools and their experiences from 1888 to the early 1920s. By using
Presbyterian Church and Department of Indian Affairs documents, this study has reconstructed the staff
perspective of the early decades of residential schooling. The findings reveal that residential school
employment, regardless of position, was very stressful. All positions, and particularly that of the principal,
entailed a diversity of duties and responsibilities. Too often staff members were unprepared for at least some
of the tasks expected of them. The findings also reveal the inhospitable working conditions that existed, which
were due largely to the lack of financial support. In some cases, parental opposition contributed to the
pressure, as did strained staff relations. Not surprisingly, the majority cited illness as the reason for
resigning. It is suggested that more congenial working conditions would have resulted in better management
and possibly, less physical abuse of students. It is also argued that staff experiences varied greatly depending
on the school at which one was employed.
Hill, Dawn J. (1995) "Lubicon Lake nation: Spirit of resistance." Ph.D. Dissertation, McMaster University. 209 pp.
There are four objectives of this dissertation. The first is addressing the native perspective and how that
influences both the methodology and theoretical context. The second is developing a context that is both
relevant to the Lubicon and myself, as well as the social sciences. The third is describing the field research in
Little Buffalo, Alberta over a five-year period, and how spirituality and culture shapes not only perceptions
but human behaviour which is identified as resistance to dominant ideology and oppression. The fourth is
providing the Lubicon Cree men and women with an opportunity to tell their story from their own voice. The
conclusion brings together the spiritual-theoretical collective voice to address issues of representation and
more importantly the very real experience of 'genocide.'
Hills, Amber L. (2003) "Assessment, treatment, and recidivism of aboriginal and non-aboriginal offenders: A
comparison of intra-familial and extra-familial male sexual offenders in Saskatchewan." M.A. Thesis,
University of Regina (The). 144 pp.
The sexual abuse of children is a serious social concern. It is commonly reported that one in four women and
one in seven men are sexually molested before the age of 18. Men who have sexually offended against
children outside of their families (extra-familial sexual offenders) are believed to be more likely to re-offend
than are those who have offended against children within their families (intra-familial sexual offenders). If
recidivism rates are indeed higher for extra-familial offenders it follows that the assessment and treatment
protocols should be reflective of such. In the current study, 46 intra-familial offenders were compared to 52
extra-familial offenders with respect to three specific domains: recidivism rate and type information; the
assessment procedures utilized by Saskatchewan correctional staff, and the treatment that offenders received.
The noted comparisons were completed on a total sample of 98 male, intra-familial and extra-familial sexual
offenders to determine whether or not there were differences between these two groups in the noted areas.
Further, these comparisons were made between the non-aboriginal (n = 47) and aboriginal (n = 46) intra-
familial and extra-familial sexual offenders in response to the need for information about aboriginal sexual
offenders. Overall, intra- and extra-familial offenders presented similarly in terms of their demographics;
however, aboriginal and non-aboriginal offenders differed on several demographic variables. There were no
associations between the groups and their rates or types of recidivism. There also were no significant
associations between the assessment and treatment received, and the intra-familial and extra-familial
aboriginal and non-aboriginal offender groups.
Hindery, Derrick L. (2003) "Multinational oil corporations in a neoliberal era: Enron, Shell, and the political ecology
of conflict over the Cuiabá pipeline in Bolivia's Chiquitanía." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of California,
Los Angeles. 388 pp.
With the spectacular financial collapse of Enron in 2001, Enron and Shell's Cuiabá gas pipeline gained
international notoriety for degrading the last, most intact, dry tropical forest in the world, the Chiquitano
Forest. This dissertation identifies and analyzes those specific actions undertaken by various stakeholders
that were effective in preventing or mitigating negative social and environmental impacts of the pipeline. It
uses this case, among others, to explore how Bolivia's neoliberal economic 'reforms' affected indigenous and
environmental groups' efforts to mobilize against hydrocarbons projects brought by such policies. The
dissertation concludes that these policies, which resulted in partial privatization of the state oil company, and
expanded control over natural resources by multinational corporations, were responsible for a series of
negative social and environmental impacts in the country. The analysis is based on an action-oriented
political ecology approach, which examines the interaction between political interests, social institutions,
and human-environment relations, with the aim of actively aiding vulnerable populations under study,
namely the Chiquitano and Ayoreo indigenous communities affected by the Cuiabá pipeline. The dissertation
begins with a historical geography of the region known as the Chiquitanía, highlighting struggles between
indigenous peoples and external actors over natural resources, livelihood, and identity.
Hindley, Jane. (1997) "Indigenous mobilization, political reform and development in Mexico: The struggle of the
Nahua people of the Upper Balsas, Guerrero." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Essex.
The last 25 years have witnessed the emergence of a global movement of indigenous peoples linking a
multiplicity of organizations on common grounds of struggle against discrimination, ethnocide and
dispossession and for general recognition of their specific economic, political and sociocultural rights. This
reassertion of indigenous identities confounds predictions that 'modernization' and 'development' would
reduce sociocultural difference and indigenous peoples would disappear, which guided the assimilationist
indigenist policies prevailing during the post-war period in Latin America. Recent indigenous mobilizations
together with political reforms conferring indigenous rights are leading to a reconfiguration of relations
between governments and indigenous peoples across Latin America. This thesis addresses how shifts in the
relations between government and indigenous peoples in Mexico, together with changes in the national
political environment have created opportunities for indigenous mobilization at the micro-political level. In
turn, grassroots action transforms ethnic political consciousness and establishes new forms of representation
and mediation with respect to government. Such mobilizations alter the exercise of power in the countryside
and open up possibilities for transforming local government. I explore these processes analyzing the
successful resistance of the Nahua People of the Upper Balsas, Guerrero, to a federal development project --
the Tetelcingo dam. In this mobilization, the newly-established legitimacy of indigenous interests, identities
and representation provided strategic grounds for constructing a collective regional interest and identity;
forging horizontal political alliances; and challenging the prerogatives of municipal, state and federal
government.
Hipwell, William T. L. (1997) ""They've got no stake in where they're at": Radical ecology, the fourth world and local
identity in the Bella Coola region." M.A. Thesis, Carleton University. 251 pp.
The Forest Action Network, a radical environmental group, began in 1995 a co-operative relationship with
'the House of Smayusta', a faction of the Nuxalk First Nation, geared toward ending industrial forestry on the
Northwest Coast of Turtle Island (North America). The region has been exploited by trans-state (trans-
national) corporations for several decades, resulting in a badly degraded environment and a weakened local
economy. The relationship between these groups resulted in logging road blockades and other actions
involving civil disobedience. Discourses invoked by the environmentalists had the effect of silencing large
portions of the local population, and involved problematic representations of the Nuxalk Nation. This thesis
evaluates the relationship between the Forest Action Network and the Nuxalk in context of other co-operative
efforts between indigenous peoples and non-Native environmentalists, and in light of ideas underlying Fourth
World and radical ecology theory, and discussions of community identity.
Hoang, Quyen. (2003) "First Nations people mining the museum: A case study of change at the Glenbow Museum."
M.A. Thesis, Concordia University. 115 pp.
This thesis is an examination of the representation of First Nations cultures at the Glenbow Museum in
Calgary, Canada. Focusing on public display, I look at four in-house exhibitions that illustrate some of the
decolonizing strategies Glenbow has employed following the controversial exhibition in 1988, The spirit
sings: Artistic traditions of Canada's First Peoples and the subsequent Task Force Report, Turning the page:
Forging new partnerships between museums and First Peoples, released in 1992. I engage the concept of
museumism as a strategy used in all four exhibitions, an approach that uses the museum as a format to
reclaim and revise history and shifts museological practices that once negated Aboriginal knowledge and
protocol. Aboriginal participation in exhibition development has reclassified the museum from interpreter
and preserver to facilitator and collaborator. The Museum is transformed into a space for dialogue where
issues of representation, consultation, access and self-determination can be played out and anticipates a
future of mutual goals and shared histories.
Hochtritt, James G. Jr. (2001) "Rural Cherokees, Chickasaws, Choctaws, Creeks, and Seminoles in Oklahoma during
the Great Depression." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Oklahoma (The). 439 pp.
This dissertation analyzes rural Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole communities in
Oklahoma during the Great Depression. It examines the impact of Indian New Deal policies in the areas of
economic, education, health, and political reform. Moreover, it refutes the commonly held belief that the
rural Indians of the Five Civilized Tribes were a largely landless people, starving and spiritually bankrupt by
the 1930s. In fact, this study argues that those Indians who continued to live in the small, rural communities
of the Five Civilized Tribes region relied upon time proven kin and clan networks to maintain their social and
cultural traditions. This better enabled them to endure the economic hardships caused by the Great
Depression. The devotion they showed to their communities and traditions also allowed them to assimilate or
resist assimilation on their own terms as opposed to the terms set down by whites, more assimilated tribal
members, or the federal government. In that sense, it is, more than anything else, very much a study of Indian
cultural and social perseverance.
Hogeveen, Bryan R. (1998 ) "An intrusive and corrective government: Political rationalities and the governance of the
plains aboriginals, 1870-90." M.A. Thesis, University of Manitoba (The). 188 pp.
In this work I have applied post-colonial theory and Foucault's ideas on government to analyze colonial
governmentality and its impact on the aboriginals of the Canadian prairies. Most often, historians who have
undertaken work in the field of aboriginal/government relations have attempted to unravel the ideological
representations which constructed the aboriginals as other, along with highlighting how state policy
marginalized Canada's indigenous people. My research has endeavoured to move the analysis of aboriginal
governance beyond ideology and centralized state power by considering how the indigenous peoples were
defined, divided out, and excluded from Euro-Canadian society. More specifically, I have tried to reveal how
the traditional modes of aboriginal life were structured in diverse ways by both the political rationality of the
Hudson's Bay Company and the 19th century Canadian liberal rationality of government. In so doing, I
endeavoured to discern how law and practices of government, such as, techniques to govern consumption
and agricultural programmes, intruded into the lives of the aboriginal peoples. By interrogating the practices
and programmes by which the rationality of 19th century liberal government structured the modes of plains
aboriginals life I have attempted to come to a unique understanding of aboriginal/government relations.
Holden, Annette M. (1994 ) "Fourth world economic development: The establishment of capitalism in three
Aboriginal communities in Cape York Peninsula, Queensland." Ph.D. Dissertation, Griffith University. 331
pp.
Aboriginal economic development in Australia is examined through case studies of three communities in
Cape York Peninsula in Queensland. For the purpose of analysis, Cape York is treated as an Aboriginal
domain and the communities are treated as individual colonies. The central question of the thesis is "Is
capitalism being established as the dominant mode of production?" It is not presumed that capitalism is or
will be established in the Aboriginal colonies and so the ways in which the capitalist and Aboriginal modes of
production frustrate, reinforce and transform one another in the process of articulation are examined. Thus
the following questions are asked: (1) How exactly is the dominance of capitalism being established?; (2)
What footholds for this dominance are to be found in the old relations of production?; and, (3) In what sense
did the latter become transformed so as to fit in with the specific requirements of capitalist interests? And
their reverse: (4) In what ways, if at all, is the Aboriginal mode of production remaining as the dominant
mode?; (5) In what ways, if at all, does capitalism lend itself to the maintenance of the dominance of the
Aboriginal mode of production?; and, (6) How is the capitalist mode of production itself modified as a result
of colonialism?
The state plays a key role in Aboriginal economic development. Government economic development policies
are explained in the broader context of the role of the state in the colonisation process, which itself must be
understood with attention to the structure of government. Aboriginal policies and also the policy-making
process in Aboriginal affairs is examined and it is argued that there is conflict between the federal and
Queensland governments. This is because the federal government has entered the era of post-colonial
rationalisation while the Queensland government is still pursuing ongoing colonisation. The thesis
demonstrates that Aboriginal policies are determined most importantly by the level of development of the
forces of production under the jurisdiction of the respective federal and state governments and secondarily by
the exigencies of their respective legitimation and fiscal responsibilities. Party politics is almost irrelevant in
determining policy.
The history of the colonisation process of Cape York is examined and found to conform to the first two stages
of Petras' three-stage model of colonisation, borrowed from Third World economic development theory.
Fourth World colonisation begins in the same way as Third World does but then Fourth World economic
development takes its own direction. It does this because the articulation process, while initially determined
by the logic of the capitalist mode of production, is increasingly consistent with the logic of a contemporary
Aboriginal mode of production, which is defined and described in the thesis. Ongoing access to the
traditional means of production, the small scale of the Aboriginal colonies, Aborigine's status as citizens
within the nation of their colonisers, and the maintenance of traditional Aboriginal values, attitudes and
beliefs are amongst the key reasons for why the directions of Third and Fourth World economic development
finally diverge. This has implications for the relevance of Marxist theory to Fourth World economic
development theory.
In addition to assessing class formation in the Aboriginal colonies, state formation is also considered. Again
it is not presumed that the state inevitably will support the formation of capitalist relations of production. The
performance of the endogenous state as a bulwark to capitalism and its possible role in fostering alternative
forms of Aboriginal economic development are examined.
Holkup, Patricia A. (2003) "Native American elder mistreatment: A community concern." Ph.D. Dissertation,
University of Iowa (The). 279 pp.
Using traditional ethnographic methods for data collection and analysis, this dissertation addressed two
specific aims. The first was related to the issue of elder mistreatment among Native American people living
on a reservation in Montana. Data from a community-based participatory pilot research project were
analyzed to explore how elder mistreatment is perceived on the reservation, its contributing factors and
ramifications, the current means of addressing elder mistreatment, and whether a proposed family
conference intervention aimed at preventing and/or mitigating elder mistreatment would be acceptable to the
people living on the reservation. The second aim was related to the research methodology. Data generated
during the conduction of business for the cross-cultural research team that implemented the research project
were analyzed to explore relevant scientific, ethical, and interpersonal team dynamics.
Results related to the first aim indicated that elder mistreatment does exist on the reservation in the forms of
exploitation, neglect, social service neglect, and emotional abuse. Contributing factors include historic
trauma, depressed socioeconomic conditions, the impact of social change on traditional values, and the
influence of family values held by elders. Punitive means of managing elder mistreatment fragmented families
causing family discord. Prevention was seen as a desirable way to address elder mistreatment with positive
support indicated for the family conference intervention. Community strengths that could contribute to the
success of the family conference intervention were identified.
Results related to the methodology aim indicated that the research team experienced four developmental
stages during its work on the project: team formation, team expansion, team crisis, and team consolidation.
Depending on the developmental stage, salient issues included experiencing distrust and trust, addressing
bureaucratic barriers, coping with credibility stress, remaining flexible, learning culturally grounded means
of intercultural communication, protecting the data, guarding against cultural misinterpretation of the data,
managing multiple roles, maintaining a consensus model for making decisions, and nurturing team
cohesiveness.
Holland, Alison L. (1999 ) "'Saving the Aborigines': The white woman's crusade. A study of gender, race and the
Australian frontier, 1920s-1960s." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of New South Wales.
From the late 1920s until the 1960s a generation of white women reformers joined a campaign to 'save the
Aborigines.' They were concerned to 'rescue' them from extinction, a fate which had previously been
considered inevitable, and improve their condition and status within the nation. In this way, they were hoping
to solve what was widely coined the 'Aboriginal Problem.' This 40 year campaign was part of a broader
humanitarian, feminist and imperial reform agenda which, under the influence of new international ethics on
the 'race question', sought the reform of Aboriginal policy in Australia. Influential to the white woman's
response was the work of Aboriginal rights crusader, Mary Bennett, who waged a battle against the direction
of Aboriginal policy in Australia in these years. Her critique was linked to a British anti-slavery crusade
which had identified the frontiers of settlement to the north as the 'slave zones' of 'modern Australia.' In
recovering a white woman's contribution to a 20th century humanitarian movement, this thesis is concerned
to locate it within the contemporary feminist discourse around questions of gender, 'race' and imperialism. In
recovering a lost female tradition, a white woman's defence of Aborigines, it assesses the feminist
historiographical view, post Women's Liberation, that Australian women were blind to questions of 'race.' In
tracing how the 'Aboriginal problem' fared in a white women's reform programme from the late 1920s to the
1960s it analyses the nature of feminist commitment, considering the ways in which a frontier politics
influenced, or was influenced by, their input. Concentrating on the distinctive campaigns of Mary Bennett
and other key women reformers such as Constance Cooke, Ada Bromham, Phyllis Duguid and Jessie Street,
and moving beyond the inter-war years, it expands and qualifies earlier analyses. It demonstrates
continuities and change in a white woman's campaign between the inter-war and post-war periods. Most
importantly, it charts the demise of a gendered approach to solving the 'problem' by the eve of World War II.
It demonstrates the way in which feminist engagement with a politics of 'race' after the war exposed
significant differences in the nature of feminist mobilization, and traces Mary Bennett's contribution to this
shift.
Holton, Tara L. (1999) "The cultural construction of suicide as revealed in discursive patterns among aboriginal and
non-aboriginal caregivers." M.Sc. Thesis, University of Calgary. 184 pp.
According to current research, the aboriginal suicide rate is three to six times that of the rest of Canada's
population (Kirmayer, 1994; Sinclair, 1998). The ethnocentric, non-Canadian focus of current research
suggests the need for alternative approaches in order to elucidate the cultural and linguistic embeddedness of
social phenomena like suicide. A discourse analytic approach was used to analyze nine hours of group
interviews involving aboriginal and non-aboriginal participants discussing suicide and suicide prevention.
The analysis focused on the identification of the manner in which aboriginal and non-aboriginal participants
constructed suicide amongst aboriginal people. Findings revealed several hegemonic devices supporting the
general construction of aboriginal people as “deficient” and of suicide as a symptom of this deficiency. This
thesis concludes with an exploration of how this construction may be understood through the lens of post
colonial theory, most specifically, Edward Said's Orientalism (1978).
Hornell, Mark E. (1988) "Comprehensive native land claims in British Columbia." M.A. Thesis, University of
Waterloo.
Hosmer, Brian C. (1993) "Experiments in capitalism: Market economics, wage labour, and social change among the
Menominees and Metlakahtlans, 1860-1920." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Texas at Austin (The). 649
pp.
This dissertation results from my desire to challenge prevailing assumptions regarding the nature of Native
American adaptations to European culture. While some scholars have begun to dismantle what has been a
rather static picture of what was once called 'acculturation,' many works still assume that most native
peoples had just two choices when confronted with change: resist and be defeated; or capitulate and forfeit
one's distinctive 'identity.'
In addressing this question, I chose to compare two instances where natives attempted to adapt to the
capitalistic 'market system,' and in that process, found creative ways to balance the demands of a new
economic order with more traditional ways. These two areas are the Menominee Reservation, where a
tribally-owned and operated lumber mill constituted the centre of a vibrant reservation economy; and
Metlakahtla, where, under the direction of the lay missionary William Duncan, a colony of refugee
Tsimshians created a varied and nearly self-sufficient economy based on the exploitation of the resources of
sea and forest. In both cases, natives laboured to exploit abundant natural resources to provide a degree of
economic stability. Yet while whites encouraged these efforts, it is important to emphasize that natives, in
both places, supported the introduction of resource-based industries and understood them to have social as
well as economic benefits. This was neither acculturation nor assimilation but an effort to preserve cultural
integrity through a type of economic modernization that did not sacrifice ties with the past.
In the end, this dissertation challenges the notion that confinement to diminishing parcels of land always led
to cultural degeneration or economic chaos. Blessed with abundant natural resources, Menominees and
Metlakahtlans combined new with old and came to grips with change by adopting a strategy of purposeful
modernization. Their efforts resulted in a measure of independence not realized by most Indian societies.
Houle, Caroline. (1999) "Gestion coutumière autochtone face aux enjeux du nationalisme maritime: Les Mäori de
Nouvelle-Zélande." M.A. Thesis, Université Laval. 124 pp.
['Aboriginal customary management in relation to maritime nationalist issues: The New Zealand Mäori’]
This research was part of a much larger departmental project dealing with the identity centres of Mäori
nationalism. More particularly, they aim to identity, from a structural and ethnographic point of view, the
way in which the current issues in the halieutic sector reflect the strategies recently developed by the Mäori
to consolidate their economic and political position with the Pakeha, a non-Mäori population.
Based on recent work in social and maritime anthropology, the research will focus on the resurgence of
aboriginal customary law in state-nation contexts strongly influenced by privatization. The subject of a
growing body of literature pertaining to the territorial claims of several indigenous groups, it is eminently
pertinent in the case of New Zealand. Not only is it a country considered representative of new capitalism
strategies, it also has a significant halieutic sector in which the formal for individual quotas is the basis for
management. In the Whangaroa region, the issues revolving around the adherence of the Ngati Kahu and
Nga Puhi to legal compromises generate many conflicts that are representative of the transition situation in
which several Mäori communities find themselves.
Howard, Bradley R. (1999 ) "Indigenous peoples and the state: An anthropological analysis of an evolving political
relationship." Ph.D. Dissertation, Indiana University. 369 pp.
Indigenous peoples such as the Iroquois and the Mäori assert their rights as human beings and as unique,
independent, self-determining peoples, insist on their collective rights as peoples, as proper subjects of
international law, resort to the international community and international law for the protection and
promotion of indigenous rights, and articulate their conception of what constitutes those rights. They are
determined in their efforts to demonstrate the violation of their right to self-determination through various
acts of colonialism and genocide. A vocal segment of indigenous representatives demand the re-institution of
the treaty process as the form of negotiation and agreement between states and indigenous peoples. Neither
national laws nor international law have been receptive to the demands of indigenous peoples until recent
times.
This dissertation addresses the following series of questions: Where do anthropologists and their theoretical
perspectives stand on these issues? What impact have anthropologists had on the creation of national and
international laws in the past, and what kind of actions are currently being taken with respect to the
international movement for the rights of indigenous peoples? What perceptions of indigenous political
entities, of indigenous sovereignty and self-determination, and of indigenous political history have
anthropologists fostered? How have anthropologists contributed to the colonialist destruction of indigenous
peoples in the past, and how might they appropriately promote the liberation of indigenous peoples now and
in the future? Indigenous peoples have much to say on these issues, unmasking and denouncing fundamental
misconceptions.
A number of anthropologists critically characterize their profession historically as the progeny of
imperialism, examine its links with colonialism in the continuing transformation of indigenous cultures and
assimilation of indigenous peoples; despite links with colonialism, anthropologists, recognizing the existence
and operation of indigenous political, legal and religious systems and evolving intellectually through close
contact with indigenous peoples, have contributed to the progressive transformation of national and
international law, and question the necessity and logic of the destruction of indigenous cultures and their
natural habitats. At present, in the process of a possibly enduring metamorphosis in international law, a
process that exposes the interrelatedness and interpenetration of anthropology and indigenous cultures with
law, indigenous peoples profoundly contribute to the continuing transformation of anthropology, and
promote an anthropology of human rights, of indigenous liberation.
Howard, Cheryl A. (1991) "Navajo tribal demography, 1983-86, in comparative and historical perspective." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of New Mexico (The). 306 pp.
Demographic and epidemiologic transition theories have offered descriptions of generalized changes in
demographic patterns accompanying modernization. But, they have not sharpened our understanding of
population dynamics within highly differentiated societies. Vital rates of American Indians have, for many
years, resembled those of developing countries. The Navajo are the largest, most encapsulated American
Indian tribe in the United States. They are a matrifocal society with an artificial (subsidized) economy and an
imported health care system -- the Indian Health Service. Using 1983-86 vital statistics for the Navajo and
other ethnographic, historical and comparative data, this investigation attempts to place the population
dynamics of this society in cultural and temporal perspective.
Despite the well-documented socioeconomic disadvantage of this group, female life expectancy and infant
mortality rates were almost identical to rates for US whites. Navajo fertility, on the other hand, was more
than double that of US whites, and the rate of natural increase was almost five times greater. At current
levels of fertility and mortality, the population will double in less than 30 years. Navajo male mortality,
however, is almost double that of females. Injury is the leading cause of death in both sexes, a reflection of
the environment and a pattern of risk-taking behaviour in males. Mortality from these external causes is not
easily amenable to medical intervention, as was mortality from tuberculosis in the early part of this century.
The findings of this investigation suggest that the social structure of the Navajo offers women some
protection from the deleterious effects of poverty, and provides a climate in which high fertility is not costly.
Males are not similarly protected.
Howard, Rosalyn. (1999) "The Promised isLand: Reconstructing history and identity among the Black Seminoles of
Andros Island, Bahamas." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Florida. 181 pp.
The Seminole Indians of Florida have been the focus of a substantial amount of anthropological and
historical research that acknowledges the presence of Africans among the Seminoles in Florida, and in
Oklahoma and Texas where both peoples were forced to migrate during the Indian Removal. None of them,
however, makes more than cursory reference to those who fled to the Bahamas, the Black Seminoles. Africans
escaping enslavement on the plantations of Georgia and the Carolinas began seeking sanctuary in Florida
among the Seminole Indians in the early 18th century. They became allies against land-grabbing European
Americans and slave catchers -- both European and Native American. Their harmonious coexistence led the
Africans to adopt the name 'Black Seminoles.'
Although the Africans had escaped the plantations, they could not avoid the persistent harassment of
European Americans who threatened their return to enslavement. A small number of them ultimately escaped
once again, sailing for the “Promised isLand" of Andros in The Bahamas.
This ethnohistorical study provides insight into both the historical and the contemporary culture and identity
of the unique community of Black Seminole descendants on Andros Island, Bahamas, and closes a void in the
anthropological and historical records. The potential long-range benefit to the field of anthropology is that it
will stimulate investigations of the dynamic cultural interaction of Native Americans and Africans in the
African Diaspora, a subject which has been sorely neglected. Native Americans and Africans suffered similar
fates at the hands of colonizing Europeans throughout the Americas and the Caribbean. Discovering the
nature and scope of contacts between Native Americans and Africans in the African Diaspora, and how these
affected the configuration and formation of cultural identity, is critical to an understanding of oppressed
peoples of the world and to the analysis of cultural adaptation and social change.
Howard, S. M. (1993) "Ethnicity, autonomy, land and development: The Miskitu of Nicaragua's Northern Atlantic
coast." D.Phil. Dissertation, Oxford University.
In 1987, after a prolonged armed struggle against an indigenous resistance movement spearheaded by the
Miskitu, Nicaragua's revolutionary Sandinista government ratified the Autonomy Statute, recognizing
indigenous land and cultural rights and granting rights of self-government to the Atlantic Coast under two
Autonomous Regional Councils. The first Autonomous Regional Councils were elected in 1990.
This thesis investigates the process of establishing regional self-government and the relationship between
autonomy, ethnicity, land rights and development in the Regió Autóoma Atlático Norte (North Atlantic
Autonomous Region, RAAN), with particular reference to the Miskitu. The research assesses the potential for
achieving long-term economic development of the agricultural and forestry sectors, by and for the people of
the region, in an environmentally harmonious manner and in accordance with local cultural practices.
The study explores the concepts of autonomy and land rights held by different ethnic and political groups in
Nicaragua and investigates struggles over control of the land and natural resources of the RAAN. Cultural
practices of land and forest use in the indigenous communities and the development strategies of
governmental and non-governmental organizations are considered.
Theoretical approaches to dependency, internal colonialism, ethnic nationalism, Fourth Worldism, the moral
economy, and sustainable development are drawn upon. The thesis discusses the structural constraints to
autonomy at international, national and regional levels and evaluates the influence of specific Nicaraguan
political parties and Miskitu leaders on the autonomy process.
Huitema, Marijke E. (2001) ""Land of which the savages stood in no particular need": Dispossessing the Algonquins
of southeastern Ontario of their lands, 1760-1930." M.A. Thesis, Queen's University at Kingston. 225 pp.
Contemporary thought and current literature have established links between unethical colonial appropriation
of native lands and the seemingly unproblematic dispossession of native people from those lands. The
principles of justification utilized by the colonizing powers were condoned by the belief that they were
commanded by God to subdue the earth and had a mandate to conquer the wilderness. The assumption that
'savages' were on the lower scale of humanity and must first be taught to use the land productively before
they could claim rights to ownership further enabled the alienation of their land. The myth that native culture
would not survive the onslaught of civilization and would die out over time provided a rationale for Euro-
Canadian settlement of native lands.
Dispossession of native lands was frequently accomplished through discriminatory legislation and policies
often intentionally designed to achieve assimilation and marginalization of Indian people. This legislation
dealt almost exclusively with 'status' Indians or with the assumption that all Indians would eventually migrate
to a reserve area set aside for them by government. Indians who chose to remain on land that was their
traditional territory, but not specifically designated for their use by government were alienated through
subtle application of discriminatory laws and indifference to their existence as occupants of the land.
The Algonquins of southeastern Ontario negotiated unsuccessfully with government officials for over two
centuries without resolution of their land claims and petitions for protection. By the late 1800s the Algonquin
people had been forced to 'abandon their wandering ways,' and some relocated to the Golden Lake reserve in
Algona Township. Many other 'bands' or groups of families remained dispersed throughout the Ottawa
Valley and attempted to maintain a subsistence based on hunting and trapping. These natives were not
registered with the Indian Department and remained non-status. With the depletion of land and resources,
they eventually integrated with the settler population, yet managed to retain a connection with their cultural
identity. The story of the Joseph Whiteduck Jr. nuclear and extended family in Ardoch, Ontario, portrays the
circumstances surrounding the eventual dispossession of the family's traditional territory and their
marginalization to the fringes of society.
Hunt, Dale. (2005) ""We are all different, still living under the same culture": A Kwakwaka'wakw perspective on
dispute resolution and relationship building." M.A. Thesis, University of Victoria. 98 pp.
This research was developed as a result of all the family and community conflicts that I have witnessed within
Kwakwaka'wakw societies. From growing up in a Kwakwaka'wakw community, I get the message that one
family against another, internal family feuds, conflict of interest, bands separating, drug and alcohol abuse,
etc. are all starting to play a role in the Kwakwaka'wakw way of life. Therefore, the objective of this study
was to determine whether there are traditional approaches for resolving conflicts that can help in the present
day situation. Through an Indigenous based methodology and interviews with Elders, I identified six
Traditional Dispute Resolution Approaches (TDRA), which are lecturing/teaching, storytelling, shaming,
humour, digitah (cleansing rituals) and the Potlatch. Through a complete analysis of all ten interviews, I
outlined 5 short little steps that can be taken to return to those traditional approaches. These little steps are:
acknowledging and recognizing anger; respect; identity, collectiveness; and communication and the
Potlatch. The message I received from the Elders was that it is our legacy as Kwakwaka'wakw people to
continue incorporating these TDRA's and little steps into today's societies. Through these, relationships,
peace, balance and harmony may be maintained in all areas of life. A deep understanding and respect for
who you are and where you come from, and sharing and showing appreciation towards your family and
community can be some of the answers to all the complications and complexities that are part of the
Kwakwaka'wakw Nation today.
Hynds, Susan J. (1996) ""In a circle everybody is equal": Aboriginal women and self-government in Canada, 1869-
1995." M.A. Thesis, Trent University. 219 pp.
This thesis explores the evolving role of aboriginal women within the self-government movement in Canada.
By studying the history of the aboriginal women's movement, the effect of women's participation in the self-
government debate can be analyzed. Research involves the analysis of government and legal documents
relating to amendments to section 12(1) (b) of the Indian Act, archival material from the Native Women's
Association of Canada, and personal interviews with aboriginal women. The results of this research show
that there is a well-defined aboriginal women's movement that focuses on the question of equal rights within
self-government. However, although this women's movement contains elements of modern western/European
feminism, there is a strong connection with pre-colonial indigenous traditions. The importance of cultural
identity and the traditional role of women in aboriginal self-governance has served to redefine the debate
over collective versus individual rights. The question now becomes how to include the individual within the
collective.
Ingles, Palma J. (2000) "Dancing for dollars: Producing food and entertaining tourists in the Peruvian Amazon." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of Florida. 254 pp.
This study focuses on four indigenous villages which hosts tourists in the northeastern Amazon region of
Peru. Included in the study are three communities located on the Ampiyacu River, those of the Boras,
Witotos, and Yagua peoples. The fourth village is another Yagua community located on the Yanamono
tributary.
The goal of this study was to understand the nature of daily life at the close of the 20th century for the
families in these villages who derive some income from tourism. Research was conducted from June 1998 to
September 1999. Surveys were carried out with families in each of the communities. Oral histories were
collected regarding subsistence practices, lifestyles, life during the rubber boom, and interaction with
tourism.
The people in these communities continue to live at the periphery of development. They make their livelihood
growing crops, hunting, fishing, and working with tourism. They produce what they need to provide food
security for their families and they sell the surplus at the local markets. Families in this study participate in
tourism for the income it brings in, although tourism does not provide enough family income to be the only
source of income or replace other market activities.
Limited tourism to these villages also offers members of these communities an opportunity to participate in
ritual dance and ceremonies with others in the community, teach their children their traditions, and preserve
elements of their traditional culture. If tourism to the area were to stop, families said they would need to
increase the amount of crops grown for the market, adding to deforestation in the area by increasing the
amount of slash and burn agriculture.
All of these communities are undergoing cultural, environmental, and economic change as they become more
involved with a market economy and state-sponsored education, work with tourism, and increase their
contact with religious groups and other outsiders. Tourism may not be the answer to long-term employment
and income stability, but for now, it can help families increase household income, preserve some of their
cultural traditions, and protect the forest around them.
Irvine, Kathryn E. (2002 ) "Aboriginal women and categorization: Themes in feminist theory." M.S.W. Thesis,
The topic of this essay concerns the categorization of aboriginal women understood in the context of feminist
social theory. The initial phase of analysis is an identification and elucidation of a theoretical issue in
current feminist debate. Specific analysis is offered of the gender/difference debate in terms of its conceptual
tensions and plausible resolutions. The outcome identifies the need for a methodology which justifies both
general concepts (e.g., 'women,' 'gender') as well as those particular conceptualizations applicable to
differences. The next phase of the analysis connects these theoretical concerns to an important social
problem by an elucidation of the way in which the issues implicit in the gender/difference debate are
applicable to feminist criminology, notably those concerns surrounding the category 'incarcerated aboriginal
women.' The third phase of explanatory support for this thesis appeals to a contemporary writer's
interpretation of Max Weber's view of 'ideal types' as a way to elucidate the meaning and justification of
categories used by feminist social theorists. This view is found applicable to the feminist categories implicit
in the gender/difference debate and specifically in the manner in which it illuminates the category of
'incarcerated aboriginal women.' In the final phase, a summation is provided of the use of Weber's ideal type
in enhancing feminine discourse and revealing the misrepresentation involved in the category, 'incarcerated
aboriginal women.' The category has functioned in a misleading way to characterize aboriginal women as
different, marked and inferior; a misrepresentation which is ineffective in promoting meaningful social
practice and policy initiatives.
Irving, Linda D. (1998) "Rereading Marx: The left and the aboriginal question." M.A. Thesis, University of New
Brunswick (The). 150 pp.
The purpose of this thesis is threefold. First, it documents the positions of five left-wing organizations and
four intellectuals regarding the aboriginal question. Second, it analyzes these positions to determine how the
Left interprets Marx. Third, it offers a critique of the left's reading of Marx and provides an alternative
understanding which focuses primarily around alienation.
This thesis argues that the left's response to the aboriginal question reveals their theoretical interpretation of
Marx. Their conception of aboriginal peoples and the oppression they face in contemporary society is
derived from a reading of Marx which concentrates mainly on progress or the advance of the technical
means of production. The left's reading of Marx does not take into account the robust dialectics that
characterized Marx's critique of capitalism. By concentrating mainly on progress, the left's reading of Marx
is one-sided. It cannot result in equitable solutions to the aboriginal question. This thesis suggests an
alternative interpretation of Marx which focuses primarily on alienation.
Isfeld, Harpa K. (1997) "Who and what is a Canadian Indian? The impact of Bill C-31 upon demographic and
epidemiologic measures of the registered Indian population of Manitoba." M.A. Thesis, University of
Adopting the premise that 'Indian' is a socially and politically constructed mutable concept, this thesis
examines the implications of amendments to the legislative definition of Indian for the quality of registered
Indian vital statistics. In 1985, Bill C-31 introduced significant changes to the registration provisions of the
Indian Act. The implications of population growth and compositional changes resulting from Bill C-31 for
demographic and epidemiologic rates have not been addressed in the literature. This study compares 1980
through 1991 registered Indian data for a sample of six Manitoba bands to distinguish differentials in
compositional variables over time and across residence divisions and model these effects upon demographic
and epidemiologic rates. The principle methodologies employed include direct standardization of mortality
rates, life table analysis of mortality, and deterministic analysis of fertility and reproduction. These analyses
reveal an increased proportionate contribution of the off-reserve population to the total band population over
time, substantial decreases in standardized mortality rates, increases in life expectancy, particularly for off-
reserve females, and decreases in off-reserve measures of fertility and reproductive success. The observed
trends and differentials are attributed mainly to increases in population without commensurate increases in
mortality and fertility during the study period. The results of these analyses demonstrate off-reserve and total
band data to be significantly flawed for the 1985 to 1991 period.
Ishiyama, Noriko. (2002) "Environmental justice and American-Indian sovereignty: Political, economic, and ethnic
struggles regarding the storage of radioactive waste." Ph.D. Dissertation, Rutgers The State University of
New Jersey -- New Brunswick. 255 pp.
This dissertation employs a case study method that examines the intricate political and ecological
implications of siting a temporary storage of high-level radioactive waste facility on the Skull Valley Band of
Goshute Indian Reservation in Tooele County, Utah. The goals of this dissertation project are: (1) to clarify
the theory and practice of environmental justice by incorporating the notion of local autonomy in analysis of
locational conflicts; (2) to bridge the scholarly gap between ideas of environmental justice and political
ecology; and, (3) to examine tribal identity politics and struggles to retain sovereignty in the process of
environmental decision-making at and across different geographical and political scales.
Four premises underlie the theoretical framework for this dissertation project: (1) The existing discourse of
environmental racism oversimplifies the complexity of the political economy of environmental justice; (2) The
theory of distributive justice has dominated the scholarship of environmental justice; academics need to
utilize and develop a theory of procedural justice; (3) The theoretical discussion of environmental justice has
to incorporate the notion of local autonomy, in relation to the politics of tribal sovereignty and identities; (4)
Political ecology enhances the theoretical foundation of the study of environmental justice. This dissertation
takes an interdisciplinary case study approach to explore the question of environmental justice in relation to
American Indian tribal sovereignty and self-determination. I have used archival research and interviews as
the two major methods for this study.
In conclusion, the contested Skull Valley geographies, which implicate assertions of localities at and across
different spatial, political, and temporal scales, indicate that the scholarship of environmental justice has to
specify the structural processes of capitalist political economy as well as communities' agency in pursuing
self-determination. Given various political, economic, and historical issues regarding environmental justice,
there exists no easy answer for resolving the Skull Valley conflict concerning the siting of high-level
radioactive waste. Environmental justice scholars are encouraged to reframe their research questions to
articulate the truly complex practices of political economy and historical colonialism over communities'
struggles for self-determination.
Ivanitz, Michele. (1996) "Co-management of resources between Whitefish Lake First Nation and the Province of
Alberta: Social forestry and local-global articulations." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Alberta. 401 pp.
Co-management of renewable resources between First Nations and the Province of Alberta is in its infancy.
In 1994, a significant step was taken in making co-management a reality. This was accomplished through the
signing of the Memorandum of Agreement and Memorandum of Understanding between Whitefish Lake First
Nation and the government of the Province of Alberta, providing for a deciduous timber permit to Whitefish
Lake First Nation and an agreement on a process to consult and cooperate on matters of mutual interest in
the co-operative management of forests, wildlife, and fisheries. This research is a study of process through
applied/development anthropology, social forestry, and change. The specific focus was to develop an
'Implementation Plan' to facilitate the implementation of the Memoranda. The development of the
Implementation Plan represents a process of dispute resolution -- a process which is critical to the success of
cross-cultural resource management structures. Unless parties to potential agreement are brought together
and accommodations and reconciliations made, there is no possible hope of successful partnerships or
resource sharing. In the case of Whitefish Lake First Nation and the Province of Alberta, what is crucial is
that in the interest of reaching agreement on a workable and practical resource management Implementation
Plan, the stakeholders have come together, putting rhetoric and differences aside and are operating on
principles of equality, equity and fairness. The Implementation Plan reflects realistic co-operative
management, as through the planning process, scientific, bureaucratic, and traditional ecological
epistemologies are reconciled. This thesis also contains the components of a human theory of development. It
is applied theoretical development based on reality as opposed to rhetoric, considerations of power and
knowledge, the realities of economic participation and environmental conservation, issues of tenure, and the
critical importance of culture in the implementation of decision-making dispute resolution, the acceptance of
responsibility, and the perceptual basis of power equity.
Iyall Smith, Keri E. (2003) "Transformations: The state and indigenous movements." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of
North Carolina at Chapel Hill (The). 205 pp.
Indigenous claims provide a new contrast and call into question the state's form and role. This project looks
at the experience of indigenous peoples, specifically the native Hawai'ians, showing how a nation can
express culture and citizenship while seeking ways to attain greater sovereignty over territory, culture, and
politics. I explore one central research question: what are opportunities for indigenous groups to attain
greater rights? Chapters are theoretical or employ case study material.
Five chapters make up the body of the dissertation. 'Research design' includes four sections: meta-theory,
comparative-historical methodology, data gathering explained, and an analysis of native Hawai'ians as a
case of an indigenous group. In 'On indigenousness,' I present the many definitions of indigenous and
propose a new definition, contrasting the old and new definitions. I then problematize indigenous, and
discuss it as a relational concept, focusing on how it is a distinction between the colonizer and the colonized.
A chapter called 'The Hawai'ians' presents a brief history of Hawai'i since James Cook's arrival, with an
emphasis on the present day context and sovereignty movement organizations. In the next chapter, 'Global,
local, and/or hybrid identities' I describe the context of indigenous peoples: internal colonialism and
globalization. I define and present examples of local, global, and hybrid identities, drawing on examples from
the native Hawai'ians. In 'New applications of human rights' I look at how indigenous nations are inserting
themselves into global realm of rights and autonomy. The claims of indigenous nations are counter-
hegemonic, bringing to the fore community and demanding a transformation of human rights. Finally,
Chapter Seven reviews the project, presenting the central problem, findings, and the contribution to the
literature.
Jackson, Deborah D. (1998) ""Our elders lived it": American Indian identity and community in a deindustrializing
city." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Michigan. 332 pp.
Issues of 'ethnic identity' have gained increasing importance in the United States (and elsewhere) as
disenfranchised 'minority groups' seek to improve their circumstances and promote positive images of
themselves. These 'identity politics' in contemporary society have been paralleled by a corresponding
literature in the social sciences on the nature of 'identity' as a social construct or process, in which a choice
is often made between 'subjective' vs. 'objective' approaches that are ultimately rooted in Cartesian dualism.
This dissertation takes a different approach to the analysis of ethnic identity -- one that is rooted in the
philosophy of C. S. Peirce, which transcends Cartesian dualism by offering a semeiotic notion of the self. The
particular ethnic group considered is the 'urban Indian' community of Flint, Michigan. The political-
economic history of Flint as a deindustrializing Midwestern city has shaped its demographics such that the
contemporary American Indian population there falls into three main categories: (1) those who grew up on
reservations or in other non-urban Indian home communities; (2) those who grew up in households where the
parents grew up in such a community; and, (3) those who now, as adults, choose to identify themselves as
Native American, but who grew up in households where the parents had no connection to an Indian home
community. The dissertation argues that Native home communities constitute key sites for the formation of an
American Indian identity which is then reinforced as those who grew up in such communities continue to
interact with one another. Looking at both the official and informal institutions of Flint's urban Indian
community, and at the Indian home communities from which some people came, the dissertation considers
various kinds of 'Indianness.' Emphasis is given to the most subtle manifestations -- the values, habits, and
practices that characterize the daily interactions of those who grew up in non-urban Indian home
communities. A semeiotic notion of the self is utilized to clarify and illuminate these highly significant, yet
often overlooked, aspects of American Indian identity. An essential connection is therefore shown between
identity and community.
Jackson, Edward T. (1981 ) "Adult education for community participation in water supply and sanitation improvement
in rural communities of northern Ghana and northern Canada: A comparative study of the role of the
Canadian state." Ed.D. Dissertation, University of Toronto.
The International Drinking Water and Sanitation Decade (1981-90) calls for massive mobilization on the
part of the member countries of the United Nations to stimulate adult education for community participation
in rural water and waste improvements. However, Marxist theoretical analysis suggests that the capitalist
state will promote community participation only to the extent that it corresponds to the interests of national
and international ruling classes and will act to control or undermine such participation if it challenges the
prevailing social order. The purpose of the present study was to compare, from a critical perspective, the role
of the Canadian state in relation to two detailed case studies in adult education for community participation
in rural water and sanitation improvements. The first case study involved an environmental assessment to
solve water and waste problems in a remote Cree community in northern Ontario, Canada, where the major
state agency was the federal Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development. The second case study
involved a water utilization project sponsored by the Canadian International Development Agency in a rural
area of Upper Region, Ghana in West Africa. The data under comparison covered the five-year period 1976
through 1980. Data were collected during on-site field visits in 1978, 1979 and 1980. The primary source of
data was project documentation, including project correspondence, memoranda, reports, minutes, financial
accounts, field studies and policy papers. To check and supplement the primary source, data were also
gathered through key-person interviews and small-group interviews. Additional data were collected through
participant observation involving extensive field notes and daily journals. Analysis of the data indicated
similarities in the way in which the Canadian state assists private enterprise to accumulate capital in Canada
and abroad. Canadian suppliers and engineering firms benefit cumulatively from the capital-intensive
technology bias of the state as well as from close, professional linkages between the private and public
sectors. There was substantial evidence of the legitimation function of the Canadian state as well. Community
participation was viewed by most state officials as a means of reconciling the interests of village residents
with the interests of the state and was controlled frequently through the manipulation of government funding.
The data indicated as well that the new middle class (professionals, administrators, technocrats) was
overwhelmingly represented in the daily operations of the two projects. Women were subordinated across all
classes in both cases. It was found that those workers who retained considerable control over their own work
processes, such as the 'bottom managers' within the state, adult educators in the field, and village leaders,
were most likely to act in the class interests of the broadest population of villagers. The mediating process of
displacement, where village grievances are restricted to water and waste issues only, isolated from village to
village, and the channels for these grievances are regulated and institutionalized, was especially evident in
both case studies. The study concludes with 15 recommendations designed to advance the interests of rural
residents in water and waste improvements sponsored by the Canadian state. Directed at state officials,
development planners and the adult education profession at large, these recommendations relate to the
development and implementation of water and sanitation projects, the role of the adult educator, and further
studies in comparative adult education.
Jacobs, Kahá wi J. (2000) "Mental health issues in an urban aboriginal population: Focus on substance abuse." M.Sc.
Thesis, McGill University. 64 pp.
The aims of the study were to examine substance abuse and physical and mental health in an urban
aboriginal population. Data was collected through structured interviews (n = 202) with Aboriginals in the
greater Montréal area. The majority were single, unemployed, and lived in the urban area for a long time
(mean of 9.96 .76 years). One third reported having a current substance abuse problem. Results indicated
high levels of psychological distress augmented by substance abuse. Substance abusers were also more likely
to have been the victims of abuse.
Ethnographic interviews with urban aboriginals and community workers were also conducted (n = 30). One
third were victims of abuse and 6 reported having a current substance abuse problem. Psychological and
biological understructures were used in defining addiction and explaining substance use among aboriginal
peoples. Cultural traditions were viewed as integral components of substance abuse treatment and the need
for outpatient treatment facilities and aftercare programs were indicated.
Jakab, Cheryl A. (1979) "The issue of Indian land claims: Alberta since 1969." M.A. Thesis, University of Calgary.
James, Catherine A. (1992) "Continuity and change: A cultural analysis of teenage pregnancy in a Cree community."
M.A. Thesis, McGill University. 124 pp.
This thesis presents a cultural analysis of teenage pregnancy in a Cree community. In the last 50 years,
social and material change, prompted by residential schooling and the growth of settlement life, have
catalyzed a shift in teenage perceptions of parental authority and norms of social relations. Today the peer
group is a pre-eminent agent of socialization, generating pressure to drink and be sexually active. The peer
group also, in part, sustains the valuation of motherhood, and some indigenous norms of interpersonal
communication and socially appropriate behaviour. In this contemporary context, the meanings of teenage
childbearing are multiple, and different for each individual. Although a biological fact, teenage pregnancy
may also be seen as a product of how differentials in power between teenagers, their peers and people of
different age and social groupings are played out. The construction of a category of adolescence and the
centrality of fertility and reproduction are keys to understanding the social and symbolic significance of
teenage pregnancy. This analysis emphasizes the interactive relationship between historical change,
ideological beliefs and individual perceptions in shaping the meaning of teenage pregnancy in a Cree
community.
Jamieson, Wanda. (1987) "Aboriginal male violence against aboriginal women in Canada." M.A. Thesis, University of
Ottawa.
Janda, Sarah E. (2002) "The intersection of feminism and Indianness in the activism of LaDonna Harris and Wilma
Mankiller." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Oklahoma (The). 241 pp.
My work offers a comparative examination of the use of feminism and Indian identity in the careers of
LaDonna Harris and Wilma Mankiller. While they took different paths to political activism, Harris as the
wife of a United States senator and Mankiller as the first female chief of the Cherokee Nation, they share a
number of similarities. A study of these women, who were the two most prominent Native American women in
the 20th century, offers a useful vehicle through which to understand larger issues in federal Indian policy,
the role of Native American women in politics, and the use of identity politics. Both received recognition as
humanitarians and advocates of women's rights as well. A comparative study of Harris and Mankiller,
therefore, has ramifications at a national level and in a wide variety of areas, including civil rights and the
environment. The way each came to national prominence, how they projected their images and identities, and
how they have been depicted by the media are issues that are explored throughout.
The format consists of an introduction followed by two chapters that focus on LaDonna Harris, two chapters
that deal with Wilma Mankiller and two in which they are compared as Native American leaders and as
women in politics. The introduction sets up the significance of the work and situates it within the existing
historiography. Chapter One deals with how LaDonna Harris became involved in politics as a congressional
wife, her work with Oklahomans for Indian Opportunity, which she founded in 1965, and the public
relationship of her and her husband, Senator Fred Harris. Chapter Two examines how she evolved into an
activist in her own right, the founding of Americans for Indian Opportunity, and how her national reputation
took on an identity separate from that of her husband. Chapter Three examines Mankiller's early life and then
moves into an analysis of Mankiller's election to deputy chief of the Cherokee Nation in 1983, her ascension
to principal chief in 1985 when Chief Ross Swimmer left to work for the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and her
election to principal chief in 1987. Allegations of sexism in elections and gender-opposition to her leadership
are explored as well. Chapter Four deals with Mankiller's tenure as chief from 1985-95. A discussion of her
accomplishments, leadership, and symbolism to Indians and non-Indians during a period of renewed interest
in Indianness is discussed. Chapters Five and Six deal with both Harris and Mankiller. Chapter five
examines how each is a product of the shift from termination to self-determination and their roles in federal
Indian politics. Their use of community development and their prominence in the national arena is evaluated
here as well. Chapter Six focuses on their role in politics as women, including the influence of feminism and
their shared belief that no sexism existed among Indians prior to contact. This chapter concludes by placing
them in the larger context of the changing nature of the role of women in politics.
Jennett, Christine. (1996) "Black Power as an anti-colonial discourse." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of New South
Wales.
In this thesis the significance of the Black Power phase of political struggle by indigenous peoples in
Australia has been examined. Black Power's role as a discursive strategy which enabled new voices to
achieve legitimacy in Aboriginal affairs and new organizations to be set up which fostered practices of
Aboriginal control are investigated. The study was done using the methods of action research, literature
survey and media analysis. It is established that a paternal internal colonial racial order existed in Australia
in the period 1901-68. It is argued that a new plural internal colonial racial order came into being from 1972
onwards largely as a result of the efforts of the Aboriginal advancement movement which fortuitously
coincided with the election to national office of the Whitlam government on a platform of extensive social
change. Elements within the Aboriginal advancement movement were articulating its identity in terms of a
discourse of Black Power in the period 1969-72. The Black Power phase coincided with an historic moment
when indigenous peoples in Australia were able to temporarily seize the initiative in redefining the racial
order as it concerned them. The result was a shift in the terms on which national integration in Australia
takes place.
Jerome, Manuel. (1997) "All my relations: A native treatment approach for children of sexual abuse." M.S.W. Thesis,
The practicum describes one application of an Aboriginal Treatment approach to working with native
children who have been sexually abused. Through a combination of non-directive play therapy and extensive
parental involvement in an aboriginal setting, six children in five separate families participated in this
practicum. Native social work practice was outlined in a broad manner, and modifications of these practises
were utilized with the families over a six month treatment span. The highlights and outcomes of the practicum
are discussed along with some recommendations for further work on this area.
Jhappan, C. Radha. (1990 ) "The language of empowerment: Symbolic politics and Indian political discourse in
Canada." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of British Columbia (The). 389 pp.
The question of how subordinated groups in democratic states set about shifting their political relationship
with their encompassing societies has received little attention among political scientists in Canada. Groups
which lack significant political, legal, and economic resources, and which are stigmatized by an inferior
status (reinforced by law and policy) do not enjoy the level playing field predicted by pluralist interest group
theory. Yet they are sometimes able to overcome these obstacles and to renegotiate their political and legal
status. The question is how some groups are able to do this, and what strategies are available to or
obligatory for groups wishing to initiate political bargaining. According to the theory of symbolic politics
developed here, disadvantaged minorities seeking political benefits from the state will typically conduct
politics at the symbolic level. That is, they tend to invoke a range of political symbols and myths: first, to
build in-group solidarity by presenting an analysis of a common past and present, as well as a vision of the
future society, and thereby legitimate their political aspirations. In the first stage of minority politicization,
such groups must: (a) build a sense of community of interests and goals which can be said to represent the
reference group as a whole; (b) reverse the stigmatic identity ascribed to them by the dominant society; and,
(c) find ways of competing with the dominant society, not on the latter's terms, but on alternative ideological
grounds. In the second stage of politicization, minorities must: (a) create appropriate demands; (b) learn to
use the mechanisms, methods and institutions of the mainstream political process; and, (c) eventually
routinize conflict by negotiating stable norms to guide on-going relations with government. Subordinated
groups do not normally seek purely material benefits. They usually seek symbolic benefits in the form of
rights, and a redefined status within society. Thus, much of their politicking is conducted in public, and is
largely devoted to capturing public sympathy which can be used as a resource against government. The
political myths and symbols employed are characteristically emotive and imprecise. Political goals are
presented in symbolic terms, and are advanced at the level of principle rather than substance. When applied
to the case of native Indian politics in the Canadian context, the evidence confirms the accuracy of these
hypotheses. Indians have pursued the symbolic strategies predicted by the model: the essence of their
political aspirations has been captured in the symbols of aboriginal title/aboriginal rights, land claims, and
ultimately, self-government; at the macro level, they have sought predominantly symbolic benefits, as
represented by legislative and constitutional recognition of certain rights and privileges; and they have
attempted to win public support to use as a bargaining chip vis-à-vis government. However, they have not
been entirely successful in their use of the symbolic strategies outlined, and the evidence suggests that they
have reached a public opinion impasse. Despite their efforts, public opinion on native and native issues has
remained remarkably stable over the last 20 years, so that further effort in this area is likely to bring
diminishing returns. In the end, symbolic politics, while necessary for subordinated groups in their fledgling
stages of politicization, must eventually give way to more conventional political methodologies as groups
become institutionalized in the mainstream political process.
Jimenez-Zamora, Elizabeth. (1999) "Labour market segmentation and migrant labour: A case study of indigenous and
mestizo migrants in Bolivia." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Notre Dame. 267 pp.
This dissertation contributes to a better understanding of the labour market segmentation process in
developing economies and the concentration of indigenous labour across low-paid, unstable and unprotected
jobs. Specifically, it examines why indigenous migrant workers largely fail to make successful transitions into
wage employment and instead remain straddled between subsistence agriculture and precarious jobs. It does
so by examining and analyzing three issues: (1) how segmented labour markets work; (2) how the rural
village community facilitates the "survival" of disadvantaged indigenous migrants; and, (3) how standard
labour theories and econometric testing alone fail to fully explain the process of labour market segmentation
and marginalization of indigenous labour.
Standard analysis of migration and employment shows that individual productivity related endowments and
work preferences determine job allocation and occupational mobility. From this perspective, not only does
indigenous labour lack essential skills needed to get good jobs but also indirectly "chooses" not to succeed in
the labour market by prioritizing subsistence agriculture and their kinship obligations over their need to
equip themselves and become fully committed workers. Through a detailed case study of job allocation,
migration strategies and economic behaviour among a sample of 203 indigenous and mestizo migrant
workers in Bolivia, this dissertation shows, by contrast, that indigenous migrants are unable to make
successful transitions to paid employment because they are trapped in lower occupational rings of a
segmented labour market. They are so effectively trapped in these jobs by their lack of socially recognized
skills and credentials, by the priority they are obliged to give to responsibilities in their distant home
communities and by the various forms of institutionalized discrimination.
This analysis makes two principal contributions to the literature of labour markets in developing economies.
First, it confirms that integration of rural labour into paid employment does not follow a "job-graduation"
process as disadvantaged workers are largely confined to the lowest rings of the labour markets. Second, it
shows that in a segmented labour market, village communities become critical institutions to the survival of
disadvantaged workers. The overall research strategy combines qualitative ethnographic fieldwork,
quantitative data collection and econometric data analysis.
Johnson, Jay T. (2003) "Biculturalism, resource management and indigenous self-determination." Ph.D. Dissertation,
University of Hawai'i. 290 pp.
Indigenous self-determination is primarily a question of control over our own bodies, communities, resources
and land. Most indigenous peoples in North and South America as well as the South Pacific today find
themselves dominated by nation-states which are governed by the descendants of settlers: removed from
traditional lands, resources and cultural patrimony. Often this domination has brought indigenous peoples
into political and even armed conflict with settler controlled nation-states. This domination of indigenous
populations and separation from their resources and lands has severed Indigenous self-determination,
disrupting their autonomy over their customary lands and its resources.
Biculturalism has been one answer proposed to reverse the trend of dispossession faced by indigenous
communities. In Aotearoa/New Zealand, biculturalism has become government policy, incorporated into
legislation in an effort to substantiate the partnership between Mäori and the Crown first proposed by the
Treaty of Waitangi in 1840. This dissertation's primary focus is on evaluating biculturalism as a model for
Indigenous self-determination. One component of biculturalism in Aotearoa/New Zealand is the inclusion of
Mäori conceptual regulators within the legislative acts of the nation. This pluralistic turn within New
Zealand law is transforming not only the legal, but also the physical and cultural landscapes of the nation.
The comprehensive Resource Management Act of 1991 (RMA) is one example of the incorporation of the
government's bicultural discourse within the legal framework of New Zealand. The inclusion of Mäori
concepts such as kaitiakitanga has altered the framework within which resource management is practiced
and adjudicated in New Zealand. In an effort to explore how the inclusion of Mäori concepts within the RMA
has furthered or hindered Mäori self-determination this work focuses on telling the stories of several Mäori
who act as kaitiaki within their own communities. The exercise of self-determination by Mäori, or any other
Indigenous people, does not happen against an inert backdrop but is grounded in the local politics and
history of the place. These stories provide evidence of the successes and failures of the RMA in furthering
biculturalism and providing Mäori with a full sharing in the processes of government and the exercising of
power.
Johnson, Pamela E. (1996 ) "Native voices on native science: Mohawk perspectives on the concept, practice, and
meaning of a knowledge production system rooted in traditional native thought." M.A. Thesis, Wilfrid
Laurier University. 166 pp.
Community psychology is strongly committed to the value of cultural relativity and diversity. Acquiring
knowledge regarding cultural differences is essential if community psychology is to realize this value. This
paper provides a culture specific perspective on the form and meaning of a knowledge system rooted in
traditional Mohawk thought. The academic literature regarding research on native people reveals an
ethnocentric description of native reality. My premise is that research in native communities has been
ideologically biased by virtue of the interpretation of native reality from the perspective of mainstream
western scientific assumptions. The ability to obtain culturally relevant knowledge hinges on our ability to
understand and come to knowledge in a culturally relevant way. Thus, there is a need for a knowledge
production system that is rooted in traditional native thought. Utilizing a qualitative and collaborative
approach I obtain the perspectives of five people, who are members of the Mohawk Nation who reside in the
Six Nation of the Grand River Community, on the concept of a native science and a knowledge system rooted
in traditional Mohawk thought. The results of the study indicated that there is a high degree of congruity
between the generalized native scientific concepts and practices with Mohawk specific traditional beliefs and
practices. The study illuminates Mohawk specific teachings and how these teachings shape the meaning and
practice of a knowledge system rooted in traditional Mohawk thought.
Johnston, Darlene M. (2003) "Litigating identity: The challenge of aboriginality." LL.M. Thesis, University of
Toronto. 109 pp.
In aboriginal rights litigation in Canada, claimants must demonstrate continuity with 'pre-contact' peoples
and practices. This is a daunting task for communities, such as mine, whose encounter with Europeans
commenced nearly four centuries ago. As a child, my grandmother told me that hers was the Otter clan.
When my great-great-grandfather signed treaties in the 19th century, he signed by drawing an Otter, his
totem. It is my thesis that totemic identity is the crucial link in the Anishinabek chain of continuity. In
Anishinabek culture, people reckon their kinship from a other-than-human progenitor traced patrilineally. In
seeking to understand totemic identity, I have traced a path from clans, to marks, to souls; from geography to
a sacred landscape; from genealogy to Anishinabek cosmology. It remains to be seen whether this totemic
system, with its implications for territorial claims, can be made intelligible to the Canadian legal
imagination.
Jolly, Joseph. (2000) "Give Christ the freedom to build His native church." D.Min. Dissertation, Providence College
and Seminary. 134 pp.
'Give Christ the freedom to build His native church' is a review of cross-cultural principles which examines
the strategies and methodologies of planting indigenous churches. This dissertation is written, first of all, to
provide a resource book for Native leaders, incumbent missionaries, and missionary candidates who are or
will be working among the Native Indian people of Canada. It is also written to provide information to
anyone who is interested in knowing more about Aboriginal people and their cultural values. The main
emphasis in the dissertation focuses on the strategy and principles of indigenization and contextualization in
church planting. Chapter One deals with the origin and beginning of Aboriginal Peoples. It seeks to inform
the reader of the three distinct groups of Aboriginal People in Canada and their unique cultural differences.
Chapter Two gives a historical review of the Indian people's first encounter with European explorers and
Christianity. It shows the approach taken by early Indian missions and their failure to establish indigenous
churches. It draws attention to the mistakes by missions in regards to the policy of assimilation, paternalism
and colonialism. Chapter Three describes the birth of the national native church and its function in missions.
It uses the Native Evangelical Fellowship of Canada, Inc. (NEFC) as a model for the national native church
in Canada in mission/church relations. In Chapter Four, attention is given to the definition of the indigenous
church principles, also known as the three self principles. The basic assumption is that these indigenous
principles are biblical and follow the Pauline pattern of establishing independent churches. Chapter Five
covers the fourth self or self-theologizing principle. It defines theology proper and human theologies to avoid
any misunderstandings and confusion in contextualizing theology. It explains contextualization and the steps
in developing a Native theology. In Chapter Six, the focus is on cross-cultural communication principles. It
emphasizes that language, culture, worldview, concrete relational thinking and contextualization are
indispensable elements in cross-cultural ministry. Chapter Seven explains the need for a strategy and defines
evangelism. It gives some recommendation in Mission/Church relations and the qualifications of the church
planter. It also covers some essentials in church planting. Chapter Eight gives some concluding remarks on
the importance of cross-cultural communication problems. It shows why this is the most productive era in
Indian missions.
Jonassen, Jon T. M. (1996) "Disappearing islands? Management of microstate foreign affairs and the potential impact
of alternative general futures: The case of Cook Islands." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Hawai'i. 292 pp.
Rapid environmental, societal and technological changes at an increasing pace, often highlight the feasibility
of microstates continuing to exist as self governing political entities. This study is an effort to understand the
Cook Islands Free Association political status relationship with New Zealand. It investigates foreign affairs
management and the perceived "driving" influence of four issue areas: (1) military-security; (2) political-
diplomatic; (3) economic developmental; and, (4) cultural-status.
There is a probe into Cook Islanders' perceptions of government preparedness. It also looks at selected future
trends and the support for maximal New Zealand involvement in the management of Cook Islands Foreign
Affairs. The study reviews potential political status changes that the country possibly faces. This discourse is
a practical approach to what may be a fundamental need for associated microstate governments to review
their preparedness, effectiveness and quest for continued "buoyancy." Buoyancy is a common thread
throughout the study. It links with foreign affairs management and Free Association.
In microstates such as the Cook Islands, the development of foreign affairs management capabilities,
underline political status and economic developments. This is due primarily to expectations that direct
international assistance approaches achieve the best appropriate economic development for the country.
Most Cook Islanders perceive a move toward independence. They also anticipate, that economic-development
issues are primary influences in such a trend. For the same reason, Cook Islanders expect NZ to remain in
the future (2020) as the most important country. While most Cook Islanders expect a variety of major
changes to take place, they observe that government is generally unprepared for the future. Although such a
political future may seem difficult to project with some certainty, the current perceptions of most Cook
Islanders, portray a reality in existing trends. These underline some dangers facing disappearing or
emerging microstates.
Jones, Carwyn H. (2003) "Tino rangatiratanga and sustainable development: Principles for developing a just and
effective resource management regime in Aotearoa/New Zealand." M.A. Thesis, York University. 179 pp.
The Mäori peoples of Aotearoa/New Zealand, like many other indigenous peoples in the world, assert that
they have never surrendered their traditional stewardship of the natural environment to colonial legal
systems. Environmental stewardship is an inherent component of Mäori self-determination, or tino
rangatiratanga, as guaranteed by the Crown in the Treaty of Waitangi (1840). Giving just effect to the
guarantees in the Treaty of Waitangi requires the development of legal structures relating to environmental
stewardship which recognize Mäori authority.
There are fundamental differences between the conceptualization of authority within the holistic Mäori legal
system, based on relationships (whanaungatanga), and the conceptualization of authority within the
prevailing New Zealand legal system, with its strong Diceyan traditions and Dwokinian conceptions of
individual rights.
If legal structures relating to environmental stewardship, which effectively encourage sustainable
development in Aotearoa/New Zealand, are to be developed, then they must allow both indigenous and non-
indigenous understandings of authority to operate. Principles from tikanga Mäori (Mäori customary law),
sustainable development policies, and the Treaty of Waitangi settlement process could be used to construct
appropriate guidelines for the development of legal structures relating to Mäori environmental stewardship.
The application of these guidelines requires interaction between indigenous and non-indigenous legal
systems. A combination of legal pluralism, Aboriginal title, and a model of 'bicultural jurisprudence' is
suggested to affect the necessary interaction.
Developing legal structures relating to environmental stewardship in accordance with these suggested
principles using a variety of models of legal interaction would provide both just recognition of Mäori
authority under the Treaty of Waitangi, and an effective framework for sustainable development among
Mäori communities.
Jones, Diana M. (1998) "First Nations and the Canadian state: Autonomy and accountability in the building of self-
government." M.A. Thesis, Carleton University. 116 pp.
The thesis provides a historiography of the development of liberal democratic institutions governing First
Nations in Canada. Cultural and political assimilation are present throughout the history of First Nations'
relations with the Canadian State, and currently, the political agenda of the Canadian government is one that
emphasizes political assimilation. The idea that First Nations' political and administrative relations with the
Canadian government have been characterized as a relationship of tutelage and an unequal relationship of
power has implications for issues surrounding self-government. Specifically, the hierarchical decision-
making structure of the political institutions governing First Nations, which has been effective for
implementing assimilation policies, now poses problems for local communities exercising self-government in
terms of securing accountability from their leadership. Current federal self-government policy does not
affirm the claim that First Nations are historically distinct peoples with unique political and legal rights. On
the contrary, self-government policy can potentially diminish the special status of First Nations and suggests
a strong unwillingness of the federal government to recognize peoples rights of Aboriginal peoples.
Jones, Judith A. (1995) ""Women never used to war dance": Gender and music in Nez Perce culture change." Ph.D.
Dissertation, Washington State University. 263 pp.
The history of the Nimipu, an indigenous people of the Columbia Plateau region of north-western North
America commonly known as the Nez Perces, is a dramatic and moving account of both adaptation and
resistance to change. This dissertation explores the processes of Nez Perce cultural change and examines
their effects on both music and women's roles. The following questions are addressed: (1) How did Nez Perce
women traditionally participate in music, and how did their musical roles relate to their social roles? (2)
How are the effects of historically-observed, externally-imposed forces for cultural transformation (e.g.,
missionization, settlement on the reservation, formal education, and technological modernization) reflected
and expressed in Nez Perce music? and (3) In what ways does the history of Nez Perce women's musical
roles reflect processes of persistence and change in Nez Perce society? These questions are explored by first
presenting a synopsis of the traditional Nez Perce lifeway and Nez Perce culture change through the 19th
century, and then focusing on the relationships between Nez Perce music and the traditional lifeway, and
between musical practices and social change until around 1900. Next an overview of the ways in which Nez
Perce music and women's roles reflect and express both persistence and change in the 20th century is
presented. Finally, the musical experiences of one Nez Perce woman who has lived from 1931 to the present
puts the historical processes in personal and contemporary perspective and further illuminates the meanings
of music, gender, and change to the Nez Perce people. Elements of persistence are seen in 'war dance'
practice, and in women's integral roles in the culture, despite extensive cultural transformation.
Jones-Saumty, Deborah. (1994) "American Indian family functioning: Relationship to substance abuse." Ph.D.
In view of the dearth of data on family functioning and family treatment approaches for American Indian
families, this study has investigated patterns of family functioning relevant to the influence of substance
abuse within the American Indian family through the use of Olson's Circumplex Model and accompanying
instrument: FACES-III. Results indicate that, contrary to predictions, American Indian families function
about the same whether they have substance abusing members or not, but they tend to function more in the
mid-range, rather than in the extreme ranges as predicted. Further, American Indian families seem to
function more within the balanced range (on the adaptability dimension) when compared with non-Indian
samples with similar demographic characteristics. These data may suggest some significant cross-cultural
factors for treating American Indian families in a clinical setting.
Jordon, James B. (1992) "Stressful life events of the Yakima Indians: An epidemiological investigation of social
support systems and traditionality." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Denver. 173 pp.
The social support systems and the traditionality (acculturation) of the Yakima Indians of Washington state
was investigated in an epidemiological format. Stressful life events were assessed in relationship to
psychological, physiological, and total symptoms. The role of (marital) social support and traditionality, as
possible moderating influences to stress, was explored by looking at symptom outcome. The results indicated
the relationship between stress and physiological and total symptoms is negligible. A modest relationship was
found between stress and psychological symptoms. There were significant positive correlations between
stress and the psychological subscales for alcohol, depression, and psychosis symptoms and total
psychological symptoms. Among relevant variables, the range of significant variance explained was between
3% and 18%. Social support, traditionality, and the combination of the two, all acting as a moderator of
stress -- had a negligible to low influence -- when looking at symptom outcome. The hypotheses all proved to
be relatively unsupported; social support, traditionality, and the combination of the two do not moderate
stress. Social support and traditionality help predict personal stress when measured by psychological
symptoms. There were hints that moderating variables do have a very modest influence with stress when
looking at psychological symptoms.
Juillet, Luc. (2000) "Aboriginal rights and the migratory birds convention: Domestic institutions, non-state actors and
international environmental governance." Ph.D. Dissertation, Carleton University. 425 pp.
The 1916 US-Canada Migratory Birds Convention constitutes the legal foundation of the continental regime
making possible the management of migratory birds populations in North America. While considered a
success in international environmental governance, the Convention failed to fully recognize the special needs
and rights of aboriginal peoples who depend on the continuing harvest of waterfowl for their subsistence
during the spring. In order to answer long-standing grievances, the national governments of Canada and the
United States have attempted twice in the last 30 years to amend the Convention. A first attempt led to an
agreement in 1979 but it failed to be ratified. It took a second agreement, signed in 1995, to finally succeed in
amending the continental regime. How can we account for this difficult process of international regime
change? What finally triggered the process of regime change after 60 years of injustice? Why did the 1995
agreement succeed while the 1979 agreement failed?
This dissertation answers these questions by providing an in-depth examination of the politics of the case. We
demonstrate that changes in the domestic political environment of both countries were important in
triggering efforts to change the Convention and that the constitutional rules for treaty-making in both
countries played an important role in structuring the politics of regime change. In the 1980s, the US Senate
veto over treaty approval helped a transnational coalition of environmentalists, recreational hunters and
state/provincial wildlife agencies defeat the 1979 agreement against the will and efforts of both national
governments. In the 1990s, national governments successfully amended the Convention only after
concessions to non-state opponents, a lobbying campaign by the Canadian government in the US and
changes in Canadian constitutional law helped them overcome the threat of the American Senate's veto.
Overall, the dissertation suggests that our understanding of international regime change could be advanced
by better accounting for the role of transnational coalitions of non-state actors and domestic political factors,
such as constitutional rules for treaty-making.
Kalant, Amelia. (2002) "Boundaries, native belonging and myths of postcolonial nationhood: Making the Canadian
crisis at Oka, 1990." Ph.D. Dissertation, Johns Hopkins University (The). 419 pp.
In the summer of 1990, in Montréal, Quebéc, an armed standoff between Native protestors, and the Canadian
and Quebéc governments, produced a crisis of Canadian national identity. While such conflicts often provoke
studies about the protesters, this dissertation considers how the myths that Canadians hold about themselves
provoked an identity crisis in reaction to the conflict.
Through readings of literature, canonical history texts, studies of museum displays and media analysis, the
dissertation explores the historical formation of myths of Canadian national identity, and then demonstrates
how these myths were challenged (and affirmed) during the standoff. It draws upon History, Literary
Criticism, Anthropology, studies in Nationalism and Ethnicity, and Post Colonial Theory.
Starting from the premise that nations are socially constructed through dynamic relationships with multiple,
intersecting 'others,' the study addresses how Canadian myths of nation were and are formed in reaction to
three significant 'others': America, French-Canada/Quebéc, and Indians/Natives. These are all 'boundary'
relationships, crucial to the development of a sense of territory, land, and the national body. Canada's
imagining of itself is inextricable from anxieties about Americanization and a weak international boundary,
an insecurity of body due to the existence of an internal nation (Quebéc), and a fear of being unable to know
and name the land (not 'being native'). Canada, it is suggested, must be read as a nation in which these
internal and inappropriate boundaries have become, ironically, the source of hegemonic myths about
Canadian tolerance, peacefulness, fairness, and connection to wilderness/nativeness.
These deeply held and intertwining myths that give meaning to Canadianness were cast into doubt during the
crisis. Oka was not only 'about' Canada and its Native peoples, but involved claims about Canada and
America, Canada and Quebéc, and who had the 'right' to be considered 'native.' The crisis demonstrated how
a nation's myths might render it vulnerable to claims by internally colonized 'others' and, how ideas of self
are inseparable from and shape the 'material' world of political action.
Kalesnik, Frank L. (1992 ) "Caged tigers: Native American prisoners in Florida, 1875-88." Ph.D. Dissertation, Florida
State University (The). 312 pp.
Two groups of Western Indians were incarcerated in Florida. The first included 74 Southern Plains Indians
(Cheyenne, Comanche, and Kiowa) from the Indian Territory. These were kept at Fort Marion in St.
Augustine from 1875 to 1878. Some were guilty of crimes such as murder, but others selected arbitrarily by
Army officers or their own tribal leaders were relatively innocent of any wrongdoing. The prisoners had
extensive contact with the white population in Florida, and received basic instruction in reading, writing, and
Christian religion. The officer in charge of the prisoners, Captain Richard Pratt, actively solicited support
from philanthropists in this educational effort, which culminated in the foundation of the Carlisle Indian
School in Pennsylvania.
Between 1886 and 1888, approximately 500 Apaches from Arizona were held at both Fort Marion and Fort
Pickens in Pensacola. While the Plains Indian group was almost exclusively composed of male warriors, the
Apache prisoners included women, children, and scouts who fought with the Army against renegades. The
controversy generated by the apparent injustice of this wholesale removal, and concern for the health of the
prisoners, attracted national attention. The efforts of sympathetic Army officers and the Indian Rights
Association led to the prisoners relocation at Mount Vernon Barracks in Alabama.
The captivity of these Native Americans in Florida is significant in that, while overtly punitive in nature, it
had some positive results. The prisoners showed an ability to adapt to white culture and conducted
themselves with dignity under adverse circumstances. White society in turn began to see Native Americans as
human beings deserving their sympathy and respect.
Kalter, Susan M. (1999) "Keep these words until the stones melt: Language, ecology, war and the written land in 19th
century United States-Indian relations." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of California, San Diego. 584 pp.
In this dissertation, I argue that savagism -- the belief that Indians would either become civilized or become
extinct -- did not constitute an impervious master narrative. U.S. writers, Western linguistic theorists, and
members of Indian nations relied on or borrowed from intellectual centres of thought that preceded and
survived European presence on the continent. My research reveals narratives that ran counter to this
dominant narrative -- what I term anti-savagism and ante-savagism -- and examines how all these narratives
based themselves in the Indian word. James Fenimore Cooper constructs linguistic theories of hierarchy
from Indian utterances. Placing him next to linguists Wilhelm von Humboldt and Peter Du Ponceau
illuminates a period shift in concepts of language that arise from contact with American languages.
Recoverable theories of language in Iroquois, Lenni Lenape, and Cherokee communities defend indigenous
forms of writing and the inscriptive aspects of the oral. Herman Melville and David Cusick both refute
savagist assumptions using the Indian word. However, Melville's techniques construct diverse national
identities into a composite Indian identity while Cusick's text and context demand recognition of Iroquois
identity, the heterogeneity of Indian thought, and the diversity of Iroquois subject positions. The emergence of
haunted-home images in texts by Ambrose Bierce, Margaret Carrington, Sarah Orne Jewett, and Helen Hunt
Jackson is related to the Indian wars of the late century and the coinciding interpenetration of private and
public spheres. Like theirs, contemporary Daniel Brinton's texts contribute to the unheimlich aspect of the
era -- the frightful apparitions of home -- by resurrecting Humboldt's theories. However, the song-texts of the
Plains and Basin Ghost Dances show the regeneration of Native American tongues, and the strengthening
national and strategic affiliations, while defying inclusion in the American unheimlich. Jack London's use of
the Indian word and individuation of Indian characters ultimately opposes their land rights despite revealing
his lack of intimacy with both land and people. While Franz Boas collectivized social units, his long-term
metadiscursive authority supports indigenous land rights. The land claim argument of the Dene is meanwhile
rooted in a poetics of topographic harmony.
Kamper, David M. (2003) "The politics and poetics of organizing Navajo labourers." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of
California, Los Angeles. 322 pp.
This dissertation examines an historic campaign by the Laborer's International Union of North America
(LIUNA) to organize Navajo healthcare workers during the Navajo Nation's bid to achieve economic
development and self-determination through a takeover of federal Indian Health Services (IHS). Investigating
face-to-face interactions between Euro-American organizers and Navajo labourers as well as the political
relationship between LIUNA and the Navajo Nation, my dissertation combines the theories and methods of
sociocultural and linguistic anthropology, American Indian studies, and labour studies. This dissertation
examines how Euro-American union organizers and Navajo workers bridge cultural differences through
communicative interaction and how the process of unionization (re)constructs the class identity of American
Indians as wage-labourers. These issues are increasingly relevant to both the US labour movement and
American Indian communities as tribal governments develop large-scale economic enterprises and as labour
unions seek to develop membership in competitive economic environments created by globalization's market
liberalization.
My study aims to improve inter-cultural union organizing success and to promote cooperation between
labour unions and tribal governments necessary to the establishment of equitable labour codes on Indian
reservations. It does so by examining complex interactions between Euro-American organizers and American
Indian labourers through participation-observation and analysis of pragmatic and metapragmatic discourses
LIUNA organizers employ while mobilizing the Navajo Area IHS workforce. My data identifies three
strategies crucial to LIUNA organizing success: (1) organizers persuade workers to support union
representation by strategically engaging workers' frustration with the tribal government and its proposed
health care takeover; (2) they develop conversational tactics based on metalinguistic theories about how to
communicate credibility to Navajo workers; and, (3) they generate positive social relationships through
gifting and by mobilizing existing social networks. Finally, I propose directions for future research to better
understand motivations for Navajo workers' participation in LIUNA and its union recognition campaign.
Kaplan-Myrth, Nili. (2003) "Hard Yakka: A study of the community-government relations that shape Australian
Aboriginal health policy and politics." Ph.D. Dissertation, Yale University. 341 pp.
Australia is one of the healthiest countries in the world, with one of the most dramatic examples of social
inequalities in health. In this dissertation, I examine the processes and institutional structures that affect
relations between the Victorian Aboriginal (Koori) community-controlled health sector and government in
the development, implementation and evaluation of health policy. I map the key community and government
stakeholders in the Australian Aboriginal health sector, while analyzing tensions between the concepts of
community control and of partnership in public health. In the process, I look to the complex challenges of
Aboriginal representation and self-determination in the context of contemporary, urban Australian society.
On a program level, I use Australian blindness prevention policy as a case study for the translation of policy
into practice. Finally, I reflect upon the roles of anthropologists and the academy in public policy and
community advocacy.
Kariya, Paul H. (1987) "The Indian reserve as a negotiated reality: The social worlds of Indian leaders and Department
of Indian Affairs officials in the northwest district of British Columbia." Ph.D. Dissertation, Clark University.
535 pp.
This dissertation examines the socioeconomic development problems of Canadian Indians as exemplified by
the case of 15 Indian bands in north-western British Columbia. Often characterized as a landscape of
despair, the Indian reserve is treated as the manifestation of a relationship between the social worlds of the
Indian leader and Department of Indian Affairs administrator. Employing the notion of two social worlds and
the concept of insider and outsider meanings, the objective of the thesis is to explore and understand the
themes which emerge from each world and at the interface between them. Primary data collection was
effected through a participant observation methodology during three and one-half years of fieldwork. Taking
on the role of an employee within a district office of the Department of Indian Affairs, I maintained a journal
focusing upon actors, actions, activities and accounts. A key finding of the study is that, despite poor level of
living statistics, the aboriginal societies of north-western British Columbia have never totally collapsed.
Outlets for power, status and self expression exist. More importantly, hereditary leadership structures have
survived and continue to be an important institution in the communities. Similarly, the social world of the
Department of Indian Affairs administrator is textured with the desire by individuals for self expression. A
bureaucratic ethos only masks the cliques, quest for office space and uncertainty about job duties. Numerous
socioeconomic development policies designed by government have failed because they have not been
sensitive to the context and taken-for-granted reality of both the client and public service deliverer. Where
effective examples of policy development and program implementation exist, they tend to be locally
negotiated as opposed to nationally developed. Progress in Indian reserve development appears to be
predicated upon the emergence of key charismatic leaders in both social worlds who can understand the
outside and inside meanings of the other's social world. Only in this manner can co-constructive approaches
to changes be formulated and only with this formulation can the dependency based on internal colonialism be
broken.
Kasari, Patricia S. (1997) "What are they doing now? The occupational and social characteristics of American Indians
after 400 years of occupational dislocation." Ph.D. Dissertation, Tulane University. 234 pp.
Because the American population is amassed from many ethnic and racial origins, sociological investigation
into our stratification system requires inclusion of information on all Americans, particularly when studying
labour force activity which determines our life chances. Unfortunately, due to lack of data, American Indians
are frequently left out of stratification research. This study seeks to broaden our sociological understanding
of social stratification in the United States, then, by examining the labour force participation of American
Indians at the close of the 20th century. Theoretically, the scope of investigation is expanded by drawing on
the concept of institutional discrimination rather than using customary assimilation or internal colonial
models. Methodologically, the investigation departs from previous research by employing Duncan's SEI
scores to represent occupation. The study asks: (1) If the relationship between occupational prestige and
selected predictor variables differ for Indians and non-Indians?; (2) Whether urban and reservation Indians
demonstrate occupational differences?; and, (3) What part migration, which is closely associated with Indian
labour market participation, currently plays in the lives of American Indians? Data used in this study are
obtained from the 1980 and 1990 Census, most notably the 1980 Public Microdata Use 5% Sample, and the
1980 American Indian Supplement. The results show the interpretational problems that can arise when using
abstract concepts like institutions and discrimination. Major findings indicate that both urban and
reservation Indians have lower occupational prestige than non-Indians, but that the causes of low
occupational prestige differ. Low prestige is the result of low returns to education in cities, but is caused by
low human capital on reservations. The reservation also shows evidence of a class system which favours
married couples and men. Finally, in regard to migration, findings demonstrate that Indians are no more
likely than whites to permanently migrate to cities, and that migrants who remain in cities have much
different social characteristics (higher human capital) than those who do not. The suggestion is made that
Indians who obtain jobs stay, while those who cannot find work return home. Finally, recommendations for
changes in policy are offered.
Kato, Hiroaki. (1986) "Group rights, democracy and the plural society: The case of Canada's aboriginal peoples."
Ph.D. Dissertation, Carleton University. 370 pp.
A theory of consociational democracy, which explains political stability of plural societies, has received
scholarly concern by political scientists in the past. A number of studies indicate that Canada is regarded as
one of the 'democratic plural societies' in the world. A major concern of the applicability of this model in
Canada, however, remains as a study of the relationship between English Canada and French Canada. Other
minorities or aboriginal peoples are not included in many cases. In other words, consociational democracy
in Canada usually implies political accommodation between the two major linguistic communities or
regional interests. This thesis intends to introduce a new perspective on the study of consociationalism by
examining relationships between the aboriginal peoples and the majority of Canadians. In this context, the
contribution of this thesis is twofold: first, this work identifies a theoretical framework for Canada's
aboriginal issues and second, it analyzes this subject theoretically and comparatively.
Chapter One examines aboriginal policies in advanced western nations and sets a comparative overview.
Chapter Two introduces a two-dimensional model in order to establish our theoretical basis. As a result, four
types of inter-group relationships are identified: the consociational, melting-pot, control and assimilatory
models. By using the two-dimensional model, historical, administrative, political and constitutional aspects
of the aboriginal-White relationships are discussed in Chapters 3 to 6 respectively.
Chapter Three reviews the historical transformation of the relationships in North America, and it is clear that
interactions between the aboriginals and Europeans were complex and diverse.
Chapter Four identifies the administrative aspects of the relationships, and the complexity that exists in the
process of program delivery.
Political aspects of the relationships are discussed in Chapter Five and the strengths and weaknesses of the
aboriginal peoples in the Canadian political process are pointed out.
Chapter Six attempts to clarify meanings and political implications of aboriginal rights.
Chapter Seven evaluates our model as a whole, and identifies the advantages and shortcomings of the two-
dimensional model. The issue of group rights for aboriginal peoples in liberal democracies such as Canada
and the United States is also discussed.
Katzmarzyk, Peter T. (1997) "A familial study of growth and health-related fitness among Canadians of aboriginal and
European ancestry." Ph.D. Dissertation, Michigan State University. 314 pp.
The purpose of this study was to compare Canadians of First Nation (FN) and European ancestry (EA) in
terms of body size, physique, and indicators of health-related fitness, and to determine the familial
resemblance in these variables. A total of 624 subjects, 130 FN, 494 EA from the northern Ontario
communities of Temagami and Bear Island participated. The results indicated significant differences between
FN and EA Canadians, and significant familial resemblance in body size, physique and health-related fitness.
Generally, FN subjects were fatter and had a more central subcutaneous fat distribution than EA subjects. In
both groups, males had less subcutaneous adiposity, but had a greater tendency to store proportionally more
fat on the trunk than females. Few differences were evident for stature and skeletal dimensions between FN
and EA subjects. The results also indicated that FN subjects were more endomorphic than EA subjects. The
prevalence of obesity in FN was generally higher than in EA. Among males and females 5-19 years, the
prevalence of obesity was 38.1% and 29.4% in FN males and females, respectively, and 21.3% and 16.9% in
EA males and females, respectively. In FN adults 20-75 years, the prevalence of obesity was 51.4% in FN
males, 58.8% in FN females, 39.0% in EA males, and 35.0% in EA females. Analyses of secular changes
indicated a positive secular trend for stature of 1.0 cm/decade in EA males. Estimated secular changes in the
other groups were not significant. Correlations between first degree relatives indicated significant familial
resemblance in body size, physique, adiposity, relative fat distribution, grip strength and trunk flexibility.
Spousal correlations showed little assortative mating in this sample. The results suggest that the increased
prevalence of several metabolic diseases in FN Canadians may in part be explained by morphological
characteristics which are associated with increased risk for disease, and that these differences are apparent
in childhood.
Kawamura, Hiroaki. (2002 ) "Symbolism and materialism in the ecological analysis of hunting, fishing, and gathering
practices among the contemporary Nez Perce Indians." Ph.D. Dissertation, Ohio State University (The). 327
pp.
This dissertation aims to develop a model for studying contemporary indigenous ecologies in industrialized
societies based on the case of contemporary Nez Perce ecology. Study of contemporary indigenous ecologies
requires a different framework and methodologies from conventional ecological anthropology because of the
intensive and extensive interaction with outside agencies. This study adopted political ecology as the general
theoretical framework. Within this framework, symbolic and materialistic aspects of Nez Perce hunting,
fishing, and gathering practices were analyzed synthetically using the concepts of capital and 'practice'
(Bourdieu 1997).
Nez Perce ecology has been continuously evolving since time immemorial. Historical analysis reveals that
patterns of engaging in the Nez Perce subsistence activities and their meanings have been continuously
changing in response to the shifting power relationship with the larger society. Today, hunting, fishing, and
gathering practices are no longer the primary means of subsistence for many Nez Perce households.
However, these activities still play significant roles in Nez Perce economics and politics, to say nothing of
their religion and culture through 'practice' and 'symbolic capital.' These functions are all interrelated with
each other under the Nez Perce 'habitus.'
This dissertation has several implications for the study of indigenous ecologies in industrialized societies.
First, I propose that the barriers between symbolism and materialism need to be taken down. Significant
functions of traditional subsistence activities within contemporary indigenous societies become evident only
when symbolic and materialistic aspects of human ecological relationships are examined synthetically.
Second, this study demonstrates that human-environmental relationship is a dynamic and dialectic
interaction. Human 'practice' is a significant focus in ecological studies. Third, indigenous 'habitus' functions
as a useful mechanism of resource preservation and conversation. The 'habitus' shapes and regulates
individual patterns of resource use. Finally, this study reaffirms the significant roles of power relationships in
human-environmental relationships. Indigenous subsistence activities are fundamentally political by nature.
Keith, Lisa S. (1996) "An investigation of psychosis in Chamorro culture: Relating delusional thought to cultural
context." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Windsor. 263 pp.
The present study is an investigation of psychosis in Chamorro culture -- the indigenous people of the
Marianas Islands. There were five primary goals of the study: (1) to present an in-depth description of the
delusional thought structure and content in schizophrenic Chamorros; (2) to explore the potential connection
between the Chamorro cultural and historical context, and the content of Chamorro delusional thought; (3)
to discover the Chamorro schizophrenics' explanatory models of their mental health problems; (4) to
investigate whether Chamorro schizophrenics reported the presence of factors associated with less
industrialized cultures; and, (5) to evaluate the usefulness of employing a qualitative methodology in an
investigation of psychotic thought processes. 20 Chamorros diagnosed as schizophrenic from mental health
facilities in Saipan and Guam were interviewed. An interpretive cultural analysis was conducted to relate
content categories to the cultural context. Results indicated that, with the exception of two culture-specific
delusional themes (witchcraft and poisoning), there were no remarkable differences in delusional thought
content between North American and Chamorro schizophrenics. The explanatory models described by the
informants were also similar to those expected in North American mental health clients. Informants reported
the strong presence of extended family; however, this influence was not always positive. The informants also
described considerable stigmatization of mental health clients. In general, the findings indicate that there is
an amalgamation of Western and Chamorro cultural content, an adoption of Western explanatory models,
and few factors characteristic of less industrialized cultures. This likely reflects the Chamorro history of
colonization and Westernization, and the current cultural context of American and Chamorro values and
beliefs. Finally, a qualitative, cultural analysis proved to be a useful tool to understand the experience and
world view of schizophrenic individuals. This methodology generated detailed data which allowed the
informants the freedom to construct their own stories. Suggestions for cross-cultural, individual
psychotherapeutic treatment with schizophrenic individuals are offered.
Kelly, Jennifer G. (2000 ) ""Analyze if you wish, but listen": Aboriginal women's lifestorytelling in Canada and
Australia and the politics of gender, nation, aboriginality, and anti-racism." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of
Calgary. 303 pp.
This study examines how aboriginal women's lifestorytelling in Canada and Australia engages in the
processes of decolonization and how its potential for transformation can be realized through anti-racist
feminist criticism and pedagogy. Chapters One through Three locate Aboriginal women's lifestorytelling
practices within the processes of white nation-building. I explore the marginalization of aboriginal women's
lifestorytelling in postcolonial and Australian-Canadian literary studies as an effect of an unexamined
investment in nationalism. I analyze how the operations of race and nation inflect upon the categories of
'aboriginality,' gender, class, and autobiography (particularly in terms of 'truth' and referentiality) and
influence how Aboriginal women's lifestories are produced and enter visibility, in popular readerships and
university practices.
While Aboriginal women's lifestorytelling can productively be read as pedagogical in a politics of
decolonization, it does not teach or transform material relations by itself. In Chapter Four I analyze how the
operations of white nationalism are reproduced in the university classroom and, drawing on my experiences
of teaching a university course in aboriginal literatures, I explore how an anti-racist pedagogy can transform
the university classroom and whiteness. This is followed by detailed analyses of five aboriginal women's
lifestories: Australian Monica Clare's Karobran: The story of an Aboriginal girl (1978), Mi'kmaq Rita Joe's
Song of Rita Joe: Autobiography of a Mi'kmaq poet (1996), Lardil Elsie Roughsey's (Labumore's) An
aboriginal mother tells of the old and the new (1984), Cree Emma Minde's kwayask ê-kî-pê-
kiskinowâpahtihicik: Their example showed me the way, a Cree woman's life shaped by two cultures, as told
to Freda Ahenakew (1997), and Aboriginal Australian Rita Huggins's and daughter Jackie Huggins's
collaborative Auntie Rita (1994). My readings highlight how these lifestories articulate the processes of white
nationalism in producing a gendered, racialized, dispossessed labouring class and how, in mapping personal
and collective histories, they theorize and imagine alternative discourses of history, place, nation, gender,
and Aboriginality. And as these lifestorytellers imagine a different Canada and Australia, they also imagine a
different white national subjectivity -- an invitation and a challenge to white feminist/postcolonial critics to
re-examine and transform our own subjectivities, locations, and practices.
Kelsey, Jane. (1990) "Rogernomics and the Treaty of Waitangi: The contradiction between the economic and treaty
policies of the fourth Labour government, 1984-90, and the role of law in mediating that contradiction in the
interests of the colonial capitalist state." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Auckland. 939 pp.
Kempers, Margot B. (1986 ) "Contemporary dimensions of group rights: The Maine Indian land claim and Japanese-
American redress." Ph.D. Dissertation, Brandeis University. 255 pp.
In this study of group entitlements and obligations in American law I explore the notion that there does in
fact exist a basis for collective rights in contemporary legal practice. The groups are either legal subjects
themselves, or individual person's rights and obligations are mediated by membership in them. The
examination focuses primarily on two cases. The first is that of the curiously-knit community of American
Indian tribes. I trace the deep structures of the legal status of American Indian tribes in order to better
understand the extent to which these structures determine the surface phenomena of legal-political responses
to Indian actions and claims. Against the backdrop of over 200 years of federal Indian policy decisions, the
Maine Indian Land Claim -- resolved in 1980 after lengthy litigation -- is examined for information on
perceptions of injustice and justice connected to group identity. A second, quite different case involving
group identity and American law concerns the experiences of Japanese-Americans in this country as centred
around the summary internment of some 120,000 members of this group during World War II. These two
cases, while asymmetrical, clarify how the existence of legal obligations between a bounded community and
the federal government can provide a basis, even if only indirectly, on which to vindicate collective rights.
The overall findings indicate the degree to which groups rights do have an historical, conceptual foundation
as well as a contemporary relevancy within the American legal system. However, the findings also support
the notion that the legal system can and does identify groups as legal subjects at its convenience, for while
such identification has precedent in American law, it is not compelled by cognizable rules. A history of
discrimination appears to be an important factor in these two instance of 'legalized' group treatment, but
discrimination alone does not ensure that a disadvantaged group will be treated as a legal subject.
Furthermore, careful investigation of the membership of each group underscores the often ephemeral quality
of such bounded collectivities, and this contrasts sharply with the legal system's apparently arbitrary
treatment of groups. Finally, the two case studies elucidate an important characteristic of the law, that it is a
social product at the same time as it exercises control over society.
Kennedy, Thomas J. (1992 ) "The origins of Creek Indian nationalism: Contact, diplomacy, clans, and intermarriage
during the colonial and early national periods." M.A. Thesis, University of Houston. 186 pp.
From their earliest contacts, English settlers in North America attempted to establish close diplomatic
relations with the Indians. In the 18th century, colonial South the English enjoyed some success when they
employed Scots traders as diplomats. Since Scotsmen were from a clan-based society similar to that of the
Indians, they quickly adapted to Indian life. Scots-Indian intermarriage created an English Métis community
whose members were steeped both in British common law and custom, and in Indian matrilineal culture.
After the Revolution, the Anglo-American tendency to treat Indians to the full rigor of the law and to assume
that they were members of true nations, created a concept of Indian nationalism, which was most effectively
projected by the adroit Creek Indian diplomat, Alexander McGillivray. McGillivray's extraordinary legal
intelligence and diplomatic finesse created a genuine and viable nationalism among the Creek elites.
Keway, Linda S. (1997) "Leadership roles of Native American women in education in the 1990s." Ed.D. Dissertation,
Western Michigan University. 132 pp.
This study of Native American women leaders in education had a twofold purpose. The first was the primary
objective of the study: to develop a greater understanding of leadership as experienced by contemporary
Native American women. The second was to add to the literature on experiences of Native American women
leaders. The method selected for this study was a qualitative approach involving ethnographic studies of 12
selected Native American women in the field of education. Data were collected through interviews and
journal recordings. Native American women interviewed were representative of various tribes across the
United States. The study explored questions regarding the lives of these women leaders.
Findings of this study included factors these Native American women perceived as contributing to their
success and factors they perceived as barriers. The following categories emerged as contributing to the
success of these women: leadership characteristics, support systems, education, and beliefs. The research
found that the distortion of Native American women's roles, as a result of European beliefs about the role of
women and Native Americans, led to racial and sexual discrimination. These were identified as barriers to
success. Data also supported the finding that these women refused to allow barriers to impede their success.
The study concludes that there has been misunderstanding about the traditional roles of Native American
women, and this misunderstanding continues into the 1990s. Misperceptions have been introduced by non-
Indian ethnographic and historical writers. Women governed in some tribes. In other tribes, current
leadership positions are new roles for women. Little has been written about Native American women as
leaders, past or present. This study adds to the understanding of these women's lived experiences. Barriers
still exist, but many are overcoming those barriers. Continuing to ascribe to traditional ways, Native
American women are obtaining leadership positions in areas such as education, which may or may not have
been the norm in their tribal societies.
Khoury, Peter. (1997) "Contested rationalities: Aboriginal organizations and the Australian state." Ph.D. Dissertation,
University of New South Wales.
This thesis analyses the history and development of Aboriginal organizations in the Redfern, inner-city area
of Sydney. In particular, focus will be centred on those organizations such as the Aboriginal Medical Service
and the Aboriginal Legal Service which were established by Aborigines themselves in the early 1970s. These
organizations will be contrasted with white dominated, Aboriginal interest organizations of earlier decades.
Central themes which emerge out of this analysis include Aboriginal resistance to assimilation policies and a
rejection of the subordinate role expected of Aborigines in earlier organizations. Moreover it will be
demonstrated that these Aboriginal initiated and controlled organizations are expressions of Aboriginal
agency, an argument which contests many popular and academic notions of Aborigines as passive, apathetic
victims of while oppression. Central to this analysis is a discussion of the Aboriginal presence in Redfern
which, among other factors, can be perceived as a defiance of assimilation policies and the dominant society.
Thus Aboriginal Redfern is conceived as a contested social space and a site of Aboriginal mobilization and
struggle for self-determination. The formation of Aboriginal organizations in Redfern is explained against a
backdrop of various government policies: assimilation, self-determination, self-management, and the recent
spectre of managerialism. Since these organizations transcend conventional notions and practices of service
delivery, they are subjected to considerable interference from government departments and funding bodies. It
is argued that the state seeks to contain these organizations by diverting their claims through rigidly
demarcated bureaucratic and administrative channels. Thus Aboriginal struggles for self-determination
become embedded in and appropriated by state-controlled procedures and regulations.
Kicksee, Richard R. (1996) "'Scaled down to size': Contested liberal commonsense and the negotiation of 'Indian
participation' in the Canadian centennial celebrations and Expo '67, 1963-67." M.A. Thesis, Queen's
University at Kingston. 285 pp.
In 1967, millions of Canadians participated in events to celebrate the nation's centenary year. Extensive
national commemorative programs were coordinated through the federal government's Centennial
Commission, headed by John Wiggans Fisher. Public attention was also focused upon the 1967 World
Exhibition, or Expo '67, the World's Fair in Montréal. These large commemorative projects were promoted
as a means of inspiring nationalist pride and a sense of 'Canadian identity.' But one segment of Canada's
population, native peoples, had historically fallen outside of the Euro-Canadian liberal conception of the
Canadian nation. This thesis seeks answers to two basic and related questions: Why would native people
have wanted to participate in such symbolically-charged celebrations of Canada as a national project as
those of the Centennial? Why celebrate an entity identified with Euro-Canadian colonialism and the loss of
ancestral lands? This thesis presents a history of the negotiation of Amerindian participation in Canadian
centennial celebrations and the development of the 'Indians of Canada' Pavilion at Expo '67. In seeking both
to empirically describe the many and varied voices and experiences of the 1960s, and to rationally
reconstruct the conceptual preconditions of their appearance in history, this thesis proposes that the context
which shaped the involvement of Amerindian people in the Centennial can best be understood in light of three
uneasily coexisting, seemingly incommensurate liberal commonsenses, three definable points on a complex
continuum of attitudes and practices through which 'Indian issues' were constructed. These commonsenses
were 'paternalism', 'liberal benevolence', and 'native nationalism.'
Kilmartin, Sandra J. (2000) "Building new relationships through consultation for treaty making in British Columbia."
M.A. Thesis, Royal Roads University. 81 pp.
Public involvement as a fundamental aspect of government decision-making today. Polarized political battles
and protracted conflict resulting in decision becoming deadlocked in the court systems has a detrimental
effect on the economy of British Columbia. Although the province's political system was set up as one of
electoral representation, the government realized that on certain matters such as land and resource
management, that if stakeholders are not involved, and in a meaningful way, in the decisions that affect them,
implementation of the decision is likely to fail or result in conflict between the government and the public.
When stakeholders are involved in decision making, more information becomes available with the
consideration of different perspectives, better decisions are made and stakeholders become part of the
solution rather than the problem.
Treaty-making in British Columbia has a contentious history, replete with wide-spread conflicting social and
political views and for this reason, public involvement has become a vital component of the overall treaty
process. Without participation of those people and groups who will live with the negotiated agreement once it
is signed, successful implementation of modern day treaties will be at risk.
Public participation for treaty-making in British Columbia is done through what is called 'third party
consultation' or the 'treaty consultation process.' Stakeholders are brought together to provide advice to
negotiators about their interests in treaty-making and they endeavour to reconcile their interests with those of
the governments and the First Nations.
This treaty consultation process brings people together who would likely not have been brought together for
any other purpose. These people represent various constituencies, municipal and local governments, and key
social and economic sectors in the areas where the treaties are being negotiated. They have competing
interests with First Nations, and sometimes with the governments and each other. They bring to the
discussions different ideologies and varied cultural backgrounds. The treaty consultation process facilitates a
sustained dialogue for the purpose of understanding and reconciling each other's interests and that leads to
better understanding and the building of common ground.
This project examines the potential for new relationships formed as a result of bringing people together for
consultation on treaties being negotiated in British Columbia between the governments of British Columbia
and Canada, and the First Nations. Although the government's primary purpose in treaty-making is to
ascertain and clarify aboriginal rights in a written document, there are other benefits derived from the
process itself, particularly new relationships being formed between aboriginal and non-aboriginal people
and between First Nation communities and non-First Nation communities as a result of the individuals'
participation in the process. These relationships have the potential to affect social change by having a
positive impact on conflict between mainstream society and First Nations in British Columbia.
The treaty consultation process in British Columbia has great potential for fostering new relationships
between First Nation communities and non-First Nation communities.
Kirkham, Della M. (1994) "The Reform Party of Canada: A discourse on race, ethnicity, and equality." M.A. Thesis,
Carleton University. 242 pp.
Long considered by both academics and established political parties as merely a vessel for regional
discontent, the Reform Party's success in the 1993 federal election indicates the need to subject its platform
and underlying ideology to a more rigorous analysis. This is especially true of the party's race and ethnic-
related policies which have garnered a significant amount of media attention. The racial-ethnic discourse of
the Reform Party is discussed by examining its positions on: immigration; multiculturalism; Aboriginal
issues; language rights and the Constitution; the family and women's issues. This examination is informed by
the premise that we are witnessing the rise of new racial discourses and ideologies. In many instances, the
meaning of race is being transformed or reinterpreted in a conservative direction. The link between the racial
and ethnic discourse of the Reform Party, and the trend toward the new right rearticulation of racial
ideologies is made throughout the thesis.
Kleit, David H. (2003) ""We wanted the land": The Cherokee country during the era of removal and resettlement."
Ph.D. Dissertation, Duke University. 394 pp.
This dissertation explores the history of the Cherokee lands in the Southeast from the last generation prior to
Cherokee Removal in 1838 via the 'Trail of Tears' through the first decades of white-dominated resettlement.
Predominately in Appalachia, the 19th century Cherokee Country became north-western Georgia and
smaller portions of Alabama, Tennessee, and North Carolina. While historians of the Cherokees usually end
their studies with removal itself or follow the Cherokees west, historians of the antebellum South generally
begin their studies only after Native Americans have left. Resettlement of the Cherokee Country, however,
began well before removal. Furthermore, both Cherokees and non-Cherokees living in the Cherokee Country
helped determine the broader course of events in the conflict over Cherokee Removal.
Hoping to promote land cessions to the United States, President George Washington and his successors
encouraged the Cherokees to live as white Americans did. But increasing Cherokee acculturation instead
strengthened Cherokee resistance to territorial losses. The United States nonetheless insisted the Cherokees
must cede their land. Georgia's unique land redistribution system, the land lottery, made Georgia the driving
force behind Cherokee Removal. The long-anticipated lottery, as well as an unexpected gold rush, drew
thousands of newcomers into the Cherokee Country years before removal. Against all odds the Cherokee
Nation mounted a strong resistance to removal that pushed white Georgians in particular to ever more
forceful efforts to dislodge the Cherokees. The outcome remained uncertain even as the removal army
mobilized in the spring of 1838.
A wide range of people with varied resources and plans came to the Cherokee Country hoping to exploit
Cherokee dispossession, but many found only disappointment. The newcomers generally embraced the
market possibilities available to them, most frequently by growing crops either for market sale or for feeding
to livestock that were subsequently sold. Despite the Georgia land lottery, Cherokee land soon went to those
able to pay the most for it; half or more of the new residents would not own any land. Most striking, whether
rich or poor, the new people of the Cherokee Country seldom stayed long before moving on in search of
something better.
Klyne, Richard J. (2003) "Employment barriers and aboriginal working life: Towards a representative workplace in
Saskatchewan." M.V.T.Ed. Thesis, University of Regina (The). 196 pp.
The purpose of this study was twofold; first to describe and analyze the broad barriers to employment and
retention experienced by a group of aboriginal employees who work for Saskatchewan government
organizations; and second, to provide some recommendations for the reduction or elimination of those
barriers to make the workplace more representative and inclusive of the aboriginal population of this
province. A key issue in this study was the exploration of participants' understandings of the meaning of a
Representative Workplace in relation to Employment Equity, Diversity, and the former Department of
Intergovernmental and Aboriginal Affairs' Representative Workforce Strategy. Evidence exists to suggest
social, economic, cultural, and racial oppression within the context of aboriginal people's ability to
participate in today's workplace. The principal method for data collection for this study was semi-structured
interviews involving the use of open-ended questionnaires.
Kneen, Soha. (2002) ""Where have all the traplines gone?": The mercury contamination of the English-Wabigoon
River System and its consequences on the Ojibway of Grassy Narrows." M.A. Thesis, Carleton University.
106 pp.
This thesis evaluates whether or not the knowledge of the mercury contamination between the late 1960s and
to 1973 has had an effect on the dietary habits and traditional subsistence practices of the Ojibway of Grassy
Narrows. Of particular interest to this thesis is how the residents of Grassy Narrows have been made aware
of dangers to their health as a result of the mercury contamination of the English-Wabigoon River System,
and how they have responded to this information. The results of this thesis support the conclusion that
knowledge of the mercury contamination of the late 1960s up to 1973 has had a severe effect on these
Ojibway, which has resulted in a shift in their dietary habits and traditional subsistence practices. The
mercury contamination of the English-Wabigoon River System was, however, not the sole cause for this
change in diet and the resulting economic, social, cultural and health impacts. The relocation of this
community, the subjection of its children to the residential school system, and the mercury contamination all
contributed to the adverse effects that have been affecting this community for the past 32 years.
Knoki, Rosemari. (1997) "A profile of American Indian leadership paradigms: Implications for educational leadership
and national policy." Ed.D. Dissertation, Northern Arizona University. 118 pp.
This qualitative study presents a profile of selected characteristics of American Indian leadership paradigms.
The study identifies seven leadership paradigms embedded in the American Indian world view: stability,
integration of knowledge, natural laws, common ground, complexity, long-term emphasis, and power. The
primary questions asked were: (1) How do the selected leadership paradigms compare across tribal groups
in the United States and Canada? (2) How have events in the period between 1887 and 1937 affected
American Indian leadership and the embedded world view? (3) What affects, do the key elements of the
American Indian world view have on educational leadership and national policy?
Historical research is used to arrive at conclusions about causes, effects, or trends of past occurrences that
allows explanation of present issues and anticipate future events. Complex relationships between social
structures (such as Indian tribes) and human agencies (such as government and industry) are examined
without resorting to mechanistic or reductionist analyses.
The population refers to North American Indians who observe the universal laws that govern the behaviour,
society, and natural world. Systematic sampling of the population from available sources of data includes 40
Indian tribes. Effective sampling of population units also included dyads, organizations, and other social
units. The study adopts Berry and Gordon's (1993) theory that leadership is a 'circle of distinct but
interrelated values and behaviour.' The research explores seven aspects of this circle or major leadership
paradigms. These American Indian leadership themes also illustrate Berry and Gordon's (1993) observation
that 'at its best, leadership is morally purposeful.' (p. 17) The first paradigm, stability, characterizes the
world of living things. The world maintains its stability rather than to change perpetually in an undefined
direction. Another paradigm, integration of knowledge, is the ideological concern for the interconnectedness
of all natural living processes which is a way of life for North American Indians. The paradigm of natural
laws presupposes relationships in the universe that include all life designed and placed in harmonious
positions and various points in the universe orderly. The idea of common ground requires listening and
speaking from both the heart and mind which is a powerful leadership tool. Common ground celebrates the
mutual dependence between life forms in the universe. The paradigms of complexity and long-term emphasis
establish that challenges from complex systems (such as the earth and Biosphere) require complex and long-
term responses, as opposed to the more popular paradigms of economics and politics that opt for short-term
gains. Finally power is not the ability to influence others as classically defined. Power is harmony with the
cosmos from which we draw power and replenish it by reciprocity for the maintenance of its integrity. The
American Indian world view addresses the Biosphere in kinship terms and sees the Biosphere as having real
needs: biological, social, ecological, spiritual and cognitive. The Golden Rule is extended to the Biosphere.
Benefits of this study to the federal system, universities and industries are unlimited in addressing today's
policy and leadership issues.
Kofinas, Gary P. (1998) "The costs of power sharing: Community involvement in Canadian Porcupine Caribou co-
management." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of British Columbia (The). 480 pp.
Co-management arrangements are commonly framed with the theoretical assumption that community
management systems function with a minimum of transaction costs and government-community power
sharing lowers overall costs of management. This dissertation investigates the involvement of three northern
indigenous communities in a wildlife co-management arrangement to delineate community costs of power
sharing. The subject of the study is the internationally migratory Porcupine Caribou Herd, Canada's three
primary Porcupine Caribou user communities (Old Crow, YT, Aklavik, NT, and Fort McPherson, NT), and
the resource regime established by the Canadian Porcupine Caribou Management Agreement and the
agreement between the Governments of Canada and the United States for the Conservation of Porcupine
Caribou.
Using multiple sources of evidence and drawing on the ethnographic method, the study documents emergent
communication linkages between co-management boards and communities, analyzes locals' perceptions of
caribou management information and scientific research activities, identifies patterns of interaction between
researchers and hunters, and illustrates the constraints of choice available to hunters of the Canadian
Porcupine Caribou co-management system. Presented is an account of the '1993 Caribou Crisis,' a critical
co-management incident in which hunters confront caribou researchers and face the dilemma of violating
cultural traditions in order to stop proposed hydrocarbon development.
Fundamentally, the study examines the consequence of interfacing authority systems and power dynamics of
a formal co-management arrangement. The study also points to the limitations of rational choice perspectives
when conducting institutional analysis, and the need to consider group identity, perspectives on uncertainty,
and styles of learning when delineating transaction costs. From a more applied perspective, delineating
anticipated and incurred community transaction costs of power sharing brings attention to the impediments
to local involvement, how community members invest their energies in a co-management process, and who
and by what method they bear the costs of shared decision making.
Porcupine Caribou user communities make sacrifices when seeking to exercise authority in shared decision-
making. The transaction costs of co-management associated with community involvement come at the price of
time commitments and imposed schedules, restructuring of former traditions of leadership, and engaging
with government agencies in bureaucratic processes. Internalizing authority in caribou management means
that community members and leaders must decipher new information, interact with a host of players, engage
in lobbying, and become involved in conflicts which are at times turbulent and controversial, as well as
divisive to community. In some cases, the costs of power sharing are perceived to violate customary and
traditional institutions regarding human-human, and human-caribou relations and in turn, undermine the
well-being of the caribou resource and the relationships of those who depend on it.
Komori, Violet S. (1995) "Incorporating First Nations issues into land use planning: The Tahsish River case study."
M.R.M. Thesis, Simon Fraser University.
In this study I develop a First Nations Assessment Framework to incorporate native issues into current land
use planning processes in British Columbia. Native participation is necessary for developing land use
scenarios in these processes as well as evaluating the impacts of alternative land use scenarios on native
goals. My framework provides a systematic method to determine and compare the economic, environmental
and socio-cultural impacts of proposed land use scenarios on First Nations values. The results do not identify
the best scenario but instead compares the trade-offs between scenarios. To provide an example of how First
Nations interests can be meaningfully included in land use planning the First Nations Assessment Framework
is applied to the Tahsish River case study area. The results of the study identify that Native ownership of the
Tahsish River will satisfy most of the ecological and sociocultural goals of the local First Nation. However,
the economic goals are best satisfied when ownership of the Tahsish remains with the Crown and
stewardship is jointly managed by First Nations and the government. By incorporating First Nations issues
into land use planning, decision makers can consider native issues when determining land use designations
which may in turn reduce the impact of land claims on newly established land use plans in BC.
Konkle, Maureen A. (1997 ) "Writing the Indian nation: United States colonialism, native intellectuals, and the
struggle over Indian identity." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Minnesota. 273 pp.
This project describes native resistance to colonialism in the emergence of native writing by historicizing the
concept of the identity of Indians. Knowledge posited about Indians denies their historicity and political
existence; the mechanism of that denial is the concept of the identity of all Indians, through which all Indians
may be understood to possess the same, inherent characteristics. I argue that, because government legitimacy
requires the concession of Indians' political autonomy, the denial of native political existence is imperative to
maintaining colonial relations. An introductory chapter defines the terms of the study by examining
contemporary native scholars' critique of the academy's fixation on Indian identity. Arguing that this conflict
recurs throughout the history of US colonialism, in succeeding chapters I examine the emergence of native
writing from the mid 18th to the mid 19th centuries. Chapter 2 establishes the treaty as a paradigmatic site of
colonial relations, in which native negotiators reject identity to insist on the authority of their traditions, by
which, they argue, Indian nations endure through time. Chapter 3 examines the role of the treaty in the
formation of the US government; I argue that the sentimentalized Indian and the Supreme Court's doctrine of
domestic dependent nations both attempt to resolve the contradiction on which government legitimacy rests
by reasserting the inherent identity of Indians. Chapter 4 then traces in William Apess's works an emerging
critique of colonialism in his analysis of the destructive power of identity, particularly in New England
historiography and Supreme Court jurisprudence. Apess asserts the authority of the Indian nation instead, a
position taken by both David Cusick and George Copway. In chapter 5, I argue that Cusick and Copway
claim history and, in Copway's case, literature for native tradition, thereby establishing Indians' historical
and political difference from Europeans, as well as the continuity of native intellectual traditions from
preliterate to literate form. The works of these early native writers constitute a sustained critique of
colonialism, demonstrating that the colonial struggle is epistemological as much as it is violent, and that the
field of that struggle was and continues to be English.
Koppang, Michael C. (1997) "Manitoba aboriginal treaties as vehicles for self-government: Sentiments and
scepticism." LL.M. Thesis, University of Manitoba (The). 219 pp.
The method likely chosen by the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs and the federal government negotiators to
implement aboriginal self-government in Manitoba is a framework agreement process. The objectives are to
dismantle the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development, to develop and recognize aboriginal
governments and to 'restore jurisdiction' to those governments. The original 'numbered' treaties and the
rights derived from them theoretically form the basis of this process. One potential effect of using treaty
rights for this change is constitutional entrenchment without formal amendment. This study explores the legal
basis of the original numbered treaties and the legal nature of the treaty rights, for the purpose of examining
whether executive agreements are the best way to implement aboriginal self-government in Manitoba. The
historical and legal evidence suggests a royal prerogative source for aboriginal treaties. It is from this basis
that questions concerning the mixing of the law of fiduciary obligations with the law surrounding Aboriginal
treaties are raised. This leads to an examination of 'rights' and their suitability for anchoring a self-
government scheme. This study concludes by questioning the legal authority of using executive agreements
based on treaty rights to alter fundamentally the Canadian constitution without a formal amendment process.
Korber, Dianne. (1997) "Measuring forest dependence: Implications for aboriginal communities." M.Sc. Thesis,
Past studies of economic base measures of forest dependence have inadequately addressed the full nature of
economic forest dependence in Aboriginal communities, by either ignoring the contribution of the subsistence
economy or excluding Indian reserves. This thesis presents findings based on the recalculation of an
economic base measure of forest industry dependence (using 1991 Census data, and including a transfer
payment sector) which show that omitting aboriginal communities from forest industry dependence measures
represents an omission in the number of forest industry dependent communities and population in the prairie
provinces. The economic base measure of forest industry dependence is also evaluated for potential to
include a subsistence economy-related sector. Analysis reveals that the economic base measure does not
adequately capture the contribution of in-kind income from subsistence activities. If the subsistence sector is
included in the forest industry dependence measure the relationships predicted by economic base theory do
not hold, and the forestry industry dependence measure no longer provides a useful means to rank and
compare forest industry dependent communities. In areas where there is reliance on income from forest
industry related jobs, as and/or the subsistence economy, a more comprehensive account of forest
dependence must be developed to fully understand the effects of changes in forest industry markets and forest
policy on communities' economies where the subsistence economy is practiced.
Kosasa, Karen K. (2002) "Critical sights/sites: Art pedagogy and settler colonialism in Hawai'i." Ph.D. Dissertation,
University of Rochester (The). 368 pp.
This dissertation examines art pedagogy -- the teaching and learning of art -- within the context of settler
colonialism in Hawai'i. Drawing from research in several disciplinary fields, including (post)colonial
studies, education, anthropology, geography, art history, studio art pedagogy, and the study of
indigenous/native peoples, the education of artists is linked to a history of colonialism and the cultural and
visual practices that facilitated it. An important distinction is made between native peoples and settler-
immigrants who reside within the geo-political borders of the United States. A common trait of settlers is
their refusal to acknowledge (or their desire to forget) the existence of colonialism in 'America.' The work of
Hawai'ian scholar Haunani-Kay Trask importantly reveals a complex political landscape wherein 'settlers of
colour' collude with the white community to share colonial power.
Antonio Gramsci's notion of hegemony and Henri Lefebvre's formulation of the relationship between social
relations and the 'production' of space are used to examine how seemingly innocent aesthetic practices, like
the representation of non-Western peoples and territories, have contributed in unforeseen ways to the
transformation of native places into sites of political subjugation. The art curriculum will be examined as a
hegemonic, national structure that promotes a narrow definition of art, as well as likened to a national
narrative that circulates a vision of the United States as a place of unlimited opportunity. Ironically, while
individuality and uniqueness are valorized in the arts, teachers rarely speak to the specificity of student
identity. Students are addressed as if they were 'universal citizens' unbounded by their race, gender, class,
sexual orientation, or national affiliation.
An important section of the dissertation describes a fieldwork project conducted at the University of Hawai'i
at Manoa (1995-97) by the author, a Japanese-American born in Hawai'i, Interviews with students and
teachers and descriptions of classroom activities provide crucial information on curricular efforts to include
non-Western points of view and non-art material. The final chapter describes an important exhibition by
Hawai'ian students which severely criticizes the Western orientation of the curriculum, and a compelling
photographic series by a Hawai'ian artist which prohibits settlers from access to everything native.
Krywy, Michael D. (1998) "Re-imagining 'Canada': Consensus, resistance, and the construction of a multicultural
national discourse. A case study of North of 60." M.A. Thesis, Queen's University at Kingston. 105 pp.
This thesis examines how native/non-native differences are represented through the Canadian Broadcasting
Corporation (CBC) television program, North of 60. Using a theory and approach of textual analysis derived
from Stuart Hall, I explore how North of 60 combines fictional representations of Canadian aboriginal
peoples with traditional national signifiers such as the RCMP and federal government institutions to
construct a more complex and inclusive way of imagining Canadian society. In a number of different realms -
- economic, political, and social -- old tensions are invoked and then resolved in a way which bridges
previously coded differences in order to construct a more multicultural national discourse. Through its
discussion of issues such as native self-government, land claim settlement, and symbolic recognition, North of
60 provides an imaginative context through which such problems can be expressed, without necessarily being
'resolved.' Many of these issues are left open and frequently recur because they tend to be systemic or
structural and impossible to solve on a case by case basis. Thus, even as the problems emerge and are dealt
with episodically, their recurrence throughout the series and over the course of several seasons is used to
draw attention to enduring issues which have come to preoccupy the current government/aboriginal relations
within Canadian society.
Ku, Mary M. (2003) "Life stories of Aboriginal juvenile prostitutes in Taiwan." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of
Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. 346 pp.
The Act of Prevention of Juveniles from Selling Sex in Taiwan created vocational centres (mid-way school) to
protect and counsel juvenile prostitutes who are arrested by the police. This study explores the daily life
experience of girls in a vocational centre and looks into how the policy is implemented. This study also
explores the life process of ten aboriginal juvenile prostitutes and identifies risk factors for them to enter
prostitution as well as protective factors for them to leave prostitution.
Ethnography and life history research methods were employed during regular visits to the vocational centre
in a total of seven months field work. Data were collected through participant observation and in-depth
individual interviews. These data were indexed, sorted and coded to discover significant patterns and themes
which reflect the participants' lived experience. Results were presented in narrative form. A description of the
vocational centre, the program and the every day life experiences of girls framed ten Atyal juvenile
prostitutes' life stories.
The ethnographic results indicate that there are discrepancies in the belief of the girls versus the staff, which
explain why many girls returned to prostitution after discharged from the centre. The results of life stories
identified risk factors and protective factors for aboriginal girls entering and leaving prostitution. Risk
factors are: poverty, parents' poor marital relationship, domestic violence, child maltreatment, culturally
deviant moral reasoning ability, complicated relationship with friends, 'bad girl' concept, running away,
early sexual experiences and promiscuity and having friends and relatives in the pornography industry. The
findings suggest that the keystone risk factors could be problems in the family. Protective factors that
influence girls' leaving prostitution are: a conventional moral reasoning ability, cutting ties with previous
friends and boyfriend, a new value system toward sex, negative experiences in prostitution and a positive
bond with a family member. The finding also concurs with western radical feminists' assertion that girls are
socialized into prostitution. This study provides implications for policy, practice and research in the area of
aboriginal juvenile prostitution as well as suggestions to feminists in Taiwan.
Kymlicka, William Will. (1987) "Liberal equality and cultural community." Ph.D. Dissertation, North American
Baptist Seminary. 295 pp.
It is a standard criticism of liberalism, from both the right and the left, that it is insensitive to the virtues and
importance of our communal existence. Liberals emphasize the individual to the neglect of the community
and culture within which individuals develop and flourish. My goal is to defend liberalism against these
criticisms. In the first half of the thesis, I present an interpretation of liberalism drawn mainly from the
writings of Rawls and Dworkin, and defend it against recent communitarian and Marxist objections. Against
communitarians, I argue that the liberal emphasis on freedom of choice does not require an untenable view
about our ability to transcend our socialization, or to abstract ourselves from the social world. It only
requires that the self is not 'embedded' in, or 'constituted' by, the roles and relationships it occupies at any
particular point in time. Against Marxists, I argue that respect for justice and individual rights is not a
remedial virtue which would detract from a 'fully human' community. Generally, I hope to show that the
'individualism' that underlies liberalism is not one that opposes or denies the importance of our social world.
In the second half of the thesis, I apply these liberal principles to the question of the legitimacy of special
rights for minority cultures, using Canada's aboriginal population as an example. Since World-War II,
liberals have tended to oppose measures that provide special political rights or benefits to members of
minority cultures, favouring instead the ideal of a 'colour-blind' constitution which does not differentiate
between people on the basis of cultural membership. I argue that this is a misapplication of liberal principles
(as pre-war liberals realized). In certain situations, like those of aboriginals in Canada, minority rights are
needed to compensate for undeserved inequalities faced by members of minority cultures. I attempt to draw
out the strengths and limits of this liberal defence of minority rights by contrasting it with the role minority
rights play in other political theories.
Labrador, Roderick N. (1997) "Constructing and deconstructing 'Kaigorotan': Examining attempts to formulate,
articulate and legitimate panethnicity in the Cordillera." M.A. Thesis, University of Hawai'i. 96 pp.
During the 1980s, in the Cordillera, in northern Luzon, Philippines, the Cordillera People's Alliance (or
CPA) attempted to construct 'Kaigorotan' by transforming alliances forged during localized resistances
against development projects (in the 1970s) into regional cooperation and solidarity. This thesis examines
the CPA's attempts to construct 'Kaigorotan', viewing these attempts as efforts to create spaces from which to
challenge Cordilleran subalternity and the unequal power relations between the state and the peoples of the
Cordillera. However, the weakening of the regional autonomy movement demonstrated the contingency,
complexity, and contestedness of identities and that higher-level collectivities, like the panethnic category of
'Kaigorotan', need not necessarily emerge from interactions between lower-level affiliations when responding
to a common external threat. Simply put, the attempt to forge a panethnicity is characterized by
nondeterminative relational alterities of internal and external discourses and is dependent on various sets of
identifications and subject positions.
Lackenbauer, P. Whitney. (2004) "Vanishing Indian, vanishing military: Military training and Aboriginal lands in 20th
century Canada." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Calgary. 496 pp.
In recent years, the closure or reduction of Canadian Forces facilities, the continued use of airspace for
weapons testing and low-level flying, increased environmental awareness, and Aboriginal land claims have
contributed to a growing interest in the acquisition, use and development of Aboriginal lands for military
training. This dissertation explores how the military's interest in Aboriginal lands and concomitant
relationships evolved through the 20th century, using a comparative case study approach that includes
various Aboriginal groups, geographic regions, and time periods. Drawing upon untapped archival sources,
interviews, primary reports, and secondary literature, the case studies critically examine the land selection
and acquisition process, expressions of communal and individual agency, and a myriad of political,
socioeconomic and environmental legacies stemming from military use. The final section explores the
emergence of Native land claims in historical context and the consequent effects on relationships and
memory. The results challenge prevailing depictions of the various participants, providing an important
commentary on war and society in Canada that yields insight into conflict and cooperation in changing
national and local historical contexts. Chapters one to five introduce relationships between the militia, the
Department of Indian Affairs, and Indian bands from the turn of the century to 1939. In an era dominated by
notions of the "vanishing Indian" and the idea that "surplus" reserve lands near growing cities represented
an impediment to national and civic progress, local authorities overseeing the militia's expansion sometimes
looked to nearby Indian reserves to meet training needs in an inexpensive and accessible way. The following
two case studies deal with military training on Indian reserves during the Second World War, assessing the
receptiveness of communities to military plans and the dynamics of federal decision-making in wartime.
During the ensuing Cold War, operational requirements expanded and contracted in several cycles. Chapters
eight to ten explore how competing interests in Indian reserves and traditional territories and shifting
political priorities influenced new and pre-existing relationships between federal officials and Aboriginal
communities. For a "vanishing military," the rise of Aboriginal activism brought new challenges, questions,
and heightened pressures for change in the last three decades of the century.
Ladner, Kiera L. (2001) "When buffalo speaks: Creating an alternative understanding of traditional Blackfoot
governance." Ph.D. Dissertation, Carleton University. 333 pp.
Does the exclusion of indigenous political traditions from the purview of political science mean that
American Indians had no political traditions of their own prior to colonization? Were there no structures of
government prior the occupation of the Americas? Is the development of indigenous governments
intrinsically linked to colonization? If indigenous peoples had government and their own political traditions,
should political science concern itself with indigenous political traditions or should political science simply
be concerned with western-Eurocentric political traditions or state-based government?
Recognizing that the 'exclusion' of indigenous political traditions from the disciplinary domain of political
science is unjustified, this dissertation attempts to bring indigenous structures of governance and indigenous
understandings of their own political traditions into political science. Identifying and depicting 'stateless'
indigenous political traditions as a parallel to state-based western-Eurocentric political traditions, I attempt
to destabilize and decolonize political science by introducing an alterNative and stateless 'way of knowing'
governance.
Acknowledging that the 'universal' excludes aboriginal political traditions, this thesis contends both that
there is no universal, and that aboriginal peoples had their own political traditions prior to colonization; as
such 'the Indian must be brought into political science.' Because there is no universal, my thesis contends that
it is only by understanding indigenous political traditions from the vantage point of indigenist thought that
we can come to a meaningful understanding of pre-colonial, non-state indigenous governance. In developing
these ideas, I will demonstrate that Siiksikaawa governance was forged through a people's experiences with
Creation or by observing, experiencing, understanding and listening when beings such as buffalo 'speak.' I
will also illustrate that examining polities using Henderson's theory of ecological contexts is a useful
approach for the study of Indigenous non-state political traditions.
Lafontaine, Angela M. (2001) "Honouring our heart's call: Giving rise to our voice." M.A. Thesis, Royal Roads
University. 94 pp.
The Misiway Milopemahtesewin Community Health Centre, formally, the Misiway Eniniwuk Health Centre,
located in Timmins, Ontario, courageously embarked on an enlightening journey to explore the historical
and current events impacting the wellness and growth of the organization. Within the parameters of the
study, the organizational culture and climate was examined and the recommendations for future strategic
directions were documented. As servant leaders/stewards entrusted with the governance, management, and
delivery of the priority health programs and services, accountability becomes a key priority for implementing
and sustaining the desired changes. An open and honest dialogue between the research participants created
the unprecedented opportunity for communicating the values, mission and vision of the centre as well as the
necessary actions in order to live them. The underlying purpose of the research project is to identify the
strengths, weaknesses, threats/challenges facing indigenous people in contemporary society and to identify
the opportunities and strategies needed to address and achieve the desired outcomes.
Lafontaine, Christopher. (1998) "Using the experience of a First Nation principal with student suicide in a First Nation
school for structuring policy problems." M.Ed. Thesis, University of Regina (The). 168 pp.
There is a lack of effective policy to deal with suicide in First Nation schools. Considering the very high rate
of suicide among Indian youth, logically there should be a concern in First Nation controlled schools that
should be reflected in clearly stated policy that deals with this problem.
The purpose of this study was to investigate a First Nation principal's experience as he dealt with student
suicide as a basis for policy making in First Nation Schools.
The study used a modification of Roe's Narrative Policy Analysis and Stephen's Fault Tree Analysis to
analyze the circumstance of a First Nation principal who had direct experience with three students suicides
and the suicide of his son. The study was conducted in a remote Northern Canadian Cree community.
Narrative and story telling was a natural methodology because of the researcher's Cree ancestry and
because it is an integral part of First Nation culture.
The study identified other perspectives that enhance or frustrate a principal's policy development effort in the
school. The narrative method identified the subtleties of other perspectives, which influence policy
development in different worldviews and culture. These perspectives need to be considered if effective policy
is to be developed in a cross-cultural setting.
The method developed through this study has the potential to assist principals develop and to assist in the
implementation policy in communities where multiple perspectives exist.
LaGrand, James B. (1997) "Indian metropolis: Native Americans in Chicago, 1945-65." Ph.D. Dissertation, Indiana
University. 340 pp.
Since 1940, no American ethnic or racial group has urbanized more quickly than American Indians. In 1940,
roughly one in ten Indians lived in an urban area; by 1980, one in two did so. Migration by thousands of
American Indians over many decades has resulted in the formation of several urban Indian communities
during the 20th century. This dissertation examines Chicago's -- one of the first and most prominent of these
Indian metropolises -- from 1945 to 1965.
Scholarship on 20th century American Indian history has focused primarily on federal policy as implemented
by the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA). The few studies on urbanization have followed this trend, using
government documents to assess the BIA's relocation program that encouraged Indian urbanization starting
in 1952. In contrast, this study focuses on the social history of Indian people in mid 20th century Chicago, in
the process drawing on a wide range of manuscript collections, newsletters and periodicals, oral histories,
and census materials, as well as government documents.
The study begins by examining the experiences of Indian people -- including land dispossession, wage labour,
and World War II -- that contributed to thousands of them making the decision to migrate to Chicago. After
examining forces that pulled Indian people there and tracing the various ways in which different groups
arrived, this study explores many facets of their lives in Chicago. It examines experiences with employment,
housing, education, religion, recreation, and politics. Through these and other experiences, this study
suggests, Indian identity adjusted and became profoundly intertwined with urban life. A pan-Indian
movement developed in which members of different tribes began to think of themselves as sharing a common
Indian identity. In Chicago and other urban Indian communities, this trend would become even more
prominent in the years to come with the rise of Indian political activism.
Landau, Tammy C. (1994) "Policing and security in four remote aboriginal communities: A challenge to coercive
models of police work." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Toronto. 185 pp.
Most of the academic literature on the nature and function of the uniformed public police has emerged from a
highly legalistic framework in which the essential nature of police work has been conceptualized in terms of
the powers to use coercive force. There exists a small body of policing literature which identifies a social
service role for the police. While this literature has been similarly limited by traditional frameworks which
emphasize coercion and control, it suggests that people from poorer social classes rely more heavily on the
police to provide a broader range of services than do socially more advantaged people. This includes
'primary' security -- the protection of one's physical well-being (from violence, accident, illness and death) in
the immediate situation. The particular role played by the public police in such situations may be more a
function of the network of social, security and other services accessible and available to a particular
community. The current research places the public police within the broader context of a community's social
service and security needs and the ability of the existing network of resources to meet those needs. The
particular situation of Indian reserves, in which risk is high while accessibility to social services is low,
provides the specific context. Structured and unstructured interviews with community members, community
leaders and service providers in four remote aboriginal communities in northern Ontario reveal that alcohol
is seen as the most serious social problem in three out of four of the communities, and is perceived to be at
the root of most community problems, such as unemployment, child neglect and family violence. At the same
time, the public police are seen as the social agency which is best at dealing with either social problems, or
problems related to alcohol use. Most other social agencies in the community are viewed as limited in their
ability to deal effectively with these kinds of problems. Police occurrence data indicate that the police in each
community react to calls involving domestic and non-domestic disputes, problems of order, and requests for a
broad range of services. The vast majority of situations to which the police in each community respond
involve alcohol use. The police generally handle the situation on their own, without involvement of other
social agencies. The particular position of the police in the broader network of social services questions
conventional views about the extent to which their coercive powers define their social involvement, or
whether it is more their ability to provide primary security that other social agencies cannot. The results have
theoretical and policy implications for addressing the over-representation of aboriginal people in
correctional institutions, the trend toward the 'indigenization' of policing services, and the development of
community-based, or problem-oriented policing.
Langfur, Harold L. (1999 ) "The forbidden lands: Frontier settlers, slaves, and Indians in Minas Gerais, Brazil, 1760-
1830." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Texas at Austin (The). 351 pp.
Between 1760 and 1830, local elites, impoverished settlers, slaves, and nomadic indigenous peoples engaged
in a violent contest for land, labour, and resources, radiating outward from the urban nucleus of Minas
Gerais, Brazil's declining inland mining district. This dissertation examines the primary instance of frontier
migration in late-colonial Brazil, a demographic dispersion that resulted in the colonization of the unsettled
lands ringing the central district. Focusing on the eastern forests where indigenous resistance peaked, the
study demonstrates that a regional economic collapse fostered an era of frontier conquest, forging relations
of domination based largely on racial divisions.
The frontier is conceptualized as a zone of cultural contact and interracial conflict, with malleable borders,
that formed on the periphery of a consolidating state and commercial economy. To gain access to this zone,
the local political and economic elite challenged a crown policy that forbade settlement of the eastern forests.
They mounted dozens of expeditions into the mountainous region in search of new sources of wealth and to
rid the zone of its indigenous inhabitants. In a parallel move to the frontier, those who were poor but free,
most of them the descendants of slaves, journeyed outward from the gold-mining nucleus into fertile lands,
hoping to ensure their own subsistence. Denounced by authorities, these settlers resisted the repressive
tactics of a state that sought to control their movement and labour. Slaves, too, participated in this frontier
migration, whether accompanying their masters, serving alongside the fire poor on military expeditions, or
suffering the attacks of Indians.
Commonly excluded as subjects of historical research, numerous aboriginal groups, especially the nomadic
Botocudo Indians, barred exploration and settlement in the eastern reaches of Minas Gerais. Some
maintained peaceful, cooperative relations with settlers and soldiers. Where accommodation failed, however,
natives fought with uncommon success against the invasion of their domain, frequently forcing settlers to
retreat, and even abandon long-settled areas, while creating a refuge for themselves in increasingly remote
forests. Finally, in 1808, Lusophone aggression intensified after the colonial restrictions on settlement in the
zone finally collapsed. The Portuguese crown declared open war on the Botocudo, officially sanctioning their
slaughter and enslavement. As the culmination of a half century of conflict caused by settler incursions into
Indian territory, the war emerges as part of a broad, ongoing effort by the state to exert control over the
frontier, its resources, and its inhabitants, be they smugglers, subsistence farmers, or nomadic natives.
Langille, Lynn L. (1994) "Mi'kmaq women in politics and society: Women, nation, and tradition." M.A. Thesis,
Dalhousie University. 147 pp.
A content analysis of Micmac News, understood as a cultural account of the lives of the Mi'kmaq people in
Nova Scotia, provides a unique framework for examining the relationships between women, nation, and
tradition. Two samples of Micmac News are used to explore these relationships. First, Mi'kmaq women's
political struggles to overcome sexual discrimination under the Indian Act provide the setting in which to
explore notions of cultural belongingness and women's articulation of their place in the Mi'kmaq nation.
Second, conceptions of Mi'kmaq traditions, with specific reference to women, are explored in social events
and activities as they are depicted in Micmac News.
The analysis reveals that Mi'kmaq women articulate their inclusion in the Mi'kmaq nation as conceived in the
notion of 'traditional motherhood', particularly in terms of biological and cultural continuity and with
reference to the imposition of the Indian Act. Tradition is largely absent in Mi'kmaq women's articulation of
their place in the Mi'kmaq nation, but emerges as a central focus in the maintenance of the cultural
boundaries between Mi'kmaq society and the larger society. Further, essential elements of Mi'kmaq tradition,
which contribute to their cultural distinctiveness and the attainment of their political goals, are perpetuated
largely through women.
LaRocque, Emma. (1999) "Native writers resisting colonizing practices in Canadian historiography and literature."
Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Manitoba (The). 334 pp.
This dissertation begins with the recognition that the Euro-Canadian colonization of aboriginal peoples is
the ground upon which we, the colonizer-colonialist and the native colonized, have built our discourse. This
dissertation examines the native writer's resistance response to the problem of gross misrepresentation of
aboriginal peoples in Canadian historiography and literature, particularly, the problem of dehumanization
inherent in the civilization-savagery construct which has provided the basis for the colonizer's treatment. A
survey of the chronological development of native writing locates it as Resistance Literature within both
indigenous and post-colonial intellectual and cultural contexts. My engaged research is situated within
resistance discourse. The focus on selected historical and literary texts demonstrates how they are
constructed to serve as techniques of mastery in the social, cultural and political life of the colonialist. The
native counter-discourse is the last section. While there is a remarkable unity of fact, process and experience
in the native writer's exposition of political and textual disempowerment, the writing is complicated by
problems of internalization and notions of difference. These problems are also evident in white intellectual
reading of native writing. I interrogate both native and white responses and call for an intellectual direction
which moves beyond ethnological typologies and ideological paradigms which plague the study of native
peoples. The conclusion is that native writers have indeed produced native resistance literature, a production
that is based on and informed by contemporary indigenous ethos and epistemologies. While much is in the
process of changing in white scholarly, critical and constitutional treatment of native peoples, much more
work remains to be done. Aboriginal scholarship and creative writing is in a unique position of advancing
this work; however, all scholars and other intellectuals are challenged to attend to decolonization in keeping
with our respective legacies.
Larsen, Joan N. (1994) "An analysis of the causes and determinants of Indian employment patterns and trends
identifying strategies for achieving community-based economic development." M.A. Thesis, University of
This thesis analyses the employment circumstances of the Canadian Status Indian population, focusing on
current and estimated future employment trends on-reserve. It also identifies a strategy for achieving on-
reserve community economic and employment development. The point of departure is the changing
demographic composition of the status Indian population over the period 1986-2011, and the related impacts
on employment circumstances as the Indian population ages into its working aged years. On the basis of
empirical evidence and a literature review covering possible individual, reserve based and external
determinants of low Indian labour force participation and low employment rates, the contemporary patterns
of Indian employment is examined. It is found that lack of employment and economic opportunities within on-
reserve Indian communities is partly to blame on a lack of federal commitment to the financial support of
economic development initiatives. In light of the growing Indian working aged population, the Indian
unemployment problem will worsen considerably without an immediate federal commitment to long-term
support for Indian community economic development. The solution lies in a comprehensive community
economic development strategy that entails long-term financial support with community control over the
development process.
Lavell, Dawn M. (2003) "The search for a new way forward: A study of the aboriginal experience in education."
M.Ed. Thesis, Queen's University at Kingston. 210 pp.
In an attempt to provide an alternative perspective on the dilemma of aboriginal student failure in the
contemporary educational system, this thesis gives voice to the often silenced comments, concerns and
opinions of the students themselves. Drawing upon the experiences of a particular group of Anishnabe
(primarily Ojibway) secondary students in northern Ontario it is argued that the way in which education is
currently structured, as evidenced by practice and policy, seems to be in direct conflict with aboriginal
customs, beliefs and values. The author suggests that the structures of hierarchy, authority and control, being
particularly offensive to aboriginal people in general and these students in particular, contribute to the
development of a student culture of resistance and overall anti-school attitudes. The thesis concludes with
suggestions for new pedagogical foundations that, being more congruent with Anishnabe beliefs and customs,
would be more likely to produce an appropriate learning environment thereby alleviating resistance and
hopefully increasing academic success.
Lavigne, Lise-Anne. (1990) "Portrayals of oppression in Canadian literature." M.A. Thesis, University of Alberta. 136
pp.
In Canadian literature, the consequences of oppression are often portrayed in the experiences of characters
who belong to marginalized groups. Included in this study are accounts of people from various native tribes
and the Métis. Peter Such's Riverrun and Rudy Wiebe's The temptations of Big Bear depict historical events
where the Indigenes suffered social injustices. An Antane Kapesh retells the gradual loss of language,
culture, spiritual beliefs and land in Qu'as-tu fait de mon pays? And in Tchipayuk ou le chemin du loup and
in The diviners, Ronald Lavallee and Margaret Laurence recount ordeals of Métis life in Canada. The state
of oppression is further illustrated in Timothy Findley's novel, Not wanted on the voyage, where a hateful
patriarch seeks vengeance by destroying the world. The relationship between man and nature forms the basis
of the conflicting ideologies. The Europeans believe that man is a superior being who should subjugate and
control his physical environment while the aboriginal people see themselves as belonging to an organic
environment which they respect and revere since they depend on the earth for their survival.
Lawrence, Bonita E. (1999) "'Real' Indians and others: Mixed-race urban native people, the Indian Act, and the
rebuilding of indigenous nations." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Toronto. 490 pp.
Native identity, for urban mixed-race native people, is shaped on the one hand by colonial regulation under
the Indian Act, and on the other by native heritage and connections to the land. This research engages with
how the identities of the participants of this study (as well as the author herself) have been defined and
molded by their families' lived experiences of cultural genocide, how the participants have, in resistance,
actively explored their native heritage, and how hegemonic images and definitions of Indianness have
influenced these processes.
The research is based on interviews with 30 individuals of mixed native and non-native heritage living in the
Toronto region, on the subject of urban native identity. The first part of the thesis engages with the
methodological concerns which must be taken into consideration when native peoples' identities are the
subjects of academic investigation, the highly distinct circumstances which are raised by the regulation of
native identity in Canada under the Indian Act, and the images of Indianness which exist within the dominant
culture, which every urban mixed-race native person must contend with in forming their own identity as a
native person. The second part of the thesis engages directly with the participants' family histories, their
opinions about native identity, and the roles which they are playing in creating and maintaining an urban
native community.
The common thread running through the narratives is the devastating affect which loss of community as a
result of genocidal government policies has had on the participants' families. The research clearly
demonstrates the extent to which government regulation of native identity, through racist and sexist
restrictions within the Indian Act, has contributed to the alienation of individuals from their communities and
has fragmented native peoples' identities, dividing them into categories such as 'status Indians', 'Metis', 'Bill
C-31 Indians', 'reserve Indians' and 'urban Indians.' In a preliminary manner, it explores the forms of nation-
building which might enable native people to overcome the divisive effects of a history of government
regulation of identity.
Lawrence, Elden. (1999) "Returning to traditional beliefs and practices: A solution for Indian alcoholism." Ph.D.
Dissertation, South Dakota State University. 101 pp.
Indian alcoholism has a history that goes back to first European contacts. The devastating effects it has had
on Indian people equal and has outlasted any disease brought into this country. Like many other diseases,
Indian people had no tolerance for alcohol-related abnormalities brought on by abusive use of alcohol. As if
to quicken their end, they offered little resistance and were easily addicted.
With the loss of their culture and identity, they never had the motivation to go beyond surviving. The First
Nation people, usually last in socioeconomic developments find themselves first in something, alcoholism,
and its consequences. Tribal people still maintain cultural traditions such as the extended family. That
creates the situation where virtually everyone on the reservation is affected by alcoholism.
Some efforts have been directed to the Indian alcohol problem, but most fail because a necessary cultural
component is usually not contained in the program. This study is about how the some Dakota people are
attempting to address their own social ills, including alcoholism. The key to understanding the problem is to
first understand the native culture and lifestyle and how he makes sense out of his world.
The Dakota people like many others are experiencing a resurgence of cultural traditions and heritage. This
renewed interest was prompted by concerns about the social deterioration and hopelessness of the people.
There developed a generalized belief that if the traditional values of the past could be brought back, the
people would receive hope and a new way of life built on values and norms that were once the foundation of
a traditional society.
The return of traditional practices and ceremonies provided support for these beliefs and values. The most
significant of these practices is the Sun Dance. Therefore an ethnographic field study was conducted to more
closely examine this phenomenon.
To enhance and guide the study, a theory on value-oriented movements provided a pattern and system of
analysis. The ethnographic study provided an in-depth observation of the Sun Dance and other traditional
ceremonies and the people who practice them.
In order to provide a base for understanding, an extensive background is provided on the history and culture
of the Dakota. There is also pertinent information on Indian alcoholism presented. The intent of the study was
to provide a Dakota perspective along with the data and information. This was accomplished through
interviews, observation and participant observation.
The results of the study suggests there is a movement based on a generalized belief that returning to past
traditions and values provide a solution for a significant number of Dakota people and the problem of
alcoholism.
Leader, Judith C. (1995) "An ethnohistory of the Passamaquoddy of Maine." Ph.D. Dissertation, Boston University.
356 pp.
The study examines the historical processes affecting various elements of the Passamaquoddy cultural system
from 1600 to the present. The effects on these traditions over time indicate the processes at work on the entire
fabric of the social structure. Data were derived both from 12 months of field research among the
Passamaquoddy at Indian Township and Pleasant Point Reservations, and from original archival
documentation found principally at the State Archives of Maine and Massachusetts. Acculturative change, the
cause and effect of such changes, and continuity in areas of the culture are chronologically viewed. A central
theme is that politics and contestation, both external and internal, were key elements in both cultural change
and cultural retention among the Passamaquoddy. Cultural retention within the Passamaquoddy community
was determined primarily by the confluence of three factors: geographical separation, social separation, and
the tribe's ability as active agents to accommodate to changing ecological, economic, and political
circumstances. The Passamaquoddy showed tenacity in maintaining tribal identity through astute treaty
making and persistent use of the dominant society's legal system available to them during their history. Most
recently, the 1980 Land Claims case allowed them both reclamation of some of the aboriginal land base
illegally alienated from them and restoration of their sovereignty. As social and geographical separation
ended, a clash began to occur between forces internal and external to the Passamaquoddy community,
causing the traditional mode of transmission of culture to decline. A result of this decline was discontinuity of
key cultural elements such as transmission of the native language by parents and grandparents. Cultural
discontinuity has been exacerbated since the Land Claims Settlement. Other traditional elements such as
chief raising and kinship relationships have remained, although in modified form. Conflicts on the
reservation between the traditional and modern occur regularly. Currently the Passamaquoddy community is
attempting through nontraditional mechanisms, such as Indian Days celebrations, a bilingual-bicultural
program at the reservation school, and 'modern traditionalism,' to retain those socio-cultural elements which
remain, and to reintroduce elements that had been lost. Simultaneously, the Passamaquoddy community is
moving into a type of self-government parallel to the non-Indian community's.
Leake, David W. Jr. (2000) "Cultural models relevant to the problem of anger for youngsters perceived as troubled
and troubling in a 'tough' community in Hawai'i." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Hawai'i. 449 pp.
This dissertation is based on nearly five years of ethnographic fieldwork conducted through two federally-
funded projects to improve services for youngsters with, or at risk for, serious emotional disturbances in a
semi-rural community in Hawai'i. A significant minority of residents, primarily members of the
socioeconomic underclass, suffer the effects of what one informant termed 'a serious anger problem,' as
reflected in high rates of domestic violence, child abuse, violent crime, and referrals of youngsters for mental
health services due to recurring interpersonal conflict.
The goal of this dissertation is to describe and compare common sets of understandings which underlie talk
concerning: (1) why many youngsters become 'troubled and troubling' as evidenced by normatively excessive
or inappropriate anger; and, (2) what should be done about this problem, at both individual and community
levels. For analytic purposes, three primary groups are identified whose members tend to share similar
understandings, presented in terms of cultural models, presumed cognitive structures which simplify and
make manageable the individual's stream of cognitive-emotional interactions with the complex outside
environment. These models were derived from analysis of 188 descriptions of situations of anger and of 50
descriptions of situations in which anger was prevented or ameliorated, with primary data sources including
audiotaped interviews with more than 50 individuals, videotapes of two offerings of a course on cultural
competence in serving Native Hawai'ians conducted by kupuna (respected elders), and extensive field notes.
In line with the tenets of American individualism, service providers generally focus on poor social and
parenting skills as well as low self-esteem and promote services aimed at imparting skills and boosting self-
esteem. Native Hawai'ian traditionalists tend to attribute anger problems to cultural loss due to Western
influences and therefore champion a return to traditional values and strengthening Native Hawai'ian identity.
Members of the community mainstream are more likely to place moral blame on the generally underclass
parents of youngsters perceived as troubled and troubling, with the basic solution being to give such
youngsters the love and attention (which may need to include strict discipline) their parents are failing to
give them.
LeDressay, Carl A. (1997 ) "Some economic impacts of settling treaties with First Nations in British Columbia." Ph.D.
Dissertation, Simon Fraser University. 297 pp.
On September 22, 1992 representatives of First Nations in British Columbia, the Government of Canada and
the Government of British Columbia made a commitment to clarifying land title in British Columbia through
the negotiation of treaties.
A treaty and to some extent, a lands claim settlement, can be divided into two economic components.
Compensation is usually paid to First Nations so that they relinquish claims to property rights over specified
lands. On those lands not thereby exchanged by First Nations, property rights are specified so as to facilitate,
among other processes, a more efficient exchange economy.
This dissertation utilizes data from detailed expenditure and income surveys from nine Shuswap communities
in the Kamloops area, four treaty compensation simulations, Keynesian multiplier methods, two case studies
from the Shuswap Nation and a model of public institutional dynamics to assess some economic impacts from
settling treaties with First Nations in British Columbia.
Due to the small, import-reliant nature of the economies under investigation, the Keynesian multipliers are
very small in magnitude (never greater than 1.04) regardless of which treaty compensation simulation is
applied. Tax multipliers for the Governments of British Columbia and Canada, however, are relatively high,
yielding up to 25 cents in tax revenues for every dollar of treaty compensation spent off reserve in nearly all
simulations.
The property right clarification and subsequent institutional changes induced by treaty settlement will have
mixed effects on First Nation economies. On the basis of this First Nation case study, it is suggested that First
Nation public institutions may not be stable or credible enough to encourage significant investment and trade
in the post treaty environment. First Nation public institutions, however, should be flexible and small enough
to adapt to the emergence of new technologies, and could perhaps technologically 'leap frog' existing
institutions.
Lee, Lloyd L. (2004) "21st century Dine cultural identity: Defining and practicing Sa'ah Naaghai Bik'eh Hozhoon."
Ph.D. Dissertation, University of New Mexico (The). 181 pp.
This qualitative and indigenous study focuses on twenty-first century Diné cultural identity. The primary
focus of the study is how contemporary Diné identify and connect with other Diné and how they distinguish
themselves from other cultures and races. The reason why I choose to focus on the Diné is I am Diné myself
and I am interested in how my generation, people born between 1965 and 1980, understand and define their
Diné cultural identity.
The Diné are a Native American nation located in the four-corners (Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, and
Utah) region of the United States. According to the 2000 U.S. Census, approximately 298,197 Navajos live in
the United States.
Many Diné born between 1965 and 1980 do not speak the language, sing Diné ceremonial songs, pray in the
Diné language, know their clans' history, and many other cultural aspects of pre-European and Euro-
American contact. Because such a large number of people claim Diné identity, I question how contemporary
Diné identify and connect with other Diné and how they distinguish themselves from their Diné parents
generation and grandparents generation. Diné identity is living and changing from decade to decade. How
can Diné society ensure the continuity of its identity and society today? The study demonstrates that Diné
college graduates and college students are in fact living a distinctly Diné way of life.
The study makes several points: (1) Diné college students and college graduates live independent and
different lives from one another but are still connected to one another via Diné cultural identity; (2) four
features define for these individuals what it means to be Diné today; (3) childhood and family have more
influence in their identity formation than their college education; and (4) the twelve participants in this study
are ensuring that Diné identity continues.
Lefcourt, Yvonne K. (2005) "Navigating knowledge between two landscapes: (Re)envisioning Native Hawai'ian
education through ho'ola." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. 254 pp.
The public education scene of contemporary Hawai'i reveals indigenous Native Hawai'ian people continuing
to seek social justice while navigating between two very different landscapes. Despite the democratic ideas of
western education, this study suggests we are still at the embryonic stages of defining, honouring, and
implementing culturally relevant epistemology and pedagogy.
In this seventh moment (Denzin, 2000) of our living essence, wounded spirits struggling to have their voices
heard, speak of the turmoil in their homeland. This is an exploratory study for, by, and about Kanaka Maoli
(Native Hawai'ians). This has implications for improving education for other indigenous and marginalized
groups across the globe that may be challenged with similar parallels.
Wisdom of Native Hawai'ian kahuna (priests), kupuna (elders), teachers, and community members provide
cultural insight to the struggles for sustainability and survival through ho'ola (giving life). In this study,
Native Hawai'ians help to redefine and (re) envision education as a holistic composite. This study represents
the intellectual legitimization of Native Hawai'ian indigenous knowledge through Papa Hana (approaches to
conducting research in NH communities that incorporate NH philosophy and principles). Five themes
extracted from the findings include: (a) Cries for social justice, (b) indigenous perspective, (c) family
relationships, (d) communication and the power of language, and (e) hybridity. Building upon these themes
five principles emerged as to how NHs (re) envision NH education: (a) a renewed priority of educating NH
children from birth and beyond, (b) honouring cultural knowledge, traditional practices, and identity, (c)
culturally driven pedagogy, (d) incorporating cultural structures which emphasize the 'ohana (family) and
kakou (all inclusive, all together) concept, and (e) a collective vision which perpetuates ho'omau
(continuance) and ho'ola (giving life).*
[This dissertation is a compound document (contains both a paper copy and a CD as part of the
dissertation).]
Lefler, Lisa J. (1996) "Mentorship as an intervention strategy in relapse reduction among Native American youth."
Ph.D. Dissertation, North Dakota State University. 252 pp.
This dissertation describes a mentorship program developed and implemented at a regional Native American
youth treatment centre. Many Native American adolescents who are discharged from treatment return to
their peers and families who may still be using alcohol, thus increasing the probability of relapse. This
project was designed to provide these youth with the support needed to maintain sobriety via sober role
models. Chapter One introduces the reader to the severity of alcohol abuse problems among American
Indian populations. A description of the treatment facility and the community wherein it is located, as well as
a discussion of the literature concerning this issues of alcohol abuse and American Indians are also covered
in this chapter. Chapter Two examines historical information concerning alcohol introduction to American
Indian groups. This data raises questions concerning the effect of modeling and environment on drinking
behaviour. Chapter Three focuses on historical anthropological approaches to alcohol-related problems
among southeastern Indians. A brief overview of causality theories, as well as a review of the literature
concerning intervention strategies among American Indians is presented. Chapter Four looks at one Native
American community, the Eastern Band of Cherokees, to understand how reconstructing community and
integrating new identities with old ones, combat the cultural stressor of alcohol abuse. Chapter Five
discusses the rationale for the inclusion of mentorship as part of aftercare services in an adolescent
treatment centre program. This chapter first examines the issues of relapse and secondarily, how
anthropology as a holistic discipline contributes to our understanding of these issues among American
Indians. Chapter Six details the implementation of the mentorship program at a regional Indian youth
treatment centre and outlines the training and selection process of mentors from ten United South and
Eastern Tribes. Chapter Seven provides the findings after one year of the program's implementation,
compares the results with national averages, and offers recommendations for its continued use in Native
American communities.
Légaré, Evelyn I. (1997) ""Nobody speaks for the nation anymore": Canada's problems with itself." Ph.D.
Dissertation, Duke University. 324 pp.
This dissertation analyzes the reformation of Métis identity produced by the politics of cultural identity in
Canada. My purpose is to understand how the meanings underlying the discursive practices of Canadian,
aboriginal, and Métis nationalists establish and organize the collectivities called forth by the identity
categories, 'Canadian', 'aboriginal', and 'Métis.' This dissertation questions the naturalistic and objectifying
presuppositions that sustain and organize these collectivities as they are envisioned and fought out within the
framework of a multiculturally diverse nation that accords political significance to cultural identities.
Equally, I seek to uncover how relations of power are embedded within, organized through, and in turn, help
structure the meanings that underpin these competing nationalisms and their versions of the Canadian
nation.
I argue Métis identity formation cannot be adequately analyzed using a state-centred approach. Equally, it
cannot be understood if the framework of analysis is limited to the Métis or even a pan-aboriginal
community. I analyze Métis identity formation as a dialogic process, using data obtained from interviews,
conversations, and observations of representations of Canadian, aboriginal, and Métis identities. I am
particularly interested in the public sphere of Canadian society.
I argue Canadian nationalism represents the real Canadian as a culturally unmarked citizen. As a culturally
identified category, aboriginal people are positioned apart from the national community. Similarly,
aboriginal nationalism represents the aboriginal and white/Euro-Canadian as mutually exclusive categories.
I argue Métis nationalism seeks to reinsert the Métis between the poles of identity aboriginal and Canadian. I
conclude that, within the space of signification produced by these competing nationalisms, Métis are
identified as aboriginal. The real Canadian is the culturally unmarked Canadian and aboriginal Canadians
are encapsulated and subordinated within Canadian society. I conclude aboriginal people are permitted a
voice but it is carefully circumscribed; aboriginal people are within but not members of the Canadian nation.
They are not real Canadians. Thus, I conclude the understandings that sustain the Canadian community and
the culturalization of difference within Canada curtails, even undermines aboriginal participation in
Canadian society.
Leishman, Katherine A. (1997) "Lessons from Delgamuukw v. The Queen: The comparative potential of litigation and
negotiation to resolve aboriginal rights conflicts (British Columbia)." M.A. Thesis, University of Victoria.
229 pp.
An examination of the experiences of the Gitxsan and Wet'suwet'en with dispute resolution processes
provides an excellent case study of the cultural frustrations and obstacles that the First Nations frequently
encounter with both litigation and negotiation. While in their Delgamuukw v. The Queen case the Gitxsan
and Wet'suwet'en were determined to present a culturally authentic legal challenge, the inherently limited
ability of the Canadian legal system and law to recognize, address and accommodate cultural difference soon
became apparent.
With British Columbia's historic concession to participate in negotiations, however, for the first time in the
province there was a viable and peaceful alternative to litigation. Consequently, many First Nations began to
place their hopes for a resolution of their grievances in the BC treaty process. Having achieved a recognition
from the BC Court of Appeal that their aboriginal rights had never been extinguished, the Gitxsan and
Wet'suwet'en also chose to enter the BC treaty process.
Although the BC treaty process appears to be working well for many First Nations in the province, it is still
too early in the process to come to any definitive conclusion as to the probability of its success. An
examination of the issues that have arisen in the BC treaty process to date, however, leads one to conclude
that the same culturally-based frustrations and obstacles are likely to arise regardless of the dispute
resolution mechanism adopted. In fact, as the experience of the Gitxsan and Wet'suwet'en with negotiation
demonstrated, negotiated settlements are not without a number of their own problems. Given the complex and
entrenched nature of aboriginal rights disputes, it may well be that any ostensible resolution creates as many
problems as its solves, with the result that such disputes may well be insoluble. One thing is certain in the
final analysis: negotiation is not the panacea that so many had contended in the bitter wake of McEachern's
Delgamuukw decision.
Leiva, Elizabeth. (1997) "Development from within: A key to lasting peace and human development in Guatemala."
M.S.W. Thesis, Carleton University. 170 pp.
Peace has come to Guatemala, and the civil war has come to an end after four decades of conflict. It is
important to evaluate the basis upon which peace will be built, and how and if it will reverse the social,
economic, political and cultural marginalization of indigenous peoples.
Drawing upon the concepts of Eurocentrism and internal colonization, this thesis explores the conceptual
root causes of civil war and attempts to determine whether or not the Socioeconomic and Agrarian Issues
Accord, and the Right of Indigenous Peoples Accord, which are core Accords of the 'Firm and Lasting Peace
Plan', are likely to change or merely reflect the past.
This thesis comes to the conclusion that the policies embedded in these core Accords are very likely to
continue to be governed by internal colonization and foreign Eurocentric development prescriptions.
Therefore, the only way to reverse this marginalization and to achieve a lasting peace is a more wholistic and
inclusive form of development emanating from within, based on Guatemala's human, cultural and spiritual
needs.
Leslie, Bruce L. H. (2003) "Impossible escape from capture: A journey toward an indigenous political identity." M.A.
This thesis examines the circumstances and options of indigenous individuals dispossessed of their
connection to the cultural and political institutions of indigenous communities. Addressed specifically is the
question of alternatives to political assimilation into the dominant society. A secondary research question
addresses the process by which an indigenous political identity could be realized to counter political
dispossession and assimilation. This study provides a critical examination of four theories of indigenous
identity formation: emergent behaviours/properties, life stages, self-definition/Recognition of Being, and self-
conscious traditionalism. The analysis adopts an aspectival perspective and employs an aboriginal canoe
methodology. This thesis argues for a move away from definitional and essentialist approaches to indigenous
identity and toward deliberate political identity formation along the trajectories of agency, alliance, and
identity. A theoretical model is proposed that links an individual pedagogical approach to practical political
alliances with indigenous political and cultural communities for self-determination, survival, and resistance.
Letwiniuk, Tara. (1998) "John Locke: The Devonshire farmer and the dispossession of the Amerindians of Belize and
Guyana." LL.M. Thesis, University of Toronto. 105 pp.
Property, is a construct of the society it serves. As that society changes, so does its conceptualization of
property, shifting to reflect the changing needs of the populace. English colonialism made just such a re-
conceptualization necessary. As colonial objectives changed from trading to settlement and agriculture, the
property needs of the settlers also changed. Possession of Aboriginal land became essential to the prosperity
of the European settlers.
John Locke's writings on property provided English authorities with an ideological framework necessary to
legitimate their expansionist activities and construct a colony-specific concept of property. Locke redefined
property in Two Treatises of Government by arguing property in land is created through the application of
European-style, agrarian labour. This theory excluded the Aboriginal occupant from ownership and created
a version of natural law which justified appropriation of Aboriginal territory without consent. The success of
this persuasive effort was illustrated in the colonial development of land tenure systems in Belize and
Guyana.
Levitte, Yael M. (2003) "Social capital and aboriginal economic development: Opportunities and challenges." Ph.D.
Two main concerns animate this dissertation. On a theoretical and methodological level, it investigates the
analytical utility of social capital, a concept that has gained prominence in recent years. I examine the
different levels of social capital -- strong, bonding ties with primary reference groups; intermediate, bridging
relations between such groups; and weak, linking networks with networks of power. Associating them to
geographic scales, I reinforce the analytic framework with which social capital terminology may be
employed. Moving away from the uncritical celebration of social capital as a panacea to all types of social
ills, I also examine issues, such as accessibility and control of resources, historical constraints and the
dysfunctional potentials of social networks themselves.
At the same time, as an empirical and practical study, this dissertation explores the history and future of
economic development in three northern Ontario aboriginal communities. Canada is among the most affluent
countries in the world, ranked highly on quality of life indices. Yet its First Nations share this prosperity only
to a small extent. Policies aimed at improving native peoples' lives focus on the promotion of one economic
development strategy in particular, entrepreneurship. My research examines the role social capital plays in
entrepreneurial success or failure.
I suggest that geographical isolation segregates individuals and communities from linking and bridging
networks; reliance on bonding networks in such locales often results in limited access to financial and human
resources. In places where networks extend beyond the community, larger pools of resources are accessed.
The dissertation highlights, however, the potential detrimental role that such external networks can play in
the daily lives of marginal communities. Analysis of the colonial legislative framework which guided 20th
century policy makers in Canada examines how assimilative policies have interfered with various levels of
social capital, and the consequential effect of such interference to economic and social development.
My analysis, which offers some insights into the major determinants of present-day social and economic
hardships in aboriginal communities, also suggests ways in which lessons learned in the aboriginal
framework may be transposed elsewhere. At the same time, I offer a critique of social capital theory and
propose ways of refining its concepts and extending its applicability.
Lewis-Harris, Jacquelyn A. (2005) ""Anina asi a mavaru kavamu": We don't dance for nothing. Solien Besena cultural
retention in urban Australia." Ph.D. Dissertation, Washington University. 225 pp.
Pacific island expatriate communities throughout the urban centers of New Zealand, Australia, and the
United States harbour groups of artists committed to preserving and fostering traditional art forms from their
indigenous cultures. The reasoning behind this work varies with the community and country, but the intent,
perpetuation of cultural practices and identity, is comparable among the majority of the communities. As
early as 1977, Australian-based Papua New Guineans in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide and Darwin
formed groups specialising in traditional dance. These dance troupes functioned as language and culture
schools, social support groups, extensions of Papua New Guinea-based social networks, and a limited source
of income. My observations have revealed that contemporary group members use remembered institutions
and narratives to reconstruct, and in some cases, reinvent their culture within urban Australia.
This dissertation focuses upon the Solien Besena, a unique Papua New Guinean clan recognized for its
exemplary cultural development work in Brisbane. I investigated the Solien Besena as they hold a distinctive
ethnic marginality and aggressively promote their culture despite societal pressures from both the dominant
Australian population and other Papua New Guinean immigrant groups. My research emphasises the
unusually dominant role of women as cultural knowledge brokers within this customarily patrilineal group.
While this study initially examined the role of the women leaders and dance groups in developing cultural
identity and retention, it revealed that the process of troupe development and maintenance was often more
important than the actual performance. Immersion in choreography, language and cultural history provides
participants with focused social interaction and reinforced clan/family connections. A secondary economy,
encompassing the concept of inalienable wealth and possessions, has also evolved. It is based upon a cultural
currency of scarce dance components -- specific choreography, chants and costume items. My interviews and
analysis revealed that the Solien Besena women often contest the ownership of this choreography and
accompanying narrative, as the knowledge of these valuable components validated their cultural knowledge,
gave them a modicum of political and economic power, and established the individual's status within the
communities.
Lewis, Jennifer C. (2001 ) "A critical review of substance abuse program evaluation in Native American communities:
Exploring and expanding cultural competence." M.S. Thesis, University of Alaska Anchorage. 77 pp.
An effort is being made in the research field of program evaluation to improve cultural competence. The
focus of this paper is cultural competence in community-based substance abuse program evaluations.
Cultural factors involving Native Americans, which can influence the process and outcome of such
evaluations, are introduced and examined. The manner in which Western evaluation models (i.e., the logic
model and model/theory of change) are applied to Native American communities also is examined. Inherent
problems with the utilization of Western theory-based models are described in relation to the cultural factors
involved in evaluation. The benefits and weaknesses of alternate evaluation models and/or approaches are
also described. Case examples from an ongoing substance abuse program evaluation involving 14 Native
American communities are presented to highlight problem areas within the evaluative field and promote
continued striving toward cultural competence.
Lewton, Elizabeth. (1997 ) "Living harmony: The transformation of self in three Navajo religious healing traditions."
Ph.D. Dissertation, Case Western Reserve University. 331 pp.
This work examines the transformation of self throughout the therapeutic processes in each of three
prominent religious healing traditions practiced on the Navajo reservation today -- traditional Navajo
religion, the Native American Church and Pentecostal Christianity. This approach seeks to move beyond
static, abstract concepts of tradition and culture to account for sociohistorical complexity and cultural
heterogeneity, and to privilege the experiences of the many Navajos who live complex, multicultural lives.
Multiple, open-ended interviews with healers and patients in each tradition provide the basis for this analysis
of therapeutic process. While the nature of self-transformation varies according to religious tradition,
individual life context, and the sociohistorical processes which have fundamentally shaped contemporary
Navajo culture and identity, it also displays certain culturally specific themes.
Navajo therapeutic practice can be seen as guided by the key synthetic principle Sa'ah Naghai Bik'eh Hozho
(SNBH) -- 'according to the ideal may restoration be achieved.' As it is understood, experienced and
expressed by Navajos in daily interactions, this principle specifies that well-being requires the establishment
and maintenance of proper relationships guided by such principles as respect, kindness and cooperation.
These relationships extend to include one's relatives, spiritual beings and other aspects of the environment.
Patients and healers in each tradition articulate themes of distress associated with improper or disconnected
relationships, and themes of healing in terms of the transformation of self in relation to meaningful aspects of
the environment. Proper behaviour and speech are integral in the reestablishment of relationships, and the
use of kinship terms is a primary mode of expression and affective engagement within the therapeutic context.
SNBH is shown to be a pervasive cultural theme that orients self-processes and is demonstrated and
elaborated in each of the three healing traditions investigated. These self-processes are grounded in daily
interactions and in concrete therapeutic modes. As it is experienced and expressed among Navajos, SNBH is
not a distinct component of any specific religious doctrine, but is created by and manifested in the culturally
situated self.
Li, Jian. (2000) "The fourth world in the third: Development in a Yao mountain village in northern Thailand." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of Kansas. 189 pp.
This dissertation examines the major issues and problems surrounding development in tribal society in a
third world setting. Anchored in Greenhill, a Yao mountain village in northern Thailand, my research has
focused on the impact of development upon the tribal peoples in the region since the 1970s. I will analyze
three aspects of Yao society: belief systems, economy, and quality of life, with an emphasis on how
development altered such aspects and what these changes mean to the Yao people. In essence, the
development-related issues and problems discussed in this dissertation are typical and representative among
many Southeast Asian tribal societies. Despite their different sociocultural conditions, as Charles F. Keyes
(1987a:19) noted, all tribal peoples in Southeast Asia have experienced remarkably similar sociopolitical
and socioeconomic changes brought about by development in the past decades.
This research has three goals. First, it provides an ethnographic survey of the Yao people and their culture
within the scope of development and cultural change. Second, it evaluates the impacts of major development
programs in the Yao region since the 1970s. Finally, it analyzes the implications of such impacts on the tribal
peoples in the region in general and on the Greenhill Yao villagers in particular.
In this study, development is defined as an organized action that intends to help 'enlarge the range of people's
choices -- increasing their opportunities for education, health care, income, and employment -- from a sound
environment to economic and political freedom' (United Nations 1992:2). The Greenhill experience
demonstrates that development in tribal society is a complex phenomenon and its impact is far beyond a
simple, clear-cut outcome. Instead, development can be both devastating and beneficial to tribal peoples,
depending on its foci, orientation, methodology, implementation, and local situations. While absolutism must
be avoided, I argue that a holistic approach to the understanding of development in tribal society is helpful.
Liffman, Paul M. (2002) "Huichol territoriality: Land claims and cultural representation in western Mexico." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of Chicago (The). 481 pp.
Based on fieldwork that included writing for Mexican political audiences and collaborating with a land
rights NGO, this dissertation discusses (1) Mexican indigenous territoriality on four scales of analysis (place,
region, nation and global); (2) Huichol (Wixarika) people's ceremonially-based practices and theories of
territoriality; (3) the political claims they base on their ceremonial relationships and practices; and, (4) how
Mexican and US print media represent both Huichol and other indigenous autonomy claims in the context of
presumed violence by Huichols. Throughout the 5,000 square kilometres where Huichols live and plant maize
in the Sierra Madre Occidental, their bilateral kinship relations, temple (tuki) organization, territorial
narratives, and the entailed metaphors of 'rootedness' (nanayari) integrate their dispersed rancherías into
temple cargo hierarchies (jicareros). In turn, jicareros trek to sacred places throughout a 90,000 square
kilometre prehispanic territory (kiekari) to ritually inscribe the rancherías' historically shifting positions
within it. In doing so, they (1) appropriate metaphors of governance like 'registration' (registro) from the
Mexican state; (2) deem themselves necessary to planetary survival as ceremonial brokers with the ancestral
controllers of nature; and (3) temporarily reconcile oppositions between hierarchy and proliferation within
their own society and between symbolic potency as quintessential 'prehispanic survivals' and exploited
peasants within the national space. Under the global indigenous rights discourses inscribed in Convention
169 of the International Labour Organization and Mexican Constitutional Article 4, Huichol leaders allied
with non-governmental organizations have invoked their ceremonial territoriality in regional political forums
and an educationally-based revitalization movement. This new discursive space enables them to (1) expand
longstanding agrarian claims to colonial title lands as comuneros in the Sierra; (2) formulate broader
demands as a pueblo indio with rights of access, hunting and gathering throughout the prehispanic kiekari;
and (3) consolidate ethnic identities in terms of that territoriality. More controversially, individual actors
have invoked these same discourses of territorial defence to justify the recent death of a US writer in the
community of study. This generated an international scandal that challenged the limits of Huichol communal
authorities' discursive authority and indeed the legitimacy of indigenous autonomy in the Mexican public
sphere.
Lima Soto, Ricardo E. (2003) "Emergent Guatemalan-Maya discourses and institutions of 'modernization': The impact
of education upon the representation of the Maya in a globalized world." Ph.D. Dissertation, Rice University.
298 pp.
The purpose of this study was to collect dispersed components of the emergent Maya _'modernizing'
discourses which focused on the incorporation of their culture into the society of Guatemala and full
participation in national and international arenas. Specifically, I focused on the information contained in the
ideology, knowledge, values, and goals as defined or produced by a group of Maya professionals who
attended an experimental program, Program for Integral Development of the Mayan Population
(PRODIPMA), developed and administered by Rafael Landívar University and sponsored by USAID from
1986 to 1993, in Guatemala.
This ethnographic account has charted the movements by which our focal group entered the community with
a strong consciousness of their cultural identity. Members of this group are currently pursuing the creation of
critical pro-Mayan and intercultural discourses. They are steering the direction of institutional activism
towards 'modernization' according to national and global definitions.
I conducted my research using both archival and fieldwork techniques. Interviewing protocols were designed
and applied to university authorities, faculty, tutors, and a representative number of indigenous alumni. The
study included a conscious in-depth analysis of both the institutional context and the curricular contents to
which all the indigenous students were exposed to. All curricular contents were defined to reach Landívar
University's academic standards and social goals. Landívar inherited a Western tradition consisting of
European philosophy, science, and methodologies. As a consequence, URL based the academic program on
European and American authors, scientists, and philosophers, converting the PRODIPMA program,
epistemologically, into a post-colonizing program for indigenous students. However, Landívar University's
commitment toward the emergence of an educated and developed multicultural society is based upon its
Jesuit-Catholic ideology which, according to their principles, contributes to Guatemala's development
through the empowerment of Mayan communities by means of making available their access to 'pertinent'
education (linguistic and culturally).
Mayan modernity consists of openly gaining entry into universities and important job positions while they
take advantage of technology and communications to enhance their values, identity, and languages of their
culture. Conversely, the official policies of Guatemala continue to retain the privileged status of the Ladinos.
The hegemonic Ladino (Spanish) paradigm is upheld socially, politically, and culturally.
Little, Margo D. (1997) "The moral dilemma of high-stakes gambling in Native communities ." M.A. Thesis,
Laurentian University of Sudbury. 168 pp.
In Canada today, Native people grapple with an increasingly bleak economy. According to Statistics Canada,
only forty-three per cent of Aboriginal people have jobs; whereas, the employment average for other
Canadians is sixty-one per cent. The Canadian average annual income is $24,876 but Native Canadians
receive $16,560 per annum. Eight per cent of mainstream Canadians receive social assistance; twenty-nine
per cent of Natives do (Fisher 16). This perpetual marginalization has spurred many First Nations
communities to pursue commercial gaming as a source of economic salvation. In this paper I will examine
the legacy of gambling in Native culture and the ethical dilemmas facing bands who attempt to use gaming
operations as a solution to economic ills.
Loewen, Christopher J. W. (2000) "FAS/E in the Aboriginal community: A woman's perspective." M.A. Thesis,
Alcohol Related Birth Defects (ARND) including Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and Fetal Alcohol Effects (FAS/E)
are topics attracting much attention. Prevalence of alcohol abuse among some Aboriginal communities
combined with the relative ease of on-reserve research funding have inextricably linked FAS/E with the
Aboriginal Community. Given that children can only be affected by alcohol in utero, blame is often placed
exclusively on the birth mother. Since the 'discovery' of FAS/E in 1968, the medical field has conducted the
majority of research. Although invaluable, it has done little to further our understanding of the socio-
epidemiological aspects of this syndrome. The historical relationship between alcohol and Aboriginals,
social factors, biased diagnosis and colonization all play fundamental roles in understanding the genesis of
FAS/E in the Aboriginal Community. Interviews with an Aboriginal birth mother who drank throughout her
pregnancies, her mother who attended residential schools and her daughter, provide a personal and
intergenerational look at the malaise underlying FAS/E.
[The term 'birth mother' is used in this paper to denote a woman who has given birth to a child affected by
alcohol and/or who has consumed alcohol during her pregnancy. Although many writers use this term strictly
for mothers who have given birth to a child affected by alcohol in utero, because my interest is more in
discovering the determinants that would lead a woman to drink during her pregnancy than whether she gave
birth to a child affected by alcohol, I use the term as stated above.]
Lofton, Teresa C. (2000) "Reclaiming an American Indian identity: The ethnic renewal of the Lower Muskogee
Creeks." Ph.D. Dissertation, Georgia State University. 521 pp.
Research indicating that racial-ethnic identity may be situational and flexible, rather than wholly ascribed
and inflexible, is especially pertinent to analysis of American Indian identity. Scholars have analyzed the
demographic and political aspects of the increased number of persons in the US who currently identify as
Indians, but did not identify as Indians in the past. However, less is known about the motivations of this
population as it relates to a mixed-race heritage, or the social psychological and cultural dimensions of their
ethnic resurgence. To help fill in that gap, I have examined how and why some persons living in the Southeast
shift to or renew and affirm an American Indian identity, as well as their responses when other people reject
their identity claims. The impetus for this study was the controversy that developed when Georgia recognized
three state Indians tribes in 1993, one of which was the Lower Muskogee Creek Tribe of Cairo, Georgia.
This research uses document analysis and in-depth observation of and interviews with members of the Lower
Muskogee Creeks as well as their opponents, primarily members of federally recognized tribes living in
Georgia. My findings and conclusions are that state government, in addition to federal Indian policies, are
playing a significant role in the ethnic mobilization of nonfederally recognized Indian tribes; and that while
many people think the primary motive behind efforts to be identified as Indian is financial gain (e.g., money
from gaming, land claims settlements, affirmative action benefit), other processes related to ethnohistorical
perceptions, self-meanings, community group dynamics and culture production are more explanatory.
Longhi, Gabriel R. (1999 ) "Cross-cultural substance abuse treatment: Clinical pathways to healing Native Americans
and ourselves." Psy.D. Dissertation, Widener University, Institute for Graduate Clinical Psychology. 182 pp.
This dissertation serves as a template for incorporating culturally sensitive clinical practices in the treatment
of substance abuse and dependence for Native Americans. These practices require not only a knowledge of
the differing world views between the Indian and dominant cultures, but a genuine desire to learn about one's
self and the underlying universality of the human race. In line with the goal of cross-cultural psychology to
understand these universal themes, this work has the dual purpose of treating Native Americans for
substance abuse and encouraging western clinicians to question the assumptions about human nature that we
usually take for granted. Only then may healers fully empathize with the collective grief and trauma
embedded in the history of the American Indian culture.
Native Americans share many problems that are inextricably tied to substance abuse, including poverty,
virtual loss of personal and cultural identity, diabetes, tuberculosis, high suicide and homicide rates,
malnutrition, and so on. For this reason, a biopsychosocial understanding of the substance abuse epidemic
among Native Americans is detailed. This understanding provides a culture specific framework for treatment
planning and interventions that may be useful to Native Americans, who generally have not benefited from
conventional treatment strategies. Methods of building a therapeutic alliance and a culturally relevant
context for service provision are also included.
Although this work is intended primarily to provide services for Native Americans, some discussion is
additionally provided about the value of Native American philosophy to western culture, which may be useful
for augmenting a clinician's ability to conceptualize thoroughly case formulations for any clients.
Losey, Robert J. (2002) "Communities and catastrophe: Tillamook response to the AD 1700 earthquake and tsunami,
northern Oregon coast." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Oregon. 636 pp.
Since Euro-American settlement, the southern Northwest Coast of North America has not experienced a large
magnitude earthquake. An extensive body of geological evidence, however, suggests large earthquakes have
repeatedly struck the region throughout the Holocene. The Cascadia Subduction Zone, an area of converging
tectonic plates off the southern British Columbia, Washington, Oregon, and northern California coasts,
generates these earthquakes, causing subsidence of coastal lands and producing large tsunamis. The most
recent earthquake and tsunami occurred in January, AD 1700. I examine the effects of these events on the
Tillamook people and environments of Netarts and Nehalem bays, now located in Tillamook County, Oregon.
Archaeologists have suggested that the AD 1700 earthquake and tsunami caused destruction and
abandonment of Native settlements, disturbed shellfish and fish populations upon which people relied, and
altered coastal landscapes. Earthquakes and tsunamis have been portrayed as catastrophes for Native
peoples. To assess Tillamook susceptibility to these natural hazards, I evaluate the ethnohistoric and
ethnographic records of Netarts and Nehalem bays. I also analyze oral traditions of earthquakes and
tsunamis from the southern Northwest Coast to assess Native perceptions, explanations, and responses to
these hazards. This study is the first to involve archaeological fieldwork designed to assess the effects of
Cascadia earthquakes and tsunamis on Native peoples. Sites occupied around AD 1700 on Netarts and
Nehalem bays were investigated to refine their chronologies of occupation and gather information about
subsistence and landscape changes. I also re-examined previously excavated materials from two sites on
Netarts Bay.
I suggest that the AD 1700 earthquake and tsunami were not completely disastrous for Tillamook
communities of Netarts and Nehalem bays. Radiocarbon dates provide little evidence for the sites'
abandonment following the earthquake and tsunami. Faunal data from Netarts Bay suggest that small fish,
mussels, and terrestrial mammals were more intensively used following the earthquake. At Nehalem Bay,
people continued to rely heavily on salmon after AD 1700. People at both estuaries continued to occupy low
elevation, hazardous areas following the earthquake and tsunami. Southern Northwest Coast peoples and
coastal environments may have been more resilient to these hazards than previously portrayed.
Loth, Christine. (1996) "The inherent right policy: A blending of old and new paradigm ideas." M.A. Thesis, Carleton
University. 189 pp.
The purpose of this research is to examine whether or not a new aboriginal self-government policy paradigm
has emerged. In August 1995, the federal government released a new policy on aboriginal self-government
entitled The Government of Canada's Approach to Implementation of the Inherent Right and the Negotiation
of Aboriginal Self-Government. In adopting this policy the federal government acted on its promise to
implement self-government for aboriginal people and views this policy as the cornerstone of its approach to
build new partnerships with aboriginal people. The intent of this thesis is to demonstrate that while this
policy is representative of a shift in the self-government policy paradigm it does not represent a new
paradigm. An examination of this policy will show that while ideologically it represents a new policy
approach to implementing self-government for aboriginal people it falls short of creating a new self-
government policy paradigm.
Loughran, Neil E. (1998) "A study of three federal government programs that financed economic and business
development projects in communities of northern Manitoba with substantial Aboriginal populations." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of Manitoba (The). 619 pp.
This dissertation investigates the environment, activities and outcomes of three economic development
programs delivered by the Government of Canada to communities of rural, northern Manitoba having
substantial Aboriginal populations. These programs, delivered by different sections of essentially one
evolving agency, operated over a 19 year period from 1971 to 1989. The research contains both exploratory
and quasi-experimental components. Government and client socioeconomic environments are described
qualitatively and quantitatively. Qualitative data collected through review of administrative files reveal
processes of program design, operational patterns and change. Qualitative and quantitative data from nearly
1,600 applications for business financing are used to generate descriptive and analytical statistics
concerning characteristics of applicants; the project intent of applicants; program response processes,
decisions, and outputs; and project outcomes. Activity flows and attrition rates are explored within a causal
systems model. Measures of applicant capacity, and outcome effectiveness and efficiency are applied to
project data. Strengths, weaknesses and crucial tradeoffs in program design, given pressures and constraints
imposed by the programs' environment, are uncovered. Project and program activity characteristics
associated with higher business and employment payoffs are differentiated from project and program activity
characteristics associated with lower business and employment payoffs. Points-of-interest and propositions
are formulated from literature in the fields of economic development, public policy, and organizational
structure and operation. Study findings are brought to bear on the not-testable, points-of-interest.
Propositions are tested as formal hypotheses against descriptive and analytical statistics.
Louie, Meyer A. (1996) "Visionary leadership from a Native American perspective: A leadership profile of the Coeur
d'Alene Indian tribe." Ph.D. Dissertation, Gonzaga University. 206 pp.
The purpose of this ethnographic study was to explore the meaning and importance of vision in Native
American leadership and how one Indian tribe in northern Idaho, the Coeur d'Alene Tribe, created,
developed, and implemented vision. Through an inductive process, a Native American perspective of
visionary leadership was developed.
Five vision phenomena (vision meaning, importance, creation, development, and implementation) were
explored. Data were collected from transcribed interviews, field notes, and relevant documentation. Six tribal
leaders participated in the study. They included the Tribal Chairman, three Tribal Council members, and two
elders. Data were coded, analyzed, and sorted via computer software. The study's findings were summarized
and synthesized via a conceptually clustered matrix.
Significant findings included: (a) spirituality emerged as a vision attribute and vision source; (b)
empowerment emerged as the vision focus; (c) tribal members became empowered through self-sufficiency,
land repurchase, and education; (d) tribal vision was culturally-born, culturally- and spiritually-based; and,
(e) leaders demonstrated commitment to tribal vision by being servant leaders. Other tribes could benefit
from the Coeur d'Alene Tribe by: (a) revitalising their past leadership legacy; (b) regenerating traditional
ceremonies; (c) eliminating divisiveness within the tribe and council; (d) demonstrating commitment to vision
through courage and risk-taking; (e) retraining or replacing a leader who is ineffective in legitimising vision;
and, (f) nurturing both traditional values and modern progress. Future research could benefit from
diversifying the sample, conducting a longitudinal study to examine vision development, and developing
quantitative instruments to expand on qualitative findings across several tribes.
Love, Elizabeth A. (2002 ) "A nation is not conquered until the hearts of its women are on the ground." M.A. Thesis,
California State University, Dominguez Hills. 149 pp.
The transformation of the role of women in Native American culture from equal value to subservience was a
precursor to the cultural genocide of the overall culture by the US government. Paula Gunn Allen presents
and explains this theory. This project is an application of Gunn Allen's thesis to a case study of the US
government's policy toward the Navajo tribe between 1847 and 1928. It examines the methods that the
government used to attack the Navajo tribe, specifically the traditional role of Navajo women, during three
distinct periods of time: the Navajo Wars, the Long Walk Era, and turn of the century Indian education.
Through warfare, relocation, and assimilation the US government attempted to change the role of women
from political and social equals who had control of their bodies, their lineage, and their homes to a role
where their whole purpose was to serve in a male-dominated society.
Luna-Gordinier, Anne M. M. (2004) "Stalking in Indian country: Enhancing tribal sovereignty through culturally
appropriate remedies." M.A. Thesis, University of Arizona (The). 80 pp.
Stalking is a complex social problem that pervades all levels of American society. Statistics established by the
National Violence Against Women Survey show that Native American women are stalked at a rate at least
twice that of any other racial group. A widely held belief exists that prior to colonization, stalking and
domestic violence were uncommon in native cultures. Regardless of the rates of incidence, tribal nations and
families once successfully regulated issues of intimate violence in culturally specific ways. The imposition of
hierarchical legal and social structures ties the hands of tribes to do what is right for their people. An
approach to this problem is the empowerment of tribal entities to create and enforce culturally appropriate
modes of resolution. Once tribes set about creatively utilizing the Violence Against Women Act there will be a
multitude of tactics will address stalking crimes on the reservation and further tribal sovereignty.
Lutz, John S. (1995) "Work, wages and welfare in aboriginal/non-aboriginal relations, British Columbia, 1849-1970."
Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Ottawa. 400 pp.
This dissertation focuses on the work-for-pay exchange between aboriginal people and immigrants of
European stock -- the two most prominent cultural groups in the early history of British Columbia -- and
follows the patterns of this exchange from its origins through to the 1970s. It examines both the material and
the rhetorical construction of the 'Indian' as a part of British Columbia's labour force, a process described as
racialization, and emphasizes, as well, the transformation of meaning inherent in cross-cultural exchange. It
is a province-wide analysis, the core of which is a micro-history of one aboriginal group, the Songhees
people, who live in the area now occupied by Victoria, the capital city. This examination challenges the long-
standing view that aboriginal people were bystanders in the economic development and industrialization of
British Columbia outside, and after, the fur trade. From the establishment of the Colony of Vancouver Island
in 1849, through Confederation with Canada in 1871 and to the 1885 completion of the Canadian Pacific
Railway, aboriginal people comprised the majority of the population in present-day British Columbia, and
the majority of the work force in agriculture, fishing, trapping and the burgeoning primary industries. This
dissertation charts the subsequent decline in participation of aboriginal people in the capitalist economy
from 1885 to 1970. Using a micro-historical study and close attention to aboriginal voices it offers a set of
explanations for the changing proportions of work, both paid and unpaid, and state welfare payments. The
micro-history reveals that the Songhees people engaged in two distinct but connected economies and were
already familiar with forms of labour subordination prior to the European introduction of a capitalist
economy. The Songhees participation in paid labour for Europeans was facilitated by these existing forms of
labour organization and depended on the co-existence of their other economies; the Songhees used earnings
from capitalist paid labour to expand their non-capitalist economies. After 1885, new state policies repressed
the non-capitalist aboriginal economics and therefore diminished the underlying motivation for aboriginal
participation in capitalist work. At the same time, an influx of labour-market competition and a variety of
racialized laws and practices restricted the Songhees' ability to get work. Increasingly they were left with
seasonal, low-skill and low-wage labour, a niche that maintained them so long as it was combined with a
subsistence economy and involved the full participation of adult and adolescent family members. In the late
1940s and 1950s this pattern too was remade. Legal restrictions dramatically limited the subsistence
economies; technological change curtailed the demand for seasonal labour in the canning, fishing and
agricultural sectors, particularly affecting aboriginal women workers; and, compulsory schooling
regulations began to reduce labour available to the family economy. At the same historic moment when the
combined wage and subsistence economies ceased to be able to support them, the state extended some
existing social welfare programs, such as Old Age Pension, to Indians, and expanded other programs,
including Family Allowance, to all Canadians. In examining the patterns of aboriginal-non-aboriginal
exchange relations over the long-term, this dissertation argues that high rates of unemployment and welfare-
dependency among contemporary aboriginal communities are relatively recent historical phenomena, with
observable roots and causes.
Lux, Maureen K. (1996) "Beyond biology: Disease and its impact on the Canadian Plains native people, 1880-1930."
Ph.D. Dissertation, Simon Fraser University. 430 pp.
The impact of disease and the demographic collapse of native communities has often been seen as a 'natural',
albeit horrendous, consequence of the New World encounter between native people and Europeans. Non-
immune Native groups quickly succumbed to little-understood epidemics in this 'biological invasion' that set
off a terrible cycle of cultural and ultimately spiritual collapse. The theory discounts the military, economic,
and political invasions that accompanied the biological invasion. This study examines the history of health
and disease of the Canadian Plains native people in the immediate post-treaty period from 1880-1930. The
loss of their bison economy dealt a severe economic blow, while government limited food rations and
material aid to forestall pauperization. Death rates from influenza, measles, whooping cough, tuberculosis,
infant and maternal mortality soared. Native people called for economic solutions to their clearly-recognized
diseases of poverty. They approached the Euro-Canadian medical care cautiously and selectively since it was
made to shoulder the assimilationist goals of the government. Native people persisted in their indigenous
ceremonies, despite government repression, because those ceremonies offered the regeneration and renewal
necessary to conceptualize their changed social, economic and health status. This study is based on the
archival collections of the federal government's department of Indian Affairs, church bodies and manuscripts.
A concerted effort has been made to incorporate the voices of the native people, whether those voices were
collected in memoirs or buried in the government records.
Lytwyn, Victor P. (1993) "The Hudson Bay Lowland Cree in the fur trade to 1821: A study in historical geography."
This is a study of the indigenous people of the Hudson Bay Lowlands, known as the Lowland Cree. The time
period is coincident with the European fur trade period in the region from about 1670 to 1821. A review of
the archaeological literature has also been included to establish that aboriginal people occupied the region
long before Europeans arrived. The fact that the Lowland Cree lived in the Hudson Bay Lowlands before the
arrival of European fur traders is an important element in understanding developments in the post-European
contact period. It is also important because it is contrary to the prevailing view in the literature that the
resources within the region could not support aboriginal people without assistance from the European
traders.
A methodological framework for the study is consistent with traditional approaches in historical geography.
A central theme is the relationship between the Lowland Cree and the natural environment. The examination
of the human/land interface in the Hudson Bay Lowlands has shown that these people adapted successfully to
developments in the fur trade until major transformations to the natural resource base occurred in the late
18th and early 19th century.
Contrary to the prevailing view in the literature, most Lowland Cree did not become quickly dependent on
the European fur traders. Until the late 18th century many Lowland Cree favoured traditional pursuits over
involvement in the commercial trade and wage labour activities. The smallpox epidemic in 1782-83 was a
major factor in bringing the Lowland Cree into a more intensive involvement in the fur trade. Contributing to
the post-smallpox adaptations among the Lowland Cree was the rapid expansion of the Hudson Bay
Company's inland trading networks. Unusual climatic conditions also played a role in reducing the
availability of traditional subsistence and commercial resources. The decline in the caribou population was
especially critical in prompting many Lowland Cree to migrate outside of their traditional homelands. By
1821, the competitive fur trade period had ended throughout much of the Canadian SubArctic, and monopoly
conditions provided a check against major fur trade developments.
Macdonald, Mary Ellen. (2004) "Hearing (unheard) voices: Aboriginal experiences of mental health policy in
Montréal." Ph.D. Dissertation, McGill University. 353 pp.
The focus of this dissertation is the mental health experiences of aboriginal people in Montréal as they
interface with health policy, and lack thereof, for this population. Drawing on anthropological fieldwork
from Montréal, Eastern Québec, and Ontario, this thesis endeavours to unravel the jurisdictional tapestry
that aboriginal clients must negotiate when seeking services in Montréal. Using an ethnographic
methodology, this project provides an understanding of the ordering of health services for aboriginal clients
from street-level to policy offices. This thesis draws on three theoretical areas (theories of illness,
aboriginality, and public policy) to explicate four themes that emerge from the data. Analysis moves along a
continuum between the illness experience and the macro-social determinants of politics and bureaucracy that
impact the health of the individual as well as support and organize systems of care. Discussion of Theme #1
(evolution of mental health and wellness categories in health theory, policy and practice) and Theme #2 (the
culture concept in health policy) demonstrates that despite the progressive evolution of concepts in health
theory and policy, Aboriginal people generally do not find services in Montréal that provide culturally-
sensitive, holistic care. Discussion of Theme #3 (barriers to wellness created by jurisdiction) argues that
jurisdictional barriers prevent clients' access to even the most basic and rudimentary services and that such
barriers can actually disable and increase distress. Discussion of Theme #4 (<aboriginal-specific services)
looks at the pros and cons of creating an aboriginal-specific health centre in Montréal. Together, these four
themes show that understanding aboriginal people in Montréal requires contextualizing their embodied
experience within the colonial history and institutional racism which characterizes many healthcare
interactions, and clarifying the bureaucracy that complicates the search for well-being. Montréal's
aboriginal problematic is located in a system characterized by entrenched bureaucracy, jurisdictional
complexity and injustice, these elements mapping onto aboriginal reality with serious repercussions for
individual identity and well-being. Hearing the voices of aboriginal people in Montréal as they seek out care
for mental health problems requires the resolution of jurisdictional and policy clashes that currently silence
their suffering. This thesis endeavours to advance this crucial social agenda.
MacMahon, Sandra V. (2003) "Tuberculosis, the Navajos, and western healthcare providers, 1920-60." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of New Mexico (The). 357 pp.
Tuberculosis was the leading cause of death in the United States in 1900. By the 1920s mortality rates in the
general population were decreasing significantly, a decline that had begun around 1850. This study explores
the presence of tuberculosis among the Navajos between 1920 and 1960. It describes and analyzes the
ineffective communication between the Navajos and Western healthcare providers and the underestimation
by Federal officials of the importance of traditional culture in Dine lives. It argues that 1930s livestock
reduction ordered by Commissioner of Indian Affairs John Collier contributed significantly to the mental
anguish and malnutrition among the population and had a negative impact on the tribe's subsistence
economy. The poverty ensuing from herd reduction resulted in an increased susceptibility to tuberculosis and
other diseases. These events occurred in an era when tuberculosis morbidity rates in New Mexico and
Arizona were the highest in the country and when the Navajos, who had not been disease-free, were
experiencing increased contact with off-reservation inhabitants.
Crowding, wretched diets, and inadequate healthcare at boarding schools also led many Navajo children to
contract the disease. Physicians sent children with tuberculosis home, which spread the infection to their
families. During the 1930s, communications improved between the Navajos and more culturally sensitive
physicians, resulting in increased Navajo acceptance of care. However, health care availability and mutual
respect declined precipitously during World War II. Progress nearly ceased in tuberculosis efforts. By 1953
tuberculosis was epidemic among the Navajos.
Cultural misunderstanding by health professionals, and Federal officials as well, contributed to the longevity
of the tuberculosis issues within the tribe. A central tenet of Navajo belief is that everything in life is
connected and to be well is to live in harmony. Navajos eagerly sought benefit of other cultures that could
meld with their own, allowing them to maintain their traditions even as they utilized Western Health care.
This study demonstrates that Indian Service officials believed tuberculosis was a disease that simply required
a medical solution. Instead, it demanded social solutions and cultural respect, as well, of the Navajos and the
medical community alike.
MacNabb, Valerie A. (2003) "Guatemalan women and the struggle for political transition." Ph.D. Dissertation,
In a broad sense, the Guatemalan experience as related in this thesis confirms the importance of women, both
indigenous and non-indigenous, to understanding the dynamics of peace-building, and points to problems
confronted during a political transition in a multi-ethnic country. Guatemalan women's participation in
transition politics, influenced by ethnic tensions, rural-urban divisions, racism, political violence and a
'culture of fear' add a vital dimension to discussions of democratization and gender politics in Latin America.
The central argument is that women have opened political space and contributed to an emerging democratic
culture in Guatemala. This thesis takes as its starting point the civilian elections of 1985 through the Peace
Accords of 1996 and ends in 2002. There is no one monolithic women's movement. There are many
organizations working to achieve different goals, with some using gender as a means of analyzing their lives,
politically and personally, while others are using their identity as Maya, mothers, sisters and survivors. One
unified women's movement would mean that some voices were being silenced, a continuation of one people's
history of subjugation of another. But despite the fracturing, there are points of convergence and
commonality, such as the protection of human rights, cessation of violence against women, promotion of
education, and opposition to the military. This thesis separately examines the participation of female human
rights activists, indigenous women, guerrilleras, feminists, and then explores how all these women came
together through collective action in the Women's Forum.
Mader, Christina. (1996) "Reverence for the ordinary: A reciprocal inquiry into stories of local knowledge and teacher
education on a traditional Cree reserve." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Alberta. 300 pp.
For two decades I have heard the lament "We are not meeting the needs of our native students. School has no
meaning for them." I want to know what does. My inquiry takes me to the northern Alberta Cree community
of John D'or Prairie. From 1993 until 1996 I am a periodic visitor, researcher, and friend in the lives and
stories of seven traditional educators. Helped by the work of Trinh (1989), I keep an open agenda. I ask,
'What is important for people to know around here?' Through photography, storytelling, modeling, or simply
going about ordinary tasks, each participant responds in her own fashion. We examine local knowledge
(O'Brien and Flora, 1992) from within face-to-face reciprocal relationships. Thus, in a culture where
answers to questions are not always spoken, I study local knowledge, how I gain it, who gives it away, and
under what conditions. Narrative research methods (Clandinin and Connelly, 1994) tie my work to prior
knowledge. As the teacher who is being educated, I notice how understanding comes in indirect ways from a
realm of Oneness (Boice, 1992), across time, and on various levels -- the physical, spiritual, emotional, and
cognitive. This lets me connect new insights to some very old Cree ways of educating teachers. I make
contemporary home-to-school connections and explore an approach to curriculum where bi-polar opposites
are conspicuous in their absence-learning/teaching is a single concept. What emerges is an affirmation of the
wisdom of indigenous traditions. In John D'or Prairie, people cherish the ordinary things that they do for and
with each other. At a traditional community celebration, and in a companion dissertation, we share this local
knowledge in a photography exhibit. We show how children learn reverence for the ordinary, the future, the
land, the spiritual, the old ways, and the old people. Reverence means an attitude of deep respect and esteem
mingled with affection (Kellerman, 1975). We add fun. Local protocol and the metaphor of a Giving Circle
guide our study.
Mahony, Ben D. (2002) ""Disinformation and smear": The use of state propaganda and military force to suppress
aboriginal title at the 1995 Gustafsen Lake standoff." M.A. Thesis, University of Lethbridge. 269 pp.
In the summer of 1995, 18 protesters came into armed conflict with over 400 RCMP officers and soldiers in
central British Columbia. The conflict escalated into one of the costliest police operations in Canadian
history.
Many accounts of aboriginal aggression provided by the RCMP are not consistent with evidence disclosed at
the trial of the protesters. Moreover, the substance of the legal arguments at the heart of the Ts' Peten
Defenders' resistance received little attention or serious analysis by state officials, police or the media.
The RCMP constructed the Ts' Peten Defenders as terrorists and downplayed the use of state force that
included military weaponry, land explosives and police snipers, who received orders to shoot to kill. Serious
questions remain about the role of the RCMP, who acted as the enforcement arm of state policies designed to
constrain the effort to internationalize the Aboriginal title question.
Mail, Patricia D. (1996) "Cultural orientation and positive psychological status as protective factors against problem
behaviours in southwestern American Indian adolescents." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Maryland
College Park. 350 pp.
In national studies, the adolescent population with the greatest prevalence of problem behaviours, including
alcohol consumption, smoking marijuana, use of inhalants, sexual activity and arrests, are American Indians.
Various strategies have been proposed to prevent or delay the onset of problem behaviours. Among strategies
frequently mentioned in the literature are strengthening participation in traditional cultural activities and
increasing support for the family.
This investigation is a secondary data analysis based on a school-administered survey of 3,313 Apache,
Navajo and Pueblo Indian youth in New Mexico. The measures used in this analysis include psychological
status (measured by responses to locus of control, satisfaction with life, social support, self-esteem,
resentment, and depression); family function, using the social indicators of unemployment, drinking history,
divorce/separation and foster placement of children; and cultural orientation.
Results of the analysis using t-tests, chi square, analysis of variance, and logistic regression showed that
cultural orientation, positive psychological status, and absence of family dysfunction are significantly
associated with non-participation in problem behaviours. A non-traditional cultural orientation was found to
be more protective than adherence to a traditional orientation. Psychological scales measuring Satisfaction
with Life and Resentment, along with parental drinking and driving, separation or divorce, foster home
experience, and gender of the student were found, in combination, to be the best predictors of problem
behaviour. The greatest single predictor of problem behaviour for this sample was tribal membership.
Strategies for utilizing findings from this study are discussed, along with their implications for both
individual and community prevention program planning.
Mainville, Robert. (1999 ) "Compensation in cases of infringement to aboriginal and treaty rights." LL.M. Thesis,
This paper discusses the legal principles which are relevant in determining the appropriate level of
compensation for infringements to aboriginal and treaty rights. This issue has been left open by the Supreme
Court of Canada in the seminal case of Delgamuukw. The nature of aboriginal and treaty rights as well as
the fiduciary relationship and duties of the Crown are briefly described. The basic constitutional context in
which these rights evolve is also discussed, including the federal common law of aboriginal rights and the
constitutional position of these rights in Canada. Having set the general context, the paper then reviews the
legal principles governing the infringement of aboriginal and treaty rights, including the requirement for just
compensation. Reviews of the legal principles applicable to compensation in cases of expropriation and of
the experience in the United States in regards to compensation in cases of the taking of aboriginal lands are
also carried out. Six basic legal principles relevant for determining appropriate compensation in cases of
infringement to aboriginal and treaty rights are then suggested, justified and explained: (a) compensation is
to be determined in accordance with a methodology which takes into account fiduciary law principles; (b)
compensation is to be determined in accordance with federal common law and will thus be governed by rules
which apply uniformly throughout Canada; (c) compensation is to be assumed by the Crown but may be paid
by third parties; (d) relevant factors in determining compensation include the impact on the affected
aboriginal community and the benefits derived by the Crown and third parties from the infringement; (e)
compensation is to be provided through structured compensation schemes which need not mathematical
accuracy tests; and, (f) compensation is normally to be awarded for the benefit of the affected aboriginal
community as a whole.
Makokis, Leona J. (2001) "Teachings from Cree elders: A grounded theory study of indigenous leadership." Ed.D.
Dissertation, University of San Diego. 237 pp.
For the past 250 years, the relationship between First Nations and Euro-Canadians, has shifted from an
equal partnership to one of colonized and colonizer. Despite this history, First Nations people have shown
resiliency, continuing to honour beliefs, values, and traditions. Constrained by Euro-Canadian government
Indian Affairs polices, First Nations have not progressed economically or politically, but have been caught in
the trap of administering their own poverty. The First Nations people are dying a slow death; thus, it is
critical to examine their current reality, acknowledging that history does not begin with the arrival of the
Europeans, but that the beliefs, values, and philosophies of the First Nations are embedded in their culture.
Using a grounded theory approach, this study attempted to answer two questions: What are the core values
and beliefs of the Cree people? And, how can these beliefs be used to reshape the Cree self-governance
systems? To address these questions multiple, in-depth, and focus group interviews were held with seven
First Nations members, all of whom speak Cree and are leaders from the Saddle Lake First Nations reserve.
This study captured the stories of the Cree elders which included the gift of spirit and responsibility to the
land that is embedded in the Cree language and the traditional knowledge that guides daily lives which
dwells in the ceremonies. The voices of the participants explained that the imposition of the European
systems of individualism, accumulation, and capitalism have contributed to the methodological and
deliberate destruction of the core values and beliefs of the First Nations culture. Participants provided
personal experiences of the colonial policies which have left them and their communities in the oppressed
and dependent state they find themselves. However, the reawakening of First Nations ceremonies is one
example of a resurgent force that is playing a central role in reclaiming the Cree gift and responsibility as
First Nations people.
Makokis, Patricia A. (2000) "An insider's perspective: The dropout challenge for Canada's First Nations." Ed.D.
Dissertation, University of San Diego. 232 pp.
This modified case study honours the voices of 21 Cree participants, including nine students, six parents, four
community leaders and two Elders. This study, written from an insider's perspective, identified more than 50
reasons why First Nations students dropped out of three provincial high schools located in northern Alberta,
Canada.
The results were collapsed into several categories that can best be generalized as resulting from the effects of
colonization. Canada's First Nations have a long history of oppression, colonization, and the resultant soul
wounds.
The four participant groups collectively identified five common themes why students dropped out of
provincial high schools. The commonalities included racism/cultural conflict, poor student/staff relations,
marginalization, alienation, and systemic labelling. In addition, each group identified separate reasons:
students identified alienation, personal identity, and relationship concerns; parents identified distrust of the
education system, marginalization, and lack of involvement; the community leaders identified a sense of
powerlessness to initiate change and the intergenerational effects of residential school. The Elders also
recognized the intergenerational effects of residential school.
The data indicated provincial high school authorities have failed to acknowledge the role that Canadian
history has played and have not recognized the need to establish, and then maintain, positive relationships
within the First Nations community. In addition, participants felt authorities chose to exclude professional
development that would address, from a First Nations perspective, and the past genocidal attempts.
Most First Nation adult participants felt like outsiders in the education of their children, a feeling that has
perpetuated the sense of marginalization. The data suggested provincial school leaders including teachers,
administrators, and board members need to find creative ways to ensure provincial accountability and to
improve their with First Nations peoples.
Ironically, not one participant identified 'academic difficulties' as a reason for dropping out. While the
number of First Nations students leaving provincial high schools is high, eight of the nine student
participants in this study returned to school, thus indicating their resilient nature, despite the fact that most
left due to racial/cultural concerns.
Makokis, Ralph C. (1996) "Lands reserved for Indians: The issue of accountability." M.A. Thesis, University of
Alberta. 102 pp.
Under the terms of the constitution of Canada, the federal government is responsible for 'Indians and lands
reserved for Indians.' Two examples of how the government discharges that responsibility are described in
this work. The first takes up the issue of information that is necessary for sound fiscal accountability in the
context of the Department of Indian and Northern Affairs' accountability to both Parliament and Indian
bands. The second example is a review of a specific project, the Environmental Issues Inventory, that the
department initiated in 1990 as a result of a legislative and judicial requirement to review environmental
hazards on Indian reserve land. A common issue in both discussions is that accountability requires a sound
information base, and such an information base must be elaborate enough to account for the complexities
involved in self-government. In both examples, the lack of a systematic multi-resource data-base system is
implicated in deficiencies in accountability.
Mangelson Stander, Elon. (2000) "Strategies for survival through healing among Native American women: An urban
case study." Ph.D. Dissertation, Brigham Young University. 293 pp.
This study of Native American women residing in two Utah cities was conducted to examine patterns of
healing and recovery from several types of personal trauma. The research was conducted using ethnographic
techniques including participant observation and in-depth open-ended interviews. In addition, a preliminary
comparative analysis was made with a rural population on the Northern Cheyenne reservation in Montana.
Domestic abuse, sexual abuse, substance abuse, cultural oppression, grief and rejection/abandonment were
issues precipitating recovery among these American Indian women. The pattern of recovery emerging from
the study is a four stage model. In Stage 1, women came to recognize the need for recovery. A parental
imperative to care for dependent children was an important force for women's recognition of the need to
change. A central motif of the model is a personal commitment to survival through healing. Coming to this
decision represents Stage 2 and is essential for the recovery process to move forward. Constituting Stage 3,
strategies to direct and support the commitment to recovery are then selected from resources available. Six
strategies were most salient. Spirituality and religion seemed to be the most indispensable overall. Other
strategies were education, formal recovery programs or counselling, significant others or social networks,
relocation, and culture/roots. In Stage 4, recovery and healing results in self discovery, improved self-esteem
and improved social skills. Women also found themselves taking on new roles as a result of recovery.
Frequently, women in recovery turned to community. New personal strengths and skills were used to enhance
community resources as they reached out to help others through a variety of avenues including involvement
in the public schools, community outreach programs and those specifically targeting adult healing. Other
issues discussed are power and control, patterns of cultural revitalization and resistance to cultural erosion
and loss, generational patterns and urban identity issues. The urban-rural comparison showed, among other
findings, variations in the pattern of religious affiliation. Higher percentages of rural women were involved
with traditional spiritual practices. Recovery centres were more central to rural women's recovery compared
to urban women.
Manitowabi, Ronald J. (1991) "Native people and the informal economy: Implications to planning in the north." M.A.
Thesis, University of Waterloo. 190 pp.
A large percentage of the native population still continues to be involved in non-wage labour such as
hunting, fishing, and trapping, contributing to their subsistence. Governments have never attempted to
determine how many native persons continue to make subsistence a way of life, nor measure the products
obtained from hunting and gathering. These products never reach the open market, therefore most people are
unaware of their value. The native peoples' dependence on the land has generally been ignored by developers
and government agencies, including government planners who fail to recognize the importance of harvesting
to these people and the contribution country food makes to their lives. Due to the lack of sensitivity of native
cultures, these factors are not taken into consideration in the planning process. This study examines the
involvement of two northern Ontario native communities in the hunting and gathering economy. Mattagami is
semi-remotely located while Matachewan is situated close to urban development. A comparison is made, on a
per capita basis, of the volume of country food harvested by these two communities and hence, their
dependence on wildlife resources. The fact that native peoples continue to depend on wildlife resources for
subsistence raise questions on current planning practices, or the lack of planning, in the north.
Manson, Katherine J. (1994) "A discourse analysis: The media construction of Judy Rebick and Ovide Mercredi."
In this thesis, I examine the major ideological discourses that contribute to the meaning constructed in the
Globe and Mail's representation of Ovide Mercredi (Grand Chief of the Assembly of First Nations) and Judy
Rebick (then president of the National Action Committee on the Status of Women) during the campaign
leading up to the 26 October 1992 plebiscite on the proposed constitutional amendment. Ideological
discourses contributed to the identification of Mercredi and Rebick as newsworthy individuals, to the
privileging of particular aspects of their activities and concerns, and to the production of preferred readings
of their participation in the plebiscite campaign. Although not guaranteed acceptance by any or all of the
news audience, this preferred reading presents for the Globe and Mail's readers an interpretation that tends
to reproduce the dominant ideology that simultaneously naturalises forms of social inequality based on race
and gender while maintaining the illusion of an objective press reporting on a society built on consensually
held social values.
Manuta, Jessie B. (2001) "Negotiating the political economy of dispossession and commodification: Reclaiming and
regenerating the ancestral domains of the Lumad of Mindanao, southern Philippines." Ph.D. Dissertation,
University of Delaware. 232 pp.
The globalization of technology and markets has caused powerful and painful changes in the lives of
indigenous peoples worldwide. The encroachment of these modernizing forces threatens the survival of
indigenous cultures around the world. Yet, recent actions by indigenous peoples show that in the face of
colonization and threats of extinction and decimation, their struggle can bring forward an 'indigenous
consciousness' and facilitate the reconstitution of just, nourishing and sustainable social and ecological
relations.
Espousing a dialectical possibility of transformation in social reality through the interplay of ideas, culture
and material conflict, this dissertation looks at indigenous initiatives in negotiating the encroachment of
colonizing and modernizing forces. This dissertation investigates the dialectical interaction of colonization of
indigenous lands and spaces on one hand and the politics of the indigenous -- the politics of the periphery --
on the other hand.
A case study of the initiatives of the Subanen -- one of the indigenous groups of Mindanao, southern
Philippines -- is pursued. Secondary data regarding the initiatives of the Chipko movement in northern India,
the Ecuadorian indigenous movement, and the Mi'kmaq nation's struggle in Canada are explored to shed
further light on indigenous initiatives.
The research indicates that the initiatives to reclaim, rehabilitate and regenerate ancestral domains of the
indigenous around the world are crucial in re-establishing the integrity of cultural domains and material life-
sources of the indigenous. Reconstituting the integrity of their domains empowers the indigenous to create a
just, nourishing and sustainable world.
The dialectical challenge enunciated in this dissertation informs us that indigenous journeys toward a just,
nourishing and sustainable world are arduous and problematic. Solidarity among the indigenous and non-
indigenous alike remains an important platform as each group undertakes the rebuilding process in the face
of globalization forces that, ultimately, threaten the social and environmental integrity of all communities.
March, Chantal A. (2002) "The impact of the Marshall Decision on fisheries policy in Atlantic Canada." M.M.S.
Thesis, Memorial University of Newfoundland. 66 pp.
The Marshall Decision has had a significant impact on fisheries policy in Atlantic Canada. The Government
of Canada through its Department of Fisheries and Oceans has negotiated agreements with most of the
Mi'kmaq and Malecite First Nations affected by this decision. The federal government has provided funding
to pay for a voluntary buy-back program for fishing licences, gear and to provide training for aboriginal
communities. Non-aboriginals negatively impacted by the Marshall Decision have received no compensation
and feel that their needs and concerns are being ignored. Most aboriginal communities feel the Marshall
Decision represents new opportunities for employment and training and the opportunity to build and foster
pride in themselves and their heritage. The Marshall Decision may also lay the groundwork for negotiations
with the federal and provincial governments to provide access to other industries and resources. The
government still needs to ensure that long term training in the industry is available for all, that compensation
is given to those forced to leave the industry and greater consultation is initiated with all affected groups.
Unfortunately, the fishery is still a volatile industry. If resources or markets decline, there is no easy solution
to insure that aboriginals and non-aboriginals maintain the right to earn a moderate livelihood from the
fishing industry.
Markey, Nola M. (2001) "Data 'gathering dust': An analysis of traditional use studies conducted within aboriginal
communities in British Columbia." M.A. Thesis, Simon Fraser University. 172 pp.
This thesis is concerned with Traditional Use Studies (TUS's), which represent aboriginal land use and
occupancy studies that developed through British Columbia government policy. Aboriginal rights issues and
legal decisions during the 1990s. A major question of concern is the degree to which aboriginal interests
regarding rights to land and the protection of cultural and environmental interests were represented by
Traditional Use Studies. In analyzing public politics surrounding such Traditional Use Studies, along with
aboriginal community research efforts and concerns about land use studies, this thesis is directed by
anthropological concepts that deal With the study of bureaucracies on the one hand, and the study of
aboriginal title and rights to land on the other.
I begin this thesis with an examination of court decisions that inform the current status quo of land use and
occupancy studies in British Columbia. Following that, I examine the history of land use and occupancy
studies, in both concept and methodology, as these have attempted to map out Canadian aboriginal peoples'
use of the land since the 1960s. This is followed by a critical examination of the Traditional Land Use Study
Project in British Columbia, as deriving from court decisions -- in particular the 1993 Delgamuukw Court of
Appeals decision -- and public policy concerns over land use and resource extraction issues. Following this, I
investigate how these policies were implemented, and what research they resulted in, by way of an
examination of three case studies of particular land use and occupancy studies, two of which are TUS's
facilitated through British Columbia Ministry of Forests. Throughout this, I present information about
Traditional Use Studies, concerns about methodologies and the results they achieved, as reflected on by
political leaders, practitioners and government bureaucrats.
A central thesis of this work is that while the TUS projects purport to involve "consultation" with First Nation
communities, they also bureaucratize the process and product of data gathering on aboriginal land use and
occupancy. I also examine causes of the dissatisfaction expressed by aboriginal communities with Traditional
Use Studies as they were conducted in their communities. Among these issues includes the fact that TUS's
have, in both practiced methodologies and perceptions, almost exclusively focused on quantified, site-specific
inventories of land use by aboriginal peoples in British Columbia. To the effect that the term "Traditional
Use Study" has become almost entirely synonymous with site-specific mapping endeavours and inventory-
based research, they omit aboriginal voices in articulation of their histories, and in their concerns about the
land. This thesis thus explores the gap between the rhetoric stated in the TUS guidelines and the realities of
the implementation of the TUS model in aboriginal communities. I conclude by explaining aboriginal
interests in land use research projects and examine the role anthropology has played (or may play in the
future), in fostering aboriginal-government sponsored research and land use and occupancy studies.
Marquardt, Stephan. (1988) "The right to self-government of the aboriginal peoples of Canada under domestic and
international law." LL.M. Thesis, McGill University.
Marshall, Daniel P. (2000) "Claiming the land: Indians, goldseekers, and the rush to British Columbia." Ph.D.
During the Fraser River gold rush of 1858, over 30,000 goldseekers invaded the Aboriginal lands of southern
British Columbia, setting off Native-White conflicts similar to the Indian Wars of the American Pacific
Northwest. Prior to the establishment of the Colony of British Columbia, 19 November 1858, British
sovereignty was marginal and the Fraser gold fields clearly an extension of the American West. The Native
world was not defined by the 4nineth parallel, nor the kind of violence that crossed the international border
with the expansion of the California mining frontier. These goldseekers, in prosecuting military-like
campaigns, engaged in significant battles with First Nations, broke the back of full-scale Native resistance in
both southern British Columbia and eastern Washington State, and brokered Treaties of Peace on foreign
soil. The very roots of Native sovereignty, rights and unrest, current in the province today, may be traced to
the 1858 gold rush.
This dissertation maintains that British Columbia's 'founding' event has not been explored due to the
transboundary nature of the subject. It has little or no presence in Canadian historiography as presently
written. The year 1858 represents a period of exceptional flux and population mobility within an ill-defined
space. I argue that the key to the Fraser Rush is to be found south of the border: in geographic space (the
Pacific Slope) and in place (California mining frontier). It examines the three principal cultures that
inhabited the middle ground of the gold fields, those of the Fur Trade (Hudson's Bay Company and Native),
Californian, and British world views. The year 1858 represents a power struggle on the frontier: a struggle
of local Indian power, the entrance of an overwhelming outsiders' power, transplanted locally and directed
largely from California, and regional and long-distance British power. It is a clash of two “frontier”
creations: that of “California culture” and “fur trade culture” that not only produced violence but the
formal inauguration of colonialism, Indian reserves, and ultimately the expansion of Canada to the Pacific
Slope.
Marshall, Yvonne M. (1993) "A political history of the Nuu-Chah-Nulth people: A case study of the Mowachaft and
Muchalaht tribes." Ph.D. Dissertation, Simon Fraser University. 493 pp.
This thesis is a political history of the Nuu-Chah-Nulth people who live on the west coast of Vancouver Island
in British Columbia, Canada. The study spans the period from the earliest archaeological evidence of
occupation, at about 4,300 years ago, to the present day and draws on archaeological data, archival
documents, ethnographic studies and contemporary accounts of Nuu-Chah-Nulth society. The geographical
focus is both local and regional and moves back and forth between the regional Nuu-Chah-Nulth perspective
and a case study examination of the Nootka Sound area, home to the Mowachaht and Muchalaht tribes.
The thesis has two central objectives. The first is a very general one. By drawing together the full scope of
Nuu-Chah-Nulth political history onto a single canvas, the study strives for an integrated, post-colonial
account of this dynamic First Nation. The second more specific aim, is to identify and follow threads of
continuity within processes of change, rather than focus on events of alienation.
At first glance, contemporary Nuu-Chah-Nulth polity and society in general appear so radically different
from their pre-European precursors that the existence of fundamental continuities seems unlikely. However,
when continuity with the past is sought in an examination of the way change occurs, rather than in the
absence of change, the way in which modern Nuu-Chah-Nulth society is anchored in its past start to become
visible.
The thesis argues that strong threads of continuity link contemporary Nuu-Chah-Nulth polity with the
political structures and practices which operated prior to the arrival of Europeans. Some of these threads are
identified and followed from their distant origins in an ancient whale hunting society through two centuries
of contact and interaction with Europeans. The thesis concludes that the origins of the modern Nuu-Chah-
Nulth Tribal Council owe as much to a long indigenous history of confederative political organising and
consensus building as they do to modern Euro-Canadian inspired First Nations organizations. It is further
argued that it is these indigenous historical roots which give the Nuu-Chah-Nulth Tribal Council the
remarkable strength and coherence which so characterizes it today.
Martin, Donna E. (1997) "An ethnographic study examining quality of worklife issues of outpost nurses in northern
Manitoba." M.Nur. Thesis, University of Manitoba (The). 338 pp.
An ethnographic study was implemented to examine quality of worklife (QWL) issues of outpost nurses in
northern Manitoba. Fieldnotes were maintained during a ten day field experience to four outpost stations in
northern Manitoba in 1994. One to two hour semi-structured interviews were conducted with 5 aboriginal
and 6 non-aboriginal outpost nurses. Transcripts and field notes underwent content analysis to identify
categories and themes.
Findings indicated that outpost nursing was inundated with contradictions and conflicts. Outpost nurses
perceived that positive worklife factors outweighed the negative ones. They found personal fulfilment in
several aspects of their work. fulfilment was a major theme comprising the following worklife categories: (1)
attachment to clients; (2) learning on the job; (3) independence; (4) we do everything; (5) being the doctor;
(6) variety of patient needs; and, (7) providing quality care. Independence was the most significant positive
worklife factor.
Worklife issues that outpost nurses perceived negatively reflected a self image of powerlessness, which
contained the following categories: (1) isolation; (2) working and living together; (3) inadequate
preparation; (4) clients' dependence on the system; (5) massive responsibility; (6) understaffing; (7) never
really off; (8) living in fear; (9) lack of support from Zone Nursing Officers; (10) conflicts with physicians;
and, (11) 'it's very political up here.' 'It's very political up here,' understaffing, working and living together
were worklife factors that nurses perceived to strongly negatively affect their worklife. Aboriginal nurses
expressed that their knowledge of First Nations language and culture enhanced their practice. Non-
aboriginal outpost nurses demonstrated scepticism over authenticity of clients' health problems. Aboriginal
nurses spoke about a long-term commitment to outpost nursing; non-aboriginal nurses viewed outpost
nursing as a short-term experience. Aboriginal nurses participated in group and community activities while
their Non-Aboriginal colleagues tended to spend time off within the outpost station.
Martinez, Clara A. (2003 ) "Out of control: Resistance and compliance in the fight to conserve diversity in an Indian
education program." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Arizona (The). 186 pp.
This dissertation describes interactions between tribal and federal program bureaucrats of an education and
labour training program for Indian youth, and tribal members on a reservation in the western United States.
The goal of the program was to prepare Indian youth to enter the workforce through education, and training
and then maintain employment. This goal was undermined at the program site by non-Native executive
program personnel and tribal bureaucrats whose definition of 'success' and expectation of youth achievement
were culturally different than that of tribal youth workers and youth.
Systems in which Indian people participate are in many cases socially disruptive as well as psychologically
violent -- they are often, quite literally, 'out of control.' Yet indigenous communities resist compliance within
these systems. The focus of this study is on the complex nature of this historical matrix of power, control,
resistance, and compliance. This dissertation uses a combined focus of social and psychological analysis to
document the social history of Indian education administered as a ritual of assimilation, the bureaucratic
processes that constrain Indian people from using education as a ritual of empowerment, and critically
examines the people's resistance within the bureaucracies.
The primary research questions are: (a) What are the bureaucratic processes that hindered the youth
workers in successfully in advocating for their youth? (b) How do the youth workers resist these bureaucratic
machinations? Through participant and non participant observation and ethnographic interview I describe
how the bureaucratic processes which hinder collectively manifest from a deficit paradigm projected upon
the workers. The youth worker's most consistent form of resistance was to voice their opinions about what
was going on, and to explicitly name the actions of oppression.
Martinez, Glenabah M. (2003) "People say the American way is to be white... if you want to show your true colours,
screw the cap and gown: A critical ethnographic study of daily experiences of indigenous youth in an urban,
public high school." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Wisconsin -- Madison (The). 347 pp.
This study examines the impact of shifts of social, economic and political power on the daily experiences of
Indigenous youth in an urban, public high school. The comprehensive high school (grades nine to 12) was
located in a large, metropolitan area of the southwest in the United States. A critical ethnographic research
design was selected because it afforded a relational analysis approach to examining the data. Under the
umbrella of a relational analysis approach, three major concepts guided the analysis of the data: hegemony,
ideology, and selective traditions. Two theoretical frameworks -- the theories of nonsynchronous relations
and racial formation linked the three concepts.
The participants in this study were indigenous youth from diverse backgrounds: tribal origin, grade level,
gender, length of residence in the city, and varying degrees of cultural or tribal specific knowledge and
experiences. The data included field notes (observations at school-wide events, extracurricular activities, and
classrooms), transcripts of 29 interviews with indigenous students, three parents, and 18 faculty members
(teachers, counsellors and administrators), and documents collected from the high school, district office,
state department of education, and centres of national statistics. The data was coded to yield five major
themes on the construction of the educated native person as presented in chapter four. The data in chapter
five was organized along four relations that govern nonsynchronous relations (domination, exploitation,
competition, and cultural selection).
Conclusions suggest that structural and cultural factors shaped the curriculum form and content of the high
school's program of studies and extracurricular activities. At the foundation of these factors were systems
shaped by two periods of colonization (Spain and the United States). Consequently, tensions across racial,
cultural, gender and class lines had an impact on nonsynchronous relations in the high school and the city.
Recommendations include suggestions for further study of urbanization and the education of Indigenous
youth and development of a theoretical framework -- localized critical theory -- which includes a relation
that governs construction of sovereignty among indigenous peoples who live in urban areas. Finally, more
research must be conducted on the impact of mobility between urban and aboriginal homelands on the
educational experiences of indigenous youth.
Mascarenas, Oneida. (1991) "Indigenous movement behaviour: The rise and expansion of the Native American
movement." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Colorado at Boulder. 261 pp.
There is no question that Native Americans have faced a multitude of crisis since the arrival of the white
settlers. Thus, it is not surprising that hundreds of books and articles have been devoted to the topic of Native
Americans, and thousands of commentators have offered analysis and insights. Yet little of this work has
attempted to adequately assess the conflict between government and Indians generated in the 1960s. The
main objective of this work is to theoretically examine the rise and expansion of the movement in hopes of
adding the Native American movement to the social movement literature so that a political discourse may
follow.
This paper shows that a theoretical explanation of the emergence and development of native insurgency must
take into account the unique historical relationship between Native Americans and the US federal
government as well as the fact that the movement's demands were grounded in the philosophy of being
'indigenous.' Secondly, this paper illustrates that the basis of the movement was founded on the very idea that
Native Americans are culturally distinct and that this distinction should become the focus of an autonomous
political power. This distinction separates it from other movements, illustrates the importance of politicized
indigenism as a variable when shaping strategies, and in the end generated the heavy government
suppression which contributed to the movement's shift into the international arena.
Finally, through the use of three models: internal colonialism, political process, and international
organizations, and the supporting events database, collected from the New York Times index for a 25-year
period, I am able to explain the rise and expansion of movement behaviour.
Overall, the data provides me with an abundance of information on movement activities, issues, targets, and
demands. Thus, I was able to trace the rise of the domestic insurgency and the expansion of the conflict into
the international community.
Mason, Melanie S. (1998) "Listening to Native American voices from Wounded Knee, the Black Hills International
Survival Gathering and the Tlingit banishment." Ph.D. Dissertation, Wayne State University. 221 pp.
This dissertation describes Native American voices of three events in modern Native American history: The
Wounded Knee Take-over in 1973, the Black Hills International Survival Gathering in 1980, and the
banishment of two Tlingit Indians in 1994. The theoretical approach used is based in experiential criticism,
adopting both eclectic and epistemic modes of understanding, which focuses on the critic's response to the
discourse, and is primarily descriptive in nature, rather than evaluative. The study is based on the
assumption that current scholarly writing about Native Americans focuses on the stasis of Euro-American
and Native American dialogue which tends to evaluate rather than understand. This approach offers a richer
understanding of discourse from a culture different from one's own. The Native American voices in chapters
three through five describe the needs and plans for achieving sovereignty and self-determination. Chapter
three, which focuses on the Wounded Knee takeover in 1973, compares the Native American voices to the
stages of abusive relationships as most of the discourse focused on the feelings of abuse Native Americans
suffered at the hands of Euro-Americans. Chapter four employs the framework of analogic criticism to the
discourse of the Black Hills International Survival Gathering. The analogic approach compares this event to
the American Revolution. Chapter five describes the diverse voices arising from the Tlingit banishment. The
description of these voices is understood through the lens of narrative rationality and rhetorical silence.
Matlock, James G. (2002) "Registers of resistance and accommodation: The structuration of a Peruvian Amazonian
society." Ph.D. Dissertation, Southern Illinois University at Carbondale. 463 pp.
Anthony Giddens' structuration theory is mainly geared to late-capitalist state systems, but many of its
concepts offer much to the student of indigenous societies. This thesis is an exercise in the application
Giddens' ideas to an indigenous Amazonian society that seeks both to critique the theory and to show how it
can best be tailored for anthropological analysis.
The first part of the thesis traces the history of the Matses and their forebears. Before the Matses were
contacted by missionaries of the Summer Institute Linguistics (SIL) in 1969, they (and the broader linguistic
and cultural group of which they are a part, the Mayoruna) had a long history of European contact dating
back to the late 16th century. By 1969, Matses society had been extensively altered from its aboriginal
patterns. The SIL contact brought further changes, and these were the main subject of field research
conducted in the summer of 1995 and between September 1997 and December 1998.
Beginning about 1980, a few families began to leave the large SIL community and to move to riverine
locations closer to the border garrison town of Angamos. By 1997-98, the society was divided between SIL
and Angamos spheres of influence. The SIL/Angamos contrast is analyzed in Part II through a revised
version of structural contradiction, a fundamental principle of structuration theory.
As significant as the SIL/Angamos opposition had become by 1997-98, however, the two segments of the
society continued to be united by social interaction, including intermarriage. The identification of kinship
(specifically, the contrast between consanguines and affines) as the source of structural opposition in Matses
society (and small-scale indigenous societies more generally) in Part III is a key challenge to Giddens, who
considers small-scale societies to be so decentred that they lack structural contradiction of any sort.
Matt, Georgia L. (2002) "Internalizing symptoms in a sample of Native American adolescents." M.S. Thesis, Utah
State University. 62 pp.
Internalizing disorders can have negative effects ranging from diminished self-esteem to suicidal thoughts
and behaviours. Native American children and adolescents often face pressures that put them at increased
risk for the development of internalizing disorders, yet research within this population is almost nonexistent.
Given the serious implications of and the lack of research on internalizing disorders among this minority
group, the present study was designed to provide information on the rate of internalizing symptoms in a
sample of Native American adolescents, and provide normative data utilizing this sample for the Internalizing
Symptoms Scale for Adolescents. Data were collected using the Internalizing Symptoms Scale for
Adolescents, the Reynolds Adolescent Depression Scale, the Revised Children's Manifest Anxiety Scale, and
the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for Children.
Findings indicate that the Native American sample of adolescents are endorsing clinically significant levels
internalizing symptoms at rates similar to those found in the general population.
Matthews, Daniel N. (1997) "NAGPRA in southern Idaho: An ethnographic approach." Ph.D. Dissertation, University
of Colorado at Boulder. 177 pp.
This dissertation presents the results of the project 'NAGPRA in southern Idaho: An ethnographic approach,'
which was designed to assist the Idaho Bureau of Land Management and the Shoshone-Paiute Tribes of the
Duck Valley Indian Reservation in their efforts to implement the Native American Graves Protection and
Repatriation Act. NAGPRA requires federal agencies to repatriate Native American human remains,
funerary objects, sacred objects, and certain other cultural objects to appropriate individuals or tribes. The
origins and content of NAGPRA, as well as the results of a literature review of existing ethnographic,
historical, archaeological, and environmental information concerning the Shoshone-Paiute people is
summarized and included as basic background for the project. Using standard ethnographic field methods,
the author collected current information relevant to the terms and provisions of NAGPRA from tribal elders,
religious leaders, and others who were especially knowledgeable of traditional beliefs and practices. The
results indicate that traditional Shoshone-Paiute conceptions of NAGPRA terms and provisions may
significantly vary from the conceptions held by lawmakers, bureaucrats, scientists, museum officials, and
others who are involved in NAGPRA implementation. Because NAGPRA is intended to strengthen Native
American human rights, the views of tribal members should be of paramount importance in any NAGPRA
implementation plan. This project demonstrates how ethnographic methods can be used to collect, organize,
and present the views of tribal members to help ensure a tribally appropriate implementation of NAGPRA.
Matthews, Delia P. (1997 ) "Between the Andes and Buenos Aires: The politics of ethnic and national identity in rural
Tucumán, Argentina." Ph.D. Dissertation, Yale University. 333 pp.
This dissertation looks at the formation and use of Indian identity at the periphery of the Argentine nation-
state. I examine the daily practices and public rituals of residents of Amaicha del Valle, a town which is both
a rural municipality -- dependent on the provincial government -- and comunidad indigena -- a collective
indigenous association common in the Andes but not in Argentina.
Many Amaicheños are ambivalent about embracing an Indian identity. This is due in large part to a history
of discrimination and exclusion of Indian populations in Argentina since independence. It was only under the
populist regime of Juan Domingo Perón that the government tried to incorporate marginal populations as
sources of electoral support. Regional intellectuals and politicians represented Indians as exotic remnants of
the past. In the recent years, Amaicheños have appropriated these representations of Indian identity and used
them for political purposes (to gain local decision making power), for economic purposes (to attract tourism,
jobs, and funding), and as a cultural asset (to identify with a glorified past that grants them distinctiveness
and legitimacy of their common territory). The less privileged members of the community, particularly non
elite women, are the most eager to embrace Indian identity. In doing so they have begun to forge connections
with other indigenous populations and movements in the Americas.
Matthews, Markus C. (1999) "Expanding the boundaries of national identity: A study of identity change and transition
in New Zealand." Ph.D. Dissertation, Case Western Reserve University. 348 pp.
This study is a single case analysis of identity change and transition. It seeks to provide a broad-based
analysis of national identity as it is formed and evolves over time. A major goal is to identify areas where
national identity is taking on new forms that defy commonly held interpretations about the phenomenon,
thereby highlighting new areas for research and investigation. This study has also sought to provide a
framework for the analysis and interpretation of New Zealand's national identity dynamic by drawing upon a
wide range of literature, theory, analysis, policy, and popularly held beliefs.
An overview of existing theory and analysis of national identity, nationalism and identity was conducted,
after which New Zealand national identity was analyzed and compared to 'classical' interpretations. Visits
were made to New Zealand in 1995-98 during which interviews were conducted and research undertaken.
The aim was to develop a cross-disciplinary approach that could more accurately depict national identity as
a fluid, dynamic and protean phenomenon.
The study found that several important 'streams' of identity change could be discerned in New Zealand. An
emerging bicultural identity, in which Mäori (indigenous) and Pakeha (European) elements are providing the
basis for a new hybrid identity. An environmental identity, in which an environmental ethic is becoming
central to the idea of what it means to be a New Zealander. Lastly, issues, events and ideas lying external to
the country are providing the foci for an expansive identity, whereby national borders and boundaries are
being transcended against a background of increased interdependence and globalization.
These streams of change point to some highly unique and unprecedented forms of identity, and may be
indicative of the future path of national identity evolution in other states and regions. At the same time, the
New Zealand case indicates that the rampant nationalism observed during much of the 20th century need not
be the norm in the future as new systems and structures emerge that provide populations with new foci,
referents, and identities.
Mattiace, Shannan L. (1998) "Peasant and Indian: Political identity and Indian autonomy in Chiapas, Mexico, 1970-
96." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Texas at Austin (The). 325 pp.
Beginning in the 1970s, social and political organizations based on demands for the recognition of Indian
rights began to emerge in Latin America. Where peasant movements and identity provided the foundation for
most indigenous organization before the 1970s and 1980s, beginning in the 1970s Indian activists throughout
the continent increasingly demanded autonomy and control of territory, called for the end to racial
discrimination and oppression, and pressured states to broaden political participation and representation --
all in the name of ethnic politics. This study examines the processes that have led to the emergence of Indian
politics in Mexico and of the indigenous as new and important political actors. I focus on the Tojolabal-Maya
peoples of southeastern Chiapas to examine how ethnic identity shifts over time and to analyze the
relationship between peasant and Indian politics. The central question I address in this study is: how can the
emergence of Indian politics in the 1990s in the Tojolabal region and in Mexico be explained? In other
words, what specific factors explain the shift from peasant-based collective action to one based on Indian
rights and autonomy? I argue that Indian politics concern classic questions of social mobilization, of land
and territory, as well as demands for cultural recognition and respect. Class is central to Indian politics in
the sense that material demands continue to be crucially important for movement participants. Ethnic
politics, however, has largely replaced class politics because of the bankruptcy of the national-popular
project, which neglected local and regional identities, including ethnic identities. In addition to the literature
on identity politics, my case study also contributes to rethinking ethnicity and class. This work engages social
movement theory as well as the literatures on class and ethnicity to understand contemporary Indian politics
in Mexico.
Mattson, Kristin E. (1997) "Lighting the home fire: Navajo resistance to relocation." Ph.D. Dissertation, Princeton
University. 201 pp.
The dissertation is theoretically concerned with the relationship between public policy and resistance against
it. It examines the ways in which public policies can influence the shape which resistance may subsequently
take against their directives. It also attempts to gauge the extent to which such resistance against state policy
can be effective in producing policy change, especially when those affected exist on the periphery of
American politics.
The empirical focus is a case study analysis of Navajo resistance to a federal relocation law, the Navajo-
Hopi Indian Land Settlement Act (Public Law 93-531), which was passed by Congress in 1974. The principal
problem to be explained is why, over ten years past the deadline for the completion of the relocation
program, 258 Navajo families still remain at their homesites on land which was partitioned to the Hopi
Tribe. The dissertation explores this problem by examining the ways in which the implementation of Public
Law 93-531 shaped and empowered Navajo resistance to relocation and illustrating the ways in which this
reformed resistance has led Congress, at various junctures, to reformulate relocation policy. I demonstrate
that this relationship between public policy and resistance against it can be largely explained by the
divergence in the ways in which the relocation law and its implications were understood by those on the 'top'
and the 'bottom' of the policy continuum.
Maurer, Elizabeth G. (1996) ""Minding your relations": Nationalism and native community in the writings on Thomas
King." M.A. Thesis, Dalhousie University. 116 pp.
Cherokee/Greek/German writer Thomas King examines the construction of Canadian national and native
identities in his novel Green grass, running water and selected of his short stories from his collection One
good story, that one. In Chapter One I lay out King's observations of how the Canadian national identity has
created and manipulated false images of the Indian in order to designate natives as inferior/other, to support
its myths of origins, and paradoxically, to allow Canadians to 'become more Indian' so they may ease non-
native discomfort with the land/scape. National manipulations result in stereotypes and standards of
'authentic Indianness' which impose themselves on both non-native and native perceptions of native identity.
As I explore in Chapter Two, Kings's resistance to native identity being fixed in this way begins with his
critiquing the discourses upon which national myth-making relies. King deconstructs and rejects univocal,
fixed storytelling, particularly as it is manifested in the discourse of history and in the appropriation of native
voice, and in its place enacts a mode of communal/postmodern storytelling which is guided by the trickster,
subject to constant revision, and motivated by respect. Chapter Three recognizes that while theories of
postmodernism allow us to reactivate the texts of identity in readings which incorporate our own resistance,
it is important to recognize that native community is the foundation of native identity in King's writings and
that community resistance sometimes includes political resistance against the Canadian border and
government. My conclusion situates Thomas King within the traditions of Canadian writing and literary
history, and examines how we may teach more valuable readings of native literature.
Mawhiney, Anne-Marie. (1990) "Hegemony and counter-hegemony: A study of relations between status Indian
peoples and the government of Canada." Ph.D. Dissertation, York University. 218 pp.
During the last twenty years status Indian peoples have been changing the ways in which they have been
relating to the federal government by questioning the basis of the relationship as it has been defined in
federal legislation and policies. In this study, social policy documents are analysed to examine the
interrelation among hegemony/counter-hegemony, social measures, and knowledge. The institutional sites
that keep relations operating between the status Indians of Canada and the federal government by way of
social measures is considered. Also, how knowledge is used to justify proposed social measures is examined.
The main purpose of this study is to determine whether there has been a shift in how the relationship is
structured between the federal government and status Indian peoples since the release of the White Paper in
1969. Four social policy documents are analysed in this study, using textual and content analyses: the White
Paper (1969); Citizens Plus (1970); the Penner Report (1983); and the Government Response to the Penner
Report (1984).
A shift in the structure of the relationship between the federal government and status Indian peoples is
evident on the basis of the analysis of the documents. In 1969 Indian policy proposed by the federal
government was based on the idea of "social equality of individuals", and integration of status Indians with
Euro-Canadian society was recommended. Because of the strong counter-hegemonic response by status
Indians to the White Paper and subsequent policy proposals of the federal government, Indian policy shifted
by the early 1980s to a limited form of self-government.
May, Edwin P. (1980) "The Nisga’a land claim 1873-1973." M.A. Thesis, Simon Fraser University.
Mayeda, David T. (2005) "Re-conceptualizing risk: Adolescents in Hawai'i talk about rebellion and respect." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of Hawai'i. 255 pp.
Youth advocates have long lamented Hawai'ians', Samoans', and Filipinos' over-representation in Hawai'i's
juvenile justice system. Most research exploring adolescent issues nationally and in Hawai'i has been
quantitative. In this study, I utilized a community-based participatory research approach, working with two
cohorts of Hawai'i high school students (n = 14) predominantly of Hawai'ian, Samoan, and/or Filipino
ancestry during three school semesters. Student participants identified the teen issues they viewed as most
important for them personally and in their communities, while also scrutinizing the etiology of those issues
qualitatively.
Participants identified interpersonal violence and illicit substance use as the two most critical issues
impacting adolescents in Hawai'i. However, further discussion of these issues found that racial stereotyping,
rigid constructs of masculinity, homophobia, sexism, and family breakdown all contributed to youths'
tendency to engage in fighting and/or illicit substance use. Moreover, participants' contributions to this study
illustrate how quantitative data oftentimes fail to properly contextualize adolescent attitudes and behaviours.
The current academic literature on youth issues is dominated by the quantitative exploration of "risk and
protective factors" that rigidly categorize certain attitudes and behaviours as harmful or protective. Yet
participants in this study demonstrated how attitudes and behaviours traditionally defined as risk can serve
as forms of protection when accounting for additional life circumstances. Most apparent in this study were
the ways that adolescent participants described their participation in so-called risk factors as pursuits for
respect and acts of rebellion. Therefore, this study argues that in order to fully understand and effectively
address adolescent violence and substance use, practitioners, educators, community advocates, and policy
makers must be more flexible in conceptualizing "risk" and "protection."
Finally, this study contends that in expanding theorization of risk and protection, academicians and policy
makers must include larger structural influences. In Hawai'i, this means addressing how western colonialism
has fractured families, reconfigured gender roles, perpetuated racial disparity, and capitalized cultural
norms. Recommendations include providing increased state and federal funding for the development of large-
scale, community-based prevention initiatives, directed independently by ethnic communities, which hold
heterosexual males heavily responsible for redefining healthy gender roles within their respective ethnic
communities.
McAuley, Christopher A. (1995) "The Amerindian and African foundations of modern capitalism: Black political
economy and the Atlantic world." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Michigan. 357 pp.
The purpose of the thesis is fourfold: one, to pose an empirical challenge to Max Weber's explanation of the
development of capitalism; two, to call into question Karl Marx's minimization of the role of merchant's
capital in the history and reproduction of capitalism; three, to reintroduce the works of both Oliver Cox and
other Black political economists who recognized the shortcomings of the Weberian and Marxian perspectives
on the development of capitalism and who offered an alternative explanation based on the economic
workings of the Atlantic slave trade and the European colonization of Africa; and four, to re-evaluate the
consequences of the colonization of the Americas on the historical movement of capitalism. A major sub-
theme of the thesis is the racialization of the Atlantic world's division of labour from the 16th to 20th
centuries.
McCabe, Glen H. (2004) "Finding the healing path: The therapeutic conditions of aboriginal traditional healing."
Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Manitoba. 320 pp.
Aboriginal people are engaged in a process of cultural reclamation that has become more focused, more
widespread and more documented than ever before. With this has come controversy and discussion both
inside and outside the aboriginal community regarding the role, meaning and effectiveness of traditional
healing. It was anticipated that aboriginal traditional healing practices would incorporate many of the
elements and traits normally associated with the major psychological intervention approaches being used
currently by psychologists. This would include such elements as a theoretical foundation for intervention and
assessment, intervention techniques, assessment techniques, a theory of human development, a definition of
wellness and guidelines for ethical practice. The data included in the study was collected from personal
experience of the researcher, literary works on the subject of traditional healing and aboriginal experience
and interviews conducted with healers and people who have been engaged in traditional healing as clients.
Data was recorded and gathered in a style and method in keeping with the ethics of behaviour and the oral
traditions in the aboriginal community. Data was reviewed, analyzed and evaluated in the context of it being
a reflection of the knowledge and experience of the people in the aboriginal community and in the context
that its ownership resides with the aboriginal community. It was expected that the study would support the
hypothesis that aboriginal traditional healing has the necessary elements for therapeutic change to occur,
and that it compared favourably to the major schools of psychotherapy in psychology including
behaviourism, cognitive theory, humanism, and psychoanalysis. 69 different points that supported this
assumption were gathered from the data and placed under 12 major clinical headings. The headings are
spirituality, ceremonies and rituals, the Sacred Teachings, genuineness, role modeling, lessons of daily
living, safety, acceptance and respect, empathic understanding, questions and answers, the inner and
unknown self and readiness to change. These are presented and discussed in the report.
McCan, David C. (1993) "Dispute over resources, discourse on rights: Legal pluralism in New Zealand." Ph.D.
Dissertation, Brandeis University. 394 pp.
Colonization of New Zealand resulted in a situation of sociocultural pluralism. The charter for mutual
accommodation was the Treaty of Waitangi, but eventually the new State political order came to dominate
the tribally-based one. As the ideals embodied in the Treaty gave way before an increasing colonial
population a number of tribe-Government disputes arose. Resolution attempts were generally unsuccessful so
that there are a large number of resource and political rights claims currently outstanding.
The legal pluralism, case method, and historical approaches are used to examine the interrelations between
State and tribal orders, the interaction between orders being recognized as an important factor leading to
legal change. The research is focused on the question, what was the role of law in facilitating and resisting
the processes of colonial/post-colonial domination. To the end of understanding those processes, Weber's
theory, that law helps to facilitate political domination by functioning in a systematic rational manner, is
reviewed. It is thought that his theory does not take the transformative functions of law into account and that
theoretical understanding needs to also attend to that dimension.
Against a general background overview of traditional Mäori social organization, the historical and
ethnographic examination of one claim, the New Zealand Government's confiscation of 1.2 million acres of
Waikato tribal lands, forms an extended case study which tracks political, legal, and resource control
changes. This claim spans 130 years, a Compensation Court, a Royal Commission, treaty tribunal and
Appeal Court hearings, numerous Parliamentary petitions, two delegations to British Imperial authorities,
three extended periods of tribe-Government negotiation, and successive pieces of special legislation. Analysis
considers the case study in relation to other Mäori claims and examines how law functioned in support of
political orders. This takes the form of analyzing the nature of the processes used in handling the claim and
the role of law in transforming the nature of legal subjects and legal rights.
McCausland, Sally P. (1997) "Protecting Aboriginal cultural heritage in Australia: Looking for solutions in the
Canadian experience." M.A. Thesis, University of British Columbia (The). 223 pp.
In recent decades Australian Aboriginal paintings have become increasingly sought after as 'high art' and as
part of the nationalist iconography. The paintings often incorporate the communal designs of the artists'
communities or clan groups, which are subject to Aboriginal laws administered by traditional custodians.
The popularity of the paintings has fostered increased respect for Aboriginal cultures and has provided a
source of income for many Aboriginal communities. However, a corollary of their popularity is their
unauthorized reproduction by tourist industry operators onto t-shirts and other mass produced objects,
causing serious violations of Aboriginal laws.
Aboriginal sanctions are not enforceable in Australian settler courts. Aboriginal artists and their
communities have therefore turned to copyright law for relief in what are now known as the 'Aboriginal
copyright cases.' However, it has become increasingly apparent that copyright law neither recognises the
communal, ancient and spiritual aspects of the paintings, nor adequately compensates the serious spiritual or
religious damage caused by the unauthorized reproductions. Australian government bodies and
commentators have therefore turned to exploration of reform proposals.
Reform proposals to date range from amendments to copyright law to the recognition of Aboriginal rights in
communal designs as an extension of the Mabo doctrine of native title. However, some commentators have
argued that the issues raised by the aboriginal copyright cases are intricately linked with other debates
concerning appropriation of Aboriginal cultures and, more widely, issues of decolonization.
Taking this wider approach, this thesis turns to the Canadian experience of decolonization, and in particular
developments in the areas of aboriginal rights and self-government. The thesis examines the potential
advantages and disadvantages of using aboriginal rights litigation and self-government agreements to
address the issues raised by the aboriginal copyright cases. It concludes that the Canadian experience in
these two areas is instructive and worthy of further consideration as reform proposals are considered.
Drawing on this experience, the thesis argues for reforms which acknowledge aboriginal peoples' right to
cultural self-determination within a state constitutional framework.
McCubbin, Laurie D. (2003) "Resilience among native Hawai'ian adolescents: Ethnic identity, psychological distress
and well-being." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Wisconsin -- Madison (The). 135 pp.
Native Hawai'ian adolescents face multiple stressors yet little is known about these stressors nor the effects
on psychological functioning. In addition, there is a paucity of research on the protective factor of ethnic
identity and its potential moderating effect between multiple stressors and psychological functioning. Native
Hawai'ians have some of the highest rates of domestic violence, homicides, teenage pregnancy, drop outs in
high school and juvenile delinquency. Yet despite these statistics, native Hawai'ians have been
underrepresented and understudied in research. Although research has focused on psychiatric symptoms of
Hawai'ian adolescents such as depression and anxiety (Prescott et al., 1998), there is a paucity or research
on the resilience of native Hawai'ian adolescents.
The purpose of this dissertation was to pursue the study of resilience by examining the relationships between
stressors, ethnic identity, and psychological functioning among native Hawai'ian youth. Specifically, this
study examined (a) the effects of stressful life events and cultural stressors on psychological functioning; (b)
the direct effects of ethnic identity as a protective factor on psychological functioning; and, (c) if ethnic
identity moderates the effect of these stressors on psychological functioning. Psychological functioning
included depression and anxiety, self-acceptance and personal growth.
This study found that the effects of life events and native Hawai'ian stressors did affect psychological
functioning. These stressors predicted higher levels of depression and anxiety. They also predicted lower
levels of self-acceptance. However no relationship was found between life events and cultural stressors and
personal growth.
Ethnic identity was found to predict lower symptoms of depression and anxiety and to positively predict
higher levels of self-acceptance and personal growth. The study did not find ethnic identity to have a
moderating effect between stressors and psychological outcomes. This study does not support the concept of
ethnic identity operating as part of a resilience process. Rather the evidence supports the notion of ethnic
identity as a protective factor that reduces symptoms of depression and anxiety and enhances self-acceptance
and personal growth.
McDonald, James A. (1985 ) "Trying to make a life: The historical political economy of Kitsumkalum." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of British Columbia (The).
Anthropological inquiries into the human condition have long been tempered with a concern for the
difficulties experienced by non-Western societies faced with prolonged contact with the expanding Western
social systems. In economic anthropology, studies of contemporary tribal and peasant societies have turned
to the literature on development and underdevelopment to explain the features and processes that are
associated with that contact. This dissertation is the result of such research into the social and economic
problems on the Northwest Coast. The work examines the history and ethnography of the Tsimshian Indians
to determine the underlying social forces that led to and still maintain the underdevelopment of the social and
economic potential of Tsimshian groups. Particular attention is given to the form and dynamics of the
Tsimshian economy, of the regional expression of expanding world market economy, and the relations
between the two. The dissertation thus explores the socioeconomic aspects of the interlock between Indian
development and the evolving development of capital. The Tsimshian village of Kitsumkalum was the focus of
the inquiry. Using its history, I document how the changes which brought about an economic reversal for the
native people were at the same time favourable to the establishment and growth of industrial capital in the
region. Two sets of factors are critical for understanding this shift: (1) new forms of property which, through
government intervention, transferred ownership and control of the factors of production to the industrialists,
and in the process redefined the resources, technology and labour in terms consistent with the development of
capital; and, (2) the diversion of Tsimshian resources, technology and labour out of traditional production
into the modern economy, where they were transformed and ultimately became dependent on the vagaries of
a global market in which the Tsimshians had little or no control. The specific information in the dissertation
explains how these processes occurred, how the independence of the old political economy was undermined,
how an ostensibly 'peaceful penetration' of the area occurred as a result, and how the Tsimshian responded
by alternately accommodating and resisting the situation.
McFarlane, Kimberly A. (1999) "Educating First Nation children in Canada: The rise and fall of residential
schooling." M.A. Thesis, Queen's University at Kingston. 133 pp.
This thesis examines a controversial episode in the history of educating First Nation children in Canada --
the rise and fall of the residential school system. Viewed initially by the Canadian government as an
appropriate means of social assimilation, the residential school system was eventually abandoned as official
policy, but not until after prolonged resistance to it on the part of First Nations peoples, whose concerns first
led to demands for 'Indian control of Indian education' and later to the creation of the Royal Commission on
Aboriginal Peoples. Revelations of abuse shocked Canadian society and did much to hasten the demise of the
residential school system. A statement of reconciliation made by the federal government on January 7, 1998
acknowledged past wrongs and set the stage for a more viable relationship between natives and non-natives
in Canada in the 21st century.
The policy of educating First Nation children in residential schools is examined in the context of 'cultural
studies' literature in geography and anthropology, including the works of established figures like Carl Sauer,
Alfred Kroeber, and Clifford Geertz. The lens of the 'new cultural geography', however, offers considerable
interpretive assistance, especially such notions as David Sibley's 'geography of exclusion' and Steve Pile's
'geographies of resistance.' Government documents housed in the National Archives of Canada are also
consulted, as well as literature in the fields of education, politics, law, sociology, and psychology.
McGilligan, Stephen M. (2004) "Solemn promises: Treaty rights in the shadow of Sparrow." L.L.M. Thesis,
University of Manitoba. 178 pp.
In the seminal decision R. v. Sparrow, the Supreme Court of Canada attempted for the first time to address
the scope and content of constitutionally protected aboriginal rights. Having determined that Canada held
sovereignty over and therefore was entitled to legislate in relation to aboriginal peoples, the Court concluded
that aboriginal rights existed at common law and that these common law rights, whatever they may be,
received constitutional protection by virtue of s. 35(1). Despite the fact these rights fall outside the parameter
of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, the Court proceeded to apply a Charter-like limitation on
these rights, holding them subject to reasonable regulation, so long as the legislation in question was capable
of meeting a stringent test for justification. However, in the period following Sparrow, the Court has watered
down the effects of this decision by diluting the legislative intent portion of the test to such a degree that it
risks becoming a non-factor in the justification process. In this paper I contend that the use of the Sparrow
test, particularly as that test has been interpreted by the Court in the period following Sparrow is flawed and
to use this test as a tool for determining when constitutionally protected aboriginal treaty rights might be
infringed multiplies this flaw to a critical point.
McGuire, Sharon A. (2001 ) "Crossing myriad borders: A dimensional analysis of the migration and health
experiences of indigenous Oaxacan women." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of San Diego. 180 pp.
The growing feminization of the migration of ethnic indigenous women, such as Mixtecs, Zapotecs and
Triquis from the southern Mexican state of Oaxaca, are altering the dynamics and configuration of
traditional Mexican migration, making it especially significant for the health professions. Informed by a
postcolonial ecofeminist paradigm, this bi-national grounded theory study explored the migration and health
experiences of indigenous Oaxacan immigrant/migrant women. Data collection using participant observation
and interviewing occurred in Oaxaca, Mexico, along the US-Mexico border, and the interior of California.
Dimensional analysis was used as the method of data analysis to generate theoretical understandings of these
phenomena.
The explanatory matrix of dimensional analysis creates a context of colonial legacies that thwart the
aspirations of indigenous women to care for their families, achieve further education or avoid stagnation,
thereby spawning the conditions for migration. As the central perspective focusing the analysis, crossing
myriad borders describes the difficulties and barriers that indigenous women must surmount as
migrants/immigrants in an alien place. Salient dimensions within these borders of geography, culture,
language, legality and new health experiences emerged as culture shock in coping with fractured families,
language differences and undocumentedness. Participants described having to learn many new things and
braving hazardous living and working conditions inimical to health. They encountered new health risks,
gained some new health assets, and evolved a sequence of health seeking characterized by attributes of
relationality, efficacy, and affordability. Their resolve to keep going (salir adelante) in spite of many
difficulties is motivated by their investment in their children's future.
Nursing practice responding to the health care needs of this population needs to be informed by knowledge of
indigenous health practices, of the health risks arising from postcolonial conditions in Oaxaca, of the safety
profiles of medications and herbs from Mexico, the stresses and dangers of migration, and of patterns of
health seeking and knowing. Nursing praxis should be directed at the structural conditions that induce
migration, the human rights situation along the border, and at collaborating with immigrant rights groups on
issues of amnesty and changing the devastating consequences of the latest 1996 immigration law.
McIvor, Sharon D. (1995) "Aboriginal self-government: The civil and political rights of women." LL.M. Thesis,
Queen's University at Kingston. 109 pp.
My thesis is that the civil and political rights of aboriginal women are aboriginal and treaty rights and form
part of the inherent right to self-government. In Chapter One I explore the traditional role of aboriginal
women including as political decision-makers, military leaders, property holders, transmitters of language
and culture, economic leaders and domestic partners. In Chapter Two I examine the regulation of aboriginal
women's civil and political rights as organized discrimination. This discrimination took legislative form in
section 12(1)(b) of the Indian Act and its predecessors. I examine aboriginal women's rights as 'existing'
aboriginal rights in Chapter Three. In Chapter Four I consider aboriginal women's rights in the context of
collective rights. I consider whether aboriginal gender rights stand on an equal footing within collective
rights in the constitutional context. In Chapter Five I conclude that the inherent right to self-government is
abridged by the existence of the fundamental civil and political rights of aboriginal women.
McKegney, Sam W. (2005) "Reclamations of the 'dis-possessed': Narratives of survivance by indigenous survivors of
Canada's residential schools." Ph.D. Dissertation, Queen's University at Kingston. 313 pp.
As historical scholarship continues to compile evidence linking the Canadian government's implementation of
Residential School policy for Aboriginal youth to ongoing social, political, and economic problems within
Native communities, this dissertation conducts the first extended analysis of the role occupied by Native
literature with respect to pan-Native and tribal-specific movements for redress. Focusing on the life-writings
of Residential School survivors, 'Reclamations of the 'Dis-Possessed'' examines literary renderings of
Residential School experience in relation to more overtly political and historical discourses to evaluate the
capacity of particular imaginative creations to modify perceptions of the past and thereby establish
alternative strategies for the empowerment of Native communities in the present and future. The project's
critical methodology is developed from the interplay between Gerald Vizenor's concept of "survivance" and
Jace Weaver's concept of "communitism", which I adapt to the Canadian context and to the particular
acculturative technologies of the Residential School. The life-writings at the centre of this study are
narratives of survivance insofar as they re-imagine Native cultural identity in a contemporary moment
adversely impacted by the legacy of violent assimilationist policies; they are communitist in that such re-
imaginings are directed toward, and conducted on behalf of, Native communities. By reading these narratives
as social and political, rather than strictly as purgative trauma-writing, I develop a critical strategy capable
of accounting for the unique ways Native authors mobilize narrative to provoke change in their communities
and to establish the imaginative space in which indigenous empowerment might be claimed. In chapter-
length studies of individual survival narratives, I examine techniques employed by authors such as Anthony
Apakark Thrasher, Rita Joe, and Tomson Highway to re-present the Residential School experience in a
manner which combats its corrosive social and cultural by-products. Challenging both colonial narratives of
inevitable assimilation and postcolonial narratives of obligatory victimhood, these life-narratives actualize
the autonomy of indigenous memory. Analyzing the authorial agency wielded by these authors, even in the
most disabling of compositional circumstances, this dissertation argues that such narrative resilience
bespeaks the ultimate failure of Residential Schooling's acculturative mandate, dynamically confirming the
continuance of indigenous cultural survival and revival.
McKenzie, Stephanie M. (2001) "Canada's day of atonement: The Contemporary Native Literary Renaissance, the
Native Cultural Renaissance and post-centenary Canadian mythology." Ph.D. dissertation, University of
Toronto. 426 pp.
Little attention has been paid to the Contemporary Native Literary Renaissance (CNLR) and the Native
Cultural Renaissance (NCR) of the 1960s and 1970s in Canada. As well, there has been little consideration
of the manner in which this Renaissance has affected non-native Canadian literature. However, this
dissertation attempts to prove that the CNLR and the NCR have affected both contemporary Canadian
mythologies and the criticism of native literatures in Canada.
This dissertation relies more on the principles of storytelling than theory to make its suggestions. It immerses
itself in a story which surfaced in the 19th century in Canada and which I have called Canada's 'search for a
sacred mythology.' It then draws connections between this story and later manifestations of this story in post-
centenary, non-native Canadian mythologies and the criticism surrounding Tomson Highway and his work in
order to suggest that contemporary modifications of this story indicate that Eurocentric negotiations with
pan-Canadianism, or nationalism, show an anxiety with contemporary aboriginal influence.
When I do rely on theory, I rely heavily on Northrop Frye, and I create both a large pan-Canadian 'centre'
and pan-Indian 'centre' to account for mythological change and cultural exchange. While such centres do not
exist, and while post-structuralist theories could easily dismantle the binary which I have created, my
methodology has allowed me to search for large mythological changes, and my three most noteworthy
findings are the following: (1) given time, it may be possible to suggest that Canadian history has become a
contemporary trickster which has been born out of contemporary, reductive notions of the sacred and
profane, or reductive understandings of 'Native culture' and the 'Canadian nation,' respectively; (2)
contemporary attempts to justify this nation's beginnings are often arrested in traumatic recall of the
holocaust which has happened here; and, (3) that self-reflexivity which is found in post-centenary Canadian
mythologies, as well as in the criticism surrounding Tomson Highway, might be attributable to the social and
political fervour of the NCR, which rekindled an awareness of the importance of participation between
speakers and listeners, and/or the formal characteristics of Native oral literatures.
McLain, Monday L. A. (1998) "Effects of the long-term underdevelopment of the Hawai'ian culture and the
relationship to theories of human development." Ph.D. Dissertation, Walden University. 327 pp.
This study identified the effects from the phenomenon of underdevelopment of the native Hawai'ian culture
and a relationship of those effects to human development theories. The international term underdevelopment
has become accepted to indicate the destruction of an existing culture by the systematic elimination of its
values, beliefs, habits, and behaviours. The negative cultural effects of underdevelopment have long been
acknowledged in indigenous peoples. Loss of self-esteem and regression to the level of hopelessness are
identified by appearances of drunkenness, lack of ambition, hostility, and negativity. Native Hawai'ian youth
often begin to demonstrate negative attitudes toward the structure of education at the end of their elementary
schooling due to negative family environments passed down through generations. Although the natural
cultural behaviour of Hawai'ians has been stigmatized by nearly all of society in Hawai'i as lazy and
worthless, enjoying living off of others who work for a living. Their behaviour results from systematic
underdevelopment.
The historical analysis study, through qualitative methods, assessed the possible relationship between
theories of human development and the history of situations and people by means of a narrative that
described and analyzed the results of the research. Data from primary and secondary sources, interviews
with extended Hawai'ian families, diaries, and journals were the tools that established the findings.
The findings indicate distorted efforts at peer approval in both youth and adults support the research of the
relationship between underdevelopment effects and human development theories, and that human
development theories for individuals are applicable for groups.
McLeod, Dennis B. (1991) "From exploitation to marginalization: The aboriginals of northern Saskatchewan in
relation to the national and international political economy." M.A. Thesis, University of Regina (The). 153
pp.
The evolution of the political economy of the aboriginals of northern Saskatchewan in relation to the national
and international political economy is examined from the early relationships to the Hudson's Bay Company
into the contemporary era up to 1983. Chapter One attempts to situate aboriginal people in Canada within
the world capitalist system. Chapters Two and Three analyze the position of Indians in the political economy
administered by the Hudson's Bay Company from 1670 to 1870. Chapters Four and Five examine the period
from 1870 to 1970 when the exploitation of Indian labour became less important to this overall political
economy. The contemporary role of aboriginals after the establishment of the Department of Northern
Saskatchewan in 1971 is analyzed in Chapter Six. I conclude that modern aboriginal history in northern
Saskatchewan derives from a nation-class struggle within the imperialist process.
McMillen, Christian W. (2004) "Rewriting history and proving property rights: Hualapai Indian activism and the law
of land claims in the 20th century." Ph.D. Dissertation, Yale University. 404 pp.
By looking carefully at one Supreme Court case and the historical context surrounding it, I argue that
between ca. 1910 and 1941 -- when the Court decided United States, as Guardian of the Hualpi Indians of
Arizona, v. Santa Fe Pacific Railroad Co. (314 U.S. 339) -- an intellectual and legal revolution occurred in
the field of federal Indian law, a new way of writing Indian history emerged to serve the law of land claims,
and Indian people and their lawyers developed an effective methodology for litigating land claims. Profound
changes followed as a result of the Court's opinion that went well beyond the boundaries of the Hualapai
case. The dissertation highlights Hualapai activism as the catalyst for reform. As the tribe learned how to
marshal an effective political campaign to save their land, they enlisted the help of sympathetic reformers
during what has come to be called the Indian New Deal. From the joint efforts of the Hualapai and their
attorneys, a new way of litigating emerged; anthropology and law formed a permanent union where there
had only been evanescent connections; the case defined aboriginal title -- the basis for many of the cases
heard by the Indian Claims Commission, as well as in international law; it reaffirmed that abrogation of
Indian sovereignty, including property and treaty rights, could only occur if clear Congressional intent could
be shown -- a major doctrinal ruling and a principal of law adopted by courts in Canada, Australia, New
Zealand, and being explored in South Africa and Malaysia; and it began to reshape the debates within and
outside of academia over the place of nomadic peoples and their land rights, in the past and the present, all
over the world. This case is the direct ancestor of the two most recent and important aboriginal land rights
cases -- Mabo and Others v. State of Queensland (107 A.L.R. 1, 1992) in Australia and Delgamuukw v.
British Columbia (3 S.C.R. 1010, 1997) in Canada.
McMullen, Stephanie L. (1997) "Disunity and dispossession: Nawash Ojibwa and Potawatomi in the Saugeen
Territory, 1836-65." M.A. Thesis, University of Calgary. 118 pp.
This study explores the dual themes of factionalism and dispossession among the Ojibwa and Potawatomi in
the Saugeen Territory between 1836 and 1865. Chapter I lays the foundation of the study by briefly
examining the evolution of Native-non-Native relations in southern Ontario to 1836. Chapter II focuses on
the development of Ojibwa-Potawatomi factionalism in the Saugeen Territory, between 1836 and 1850. The
third chapter presents the results of this division by examining the three Saugeen treaties of the 1850s. The
final chapter discusses the removal of the Nawash band to Cape Croker, and the endurance of factionalism at
the new reserve. This thesis offers the proposition that the differences between the Ojibwa hosts and the
Potawatomi immigrants from the United States created divisions at the Newash village. The Indian
Department then exploited this discord to secure the treaties required by a growing settler population.
McPherson, Shelley. (1991) "Native policy making in North America: The unresolved conflict between economic
desires and political idealism." M.A. Thesis, McGill University. 148 pp.
The thesis explores the practical, moral and intellectual forces shaping native policy making in North
America. It is argued that white society is struggling with an unresolved dialectic between its economic
desires and its political idealism and that this conflict is expressed in native policy making as a simultaneous
affirmation and denial of aboriginal rights. This theme is traced comparatively through Canadian and
American native policy making histories from 1763 to 1990, focusing on three major policy areas: Indian
dispossession, Indian political incorporation and Indian economic integration.
McSwain, Karen. (1997) "Assessing the training needs of First Nations mental health workers in Manitoba." M.A.
Through open-ended interviews, people in three Manitoba reserve communities are asked the following
questions: what does mental health mean; what are the problems, the causes, and the solutions to mental
health problems in their communities; what training and skills do First Nations mental health workers need;
what are the attributes of a good helper; and what supports do helpers require? The priority mental health
problems of depression and anxiety, suicide, and substance abuse are symptoms of imbalance and
disharmony, and the consequences of the losses and abuses suffered.
Healing means returning individuals, families, communities and the nations to states of balance and
harmony. The solutions to mental health problems must include rebuilding community resources through
political self-determination and rebuilding positive cultural identity. Mental health systems are being
constructed by First Nations blending western health and social service models with native traditional
approaches. First Nations mental health systems place emphasis upon public education and community
development as well as upon treatment.
First Nations community mental health workers need strong working ties with mainstream mental health
specialists for ongoing training, supervision, and consultation; they need to be members of the community
team (including elders and the general public), but must also connect communities to mental health resources
available in the rest of the province. There are six areas of training required by mental health workers in
First Nations: counselling skills; mental health theory and practise; writing and agency skills; public
education skills; community development skills; and spiritual/traditional training. The crucial attributes of a
First Nations helper are self-healing/self-awareness, caring, and a First Nations background. Mental health
is part of an attitude of healing and harmonious connection with all of creation; this attitude includes
traditional values of respect and caring which must form the foundation of First Nations mental health
systems.
Menzies, Peter M. (2005) "Orphans within our family: Intergenerational trauma and homeless aboriginal men." Ph.D.
Although aboriginal people are over-represented among the homeless in urban centres across Canada, very
little information exists to explain this phenomenon. There is increasing evidence from the growing number
of mental health studies conducted in aboriginal communities across North America to suggest that trauma is
a critical contributor to an array of personal, family and community behaviours. Specifically, the
transmission of trauma from one generation to the next has left some individuals without the necessary skills
to deal with trauma within their own lives. This study used a qualitative methodology to explore the link
between aboriginal homelessness and intergenerational trauma. Through personal interviews with 16
aboriginal men, who are using the services of an aboriginal hostel in downtown Toronto, this study explores
their personal and family histories, seeking links between personal homelessness and intergenerational
trauma. Through interpreting the data from these interviews and from a focus group with other homeless men
in the residence, the study isolates the indicators of intergenerational trauma within four domains:
individual, family, community and nation. The indicators of intergenerational trauma within these domains
are synthesized within the Intergenerational Trauma Model. The model is predicated on the assumption that
public policies have disrupted relations between the four domains and the resulting trauma has incubated
negative social conditions for aboriginal people, making them significantly more vulnerable to a number of
threatening conditions, including homelessness. This study sets forth recommendations for future research
efforts and identifies possible areas for social policy direction in the area of aboriginal homelessness. The
study argues that there is no quick fix to aboriginal homelessness, but rather a holistic approach is needed.
Long-term support must be incorporated into the current range of responses, including housing, health and
social programs. It must be recognized that, given the pervasive influence of trauma in their lives, it may take
more than one generation to heal from experiences that have impacted the lives of aboriginal people over
several generations.
Merrill, Elizabeth J. B. (1984) "Subsistence and persistences: Change and adaptation in the transmission of artistic
skills among the Shoshone-Bannock since Euro-American contact." Ph.D. Dissertation, State University of
New York at Buffalo. 258 pp.
Various studies have demonstrated that in many cases Euro-American contact with native groups caused
sociopolitical complexity to increase over time. Shoshone-Bannock history is reconstructed to show the
parallels here. A statistical analysis confirms the hypothesis (Fischer 1961) that as Shoshone-Bannock
sociopolitical complexity increased over time, artistic designs became more complex. The inference is that as
their sociopolitical complexity increased, the people saw the world as being more complex, hence, Sho-Ban
artists created more complex designs. The long-term trends (above) probably unfolded as a series of episodic
adaptations, recommending the examination of one such instance of adaptation unfolding in the
contemporary community: the use of schools for teaching traditional artistic skills. The principal task in this
study is an ethnographic inquiry, which in part leads to an emic structural-functional description adapted
from a method of 'well-grounded ethnography' (Gearing ms). This study of the contemporary community
demonstrates (1) how the subordinate social position of Shoshone-Bannocks in general and their sense of
impending loss of artistic skills led to a nativistic movement (Linton 1943), centering on traditional artistic
skills, a key feature of which is the Indians' use of the classroom for the transmission of these skills; (2) how
this nativistic movement entails shifts in cultural transmission in Mead's (1978) terms to a combination of
postfigurative cofigurative and prefigurative modeling; (3) how these traditional skills have become cultural
symbols (Spicer 1971) to which cultural values have been attached, promoting the persistence of the
Shoshone-Bannock identity system, and pride; (4) how the manufacture and sale of the products of these
skills represents a new subsistence pattern, further drawing the Shoshone-Bannock into the market economy
of the dominant society; and, (5) as a significant by-product, how the status of Shoshone-Bannock women in
the eyes of neighbouring White women has been raised, embodied in the increasing access these Indian
women have to White middle-class social groups in the area.
Metcalfe, Eric W. (1994) "The limits of culture: Universal human rights and cultural difference in theory and
constitutional discourse." LL.M. Thesis, Queen's University at Kingston. 239 pp.
In this thesis I examine the tension between universal human rights and the claims of cultural difference as it
is manifested in Canadian and New Zealand constitutional discourse. The operation of the Canadian Charter
of Rights and Freedoms 1982 and the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990, as two instruments
constitutionalizing universal human rights, is compared against the competing nationalisms of Canada,
francophone Québec and the First Nations in Canada and the Mäori and Pakeha in New Zealand. However,
upon closer examination, the claim of different cultures as autonomous and incommensurable units does not
stand up to philosophical scrutiny. Cultures are not isolates, but dynamic and interconnected entities that
rely on intersubjective criteria of membership and exclusion to maintain cohesion and cultural identity.
Furthermore, there is often a wide disparity between the operation of these criteria and the subjective
acculturation of individuals. Furthermore, the lack of an a priori, neutral epistemological framework does
not prevent the possibility of cross-cultural ethical critique. In this thesis, I develop a theory of culture as a
structure of discursive authority, wherein universal human rights operate as an essential mediating
framework between the subjectivity of the individual person and the integrity of the cultural context. As a
preface to my own theory of cultural structures and universal human rights, I discuss the liberal theory of
cultural membership proposed by Kymlicka. Although the theory has the merit of recognizing the importance
of cultural identity, I argue that it entails unnecessary and arbitrary limitations on universal human rights in
the name of protecting cultural membership.
Meyer, Melissa L. (1985) "Tradition and the market: The social relations of the White Earth Anishinaabeg, 1889-
1920." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Minnesota. 406 pp.
Established in 1867 as a grand experiment to consolidate all of the bands of Minnesota Anishinaabeg on one
reservation, White Earth represented the best scheme that social engineers then had to offer for assimilating
the Anishinaabeg. They situated White Earth straddling Minnesota's parkland belt so that the Indians who
moved there would have access to diverse resources. Immigrant Anishinaabe bands tended to maintain band
ties, social roles, and traditional leadership roles after removal to White Earth. Chain migrations
characterized the removal and previous band affiliations were often maintained through settlement patterns.
Passage of the 1889 Nelson Act heralded the beginning of the headlong exploitation of Anishinaabe
resources rather than the social experiment in assimilation envisioned by US policymakers. However,
allotment itself did not cause the dispossession of the White Earth Anishinaabeg. The premature removal of
protective restrictions on the lands of mixed bloods on the White Earth Reservation in 1906 unleashed a
torrent of fraudulent land transactions, some of which are still pending in the courts today. Factions emerged
on the Reservation as residents came to disagree on their vision of the future. Struggles over the management
of resources reflected the dynamics of political affiliations stemming from competition between two ethnic
groups on the Reservation, 'traditional' Anishinaabeg from interior Minnesota bands and capitalistically-
oriented innovators with ethnic roots in Great Lakes fur trade/Métis society. Access to their traditional
seasonal round enabled the Anishinaabeg at White Earth to retain a greater degree of autonomy for a longer
period of time than their counterparts on the Great Plains. Once their lands were alienated, however, the
Anishinaabeg suffered much the same fate as other dispossessed Indian groups. Although some continued to
adhere to their seasonal gathering activities, they could meet only part of their subsistence needs. Some
White Earth Anishinaabeg came to rely more on seasonal wage labour in agriculture in the Red River valley
and in lumbering. For others, dependence on tribal gratuities and the US government resulted. As the
population of the Reservation increased, and as available resources and economic opportunities constricted,
residents of White Earth increasingly opted to leave the Reservation to make their ways in nearby towns and
cities.
Mignone, Javier. (2003) "Social capital in First Nations communities: Conceptual development and instrument
validation." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Manitoba (The). 324 pp.
There is increasing evidence of social environmental factors affecting population health. There are a variety
of possible ecological level descriptors of these factors. Social capital is one of these descriptors. It is an
elusive concept that, particularly in social epidemiological studies, appears to have been used with scarce
theoretical examination. However, it is a promising concept for First Nations communities. The two main
contributions of the study were to articulate a conceptual framework for social capital in First Nations
communities and to derive culturally-appropriate measures of the dimensions of social capital. The study
took place in partnership between the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs (AMC) via its Manitoba First Nations
Health Information and Research (HIR) Committee, and the Centre for Aboriginal Health Research at the
University of Manitoba. Three Manitoban First Nations communities took part in the study. The first phase of
the study used ethnographic methodology with two aims, to contribute to the development of the conceptual
framework, and to generate an initial list of instrument items. Based on these results, dimensions of social
capital were identified for measurement and a list of questionnaire items was composed. The questionnaire
was pilot-tested, with a total sample of 462 respondents from the three communities. A series of psychometric
analyses were performed to assess the reliability and validity of the survey instrument. The study achieved a
measurement device that had good discriminatory power among First Nations communities, was made up of
internally consistent scales, and had good construct validity. Thus, this instrument is feasible for use in future
empirical inquiries. Nonetheless, the construct itself, as formulated by the study, was only partially validated.
Further measurement solutions, as well as research and policy implications were discussed.
Mill, Judith E. (1996) "HIV infection in aboriginal women." M.A. Thesis, University of Alberta.
The issue of infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) leading to AIDS (acquired
immunodeficiency disease) is both complex and challenging. As the AIDS epidemic has evolved over the past
decade, researchers have identified practices and behaviours that influence transmission of the HIV virus.
Although a cure for AIDS has not been found, treatments that may lead to long term control of the disease
have been identified. Increasingly, health care practitioners have realized the need to understand the context
of the behaviours that may place individuals at increased risk of HIV infection. HIV infection is an issue of
concern in the Aboriginal community of Canada. Aboriginal women are over-represented in the number of
new clients attending HIV clinics in a large urban centre serving northern Alberta. A qualitative research
study was designed to explore the cultural factors that relate to HIV infection in these women. The findings
are presented in two papers within this thesis. An explanatory model for HIV illness is described in the first
paper. Some of the findings relating to aetiology and treatment of HIV illness are divergent from common
biomedical views of the disease. In the second paper a model is developed to conceptualize the relationships
that exist between the women's formative years, their self esteem and the survival techniques they used prior
to becoming HIV positive. These survival techniques may have placed them in situations that increased their
risk of infection with the HIV virus.
Miller, Elizabeth A. (1995) "Refuse to be ill: European contact and aboriginal health in northeastern Nebraska." Ph.D.
Dissertation, Arizona State University. 160 pp.
The consequences of Columbus' 'discovery of America' have long been of interest in anthropology. Contact
studies have focused on contrasts between the Old and New World and the effect of European contact on
health, disease, and lifeways. This study involves the analysis of prehistoric and historic Native American
remains from northeastern Nebraska for the occurrence and frequency of pathological conditions to
reconstruct overall population health.
European contact in northeastern Nebraska did not lead to the dramatic decrease in population health seen
in other parts of North America, at least as far as the nine indicators of population health used in this study
indicate. Overall, it seems that historic Nebraskan natives were healthier than their prehistoric counterparts,
with the exceptions of a slight increase in periodontal infection, probable caused by bias introduced by the
small samples size, and a dramatic increase in the occurrence of skeletal trauma. Stability in overall
population health is indicated, despite the higher frequencies of seven of the nine conditions in the prehistoric
sample, by the fact that only caries, Harris lines, and trauma show statistically significant differences.
The male subsample demonstrated a very mixed bag of traits, with porotic hyperostosis, generalized
periosteal reaction, periodontal infection, and trauma being more common in the historic individuals. This
also indicated a relative stability in health over time.
The subsample which does show a fairly dramatic, and very consistent, decrease in health through time is the
female subsample. All conditions except Harris lines and linear enamel hypoplasia were more common in the
historic sample, although the only statistically significant difference was in the occurrence of trauma. Again,
a stability in health over time is indicated, with perhaps a slight trend toward increasing health in historic
times. Given the increased workload experienced by females with the increased reliance on fur trading, this
trend is not unexpected.
Miller, Kenneth E. (1994 ) "Growing up in exile: Mental health and meaning making among indigenous Guatemalan
refugee children in Chiapas, Mexico." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Michigan. 185 pp.
This study utilized both quantitative and qualitative methods to assess the mental health and psychosocial
development of 58 Guatemalan Mayan Indian children living in two refugee camps in the Mexican state of
Chiapas. Data are presented which indicate minimal evidence of psychological trauma, as well as generally
low levels of other types of psychological distress. Several factors are suggested to explain these findings,
including 'the recreation of normality' within the context of the refugee camps. Data are also reported which
describe a moderate relationship between children's mental health and the physical and emotional well-being
of their mothers. A strong association was found between depressive symptomatology in girls, but not boys,
and physical and psychological distress in their mothers. It is suggested that girls may experience a greater
level of vulnerability to the impact of their mothers' distress due to a developmental norm according to which
boys, as they grow older, spend increasingly greater amounts of time outside of the home working with their
fathers and other adult relatives in the fields, while girls remain at home assisting their mothers with a wide
variety of household chores. Qualitative data are examined which are based on semi-structured interviews,
drawings, and creative arts workshops conducted with a sub-sample of 40 children in the two camps. While
the interviews addressed a broad range of developmental and phenomenological themes, the focus of the
qualitative analysis in this dissertation concerns the ways in which the children have come to make sense of
their experience of exile. Specific topics discussed include children's understandings of why their families fled
Guatemala, the nature and causes of the violence, and their thoughts and feelings regarding the prospect of
returning to Guatemala at some future point. The dissertation concludes with a summary of the major
findings of the study, and examines the limitations of conceptualizing mental health strictly in terms of the
absence of psychiatric symptomatology. A more holistic definition of mental health is advocated, in which
children's competencies are taken into account.
Miller, Susan A. (1997) "Wild Cat's bones: Seminole leadership in a Seminole cosmos." Ph.D. Dissertation,
University of Nebraska -- Lincoln (The). 477 pp.
This is the first scholarly assessment of the career of Coacoochee, or Wild Cat (c. 1807 to 1857), a prominent
figure in the Seminole people's defence of their homeland in Florida and in their subsequent experience in the
American West and Mexico. Viewed through the lenses of Seminole cosmology and the scholarly methods of
chronology and ethnohistory, Wild Cat appears as a brilliant leader, plying an ancient tradition of
government but adapting it to rapidly changing conditions.
Wild Cat's career may be understood as his performance of duties adhering to his position. A member of the
Seminole ruling lineage, he was obligated to preserve his community, whose well-being depended on
relations with other human communities and with spiritual entities including the spirits of their ancestors.
The Seminoles' resistance to removal from Florida was embedded in their devotion to the graves of their
forebears.
During the war in Florida and the forced removal to the 'Indian country' (present Oklahoma), and as the
Seminoles began their adjustment in the West, Wild Cat rose through the Seminole governmental hierarchy.
In 1849, his ascent to the top position was blocked, so he led his community of some 200 Seminoles to the
Mexican state of Coahuila. There he made a treaty with the Mexican government and founded a colony. Most
of the Seminoles declined to follow him to Mexico, but he recruited a community of black persons (maroons),
who had been with the Seminoles in Florida, and a community of Kickapoos.
Wild Cat's Mexican colony had a realistic chance of success. At the time of Wild Cat's death, the governor of
Coahuila was supporting the recruitment of more Seminoles and other indigenous groups to the colony. Wild
Cat's Seminole followers returned to the Seminole nation in present Oklahoma, and Kickapoos acquired the
Seminoles' land grant in Mexico. Today, the Kickapoos use that land base to preserve their ceremonial ways.
Wild Cat's Mexican colony might have provided a similar shelter for the ancient Seminole ceremonies.
Million, Dian L. (2004) "Telling secrets: Sex, power and narrative in the rearticulation of Canadian residential school
histories." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of California, Berkeley. 217 pp.
Telling secrets examines the politics of 'speaking' in Indian Country. How do Native people enter into
discourse as interlocutors, empowered as subjects rather than objects of academic research? This
dissertation historicizes the way that Indian narratives have been either extinguished or enabled in the
production of discourses through an analysis of a national conversation on residential school abuse in
Canada. Telling secrets discusses the formation of the Canadian state through raced and gendered narratives
of sexuality present in the carceral spaces of Indian residential schools. How Canadian First Nations people
come to tell, to accuse and adjudicate the colonial sexual and gendered result of their violent 'acculturation'
becomes an intergenerational account of colonial silencing. I then move to discuss the way that the First
Nations have rearticulated discourses on victimization, trauma and healing to produce sites for personal and
communal reintegration linked to projects for Indigenous sovereignty. I discuss how this language has
developed in articulation with and empowered by conversations on social suffering embedded in an
international liberal human rights agenda developed after World War II. Telling secrets argues that the
formations of political and ethical scholarship positioned for American Indian and Canadian First Nations
communities are never neutral or 'objective'; that speaking as Indigenous subjects in the real play of
constructing academic knowledge or speaking as members of our tribal communities is already vexed with
the politics of our 'telling.' Using the model of agonism, I theorize how different kinds of analytical tools
embedded in the disparate locations of Ethnic Studies, American Indian Studies, and Indigenism may speak
together from the tensions of their difference rather than any agreement to produce a more critical position
toward understanding colonialism in our times.
Milroy, Leigh O. (2003) "Aboriginal policy-making and dispute resolution processes: A history of the concept of a
tribunal for the adjudication of specific land claims in Canada." M.A. Thesis, University of Victoria. 315 pp.
The idea of a quasi-judicial administrative tribunal, or specialized court, empowered to make binding
decisions on the validity of aboriginal specific claims and awards without limit dates back to the mid-1940's
in Canada. Over time, the consensus about the need for an independent and binding adjudicatory body has
strengthened and the vision of an independent claims body has evolved into a hybrid model that would
involve both a facilitative commission with a full range of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) tools to assist
negotiations, and a powerful adjudicatory tribunal to make binding decisions when negotiations fail. A
consensus has also grown around the idea that aboriginal people should be involved in specific claims
policy-making and process design, and be represented on any new independent claims body. This multi-
disciplinary study, employing a historical comparative research methodology, attempts to trace the evolution
of this concept over time, and document the history of efforts to date to establish such an independent claims
body in Canada.
Mochoruk, James D. (1992 ) "The political economy of northern development: Governments and capital along
Manitoba's resource frontier, 1870-1930." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Manitoba (The). 740 pp.
This dissertation examines the political and economic aspects of the development of Manitoba's northern
frontier from 1870 to 1930. The central thesis is that the state, be it the Imperial, Dominion or Provincial
government, gave capitalists virtual carte blanche to 'develop' the resources of the northern frontier.
Regardless of the impact of such development upon natives, white workers, the land itself and future
generations of Manitobans and Canadians, the state actively aided and subsidised capital in its exploitation
of frontier resources, primarily for short-term political benefits. Through a detailed analysis of the political
and economic arrangements which facilitated resource development along this shifting frontier, this study
also demonstrates that there was little difference in the attitudes or actions of various levels of government
towards the north. Despite a certain amount of rhetoric concerning the north and northerners, most southern
politicians had little interest in the region until entrepreneurs sought to harvest its resources. Hence
Governments took a passive and then a reactive role, ignoring the north and the problems of its people if
there was no immediate entrepreneurial interest in the region and then throwing it open to development with
few restrictions as soon as any business group expressed interest. Because it was the Dominion which had
legal control of these resources until 1930 and political control over most of the region until 1912, it has
often been assumed that it was solely the Dominion's fault for any mistakes that were made in setting
resource policy, for failing to protect the rights of northerners and for granting concessions to capital. As this
work argues, however, Manitoba and its political leaders must share the blame for what happened to
Manitoba's northern resources and peoples, both by virtue of the cynical political games that they played
with Ottawa until 1930 and because of the role that Manitoba's government played in setting resource policy
and negotiating the transfer of natural resources in the 1920s. Indeed, one of this work's more contentious
conclusions is that Manitoba's political leadership performed so poorly during the 1920s that the province
would actually have been better off if it had not won beneficial control over its own resources in 1930.
Mollard, Rhona S. (2002) "Testaments of colonialism: Six Native American novels." D.A. Dissertation, St. John's
University. 162 pp.
Working chronologically, this researcher examines six novels written by Native American writers as
testaments of US internal colonialism. The study explores the following questions: In what way do these
stories refute those of the colonizer as perpetuated in mainstream histories and literature? What does it mean
to be a colonized Native and how does that definition change over the course of the 20th century? The study
is divided into three parts: Assimilation; Resistance and Revolution, drawing on two novels from the thirties:
John Joseph Matthews' Sundown and Darcy McNickle's The surrounded, two novels from the
sixties/seventies: N. Scott Momaday's House made of dawn and Leslie Marmon Silko's Ceremony; and two
novels from the nineties: Linda Hogan's Power and Silko's Almanac of the dead. Setting the novels in their
historical and political context, I draw an analogy with the observations made by Albert Memmi in his study
The colonizer and the colonized. Memmi theorizes that colonized peoples go through three stage of response
to colonization: assimilation, followed by resistance and revolt.
Moncrieff, Catherine F. (2004) "Listen to our elders: Investigating traditional ecological knowledge of salmon in
communities of the Lower and Middle Yukon River." M.A. Thesis, University of Alaska Anchorage. 168 pp.
Traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) about salmon is held and practiced by local fishers and elders in
Central Yup'ik, Deg'Hitan and Koyukon communities of the Yukon River. At present this information
contributes little to fisheries management on the Yukon River. At the direction of the Yukon River Drainage
Fisheries Association, to better understand changing salmon runs, Alaska Native fishers in the communities
of Alakanuk, St. Mary's, Holy Cross, and Nulato were interviewed about their observations, knowledge and
understanding of king salmon populations and behaviour. Participants provided a variety of examples of
TEK indicators describing salmon arrival time and run strength. Utilization of TEK increases the level of
mutual respect and understanding between local residents and state and federal agencies. This practical
bridging of knowledge can positively affect fisheries management in order to protect and preserve salmon
species and the livelihood of subsistence and commercial fishing on the Yukon River.
Montgomerie, Deborah A. (1993) "Coming to terms: Ngai Tahu, Robeson County Indians and the Garden River Band
of Ojibwa, 1840-1940: Three studies of colonialism in action." Ph.D. Dissertation, Duke University. 456 pp.
This dissertation examines colonization as an historical process through case studies of Ngai Tahu, a group
of Mäori inhabiting the southern portion of the South Island of New Zealand, the Garden River band of
Ojibwa of the northern shore of Lake Huron, and the Indian communities of Robeson County, North
Carolina. The narratives begin in the early 19th century and follow each group into the early 20th century.
By 1840 these groups had all experienced several generations of contact with Europeans. While none was
untouched by European expansion, in 1840 each retained considerable autonomy. During the period 1840-
1940 the indigenous inhabitants of Robeson County, the South Island of New Zealand and southwestern
Ontario were all brought within the ambit of colonial authority. Their systems of land-holding, schooling,
political participation and production radically changed. Yet, despite economic hardship, cultural change
and multi-faceted pressures to assimilate, all three retained a sense of group distinctiveness. Certain types of
authority had been conceded to the colonial centre -- other forms of authority -- in particular the right to
ethnic and racial self-definition, had been fiercely maintained. Juxtaposing these histories provides insight
into the historic subordination and modern resurgence of indigenous peoples in three white settler colonies.
It also illustrates the extent to which the subordination of native peoples was the product of the political
economy of colonialism, not the inherent weakness of indigenous societies. Native people could build
community identities out of the process of historical struggle even when they abandoned many of the cultural
practices that initially distinguished them from European immigrants. Moreover, the narratives show that
despite the superior force of the imperial authorities and their colonial successor states, native societies
could negotiate and manoeuvre within the confines of the colonial process. Furthermore, the dissertation
argues against comparisons of colonialism that rank imperialisms, or compare 'good' and 'bad' imperialisms,
as inadequate for incorporating the complexity of native experiences or the subtleties of native resistance.
Though broad parallels may be drawn, especially in relation to the material and environmental changes
wrought by colonialism, comparison is also a tool for understanding difference and historical contingency.
While identifying parallel processes at work, analysis underlines the particularity of each colonial encounter.
Monture, Patricia A. (1998) "Locating aboriginal peoples in Canadian law: One aboriginal woman's journey through
case law and the Canadian constitution." LL.M. Thesis, York University. 238 pp.
This thesis has three principal goals. The first goal is the most onerous. It is to examine the degree to which
aboriginal peoples' experience, knowledge systems, traditions and ways of being can be held within the
existing boundaries of Canadian law. This first goal is narrowed and shaped by the second which is to
examine the way gender impacts on the first question. Women's roles and responsibilities, as well as the
exclusion of women's experience, is a theme which is woven throughout the entire thesis. The third goal is
methodologically based. This thesis offers up one example of the way in which aboriginal practices and
traditions can be united with conventional Canadian legal practices. This last goal requires that this thesis is
written in plain language that is accessible to people without access to technical and sometimes complicated
'law talk.'
This thesis is a journey of one Mohawk woman through Canadian legal relationships. The journey is an idea
that is common among many aboriginal traditions and ways. This concept as well as the practice of story
telling is used to trace the author's progress from law student to law teacher as the vehicle through which the
above goals are met. It is, as well, an examination of legal concepts such as discrimination, rights (both
individual and collective) and equality. This specific examination is complemented by discussions of
oppression and colonization. The conclusion which examines what is aboriginal justice, is offered to provide
one opportunity to begin to consider how aboriginal laws can be balanced with Canadian law.
Moore, Carolyn A. (2001) "Application of an environmental management systems approach to fisheries: A case study
of the fishery of the Chippewas of Nawash First Nation." M.E.S. Thesis, Dalhousie University. 120 pp.
This study explores the potential contribution of the environmental management systems approach to
fisheries management. A review of fisheries management literature was conducted, and a case study was
used, to develop an understanding of the limitations of current fisheries management systems in light of
major environmental and social challenges facing fisheries. The case study used was the commercial-
subsistence fishery of the Chippewas of Nawash First Nation, which is located at Cape Croker, Ontario. A
review of literature on environmental and natural resource management was conducted to identify modern
approaches to implementing best practices for natural resource management. Environmental management
systems approaches are currently being used in some natural resource sectors to address the environmental
management and everyday business concerns affecting their operations. The knowledge gained from an
investigation of these environmental management systems approaches was used as a basis for developing a
fisheries management process. The proposed fisheries management process was designed to bring vision,
organization, consistency, and accountability to the strategic planning and day-to-day operation of fisheries.
The fisheries management process provides a basis to identify, prioritize, and address significant
management issues, and to verify and report on the effectiveness of management practices. Guidelines on
how to implement the fisheries management process are provided, including specific recommendations for
the Nawash Council on how their existing fisheries management system can be improved.
Morantz, Toby E. (1981) "The impact of the fur trade on 18th and 19th century Algonquian social organization: An
ethnographic-ethnohistoric study of the eastern James Bay Cree from 1700-1850." Ph.D. Dissertation,
The involvement of Northern Algonquians in the European fur trade is cited by many anthropologists as
having promoted their abandonment of a communally-based social organization in favour of one displaying
more individualistic attributes. This ethnohistorical study, of the period from 1700 to 1850, focuses on one
Northern Algonquian region, eastern James Bay (Québec), to determine the impact of the fur trade on the
social patterning of its inhabitants. As such, it presents an ethnographic account of these peoples. The major
problems investigated are of the social changes that came about in their winter hunting arrangements, in
their patterns of leadership and their land tenure system. Other aspects discussed are the historical setting,
inter-group relations and the influence of the ecological factors.
Methodologically, it shows that research procedures more akin to anthropological fieldwork studies can be
employed despite the total reliance on historical documents. The information extracted was used as the basis
of a conventional anthropological analysis. Borrowed from the historical method were the techniques of
critical evaluation, corroboration from more than one source and complete documentation. The
shortcomings in an anthropological study using the ethnohistorical method are noted. It is expected these
defects will be judged to be entirely overshadowed by the relatively extensive range of subjects
comprehensively treated in this dissertation and the contribution it makes, in the way of support or
challenges, to specific, accepted ethnological notions.
The results of the study indicate several interesting developments. The most significant of these is the rise of
an Indian population with a coastal and fur trade post adaptation. For the other Indian groups their mode of
social patterning, based primarily on subsistence activities, remained little altered from the beginning of the
study to its end. Not even the family hunting territory system was seen to have burst forth suddenly as the
means of the Indians' adjustment to the fur trade. Instead it is shown to have had its roots already established
in the earliest days of the active fur trade in James Bay. One definite creation of the fur trade was the trading
captain system, although its evolution was fashioned by both the Europeans and Indians. Some of its
characteristics were also detected among other of the more traditional leadership figures. Finally, the widely
accepted notion of the complete domination of the Indians by Europeans is also challenged in this study of
the fur trade as it covers the period of intense competition between several European companies.
On the whole, the examination of the historical records from 1700 to 1850 fail to substantiate earlier claims
that the fur trade had brought about radical changes in the James Bay social organization. It is argued
throughout that the ecological system moderated the size and structure of social groups. This finding, then,
leads one to question whether in aboriginal times the James Bay people were able to enjoy communal,
larger-scale living. The possibility is raised that indeed it was the fur trade that made such a luxury
practicable.
Morgan, Heidi F. (2001) "Sources of empowerment for Native American women: Pomo women's critical reflections."
Ed.D. Dissertation, University of San Francisco. 110 pp.
The purpose of this research was to learn from the perspective of Pomo Indian women, the sources of
empowerment, which enabled them to overcome oppressive experiences in their lives. As members of an
indigenous group of people who have been historically oppressed by colonization, Native American women
have lost much of their culture, language and land. Many Indian women are living below the national poverty
level. Unable to visualize a life of self-determination and empowerment, these women often become victims of
domestic violence, alcohol, and drug abuse. The researcher employed participatory research methodology, a
method of social investigation of problems, involving participation of oppressed groups of people and the
researcher in problem naming, reflection, and action for the purpose of social transformation and
empowerment. This methodology was inspired by Freire (1972) and further developed by Maguire (1987).
Five major research questions guided the study: (1) What oppressive experiences have Pomo Native
American women leaders experienced in school, job, social, family, tribal and/or other settings? (2) What
strategies have Pomo women leaders utilized to overcome oppressive experiences and obstacles? (3) What do
Pomo women leaders see as the primary issues disempowering young indigenous women today? (4) What
messages or guidance would Pomo women leaders offer to their Native sisters and daughters who are
experiencing oppression and turning to self-destructive behaviours in their attempt to escape feelings of
powerlessness? (5) How would Native American women leaders utilize the findings of this research for social
transformation and empowerment in their community? Data were collected through individual dialogues that
were tape-recorded and transcribed. The researcher and participants then reflected upon the transcripts
analyzing them for accuracy, interpretations, and themes. The findings revealed the following seven major
themes that reflected sources of empowerment experienced by the Pomo women leaders: (1) the importance
of a strong family; (2) positive role models; (3) spirituality; (4) Indian identity; (5) education; (6)
commitment to the Indian community; and, (7) guidance to young Native women. The participants developed
a comprehensive list of 16 recommendations for action in their Indian communities. They concluded that
young women today need to be encouraged to believe in themselves, find positive role models, participate in
Indian traditions, events and dances, connect with their native spirituality, develop self-esteem through life
affirming activities like sports and education, and take pride in being an Indian woman.
MorningStorm, J. Boyd. (1998) "American Indian warriors today." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Arizona (The).
211 pp.
The American Indian concept of warriorhood is a direct reflection of their warrior ancestors. Today, many
Native American celebrations and ceremonies pay homage to their warrior/veterans. Many of these
ceremonies are to cleanse the veteran of the trauma of combat. This is not a new phenomenon. Native
celebrations and ceremonies are a direct link to the culture, religion and ancient conception of warriorhood
among American Indian nations today.
In social gatherings like the American Indian Pow Wow, native people have always honoured their warriors.
The only difference is that in these modern times these warriors will be called veterans. Ways of honouring
these warrior/veterans may vary from nation (tribe) to nation or region to region, but the tradition of
honouring ceremonies has been handed down through the centuries in social gatherings like the American
Indian Pow Wow.
The conception of the warrior is basically unchanged since the old days of native societies to these modern
times of life on an Indian reservation. The Indian warrior has always been a protector of his people. This
warrior conception is explained in depth in the introduction. The native concept of the warrior today is only a
reflection of what that same conception was hundreds of years ago, even longer in many respects. What this
means is a warrior was looked upon as a protector. The old Indian warrior codes of honour of those by gone
days are now replaced by the US Military code of honour. This concept fits well with the warrior/veterans of
today. Because in truth, Indians have become Americans over the past 100 years. After all is said and done,
The American Indian's willingness to fight for this country is also a reflection of his ancestors' willingness to
fight for this land. In the last analysis American Indians have always fought for this land.
Morris, Carolyn T. (1998 ) "Characteristics of internalizing social-emotional behaviours of southwestern Native

American children." Ph.D. Dissertation, Utah State University. 115 pp.
The knowledge base targeting internalizing symptomatology in Native American children is surprisingly
limited. As yet, it is not clear if the process and symptoms of internalizing disorders are the same across
cultures. The need for further investigation is heightened by the fact that, compared to the majority
population, Native Americans are believed to be at greater risk for psychological problems because of
impoverished conditions, high unemployment, and high numbers of traumatic events on the reservations.
Additionally, the losses of traditional culture and language are considered risk factors for greater
psychopathology. The negative ramifications of internalizing disorders (e.g., depression and anxiety) include
academic failure, lowered social skills and self-esteem, and greater risk for substance abuse and suicide.
Furthermore, evidence suggests that all children with mental disorders are at high risk for severe
psychopathology when left unidentified or untreated. It seems clear that additional research is needed to
better understand internalizing symptoms among members of this cultural group.
To help meet this need, the present study focused on internalizing disorders among Native American children
from the southwest, utilizing a portion of extant data from the Flower of Two Soils Project. This project was
one of very few methodologically sound studies that have been successful in obtaining multisource,
multimethod data on social, emotional, and behavioural functioning of Native American children. Data were
collected using a modified version of the Child Behaviour Checklist (CBCL), Youth Self-Report (YSR), and
Teacher's Report Form (TRF) assessment instruments for parents, teachers, and children.
Findings with respect to elementary school-aged children found relatively high rates of depression, anxiety,
somatization symptoms and, potentially, disorders. These findings are a cause for concern among parents,
teachers, and all agencies responsible for children's mental health. Across all three informant groups a
consistent pattern of negative correlations was observed between internalizing symptoms and child
competencies. This finding is consistent with previous findings for the general population. However,
competitiveness and academic achievement were positively correlated with internalizing symptoms, perhaps
indicating that an emphasis on competitiveness and individual achievement is stressful for children from a
collectivistic Native American culture.
This was a descriptive study providing broad exploratory information, but there remains a need for more
focused research identifying multivariate relationships among relevant variables. These findings should be
cautiously interpreted and with due consideration for the specific cultural and historical context of children
and families. Recommendations are included for research and practice.
Morris, Christopher H. (1999) "Assessing mental health of Native American children: Relationship of acculturation
with social, emotional, and behavioural functioning." Ph.D. Dissertation, Utah State University. 160 pp.
The literature indicates that, in comparison to children of other ethnic minority groups, Native American
children may be at greater risk for a variety of emotional and behavioural disorders and negative
psychosocial conditions. Many may also struggle to resolve issues related to cultural identity. Understanding
how Native American children and families relate to the cultures within which they live is a critical aspect of
preventing and treating childhood mental disorders. Although native children and families face persistent
social pressure to adapt to a multicultural world, no systematic research exists examining the relationship
between families' experience of acculturation and their children's social, emotional, and behavioural
functioning.
This study described features of acculturation among Native American children and families, and explored
the relationship between these cultural features and children's functioning. The study relied primarily upon
the perceptions of 186 children and parents from an American Indian tribe of the southwestern United States,
each reporting on their own traditionalism, and their perceptions of the child's social-emotional
competencies and problems. Child and parent perceptions were augmented by parent report of other family
characteristics.
Consistent with the literature, factor analytic and psychometric findings indicated that traditionalism is a
multidimensional construct that can be measured reliably among children and adults. These findings are
especially significant because few psychometrically adequate instruments exist to assess traditionalism or
acculturation among Native American children.
Few relationships were found between child emotional and behavioural problems and acculturation. A
consistent pattern of relationships indicated an association of parent- and child-reported traditionalism with
lower perceived levels of child social and behavioural competencies. Exceptions to this pattern included the
tendency of children to see themselves as more socially competent if they were involved with traditional
ceremonies. Parent reports indicated an association between biculturalism and positive perceptions of child
competencies.
These findings must be cautiously interpreted in conjunction with the specific cultural and historical context
of these families. Characteristics of the data placed some limits on multivariate analyses, and most study
findings should be viewed as exploratory. Recommendations are included for further research required to
adequately understand relationships between family acculturation and child functioning.
Morse, Gayle L. (2000) "The relationships among cultural affiliation, perceived quality of life and mental health in a
Native American population." Ph.D. Dissertation, State University of New York at Albany. 69 pp.
The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships among Quality of Life, Mohawk Cultural
Identification, White Cultural Identification, and depression in a Native American population in hopes of
better understanding the role of culture in psychological well-being. Thereby helping to improve services
available for this formerly under-served and growing population. This study tested the hypothesis that
individuals' perceptions of their quality of life and cultural identification could effectively predict their level
of depressive symptoms.
This study employed an observational, ex post facto research design. The dependent variable measured was
level of depressive symptomatology. The independent variables included self report measures of perceived
quality of life, degrees of cultural identification with Mohawk Culture, and White Culture. A random, sample
of adults, ranging in age from 18-70, were invited to participate in the study. The final sample consisted of
306 Native Americans from a northeast reservation and consisted of 207 females, 99 males. It was found that
of the three independent variables examined, only Quality of Life was a significant predictor of depressive
symptomatology. The relationships of Mohawk Cultural Identification (r (297) = 0.05) and White Cultural
Identification (r (297) = -0.06) with depression were less clear and need further consideration. Although
cultural identity did not have a direct relationship upon depression, Mohawk Cultural Identification did have
a positive relationship with quality of life. This highlights the need to keep cultural and quality of Life factors
under consideration in a counselling setting, which may help may help indicate ways to lessen the symptoms
of depression during therapy.
Morton, Jamie. (2005) "Industry, ideology, and social formation in British Columbia, 1849-85." Ph.D. Dissertation,
This study examines how the systems of production of the commodity exporting industries of pre-1885 British
Columbia contributed to the social formation of the region. Such industries provided the economic base for
post-contact development and non-native settlement of the region, mediated by the cultural values of
immigrant and indigenous populations. The intent here is to synthesize a more inclusive model to clarify how
these economic and cultural factors intersected to produce a distinct regional society. Beginning with Ian
McKay's suggestion to interpret the history of Canada as a process of naturalizing the liberal order, this
study moves the analysis away from microstudies of individual industries or social groups in order to
emphasize the way in which a broader vision became naturalized. This approach avoids some of the simple
dichotomies of class and race that have informed much of the historiography of BC, in favour of a more
nuanced analysis that emphasizes the negotiated process that leads to social consensus. Beginning with the
merchant capitalist relations of the fur trade, and accelerating with the 1858 gold rush, BC became
understood as a place that provided opportunities for economic and social mobility through participation in
commodity exporting ventures. A consensus emerged that emphasized the producer ethic [the economic and
cultural value of independent producers], and the creation of a meritocratic socio-political environment to
support opportunities for achieved, rather than ascribed, social position. This attracted Euro-North
American immigrants hoping to escape social restrictions or proletarianization by achieving independent
producer status. Such a goal meant that these immigrants resisted waged labour, creating a chronic shortage
that impeded industrial development. This was filled with Chinese immigrants or Aboriginal participants,
attracted by the prospect of converting earnings into increased status in their originating societies.
Combining the demand for labour with racial ideology, certain jobs were racialized, and BC industries were
typified by split labour markets, with an upper echelon comprised of occupationally-mobile Euro-North
American workers, and a lower echelon defined by race as well as skill, with little opportunity for mobility. In
turn, this contributed to naturalizing ideology concerning race, class, and social position. The emphasis on
the producer ethic contributed to an artificial division between "producers" and "agents," with the former
celebrated, while the latter, arguably more important to the systems of production by providing links to
export markets, are portrayed less favourably. A commodity exporting, producer-centric variant of the liberal
order was naturalized in 19th century BC, providing the logic for social and political development, and
explaining how certain groups were valued, and either integrated into or excluded from hegemonic society.
The degree to which individuals or groups conformed to the naturalized values of the emerging society
largely determined their social position in the 19th century, and their subsequent treatment in the
historiography.
Moss, Siobhan A. (1993) "The acquisition of English functional categories by native speakers of Inuktitut." M.A.
Several current studies in language acquisition have focused on the emergence of functional categories in
first and second languages. The properties of functional categories can be exhibited through movement,
inflections, case marking and the use of functional elements such as determiners and complementizers. This
pilot study investigated the English second language of two groups of Inuktitut speaking schoolchildren at the
beginning of the school year to see whether the properties of functional categories in English emerged in the
same way as they do for first language speakers. While some of the Kindergarten children showed no access
to these properties, others showed partial or complete access to them. Those children who had been in school
one year demonstrated access to all of the properties under investigation. The results are discussed with
respect to future research methodologies and studies of acquisition.
Muller, Elsa C. (1995) "A cultural study of the Sioux novels of Liselotte Welskopf-Henrich." Ph.D. Dissertation,
University of Maryland College Park. 543 pp.
The East/German author/scholar Liselotte Welskopf-Henrich (1901-79) developed from a traditional
humanist (Ph.D. in classics and ancient history) to an activist in unthinking the Eurocentrism in scholarship
and literature. Author of 11 popular novels about the Sioux, Welskopf came from a bourgeois, national-
liberal family. She participated in the resistance during the Third Reich (helped Jews, concentration camp
inmates, POWs). After a period of Marxism, she advanced to an understanding of Indigenism during the
1960s and 70s. She became involved with the situation of Native American people/s/nations and the
American Indian Movement.
The dissertation begins with a theoretical exposition of the consequences of the global imposition of
European concepts, the deferral of the rights of First Nations ('Fourth' World) people. Colonialist and
Eurocentric discourses prevent the 'Other' from speaking for him/herself and being heard. Since European
culture reacts allergically to the mixing of the profane and the sacred, exiling the fool from the sacred, the
Native American Sacred Clown is used as a measure for the Eurocentric discourse of the 'Other.'
Welskopf first approached Native America through the Eurocentric perspective of antiquity, using it to depict
the 'original pre-Homeric notion' of Musse by transposing it to classless Lakota society (novel cycle Die
Sohne der Grossen Barin) still influenced by the Marxist-Leninist illusion of 'commun-ity/ism.' Welskopf's
novels (Das Blut des Adlers) about Pine Ridge Reservation, Alcatraz, the 1973 Wounded Knee, Dick Wilson
and his goons, based on her experience of reservation reality, approximate her own theoretical concept of the
contemporary/historical novel in which the 'Other' speaks for him/herself; the Sacred Clown (the Lakota
Heyoka in connection with Iktomi/trickster) and the power of Indi'n Humour are heard.
Welskopf's process of unthinking Eurocentrism is reflected in the course of her recurrence to the telling of the
'Stone Boy,' from simple appropriation (1950s) to an approximation (1970s) in its significance for the
people's origin and their connection to the Sacred mountains, the Paha Sapa (Black Hills). Welskopf
advanced a remarkable distance along the path of unthinking Eurocentrism.
Mulligan, Karen L. (2001 ) "A culture of respect: An examination of organizational factors that optimize the attraction
and retention of aboriginal employees." M.A. Thesis, Royal Roads University. 153 pp.
Mummery, Christopher R. (2000) "The struggle for survival: The origins of racism in New Caledonia, 1843-1902."
M.A. Thesis, University of Calgary. 153 pp.
This thesis will address the origins of racism in New Caledonia from the first missionary contact in 1843 to
1902 and will show how the various French visitors infected the island with their extreme racial attitudes.
These individuals, who range from governors, military commanders, naval physicians, to settlers, explorers
and missionaries, all brought with them the idea that the Melanesians (Kanak) were not only an inferior race,
but also a savage and uncivilized people. These ideas were formed by the many racial theorists m late 18th
century and early 19th century Europe. This thesis will conclude that the French colonists utilized European
scientific racial theory to judge and classify the indigenous population of New Caledonia; and that the
French administration cultivated and employed these racist attitudes in their colonial policies, particularly
their land claims policies.
Murdock, Lisa A. (2001) "Aboriginal women and violence: A standpoint analysis." M.A. Thesis, University of
In order to adequately respond to the needs of women who are struggling to cope with their own use of
intimate violence, this research project sets out to explore the issue of women's intimate violence.
Acknowledging the fact that violence is a significant issue within the aboriginal community, particular
attention has been directed to aboriginal women who engage in violent behaviour. Taking a standpoint
approach to the issue, three focus-group discussions and 12 in-depth interviews were conducted with
aboriginal women in order to get at how these women made sense of their own use of violence.
Situated in the context of the long history of racial oppression and discrimination faced by aboriginal people,
the legacy of residential boarding schools is discussed in terms of its effect upon the familial structure within
aboriginal communities. As a result of the government's failed attempt to assimilate Canada's aboriginal
people into the larger society, aboriginal people, as a group, have been left to live in a state of despair. The
women's stories of growing up in broken families are explored in depth, as is their long histories of living in
an environment where alcohol, violence and poverty are the norm.
From their accounts of their lives, it is revealed that much of women's intimate violence takes place in
response to women's long histories of oppression and victimization both as a group trying to survive in a
predominately white society and as individuals trying to survive in a violent, and often poverty-stricken,
environment. As a group, the women voice their need for programs and other resources in order to
understand better the roots of their anger and aggression and to cope more effectively with their violent
behaviour. issues such as poverty, the women's lack of parenting skills, their need for better communication
skills and their desire for stronger support systems are addressed. More significantly, the women's need for
attention, understanding and voice is also revealed.
This research reveals that women who engage in intimate violence lead very complicated lives and that there
are no easy or simple solutions to ending the violence, especially given the women's strong degrees of
mistrust in non-aboriginal individuals and organizations. Nevertheless, by presenting these women's stories -
- their standpoint -- this research offers insights for responding more appropriately to the needs of women
who engage in violent behaviour.
Murphy, Lyndon. (2000) "Who's afraid of the dark? Australia's administration in Aboriginal affairs." M.P.A. Thesis,
University of Queensland. 93 pp.
Murphy, Michael A. (1997 ) "Nation, culture, and authority: Multinational democracies and the politics of pluralism."
Ph.D. Dissertation, McGill University. 256 pp.
This dissertation examines the theoretical aspects of communication and coexistence among different and
sometimes competing national cultures in contemporary liberal-democratic states. As its primary example,
the study focuses on the quest for self-determination of Canada's indigenous peoples, but the theoretical
significance of the project extends well beyond the bounds of this particular case. With this end in mind, the
dissertation advances and defends a set of normative political principles which could, with certain necessary
modifications, serve to guide just, equitable, and stable relations among different national cultures in a broad
range of cases and contexts. The discussion opens with the development of a model of cross-cultural
understanding and accommodation, which in turn is used to demonstrate the manner in which the theory and
practice of liberal democracy often serves to legitimate the assertion of the authority of particular national
cultures over their relatively smaller and weaker rivals.
In opposition to this more conventional liberal approach, the dissertation proposes a reformulation of the
theoretical and institutional bases of liberal conceptions of national sovereignty and self-determination. This
alternative approach bypasses any attempt to identify authentic or foundational liberal values which must
frame and govern the principle of national self-determination, and which assert their categorical primacy
over competing normative ideals and traditions. This approach to self-determination balances, on the one
hand, the importance of more localized national ends, ideals, and institutions with a concern, on the other,
for universal standards of democratic conduct, responsibility, and governance. What results is not a grand
theory of national self-determination, but rather a set of flexible principles which can be attuned to different
cultural contexts and circumstances, and which are subject to the democratic consent of the nations or
peoples concerned.
Murphy, Peter G. (2000) "Ethnopolitical representation of indigenous peoples: Comparative perspectives of the
Americas." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Arkansas. 322 pp.
This dissertation investigates how trends in the literary representation of American Indians function in an
ethnopolitical context and considers how both native and author can be interpreted as negotiated social
entities.
Textual positioning of the Native American subject has evolved considerably from the time of the colonial
explorer to the postcolonial critic. The resent conditions in native representation integrally relate artist and
critic as they culturally interact. This makes a comparative study of the narrative of both Latin American and
North American natives conducive to the portrayal and welfare of indigenous peoples in both literary and
social contexts.
The introductory chapter identifies general characterizations of Native Americans as presented by
Christopher Columbus, Bartolomé de las Casas, and Sir Walter Raleigh. This focus on the initial encounter
between Europeans and Native Americans explores ethnopolitical relationships which influenced colonial
narratives. The comparative approach applied in this investigation facilitates an understanding of strategies
employed in the European conquest of the Americas. Most depictions of natives, for instance, served the
interests of nobility, explorers, and settlers whose objectives focused primarily on political, economic, and
religious ends. Moral and ethical questions often were weighed in respect to justifying war and conquest over
the natives.
Next, a section on 19th century Native American representation will examine the ambivalence of the era in its
romantic and realistic portrayals of the indigenous. William Gilmore Simms and Clorinda Matto de Turner
are two integral voices in this section. An analysis of Mikhail Bakhtin's The dialogic imagination prefaces
this study of the era and shows how authorial discourse evolves into the dialectic representation of subaltern
people. The following section, which focuses on 20th century Native American literature, is introduced with a
section on Michel Foucault's treatment of counter-hegemonic discourse and how it relates to texts written by
indigenous Americans in the 20th century. Authors discussed in this section include Leslie Marmon Silko and
José María Arguedas. The study concludes with a discussion of the conflict between subalterns and
subalternist critics. Here, the essay argues that a more pragmatic subaltern position should be incorporated
into literary criticism in order to support the subaltern cause for egalitarian representation.
Murphy, Sharon B. (1998) "Surviving domestic violence: A study of American Indian women claiming their lives."
Domestic violence research began approximately 25 years ago in the United States. Much of the early
research literature was epidemiological in focus and attempted to define terms such as spouse abuse, partner
abuse, and violence against women. Additionally, studies have focused on intervention and treatment
methods for both victims and perpetrators, the debate over the efficacy of conjoint treatment methods, and
have explored the factors contributing to why women remain in abusive relationships.
Research which has sought to explore the meaning of domestic violence as it is experienced by American
Indian women victims is noticeably absent from the literature. The purpose of this study was to explore the
lived experience of domestic violence of American Indian women survivors. The data were gathered from
audio-taped, in-depth phenomenological interviews with 13 American Indian women. The guiding research
question was: What is the lived experience of domestic violence of American Indian women survivors? The
initial interview questions were: (a) What does the term domestic violence mean to you?; and, (b) Tell me a
story about your domestic violence experience, one you will never forget. Interpretive phenomenology was
selected as the research methodology to reveal the common meanings and shared practices of the
participants' experience of domestic violence.
The experiences of the participants revealed common meanings and shared practices of victimization and
survivorhood. Claiming Their Lives: A Spiral Journey to Survival emerged as the constitutive pattern and
included the themes of Breaking Down, Breaking Out, and Breaking Through. Breaking Down reveals the
essence of victimization which was experienced as loss of self and living in fear. Breaking Out described the
ways the women moved up and out of a spiral as they reclaimed their fives. Breaking Through uncovered the
power of telling their story.
The study revealed new understandings about the experience of victimization from domestic violence, how the
women lived within the violent relationship, and revealed modes of survival and healing. An interpretive
phenomenological approach challenges our ways of thinking about domestic violence, inciting new
possibilities for conducting social work practice cross-culturally.
Murray, Carol E. (1993) "Oral history and the Delgamuukw case." M.A. Thesis, University of Alberta. 76 pp.
The plaintiffs in the Delgamuukw land claims case argue that their oral history is 'true' and that it should be
considered as evidence of their long standing association with their territory. The Crown, on the other hand,
claims that these narratives are not history but 'belief' or 'myth.' This thesis examines Gitksan oral history
(ada'ox) as given in testimony at the Delgamuukw trial in order to understand how tropes mediate legitimacy
and meaning in oral tradition. It offers a critique of the judgment of Chief Justice McEachern's interpretation
of oral tradition and assesses approaches to the study of oral narrative by historians and anthropologists.
The recent constructionist approach to historiography is examined in application to indigenous historical
narrative; proponents of this approach posit that all historical narrative is a product of a 'mythic-historical
consciousness' in which a play of tropes 'constructs' meaning of historical event. This interpretation of
historiography is applied in a case study of one of the Gitksan ada'ox used in the trial in order to better
understand how meaning is structured in indigenous historical narrative.
Murray, Jason P. (2005) "Wage differentials in the Canadian labour market: How are the aboriginal peoples of Canada
affected?" M.A. Thesis, Dalhousie University. 91 pp.
Many groups in the Canadian labour market compete for jobs and pay. Ideally, that competition would be
fair with no discrimination. However, there are many groups that earn less on average when compared to
other groups. Is this due to the fact that the lower-paid group does not qualify for higher paid positions, or
are they discriminated against? This paper looks at the relative earnings of Aboriginal Canadians when
compared to the non-Aboriginal population. This is done using data from the Survey of Labour and Income
Dynamics (SLID) panel dataset from the years 1993 through 2001. The estimation is done using a human
capital wage equation model and a variety of estimation techniques. A "Heckit" model is used to measure and
correct for sample selection bias, quantile regressions are used to measure where in the earnings distribution
the largest wage differential is found. Finally a random effects panel data regression is run and the wage
differential is decomposed using the Oaxaca (1973) and Blinder (1973) method of decomposition. It is found
that there is a wage differential between the groups but only a small percentage can be attributed to
discrimination.
Murray, Kate. (1995) "Rethinking the place of group rights in liberal theory: Aboriginal cultural rights and the
Canadian Constitution." LL.M. Thesis, Queen's University at Kingston. 212 pp.
During the period of the 1992 constitutional negotiations and the national referendum debate, in response in
part to initiatives to recognize aboriginal rights, including rights relating to culture, a number of prominent
Canadian liberals argued that liberalism requires a denial of the fundamental nature of group claims,
opposition to the inclusion of any group rights concepts in the Constitution or, at a minimum, insistence upon
the primacy of individual rights and the subordination of group claims in the event of conflict. In this paper, I
argue that this interpretation does not have the authority asserted on its behalf as a representation of
liberalism and liberal values, and that liberal theory (at least as articulated by John Rawls) not only can but
must recognize certain categories of group rights, including rights related to culture.
I argue that Rawls's political conception of the person as a free and equal moral being constitutes the
fundamental standard by which arguments for and against extension of his constructivist procedure within
the boundaries of a modern constitutional liberal democracy must be measured. I argue that cultures are of
intrinsic derivative, as well as instrumental, value to their members and, as such, are critical to their capacity
for, and exercise of, their two moral powers, and their ability to have and pursue a determinate conception of
the good. I contend that Rawls's constructivist procedure, when applied to the basic structure of an open,
culturally heterogeneous modern constitutional democracy, must recognize that 'equal liberty to participate
in, produce and enjoy one's own culture' is justified as a basic liberty.
I also examine Rawls's approach to the specification and adjustment of the basic liberties and its implications
for the recognition and interpretation of group rights and for the treatment of rights and freedoms in conflict.
In particular, I argue that that this aspect of Rawl's constructivist analysis places a positive obligation upon
governments to entrench the rights and freedoms necessary to effect the basic liberties in a constitution, and
to develop legislation and policies concerning the protection and provision of the goods necessary to give
effect to those rights and freedoms. It also provides substantive criteria for the recognition and
implementation of rights and freedoms, the assessment of rights-claims, and the resolution of conflicts of
rights and freedoms that should alleviate many of the concerns surrounding the recognition of group rights.
Finally, I consider two issues that are raised uniquely by group rights-claims and are common to all such
claims -- the questions of the recognition of communal goods as legitimate objects of rights-claims, and of
groups as rights-claimants. I propose a methodology for the treatment of group rights-claims to communal
goods which, by displacing the inquiry from one that concentrates primarily on the nature of group capable
of being rights-claimants to one that addresses the nature of the claim, differs in its focus from that advocated
by many proponents of group rights.
Murray, Maureen J. (2003 ) "Circles of healing: Stories of trauma and recovery from Native American and Western
perspectives ." M.A. Thesis, University of Regina (The). 207 pp.
This thesis explores the meaning of healing within an Aboriginal tradition for individuals of Ojibwa descent.
It investigates the roles that spirituality, family and community play in the process of coping with, and
healing from trauma. Individuals who have experienced life events they consider traumatic tell their stories
and share their understanding of how traditional Native American beliefs and practices contributed to their
recovery process. The researcher's personal experiences and perspectives, gained through her own
experiences of healing from trauma, her visits to the participants' community over a three year period, and
her active participation in their cultural traditions and ceremonies provide a comparative framework.
The research methodology is qualitative using biocalage as its primary means of investigation and drawing
on ethnology, native studies, feminist principle and narrative methods. A model of engagement was used to
gather stories from participants and the researcher's field notes were part of the data used for analysis.
Informed and process consent were utilized. Data was analysed using a variation of holistic-content analysis.
Participants' themes included: reconnection through relationships, belief as a way to reconnect,
responsibility, meaning through purpose, spiritual connection through harmony, balance and wholeness.
Themes arising from the researcher's experience include: belonging and connection, trust and faith, and
endurance and letting go.
Mushinski, David W. (1996) "Microenterprise and small business access to credit." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of
Wisconsin -- Madison (The). 149 pp.
Microenterprises and small businesses experience a gap, deriving from informational asymmetries and
transaction costs, in their access to credit from banks. This dissertation analyzes empirically two institutions
which might reduce different parts of that credit gap: (1) Grameen Bank-type credit groups; and, (2) credit
unions which have undertaken certain market-oriented reforms. I also model and estimate rationing implied
by the credit gap for certain credit markets. With respect to Grameen Bank-type credit groups, I analyze
interviews of microentrepreneurs who received credit group loans and small business loan recipients from
the Lakota Fund, located on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. In looking for evidence supporting various
explanations for repayment rates under credit groups, I find that groups adopt a variety of strategies which
make loan repayment more likely. A comparison of credit group members with recipients of secured loans
indicates that greater access to credit alone may not transform microentrepreneurs into small business
owners. With regard to credit unions, I analyze their impact on household access to business credit in
Guatemala. I find that these credit unions have a substantial positive impact on the probabilities that
households demand and lenders supply credit. Greater supply probabilities suggest that credit unions have
better information about loan applicants than do banks. Greater demand probabilities reflect the greater
supply probabilities or the ability of credit unions to deliver credit at lower costs. Finally, I model and
estimate credit rationing in the aforementioned Guatemalan markets. I model a lender which, because of
informational asymmetries, makes receipt of a loan offer probabilistic and I model the effect of probabilistic
loan offers on applicants' decisions to apply for a loan. My model allows me to identify two different types of
rationing: (1) rationing arising from the probabilistic nature of loan offers; and, (2) rationing arising
because probabilistic loan offers in conjunction with the costs of loan application make loan application non-
utility maximising. Econometric estimates indicate that the probability of loan offer has an economically and
statistically significant impact on households' decisions to apply for loans.
Muszynski, Alicja K. (1987) "The creation and organization of cheap wage labour in the British Columbia fishing
industry." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of British Columbia (The).
This thesis is concerned with the manner in which labour has been employed in the British Columbia fishing
industry, and with the more general historical development of a labour force which provides labour power at
wages below full subsistence costs. The phrase 'cheap labour' refers to this labour force. The thesis briefly
traces the emergence of capitalism in feudal England and argues that labour power was priced in two ways.
organized male craft workers fought for the 'family wage'; that is, for wages that would cover not only their
own costs of production and reproduction, but also those of their dependents. This meant, however, that when
women and children worked for wages, these were not designed to cover their subsistence requirements. They
were employed as 'cheap labour.' With European colonization, gender criteria were extended to incorporate
racial criteria. It is argued that cheap labourers came to be distinguished by race and ethnicity, in addition
to gender and age. The differentiation of labour based on biological criteria was adopted elsewhere, and the
main body of the thesis is concerned with how this process occurred within British Columbia's fishing
industry. The BC industry began with canners who had to recruit a new labour force in regions without large
supplies of European workers. The thesis traces how canners employed native peoples and Chinese male
labourers. The argument is advanced that these groups were paid wages below the costs of subsistence, and
that the groups survived because they were embedded in pre-capitalist social relations. They subsisted
through a combination of wage labour and unpaid work. The thesis examines Marx's labour theory of value
for its utility in explaining the development of a 'cheap labour force.' Although the theory must be re-worked
to incorporate two forms of labour power, it provides a more appropriate model than that of the dual labour
market theories. The method of historical materialism, which Marx employed, can be used to re-work the
labour theory of value. In particular, the method allows for an analysis of resistance by labourers (for
example, through trade union organization, such as the United Fishermen and Allied Workers' Union). These
theoretical applications are discussed in the thesis.
Nahanee, Teressa A. (1995) "Gorilla in our midst: Aboriginal women and the inhumanity of the Canadian criminal
justice system." LL.M. Thesis, Queen's University at Kingston. 129 pp.
This thesis explores the inhumanity of the Canadian criminal justice system as it engages with aboriginal
women as victims and perpetrators of crime. I argue, along with representatives of aboriginal women, that
the administration of criminal justice needs an aboriginal female sensitivity. The aboriginal female voices of
reason which are crying out in the wilderness need to be brought into the boardrooms of government.
Aboriginal women must be given a meaningful role in redefining the everyday impact of criminal justice
reforms in aboriginal communities. The primarily patriarchal system of criminal and constitutional laws do
not benefit aboriginal women, and, in fact, harm them as they are applied in the daily lives of aboriginal
women. I argue there is a constitutional place for aboriginal women to be involved, namely through
aboriginal self-government, whose jurisdiction may include criminal justice administration. Only when
aboriginal women exercise their rights to participate in shaping the future of aboriginal criminal justice
administration will the violence against them within and outside the system stop.
Nahdee, Russell. (1999) "The liberal ideal and aboriginality: Concepts of citizenship and self-determination." M.A.
Thesis, University of Windsor. 135 pp.
Concepts of aboriginal self-determination in the Canadian context have evolved with the development of the
nation-state. Several periods of Federal Indian policy have charted the course for changing definitions of
aboriginality. Overshadowing these definitions are the state imposed criteria for several categories of
aboriginality. Attached to the changing concept of aboriginality are the attempts to assimilate aboriginal
people into evolving state formations. A history of Federal Indian policy points to the patterns that emerge
when attempts to assimilate aboriginal people are based on the tenets of liberalism as the highest ideals in
Canadian state formation and nation-building, and are countered by historical demands for aboriginal self-
determination. The goal of the federal government in its aboriginal policy, has been to keep rising costs for
services provided to aboriginal groups at a minimum. A hidden aspect of this attempt is the regulation of
aboriginal self-determination to ordinary citizenship, which in effect determines concepts of aboriginality.
Narcisse, Cathrena P. (1998) "The social construction of aboriginal suicide." M.A. Thesis, Simon Fraser University.
100 pp.
This thesis undertakes a critical examination of existing social science perspectives on aboriginal suicide in
Canada. Aboriginal peoples in Canada are commonly viewed as experiencing a wide range of social
problems, the most extreme expression of which is suicide. Public consciousness about the 'accepted realities'
of aboriginal social problems is relatively widespread within Canadian society. Following the social
constructionist analytical approach to social problems, and using examples of academic, public, and official
treatment of aboriginal suicide as the specific body of data to be considered, the thesis will review prevalent
understandings about aboriginal suicide: how these emerged, developed, and have come to be accepted
within Canadian society. The tendency of conventional approaches appears to assume that the primary cause
or the fault of aboriginal suicide lies primarily or even exclusively with the actions and behaviours of
aboriginal peoples.
This well established point of view is facilitated by discussions which focus upon individual mental disorders
or dysfunctional social environments, often bolstered by underlying conceptions about inherent deficiencies.
In claiming 'ownership' of aboriginal social issues, the 'expert' interpretations from various academic, public,
and formal agencies or groups contribute to our sense of social order. As such, they act authoritatively in
shaping the public consciousness of the issue while simultaneously rendering other conceptualizations
inconceivable.
Crucial to this research undertaking is an exploration of how 'experts' achieve and maintain authority in
defining and establishing the 'accepted realities' about aboriginal suicide and of the implicit designations of
'causal and political responsibility.' This thesis will explore the treatment of several suicides within a specific
aboriginal community as an example of the public, academic, and official creation, documentation, and
maintenance of definitional activities involved in the eventual development of the public consciousness of
aboriginal suicide.
Nasser, Nassaro A. S. (1982) "Tribes that endured: Four Brazilian cases." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Florida.
231 pp.
This work is a study of the process whereby four Brazilian Indian tribes -- the Tukuna, the Mundurucu, the
Tenetehara, and the Tuxa -- achieved ethnic survival. Each of the tribes has a long history of contact with
Brazilian society during which it suffered forced labour, seizure of its lands, and depopulation owing to
imported Old World diseases. Despite population decline and alterations in their societies and cultures, the
tribes remain today distinct ethnic entities integrated into their respective regional economies. Various
factors account for the survival of these groups. Each tribe had a large population at contact that helped it
withstand the impact of early depopulation and to rebound once natural immunization was achieved.
Although the groups did practice infanticide and abortion, the degree of these methods of population control
was not sufficient to deeply affect population size. The territory of none of the groups was immediately sought
by colonists, so that villages remained outside of the focii of colonization. Native social structure also
promoted ethnic survival. The Tukuna and the Mundurucu, for example, are socially structured according to
a complex moiety system. Such a system makes them exogamous at the moiety level but endogamous at the
tribal level. The scheme has worked against miscegenation. Bilateral rules of descent among the Tenetehara
and the Tuxa, in contrast, permitted mixed marriages without the loss of ethnicity of the offspring.
Ceremonials and continuing use of the native language further function to mark off ethnic boundaries. In this
century, the intervention of governmental agencies charged with protecting the Indian has also aided
indigenous survival. In addition to providing limited educational facilities and some medical attention,
perhaps the most significant contribution of these agencies has been in preventing outside encroachments on
reservation lands. And, maintenance of their lands has been an imperative condition for Indian continuity.
Naylor-Ojurongbe, Celia E. (2001) ""More at home with the Indians": African-American slaves and freed people in
the Cherokee nation, Indian territory, 1838-1907." Ph.D. Dissertation, Duke University. 392 pp.
In my dissertation I contend that African-American ex-slaves explicated their acculturation within 19th
century Native American communities in Indian Territory based on their racial, cultural and national
identities. I examine the sentiments shared by Oklahoma ex-slaves within their Works Progress
Administration (WPA) interviews, conducted in the 1930s, in order to understand how ex-slaves of combined
African and Native American descent portrayed their 'mixed blood' identity as a way of emphasizing their
appreciable connection to the Cherokees, Creeks, Choctaws and Chickasaws. Furthermore, I highlight how
ex-slaves of African descent, who did and did not identify themselves as 'mixed blood,' also presented their
cultural ties to these Native American nations, in terms of specific cultural markers, namely clothing,
language ability, food preparation and knowledge of herbal remedies. In addition to specifically analyzing
the Cherokee nation, Indian territory, as a site of acculturation, I also discuss how it represented a region
where African-American slaves expressed their resistance to enslavement in its multiple manifestations.
Although demonstrating the existence of slave resistance in the Cherokee nation, I argue that Indian territory
also, simultaneously, became a place where a significant number of African-American slaves and freed
people became acculturated to Cherokee culture and tradition and attempted, with some success, to become a
recognizable part of the Cherokee nation, initially as Cherokee slaves and later as Cherokee freed people
and citizens. Lastly, I explore how recently freed slaves in the Cherokee nation, Indian territory,
reconstructed their identities as freed people by creating and exhibiting a national identity and nationalism in
connection with the Cherokee nation.
Nelson, Melissa K. (2000 ) "Toward a post-colonial ecology: Native Americans and environmental restoration." Ph.D.
This dissertation documents environmental threats to Native American Indian reservation lands nationally
and efforts by un-federally recognized tribes in California to restore lands through co-management
agreements with national parks. I provide a general overview of the special relationship between Native
Americans and their homelands and an analysis of the economic motivations of environmental exploitation of
Indian lands. I focus on the problem of nuclear waste and how Indian reservations have been targeted as
storage sites. Native communities have variable responses to these economically motivated environmental
threats, from tribal endorsement to grassroots resistance. I outline these extreme tribal responses to nuclear
waste storage with specific case studies from the southwest region. I then move, geographically, to the state
of California, where I examine the cultural history of the Ohlone peoples of the San Francisco Bay Area. I
document their present-day efforts to protect cultural sites, co-manage cultural resources, and develop more
authentic educational programs for the Presidio National Park, a new urban park converted from a military
base. To contrast with this urban case study in the San Francisco Presidio, I examine efforts by the Timbisha
Shoshone and Southern Miwok to restore sovereignty at the Death Valley and Yosemite National Parks,
respectively. Through an indigenous model of sovereignty, I examine how tribes have been able to restore
different elements of their sovereignty through various negotiations, agreements, and legal actions. By
reviewing and critiquing how the conservation movement and national parks have excluded native peoples
from their homelands, I offer suggestions on how native peoples and conservationists can work together,
through co-management, towards a post-colonial ecological paradigm that benefits both biological diversity
and the cultural diversity of land-based communities.
Ng, Mei L. (1994) "Convenient illusions: A consideration of sovereignty and the aboriginal right of self-
determination." LL.M. Thesis, York University. 200 pp.
This thesis argues that prior to the coming of Europeans the Aboriginal Peoples of Canada were sovereign,
and that despite erosion of their sovereign rights, they retain an inherent right of self-government which is
now protected under Ss.35(1) of the Constitution Act, 1982. Support for these contentions is obtained by a
consideration of the history and experience of the Dene of the Mackenzie River district. The first part of the
thesis looks at aboriginal sovereignty and the means by which the Crown acquired sovereignty over Canada.
The date and method by which sovereignty was acquired are not finally determined, but clearly the
acquisition of sovereignty was a gradual process, occurring much later than generally supposed. The
Aboriginal Peoples no longer exercise full sovereign power. The question remains, however, whether they
retain an inherent right of self-government. Ss.91(24) of the Constitution Act, 1867 and legislation enacted
thereunder are examined to establish whether they have the effect of depriving the aboriginal peoples of that
right. The examination reveals that although their rights have been seriously infringed, the aboriginal
peoples are still treated as communities with their own territorial base and governmental structures,
governing themselves, albeit to a limited degree. Finally, the thesis focuses on the Dene, using
anthropological material to show that they were self-governing prior to contact with Europeans and that they
continued to exercise this right until the present century. Although from the 1950s, the government has
exercised extensive control over them, the Dene are seeking to preserve their values and retain control over
their lives. In so doing, they are continuing to exercise their aboriginal right of self-government, which
should be entitled to constitutional protection.
Ng'weno, Bettina A. (2003) "The state in question: Afro-Colombians, ethnic territories and governing in the Andes."
Ph.D. Dissertation, Johns Hopkins University (The). 376 pp.
Worldwide, people are revalidating claims, and making new claims, over localized sections of the nation-
state, including claims on territory and governance. My dissertation is about Afro-Colombian claims to
ethnic territories in the Andes, and state transformation, in the late 1990s. It uses these Afro-Colombian land
claims to investigate the relationships among a number of processes that illuminate the nature of the state
and the effects of state processes and practices. These processes include the definition of property and
authority, the categorization of subjects of the state, the creation of political spaces, and the
institutionalization of legal rulings and laws. As such, I take the process of claiming ethnic territories by
Afro-Colombians as a powerful case study to extend and enrich theories of the state, race and ethnicity, and
property. My central question concerns why certain kinds of property are crucial for governing in modern
states. To examine this, I investigate the grounds for ethnic territorial claims, their effects, and the means by
which they produce specific relationships between Afro-Colombians and the state. In the process, I illustrate
how territories are operationalized in state extension, national reorganization, citizen enfranchisement, and
authority creation by both governmental and extra-governmental groups in Colombia. Additionally, I analyze
the essential role of categorization, specifically in regard to ethnicity, in restructuring territoriality, authority
and power. I conclude that the transformation of the nature of states is made visible in these kinds of ethnic
claims to territory. In sum, I argue for a re-examination of real property (continually redefined and
contested) as a key feature of state functioning, legitimacy and authority.
Nichol, Rosemary A. (2000) "Factors contributing to resilience in aboriginal persons who attended residential
schools." M.S.W. Thesis, University of Manitoba (The). 128 pp.
This thesis examines factors that promoted resilience in aboriginal people who attended residential schools.
The research identifies, from the participants' accounts the factors that helped them to endure the experience
and compares risk and protective factors described in the life stories to the factors identified in existing
literature. The research is qualitative, based in grounded theory using the oral history method for gathering
the data. The findings are intended to expand the knowledge base of resilience research. A small sample of
four women and two men who attended residential school between 1939 and 1966 were interviewed. The
participants were identified by independent others as successful survivors of the residential school
experience. All the participants are members of First Nations from Alberta or Saskatchewan and five of the
six attended residential school for a minimum of seven years. Five of the six are now living well; the sixth is
experiencing some side effects from the residential school experience.
Protective factors common to other resilience research are identified in the participants' stories. These
factors include long-term marriages, a lifelong interest in education, high intelligence, and primarily
cooperative coping strategies. The participants emphasized the protective nature of a happy and nurturing
early childhood and the importance of their spiritual beliefs to their current well being, particularly their
belief in their traditional aboriginal religion. This research suggests that self-image can be enhanced in
adulthood and this appears to be a result of spiritual beliefs and an appreciation of aboriginal history and
ancestors.
Nichols, Fiona T. (2002) "Identity, opportunity and hope: An Aboriginal model for alcohol (and other drug) harm
prevention and intervention." Ph.D. Dissertation, Curtin Institute of Technology. 367 pp.
This fieldwork for this study was conducted in the West Kimberley region of Western Australia between 1997
and 1999. Qualitative and quantitative information provided by 170 Aboriginal participants enabled an
exploration of the context and patterns of Aboriginal alcohol use; Aboriginal perceptions of the alcohol
issue, existing interventions, research findings, 'culture' and its role in prevention and intervention; and
participants' incorporation of these perceptions into an Aboriginal model for alcohol misuse prevention,
intervention and evaluation. Findings were based on the results of individual and focus group interviews,
serial model-planning focus groups, documentary data and observation. Study findings generally suggest that
in addition to self-determination and support components, 'cultural context' retains an important role for
many remote area Aboriginal people. The findings from a small sub-sample tentatively suggest that 'cultural'
disruption, in addition to the socioeconomic consequences of colonization and dispossession, may play an
important role in alcohol misuse. Consequently, it appears that in combination with self-determination and
support components, the strengthening of a locally-defined 'cultural' context may have an important role in
alcohol misuse prevention and intervention -- an approach frequently unrepresented in existing symptom-
focused models and one inviting further investigation. The model developed by study participants expands
significantly on existing symptom-focused approaches through a comprehensive life-enhancement focus on
aspects of identity, opportunity and hope. This approach adds depth and meaning to understandings of
cultural appropriateness and of culturally relevant models for substance misuse prevention and intervention.
Nickels, Scot. (2000) "Importance of experiential context for understanding indigenous ecological knowledge: The
Algonquins of Barriere Lake, Quebéc." Ph.D. Dissertation, McGill University. 277 pp.
One of the more recent and alluring phrases used by development and resource management practitioners
and theorists is 'traditional ecological knowledge.' Although there is a substantial amount of the literature on
this subject, these studies have unfortunately an inadequate characterization of the way in which indigenous
people view, order, internalise, and manipulate environmental information. This deficiency indicates a need
to (a) improve our understanding and use of indigenous knowledge as an instrument for sustainable
development and resource management and (b) revise some of our present conceptual, theoretical, and
methodological understandings.
This dissertation examines these issues by investigating the ecological knowledge of the Barriere Lake
Algonquins, living largely within Park La Verendrye in north-western Quebéc. The scope of this study
concentrates on three aspects of this indigenous knowledge, namely, (1) the cyclicality within; (2) the
utilization of; and, (3) the terminology for the Algonquin forest environment. Theoretically, I draw to some
extent on an approach taken from cognitive science called 'connectionism' which helps integrate ecology and
cognition. Within this theoretical framework I examine the experiences and understandings that different
individuals and groups bring to common every-day situations involving environmental resources.
Three principles are put forward from the empirical findings of this thesis. First, indigenous knowledge
formation is a contextual and experientially driven process rather than a static and timeless content. This
process involves the natural-material and socio-cultural environment, expanding the typical cognitive unit of
analysis beyond the individual person to include his or her entire natural and social surroundings. Second,
this contextual and experientially driven process gives rise to heterogeneous, fluid, and contested
knowledges. The knowledge-formation process goes beyond the mere generation and transmission of
knowledge to how knowledge is articulated and used in particular everyday situations. Third, this process-
approach has important implications which, if ignored, will prevent researchers from developing an
adequate understanding and appreciation of the contextual nature of IK because the research will fail to
consider the everyday experiences which become internalised, shared, and later put to use. The process-
approach has important practical, theoretical, and methodological implications for IK and its use in
development, resource management, and resource conservation.
Nielsen, Steven K. (1994 ) "An ecological assessment of the school-based substance abuse psychological services for
Native American youth." Ed.D. Dissertation, Northern Arizona University. 287 pp.
The issues facing Native American youth living on reservations are diverse and complicated. Perhaps the
greatest concern among Native American children at the present time is their continued, disproportionate use
of drugs and alcohol when compared to other cultures throughout the US. Many factors have been found
which correlate with substance abuse among Native American youth ranging from peer influence to parental
tolerance of drug and alcohol abuse. Other issues have been noted in the literature which are said to be 'by-
products' of this substance abuse such as teen pregnancies, physical abuse, and suicide.
The present study was funded by a Drug Free Schools and Community Counsellors training grant with the
intent to aid middle and high school systems in their efforts to combat substance abuse among Native
American youth. The study employed ecological research procedures as its methodology. An attempt was
made to examine the past and current drug and alcohol prevention/intervention efforts being pursued by the
staff in schools residing on or near Arizona's reservations. An additional effort was pursued to assess the
substance abuse training needs among school counsellors and psychologists who work daily with Native
American children. Because the ecological research model involves an interactive approach with the
communities under study, 23 schools were visited by research teams and data was gathered from key
informants in the schools and reservation communities. The information was utilized to formulate two, five-
day workshops for school counsellors and psychologists. The training participants received instruction on the
issues they identified as important training concerns, during the research phase of the program, and were
trained on the components of the Student Assistance Program model. The Student Assistance Program model
was selected, as a foundation for the training, because of its systemic approach to drug and alcohol
prevention/intervention and its applicability to rural environments where psychological services are limited.
Following the training, the participants received additional training and consultation services from the
project's staff which was designed to aid them in the development of Student Assistance Programs within
their respective schools.
Nieminen, Anna. (1998) "The cultural politics of place naming in Québec: Toponymic negotiation and struggle in
aboriginal territories." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Ottawa. 357 pp.
In an analysis of the cultural politics of place naming in aboriginal territories, and in Baie James/Eeyou
Istchee particularly, I trace the themes of 'myth-making as it relates to identity' and 'knowledge is power'
through a cycle of learning about the meaning of naming from the perspectives of 'Hearing With a Non-
Native Ear', 'Hearing With a Native Ear' and 'Speaking With Names Across Cultures' I argue that although
Québecois myth-making responds to, or is alternative to, the federalist construction of a national identity, it
shares with it certain themes about aboriginal peoples and places (i.e. the north). But, there are also some
distinguishing sub-themes in Québecois nationalist discourse, such as the greater importance of hydro-
electric development in the 'north as hinterland' theme and the greater importance of aboriginal place names
in the 'north as heritage' theme. I use a harvesting metaphor to describe how the Commission de toponymie,
which has the power to officialize names in Québec, transforms aboriginal place names into Québecois
cultural resources. On the other hand, aboriginal peoples in the north of Québec, including the Cree nation,
tend to a perception of the 'north as homeland' and place names as 'stories' about the environment, history
and culture. When these two perceptions of places and place names meet in the same 'garden', toponymic
negotiation and struggle ensue, for naming is personal and political. I conclude that when aboriginal place
names are examined and presented with their 'roots' intact (in cultural context), we can gain an appreciation
for how place names and place naming are integral to aboriginal resistance to cultural and territorial
appropriation.
Nolin Hanlon, Catherine L. (2001) "Transnational ruptures: Political violence and refugee and (im)migrant
experiences in Guatemala and Canada." Ph.D. Dissertation, Queen's University at Kingston. 306 pp.
This dissertation examines transnational passages between Guatemala and Canada in the aftermath of 36
years of civil war (1960-96) in the Central American republic. Political violence in Guatemala in the late
1970s and early 1980s ruptured long-established notions of community relations and led to the
unprecedented displacement and flight of hundreds of thousands of both indigenous and non-indigenous
Guatemalans within and across national borders. The stream of Guatemalan asylum seekers and
(im)migrants to Mexico, the United States, and Canada (among other countries) now dates back 20 years.
The resulting diaspora includes over 13,000 documented individuals settled in Canada in the year 2000, of
whom approximately 5,000 are concentrated in southwestern Ontario.
Three major themes are addressed: (1) the destruction of communities of association and physical
communities through political violence in Guatemala, leading to the forging of primary transnational social
relations and weak local ties rather than “transnational communities”; (2) the spatialization of refugee
movement and settlement in Canada in response to political violence and changes to Canadian immigration
policy; and, (3) narrations of rupture and suture, expressed through a compilation of three transnational
ethnographies that speak of the obstacles and barriers of identity transformation. The concept of refugee
transnationalism is used to critique established notions of transnationalism through an interrogation of
“community” and “identity.” Holding the concept of transnationalism to critical scrutiny in relation to
turmoil in Guatemala allows a differentiated sense of refugee transnationalism, infused by the effects of
political violence and forced displacement.
Through multi-method, multi-local fieldwork in both Guatemala and Canada research findings reveal the
myriad ways in which political violence, refugee exodus, and immigration policies engender a shift in
primary social relations from face-to-face experiences of proximity that are associated with “communities”
to those that stretch across often disparate, far-flung borders. Weak ties, on the other hand, play a prominent
role in the everyday experiences confronted in new refugee spaces in Canada. Transnationalized identities
are complex, fluid, difficult to fix, and best approximated through the individual realities expressed by
Guatemalan refugees and (im)migrants in Canada and by their families in Guatemala. Therefore, in-depth,
transnational interviews in southern Ontario and in various locations in Guatemala -- the two very different
national contexts of displacement and refuge -- are central to understanding the simultaneity of complex
articulations of ruptures and sutures of identity and the dynamic of internal differentiation among
Guatemalans.
A descriptive analysis of data from Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) and the Canadian
Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB) also allows for dialectical relationships to be discerned between
policy and population dynamics for Guatemalans creating Canadian geographies. Canadian foreign policy
and Canadian immigration policy, it is argued, have functioned at various times both to facilitate and to
impede refugee movement from Guatemala, ultimately cementing transnational ruptures rather than
encouraging transnational flows.
Nunley, Mary C. (1986) "The Mexican Kickapoo Indians: Avoidance of acculturation through a migratory
adaptation." Ph.D. Dissertation, Southern Methodist University. 239 pp.
The Mexican Kickapoo Indians are among the most independent and nonacculturated of North American
Indian groups despite a long history of contact with two industrial societies, Mexico and the United States.
This research comprised an examination of the adaptational strategies of Mexican Kickapoo culture to
determine how these functioned in the apparently successful resolve of this group to resist acculturation. The
relatively acculturated Oklahoma Kickapoo were used for comparison. The Mexican Kickapoo share the
same aboriginal culture as the Oklahoma Kickapoo but have rejected most of the foreign culture elements
adopted by the latter since sedentarization. While the Oklahoma Kickapoo articulate with industrial society
through the local job market and public assistance, the Mexican Kickapoo migrate throughout the United
States during the summer and fall as agricultural labourers and return to Mexico to hunt and plant their
crops over the remainder of the year. It was hypothesized that through this extension of their old migratory
subsistence pattern into the modern world, the Mexican Kickapoo have retained their robustly traditional
culture while the Oklahoma Kickapoo have undergone major acculturational change since their cessation of
the migratory pattern in 1894. The hypothesis was supported. The results of the comparison demonstrated
that the important acculturational changes have occurred in the Oklahoma Kickapoo since sedentarization,
while the Mexican Kickapoo have retained a robustly traditional culture. The research revealed, however,
that the advent of public services to the Mexican Kickapoo is altering their subsistence, technology, economic
system and socio-political organization. Further, in 1983, the passage of U.S. Public Law 97-429 placed the
Mexican Kickapoo under the auspices of the Oklahoma Tribe. This development is significantly altering the
Mexican Kickpoo's system, making the agent of political selection the Bureau of Indian Affairs. It remains to
be seen to what degree the traditional culture can withstand these developments and whether the protective
migratory pattern will be retained.
O'Brien, James A. (1997) "Aboriginal self-government and the Canadian Constitution: Creating jurisdictional space
for aboriginal governments." M.A. Thesis, Dalhousie University. 117 pp.
The thesis examines three means of creating jurisdictional space for aboriginal governments in the Canadian
Constitution. A constitutional amendment recognizing an inherent aboriginal right of self-government would
establish aboriginal governments as a third order of government within Canada. Aboriginals possess limited
leverage at the bargaining table, however, and it is unlikely that aboriginal grievances will be addressed by a
constitutional amendment in the immediate future. It has also been suggested that judicial interpretation of
aboriginal and treaty rights will extend limited jurisdiction to aboriginal governments. However, the narrow
interpretive approach to aboriginal rights adopted by the Supreme Court of Canada prevents judges from
reading a broadly defined aboriginal right of self-government into the Constitution Act, 1982, and any gains
in the adjudicative forum will be of limited application. Political negotiation of self-government as part of
constitutionally protected treaties and land claims agreements is most likely to succeed in elevating
aboriginal governments to the status of constitutional actors. The treaty process does not offer an absolute
guarantee, but it does promise flexible and secure self-government for Canada's native peoples.
O'Donnell, Cynthia V. (1999) "'Aboriginal rights': A comparative analysis of Anishinaabe and Canadian liberal
traditions." M.A. Thesis, Carleton University. 107 pp.
It is apparent that the philosophies and worldviews of Aboriginal peoples are unique in many ways from that
of mainstream Canada. The profundity of these differences is often ignored in the name of the liberal
principles of equality and individualism. This thesis sets out to explore the went of these differences through a
comparative analysis of the philosophical bases of the organization of societies in the Anishinaabe and
Canadian liberal traditions. Once these differences have been explored, the manifestations of ignoring these
differences are exemplified through an examination of the concept of 'aboriginal rights' in Canadian legal
and political spheres. This study concludes with a discussion of how these two groups may search for
common ground in an effort to create a society dedicated to both the freedom and substantive equality of its
citizens.
O'Neill, Colleen M. (1997) "Navajo workers and White man's ways: Negotiating the world of wage labour, 1930-72."
Ph.D. Dissertation, Rutgers The State University of New Jersey -- New Brunswick. 294 pp.
This study examines Navajo involvement in the wage and market economies from 1930 to 1972. It explores
how small scale Navajo coal producers negotiated the market on and off the reservation. I argue that while
Navajo coal producers participated in the market, their ideas and production methods remained rooted in a
pastoral livelihood.
For the Diné, becoming wage-workers required a negotiation between culturally-defined ideas of work and
household responsibilities, and options created by the global market. To successfully pull them into that
market, western capitalists had to adjust to the demands of the Navajos and figure out ways to accommodate
their culturally defined strategies.
Finally, I explore how Navajo workers, tribal council members, traders, industrialists, and union organizers
used racial categories to define the nature of emerging class relationships on the reservation. Anglo trade
union representatives failed to organize Navajo workers largely because their tactics implied a 'white'
definition of class. Members of the Navajo Tribal Council also characterized emerging class relations in
racialized terms. In an effort to prevent trade unions from gaining influence on the reservation, Navajo
Tribal councillors argued that unions were not part of the 'Navajo way.' The two visions reinforced racialized
definitions of class, implicitly leaving the Navajo workers with the choice: accepting the white man's ways by
joining a trade union, or embracing the Navajo way by avoiding them.
This analysis challenges the predominant periodization of American capitalist development by examining
how local, historical conditions influenced the specific characteristics of regional economies. It counters the
classic modernization tale, one that assumes that as soon as indigenous people encounter the capitalist
market, their cultural traditions erode and subsistence economies decay. For sure, many native people
suffered tremendously as they were drawn into the capitalist market. But, the Navajos are significant for how
they negotiated the struggle with the encroaching world market, participating in it when it suited their
purposes, but refusing to allow capitalist cultural and economic logic to significantly undermine the basic
premises from which they shaped new economic strategies.
O'Neill, Phillip R. (1993) "Unsettling the empire: Postcolonialism and the troubled identities of settler nations." Ph.D.
Dissertation, New York University. 314 pp.
This dissertation explores the construction of colonial identity in the literature of the settler nations of
Australia and New Zealand. Focusing on the works of Henry Lawson, Janet Frame, and Keri Hulme, it
suggests their texts, while having reference to the dominant ideologies of a colonial settler regime -- English
cultural superiority, racism, notions of an exclusively masculine national symbolic realm -- also provide
alternative ways of reading settler identity outside a male Anglo-centric view. The selected literary texts don't
merely reflect the dominant ideologies, but refract them by representing their provisional status in an
unhomely (unlike England) environment. Settler subjectivity is therefore far more fluid than the mythologies
of traditionally established national identities admit. For instance, Lawson's stories are not the site of the
founding of a unique Australian identity, but employ a rhetoric that constantly inscribes its own failure to
establish such an identity, precisely because of the uncanny presence of the figure of the indigene and of
gender differences in 19th century Australia. Frame's work is interpreted as locating the construction of the
settler in a double process of stereotyping the indigene and repetition of Imperial clichés (superiority of
whites, nationhood secured through sacrifices in European wars). However, the creation of an identity with
such constrained representations is troubled by the return of the repressed Mäori. Hulme's work is reread as
an effort to explode the recent refiguring of the indigene from abject to idealized, or spiritualized, status. In
her work, a romanticized indigenous community now functions as a utopian symbol for settlers to secure their
identity in a social fantasy of national identity, and to render Mäori culture innocuous, rather than
ideologically challenging. In sum, settler subjectivity is a category that stresses the way literary texts can
stabilize identity or place it into question. Rather than reading settler identity as an English offshoot, or
having a separate and stable national identity, it redefines the settler as a deeply ambiguous and divided
rhetorical construct.
O'Nell, Theresa D. (1992 ) "Undisciplined hearts: Depression and moral imagination on the Flathead Reservation."
Ph.D. Dissertation, Harvard University. 297 pp.
Addressing the concerns of both medical anthropology and psychological anthropology, this dissertation is
an ethnographic study of depression among adults of the Salish and Pend d'Oreilles tribes living on the
Flathead Reservation, Montana. Within the reservation setting, depression is a powerful expression of both
personal and communal distress with existential, moral and political meanings. The dissertation locates the
symbolic and strategic claims within narratives of depression through an exploration of contemporary Indian
identity, Flathead ethnohistory and ethnopsychology, and local systems of discipline and authority. After
locating the study within the field of psychiatric investigations among American Indians in Chapter One, the
next three chapters introduce and explore ideological and praxiological contexts of contemporary Flathead
Indian identity. Chapters Two and Three document the powerful ideological links between and among Indian
identity, historical loss, moral development, and feelings of sadness and loneliness through an analysis of
several discourses on Indian identity. In the fourth chapter, the behavioural structure of contemporary Indian
identity at the reservation life is explored through an analysis of various meaningful social practices of
reciprocity and compassion, including manners, kinship and friendship, and economic obligations. Chapters
Five through Seven address the central concepts of loneliness and compassion in Flathead emotional life.
Ties between the language of emotion and local systems of authority are explored in the fifth chapter,
through an analysis of the performance of wakes and the teachings of the elders. The sixth chapter analyzes
one man's narrative of depression and suicide, in which pain and anguish becomes part of his story of moral
growth. In the seventh chapter, the meaning of loneliness is explored through a comparison of psychiatric
understandings of depressive illness and problem drinking with three types of loneliness (feeling aggrieved,
feeling bereaved, and feeling worthless). In the final chapter, I synthesize insights into culture and
depression, and history and identity, and argue for an understanding of depression and loneliness as
culturally-grounded discursive pathways with the potential to garner sympathetic audiences, to motivate
changes in others, and to channel the bitterness of pain and its cultural value for the Flathead people.
Ober, Holly J. (2001) "The legacy of colonialism and popular rebellion over public lands in Nevada." Ph.D.
This dissertation examines elements of nationalism, colonialism and power found in rhetoric about public
lands in the West. Interviews conducted with members of four groups of public lands users and managers --
ranchers, miners, BLM/USFS workers, and Native Americans -- reveal distinct formations of knowledge and
power with potentially profound implications for policy making. I found that when white ranchers talk about
the environment, it is usually embedded in social networks, family histories, and romanticized tales of
American conquest which imbricate their land use with their constitutionally defined property rights. BLM
and USFS workers describe the environment using a mixture of scientific and bureaucratic jargon as an
object managed for a broadly defined public. These differences reflect partly conflicting strategies of
colonization and state power that continue from the historical conquest of the West. Alongside the property
claims of white ranchers, however, lay the claims of Western Shoshone ranchers. Native American ranchers
have to get permits and comply with BLM and USFS regulations in order to use their traditional homelands,
now owned by the United States government as public lands. While the property rights and constitutional
claims made by white ranchers are often heard in courts, little consideration is given to Native American
claims that this is their land in the first place. In a dramatic turn of events with profound implications for
public lands policies, the Timbisha Shoshone recently received land through nation-to-nation negotiations
with the government. Complicating all this are the effects of government downsizing and economic
restructuring. Americans demand 'smaller' government, but also strictly enforced environmental policies. The
brunt of this increased managerial workload falls on fewer employees, who prefer to work with multinational
mining operations because they have the money to comply with all the regulations, and even hire the
consultants and contractors needed to prepare reports and enact mitigation. In my research area, mines are
the biggest users of public lands, and yet they require the least effort for government employees to manage.
What this means is that the private sector -- mining corporations -- are often the main managers of public
lands, with BLM and USFS oversight.
Occhipinti, Laurie. (2000) "Global visions, local voices: Economic development and religious organizations in two
indigenous communities in Argentina." Ph.D. Dissertation, McGill University. 261 pp.
This thesis examines the process of economic and human development in two indigenous communities in
northern Argentina. It specifically considers the role of small Catholic non-governmental organizations
(NGOs) in these communities. With the idea that the process of economic and human development is never a
politically neutral, technological procedure, but a process of social change, it discusses the role of discourse.
The thesis considers the factors that influence how these small NGOs view themselves and their role in the
community and choose what projects to initiate. It finds that these NGOs employ a specifically religious
idiom of development that sets them apart from other kinds of development organizations in the ways in
which they define their mission and in the types of projects they are willing to consider. Based on the author's
field research in Kolla and Wiché communities, the study also considers local response to the NGOs and how
local people view 'development' for themselves and their communities. In order to explore these issues, the
process of land claims in each community is considered in depth. Land ownership is seen by the NGOs and
the communities themselves as a critical component of locally-empowered development. The ways in which
these indigenous communities understand their relationship to the land which they occupy is explored. This
relationship tends to be accentuated in land claims cases.
Ohmagari, Kayo. (1996) "Social change and transmission of knowledge and bush skills among Omushkegowuk Cree
women." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Manitoba (The). 309 pp.
The present study examines the nature of changes in the James Bay Cree society (Moose Factory and
Peawanuck, Ontario), and adaptations of Omushkegowuk Cree women to modern traditional life styles. The
study discusses the implications of the persistence of the traditional economy in terms of social and economic
development of the Omushkegowuk region.
There are three objectives of the study: (1) to examine the changing roles of Cree women and their
adaptations (chapter three); (2) to examine the transmission of bush skills and knowledge (chapter four);
and, (3) to explore an alternative model of development focusing on the importance of values and cultural
sustainability in the process of change (chapter five).
A mixed economy has evolved as an adaptive strategy that perpetuates the Cree traditional economy in a
contemporary setting, but it poses a dilemma: how to be successful in both aboriginal and non-aboriginal
worlds at the same time. One adaptive strategy is to become bicultural. Increasing numbers of younger
women are becoming Euro-Canadian oriented, but, they still participate in the traditional economy as well.
Continued participation in both sectors could be attributed mainly to two reasons: the need for ensuring the
persistence of traditional Cree values, and livelihood adaptation to limited economic options.
Indigenous knowledge and traditional skills are essential to harvest and process food from the traditional
economy. About half of 93 items of women's indigenous knowledge and bush skill (compiled from key
informants) were still being transmitted at the 'hands-on' learning stage. Incomplete transmission (a lower
level of mastery than in older generations) was a major concern, attributable to changes in the education
environment, diminished time available in the bush, problems related to learning bush skills at later ages,
and changes in value systems.
In light of the evidence presented regarding the persistence of the traditional culture, the present study
reconsidered conventional northern development planning, and discussed an alternative development
paradigm, culturally sustainable development that focuses on Cree key values. The present study contributes
to the anthropology of development by suggesting roles for anthropologist in planning for culturally
sustainable development.
Oliver, Reine. (1999) "Aboriginal community relocation: The Naskapi of northeastern Québec." M.A. Thesis,
University of Guelph. 170 pp.
This thesis is an investigation of the long term impacts of voluntary or community-initiated aboriginal
community relocations. The focus of the paper is the Naskapi relocation from Matimekosh to
Kawawachikamach, concentrating on the social, cultural, political, economic and health impacts the
relocation has had on the community. Results are based on a literature review, participant observation, and
40 in-depth interviews with members of the Naskapi band. The field work was conducted over a three week
period in November 1997 in the Naskapi Village of Kawawachikamach, Québec. The results indicate that the
relocation has had a number of positive impacts which have led to significant improvements in the
community. However, the relocation has not solved all of the community's problems and the negative impacts
need to be acknowledged. The results of the study have been incorporated into a number of recommendations
for use in future aboriginal community relocations.
Orchard, Treena R. (1998 ) "Teenagers of the tundra: The teenage experience among the Naskapi of
Kawawachikamach, Québec." M.A. Thesis, Memorial University of Newfoundland. 141 pp.
The teenage years -- this period of physiological and social change is perhaps one of the most fascinating
and misunderstood phases in our life cycle. It is even more complex when we consider the effects of the
introduction of this stage into a culture which previously had its own unique category of youth. This thesis
examines such a development as it exists among the Naskapi people of Kawawachikamach, Québec.
Many studies dealing with aboriginal teens contend that these young people are currently experiencing an
'identity crisis', or that they are 'between two worlds' (i.e. native and white), ideas which are couched within
Western theoretical perspectives of the adolescent identity. However, the situation among the Naskapi
involves more than two competing cultural influences or individual struggles for identity. The phase of
Naskapi adolescence itself has changed, as witnessed by the introduction of the 'teenage' stage. However,
there are culturally specific factors at play which can account for how adolescence is experienced among the
Naskapi, and why they do not go through an identity crisis as the adolescent is seen to do in Western models.
As I will show, it is the complex interplay between the newly emerging social category of the 'teenager' and
the challenge it represents to traditional Naskapi age-grade systems and social roles which act to produce
the cultural tensions which exist among this group.
Orozco, Monica I. (1999) "Protestant missionaries, Mexican liberals, nationalism and the issue of cultural
incorporation of indigenous peoples in Mexico, 1870-1900." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of California,
Santa Barbara. 189 pp.
This dissertation explores the work of North American Protestant missionaries in Mexico in the late 19th
century. A standard assumption has been that 19th. century Mexican liberals welcomed Protestantism and its
values they considered 'modern.' In addition, the question exists as to what role if any Mexican leaders saw
Protestantism playing in the incorporation of indigenous peoples into mainstream Mexico. I examine how
seriously prominent liberal intellectuals considered this option, and how this Mexican liberal intellectual
view did or did not coincide with the actual work of Anglo North American Protestant missionaries in
Mexico. But much of this dissertation will examine the evangelicals' work in Mexico through their own
accounts in an effort to understand what sectors of the population and geographic areas the missionaries
targeted and why, as well as how they perceived which factors influenced the success or failure of their
missions. I have focused on the words and perceptions of missionaries in reports and journals from these
denominations: the Presbyterian Church (North and South), the Methodist Episcopal Church (North and
South), and the Congregationalists operating under the American Board of Commissioners of Foreign
Missions.
This dissertation will illustrate, through an analysis of the published literature of both 19th century US
Protestant missionaries and Mexican liberal intellectuals, the two distinct visions each had regarding
Protestant missionary activity in Mexico. These factors as well as Mexicans' strong suspicion of Anglo North
American missionaries' motives and growing nationalism in the wake of US/Mexico war mid century. In
addition, the colonial legacy of highly conservative and Catholic population in core areas of Mexico and
anti-clericalism in areas formerly considered peripheral greatly influenced the rate of growth of many
Protestant missions. This factor was apparently more significant than if the evangelical effort was located in
an urban or rural area. The method of evangelization or the goal of a mission, and the tactics to reach it, was
a significant factor in determining where evangelicals located their missions, and which sectors of the
Mexican population they targeted. In addition, these tactics and goals were in direct opposition to what many
intellectuals prescribed.
Ortiz, Leonard D. (2000) ""And the stones shall cry out": Native American identity and self-determination in the
United Methodist Church." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Kansas. 370 pp.
The missionizing of Indians in North America was largely an attempt to assimilate Indians during the first
200 years in America. Christian evangelism among the Indians was a two-pronged process. To Christianize
the Indians meant to Europeanize them as well. For the Indians, social and cultural accommodation meant
accepting political, religious and cultural change. Pedagogical applications to teaching and proselytizing the
Indians were insensitive and demoralizing. Yet in the 19th century, Indians who accepted Methodism re-
defined the evangelical mission of the Methodist Church. This study will examine how Native American
society and culture reacted to the Methodist institution that they encountered. Indians within the Methodist
Church made choices that helped maintain their tribal heritage and culture and incorporated them into
Christian worship. At times this created a paradox for Indian Methodists. As they became empowered they
also became more acculturated. Yet elements of acculturation were temporary as the long term goal for many
Indian Methodists was the regeneration of traditional beliefs into Christian worship and Indian life. It has
been a reciprocal process where the sanctity of Native American elements of worship have become a way of
life for Native American Christians whose values and ancient beliefs were seldom compromised in their
understanding of Christianity.
The paper will look closely at Native Americans and spirituality where a one-way process occurred that
viewed Indians as victims and missions as failures. Using oral testimonies and written documents, this paper
will explore how Indians addressed these issues from the early years of missionizing by the Methodists and
demonstrate that a significant shift in the mission relationship between Indians and Methodists occurred as
early as the mid 19th century. While Methodist missionaries continued to attempt forced assimilation upon
Indian converts, many Native Americans resisted and incorporated indigenous practices and lifestyles which
accelerated in the late 1960s through the present. Historians have argued that Native Americans have been
assimilated in their encounters with non-Indian peoples. Assimilation can be described as communities
experiencing an overall decline of their societies leading to the abandonment of their culture. Although
Indian communities did experience periods of decline, I will argue that assimilation did not take place as
Native American communities within the church developed over the period discussed in the paper. The Indian
community as well as the Methodist Church made accommodations, which were reciprocal in nature with
each side benefiting from the relationship.
This study will rely greatly on oral history. Oral history is central to the Native American experience and one
can not grasp the full meaning of the Native American story if oral history is down played or excluded
altogether. Oral history preserves the integrity of the Native American point of view. The history of
acculturated Indians and Indians in the 20th century has not received the attention that it deserves which is
why much of this study will look at Indians who had adopted Methodism as a religious practice. The general
context of the paper will show how Indians constructed opportunities within the context of Methodism, which
allowed them to form barriers against total assimilation, and create opportunities in their changing world.
Interviews with members of the Oklahoma Indian Missionary Conference will serve to document the
historical movements within the Methodist and United Methodist Church.
1
Luke 19:40, Habakkuk 2:11, The Holy Bible New International Version (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan
Bible Publishers, 1978).
Osuri, Goldie. (2000) "Whiting out the news: Governmentality, discourse and nation in newsmedia representations of
the indigenous peoples of Australia." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Massachusetts Amherst. 397 pp.
This dissertation is a genealogy of the discursive mechanisms of censorship that govern newsmedia
representations of Indigenous peoples on national television news in Australia. Beginning with a discussion
of the colonial constitution of Australian nationalism, its spatiotemporal predications, and the contestation of
this colonial nationalism in the struggle for Indigenous rights, this dissertation traces an analytic of the
relations of power that inform national television news discourses of Aboriginality in Australia. Based on this
analytic, this dissertation maps a genealogy of the discursive mechanisms of censorship that have governed
national television newsmedia representations of three newsevents (1996-99): the Port Arthur massacre,
Mirrar opposition to mining at Jabiluka, and the Wik debate. Readings of these newsevents point to a need
for the articulation of intellectual and cultural property rights in the formulation of policies regarding
Indigenous access to communications technologies in Australia.
Ovenden, Andrew R. (2002 ) "A social epidemiology of substance use in Hawai'i." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of
Hawai'i. 264 pp.
This dissertation utilizes data from the 1998 Statewide Household Survey on Substance Abuse to show that a
distinct socioeconomic hierarchy exists among the major ethnic groups in Hawai'i, and that socioeconomic
status fails to explain between-group differences in substance abuse. Caucasians' and Native Hawaiians
occupy opposite ends of the socioeconomic hierarchy, and prevalence of substance use and abuse was
highest between these two ethnic groups, even when controlling for income, education, and occupational
prestige. Respondents of Japanese and Filipino descent had much lower substance use prevalence, in spite of
the socioeconomic difference between the two groups. Ethnicity and gender were the strongest predictors of
substance use in Hawai'i. Hawai'i's population is multiethnic, with the largest group comprising only 25% of
the population. However, three quarters of the state's population are generally lumped together as 'Asians
and Pacific Islanders.' National measures of health fail to catch significant health-related problems in
population subgroups. There are distinct cultural differences between Asian Americans and Pacific
Islanders. There is also a distinct socioeconomic divide in which Caucasians and Japanese control most of
the state's wealth, and Native Hawai'ians and Filipinos control the least. If socioeconomic differences do not
explain differences in prevalence of substance use or abuse, then what are the most important variables to
examine? The research utilizes logistic regression analysis to examine of a host of environmental and
psychosocial factors. Environmental factors of geographic location and acculturation had significant
predictive value for substance use and related disorders for some ethnic groups. Psychosocial factors
produced mixed results in the analysis. Members of some ethnic groups are more likely to use substances
either as a coping tool or, for other groups, as a means of enhancing affect. State substance treatment and
prevention efforts in Hawai'i should de-emphasize 'one-size fits all' or 'Western' approaches. Motivations for
substance use, and the resources available to mitigate substance use, vary widely between the ethnic groups
in Hawai'i and are largely culturally based. Therefore, Western modes of substance treatment and prevention
should be examined in terms of their applicability or utility for Hawai'i's multiethnic population.
Pack, Sam S. (2004) "Television through Navajo eyes: Situating reception in everyday life." Ph.D. Dissertation,
Temple University. 828 pp.
Perhaps the most interesting finding from the Navajo Film Project was the specific ways in which Sol Worth
and John Adair found the films to be distinctly "Navajo" as opposed to "amateur" or even just "different."
Since it has been demonstrated that Navajos produce images distinctively, it should follow that they receive
images distinctively as well. In other words, my research examines whether there are uniquely "Navajo"
viewing habits and interpretive strategies as they specifically apply to watching television.
This dissertation utilizes ethnographic field methods and anthropological theory to examine the crucial role
television plays in the formation and maintenance of cultural and social identities. As such, my research
relies on techniques of participant-observation and the collection of life history interviews to conduct an
ethnography of television viewing among five members of a Navajo family with whom I have been closely
associated for over a decade.
Because the existing research in reception studies fails to address satisfactorily the dynamics of spectatorship
among unintended audiences, I posit an alternative approach to television reception among subaltern
viewers. Television reception is neither homogenizing, as cultural imperialism theorists advocate, nor simply
a terrain for active interpretation, as proponents of cultural studies argue, but revolves around the
negotiation for identity rooted in a negotiation of power relations.
This study dispels the common notion that awareness of the outside world from television results in the
homogenization of local cultures. Images viewed through the electronic peephole radically transform not
only an understanding of the outside world, but also the way indigenous peoples define themselves and their
relationship to each other. By presenting subaltern audiences with an idealized "other," television compels
the emergence of an objectified "self." Because they look and act differently from those in the mediated
mainstream, Navajo television viewers create oppositional identities by understanding themselves first in
relation to and then against standardized models. Paradoxically, contrary to most fears, television actually
helps to create rather than destroy a cultural identity by forcing Navajos to re-define themselves in a
dialogical relationship to the dominant society.
Palacios, Alejandro. (1996) "Non-formal education and development: A critical socio-historical analysis of British
Columbia First Nations agricultural extension." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of British Columbia (The). 376
pp.
The colonization of British Columbia by European immigrants beginning in the mid-1800s greatly restricted
First Nations access to productive resources. Having lost control of their traditional territories and being
able to secure only limited access to financial and agricultural extension services, many First Nations
peoples living on reserves in south-central BC have had to endure living conditions similar to those usually
associated with poor rural populations in less industrialized countries. The focus of this study is First Nations
agricultural extension practice. The purpose is to understand why agricultural development has been slow on
BC reserves despite the many efforts undertaken by governments in the form of financial and extension
programs, especially from 1950 to the present. Two worldviews of 'development' are discussed: western
modernization and holism. These views encompass various streams of thought that helped to characterize --
through a structurist historical research approach -- the conceptions about development prevalent among
First Nations leaders and key government policy-makers. They also assisted in understanding the nature of
the relationships between development programs and agricultural extension practice. The study shows that
although federal government development programs have enhanced, to a limited extent, the quality of
material life on reserves, they have had little impact on non-material aspects of human existence.
Development programs often ignored First Nations peoples' worldviews, having relied chiefly on the transfer
of advanced modern technologies from the industrialized sectors of the economy. Furthermore, Euro-
Canadian society, through the exercise of its social, political and cultural hegemony, has seriously limited
First Nations' capacity to maintain their way of life, their economic systems and their cultural traditions. The
historical analysis shows that First Nations agricultural development lacked strong support from Indian
Affairs prior to 1979. Although the creation of First Nations institutions does not necessarily guarantee the
implementation of development programs inspired by indigenous perspectives, the study indicates the need to
train First Nations people as field extension personnel. Furthermore, development of agriculture on reserves
involves settling the land question and recognizing First Nations' right to self-government so that they can
design their own development and extension programs.
Palmater, Pamela D. (1999) "In the path of our ancestors: The aboriginal right to cross the Canada-United States
border." LL.M. Thesis, Dalhousie University. 192 pp.
In this thesis, I will argue that the aboriginal peoples whose traditional territories straddle the Canada --
United States border have the right to pass and repass the border freely. With this right comes the ability to
live and/or work in either country without having to apply for permission each time with Immigration
officials. I have suggested that instead of litigating these rights, the governments of both Canada and the
United States should commence tri-partite discussions on how best to accommodate these rights, both on an
interim basis and permanently through legislation. One of the measures that I have suggested is a form of
identification that indicates the individual holders of aboriginal and treaty rights to pass the border freely.
The honour of the Crown demands that fair treatment be afforded to the aboriginal peoples on this continent
called Turtle Island by its First Peoples. The Crown can not now in good faith refuse to recognize the very
rights it promised to uphold so that they could settle this country for themselves. The aboriginal and treaty
rights with regard to border passage already exist, and it is time the Crown worked in partnership with
Aboriginal people to facilitate these rights, instead of rely on litigation. If litigation will continue to be the
default position for the Crown, then i hope this thesis adds to the position of our peoples.
Parker, Peter W. C. (1992) ""We are not beggars": Political genesis of the Native Brotherhood, 1931-51." M.A.
Historical writing on native-government relations in Canada invariably focuses on the imposition of
government policy on a weakened and subjugated people. Thus, the historical literature serves to expand the
corporate memory of the Department of Indian Affairs, but tells us little about how native people responded
to government policy. This thesis is an attempt to redress this imbalance by examining the origins and
politics of the Native Brotherhood of British Columbia. The Native Brotherhood came into existence in
response to the economic pressures of the Depression. Between 1931 and 1951, while never straying far from
the objective of economic equality, the organization expanded its political agenda in an effort to redefine the
very nature of Indian-government relations in Canada. It pursued a strategy of cooperation and protest in the
hope of winning the support of the Canadian public and thereby pressure the federal government to renounce
its policy of assimilation in favour of the Native Brotherhood's objective of integration. This thesis details
that struggle. The Native Brotherhood had an extremely articulate leadership which left a considerable paper
trail for the historian. Included in this record are the organization's files in the Department of Indian Affairs
records (RG10). There is also the testimony of the Native Brotherhood before a number of Parliamentary
Committees, the minutes of which proved valuable as sources of government opinion. Finally, the
organization's newspaper, the Native Voice, proved to be an invaluable source.
Parker, Tassy. (2001) "Voices of Indian teens: What are they saying about their health?" Ph.D. Dissertation,
Self-rated health is a valid and reliable measure of general health in adults. Fair and poor health ratings
often are associated with low socioeconomic conditions and are predictive of negative health outcomes, Late
childhood and early adolescence are important stages in the formation of health perceptions, but few studies
have examined the self-rated health of youth. In secondary analysis, the present cross-sectional study
explored the self-rated health of a subset of American Indian high school students (n = 584) who participated
in the 'Voices of Indian teens' (Voices) study. Self-rated health is measured with one item about general
health with a 4-point response scale (excellent to poor). Indian teens often live in conditions predictive of less
than good self-rated health and one finding of the present study is that 20% of the sample rate their health as
fair or poor. That percentage corresponds with the findings of the Indian Adolescent Health Survey but is
much higher than the 6.5% reported for US adolescents in general. In multivariate analysis, a replication
model of student self-rated health reveals that being male as well as social support, family finances, and
school achievement are positively and significantly related to self-rated health and account for 10% of its
variance. Although statistically significant in bivariate analysis, variables representing salient issues of
adolescence such as alcohol, tobacco, and cannabis use, as well as self-esteem, do not retain their significant
relationship with self-rated health in multiple regression analysis. Explained variance increased to 15%
when the model was modified to include measures of social competencies and quantity of alcohol use
(substituted for frequency of alcohol use). In separate analyses, it was found that students with a high Indian
identity or a bicultural ethnic identity have the highest self-rated health mean scores and those with a
bicultural ethnic identity have the highest social competencies mean scores. Although important relationships
are revealed in the current study, Indian teens consider other factors when rating their health. Thus, further
study is needed to identify those factors and, subsequently, to reveal the consequences of less than good
health ratings for Indian adolescent well-being.
Parnaby, Andrew. (2001) "On the hook: Welfare capitalism on the Vancouver waterfront, 1919-39." Ph.D.
Dissertation, Memorial University of Newfoundland. 457 pp.
In 1923, after nearly three decades of class conflict on the Vancouver waterfront, the Shipping Federation of
British Columbia, an umbrella organization of shipping, stevedoring, and warehousing interests, undertook a
far-reaching agenda of welfare capitalism. Drawing on wider currents of progressive reform which were
cresting in the interwar period, and inspired by the example set by its counterpart in Seattle, the Shipping
Federation created new joint political structures, adopted a range of paternalist initiatives, and decasualized
the waterfront workplace. From its vantage point, this was a 'good citizens' policy, and it was designed to:
build bridges across the class divide, gain greater control of the work process, stave off the intervention of
unions and the state, and, in the end, mould a more efficient and compliant waterfront workforce. The
creation and implementation of this reform agenda, the ways in which white and aboriginal waterfront
workers negotiated the politics of paternalism and labour market reform, and the long-term ramifications of
this dynamic are at the core of this thesis.
Welfare capitalism shaped patterns of life and labour on the waterfront significant ways: informal ways of
regulating the workplace atrophied; labourism was revived; and some waterfront workers acquired a
reasonable standard of living. The trade-off at work, here, was this: only those employees who divested
themselves of more radical political sensibilities, and adhered to waterfront employers' broader vision of an
efficient, decasualized workplace, could hope to secure a living wage and fulfil their obligations as
breadwinners, husbands, and citizens. For aboriginal longshoremen, most of whom were from the Squamish
First Nation, this bargain was especially difficult to negotiate for it came freighted with the additional
challenges associated with being 'Indian' in a white society. Unlike their white counterparts who passed
muster, they were marginalized from the waterfront during this time as decasualization's new time-work
discipline conflicted with their more traditional sensibilities and ongoing need to work at a variety of tasks to
ensure material and cultural survival.
Straddling labour history, aboriginal history, and the burgeoning literature on law and society, this thesis
rejects conventional interpretations of welfare capitalism that conceptualize it as either a failed experiment
in industrial democracy, or a drag on the emergence of the welfare state. In doing so, it re-positions welfare
capitalism in the context of the wider return to normalcy following the Great War, and the powerful reform
impulses that took aim at family, citizen, and nation. Rather than forestalling the welfare state, this citizen-
worker complex -- which manufactured a new sense of entitlement amongst white waterfront workers -- was
part of a broader cultural shift that would, after the trials of the Great Depression and challenge posed by
the Communist Party of Canada, eventually underwrite the state's very expansion. On a broad level, then,
this analysis illustrates how the prevailing liberal-capitalist order was successfully rehabilitated after the
Great War and '1919', and how, in the long-term, it successfully contained, by consent and coercion, those
forces which were antithetical to the prevailing economic and political status quo.
Parry, Gwyneth E. M. (2000) "Indigenous cultural tourism: An examination of process and representation in Canada
and Australia." M.A. Thesis, Carleton University. 160 pp.
Indigenous cultural tourism is becoming increasingly popular in both Canada and Australia. As a result,
Indigenous communities in both these countries are becoming more involved in the cultural tourism industry
in order to retain control over cultural materials and traditions that may otherwise be misrepresented in
tourist attractions that depict Indigenous cultures. This thesis will focus on the process whereby Indigenous
people become part of the cultural tourism industry, as well as examining how these groups re present their
culture once they've become established as Indigenous tourism operators. This will be accomplished through
the analysis of current tourism sites where Indigenous cultures are depicted at the site, as well as being
involved in the running of the operation. Two case studies will be used, firstly Petroglyphs Provincial Park in
Ontario, Canada, and secondly, Geikie Gorge National Park in the Kimberley region of Western Australia.
Parsons-Bernstein, Justina W. (2001) ""I hope we be a prosperous people": Shoshone and Bannock incorporation,
ethnic reorganization, and the 'Indian way of living through'." Ph.D. Dissertation, Rutgers The State
University of New Jersey -- New Brunswick. 487 pp.
Indigenous cultures have never been static. Aboriginal people were inspired or forced to modify their
cultures by internal innovations and external environmental and human forces long before the modern world-
system entered their midst and they retained their dynamism in the face of incorporation. Indigenous people
did not simply accept the labour roles, ethnic identities, gender assignments, religious beliefs, political
realignments, material values or technological systems which accompanied their homelands' re-designations
as core, semiperiphery, periphery or external regions within the modern world-system, they continued to
sculpt their own lives as much as possible.
The following work contrasts and compares the survival strategies of the bands of Shoshone and Bannock
who settled on a federally-controlled reservation called Fort Hall in southeastern Idaho with the survival
strategies of a group of north-western Shoshone who converted to Mormonism and established a cooperative
farming colony called Washakie in north-western Utah. Employing a series of survival tactics which have
been termed "ethnic reorganization" by sociologist Joane Nagel and C. Matthew Snipp, the north-western
Shoshone and the Shoshone and Bannock skilfully blended introduced social, economic, political and cultural
systems with their own long-standing practices. This allowed them to makes necessary changes to their life
ways while maintaining discrete and unique ethnic identities.
This study also explores the ways in which Euro-Americans, Indian agents, private corporations, the Bureau
of Indian Affairs, and the United States government all expropriated Shoshone and Bannock and north-
western Shoshone resources, even when they claimed to be offering these groups of people aid. These actions
fit the world-systems-derived model of "hidden transfers of value" developed by dependency theorist Samir
Amin. Hidden transfers of value is the core entity practice of offering development monies and advice to
periphery entities while simultaneously draining the area of resources which are far more valuable and
lucrative than the aid proffered. I assert that federal reservations, and, in the end, even the Washakie
townsite, functioned as storehouses of land, minerals, water and lumber, which Euro-American settlers,
business people, and federal and state governments pillaged for their own enrichment while claiming to aid
Native Americans.
Parsons, Diana. (1999) "The sexual abuse of children: 'Spirit murdering'." LL.M. Thesis, University of Ottawa. 149
pp.
This thesis compares and contrasts the current legal protections provided to sexually abused, non-aboriginal
children with that afforded to the aboriginal children of Canada. In Part I, the main findings and
recommendations of the Badgley Committee and the federal government's subsequent enactment of Bill C-15
are examined. In Part II, the inequities which aboriginal people have suffered as a result of the imposed
circuit court system are discussed. As background to a discussion of alternative aboriginal justice systems, a
critique is provided on the case of R. v. Moses, [1992] 3 C.N.LR 116 in which the first sentencing circle was
used. A description and critical analysis of various aboriginal justice projects across Canada are provided.
The author has made recommendations to revise the rules of evidence and procedure regarding child sexual
abuse victims and to provide protection to women and children living in aboriginal communities.
Patterson, Michael R. (2003) "First Nations in cyberspace: Two worlds and tricksters where the forest meets the
highway." Ph.D. Dissertation, Carleton University. 304 pp.
This dissertation examines both the literature and my personal experiences regarding the implications of
cyberspace, with a view to contemporary native and First Nations peoples in Canada, particularly in light of
the Seventh Fire Prophecy of coexistence and cooperation (Patterson 1995).
I examine the role of Information Technology (IT) in the emerging First Nations cybercommunities in
Canada, also the ways in which IT impacts on people's lives. This dissertation seeks to determine what is
being gained and lost in exchanges between people and computers, people communicating in new ways via
IT, and in new global dialogues.
I then describe some visions for the future use of cyberspace, with a caution to be aware of its contradictory
possibilities, concluding that First Nations in Canada should take a proactive approach to this new territory
still in the process of creation, to refine and redefine native and non-native priorities with regards to cultural
survival, self-determination, and mutual recognition.
Paulin, Christopher M. (1999) "White men's dreams, Black men's blood: African labour and British expansionism in
southern Africa, 1877-95." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Connecticut (The). 284 pp.
This study focuses on British expansion in southern Africa during the last three decades of the 19th century.
In particular it focuses on the connection between the birth of the mineral industries in southern Africa and
the conquest of virtually every independent African polity in the African sub-continent. It contends that
British expansion throughout southern Africa aimed at creating a cheap, readily available, supply of African
labour through conquest, dispossession, taxation, and the creation of 'native reserves' or 'locations.'
Historians have traditionally focused on one of three points when searching for a key explanatory factor to
explain the motivation behind British expansion in southern Africa. These three points are: the strategic
imperative of controlling southern Africa; the forward momentum of capitalist exploitation; or the initiative
of local politicians in provoking expansion. While a combination of these factors clearly were essential in
explaining British expansion in the sub-continent, scholars have largely neglected the need for African
labour as one of the economic factors at work. The building of industry in southern Africa required a huge
work force. This work force was found among the African population. However, when these potential wage
labourers proved reluctant to abandon traditional means of subsistence, coercive measures were employed.
One by one, independent African polities were conquered, dispossessed, restricted to 'native reserves' and
taxed into becoming a cheap, readily available supply of labour for European enterprises.
This work also contends that the need for labour was not merely a local concern but a concern which affected
the metropole as well as the periphery. London guided or acquiesced in the defeat and dispossession of
Africans as a means to obtain labour. The fundamental argument is that the metropole and periphery were
equally cognizant of the labour crisis in southern Africa. Working hand in hand British officialdom in London
and Cape Town did everything in their power to reduce southern Africa's indigenous population to wage
earners dependent on Europeans for their survival. By doing so they laid the foundation for apartheid in the
20th century.
Peacock, Robert B. (2002 ) "The perceptions and experiences of American Indian high school graduates and
dropouts." Ed.D. Dissertation, University of Minnesota. 206 pp.
American Indian education in the United States is in a state of crisis. On average, over 30% of the American
Indian children who enter high school will fail to graduate. Despite a quarter century of tribal, state, and
local efforts at implementing special programs directed at the needs of American Indian students, overall
dropout and test achievement data has not improved. Data collected by the United States Senate Special
Subcommittee on Indian Education in 1969 could be superimposed on data collected today with the results
indicating that very little has changed. American Indian students are entering the 21st century in much the
same condition as they entered the 20th.
On the Fond du Lac Reservation, dropping out or staying in school is a complex multi-causal phenomenon
between school, students, families and the larger society. This study looks at the patterns of interactions that
are generated from an individual student's point of view through the use of the phenomenological interview
design. By using the interview design as a basic mode of inquiry, this study will attempt to decipher how the
students' perceptions of their experiences led to their decisions to either graduate or dropout of school.
This study also examines the factors that put students at-risk and the emerging theory of Historical
(Reservation) Trauma Response. The intent, through interview outcomes, is to identify characteristics and
propose interventions that will help foster resilience. The interview questions are also charted to explore
issues of institutional racism, lack of cultural relevance in the classroom, and evaluate and compare the
impact of teaching a common culture in both the tribal and public schools.
The study will conclude with a comparison of results with findings from previous research. Of interest are
results that pay particular attention to those efforts that foster resilience and address the implementation of
locally determined native language and culture into the educational system.
Peacock, Walter G. (1986 ) "Ethnocultural change in the central highlands of Guatemala: Acculturation and the legacy
of internal colonialism." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Georgia. 260 pp.
This dissertation examines the acculturation process at the individual level in 12 communities located in
Guatemala's Western Highlands. Specifically, this research examines the adoption of Ladino behavioural
characteristics in place of Mayan Indian patterns that have, over the last several centuries, come to be
identified as ethnic markers or symbols in Guatemala. The major focus of this analysis is an assessment of
the utility of the internal colonial model of ethnic change (in particular its reactive-ethnicity hypothesis)
relative to diffusion-erasure perspectives. To accomplish this task, a measure of relative ethnicity is
introduced and developed; an analysis of the historical development of the Western Highlands as an internal
colony is undertaken; and statistical models predicting individual acculturation are developed. Despite
substantial amounts of historical and anthropological data suggesting the utility of the internal colonial
model, the empirical analysis, utilizing recently collected data, yields little support for this perspective.
Explanations for the findings and suggestions for further research are discussed.
Peikoff, Tannis M. (2000 ) "Anglican missionaries and governing the self: An encounter with aboriginal peoples in
Western Canada, 1820-65." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Manitoba (The). 204 pp.
Despite a growing interest in the investigation of various forms of non-state governance, few studies have
considered the informal governmental processes that have been brought to bear on Aboriginal peoples. This
study explores missionary work as a form of colonial governance. The sensitizing concepts provided by
Foucault's work on governmentality are used to examine missionary governmentalities that were deployed
amongst relatively autonomous and resistant aboriginal populations. In particular, attention is directed to
technologies of self-formation that were used in attempts to transform traditional self-identities to those of
'civilized' Protestants.
Based on an analysis of texts found within the Church Missionary Society archives in Manitoba, this study
examines the encounter between the aboriginal peoples of Red River and the Anglican missionaries between
1820 and 1865. The findings show that the sustained attack on aboriginal spirituality and kinship systems,
and particularly the strategies used to transform traditional self-identities, were deeply invasive technologies
of governance. The findings also show that Aboriginal resistance played a key role in both the governmental
technologies of the missionaries and the eventual outcome of this encounter.
It is argued that the nature of colonial governance was such that, due to the vast differences in ontologies
between the two groups, aboriginal peoples could not be successfully transformed into the mould of the 19th
century British Protestant unless most elements of their traditional. culture and self-identity were first
destroyed. Regardless of the fact that many Aboriginal people resisted conversion to Christianity at this time,
the data indicate that the governmental technologies of the missionaries had disruptive effects on aboriginal
self-identity and forms of social organization.
On the other hand, the outcome of this interaction was clearly a hybridization of forms of governance and
resistance. The continued survival of traditional cultural institutions and forms of knowledge has created
spaces for resistance in the present as well as ways of repairing some of the damage that has been done as a
result of such forms of colonial governance.
Penney, Lauren. (2004) "Empowerment strategies for native groups facing resource crises: A case-study of the Nuxalk
Nation, Bella Coola, British Columbia." M.A. Thesis, Concordia University. 98 pp.
This thesis examines the opportunities for Native empowerment through the employment of a host of
resistance strategies. The focus is on the significance of the creation and ongoing maintenance of worldwide
indigenous alliances and how these alliances counteract economic forces of globalization that direct
resource control.
Using a case study of the Nuxalk Nation in Bella Coola, British Columbia, the empowerment of this group
through the use of a range of strategies partly afforded to them through tools of globalization such as the
Internet will be explored. These strategies include maximizing opportunities for political leverage through
international alliances and the international political arena and employing non-violent direct action as a
strategy to protest environmental exploitation on unceded land.
Various resistance strategies, used in isolation and in combination with one another, can effect change and
bring about empowerment to Native groups.
Pentney, William F. (1987) "The aboriginal rights provisions in the Constitution Act, 1982." LL.M. Thesis, University
of Ottawa.
Percival, Christel S. (2003) "Testing Braithwaite's theory of reintegrative shaming through data on the circle
sentencing program in the Yukon." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Hawai'i. 149 pp.
The theory of reintegrative shaming (Braithwaite, 1989) and circle sentencing program are examples of
restorative justice initiatives. Restorative justice is part of a movement towards alternatives to the formal
justice system based on retributive principles. Hypotheses based on Braithwaite's (1989) theory of
reintegrative shaming were analyzed through data on the circle sentencing program in the Yukon Territory
(Canada). Circle sentencing was introduced in 1992 primarily for sentencing First Nation (Aboriginal)
offenders. Secondary data were collected on the outcome for 164 offenders and 10 communities who were
involved between 1992 and 1997. Recidivism data were collected on offender contacts with the justice system
for three years following initial circle sentencing.
Fifty-three percent of offenders were convicted of further crimes. Recidivism increased to 68% when criminal
charges and/or days incarcerated were included. Interdependency characteristics of offenders were predictor
variables: age; gender; marital status; educational level; and employment status Interdependency criterion
variables were: (1) number of convictions (multiple regression); and (2) offender's status either as
reintegrated or stigmatized (logistic regression).
Communitarianism predictor variables were: urbanization (size of population) and mobility (population
change and mobility). The criterion variable was average crime between 1994 to 1999). Combined
interdependency and communitarianism predictor variables were also compared with the number of
convictions. None of the regression models were found to be significant. Therefore, Braithwaite's (1989)
theory did not describe the circle sentencing program as practiced in the Yukon.
Limitations of the application of theory may include: (1) lack of opportunities and resources for offenders;
(2) alcohol use by 95% of the population; (3) inadequate follow-up and support; (4) failure to adequately
shame (accountability); and, (5) historical and cultural damage. Community participation in planning
initiatives would ensure innovations reflected community needs. Additional explanations could be the unique
characteristics of the Yukon communities, especially with high levels of population mobility and population
changes.
Peressini, Sabrina L. (2005) "A combined quantitative and qualitative study of severe early childhood caries among
three and five year-old Aboriginal children in the District of Manitoulin, Ontario." Ph.D. Dissertation,
OBJECTIVE: To determine the prevalence of Severe Early Childhood Caries (S-ECC), the risk factors for S-
ECC and the social factors influencing infant/child feeding/rearing practices among primary caregivers.
METHODS: The following combined quantitative and qualitative methods were used: (1) all 3 and 5 year-
olds enrolled in elementary schools and daycare centres in seven Aboriginal communities of M'Chigeeng,
Sheshegwaning, Sheguiandah, Aundeck Omni Kaning, Zhiibaahaasing, Birch Island and Wikwemikong in the
District of Manitoulin, Ontario, and all of the 3 year-olds at home and 5 year-olds attending school off-
reserve in all communities except Wikwemikong were eligible for the epidemiological survey examination;
(2) using a case-control study design risk factors were identified using a standardized interview
questionnaire given to 72 primary caregivers; and, (3) grounded theory research methodology guided
sampling, data collection and analysis with 12 primary caregivers.
RESULTS: Eighty-seven children (59% 5 year-olds, 54% females) were included in the study. Forty-five
cases of S-ECC were found, a prevalence of 52%. The mean dmft score for cases was 7.5 (95 CI 6.51-8.42)
and 0.8 (95 CI 0.47-1.11) for non-cases; the difference was statistically different p < 0.001). Risk factors
associated with the development of S-ECC (p = 0.1) were: father's education level, child using a bedtime
bottle containing sweet liquids after the child began walking; mother's education level, primary caregiver
initiating child's brushing of teeth after the age of 24 months; and the child eating four or more between-meal
snacks per day. Managing short-term family circumstances determined parenting choices more than correct
knowledge. The factors influencing this phenomenon included: (1) primary caregiver's experiences with
alcohol misuse within the family, and, (2) the educational or employment activities of mothers with preschool
aged children.
CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study demonstrate a prevalence of S-ECC higher than in the general
population of children in Ontario (10%). The determinants of Severe Early Childhood Caries in these
communities are the product of both individual choices and social, political and historical factors. These
results will help identify children and families at risk of S-ECC and assist the local health authorities in
planning appropriate oral health programs.
Perez, Michael P. (1997) "The dialectic of indigenous identity in the wake of colonialism: The case of the Chamorros
of Guam." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of California, Riverside. 303 pp.
This dissertation explores the long-term and ongoing impact of colonialism, homogenization, and
Americanization on contemporary Chamorro identity. Chamorros are the indigenous inhabitants of the
Mariana Islands while Guam is the southernmost of the Marianas chain. In the context of postmodern
identity politics and Fourth World indigenous movements, various sociological, ethnic studies, and social
psychological perspectives are integrated to capture the nuances of the Chamorro experience and serve as a
framework for empirical investigation. Incorporating comparative analysis, historical literature, Census
data, semi-structured interviews, and in-depth interviews, this dissertation specifically examines
contemporary Chamorro identity on Guam, as a case of the Pacific Islander and indigenous experience. Data
is collected via snowball sample of 25 Chamorros, and two Chamorro leaders/advocates.
Focal questions underlying this work include the following. How are the micro consequences of the historical
and contemporary experiences of Chamorros manifested in their perceptions of self (i.e. false consciousness,
identity crisis?). In light of historical and contemporary contexts, how do Chamorros perceive and feel about
their racial and ethnic identity? Do they identify with a personal assimilated American identity or an in-
group communal ethnic/indigenous identity? How do they express their ethnic identity (i.e. cultural and
political expression)? What are the strategies of organization, expression, and self-determination (i.e.
cultural, panethnic, nationalist)? In general, this study is concerned with exploring the question of whether
Chamorro identity is approaching sociocultural extinction through identity crisis, or whether Chamorros are
reconstructing their identity through the cultural expression and political reconstruction of racial and ethnic
identity?
Findings indicate that in spite of the oppressive colonial legacy and contemporary assaults to Chamorro
identity in the context of neo-colonialism and Americanization, Chamorro identity is by no means extinct.
Despite some evidence of identity crisis, respondents clearly revealed cultural resilience in their everyday life
behaviours, values, and cultural attitudes. With respect to political contestation, a significant level political
consciousness was noted. Various political organizational strategies were also uncovered via interviews with
Chamorro advocates. Therefore, resistance has endured as manifested in ongoing cultural and political
struggle. As part of a broader movement in race and ethnic studies to develop indigenous cultural paradigms,
the larger purpose of this project is to develop a theoretical and research framework applicable to other
colonized and indigenous minorities.
Perley, Bernard C. (2002 ) "Death by suicide: Community responses to Maliseet language death at Tobique First
Nation, New Brunswick, Canada." Ph.D. Dissertation, Harvard University. 283 pp.
Three years of observation in Maliseet language instruction classes in Mah-Sos School at Tobique First
Nation and Maliseet language instruction and practice in the community have compelled me to examine the
literature on language death. Cross-cultural anthropological and linguistic studies in the last three decades
have begun to establish a comparative database that facilitates the assessment of relative viability of
endangered languages. The recent literature utilizes 'extinction' rhetoric to promote the revitalization of
endangered languages worldwide. My three years of field observations on Tobique First Nation bring to the
discussion on language death a case study where many of the contributing factors in the endangerment of
languages are dramatically replicated. I argue, however, that the community of Tobique is experiencing
language death as death by suicide. This challenges the prevailing discourse by focusing on community as
active participants of language politics and not as helpless victims of hegemonic pressures.
This study also takes a reflexive stance to highlight the methodological complexities and contradictions of
being both a native and an anthropologist working on the contentious topic of aboriginal language and
cultural survival. Situating myself in the difficult middle ground of analyst and actor allowed me to perceive
theoretical and methodological options that presented the fieldwork experience in a unique perspective.
The result of my reflexive investigation of Maliseet language death at Tobique First Nation provides a case
study that gives the speakers in the community greater choice in the fate of their language and culture, and in
the formation of aboriginal identity vis-à-vis Maliseetness. The completion of this study marks the conclusion
of the first phase of my own contribution to Maliseet language revitalization. I conclude with a personal
statement on the importance of exercising alternative vitalities for the present and future Maliseet language,
culture and identity.
Perreault, Thomas A. (2000) "Shifting ground: Agrarian change, political mobilization, and identity construction
among Quichua of the Alto Napo, Ecuadorian Amazonia." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Colorado at
Boulder. 366 pp.
This dissertation examines interrelationships between agrarian change, organizational strategies, and
identity formation among indigenous organizations in the Ecuadorian Amazon, from the late 1960s until
2000. These processes are examined at two scales of social organization: the Quichua community of
Mondayacu, and the regional indigenous federation, FOIN. It is argued that indigenous organizations play a
significant role in mediating processes of modernization for community members. Political, economic, and
demographic transformations in the Ecuadorian Amazon have accelerated during the past 30 years, with the
implementation of Ecuador's agrarian reform, and the nearly simultaneous discovery of petroleum in
country's northeastern lowlands. These events, together with nationalist policies of state development,
encouraged widespread colonization of the Amazon region. For the region's indigenous inhabitants, these
processes radically altered the administrative and economic context of settlement, resource management, and
social organization. The association of the Quichua community of Mondayacu was organized in 1975,
following the building of a major road into the area. Community members sought to legalize their land
claims so as to protect them from encroachment by colonists or neighbouring indigenous communities. The
association has channelled funds for agricultural and educational projects, thereby helping to reorient
production and consumption practices in the community. The regional federation FOIN was founded in 1969.
Since that time, it has assisted indigenous communities in legalizing their land claims. It has also worked to
attract and channel development funds for community-based agriculture, health, education, and
infrastructure projects. At the same time, FOIN has been an important advocate of indigenous political
interests. Through its organizing activities and its discourse, the federation has helped construct a pan-
regional indigenous identity. Indigenous organizations mediate both material/economic processes, such as
resource access and agricultural development, and symbolic/cultural processes, such as the construction and
representation of ethnic identity. In the context of indigenous politics and resource use in Ecuador, identity
representations are central to the efforts of indigenous organizations to open new political spaces, from
which to challenge state notions of territory, citizenship, and the nation.
Perry, Adele. (1998) "Gender, race, and the making of colonial society: British Columbia, 1858-71." Ph.D.
Dissertation, York University. 546 pp.
This dissertation interrogates the role of gender and race in the making of colonial society in British
Columbia between 1858 and 1871. Inspired by the rich international secondary literature on gender and
colonialism and mining a wide range of manuscript, government, and published sources, it demonstrates the
centrality of both race and gender to British Columbia's colonial project.
Colonial British Columbia developed, I argue, a distinctive gender and racial organization, represented most
potently by the rough homosocial culture of white men and the prevalence of mixed-race heterosexual
relationships. In response to these perceived violations of respectable Victorian culture, reformers mounted a
disjointed regulatory programme that aimed to create an orderly, white settler-colony anchored in
respectable gender norms and racial identities. These efforts culminated in the assisted immigration of white
women, who were constructed as an imperial panacea able to compel white men to abandon mixed-race
unions and rough homosocial culture, and instead become permanent, respectable settlers.
The chequered history of regulatory efforts and the experience of white women immigrants both demonstrate
the hollowness of imperial discourse and suggest the fragility of British Columbia's colonial project. In
exploring the importance of gender and race to both the making and attempted re-making of one colonial
society, this dissertation makes a contribution to the existing historical literatures on gender and colonialism,
Canadian gender history, and British Columbian social history.
Petch, Virginia P. (1998 ) "Relocation and loss of homeland: The story of the Sayisi Dene of northern Manitoba."
In 1956, the Sayisi Dene residing at Little Duck Lake in northern Manitoba were relocated to Churchill. The
move nearly destroyed the cultural integrity of this small band of people who were still practicing a seasonal
round comparable to that of their pre-European-contact ancestors.
An ethnohistorical approach was used to document the story of the relocation. The dissertation is divided into
two sections. The first provides an explanation of the theoretical principles and methodologies used. As well,
a general understanding of the importance of the Qaminurjak caribou population to the survival of the
people is presented. Section II describes the sequence of events which led to the relocation of the Sayisi Dene
from Little Duck Lake to Churchill and discusses the effects of the relocation in terms of the cumulative
effects of imposed change.
In 1973, the Sayisi Dene voluntarily left Churchill in order to flee the social despair caused by the relocation.
Today they reside at Tadoule Lake, Manitoba and struggle to repair the damage wrought by the federal
government and Indian Affairs some 40 years ago.
The relocation of the Sayisi Dene is viewed as one of the most grievous errors committed by the federal
government. It stripped the Sayisi Dene of a productive life and almost destroyed the very fabric of their
existence.
Pettipas, Katherine A. (1989) "Severing the ties that bind: The Canadian government and the repression of indigenous
religious systems in the prairie region, 1896-1951." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Manitoba (The).
This thesis is a study of the conceptualization and implementation of those measures which were adopted by
the Canadian government to suppress indigenous religious systems among Indians residing in the prairie
region. Subsequent to the Potlach Law of 1885, a number of amendments to the Canadian Indian Act were
passed to discourage the persistence of specific ceremonial activities. In addition, more informal measures
were also adopted by the Department of Indian Affairs. Both missionaries and administrators contended that
such practices were not only immoral but also were obstructive to the assimilative objectives of federal
Indian policy. In this study it is argued that another major reason for ceremonial repression was the
perceived relationship between religious ideology and ceremonial behaviour with indigenous social,
economic, and political values. The destruction of these values and concomitant behaviour was viewed as a
prerequisite for the integration of Native kin-based modes of production into the individualistic and
competitive White-dominated capitalist system. In addition to examining these measures from the perspective
of Department of Indian Affairs administrators and field personnel, a detailed analysis has been made of
Native responses with respect to both their secular and religious lives. Through the use of an ethnohistorical
approach to the problem, the historical experience of one major group -- the Plains Cree, has been
emphasized as a case study. Located within the agricultural belt of the prairie/parkland regions, the members
of Plains Cree reserves were particularly targeted for ceremonial repression. In the conclusions it is argued
that while the government failed in its attempts to legislate indigenous religious systems out of existence,
when considered within the context of the impact of other forms of assimilative measures, the regulation of
ceremonial activities did have an important impact on traditional forms of religious expression. Those
aspects of indigenous socioeconomic behaviour and associated ceremonies which did persist (that is,
socioeconomic collectivism) were both forms of resistance to coercive assimilation programs and realistic
accommodations to the exigencies of survival in economically marginal underdeveloped reserves.
Pettit, Jennifer L. J. (1997) ""To Christianize and civilize": Native industrial schools in Canada." Ph.D. Dissertation,
This dissertation examines the Canadian industrial school system for natives from the 1830s to its demise in
1923. This study fills the gap left by Canadian historiography that has largely ignored the foundations of the
education system for natives in Canada, choosing instead to focus primarily on residential schools in the 20th
century.
Industrial schools shared similarities with day and boarding schools, except that in addition to the general
academic program, students also received one-half day of training in agriculture, trades and household
skills. Located away from the reserves, the institutes aimed at separating children from their home
communities. By the late 19th century, the industrial schools developed into the elite of the education system,
consisting of a string of 25 schools stretching from the Pacific to Ontario. This study focuses on four aspects
of the industrial school system -- the development of policy, its implementation, the conditions of schools and
aboriginal response to the industrial institutes. It concludes that from the beginning, the plan to 'Christianize
and civilize' the Indians of Canada failed all three parties involved -- the churches, the government and
Canada's native peoples.
The industrial school system of Ontario, commenced in the 1830s, experienced considerable difficulties, yet
administrators chose to export the failing schools to the west and British Columbia, believing the outcome
would be different. There, the schools experienced even more problems, particularly in the prairie region.
The conditions of the institutes created by a lack of funds and poor management were largely responsible for
these troubles. Native resistance to off-reservation schooling designed to eradicate aboriginal culture also
contributed a great deal to the schools' malfunctioning.
Officials decided to end the industrial school experiment in 1923, replacing it with the inadequate system of
residential schools which persisted to the 1960s. Had administrators acknowledged the flaws of the system in
the early years in Ontario, rather than exporting the industrial schools to the rest of Canada, a great deal of
suffering and expenditure could have been prevented. Instead, the myopic native educational policy allowed
for a failing system to last for over a century.
Phare, Merrell-Ann S. (2004) "International trade agreements and Aboriginal water rights: How the NAFTA threatens
the honour of the Crown." L.L.M. Thesis, University of Manitoba. 253 pp.
Canada has not ensured that Aboriginal water rights (or any other Aboriginal or treaty rights) are protected
from the broad reach of the NAFTA provisions. It is very likely that neither the federal nor provincial
governments could fulfil its fiduciary and other obligations to Aboriginal peoples if those obligations
conflicted with the rights and obligations under the NAFTA. A compelling illustration arises where Canada
wished to limit the export of bottled water in order to protect a water source subject to Aboriginal or treaty
water-rights claims. This circumstance has not yet come before the courts, but any protective action of this
sort, particularly if foreign-owned water-export contracts were preferentially targeted, would likely violate
NAFTA provisions. Because this kind of conflict is potentially imminent, and Canada's complete neglect in
the protection of Aboriginal water rights, these rights are at risk. Further, no current legislation or policy in
Canada could prohibit Aboriginal peoples from engaging in expansive use of their water rights. This issue
has not been adjudicated, but current decisions strongly suggest that use of water by an indigenous
community to engage in economic development of any sort, (including hydroelectric development or bulk-
water export) would be within the scope of protected Aboriginal or treaty rights, and is clearly within the
scope of activities under Aboriginal title. If indigenous communities choose to exercise these rights, given the
"national treatment" provisions of the NAFTA and the current level of utilization of water resources in
Canada by non-Aboriginal interests, Canada will have no basis upon which to deny non-Canadian investors
these same rights. In response to this situation, a number of remedial actions are proposed.
Pickering, Kathleen A. (1996) "Lakota culture, world economy: An experience of American Indian economic
incorporation." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Wisconsin -- Madison (The). 407 pp.
Using the Lakota (Sioux) communities of the Pine Ridge and Rosebud Indian Reservations of South Dakota,
this study examines the economic incorporation of small, apparently isolated, and culturally distinct
communities into the capitalist world economy. By applying predetermined categories of economic activity,
theoretical analyses have obscured the multiple forms of work in which Lakota individuals engage. In their
marginal niche of the world economy, they are unable to specialize in either a classic hunter-gatherer
economy or in full-time wage labour. Instead, each individual engages in a wide variety of economic
activities, both contemporaneously and over time.
This study also explores how households and communities combine this diversity of work activities with local
political manoeuvring to support physical and cultural survival. By pooling resources and labour and by
providing a context of values and beliefs that promote the well-being of the community as a whole,
households make decisions as both producers and consumers that influence the composition and extent of the
local and regional economy. In contrast to other anthropological treatments of Native American societies
that view the capitalist world economy as intruding on otherwise traditional beliefs and practices, this study
illustrates that the process of incorporation into that broader economic system is itself culturally mediated
and influenced.
This study further demonstrates that, rather than being a deviation from or a precursor to complete
incorporation into the capitalist world economy, Lakota communities are incorporated into the mainstream
US economy and their role in that economy is a product of the ongoing interaction between the internal
social relations of Lakota communities and the external forces of the world economy.
Pictou, Sherry M. (1996) "The life learning experiences and personal transformations of Mi'kmaq women." M.A.
Thesis, Dalhousie University. 159 pp.
This thesis is a study of the life learning experiences and personal transformations of Mi'kmaq women. The
central purpose of this study is to provide a rich and detailed account of what our learning means to us. The
thesis undertakes a critical interpretive approach from an aboriginal/feminist perspective, to explore
Mi'kmaq women's learning processes evolving out of their life experiences that are shaped by various
contexts. Through Mi'kmaq women's own personal accounts and a historical analysis, I used an aboriginal
framework of Seven Directions as a guide to understand the interrelationship of our life learning experiences
rooted in the past, present, which are indicative of the future. In taking our life experiences for granted,
Mi'kmaq women's learning becomes a struggle against racism and sexism founded in historical processes of
colonization and oppression, and effect all aspects of our lives. When given the opportunity to critically
reflect and speak from an aboriginal/feminist perspective, alternative forms of knowing emerge that become
central to our learning and effects the personal transformation of our lives. These alternative forms of
knowing are nurtured by Mi'kmaq culture and language and illuminate a potential relationship to a broader
social transformative learning process for healing, and offer hope for a vision for overcoming oppression.
These insights are offered for reflective consideration by all educators who work with First Nation adults and
children.
Pier, Patricia T. (1998) "An exploratory study of community trauma and culturally responsive counselling with
Chamorro clients." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Massachusetts Amherst. 332 pp.
Trauma is multidimensional and affects people directly as well as those of future generations. There is a
profound absence in the literature of the community traumas experienced by the Chamorro people of Guam.
The Chamorros are the indigenous people of Guam and have endured a history of near annihilation and
subjugation by the Spanish (1521-1898), subsequent colonization by the American government (1898-
present) and invasion and occupation by the Japanese military during World War II. Additional trauma has
been experienced as a result of the Vietnam War. The challenge for counsellors and therapists is to provide
effective and culturally responsive counselling to their Chamorro clients.
This qualitative study explored the impact of historic events on the Chamorro people through in-depth
interviews with nine participants who have had extensive experience working with Chamorro clients. It also
explored culturally responsive treatment strategies that may be helpful for those unfamiliar with this
population.
The findings highlighted cultural strengths as well as cultural barriers to treatment. Therefore, services
provided to this population may be facilitated by an understanding of the history, culture, values, and beliefs
of the Chamorro people of Guam.
The study identifies a paradox of cultural adaptability. On the one hand, the culture's richness and vitality
has enabled many of the people not only to survive but to thrive, in spite of a long history of traumatic
experiences. On the other hand, it also presents a population in need of mental health services due to the
stressors of cultural adjustment (e.g. loss of land and way of life, loss of language, identity confusion and
substance abuse) and some of the same institutions and traditions that also serve as a source of strength.
This study has implications for the training, research, and practice in the helping field. It includes
suggestions for the treatment of trauma, community trauma, and intergenerational transmission of
community trauma as well as assessment issues.
Pierce, Alexandra R. (2001) "Domestic violence in five American Indian communities: Constructing the problem and
its solutions." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Minnesota. 300 pp.
Domestic violence is viewed by the two major sociological perspectives on the topic as either a product of the
innate characteristics of the American family that is influenced by socioeconomic forces (the family systems
perspective) or as a product of a patriarchal society that is an effort by men to reinforce and preserve their
historic dominance over women (the feminist perspective). This research project utilizes data from five
Minnesota American Indian communities (Red Lake, Leech Lake, Fond du Lac, and Mille Lacs Ojibwe
reservations, and the Twin Cities urban Indian community centred around Phillips neighbourhood in South
Minneapolis), to consider the appropriateness of each sociological perspective in describing the social forces
at hand regarding domestic violence at the five research sites.
Data were collected in 1998 and 1999 at the five sites by the Minnesota Indian Women's Resource centre.
The data include 946 surveys self-administered by the five sites' community members, three focus groups with
their women's domestic violence advocates, men's domestic violence advocates, and adult female victims of
domestic violence, and face-to-face interviews with their community elders and adult female victims of
domestic violence.
The study examines community-level experiences and perspectives, both past and present, with particular
focus on (1) whether the actual incidence of violence is perceived to have changed over time; (2) whether the
concern expressed by community members is proportional to the reported scope of the problem; (3) whether
the public expression of concern is consistence with private expression of concern; and, (4) whether belief
systems regarding 'causes' and 'solutions' are impacted by historical experiences that may contribute to
apparent inconsistencies in public discussions of prevalence and expressed concern. The goodness of fit
between generalized American Indian community experiences, beliefs, and concerns, and the feminist and
family systems theoretical approaches to domestic violence, is also examined. Conclusions drawn from the
analysis are used to evaluate the appropriateness of current Minnesota criminal justice and social services
interventions aimed at ending domestic violence in Minnesota Indian communities.
Pinkerton, Evelyn W. (1981) "Resilience on the margin: Local culture in a small town." Ph.D. Dissertation, Brandeis
University. 411 pp.
This community study of a small, isolated fishing-logging village on the northwest coast of Canada focuses
on internal struggles between 'local neo-indigenous' and 'mainstream-cosmopolitan' residents who have
different conceptions of what kind of development would be desirable for the town. How this polarization
could be understood in terms of class conflict between the neo-indigenous and labour-intensive independent
commodity producers and mainstream residents involved in wage work or capital-intensive strategies, such
as businessmen, professionals, and company employees, is first considered. Then, a series of confrontations
and referendums during the period 1964-1976 which resulted in political victory for the local neo-indigenous
raises the problem of explaining the victory of this 'class' which does not constitute a majority of the
electorate. Contrary to many observer's predictions, numerous residents voted against their presumed 'class'
interests. It is argued that local cultural factors played an important role in how these interests were
perceived. Participant observation, representative structured interviews, life histories, and the use of key
informants both inside and outside the community were the methods used during 30 months of fieldwork. A
combination of theoretical perspectives from cultural ecology, economic anthropology, social psychology,
and sociology are used to explain how 'local culture' persists despite the continued loss of self-employment
opportunities accompanying the urbanization and increased translocal control of the town. Local people are
affected by a range of conditions which are not usually considered in macro-level analysis of these processes.
They include (1) the ecology of fishing and logging as it relates to continued subsistence possibilities; (2)
local mutual aid and non-monetary exchange outside the cash economy as supports to the self-sufficiency,
independence, and work flexibility valued by the self-employed neo-indigenous; and, (4) in-migration
patterns to the town, which in this case had already developed characteristics polar to the rest of the region.
The discussion of these four factors involves both a description of what 'local culture' is, and an analysis of
ways in which residents who are mainstreamers by most criteria may, nevertheless, develop sympathy and
attraction for the occupations and life styles of self-employed neo-indigenous, to the point of supporting them
politically. In some cases mainstreamers opt for independent occupations involving downward mobility in
socioeconomic terms. A consideration of local cultural factors, however, makes such class changes
understandable. Thus the concept of 'local culture' is used to evaluate the importance of the local context in
adaptation to ecological conditions and in formation of ideology and local social and economic organization.
While the political economy and macro-level sociology perspectives analyze paths of probable development,
an anthropological perspective demonstrates that the uneven, contradictory, and often paradoxical paths of
development in many regions cannot be properly understood without reference to local cultural factors.
Pinkoski, Marc. (1999) "Primordial identities and processes of recognition: The state of Québec nationalisms." M.A.
Thesis, University of Alberta. 91 pp.
This thesis explores the present-day predicament of nationalism in Québec. Ethnographic examples from the
1995 Québec sovereignty referendum illustrate the difficulties of the dialogue that surround political and
cultural expression in Québec. By comparing recent ethnographies, of Québec nationalism and the
contemporary cultural narratives surrounding the turmoil of identity in Québec, this thesis demonstrates that
political culture in Québec, whether First Nations or Québécois, is rooted firmly in the quotidian activities of
the people of the province, and is grounded in the everyday life of the participants.
Pittenger, Susan M. (1998) "The relationship between ethnic identity, self-esteem, emotional well-being and
depression among Lakota/Dakota Sioux adolescents." Psy.D. Dissertation, Old Dominion University. 173 pp.
Despite conceptual support linking ethnic identity and psychological adjustment among Native Americans,
empirical research examining this relationship remains limited. In light of recent developments in the area of
ethnic identity research, including alternative conceptual models, improved methodologies, and more
sophisticated measures, this study examined the relationship between ethnic identity, self-esteem, emotional
well-being, and depression among Native American reservation youth.
The relationship between the predictor variables of American Indian ethnic identity, white-American identity
and bicultural identity, and the criterion measures of self-esteem, emotional well-being, and depression were
examined for 137 Lakota/Dakota Sioux reservation youth. Participants completed surveys including the
Multigroup Ethnic Identity Measure (MEIM; Phinney, 1992) and the Acculturation Questionnaire --
Adolescent Version (AQA; Doerner, 1995) as well as demographic information and measures of
psychological health.
Findings from a series of hierarchical multiple regression analyses indicated that American Indian ethnic
identification, White American identification, as well as the interaction of these scores, did not significantly
contribute to the variance for any of the criterion variables above that accounted for by age and gender. For
the MEIM and OGA, the MEIM accounted for a significant amount of variance for both the criterion
variables of self-esteem and emotional well-being, but did not significantly contribute any unique variance
for depression. The OGA, or the interaction term (MEIM X OGA), did not significantly contributed any
unique variance for any of the criterion variables.
Results support adequate psychometric properties for both measures of ethnic identity with Lakota/Dakota
Sioux youth. Ethnic identity appears to be a multifaceted construct. The results support the complex
relationship between age, gender and ethnic identity, in contributing to the psychological adjustment for
American Indian youth. Sample and methodological limitations of the current study, as well as implications
and directions for future research are discussed. Finally, considerations regarding measures of
psychological functioning as well as the unique challenges of cross-cultural research are reviewed.
Plewes, Cathy T. A. (1997) "First Nations, the church, the state, and image: Policy and ideals reflected in the Indian
Act of 1876." LL.M. Thesis, Carleton University. 124 pp.
First Nations peoples in Canada currently find themselves enmeshed in a legal bureaucracy which is largely
the product of alien cultures and ideals. The genesis of these problems can be traced back to first contact
between European cultures and Aboriginal peoples. Europeans, who brought with them not only their own
culture(s) and values, but their zealously to impose these values upon aboriginal peoples; values which
inevitably found their way into the tools of Canadian politics and law. One of the most prominent historical
instruments of Canada's confining legal bureaucracy is the Indian Act of 1876. The Canadian government
and its predecessors, in conjunction with a number of religious institutions, fostered and incorporated
negative imagery of aboriginal peoples into the Indian Act of 1876; much of which remains to this day. Using
Habermas' theory of communicative action as a base, this thesis will explore how recurring negative imagery
and policy fed off one another in terms of Habermas' notion of lifeworld and system. In addition, the concept
of a distinct aboriginal lifeworld will be introduced. It will be seen that the aboriginal lifeworld has been
colonized (in the sense of Habermas) to an even greater degree than the non-aboriginal lifeworld. Some of
the nature and content of the Indian Act and related legislation can then be understood in terms of the
relationships between the system, non-aboriginal, and aboriginal lifeworld.
Plouffe, Harvey D. (2001 ) "The indigenous healing process and cultural rebirth of First Nations." Ph.D. Dissertation,
Fielding Graduate Institute. 114 pp.
This 5 year critical ethnographic research describes the indigenous factors of healing that precipitated a
change in direction for the First Nation people who suffered from years of oppression, despair, and cultural
disintegration. The First Nation people are now moving to an experience of rejuvenation and cultural pride.
The ongoing indigenous healing processes involved in this change are investigated using the hermeneutic
methods of critical ethnography. The participants consist of three generations of individuals from a First
Nation band in Canada. Reports on gatherings and indigenous rituals for healing are presented. The findings
point to a number of needs for First Nations. These needs are an extended concept of the self, the need to
reclaim traditional rituals, to provide safety for both victims and abusers, need to have healing at all levels of
the community, the need for relational approaches to therapy, and some necessary elements for cultural
competence for non-native service providers. These findings may further contribute to an understanding of
culturally appropriate treatment procedures leading to an indigenous psychology.
Poata-Smith, Evan Te Ahu. (1993) "Inequality between Mäori and Pakeha in education: The response of the fourth
Labour government." B.A. (Hons.) Thesis, University of Otago. 42 pp.
———. (2001) "The political economy of Mäori protest politics, 1968-95: A Marxist analysis of the roots of Mäori
oppression and the politics of resistance." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Otago. 42 pp.
Poirier, Michelle A. (2000) "Humour is good medicine: The Algonquin perspective on humour in their culture and of
outsider constructions of aboriginal humour." M.A. Thesis, Carleton University. 93 pp.
This thesis presents the experiential viewpoints of Algonquin people who participated in a research project
that examined the role humour plays in Algonquin society, looking at elders' humour, healing, spirituality,
creativity, family, social, and inter-cultural relations. The exploratory research was framed within Canadian
Studies discourse, written from an aboriginal perspective crediting indigenous knowledge. Areas of
discussion included the place of humour in Algonquin society, outsiders' cultural constructions of aboriginal
humour, and influences acting on the transmission and preservation of Algonquin humour heritage. It
considered the influences of outsiders' cultural constructions of aboriginal humour in mass media, and in
historical, sociological and anthropological discourse.
Pompana, Yvonne E. (1997 ) "Devolution to indigenization: The final path to assimilation of First Nations." M.S.W.
First Nations must overcome the overt and covert forces of assimilation as they attempt to take over the
cultural and structural control of their own institutions. Faced with government policies that guide the
devolution process, First Nations leaders are caught in a dilemma of rejecting opportunities to control
program delivery at the community level or accepting the possibility of further destruction of their culture.
This study focuses on the processes that lead to this attack on the remnants of First Nations culture. One of
the major culprits is indigenization. By replacing non-aboriginal program deliverers with First Nations
people, the First Nations are beguiled into the belief that the program is founded on First Nations culture. In
fact, the program authority usually remains with the government. Governments devolve responsibility to the
First Nations while retaining authority and control of funds. As such, First Nations are held responsible for
failures while governments claim the successes. Ironically, the more successful a program, the greater the
chances for the forces of assimilation to be at work. First Nations are much more willing to believe a
program is founded on First Nations culture when the program is meeting an expressed or identified need at
the community level. This study identifies these hidden dangers, uncovers the insidiousness of the forces of
assimilation, and then, provides rationale First Nations can employ to thwart these forces. Where possible,
the data in this study, which is founded on historical and contemporary examples of the assimilative policies
of previous and current governments, is supported by the voices of First Nations people who shared their
lives and experiences.
Pool, Carolyn G. (1987) "The process of dependency: An ethnohistorical study of the political economy of the
Wichita reservation, 1867-1901." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Oklahoma (The). 290 pp.
This study examines changes in the political and economic organization of the bands of the Wichita
Reservation during the period 1867 to 1901. Both continuity and change in traditional forms of organization
occurred within the context of a developing dependence of band economies on resources mediated by the
reservation system that controlled land use, markets, wage labour opportunities, and the distribution of
government issues. Federal Indian policies, concerned with the appropriation of Indian land rather than of
Indian labour, focused on the development of a subsistence farming/stock-raising economy that would
minimize the amount of land utilized by the Indian and maximize the land that could be opened to white
settlement through allotment in severalty and the disposition of 'surplus' reserve. Tribal sovereignty and
jurisdiction, considered impediments to the 'civilization' of the Indian, were undermined by administrative
policies and congressional legislation that interfered with tribal self-government and tribal control of
property. Despite reservation policies adopted to regulate band political economy, local conditions of
production were shaped by internal as well as external factors. Internal relations of production reflected both
the constraints of federal Indian policy and the relative political and economic autonomy that contributed to
the reproduction of traditional forms of organization and to the exploitation of tribal resources by individuals
on the reservation.
Porter, Eric R. (1981) "The Anglican Church and native education: Residential schools and assimilation." Ed.D.
Dissertation, University of Toronto.
In the writing of Canadian history, the Indian has always been seen as an obstacle to be overcome in the
course of European resettlement of the country. Because he was considered deficient-morally as well as
technologically-the Indian's claim to the land was usually ignored. Europeans saw him as uncivilized and
made concerted and sustained efforts to transform his culture and his character. The adult Indians were
considered irredeemable and so missionary efforts to civilize the native population centred on the children.
Indian children were removed from their homes in large numbers and placed in segregated residential
schools under the auspices of various Christian churches where missionaries attempted to make them into a
class of sober, self-reliant Christian citizens able to take their place in the mainstream of Canadian society.
The first Anglican Indian residential schools were set up by British missionaries as part of a massive 19th
century campaign to Christianize the whole of the non-Christian, heathen world. During the first two decades
of the 20th century the Indian education programmes that had been developed by the early British
missionaries were adopted by the Anglican church almost without change. The British and Canadian
missionaries were well suited to the task of managing the assimilation of the Canadian Indian. Both groups
carried with them a comprehensive code of human behaviour upon which they thought a national character
should be built and which they as well as the Canadian government used to justify European domination of
Canada's aboriginal population. Between 1920 and 1950 residential schools were the means preferred by
church and state in their attempts to assimilate the native people. The goal of assimilation was never
realized. Native people were forced to accept European domination of their lives, but they did not willingly
and unhesitatingly set aside their Indianness. After World War II church and state officials reluctantly
conceded that the residential schools had failed and that a new way of assimilating the Indians had to be
found. Consequently, government policy makers seized on the idea of mixed or integrated schooling and
residential schools, the mainstay of Indian policy for over a century, were finally abandoned. The history of
Indian residential schools under Anglican auspices is a good illustration both of the interconnectedness of
major Canadian institutions and of the use of schools to explain, maintain and justify gross inequalities in the
Canadian social order.
Porter-Go Forth, April L. (1997) "Native American attitude and self-concept: Comparison of students who attended
and did not attend Indian education centres." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Nevada, Reno. 85 pp.
This study set out to establish a measure of self concept with Native American students in northern California
public schools for a comparison of self concept mean scores, and cultural and academic attitude mean
scores, between students who attended Indian Education centres and students who did not attend Indian
Education centres. The research population of 460 Native American students consisted of 218 males and 242
females in grades one through 12from over 20 tribes migrated/indigenous to California. Participants who
attended Indian Education centres numbered 265 and students who did not attend those centres numbered
195. Independent, two-tailed t tests at an alpha level of.05 were used to compare mean scores between Native
American students. A two-part, dichotomous, self report survey was used to collect data on self concept
(Battle's Culture-Free Self-Esteem Inventory of 30 items), and cultural and academic attitude (Looking At
Myself Survey of 20 items). Three questions concerning Native American students' attitude toward school,
teachers, and learning were presented for written answers, and were recorded as percentage by categorized
responses. Results revealed that native students who attended Indian Education centres displayed
significantly more positive mean self concept scores, and more positive mean cultural and academic attitude
scores, than students who did not attend Indian Education centres. Results of the gender data offered support
to other research findings that there was no significant difference in the self concept by gender. Written
responses found general trends in Native American attitude relative to school and learning. Social influences
were enjoyed most by 66.9% of the Indian students; respect from teachers was of highest concern at 66.7%;
and cultural aspects were most frequently cited for successful learning by 59% of the Indian students
surveyed in northern California public schools.
Porter, Ruby L. (1996) "Talkin' about a revolution: Discourse, aboriginal justice and the possibility of empowerment."
Argument is made as to the emergence of two competing discourses within aboriginal justice literature, i.e.,
state-sponsored and First Nations discourse. Both have a tendency to rely on assumptions of cultural
determinism and invoke implicit evaluations of aboriginal justice initiatives in terms of an
assimilation/revolution binary. Reconceptualization of the debates using postmodern legal pluralist theory
allows one to view the community rather than culture as a better way to evaluate how empowering justice
initiatives will be. Two interrelated emphases of criminal justice reform are highlighted as part of the
developmental process of self-determination for First Nations: one, the involvement of traditional concepts of
law within criminal justice processes and structures and two, those strategies which are primarily based on
gaining a measure of control over criminal justice administration. A temporal and context-specific focus is
argued as useful in evaluating how aboriginal justice initiatives can be potentially empowering for First
Nations.
Posluns, Michael W. (2002) "The public emergence of the vocabulary of First Nations' self-government: A study of
the language as an indicator of ethical and social attitudes in the formation of metapolicy and the discourse of
First Nations' autonomy." Ph.D. Dissertation, York University. 464 pp.
This dissertation explores the emergence of the vocabulary of First Nations' self-government into the realm of
public and parliamentary discourse in Canada during the decade of the 1970s. The emergence of the
vocabulary is chronicled through a study of the testimony of First Nations and Aboriginal witnesses before a
series of Joint Committees on the Constitution and the Commons Committee on Indian Affairs and Northern
Development. The Proceedings of these committees provide a published record in which can be traced the
incremental sense of First Nations leaders as to whether or not it was reasonable to use this vocabulary and
to discuss First Nations' autonomy before Parliamentary committees. The Proceedings also allow an
examination of the response of parliamentarians to the testimony of First Nations' witnesses.
Three conceptual frameworks are developed with which to analyze the struggle to develop a discourse of
First Nations' autonomy and to begin a discussion of the institutions of self-government:
(1) In the interface of parliamentarians, governmental witnesses, First Nations witnesses and others in the
committee proceedings, a Four Worlds analysis of meanings offers insights into the ways in which both
specific statements and world views of key players are construed by other parties. This is an original
application of traditional 'fourfold' or quaternary analysis.
(2) Because the discourse of First Nations' autonomy arises out of the need to gain affirmation of the
legitimacy of First Nations, it is essential to study the discourse of prevarication, particularly statements of
ministers and senior officials which have historically misrepresented First Nations, typically with the
acquiescence of parliamentarians. The positive counterpart of 'the discourse of prevarication' is, in this work,
called 'the discourse of affirmation.'
(3) In answer to the question, "Who speaks, and with what authority?" in testimony before these committees,
a framework analysis using the concept of burden of persuasion, a term adapted from evidence law, will
prove useful.
While these three frameworks for analysis require different sets of vocabulary, they are in no way in
competition with one another. Each addresses a significant aspect of the development of the language of self-
government. The analysis chapter will demonstrate how these three analytical frameworks are braided
together to form a deeper appreciation of the discourse between First Nations witnesses and
parliamentarians.
This examination of the discourse of First Nations' autonomy will prove useful to readers interested in a
better understanding of the ways in which many of the key words in this vocabulary have become
increasingly contested since the period under examination. This dissertation provides the tools with which to
understand the continuing contest to shape this discourse and, through the discourse, the reality of First
Nations' autonomy.
Potasi-King, Dorothy. (2000) "A comparison of Albert Wendt's novel Leaves of the banyan tree and Alan Duff's novel
Once were warriors." M.A. Thesis, California State University, Dominguez Hills. 47 pp.
This is a comparison of two Polynesian postcolonial novels, Albert Wendt's Leaves of the banyan tree and
Alan Duff's Once were warriors, and how the Samoan and Mäori cultures have been adversely impacted by
colonialism and the authors' different perspectives in terms of a solution for surviving in a postcolonial
world. A social and cultural perspective was utilized for comparison and interpretation. Duff's novel
contends that the modern Mäori must relinquish outdated traditional thinking and acculturate as a way to
eliminate their impoverished condition. Wendt's novel romanticizes the traditional fa'aSamoa with a clear
rejection of Western influences as detrimental to modern Samoa and offers a paradoxical, pessimistic
solution based on tradition as the answer to present day problems in Samoa.
Pottinger, Richard L. (1987) "Return migration and rural industrial employment: A Navajo case study." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of Colorado at Boulder. 218 pp.
Migration is a process that is selective of economic motivation. Migrants tend to be younger, better educated,
and more ambitious than their nonmobile counterparts. Return migrants constitute a significant proportion of
all migration streams. Returnees should be expected to contribute to the development of their home
communities, particularly in rural areas. Research findings tend to contradict this expectation, portraying
returnees as the old, the sick, and urban failures. However, research coverage on this question is less than
adequate with notable exceptions. Return migrants may be urban failures, but they may also be 'double
selected' for superior motivation and skills. If return migration is a double selection process, returnees
should be more effective in securing employment in rural industry than their nonmigrant counterparts. An
employer in the export base of the Navajo reservation was selected as a research site. A sample of 160 Native
Americans, 80 employees (40 female, 40 male) and 80 recent job applicants (40 female, 40 male) was
developed to test the research hypothesis. Controlling for age, education, prior experience, and sex; Native
Americans who had held at least one job off the reservation were about three times more likely to be
employed than nonmigrants. This was true for both women and men. When more restrictive criteria for off-
reservation employment were applied, the similarity between men and women disappeared. At this level of
discrimination in the analysis, off-reservation employment conferred no competitive advantage on women,
while male returnees were about five times more likely to be employed than nonmigrant men. These
differences are attributed to the sexual assignment of work roles in the American labour market. Drawing on
recent studies, no significant differences could be found between the Navajo experience and that of other
Americans in the process of employment establishment. The findings of this study suggest that potential
return migrants can serve as a valuable human resource to staff positions in an expanding rural economy
and should be considered in development planning.
Poudrier, Jennifer D. (2004) "Decolonizing genetic science: The thrifty gene theory, Aboriginal health and
empowering knowledges." Ph.D. Dissertation, Queen's University at Kingston. 204 pp.
This dissertation is a decolonizing science study of the cultural construction of a biological entity, the thrifty
gene theory, and its relationship to current Canadian research in the genetics of non-insulin diabetes
(NIDDM) among Aboriginal peoples. The thrifty gene theory (Neel, 1962) is often used in scientific and
health promotion discourse as the best way to explain the recent proliferation of NIDDM among Aboriginal
populations globally. Following from the primary notion that genetic science, like all science is not culture-
free, but rather full of culture, this research aimed to explore and assess the existence of the thrifty gene from
a decolonizing perspective. The decolonizing strategy here involved: centering indigenous epistemologies;
critically understanding and challenging Euro-western science; and revitalizing indigenous knowledge
systems geared toward the larger project of self-determination. This research involved a textual analysis of
the scientific publications that make up the thrifty gene theory and those that make up the Sandy Lake
research. The primary finding is that the thrifty gene is produced and reiterated from a eugenic and neo-
colonial perspective. This perspective produced a type of knowledge wherein political, economic and
historical conditions (namely colonization) become naturalized or fixed. Where the colonization is treated as
fixed and natural, the Aboriginal body becomes unfixed and the body, or more specifically problematic
Aboriginal genes, becomes the site of curative transformation. This shift seems to be responsible for the way
in which, despite the influence of unfixable and natural genes, individual bodies and personal immoralities
are necessarily blamed for illness. The implications are that the devastating and long-standing effects of
colonization are never really accepted as the root cause of NIDDM and the genetic-fix argument thrives.
Genetic knowledge claims may not be accurate in terms of the populations they describe and they may not be
useful in terms of the clinical application of knowledge regarding the effects of diabetes. These knowledge
claims may be harmful, not only by stigmatizing the peoples that they describe, but also by spear-heading an
avenue for future race-related genetic research and treatment.
Poupart, Lisa M. (1996) "Patriarchy, cultural imperialism and marginalized others." Ph.D. Dissertation, Arizona State
University. 235 pp.
Knowledge is always produced by individuals who occupy particular material bodies and social positions.
While all knowledge formations are culturally constructed, these constructions are attached to material
bodies which are located in particular contexts. Knowledge is produced by individuals based upon
experiences and individual social situations. Under a patriarchal social structure, although all knowledge
claims are socially situated, only those of the dominant group are universalized as the beliefs of all members
of society. Thus, patriarchy systematically excludes and silences the experiences of marginalized groups such
as women, people of colour, children, lesbians and gays, and the poor.
It is argued that 'truth,' as constructed by social scientists, is neither objective, nor universal, but, rather,
reflects and perpetuates the social and economic systems that benefit those who produce it. The valorization
of 'scientific' knowledge in modern western culture plays a crucial role in excluding the knowledges offered
by women, people of colour, and others. The author discusses the challenges that marginalized groups pose
to the patriarchy when individuals break silence and voice their truths as Other.
An historical analysis (deconstruction) of federal Indian policy in the United States is provided, exploring
how western paternalism led to the colonization and genocide of American Indian nations, as well as
contemporary tribal dependency on the federal government. The internalised oppression of American Indian
people is explored. Throughout these sections, the author reveals her own personal experiences of loss of
culture, family violence, mixed-blood identity, and self-hatred as they relate to the continuing genocide of
Indian Nations.
In the final chapter of this dissertation, the author explores violence against American Indian women and
children as experiences of the patriarchal power structure. Drawing upon feminist critiques, she examines
power relationships in western patriarchy that create and foster violence against the disempowered. The
silence shrouding domestic violence and childhood sexual abuse in Indian communities is examined as a fluid
example of exclusion, or private and public subordination The assertions in this section are further
illuminated by the author, using poetry describing her experiences of victimization within society and within
the patriarchal family structure.
Povinelli, Elizabeth A. (1991) "The production of political, cultural, and economic well-being at the Belyuen
Aboriginal community, Northern Territory of Australia." Ph.D. Dissertation, Yale University. 447 pp.
This dissertation describes an Australian Aboriginal group's confrontation with and contestation of Anglo-
Australian political and economic rhetoric and structures as they attempt to produce the local countryside,
their own economic well-being, and their historical and cultural identity. I present this confrontation through
the lens of the Belyuen Aboriginal community on the Cox Peninsula, NT, Australia and through Western
philosophical, ethnographic, exploration, and popular texts. Central questions are, how do Belyuen
Aborigines understand labour and speech to affect a sentient, agentive countryside? What do they understand
themselves to be accomplishing when they act and speak at various sites and how does this understanding
affect how they organize their activity? How do Anglo political-economic notions of what are 'hunters-and-
gatherers' confront and influence local Aborigines' attempts to produce and to control the countryside, their
history, and their identity? I claim that Belyuen Aborigines primarily assess the productive power of a social
group by how country and human bodies reflect the character of the other during everyday settlement and
food collection activities.
In three sections I examine how Belyuen people and Western theorists interrelate three types of productivity:
the production of people and the countryside, the production of economic well-being, and the production of
history and cultural identity. My thesis and results are based on 11 month's fieldwork in 1984-85, one
month's fieldwork in 1987, and 14 month's fieldwork in 1989-90 during which time I collected quantitative,
social, and conversational data from 634 hunting and gathering trips. This dissertation includes transcripts
of people's discussion of their historical and cultural uses of the Cox Peninsula and Daly River regions.
Powers, Natasha C. (2001 ) "The abrogation of responsibility: The Crown-narrative relationship from Corbiere v.
Canada to the proposed First Nations Governance Act." M.A. Thesis, Carleton University. 106 pp.
In Corbiere v. Canada, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled that off-reserve members have the right to vote in
band elections. Section 77(1) of the Indian Act, which restricted voting to on-reserve members, was found
inconsistent with section 15(1) of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms because “Aboriginality-
residence” was analogous to enumerated grounds of discrimination and because off-reserve band members
have a direct interest in council decisions. Consequently, the entire system must be overhauled. The Supreme
Court left an 18-month window for good faith consultations to provide a collaborative remedy. But, contrary
to good faith and to the principles of landmark cases like Sparrow and Delgamuukw, the government
proposed a First Nations Governance Act that speaks of empowerment and decentralization, but which flees
from responsibility and liabilities. This governance initiative -- Ottawa's purported second phase of Corbiere
consultations -- makes only cosmetic framework changes that underhandedly alter its fiduciary obligations.
Preston, David L. (2002) "The texture of contact: European and Indian settler communities on the Iroquoian
borderlands, 1720-80." Ph.D. Dissertation, College of William and Mary (The). 339 pp.
'The texture of contact' is a comparative study of cultural relationships between European and Indian settler
communities along the Six Nations' borders with New York and Pennsylvania from 1720 to 1780. It
particularly examines "everyday encounters" between ordinary peoples -- a dimension of colonial social and
economic life that has usually escaped historians' attention. Palatine, Scots, Irish, Dutch, and English
colonists not only lived close to Indian villages but also frequently interacted with Iroquois, Delawares, and
other natives. Frontier farms, forts, churches, and taverns were scenes of frequent face-to-face meetings
between colonists and Indians. My dissertation explores the dynamics of settler-Indian encounters and how
they changed over time in the Mohawk, Susquehanna, and Ohio valleys. Ordinary people powerfully shaped
the larger patterns of cultural contact through their routine negotiations. Local relationships between Indian
and European communities were as important in maintaining peace as formal alliances.
The dissertation establishes a new vantage point by exploring northeastern North America as the 'Iroquoian
borderlands' rather than the Middle Colonies' frontiers. It also employs comparative history to highlight the
structural similarities and differences of the Six Nations' borders with nearby colonies. Both Pennsylvania
and New York enjoyed alliances with the Six Nations that sustained a period of peaceful relations in the 18th
century. But Pennsylvania's settlement expansion sparked a triangular contest over land between natives,
European squatters, and proprietors that resulted in open warfare and native dispossession by the 1750s.
During the Seven Years' War, Delawares, Shawnees, and other natives inflicted tremendous destruction on
Pennsylvania's defenceless settlements. Chronic warfare on Pennsylvania's and Virginia's borders set in
motion processes such as aggressive European settlement expansion and racial violence that the American
Revolution merely exacerbated.
The Six Nations' border with New York, by contrast, was free from open warfare for most of the 18th century.
In the Mohawk Valley, strong religious, economic, social, and military ties enabled Indian and colonial
communities to coexist for most of the 18th century. The New York-Iroquois borders reflected cultural
relations in New France, where French-Canadian habitants lived in relative harmony with reserve Indians in
the St. Lawrence Valley. It was not until the American Revolution that New York experienced the same
racially charged warfare that Pennsylvania, Virginia, and other British colonies had experienced in the 17th
and early 18th centuries. The Revolution overturned the patterns of accommodation that prevailed between
the Iroquois and the New York colonists. It uprooted the British-Iroquois alliance and led to dispossession for
many Iroquois in punitive postwar treaties with the US The comparative context more precisely reveals the
means whereby the permeable Iroquoian borderlands of the early 18th century were transformed into
juridically and racially defined state and national borders by the 1780s.
Prins, Harald E. L. (1988) "Tribullations of a border tribe: A discourse on the political ecology of the Aroostock Bank
of Micmacs." Ph.D. Dissertation, New School for Social Research. 368 pp.
This dissertation concerns the tribulations of the Aroostook Band of Micmacs, a landless band of Indians
inhabiting the upper St. John River drainage in northern Maine. It reviews the history of this federally
unrecognized native community, its social and economic characteristics, its position in society at large, and
its struggle for native rights, in particular its quest for official recognition of its 'tribal status.' Surveying the
Wabanaki culture-area, it discusses the exclusion of this band from the landmark 1980 Maine Indian Claims
Settlement Act, due, in part, to insufficient historic documentation and ahistorical anthropological models of
territoriality and ethnicity. Based on six years of intermittent fieldwork among the Micmac and Maliseet
(1981-1987), the work employs political ecology as an interdisciplinary research strategy, coupling
theoretical aspects of cultural ecology, political economy, and systems theory. Its methodology consisted of
participant observation, standardized and open-ended interviews, and the use of numerous myths, legends,
historical maps, published, unpublished, archival, private, and other written or non-written sources of
information. Considering the operative role of 'tribe' in the political arena of the Indian rights struggle in the
US, the term is analyzed and traced in its genesis and usage since the 16th century, suggesting its function as
an arbitrary tool. Contradicting prevalent theories of exclusive tribal territoriality, models of enduring
aboriginal 'family hunting districts' and the 'river drainage model', this work demonstrates that in a dynamic
political environment, tribal ethnicity and territoriality are adaptive strategies, and suggests the existence of
a Micmac hunting ground allotment system and 'joint use' territoriality in the Wabanaki homelands. In
conclusion, this dissertation demonstrates that the current fluid, diffuse, and open community structure of the
Aroostook Micmacs conforms to the historic tribal patterning in Micmac culture. Moreover, inhabiting a
region in the upper St. John River drainage area, they occupy an area which historically falls within the
Micmac aboriginal range. Finally, it contends that in the case of such contradictions, hegemonic
representations of tribal reality, reified and disguised as objective theoretical concepts, are 'misfit,' not the
historic fact of Micmac persistence in the modern world.
Prussing, Erica. (1999) "Warriors and survivors: The culture of sobriety in Northern Cheyenne women's narratives."
Ph.D. Dissertation, University of California, San Diego. 278 pp.
The work of contemporary Northern Cheyenne culture involves interpreting the rapid changes witnessed by
the past several generations of tribal members, the emergence of widespread alcohol use in community life by
the 1950s, and the reconfiguring but persistent economic, political, and cultural marginalization of the
reservation relative to the dominant society. Drawing upon three years of ethnographic fieldwork and a
selection of life history interviews, this analysis elucidates contemporary Northern Cheyenne women's
creation of the narrative frame of 'cultural recovery,' as a distinctly local adaptation of the concepts and
vocabulary of the recovery movement in the dominant society. The analysis particularly explores the
interplay of this narrative frame with an existing 'traditional culture loss' frame in reservation community
discourse, which constructs the figure of a warrior as a model of and for Northern Cheyenne identity. By
positing instead the historically contextualized, contingent identity of a survivor, cultural recovery
problematizes essentialist moves to construct cultural and psychological change among Northern Cheyennes
as loss. Cultural narrative frames are inevitably partial, privileging and emphasizing certain dimensions of
experience, as well as particular speakers. Northern Cheyenne women's creation and use of the narrative
frame of cultural recovery both reflects and animates local politics of age and gender. It also leaves
significant dimensions of the work of contemporary Northern Cheyenne culture relatively unexamined,
speaking only indirectly to problems such as the persistent economic and political peripheralization of the
reservation. Nonetheless, its emergence can be read as a dynamic moment in a reconfiguring Northern
Cheyenne cultural repertoire -- an integration of diverse cultural resources to offer new perspectives on
long-standing discursive tools. As such its cultural presence is arguably not only political, but also radical.
Pulitano, Elvira. (2001) "Towards a Native American critical theory." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of New Mexico
(The). 312 pp.
Despite scholarly assumptions according to which a “resistance to theory” characterizes the field of Native
American studies today, this dissertation illustrates how some of the most recent critical works produced by
Native American authors signal the beginning of what I refer to as a “Native American critical theory,” a
complex hybridized project, in which Western discursive strategies are subsumed within the narratives of
Native American oral traditions and Native epistemologies. Paula Gunn Allen (Laguna-Pueblo), Robert
Warrior (Osage), Craig Womack (Creek-Cherokee), Greg Sarris (Pomo), Louis Owens (Choctaw-Cherokee),
and Gerald Vizenor (Anishinaabe/Chippewa) are the primary authors under analysis in my study. Against
Western, Eurocentric interpretations of Native American literatures and cultures, in which external critical
voices and methods are imposed on Native texts, the above-mentioned authors have begun to generate
theories of reading largely, though by no means exclusively, based on Indigenous and cultural contexts and
rhetoric(s). In the process, these authors are provocatively redefining the boundaries of contemporary
Western discourse.
As a discourse posed at the border of two different worlds, involving a dialectic relationship between
European cultural systems and indigenous ontology, Native American critical theory seems, at first, to
parallel the ideological agenda of postcolonial discourse theory. However, as critics have pointed out,
distinctions need to be made unless we want to perpetuate the notion of postcolonialism as a further
imperialistic/totalizing method, one in which socioeconomic and cultural differences are quickly and
simplistically homogenized under the category of the colonized “Other.” While my study relies on the works
of Gayatri Spivak, Homi Bhabha, Trinh-Minh-ha, Edward Said, and Frantz Fanon, among others, whose
critical vocabulary allows me to explore the content of Native American critical discourse, my purpose is to
point out how Native American theorists, by mediating between oral and written form, subversively and
provocatively accomplish those “acts of anti-imperial translations” theorized within postcolonial theory,
defining thus the parameters of a Native American critical discourse.
Pupchek, Leanne S. (1998 ) "Home and native land: Imagining 'Canada' in the style of indigenous art." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of South Florida. 279 pp.
On January 7, 1998, the Canadian Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development offered an
extraordinary apology to the aboriginal peoples of Canada for the treatment they had suffered as the result of
historical "attitudes of racial and cultural superiority." This research contextualizes the apology by
examining indigenous art as a strategic spot where Canada and the aboriginal peoples negotiate national
and ethnic identities.
The Canadian government's apology assumes that ethnic identity endows the political, economic and social
systems of aboriginal peoples with the ability to create coherent nations. A sense of nation is something
Canada wants dearly and has attempted in many ways, as if the fragmented national body seeks a unifying
ethnic soul to justify its status as a nation.
One approach has been to dispossess the indigenous peoples of a significant aspect of their ethnic identities
by appropriating the styles of their visual arts. The appropriation of aboriginal art in Canadian culture
helped lay the groundwork for the public attitudes that made the government's apology possible. Further,
resistance to the appropriation and the ensuing procedure of dialectic transformed social expectations
among aboriginal communities to make the government's apology necessary.
The search for a "style in which [to imagine]" (Anderson, 1983) a distinct Canadian identity illustrates the
complex process of rhetorical negotiation. By applying concepts of the theorist Kenneth Burke to the way
people have talked and written about indigenous art, especially in Canada since 1950, this dissertation
reveals how forces such as ethnicity, nationalism, politics, art history, and commercialism merge and
converge in a complex negotiation of identity. Further, it reveals how social policy has been transformed as
the result both of indigenous art being pressed into nationalist service and of aboriginal resistance to the
appropriation.
Quamina, Afriye. (2002) "The sacredness of being: The spiritual rite of passage and the reclaimed indigenous voice of
initiated young adolescent men of colour." Ed.D. Dissertation, University of San Francisco. 142 pp.
Young adolescent men of colour are the first students to drop out, and the last to graduate. Empirical
research has long reported that this population are the ones who seem to lead a life of discord, alcohol and
drug abuse, gang and crime affiliation, poor academic performance, low economic development, and are
those least to succeed in the United States. This participatory study examined five young adolescent men of
colour who underwent a spiritual rite of passage and experienced a series of dialogues with an emphasis on
Self-Awareness, Self-Determination, Identity, and Spirituality. These young men are ethnically and
chronologically representative of young men of colour that suffer the greatest from homicide, depression, and
suicide, more than any other group. They further represent a classic population of young men who have been
made to feel disassociated, disconnected, disenchanted, and disenfranchised within American society.
This study examined how meaning and purpose can be restored through the implementation of a spiritually
based rite of passage. These young adolescent men of colour participated in a four-week indigenous model of
intense learning that imitated a model similar to their original ethnic heritage.
Historically, rites of passage served to reintroduce young men of colour to their mission and purpose in life,
their intricate connection with nature and spirituality, reinvigoration of their human orientation and
stewardship, their intrinsic value and worth as human beings, and preparation, for the anticipated stages of
adult life and living. Participatory research, as a primary methodology, was utilized to generate the topics of
rediscovery through the collective of participants, and provide actual voice to clarify and create a renewed
understanding of the benefits of a rite of passage.
Quijada, Patricia Del Carmen. (2004) "Whose reservations are legitimized? Understanding indigenous adult-youth
relationships in home and school contexts." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Wisconsin -- Madison (The).
138 pp.
This study examines how indigenous youth who reside on a Native American Indian reservation and attend a
public high school located in the southwestern part of the United States negotiate the worlds of family and
school. Twenty-one indigenous youth (ages 14 to 18 years old), residing on a Native American reservation
discuss learning in and out of a rural public high school through their relationships with adults. Using a
qualitative research design the study shows how participants negotiate their indigenous cultural scripts,
familial responsibilities, and power-status as adolescents, generating a complex relational learning process
that challenges how adults think about youth and how youth view themselves. The study demonstrates how
participants rethink learning, not as "youth" who need direction from adults or as "indigenous" who engage
in communal practices with adults, but as knowledge producers who (in)form education from their social and
cultural locations. While participants embody familial cultural practices that are invested in holistic and
communal learning they also act as social agents in their own right. Combining developmental theories
(Cooper, 1994; Cooper and Cooper, 1992; Phelan, Davidson and Yu, 1998), with Indigenous Identity theory
(Deyhle, 1995; Deyhle and LeCompte, 1994) the study discusses the educational implications that emerge
when youth share what it means to be defined by adults (indigenous and non indigenous) as "youth" and as
"Native Americans."
Quintero, Gilbert. (1997 ) "The discourse on drinking in Navajo society." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Arizona
(The). 237 pp.
This dissertation adopts a discourse-centred approach to culture in order to explore the local meanings
attached to alcohol and drinking in contemporary Navajo society. Against a backdrop of drastic cultural
transformations, Navajo discourse reveals a wide range of accounts in which drinking is situated within the
context of individual experiences and histories. Alcohol and drinking are connected to personal memories of
important events, emotions, and relationships.
Beyond the level of individual stories, these narratives help organize collective accounts of the Navajo as a
people by providing comprehensive evaluations and commentaries on drinking. A number of collective
meanings are embedded in narratives about alcohol that reference cultural sentiments and prominent moral
values and offer a social commentary that defines what is, and is not, Navajo.
Further insights are offered by an examination of aging-out, a salient pattern of Navajo drinking. Former
problem drinkers who have aged out and no longer experience alcohol related difficulties offer narratives
that frame drinking in certain set ways. The discourse on aging-out among the Navajo not only provides
detail on a category of drinker that is largely ignored in accounts of Native American drinking but also
illustrates some of the values and meanings attached to drinking cessation and personal change.
The discourse of alcoholism treatment provides other understandings regarding Navajo conceptions of
alcohol, including the character of this substance and the effect it has on people -- especially Native
Americans. Consideration of this set of discourse reveals insights into the treatment process as well as
commentaries and evaluations of treatment effectiveness and other related issues.
This study suggests that Navajo narratives of alcohol and drinking provide important idioms for expressing
moral and self-identity, individual experience, collective history, and cultural degeneration. The discourse on
drinking in Navajo society reveals a social world of polarization, contention, and intergenerational conflict.
Quiring, David M. (2002) "Battling parish priests, bootleggers, and fur sharks: CCF colonialism in northern
Saskatchewan." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Saskatchewan (The). 387 pp.
This study examines the relationship between the government of Saskatchewan and the northern half of the
province and its residents during the immediate post-World War Two period. Up until 1944, the people of the
region lived in relative isolation and had developed a unique society, culture, and economy distinct from the
rest of the province. But under the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (CCF), which formed the
government of Saskatchewan from 1944 to 1964, the north underwent profound change. During this 22-year
period, the CCF attempted to impose modernization, assimilation, and socialism within the northern
aboriginal society. Northerners experienced a very different CCF government than did southerners. While
the CCF drew back from its socialist policies in the South, the party applied strongly socialist economic
policies to many aspects of the northern economy. On the other hand, in the realm of social policy, the CCF
proved less generous to northerners than to southerners. CCF efforts in the north proved largely
unsuccessful. A failure to commit adequate resources, a lack of planning, and resistance from northerners to
the intrusive governmental presence combined to limit the success of the CCF project. The CCF also
destroyed much of the former northern economic and social system, while failing to build a workable new
economy and society. This contributed to the worsening poverty and social dysfunction within aboriginal
communities.
This work breaks new ground in significant ways. Other studies have examined particular aspects of the CCF
northern record, but none have employed extensive original research in an effort to grasp the larger northern
picture. This research seeks to understand and explain, in a comprehensive fashion, the legacy left by the
CCF to the north.
Various sources have provided information for this research. Archival records located at the Saskatchewan
Archives Board served as the largest single source. Documents from the Glenbow Archives also have proven
valuable. Oral interviews with northern residents and former provincial government employees added new
perspectives and invaluable checks on the archival information. The existing body of secondary scholarship
has provided a necessary base of information.
Rajan-Eastcott, Doris. (1990) "The evolution of a racism: First peoples and the European invasion of Canada."
M.S.W. Thesis, Carleton University. 135 pp.
The indigenous peoples of Canada have been historically subjected to a profound racism. An understanding
of the development of this particular experience of racism can be attained by focusing on the political
economy related to the socially constructed concept of race as it has evolved historically. The European
conquerors' utilization of indigenous labour in the primary production of the fur trade, led to the
development of a racist theory which would serve to legitimize this exploitation. This ideology purports that
based on biological determination, the white European is superior to the indigenous peoples in culture and
intelligence. When the ownership of indigenous lands grew in importance over the need for indigenous
labour, racism became intensified to justify this more blatant exploitation. Aboriginal policy which served to
provide ideological credence to the functioning of racism, expressed the objectives of control, appeasement
and assimilation. Racism against the First Nations is still a very salient feature today as evident in their poor
health and economic conditions, inadequate social and education services, and the state's refusal to entrench
self-government in the Canadian Constitution.
Ramirez, Renya K. (1999) "Healing through grief: Native Americans re-imagining culture, community and citizenship
in San Jose, California." Ph.D. Dissertation, Stanford University. 281 pp.
This ethnographic study, using in-depth interviews and field observations, explores the struggles of Native
Americans in the San Jose area, who create gathering sites to foster a sense of well-being, community,
identity and belonging in a society that constructs them as problem, people. Much of the prior
anthropological literature portrayed urban Indians as problem people without authentic culture, static
individuals, unable to control their lives. In contrast, this study argues that Native Americans are powerful
actors, who forge spaces to heal their community. This healing methodology needs to be learned from to
create spaces within the schools and the community for Native Americans to belong. Furthermore, this study
argues that Indians living in urban areas are not people without culture. Indian culture is not bounded within
geographical regions, but flows throughout many nodes within a network of social relationships. Central to
the study's conceptual design is fluid conceptions of culture and identity, and the concept of cultural
citizenship. Cultural citizenship refers to the right to be different and belong and participate in the nation's
democratic processes. The enduring exclusion of the colour line not only denies full citizenship to Native
Americans from the nation-state, but also from their tribal nations as many suffer from multitudes of
problems, such as low rates of graduation from high school and the lack of access to tribal rights and
benefits. This study explores the intersection of four dominant narratives within which urban Indians are
enmeshed and marginalized: governmental policy, popular culture, classic anthropology and patriarchy.
This research found out that the healing practice of a group of Native American community activists teaches
us some strategies for Indian people to become fully enfranchised. Some were: (1) to re-imagine culture and
community as interconnected rather than homogenous units; (2) to recognize peoples' multi-stranded sense of
identity; (3) to challenge western-oriented history, creating spaces in our schools for indigenous knowledge;
and, (4) to remember and include the knowledge of Indian women.
Ramos, Howard. (2004) "Divergent paths: Aboriginal mobilization in Canada, 1951-2000." Ph.D. Dissertation,
My dissertation focuses on the rise and spread of aboriginal mobilization in Canada between 1951 and 2000.
Using social movement and social-political theories, it questions the relationship between contentious actions
and formal organizational growth comparing among social movement and political sociological
perspectives. In most accounts, contentious action is assumed to be influenced by organization, political
opportunity and identity. Few scholars, however, have examined the reverse relationships, namely the effect
of contentious action on each of these. Drawing upon time-series data and qualitative interviews with
aboriginal leaders and representatives of organizations, I found that critical events surrounding moments of
federal state building prompted contentious action, which then sparked mobilization among aboriginal
communities. I argue that three events: the 1969 White Paper, the 1982 patriation of the Constitution, and
the 1990 'Indian Summer' led to mass mobilization and the semblance of an emerging pan-aboriginal
identity. This finding returns to older collective behaviour perspectives, which note that organizations,
opportunities, and identities are driven by triggering actions and shared experiences that produce emerging
norms. Nevertheless, in the case of Canadian aboriginal mobilization, unlike that of indigenous movements in
other countries, building a movement on triggering actions led to mass mobilization but was not sustainable
because of a saturation of efficacy. As a result, aboriginal mobilization in Canada has been characterized by
divergent interests and unsustained contention.
Ramsay, Bruce. (1975) "The economic and social-cultural situation of native trappers in northern Manitoba."
M.N.R.M. Thesis, University of Manitoba (The).
Ranco, Darren J. (2000) "Environmental risk and politics in eastern Maine: The Penobscot Indian Nation and the
Environmental Protection Agency." Ph.D. Dissertation, Harvard University. 271 pp.
My dissertation investigates a permit written by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to
Lincoln Pulp and Paper (Lincoln) and its potential impacts on the Penobscot Indian Nation's (Nation) health
and resources. The permit writing process, which took place between January of 1993 and January of 1997,
included the Nation as a major player. This 'negotiation' was primarily focused on how much dioxin (a
volatile toxin) EPA would allow Lincoln to discharge into the Penobscot River 35 miles upstream from the
residential part of the reservation. While this 'negotiation' was, in fact, an exercise of EPA authority over
Lincoln and its impact on reservation resources, EPA took great pains to incorporate tribal comments and
perspectives into the final permit, which was the strictest ever issued by EPA to a paper company. While the
strict permit is a clear artefact of the Nation's involvement in writing the permit, the Nation challenged the
final draft in February of 1997, arguing that it did not fully take into account EPA's duties to the Nation.
I concentrate my study on the mediators of the negotiation-tribal and EPA administrators who have the task
of performing both the will of the state and the interests of the local tribal polity. I focus on the language and
concepts these bureaucrats use to articulate knowledge, identity, morality, and power in this particular
exercise of state authority. Three discursive contexts help us understand the political circumstances and
meanings of the narratives used by these bureaucrats: (1) The authority and contours of environmental
regulation, the pluralist and managerial discourses; (2) The role of the Indian in American environmental
discourse, the Indian-ecologist; and, (3) The spectrum of Native American rights in the United States, the
sovereignty/Trust Responsibility discourse. These sets of discourses, shared by both tribal and EPA
bureaucrats, determine and are shaped by identity politics wherein the state; creates and is indifferently
embodied by its citizens. By investigating the various narrative contexts of these discourses, my project
illuminates the complex ways in which the United States government and tribal governments mediate legal
and cultural discourses inside and outside their own bureaucratic contexts in order to form and implement
environmental policy.
Rata, Elizabeth. (1996) "Global capitalism and the revival of ethnic traditionalism in New Zealand: The emergence of
tribal-capitalism." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Auckland. 322 pp.
The social and economic restructuring accompanying increasing globalization has provided new
opportunities and new limits for social and ethnic movements in New Zealand as elsewhere. The purpose of
this thesis is to establish the theory of tribal-capitalism through an examination of the responses to these
changing global economic circumstances that have characterised the Mäori ethnification, indigenization and
retribalization movements since the 1970s.
Although both the initial 'prefigurative' and the later 'strategic' routes to tino rangatiratanga ('Mäori
sovereignty') were attempts to restore traditional social relations and secure political and economic
autonomy from the dominant Pakeha society, the projects are distinguished by different approaches. On the
one hand the 'prefigurative' traditionalist project indicted both capitalism and Pakeha society as its
exponents sought a return to the precapitalist social relations of the pre-contact era. On the other hand,
exponents of the 'strategic' project sought to establish a concordat with capitalist Pakeha society based upon
the assumption that a capitalist economy could be made compatible with Mäori political and cultural
autonomy. It is argued that neither project, 'prefigurative' traditionalism nor the 'strategic march through the
institutions of capitalism', achieved the objective of tino rangatiratanga. Irrespective of approach, Mäori
ethnification, indigenization and retribalization became reshaped and reconstituted by the conditions that
made the movements possible and that shaped them in decisive ways. These tino rangatiratanga movements
emerged from the institutional channels enabled by Pakeha bicultural idealists and given substance by the
Waitangi Tribunal as a tribal-capitalist regime of accumulation characterised by exploitative class relations
and reified communal relations.
An extensive range of case studies is employed to provide evidence that tests the hypothesis of the emergence
of tribal-capitalism from out of the projects that attempted to retain the traditional in a world dominated by
capitalist relations. Despite the structural opportunities provided by Pakeha bicultural idealists, and despite
the different approaches of the Mäori tino rangatiratanga projects, it was not possible to restore communal
relations of production. Objective forces, rather than internal miscalculation, ineptitude or corruption,
brought about the failure as firstly 'prefigurative' and then 'strategic' projects became doomed attempts to
sidestep class location within capitalist structures.
The various studies examined the ways in which the 'prefigurative' and 'strategic' projects not only led to the
transformation of the ethnification and indigenization movements into the new class formations of tribal-
capitalism, but actually became constitutive of the class fractions that define the regime. The dialectical
interactive of agency and structure which transformed the projects became a reconstituting and shaping
mechanism of change.
First, the study of the Pakeha new class's bicultural project grounds the later studies by locating the
institutional inclusion of Mäori indigenous particularity in the universalism of the new class humanists.
Biculturalism established relatively benign conditions for the tino rangatiratanga projects by providing both
opportunities and resources for Mäori development. It is in the retribalising form of that development that an
indigenous version of the capitalist regime of accumulation is located. The next three sections of the thesis
examine the 'prefigurative' and 'strategic' routes of this indigenous particularity into the new inclusive
structures in studies of a reviving Mäori family, an ascendant tribe, a separate Mäori education system, and
the creation of the national Mäori fishing industry.
The outcomes of each study are examined to trace the failure of both approaches as particular groups within
the retribalization movement developed new and exclusive relationships to the traditional lands, waters and
knowledge. The concluding section contrasts culturalist theories of the Mäori tino rangatiratanga projects
with the hypothesis of the emergence of tribal-capitalism advanced in this thesis. The claim that cultural
strength can resist the imposition of capitalist class relations is found not to be sustained.
———. (1991) "Mäori survival and structural separateness." M.Ed. Thesis, University of Auckland.
Real Bird, C. Lanny. (1997) "'Ashaammaliaxxia', the Apsaalooke clan system." Ed.D. Dissertation, Montana State
University. 273 pp.
The Apsaalooke or the Crow Indians of Montana are faced with a loss of their cultural practices, values, and
language because of threats in the mainstream society. This study is about 'Ashaammaliaxxia', the
Apsaalooke clan system and the application of learning in this social religious institution. Using the formal
background of adult education in this qualitative study, the researcher collected data based on oral tradition
and history from the nativist elders among the Apsaalooke and created a study to bridge an understanding of
the Apsaalooke culture and adult education through the formal system of the Apsaalooke learning process in
the Apsaalooke clan system. Although, learning occurs in informal settings, the process is very much formal.
The research and interviews were conducted with nativist Apsaalooke elders and, also during ceremonies
and the preparation process for religious rituals like sweat lodge ceremonies and peyote ceremonials, where
learning is occurring for the Apsaalooke.
By providing a background of the culture, the purpose of this study presents other interrelated customs,
practices, and religions. It is important to present other topics such as the interview process, learning during
preparation, women involvement, oral tradition, clan membership reduction, threats in the mainstream, the
impact of disease and warfare, adoption, the clan functions, clan parents, maternal clan affiliation, the
teasing clan, clan backgrounds, relationships and kinship, clan practices, and the meaning of being
Apsaalooke because these aspects of the culture are integrated with the Apsaalooke clan system. The
functions and applicability of the Apsaalooke clan system are important, because they are the primary
application to the learning process.
In this study, there are several major conclusions. They are: that there are reduction of nativist elders;
ceremonial preparations are an important learning process; oral tradition is a facet of learning; the
researcher's background contributes to this study; clan mergers have been occurring; the Apsaalooke clan
functions are the foundation of learning; each clan has characteristics; kinship and relationships are viewed
as the wealth for the Apsaalooke; there are environments where clan practices and learning occur; and
finally, the meaning of being an Apsaalooke is based on natural phenomena in the cosmos.
Reeves, René R. (1999 ) "Liberals, conservatives, and indigenous peoples: The subaltern roots of national politics in
19th century Guatemala." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Wisconsin -- Madison (The). 473 pp.
This dissertation represents a two-fold re-evaluation of Guatemalan politics and society in the very volatile
and fluid period that began with the breakdown of Spanish colonial rule. At the broadest level, it is an effort
to place subalterns at the centre of Guatemala's national-level political narrative by addressing the following
paradox: Why did popular sectors rebel and crush the country's first postcolonial Liberal state in the late
1830s, only to acquiesce to the so-called 'Liberal Revolution' that began in 1871? At a more concrete level,
the dissertation is a bottom-up examination -- in both social and geopolitical terms -- of the impact and
meaning of Liberalism and Conservatism for Guatemala's rural, largely indigenous, majority. Focusing on
the Mam Maya region of Quezaltenango, located in the heart of Guatemala's western coffee zone, this study
combines extensive research in numerous regional- and national-level archives to show that many indigenous
communities did not view late 19th century Liberal resurgence as a threat. In practical terms, they had been
grappling with the extensive land loss and labour coercion that the existing historiography attributes to the
'Liberal Revolution' through 30 years of Conservative rule. As a result, the same Liberal platform that had
provoked such a massive insurrection in the late 1830s, when it was imposed against the backdrop of Spanish
colonialism, did not generate nearly as much opposition after 1871. In addition, new issues, such as the
Conservative alcohol monopoly that penalized women and families who earned a living by trafficking in
contraband rum, fostered receptivity to such traditionally Liberal policies as free trade. By rethinking
subaltern relations to the national state, and by demonstrating the Conservative role in Guatemala's so-
called 'Liberal Revolution,' this study undermines the classic narrative of Latin American modernization by
providing an alternative to the Liberal/Conservative, Civilization/Barbarism dualisms that continue to
obscure the region's 19th century. The dissertation ends by considering Guatemala within the context of
ongoing theoretical and comparative debates about rural rebellion, subaltern politics, and Latin American
popular culture. Especially important is the dialogue established with innovative new research on Mexico,
the Andes, and the rest of Central America.
Regehr, Cameron G. (2002 ) "Discourses of control in aboriginal suicide prevention." M.Sc. Thesis, University of
Calgary. 178 pp.
The present study explores discourses describing what it means to be 'in control' in the field of aboriginal
suicide prevention. This topic is approached through an exploration of two different conceptualizations of
control used in this field -- the psychological construct of locus of control, and the notion of First Nations
self-determination. The theoretical orientation of discourse analysis is then used to explore constructions of
control within two handbooks and a focus group discussion concerning suicide prevention in aboriginal
communities. The variability in constructions of control is explored, and a number of discourses are
identified as developed through interpretive repertoires describing 'control as an internal concern' and
'control as collective self-determination.' The study concludes with an exploration of how the use of different
discourses of control in this field makes possible distinctive ways of being 'in control', which consequentially
establish how people might become 'in control' of their lives.
Regular, William K. (1999) ""Trucking and trading with outsiders": Blood Indian reserve integration into the southern
Alberta economic environment, 1884-1939. A case of shared neighbourhoods." Ph.D. Dissertation, Memorial
University of Newfoundland. 377 pp.
This dissertation examines the economic association that existed between the Blood Indian reserve and the
surrounding region of southern Alberta for the period of the 1880s through the 1930s. This study fills the gap
left by Canadian historiography that has largely ignored the economic associations between natives and non-
natives living in a common and limited environment. Instead historians have uncritically accepted the
perception that native reserves have played only a minor role in regional development. Consequently natives
and their reserve land base are seen by Anglo-Canadians to have had little influence on the economic
circumstances in which natives and newcomers found themselves in the post treaty period on the Canadian
Plains.
The Blood tribe and their large reservation were a significant factor in the southern Alberta region in which
they were located. Their land base was important to the nascent and established ranching industry near the
reserve through the period of the Depression. The produce of the Blood reserve, especially coal and hay,
were commodities in demand by settlers and the Bloods were encouraged to provide them as needed. The
Bloods became expert freighters and the local community sought them out to transport the much needed
produce from the reserve and to transship goods for non-Native entrepreneurs. Blood field labour in the
Raymond area sugar beet fields was at times critical to the functioning of that industry. Their availability and
willingness to work was a deciding factor in the operations of the Knight Sugar Company especially during
the first decade of operations. Finally the Bloods' ties to the merchant community, especially in Cardston and
Fort Macleod, resulted in a significant infusion of money into the local economy. Importantly, much of this
cash resulted from the personal wealth of the Bloods and was not a consequence of Department of Indian
Affairs charity. The Bloods were not a drain on the local resources but were important contributors to the
developing economy of the region. The relationship that the Bloods had with local merchants was very much
like that of their White neighbours.
Unfortunately the Department of Indian Affairs did not recognize the potential of the reserve to serve the
needs of the Bloods, or at least did not let this recognition mitigate their policies of restriction and
paternalism. Had they done so the fortunes of the Bloods, and many other native reserves, might be much
different today. So too might there be greater recognition of the part played by natives in regional economies.
Reid, Carrie J. (2000) "Why are aboriginal people resistant to reporting crime and is it lateral violence?" M.A. Thesis,
Royal Roads University. 72 pp.
Four years ago, in a community not far from my own, a young girl was beaten to death. She was two years
old. Her name was Mary Anne. She was found with severe head injuries, three fractured ribs, a broken leg,
bite marks and over 100 bruises over the length of her tiny body. She had been the victim of on-going abuse
since her birth father and stepmother moved in together. People in the community knew the abuse was
happening. The baby girl's aunt, who lived in the home, knew it was happening. Mary Anne's father knew the
abuse was happening. No one tried to stop it. No one reported it. In May of 1995, the baby girl died, the
result of a second head injury at the hands of her stepmother. The case questions why the abuse happened at
all, aboriginal offending against aboriginal. It asks why no one reported the crime. And it asks, what can we
learn from this?
Reid, Ron A. (1997) "Content validity and inter-rater reliability of a Hopi child abuse risk assessment instrument."
Ph.D. Dissertation, University of North Dakota (The). 115 pp.
Child abuse within the Hopi tribe is a major social problem that affects the mental health and well being of
this Native American Indian community. Since 1985, many states have used risk assessment instruments to
estimate the potential risk of child abuse. The present study evaluated a risk assessment instrument developed
through combining items gathered from these different instruments for use with the Hopi. In this study, three
raters used an instrument developed by the primary investigator (Reid, 1995) for review of records at the
Hopi tribe's social service program. The files selected for review contained court substantiated evidence of
reported abuse (physical, sexual, psychological, or neglect). The study assessed for inter-rater reliability.
Two of the three raters were clinical social workers and members of the Hopi tribe. The third rater, the
primary investigator, was a member of the Tiwa tribe (Isleta Pueblo) and a doctoral candidate in counselling
psychology. This study found low inter-rater reliability. Although Raters 2 and 3 ranked similarly in terms of
means, they lacked consistency in assessing cases on individual items. Rater 1 ranked the cases consistently
lower than Raters 2 and 3. The low reliability may be related to the instrument being composed of universal
items (developed and utilized in mainstream Western culture), or the items may have been worded
ambiguously, causing raters to interpret them differently. Finally, since two raters were Hopi and one was
not, cultural differences, and differing familiarity with the culture could have influenced their interpretations
of the cases. For future risk assessment instruments, the items should include Hopi cultural specific items.
Understanding the culture from within, rather than from without, might allow investigators to better identify
the potential risks of child abuse in specific tribes such as the Hopi.
Reimer, Neil S. (1996) "The politics of representation: Sites of debate over aboriginal culture." M.A. Thesis,
Nowhere is the politics of representation more acute than with the debate over the status of aboriginal people
in Canada. A politics of representation is created in a double sense: the immediate claims (over land, etc.)
are political, but rest on a cultural basis, the representation of which is also political. The immediacy of these
politics is illustrated when one analyzes individual sites of representation. Three such sites are examined
here. One is a courtroom, in which the Gitksan and Wet'suwet'en hereditary chiefs brought a land claims
action against the Province of British Columbia. The second is an education institution, the En'owkin Centre,
which is administered by Okanagan people. And finally, a group of texts that address Okanagan culture are
analyzed and compared. In each, different cultural representations are made and different political issues
arise. Taken together, these sites are important exemplars of the different ways in which identity is
constructed and debate over aboriginal issues can proceed. In particular, they highlight the varying degrees
to which processes of dialogue may help to overcome the gaps between different narratives employed by
aboriginals and others.
Reinhardt, Akim D. (2000 ) "A government not of their choosing: Pine Ridge politics from the Indian Reorganization
Act to the siege of Wounded Knee." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Nebraska -- Lincoln (The). 281 pp.
When the Pine Ridge (Oglala Lakota) Reservation reorganized in 1936 under the provisions of the Indian
Reorganization Act (IRA), the process exacerbated political stresses on the reservation between many full
blood and mixed blood people. The former generally oppose reorganization, the latter generally favoured it.
During the new The Oglala Sioux Tribal Council's (OSTC) first decade, its agenda was frequently adverse to
the interests of the reservation's full blood population. However, the Office of Indian Affairs (OIA), the
previous reservation hegemon, retained most of its authority and mitigated much of the early council's
efforts. Later on, the tenure of tribal president Richard 'Dick' Wilson (1972-76) was extremely volatile. Full
bloods accused Wilson of corruption and political violence. Wilson stood on the platform of tribal
sovereignty. A failed impeachment attempt was followed by the occupation and siege of Wounded Knee. The
siege was engaged by anti-Wilson full bloods who were supported by the American Indian Movement. It was
the culmination of nearly four decades of full blood frustration with the tribal council system.
Reinhart, James E. (1996 ) "In search of identity: A geography of ethnic nationalism in Belize." M.A. Thesis, Queen's
University at Kingston. 199 pp.
Despite its minute size, the Central American country of Belize lends itself to a fruitful study of issues of
ethnicity, identity, and nationalism. Part One of this thesis sketches the historical roots of contemporary
cultural heterogeneity. Beginning with initial settlement by the ancestral Maya, the thesis traces waves of
immigration to Belize through time. Ethnic groups other than the ancestral Maya whose settlement
geography is discussed and mapped include Europeans, Creoles, Garifuna, Yucatec Maya, Mestizos, Mopan
and Kekchi Maya, East Indians, Chinese, Mennonites, and refugees from civil war in Central America in the
1980s. Connections between place and identity are then explored for each ethnic group in Part Two. The
environment in which one lives, it is argued, shapes one's identity. Culture is a dynamic, ever-changing
process yet, paradoxically, while culture continues to be so fluid, ethnic cohesiveness often remains quite
immutable. Part Three then explores theoretical considerations about the formation of identity and
nationalism in Belize. Temporal and spatial contexts of identity, scales of identity, and self-identification and
identification by others are discussed. The formation of national identity in Belize is then analyzed, and an
argument put forward that no homogeneous national identity exists. What does exist is a mix of disparate,
distinct sub-national identities: ethnic nationalism, not state nationalism, is key to understanding issues of
culture and identity in Belize. Part Three ends with an exploration of the larger transnational forces of
migration, cultural imperialism, and globalization that shape identity and affect state and sub-state
nationalism in Belize. Identity in Belize is also situated in a broader literature through a consideration of the
global homogenization of culture and what some writers regard as the demise of the nation-state.
Restoule, Jean-Paul. (2004) "Male Aboriginal identity formation in urban areas: A focus on process and context."
Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Toronto. 263 pp.
This study is concerned with how Aboriginal men primarily raised or living in urban areas struggle to
maintain an Aboriginal cultural identity. Their narratives present a complex picture of how their Aboriginal
cultural identity is shaped through relationships with the people they encounter every day--their families,
other Aboriginal people and non Aboriginal people alike.
When conducting Aboriginal cultural identity research, considering context is important. This study
demonstrated that examining the contexts when Aboriginal identities become salient provides a more
complex picture of how urban Aboriginal identities develop. Education experiences, community
participation, family influences and stereotypes all affected the research participants' choices to express,
hide, contest, or speak their Aboriginal identities. In contrast to definitional approaches that assign variables
to authentic Aboriginal identity, as in John Berry's urban Aboriginal identity article in the Canadian Journal
of Native Studies, an approach focusing on context demonstrates the continued vibrancy of Aboriginal
identity in urban spaces.
The thesis supports the theoretical work of Carl James, Stuart Hall and other cultural studies literature that
conceives of identity as a dynamic process. The study employed learning circles, an Indigenous method of
healing, as the method of data collection. Circles were conducted in the manner described by Michael Hart
and were chosen to provide a respectful and safe atmosphere for Aboriginal people to share their life stories.
This culturally appropriate methodology has rarely been used in the study of Aboriginal identity. A key
exception is the Learning Circles Synthesis Report prepared by Kathy Absolon and Tony Winchester for the
Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples. Based on its success in this study, circle approaches are
recommended for researchers looking for a respectful method of social inquiry in future studies with
Aboriginal people.
This study found that Aboriginal cultural values are the primary foundation of personal Aboriginal identity
and they tend to remain stable over time from generation to generation. The outward expression of these
values changes to suit the environment one lives in. Aboriginal people in urban areas carry the same values
as their ancestors but express them in new ways.
Reynolds, Paul F. A. (2004) "Nga Puni Whakapiri: Indigenous struggle and genetic engineering." Ph.D. Dissertation,
Simon Fraser University. 379 pp.
This thesis argues that the notion of struggle is culturally based. Struggle for Indigenous peoples centres
around the protection of all things they hold precious.
Indigenous peoples are used to resisting colonial threats to the integrity of their knowledge and culture.
Biotechnology is a contemporary site of struggle where Indigenous peoples have been resisting the onslaught
of genetic engineering and manipulation and the theft and commodification of their knowledge. Mäori , the
Indigenous people of Aotearoa (New Zealand), view this site of struggle as a continuation of colonialism in
the form of biocolonialism.
This thesis presents a case study examining the struggle of Mäori against the biotechnology industry and
genetic engineering. The foundational philosophy upon which this thesis has been based is Kaupapa Mäori.
Kaupapa Mäori is a uniquely Indigenous theory and methodology with a central function of claiming and
engaging in theory for Mäori and by Mäori.
As well as examining the political economy within which this struggle takes place, members of the Nga Puni
Whakapiri movement (the term used to describe Mäori groups gathered together to resist biotechnology and
genetic engineering) are interviewed to examine their actions, strategies and philosophies that underpin their
struggle. Central to this struggle is the notion of “tikanga" -- correct and appropriate action that is based on
a number of principles that those interviewed elaborate on. Mäori have been very active in recent anti-GE
activity; this thesis argues that this is a logical extension of the notion of kaitiakitanga or cultural
guardianship and protection, sourced from the ancestors.
This work acknowledges that there is an Indigenous worldview that is valid and that has legitimacy in both
public and private forums. When assessing research that has the potential to impact Mäori communities and
in decision-making affecting whanau (family), hapu (sub-tribe), and iwi (tribe), the tikanga Mäori worldview
is central.
Developing from this work is an emerging theory of Mäori struggle. The Nga Puni Whakapiri movement is a
case study of a uniquely Indigenous form of struggle. Struggle is centred on the protection of knowledge and
culture, tikanga Mäori knowledge.
Richardson, Catherine L. (2005) "Becoming Metis: The relationship between the sense of Metis self and cultural
stories." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Victoria. 201 pp.
This research study explores the Metis self-creation process and the role that stories play in the ongoing
creation of the self. 12 Metis participants were interviewed about their Metis self-formation process (their
sense of Metis self) and were asked to share stories depicting their experience of being Metis. A narrative
methodology was used and theoretical literature was drawn from Aboriginal and post-colonial sources to
provide context for the mixed-race experience of a colonized, Aboriginal people in Canada. The concept of
the 'third space' was extrapolated from post-colonial theory to provide an explanation for being "in between."
This model explains how the Metis live their lives, moving between the various cultural spaces of the Euro-
Canadian world and the First Nations world while residing in a separate Metis world. The results of this
study show that Metis people employ specific strategies for moving in and between the various cultural
worlds. They activate strategic responses for coping with life challenges, complex identity issues, racism, and
the difficulties they face as a result of being both mixed-race and Aboriginal in a non-Aboriginal society. One
of these strategies of self-preservation involves spending time in Metis settings, sharing stories, developing a
Metis-centred analysis of life situations, and simply being with others who understand the Metis experience.
This insider process may facilitate the ongoing evolution of the Metis as a cultural community and a political
nation in Canada.
Ricklis, Robert A. (1990 ) "A historical cultural ecology of the Karankawan Indians of the central Texas coast: A case
study in the roots of adaptive change." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Texas at Austin (The). 684 pp.
This study integrates, within a cultural- ecological paradigm, environmental information, a geographical
approach to the archaeological record, and historical archival research. The goal is twofold: (1) to define
the fundamental structure of the aboriginal Karankawan adaptive system at the time of initial European
contact; and, (2) to determine how the Karankawans responded to the pressures exerted upon their native
lifeways by the expanding northeastern frontier of New Spain during the 18th and early 19th centuries.
Data gained from survey and excavation are interpreted to show that the Karankawans had developed a
strategy of subsistence, settlement and seasonal mobility which took optimal advantage of the broad ecotonal
nature of their native habitat. During the fall and winter, these people congregated at shoreline locations, in
large socioeconomic groups, to exploit the seasonal abundance of major economic fish species, most notably
black drum and redfish. During the spring and summer, the groups split up into smaller bands, moving up
rivers and streams to camp along prairie margins and focus subsistence activities on the procurement of
bison and whitetailed deer.
The historic, archival material, mostly unpublished, shows that this fundamental adaptive system was
resilient under the impacts and pressures of Spanish colonization of the region. In spite of an initial decline
in population due to exposure to European diseases, the Karankawans were able to achieve demographic
stability and to ultimately adjust to the Spanish mission and presidio complex by quite strategically
incorporating the mission into the traditional adaptive system as an ecological resource. It was their ability
to do so which rendered them adaptable to change along a colonial frontier, and finally resulted in a viable
interaction with the Spaniards and a partial peaceful acculturation to patterns of Spanish culture.
The study is a synthesis of multidisciplinary data that shows how one cultural group adapted to rapid
exogenous change. As such, it demonstrates the high potential of a historical, cultural-ecological paradigm
to explicate the dynamic processes of human adaptive transformations.
Riding In, James T. (1991) "Keepers of Tirawahut's covenant: The development and destruction of Pawnee culture."
Ph.D. Dissertation, University of California, Los Angeles. 369 pp.
Racial turmoil in the 1860s and 1870s made life increasingly difficult for the Pawnee Indians to live within
their ancestral central Plains homeland, where they had resided for hundreds of years. Chronic hunger,
coercive assimilation, and enemy raids joined interracial conflict in having an unsettling effect on Pawnee
land tenure. Despite the adversities facing them, they attempted to maintain a sacred way of life that,
according to their system of beliefs, had been handed down from the first man and woman. Few historians
have grasped the pervasiveness of religion in Pawnee culture. Their studies have presented these Indians as
savages or creatures of economic considerations without looking beyond the stereotypes and the limitations
of single interpretations. Most treatments of Pawnee history focus on the first three-quarters of the 19th
century or the 1860s and 1870s, when intertribal warfare became a more important dimension of life. Those
who discuss the Sioux as being the most disruptive force to enter Pawnee life have underestimated the impact
of white American expansion in all of its forms--missionary, assimilation, territorial acquisition and
settlement, extension of laws, political control, and domination. This study focuses on the social and religious
roots of Pawnee life and on how interracial and intertribal contacts with the Spanish, French, white
Americans, Sioux, Cheyenne, Osage, Kansa, Comanche, and others affected Pawnee economy, land tenure,
spirituality, and political freedom and sovereignty. Using historical, ethnographical, and oral sources, it
attempts to show that Pawnee experiences occurred within a larger historical setting evolving around the
attempts of Europeans and then white Americans to dominate, dispossess, and assimilate Indians in a process
that ultimately transformed the landscape of the continent and tribal ways of life. Pawnee culture fell victim
to white American expansion in the 1870s.
Rieckmann, Traci R. (2001) "Explanatory style, coping, and depression in Navajo adolescents." Ph.D. Dissertation,
University of Utah (The). 184 pp.
Within the American Indian community, depression is one of the primary diagnoses for youth and has been
linked with adolescent suicide, conduct disorders substance abuse, learning problems, and alienation. To
date, there is a paucity of literature related to the factors that contribute to mental health or illness in
American Indian youth. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships among explanatory style,
coping, depression, and cultural identity in Navajo adolescents. The first research question was to determine
the factor structure of explanatory style and coping for this sample population. The next question was twofold
and involved examining the relationship between explanatory style and depression, and also the relationship
between coping and depression. The final research question was the examination of the relationship among
cultural identity, explanatory style, coping, and depression. 332 (197 females, 135 males) Navajo adolescents
completed the Navajo Cultural Identity Measure, Children's Depression Inventory, Minnesota Multiphasic
Personality Inventory-Adolescent Form, Children's Attributional Style Questionnaire, Dimensions of Stress
Scale, Responses to Stress Questionnaire, DSM-IV Questionnaire, Ways of Coping Questionnaire, and
Biographical Questionnaire. Using these data, a series of factor models and full structural models were
tested for fit to the data using structural equation modeling. It was concluded that the constructs of
explanatory style, depression, and cultural identity exhibited strong structural stability. In contrast, the
coping construct revealed only moderate structural stability for this sample of Navajo youth. Second, there is
a significant relationship between positive explanatory style and depression. More specifically, Navajo
adolescents who experience higher levels of control, lower duration of stressful encounters, and more
predictability in stressful encounters may be less likely to suffer from depression. There is, on the other hand,
a modest relationship between coping resources and depression. Given the current understanding that
historical factors and cultural abuse may be related to intergenerational mental health struggles for
American Indians, further research with regard to these dynamic processes is warranted.
Riese, Nichole M. M. (2001) "Perceptions of care: Aboriginal patients at the Winnipeg Health Sciences Centre."
M.Sc. Thesis, University of Manitoba (The). 146 pp.
Aboriginal people comprise a large percentage of admissions to the Health Sciences Centre, an 850-bed
tertiary care teaching hospital in Winnipeg. Issues such as the perception of systemic and individual
discrimination have come up at the hospital in the past decades. The objective of this study was to develop an
in-depth understanding of the current urban hospitalization experience of Aboriginal patients on medical,
surgical and rehabilitation wards.
Semi-structured qualitative interviews were done, both in English and in Ojibway with patients who self-
identified as Aboriginal. As directed by key informants, the areas explored included communication, family
involvement, discharge planning, and racism. Interview data was analyzed, coded and categorized and
emerging themes were corroborated with the key informants. A case study of Aboriginal people's involvement
at the hospital was done also, in particular looking at the outcome of a 1992 report on Aboriginal services.
Important themes to emerge from the interviews were control, and endurance. Racism, separation from both
family and community, and communication problems were frequent concerns. Many patients lacked
knowledge about the Aboriginal Services Department, with few interpreter-caseworkers involved with
patients.
Increased utilization of the Aboriginal Service Department's interpreter-caseworkers as patient advocates
and promotion of the hospital's cultural awareness workshops could contribute to resolving some of the
problems described by patients. The partial fulfillment of the 1992 Report of the Aboriginal Services Review
Committee recommendations, including increased Aboriginal representation in employment and governance
at the hospital may point to inherent difficulties in resolving such issues or to systemic discrimination
towards Aboriginal people. Leadership at the highest corporate levels will be needed to ensure they are
implemented so that Aboriginal people can feel well served in the Winnipeg health care system.
Rifkin, Mark S. (2003) "Manifesting America: Imperialism and national space, 1776-1861." Ph. D. Dissertation,
University of Pennsylvania. 390 pp.
A rich body of scholarship has emerged in American Studies over the last decade calling for increased
attention to the role of U.S. imperialism in the structuring of national politics and culture and assessing the
imperial dimensions of specific literary texts. Less attention, however, has been paid to defining imperialism
as a system or to situating the oppositional discourses of affected groups within a shared framework. This
dissertation demonstrates how the representation of national boundaries in the antebellum period functions
as imperial force by illustrating how U.S. administrative discourses produce and manage the difference
between domestic and foreign space, examining how such institutionalized mappings of the nation legitimize
expansion at 'home' and exploitation 'abroad.' Drawing heavily on the theoretical and methodological
insights of Subaltern Studies and Critical Race Theory, the dissertation further shows how the possibilities of
self-representation for African Americans, Native Americans (especially the Cherokee and indigenous
peoples of California), Mexican Americans, and Native Hawaiians were shaped by the territorial imaginary
of U.S. law and diplomacy. Through readings of a range of different kinds of texts (such as memorials,
autobiographies, histories, newspaper articles, and constitutions) and a variety of authors (such as Harriet
Jacobs, Elias Boudinot, Antonio María Osio, Julio César, and Davida Malo), it illustrates how these
populations both appropriated and rejected the terms/topologies of U.S. policy in constructing oppositional
identities, subjectivities, and mappings. The project has four foci: the attempted localization of African-
Americans and the debate over national citizenship; the representation of native land as 'within' the U.S. and
countervailing declarations of sovereignty; the assertion of (antagonistic) Mexican and Native American
land claims in California after the Mexican-American War; and the growth of U.S. trade interests and
political influence in Hawai'i. Complicating available critical narratives of 'the borderlands' and reorienting
the discussion of antebellum U.S. imperialism from race per se to territorial and jurisdictional claims, this
dissertation foregrounds self-determination as an interpretive principle and uses it to construct a
comparative analysis that retains the nation as its frame while contesting the geo-political narratives that
underwrite the (re)production of American identity.
Riggs, Christopher. (1997) "Indians, liberalism, and Lyndon Johnson's Great Society, 1963-69." Ph.D. Dissertation,
University of Colorado at Boulder. 394 pp.
During the 1963-69 presidential administration of Lyndon B. Johnson, an important shift occurred in federal
Indian policy. Past policies had sought to foster Indian economic self-sufficiency by assimilating Indians into
the white mainstream. Policymakers in the 1960s still wished to facilitate economic betterment in Indian
Country. Instead of assimilation, however, liberals sought to provide Native Americans with greater
opportunities to govern themselves and to maintain a distinct cultural identity. The shift reflected, in part,
liberal views of and concerns over poverty. It also resulted from the demands of Indians for enhanced self-
rule, economic improvement, and the continuation of Indian cultural distinctiveness -- a collection of goals
known as 'self-determination.' Although the 1960s did not see an end to the widespread poverty and other ills
that plagued Indian Country, Native Americans often successfully utilized federal programs in a way that
provided both economic and social benefits.
Ritchot, Kathryn F. M. (2004) "Becoming whole: A grounded theory analysis of empowerment in aboriginal women
leaders and professionals." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Manitoba (The). 262 pp.
Empowerment has been labelled an important route to psychological wellness for the field of Community
Psychology (Cowen, 2000). Yet, little research has examined the extent to which Aboriginal people, arguably
the most marginalized group in Canada (Waldram, Herring, and Young, 1995; York, 1990), would find
empowerment as it is commonly understood to be meaningful. The purpose of this research was to generate
an understanding of the meaning, processes, and outcomes of empowerment in Aboriginal women leaders
and professionals. In-depth interviews were conducted with nine Métis and First Nations women, resulting in
394 pages of transcripts. The data were generated and analyzed according to grounded theory method
(Glaser, 1992; Glaser and Strauss, 1967; Strauss and Corbin, 1990). The results showed that the research
participants struggled with the basic psychosocial problem of powerlessness, which took different forms for
each research participant. Notably, all research participants had felt the burn of racism and discrimination,
and many had suffered other forms of abuse. Nonetheless, they had managed to overcome these and other
obstacles to become leaders and professionals. A model, Becoming Whole, was developed which outlines the
processes and outcomes grounded in the research participants' experiences of empowerment. It has three
main parts: 'The core concepts' and two subprocesses, 'Healing within the community' and 'Healing within
the Self.' Empowerment was defined by research participants in a manner consistent with current theoretical
perspectives (Rappaport, 1981, 1987; Zimmerman, 1995; 2000) and with themes developed from the model.
Overall, research participants believed that empowerment was meaningful in their lives. Empowerment as
experienced by the Aboriginal women leaders and professionals was similar but not identical to
empowerment experienced in other groups (Kar, Pascual, and Chickering; 1999; Kieffer, 1984; O'Sullivan,
Waugh, and Espeland; 1984; Shields, 1995) and was consistent with empowerment theory (Zimmerman,
1995; 2000). The results are discussed in terms of implications for empowerment theory, intervention, and
clinical practice with Aboriginal women and with other marginalized groups.
Rivard, Etienne. (2005) "Prairie and Québec Metis territoriality: Interstices territoriales and the cartography of in-
between identity." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of British Columbia (The). 292 pp.
This thesis is a historical and contemporary exploration of prairie and Québec Métis. The Métis, individuals
of mixed native and non-native ancestry, have been constitutionally recognized as aboriginal people(s) in
Canada since 1982. They are the result of the numerous episodes of métissage that have occurred in the
course of Canada's history. Métissage emerged early in the French Regime, as the intermingling of "Indian"
and "white" blood was an inescapable outcome of the fur trade economy. In spite of this long history and
recent official recognition, the mixed cultural origins of the Métis have challenged many aspects of Canadian
society -- its conception of aboriginality, its ethnic classifications and policies, and its conception of
territorial integrity. On the other hand, the Métis also represent an opportunity for Canada to question its
conceptions of aboriginality and to outline possible paths of reflection about the country's socio-political
landscape. This thesis approaches these paths indirectly by exploring the historical importance of Métis
geographies in the development of Canada. More specifically, it aims to identify the changing patterns of
Métis territoriality -- ;the changing Métis sense of identity and territory. My historical exploration is largely
based on an investigation of colonial maps, on which I have sought territorial markers (material, political,
and symbolic) that identify the existence of métissage and the Métis. The visual nature of maps makes them
influential territorial discourses and efficient means by which Métis geography and territoriality can be
identified as well as the mental conceptions Canadians have of the country. This study of colonial maps is
complemented by the analysis of Métis oral tradition as revealed by stories, individual accounts, songs, and
place names. I also investigate the ways in which contemporary Métis conceive of history and the future, and
how this affects (or supports) their self-identification. This contemporary inquiry is primarily based on Métis
maps, Métis official web sites, and interviews I conducted with Métis living in different regions in the
province of Québec. Both historical and contemporary examinations reveal real regional distinctions
between prairie and Québec Métis, although there have been significant social and familial connections
between the two groups. Both Métis peoples also share common characteristics. The most important one is
"in-betweenness," which appears to be a principal feature of Métis past and present territoriality.
Rivera-Salgado, Gaspar. (1999) "Migration and political activism: Mexican transnational indigenous communities in a
comparative perspective." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of California, Santa Cruz. 390 pp.
This dissertation analyses how Mexican migrant workers undertake collective actions to fight for their rights
and against exploitive conditions on both sides of the US-Mexican border. It compares empirical case studies
of indigenous migrant communities that have formed transnational migratory networks between their regions
of origin (Mixtecs and Zapotecs from the Mexican state of Oaxaca; and Purépechas, from Michoacán) and
the state of California. It addresses many unanswered questions about varying levels of political engagement
and organizational strategies among Mexican migrants. The data presented show that indigenous migrants
are more successful in developing binational grass-roots organizations to defend their political and economic
rights on both sides of the border when they are able to adapt unique cultural and social resources -- such as,
traditional forms of self-government; active participation of the community in the local government through
the cargo system; leadership accountability to popular assemblies; and strong corporate community political
identity -- to the transnational context. The main finding of this dissertation is that there is a continuum of
different degrees of binational organization among Mexican indigenous migrants -- from the informal
apolitical among Purépechas from Cherán, to the formal-social-cultural (not overtly political) among
Zapotecs from Macuiltianguis, to the overtly political among Mixtecs from Tlacotepec. This finding suggests
that ethnicity is necessary but not sufficient for political collective action -- and that the missing link is the
capacity of organizations and leaders to work with ethnic, localistic identities to forge broader pan-ethnic
identities. Additionally, the political activism of these indigenous migrants is also transforming their
communities of origin dramatically, allowing for the emergence of new forms of transnational "political
communities" due to transnational political practices. These migrants maintain complex socioeconomic
linkages with the home country, are not bound by national borders, and situate their multiple identities in
communities in different nations and in communities that cross nations. Finally, the political activism of this
"new" wave of Mexican migrants has created opportunities for cooperation among different political actors
on both sides of the border.
Robb, James P. (1995) "Discourse in the Sun Dance War 1880-1914: An analysis of the narratives of suppression,
resistance, reaction, and revitalization in the successful struggle by the Plains Indians to defeat the Canadian
government's orchestrated campaign to destroy their central religious ceremony." M.A. Thesis, Carleton
University. 347 pp.
Between 1880 and 1914 the Canadian government attempted to suppress the Sun Dance of the Plains Indians
because it interfered with efforts to turn the Plains people from a nomadic, hunting lifestyle to farming and
ranching. The government failed in its avowed aim. The discourse surrounding the Sun Dance in those years,
as it emerged in the narratives of Indian Agents and other Indian Affairs officials, the missionaries, the
Plains Indians, and of Prairie newspaper editors, is examined using Anthony Wallace's revitalization theory,
Edward Bruner's concepts concerning narrative and discourse, and the categories of Indian stereotypes
described by Michael Marsden and Jack Nachbar. The thesis demonstrates that the Plains Indians
successfully resisted the government's efforts to eliminate the ceremony and in line with revitalization theory,
used it to retain some hold on their traditional culture and religion despite the demonstrable active hostility
of Euro-Canadians. The thesis also supports Bruner's view that narratives are the products of the dominant
society and often fail to reflect reality.
Robbins, Sharla D. (2002 ) "Relationship aggression, marital satisfaction, and gender differences: The effects of
historic trauma, traditionality, alcohol and drug use, and influence of parent relationship aggression with
Oklahoma American Indian and Euro-American samples." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Oklahoma (The).
176 pp.
The current study investigated relationship aggression and marital satisfaction in Oklahoma American
Indian relationships. The influence of traditionality, historic trauma, and presence of parents' relationship
aggression were examined; additionally, demographics such as age of participant, years in relationship,
education level, and socioeconomic status were considered. 184 participants, both American Indian and
Euro-American, completed a packet of inventories and questionnaires: the Conflict Tactic Scales, second
edition (CTS-2); the Dyadic Adjustment Scale (DAS); an Historic Trauma questionnaire and a Demographics
sheet. The American Indian participants were administered the Life Perspectives Scale, Revised (LPS-R).
Resulting data were analyzed by ethnicity (American Indian and Euro-American) and gender. Results
indicated there is a link between psychological aggression and physical aggression for the Oklahoma
American Indian sample. Several different variables were found to influence each type of relationship
aggression, and each gender endorsed predictor variables differently. The hypothesis that Oklahoma
American Indians experience higher levels of relationship aggression was confirmed; however, this sample
did not indicate that marital satisfaction was lower than the Euro-American sample.
Robertson, Celine. (2000 ) "The changing nature of the relationship between First Nations and museums." M.A.
This research paper is elaborated around the hypothesis that there is a subtle resistance by non-aboriginal
museum professionals, primarily within the disciplines of anthropology, in accepting First Nations taking
complete control of their identities and cultures. This new changing situation minimizes the museum
professionals' power as interpreters of First Nations' cultures and no longer corresponds to the mission and
purpose of the disciplines of anthropology. The author develops the argument by examining Eilean Hooper-
Greenill's study of Michel Foucault's three epistemes on how museums influenced the shaping of knowledge
in the transition from one epistemic period to the next. Hooper-Greenhill's analysis is further used to
illustrate the impact the present social changes are having on museums and First Nations. The Canadian
Museum of Civilization is used as an example and is analyzed in part using Patricia Pitcher's study of leaders
in organizations and the author's own personal observations.
Robertson, Leslie A. (2001) "Politics of cursing: Imagining human difference in a British Columbia mining town."
Ph.D. Dissertation, University of British Columbia (The). 330 pp.
In the late 19th century, an English entrepreneur arrived on the BC frontier eager to learn the whereabouts
of coal seams in the area. In exchange for this knowledge he courted and promised to marry an 'Indian
Princess.' After receiving the information, he jilted the woman and submitted the first coal syndicate
application for the Elk Valley. Indigenous people cast a curse on William Fernie, on the region and its
residents. They would suffer from fires, floods and famine. This narrative forms the backbone of my
dissertation. It is deeply ingrained in expressions of local identity, tied to personal histories and ideas of
social justice. Ktunaxa traditionalists officially lifted the curse in a public ceremony in Fernie in 1964. I trace
how participants speak about this event and the legend across generations and within shifting ideological
contexts. Cursing is an important theme throughout this work. It implies the power that stories have to carry
and construct meanings about who people are. My dissertation is an ethnography of ideas about human
difference generated and transmitted through time and through narratives.
Fernie, BC is currently transforming from a predominantly working-class resource-based town to an
internationally recognized destination ski resort. I trace images, legends and theories as powerful narrative
resources in the contexts of colonialism, war, immigration, labour strife, natural disaster, treaty-making and
development for tourism. Folklore, mass media, scholarly theories and political discourses propagate
narratives about human difference shaping the ways that people are imagined. Although rephrased and
sometimes disguised, fundamental forms of race, gender, class, nationality, religion, age, locality and sexual
preference remain intact. In Part I, I look at ideas of difference perpetuated in hegemonic discourses during
three overlapping time periods. More contemporary taxonomies of difference appear in Part II. Ideas are
transmitted across generations, they are evident in public performances and in narratives of place and space.
Through participants' accounts I examine intersections between personal expressions and official narratives.
Robertson, Paul M. (1995 ) "The power of the land: Identity, ethnicity and class among the Oglala Lakota." Ph.D.
Dissertation, Union Institute (The). 271 pp.
This study explores patterns of class and ethnic differences among the Oglala Lakota people of Pine Ridge
Reservation in western South Dakota. Pre-reservation era differences between groups known as mixed blood
and full blood have continued to the present day, and are implicated in significant past and current conflicts,
especially those centering on the reservation land base. Within the colonial context of reservation history the
Office of Indian Affairs (OIA) has played a significant role in maintaining the differences between the mixed
blood and full blood groups, both by direct manipulation of the two groups, as part of a divide and conquer
strategy, and through relations with regional economic interests intent on using the reservation land base.
During the past century, cattle interests on the northern plains have used their power influence to leverage
access, both legally and illegally, to the reservation land base. The Oglala people have struggled to maintain
control over their land but the OIA has allied itself with cattle interests, against those of the people whose
trust it is charged to protect. As a result, off-reservation interests, and a few mixed blood Oglala allies, have
gained control over the reservation land base.
Conflict over control of the reservation land base continues today. The conflict expresses itself in ethnic
terms, as a conflict between mixed blood and full blood, but there is a significant class dimension to the
conflict. Full bloods continue to own land, but insofar as control and access to the land base is concerned,
both they, and the majority of mixed bloods, have been effectively marginalized. The Oglala Sioux Tribal
Government, and the Bureau of Indian Affairs (formerly the OIA), support the interests of the mixed blood
and white cattlemen in this struggle, against the interest of the full blood population.
Robinson, Patricia A. (1982) "The labour force status of a minority group: American Indians." Ph.D. Dissertation,
University of Chicago (The).
The economic integration of Native Americans as indicated by participation in the labour force and
unemployment was examined using individual and aggregate (tribe level) data from the United States Census
of 1970. Labour force status was seen as a function of demographic, economic and cultural factors. Included
among the demographic and economic factors were marital status, education, fertility and economic
resources as well as measures of labour market conditions. While some support was found for labour market
conditions being relevant in explaining variation in participation and unemployment across tribes, more
important at the individual level were individual demographic and economic characteristics. Of these,
education significantly increased the probability of both Indian men and women participating in the labour
force and economic resources reduced the probability of being in the labour force. The extent of cultural
assimilation as indicated by mother tongue and reservation residence also influenced labour force status.
Reservation residence was generally associated with lower participation and higher unemployment, even
when controlling for other factors. Some support was found for the effect on current labour force status of
aboriginal cultural patterns, in this case the social organization (settlement pattern and mode of subsistence)
that prevailed at the time of early contact with whites. The implications of the findings are also discussed.
Robinson, Zachary B. (2001) "Surviving the dark years: Transformations of Kwakwaka'wakw cosmological
expression, 1884-1967." M.A. Thesis, Carleton University. 129 pp.
Between the years 1884 and 1967, there was an incredible transformation in the plastic and graphic cultural
expressions of the Kwakwaka'wakw people from the Pacific Coast of Canada. With social rituals being the
primary focus for art and art production, the effects felt by the sudden enforcement of the anti-potlatch
legislation in 1922 altered the course of earlier artistic trends. Throughout the dark times of potlatch
prohibition, artists continued to carve, despite ceremonial suppression. Master carvers continued to not only
teach younger generations the skill of carving, but also created vast amounts of 'illegal' material allowing
underground potlatching to continue. Although ceremonial paraphernalia was still in demand during
prohibition times within Kwakwaka'wakw communities, by the middle of the 20th century Northwest Coast
art had exploded outside Native communities, intended for a new audience. Outside of its traditional context,
Kwakwaka'wakw art was redefined as was its meaning.
Rodriguez-Lopez, Celeste. (2002) "Intimate partner violence and health care utilization among a sample of American
Indian women." M.S.W. Thesis, California State University, Long Beach. 45 pp.
The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between intimate partner violence (IPV) and
healthcare utilization among a sample of 170 American Indian women. The sample of mostly urban American
Indian women ages 18-45 was surveyed at an Indian Health Service (IHS) primary care clinic in
Albuquerque, New Mexico. In terms of health service utilization it was predicted that IHS outpatient services
would be most frequently utilized for a physical health problem and traditional healers would be most
utilized for physical and emotional problems.
In terms of drug/alcohol problems, it was believed that women would access IHS emergency/urgent care
services most frequently. Additionally, it was thought that those accessing IHS emergency/urgent care
services within the past year would report more severe physical assault than those who did not access these
services. Furthermore, women presenting to an IHS outpatient clinic for a physical health concern were
thought to report more minor IPV overall than those who did not go to the outpatient clinic. Lastly, it was
hypothesized that those who accessed traditional healers would report more incidents of all forms of minor
IPV.
Results revealed that women accessing IHS outpatient services in the past year for a physical health problem
were more likely to report experiences of severe psychological aggression. Those presenting to an IHS
emergency/urgent care facility for a physical health problems were more likely to report incidents of severe
physical assault. Lastly, women who used traditional healers within the past year were significantly more
likely to report minor physical assault than those who did not access a traditional healer. the most frequently
used health care services within the past year were IHS outpatient services, IHS emergency/urgent care
services and traditional healers.
The findings were partially consistent with this author's predictions and suggest a need for the availability of
both western medicine and traditional healing for American Indian women experiencing intimate partner
violence. Social work implications include assisting American Indian in accessing both traditional and
Western medical services.
Roine, Christopher E. (1996) "The Squamish aboriginal economy, 1860-1940." M.A. Thesis, Simon Fraser University.
125 pp.
This thesis relies on the records of the Department of Indian Affairs, most of which are found in the National
Archives of Canada. Records from the archives of the Oblate Missionaries, the British Columbia Archives
and Records Service, and photographs from the Vancouver Public Library's Special Collections were also
valuable primary sources of information. Several published interviews and biographies of prominent
Squamish people help to offset the heavy reliance on government sources of information, as do numerous
secondary sources on aboriginal cultures in the Pacific Northwest. Major themes in the historiography of
aboriginal-white relations in British Columbia and Canada play out in the evolving economy of the
Squamish: the Indian policy of the colonial and provincial governments of British Columbia, the subtle but
strong role of missionaries in aboriginal cultures, and the federal government's benevolent but often
misguided paternalism towards aboriginal people. Focussing on a single aboriginal group allows us to
illustrate the complexity and nuance of aboriginal-white relations that works of a larger scope cannot
convey. The arrival of white settlers and industry presented the Squamish with a mix of both opportunity and
discrimination.
Romanow, Jacqueline T. (1999) "Government policy and the economic under-development of First Nations
communities in Manitoba." M.A. Thesis, University of Manitoba (The). 212 pp.
Conventional development/underdevelopment theory focuses on micro economic problems such as low
savings ratios, high debt, limited capital, low levels of education and inadequate technology. While First
Nations face many similar concerns, technically, their position within Canada should afford them easy access
to standard development tools. Yet this has not been the case. Although the Canadian Government has been
orchestrating economic development efforts for First Nations in Canada for well over 100 years, there have
been very low real success stories. First Nations remain the single most under developed aspect of the
Canadian economy. The main objective of this work is to delineate the theoretical foundations for the failure
of federal economic development policy for First Nations, focusing on Manitoba. By examining a number of
different economic development models and then measuring them against the recent economic development
policies of the Federal Government, the paper seeks to establish clear theoretical reasoning for development
failures in First Nations communities.
Romeyn, Sara N. (2003) "A sentimental empire: White women's responses to Native American policy, 1824-94."
Ph.D. Dissertation, George Washington University (The). 254 pp.
This is a study of white women's ideology about native Americans and relevant policy from 1824-94, a time
period defined by the Indian Removal Act (1830) and the Dawes Act (1887). Through fiction, petitions, non-
fiction works, political activism, and direct reform work, white women voiced dissent from policies framed by
male legislators, characterized by violence, and predicated on the belief in the inevitability of Indian
extinction. In contrast, women espoused the fundamental humanity of native Americans but concurrently
presumed the superiority of middle-class domestic ideology. White women valued native domestic space,
promoted native American citizenship, and advocated assimilation; these beliefs were the foundation of the
Dawes Act. Women's responses were characterized in the antebellum era by locally based protest,
sentimental and deferential language, and identification with the status of native Americans; exemplified here
by Lydia Maria Child's Hobomok (1824), Catharine Maria Sedgwick's Hope Leslie (1828) and dozens of
anti-removal petitions to Congress. In the Civil War era the writings of Margaret Fuller, Mary Eastman,
Sarah Wakefield, Caroline Kirkland and Lydia Maria Child reflected women's increasing political authority
and disenchantment with federal policy. In the 1870s, women's protest evolved into a nationally based
organization, the Women's National Indian Association. By the 1880s, reformers saw themselves as
confident, politically astute, and in a position to 'help' an Indian population through the WNIA's Home-
Building Program. Women's petitions to Congress in opposition to Indian removal predated abolition
petitions; this movement was the first national political cause to which large numbers of women responded.
Further, the work of the WNIA and the Home-Building Program predated the settlement house movement.
Indian reform policy activists utilized domestic authority to influence the public sphere. However, unlike
concurrent concerns of moral reform, temperance or abolition, the 'Indian question' was grounded in issues
of empire and imperialism. By identifying native Americans as mothers, fathers, and children, white women
recast a debate over foreign policy in sentimental terms. I use the term 'sentimental empire' to describe this
work: white women depicted native American life in a traditionally 'sentimental' way, yet as activists were
engaged in the work of empire building.
Ronning, Gerald F. W. (2002) ""I belong in this world": Native Americanisms and the western Industrial Workers of
the World, 1905-17." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Colorado at Boulder. 407 pp.
The radical Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) aggressively organized across the American West
through the 1920s, gaining a sizeable number of followers and posing a significant threat to corporate
dominance over labour. Capitalists, employers, businessmen, authorities, and ultimately the Department of
Justice vigorously responded in dozens of engagements -- often one-sided and extremely violent -- that pitted
determined, and frequently well-armed, anti-radicals against equally determined, radicalized workers.
Though the battles that the IWW fought took place on a number of fronts -- political, economic, even military
-- this dissertation considers the discursive battles fought on the cultural front, revealing a significant
relationship between the wars Americans waged against Indians in the 19th century and the violent
suppression meted out to the IWW in the 20th century. In the five regions addressed by this study -- the
Pacific Northwest, north-western Mexico, the Midwest, the Southwest, and the Rocky Mountain West --
employers had grown accustomed to drawing on a civilization ideology formed in the 19th century to serve
the needs of expansion and conquest to cast the IWW as a barbarous, savage, and vicious other. Tracing the
career of part-Indian IWW organizer Frank Little, active in each of the five regions considered, this
dissertation analyzes the radical and anti-radical ideologies generated during the labour struggles in the
West as cultural phenomena, paying close attention to the discourse of Indianness and indigenousness each
side drew upon. The dissertation concludes by suggesting that during World War I Anglo-Americans
transformed 'the Indian' from an oppositional savage to an indigenous emblem of American nobility and
exceptionalism, a transformation that provoked a re-articulation of anti-radical attacks around an alternate,
and now far more familiar, discourse of patriotic nativism.
Roos, Helen. (1998) "It happened as if overnight: The expropriation and relocation of Stoney Point Reserve No. 43,
1942." M.A. Thesis, University of Western Ontario (The). 155 pp.
On April 14, 1942, the Department of National Defence expropriated Stoney Point Reserve #43 in order to
erect an advanced military training camp. The expropriation required the physical removal of the band to
neighbouring Kettle Point Reserve #44. There is no published examination of the affair to date. This work
serves as a general, yet comprehensive review, of the political, economic and social contexts of the event.
'It happened as if overnight' is a detailed examination of the expropriation and relocation of a small native
community in southwestern Ontario. Three key themes are examined, including land policy development from
1830 to 1939, bureaucratic management of native affairs, and intra-band resistance to the expropriation
from 1947 to present day on the issues of loss, identity and redress. Using an ethnohistorical approach, this
work draws on government documents, oral interviews, maps and fieldwork. The study is a unique
contribution to the field of government/native relations in Canada, land dispossession and forced relocation.
Rose, Paul E. M. (1993) "Aboriginal communities: The Sechelt Self-Government Agreement, the state, and interest
intermediation in British Columbia." M.A. Thesis, Simon Fraser University. 211 pp.
There has been only one piece of legislation enacted in regard to aboriginal peoples by the Province of
British Columbia since BC entered Confederation in 1871. This is a rather astonishing fact, considering the
tumultuous debate that has surrounded native issues in BC over the last 20 years. The question that will be
asked and answered in this work is: was the Sechelt Self-Government Agreement a watershed in the
aboriginal policy agenda, or was the Sechelt Act a dead end, a mere anomaly in a complicated process
involving many different and highly organized interests? It is important that the information stemming from
the Sechelt Agreement neither be missed nor discounted. First, because it is an important part of BC history,
and second because Sechelt could have been a process begun by the federal and provincial governments to
control the pace of the land claims issue in BC, either forestalling or stopping the negotiation of costly land
claims. Last, the Sechelt Agreement could be the bare minimum all parties could agree to at the time and
thus, with institutionalization of the land claims process through the Federal Provincial Treaty Commission
on Land Claims, the Sechelt process may be stuck in history.
Rose-Vails, Shannon. (2003) "Joy Harjo's poetics of transformation." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of North Texas.
214 pp.
For Muscogee Creek poet Joy Harjo, poetry is a real world force that can empower the reader by utilizing
mythic memory, recovery of history, and a spiral journey to regain communal identity. Her poetic career
transforms from early lyric poems to a hybridized form of prosody, prose, and myth to accommodate and to
reflect Harjo's concerns as they progress from personal, to tribal, and then to global. She often employs a
witnessing strategy to combat the trauma caused by racism in order to create the possibility for renewal and
healing. Furthermore, Harjo's poetry combats forces that seek to define Native American existence
negatively. To date, Harjo's poetic works create a myth that will refocus humanity's attention on the way in
which historical meaning is produced and the way difference is encountered.
In an effort to revise the dominant stories told about Indians, Harjo privileges the idea that Native Americans
are present and human, and it is this sense of humanity that pervades her poetry. Sequentially, Joy Harjo's
volumes of poetry -- She had some horses (1983), In mad love and war (1990), and The woman who fell from
the sky (1994) -- create a regenerative cycle that combats the effects of oppressive history and racism.
Through her poetry, violent and tragic events are transformed into moments of hope and renewal. Her
collections are powerful testimonies of endurance and survival. They directly defy the stereotype of the
"vanishing" or "stoic" Indian, but more importantly, they offer regeneration and grace to all peoples. The
poems create a map to help navigate the multiple simultaneous realms of existence, to find a way to travel
through the barriers that separate existence.
In this dissertation, I employ various reading strategies to support my contentions. Blending a postcolonial
standpoint with feminism, I believe Harjo uses a feminist ethnic bildungsroman to explain how a woman of
color achieves maturation of self-identity given the many layers of restrictions that act to muffle her voice.
Utilizing mediational theory, I study the way in which Harjo's poetry addresses multiple audiences in an
attempt to achieve renewal. Furthermore, I posit that Harjo questions the validity of history, and through her
retelling of the historical narrative, she impacts the collective consciousness of a nation in an attempt to
combat the ill effects of historical trauma. Finally, Joseph Campbell's ideas about the sustaining power of
myth, an idea shared by many Native Americans, shapes my arguments regarding Harjo's use of myth as a
source of renewal and strength.
Rosenblatt, Daniel. (2003) "Houses and hopes: Urban Marae and the indigenization of modernity in New Zealand."
Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Chicago (The). 477 pp.
This dissertation is an ethnographic and historical account of the revival of traditional culture by indigenous
New Zealanders, who today live mainly in cities, intermingled with the descendants of colonial settlers and
immersed in a globally connected world. It is concerned with how we can understand Mäori claims to have
sought and maintained some sort of cultural distinctiveness in this context, and thus ultimately with whether
and how anthropologists can locate and describe cultural orders in the contemporary world. In the
dissertation, I focus on one institution, the marae, a complex of buildings centred on an elaborately carved
meeting house that is thought of by Mäori as an ancestor. Marae have long been central to rural,
'traditional,' Mäori life, but recently there has been an explosion of marae construction, mainly in cities.
Marae have come to play a key role in Mäori attempts to regain their land, to preserve their language, and to
win a place for their 'culture' at the centre of contemporary New Zealand life. Why are these houses the focus
of struggle? I answer that question by showing how houses became institutionalized in the second half of the
19th century as a response to a crisis centering on the loss of Mäori land and a decrease in the ability of
chiefs to organize production and exercise leadership. In the wake of this crisis, houses emerged as both sites
and emblems of Mäori community life. Symbolically rich, the houses reflect and embody traditional
conceptions of persons, groups, and the cosmos -- they are inventions that are nevertheless outgrowths of
tradition. Their presence today in settings that would otherwise be understood as belonging solely to the
world of global modernity reframes those settings, helping to maintain a distinct Mäori world. Through
practices and rituals associated with meeting houses, contemporary Mäori succeed in emphasizing the
continued relevance of the conceptions embodied in the houses. At the same time, they make themselves into
people whose political activity also reflects and embodies those conceptions. 'Culture' is not merely the form
their aspirations take: it shapes the aspirations and the people who hold them.
Rosenfeld, Jean E. (1994 ) "The island broken in two halves: Sacred land and religious renewal movements among the
Mäori of New Zealand." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of California, Los Angeles. 475 pp.
Renewal movements arise when there is an unprecedented break in the religious tradition of a people. New
Zealand movements occurred concomitantly with the alienation of Mäori land by the British. Mäori renewal
movements exemplify the historical process of innovation and change in religions during periods of
exceptional crisis. Between 1860 and 1872 a series of Wars over the land broke out between the New Zealand
Government and the followers of Wiremu Tamihana, Te Ua Haumene, and Te Kooti Arikirangi, who set
boundaries around the land in order to preserve it. They created a hermeneutic based upon the paradigmatic
events of Jewish salvation history, which Rua Kenana 'fulfilled' as the millennial messiah who proclaimed an
age of peace when all the land would be restored. Simultaneously religious and political, renewal movements
display cross-cultural patterns that have characterized the histories of many peoples. The Mäori prophets
extended the Jewish mythology of creation and expectation of salvation to their disenfranchised people
through a renewed religion that is both syncretistic and authentic.
Ross, Andrew P. (2001) "Wardship to citizenship: Integrated education and Canadian Indian policy change, 1945 to
1969." M.A. Thesis, Carleton University. 134 pp.
Education is one of the most important influences on the cultural reproduction of societies. This thesis
examines federal government departmental documentation from the 1945-69 period in order to evaluate the
ideological underpinnings of Indian education policy. The analysis of Indian policy discourse reveals that the
formal long-time policy of cultural assimilation was transformed into an informal policy following WWII.
This change, although constituting a degree of continuity, was characterized by the emergence of a liberal
discourse, and a move toward the idea of political assimilation. Effectively, the presence of an established
white, western cultural paradigm, inherent to the proposed political citizenship and educational curriculum,
acted to hinder the cultural reproduction of First Nations societies. The federal government's failure to
recognize this as a problem in need of direct attention constituted a policy of inaction that furthered the goal
of assimilating First Nations children into a cultural, political, and economic Canadian identity.
Ross, Annie G. (2002) "One Mother Earth, one doctor water: A story about environmental justice in the age of
nuclearism. A Native American view." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of California, Davis. 505 pp.
Native Americans inhabit a spiritual landscape in the American west. These Native American homelands are
the birthing place of nuclearism and all of its processes. In speaking of nuclearism and environmental
degradation, Herman Agoyo of San Juan Pueblo, New Mexico, asked, 'Who here will begin this story?' Agoyo
and other Native Americans are beginning to tell the story of what it is to have the nuclear industry and its
processes in ones' homeland. Kaa Fedeh, Fiona O'Brien, Dena Anima, and members of Tewa Women United
(northern Tewa, New Mexico) tell the history of the Los Alamos National Laboratory, New Mexico. Tewa
Women United is a grassroots organization working together to bring social justice to communities faced
with the waste and affect of nuclear bomb work. The Serpent Moving West, known as Yucca Mountain, the
Nevada Test Site, Nevada, and dumpsites for weapons of mass destruction, such as chemical and biological
agents are in Newe Sogobia, Western Shoshone homeland. Corbin Harney, spiritual leader of the Western
Shoshone, Steven Crum, Western Shoshone historian, and Margene Bullcreek, Skull Valley Goshute, explain
the history of the land and the people. Harney founded Shundahai Network, and Bullcreek organized Ohngo
Gandadeh Devia Awareness, two organizations working for peace and environmental justice in Nevada and
Utah. Indigenous historic actions for Mother Earth occur from 1546 to 2002. Mr. and Mrs. Na'ashq'ii
dich'izhii, Navajo code talker, speak of homeland when saying, 'Mother Earth is our main purpose.' The
nuclear fuel chain and US energy policy of the 20th century shows itself to be the destruction of the
Americas, with the development of nuclearism as World War III. However, the western ecological foundation
is evolving, from manifest destiny to Earth First, to transform a culture of violence to a culture of peace.
Ross, Jeffrey A. (1983) "Aboriginal rights, the Canadian judiciary and the Constitution: An analysis of judicial and
constitutional definitions and protections of native rights." M.A. Thesis, Carleton University.
Ross, Robbie A. (2001) "The irony of the Marshall ruling: Using the Maritime Peace and Friendship Treaties to
dissolve Mi'kmaq communal life." M.A. Thesis, University of New Brunswick (The). 233 pp.
This thesis examines the political relationships established between the Mi'kmaq, Malicite, Passamaquody
and British peoples through treaties signed in the 18th century. Interest in understanding this political
relationship has grown as a result of the 1982 Canadian constitution which protects "existing Aboriginal
treaty rights" and because of a series of court cases including the Donald Marshall court challenge. This
thesis will show that the 18th century treaties signed in the Maritimes protected two distinct kinds of cultures
and economies; one British, the other, Aboriginal. Because of dramatic changes that occurred to the way in
which the British organized themselves economically, the traditional Aboriginal economy collapsed and
forced the reorientation of the political relationship established through the treaties. Currently, there is a
tendency to investigate these treaties from the transformed direction that the political relationship took and
not within the original spirit that the treaties were intended. Consequently, many modern explanations
consider the treaties in terms of modern economic and political understandings and not in terms of the ideas
promoted through the traditional economic practices in place at the time when the treaties were settled. The
same is being done with regards to the implementation of these treaties. As will be demonstrated, it is these
modern and contested attempts to understand the political relationship established in treaties that gave rise
to the Donald Marshall court challenge and underlie the various positions being taken in the fisheries dispute
at Burnt Church, NB. Ironically, the Maritime Treaties are being interpreted in a way that encourages the
integration of Aboriginal peoples into the modern capitalist mode of production. Hence, the treaties may in
fact assist in the dissolution of Mi'kmaq communal life.
Rothney, Russell G. (1975) "Merchant capital and the livelihood of the residents of the Hudson Bay basin: A Marxist
interpretation." M.A. Thesis, University of Manitoba (The).
(1) North American studies of economically underprivileged groups often implicitly assume that poverty and
social distress are irregularities which need not exist under capitalism. Accordingly, economic disadvantage
commonly is explained in terms of (real or imagined) cultural peculiarities and commercial or government
mismanagement. Emphasis on supposed cultural barriers to economic advance is particularly heavy with
regard to destitute Indians and Métis in Canada. In reference to the 'Indian problem' perspective, this point is
elaborated in Chapter One and illustrated more fully in Appendix A.
In contrast to the abovementioned approach, this study starts with the hypothesis that persistent cases of
sharp economic inequality reflect the overall logic of the prevailing economic system. Marxist methodology is
used because it complements this supposition. With the hope of minimizing conceptual haziness, a number of
central Marxist analytical categories are explored in abstract in Chapter Two and in appendices B and C.
An attempt is made to link the historically general concept of surplus produce to the idea of economic
development and underdevelopment, via the notion of economic class conflict.
In terms of capitalist economy, the idea of surplus produce may be expressed as surplus value. This facilitates
comparison of economic production in capitalist economies with that of earlier or more recent systems.
Moreover, the category 'surplus value' directs attention squarely onto the social relations causing
commercial gain. The follows from its definition as an excess of net output over requirements for
maintenance of commodity producers. In contrast, the (narrower) term 'profit' is an accounting category
which says nothing about social-economic (in this study the term 'social-economic' refers to social, rather
technological, aspects of economy) organization. Similarly, Marx's concept of capital is used because it is
based on historically distinctive, social-economic factors.
(2) The survey of neolithic livelihood in Chapter Three reveals that technological restraints severely limited
surplus accumulation. This in turn minimized economic class distinctions and restricted most economic
activity to a seasonal basis. However, the embryonic evolution of class society, based on relations between
relatively propertied and non-propertied social groups, is evident and is paralleled by the era's sharpening
sexual division of labour and social prestige.
(3) The central thesis which emerges in chapters Four, Five and Six is that capitalist relations of the fur trade
ensured that underdeveloped would become increasingly pronounced for native residents of the Hudson Bay
basin relative to the position of fur merchants and their associates. Further, overall, even the absolute level
of material security for the producer-trader population was kept at a bare minimum. For local residents of
the basin objective possibilities of long-term accumulation generally were at least as low as in neolithic days,
despite the great technological advantages of European trade goods. In this connection, the foreign
appropriation of surplus value cannot be separated from the economic structural rigidity engendered by the
fur trade.
(4) In Chapters Seven and Eight and Appendix A, a look at the aftermath of the classic fur trade era suggests
that in the 20th century, as before, an economic system based on conflicting class interests produced
continuing destitution among many people of native ancestry. Throughout the basin merchant capital
remained dominant, while on the prairies masses of immigrant farmers formed the bulk of a new class of
petty producers.
Between the sale of Rupert's Land and the delayed crush of western Canadian settlement, agricultural
progress occurred on some Indian reserves. However, subsequently in the Hudson Bay basin economic
opportunities for Indians and Métis were disproportionately confined to the insecurity of fur production or
intermittent wage employment.
It is commonly though that hardship among indigenous races in Canada is caused largely by a refusal to
adapt to 'modern' society. Contrariwise, this study supports the thesis that their plight can be understood best
by examining how they have been and are integrated into the capitalist system.
Rothschild, A. Frank Jr. (1994) ""Dancing in the wards, powwows on the reservation": A social history of the anti-
tuberculosis drug isoniazid and the emergence of rational drug development." Ph.D. Dissertation, University
of California, Berkeley. 607 pp.
The dissertation examines the scientific, medical, and social significance of the anti-tuberculous drug
isoniazid (isonicotinic acid hydrazide, INH). For 40 years this drug has been the cornerstone of all effective
regimens for the treatment and prevention of disease related to infection by most strains of active
Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Since 1986, tuberculosis -- and those with it -- has resurfaced as a priority
disease threat in and to the United States, particularly in the form of isoniazid-resistant bacilli strains.
Introduced in 1951, the first human clinical trials of isoniazid were conducted at the public Sea view Hospital
on Staten Island, New York and at Indian Hospitals on the Navajo Reservation in Arizona. These latter trials
became the foundation for the Navajo Cornell Field Health Research Project (1955-62), a prototype of cross-
cultural medical anthropology and international public health. Isoniazid was considered an exemplar of
'rational chemotherapy,' which in its original sense meant treatment of infection with chemical compounds
which combine the greatest level of efficacy with an acceptable degree of toxicity. This concept, which
emerged as a technical possibility with the advent of the German synthetic dyestuff industry in the late 19th
century, later expanded into the field presently known as rational drug development. Conceptualizations of
isoniazid's rationality were not confined to bacterial specificity, however, and it became successively the first
true rational ambulatory chemotherapy allowing long-term drug administration outside of hospitals, and the
first rational chemoprophylaxis, a preventative drug regimen for arresting tuberculous infection and
forestalling active disease. With these advances isoniazid brought forth new requirements and practices of
patient compliance and self-regulation. It also induced a growing incidence of neurological and hepatotoxic
side effects, which were construed as resulting from of racial genetic differences in drug response. The
interpretations of isoniazid's adverse reactions has produced entirely new hybrid fields, including
pharmacogenetics, psychopharmacology, and pharmacoanthropology. The clinical risks of isoniazid remain
highly controversial, while its federally approved use in American Indian populations is the most rigorous in
the US. The fact that isoniazid's rational development necessarily came to include Native Americans and
anthropology is a central theme of this study.
Rotman, Leonard I. (1993 ) "Duty, the honour of the Crown, and uberrima fides: Fiduciary doctrine and the Crown-
Native relationship in Canada." LL.M. Thesis, York University. 359 pp.
The goal of this thesis is to address the deficient understanding of the fiduciary nature of the Crown-Native
relationship in Canadian aboriginal rights jurisprudence. This process will be initiated by surveying case law
to reveal the current status of fiduciary doctrine as it is applied to the Crown-Native relationship. The
understanding of fiduciary law in general, achieved through a critical examination of its historical,
conceptual, and theoretical background, is the second step of the process, culminating in the formulation of a
new theory of fiduciary doctrine. Finally, the effects of applying fiduciary law to the Crown-Native
relationship will be discussed. It is hoped that this method of examination will result in the achievement of a
greater understanding of the fiduciary nature of the relationship between the Crown and aboriginal peoples
in Canada and the implications of applying fiduciary doctrine to it. The end result of these considerations
will be to cement the understanding of the Crown-Native fiduciary relationship by documenting the nexus
between fiduciary doctrine and Crown-Native relations, thereby placing the Crown-Native relationship
within its proper context in the sphere of Canadian aboriginal rights jurisprudence.
———. (1998) "Solemn commitments: Fiduciary obligations, treaty relationships and the foundational principles of
crown-native relations in Canada." S.J.D. Dissertation, University of Toronto. 260 pp.
This dissertation constructs an alternative framework for the resolution of aboriginal and treaty rights issues
in Canadian aboriginal rights jurisprudence. It argues that judicial analyses of aboriginal and treaty rights
are premised upon incorrect assumptions about the nature of crown-native relations. These incorrect
assumptions have resulted in the improper compartmentalization of aboriginal and treaty rights and, in turn,
led to their marginalization. The primary goal of the dissertation is to foster a more reasoned and integrated
method of analysis by regarding aboriginal and treaty rights in a suitable, culturally-appropriate context.
This entails accounting for the unique, or sui generis, nature of those rights and integrating individual rights
with each other and the larger context of crown-aboriginal relations. Many of the principles that underlie the
basis of contemporary aboriginal rights jurisprudence will also be examined. It will been maintained that the
parties' interaction during the formative years of their relationship was guided by the foundational principles
of peace, friendship, and respect. These principles were enshrined in the first formal treaty between the
groups. Although crown-native relations have changed in many ways since that time, this work contends that
these principles should continue to inform contemporary crown-native relations and the legal implications
that stem therefrom. These foundational principles serve as the basis for the unified, contextual, and
culturally-appropriate understanding of aboriginal and treaty rights suggested. The dissertation is divided
into four parts. Part I examines the formative years of crown-aboriginal relations in North America, from the
time of initial contact between Britain and the aboriginal peoples until the period shortly after the conquest
of New France. Part II concentrates on the crown-native fiduciary relationship that was created during these
formative years and the implications of those relations for the parties involved. The third Part of the
dissertation is concerned with crown-native treaty relations. The concluding Part discusses the nexus
between crown-native fiduciary and treaty relations to illustrate the inter relatedness of aboriginal and treaty
rights issues underlying the theory proposed.
Rovinsky, David J. (1999 ) "An analysis of the equality dilemma in the Canadian unity debate." Ph.D. Dissertation,
Johns Hopkins University (The). 284 pp.
Over the past four decades, the Canadian unity debate has increasingly become a dialogue among four
distinct interpretations of Canadian history, each of which is in turn rooted in a contemporary conception of
political equality. This dissertation is an examination of these conflicting views of the Canadian experience,
and the four equalities that underpin them. It undertakes specific analysis of the equality of founding peoples
advanced by the Quebéc intellectual class, the equality of citizenship put forward by social democratic
Canadian nationalists, the equality of provinces argued by western Canadian interests, and the equality of
cleavages, articulated by representatives of ethnic minorities, aboriginal Canadians, and women's groups.
After surveying the classical and contemporary literature on political equality, it addresses the four
equalities in turn, examining the historical origins of each, as well as their manifestations in the
constitutional debate. Subsequent to this, it visits three constitutional projects since 1980 that have foundered
on the equality issue, and it contemplates forms of compromise that have not yet been seriously investigated
in the Canadian political arena. On this basis, it notes that the four equalities are not mutual exclusive, but
that Quebéc's claim to the equality of founding peoples is to a major extent incompatible with each of the
other three equalities put forward by elements in English-speaking Canada. Instead of compromises which
merely split differences without addressing the core discrepancies among the equalities, the dissertation
considers which assumptions on the part of the four equalities are needlessly restrictive and that are thus
candidates for relaxation. It looks particularly at the insistence upon uniform application of the equalities of
citizenship, provinces, and cleavages across Canada, and suggest a formula that recognizes the legitimacy
and importance of all four. Since there has been distressingly little political will to construct such a formula,
it reviews the possible outcomes of the constitutional debate in the absence of a compromise among the
equalities. These include forms embracing as well as stopping short of Quebéc independence.
Roy, Audrey J. (2002) "Sovereignty and decolonization: Realizing indigenous self-determination at the United
Nations and in Canada." M.A. Thesis, University of Victoria. 142 pp.
The inclusion of self-determination in the two international human rights covenants and in the Declaration
on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Peoples evidence self-determination's place in the language of
international human rights at the United Nations. Though these documents declare that "all peoples have the
right of self-determination," a closer look at the history of self-determination at the UN and its relationship to
decolonization illustrates how member states of the United Nations have carefully excluded indigenous
peoples from being counted within the seemingly all-embracing language of 'all peoples.' The study is divided
into two parts. Part 1, Chapter One examines United Nations dialogue surrounding self-determination and
decolonization and reveals the definitions accepted by that international body. Chapter Two presents
academic understandings of both the subject and content of self-determination and concludes by offering
alternatives that make the right of self-determination accessible to all peoples. Chapter three highlights the
distinguishing historical context of indigenous claims to self-determination and re-conceptualizes the
frequently misunderstood terms 'nation' and 'state' as required by the status of indigenous peoples as
sovereign nations. Part II applies ideas developed in Part I to the Canadian context. Chapter Four reveals
how the tenants underlying Crown policy perpetuate the colonial relationship implemented by the first
settlers and how the Canadian legal system helps to legitimize the Crown's assumption of sovereignty and the
continuing denial of indigenous nationhood. Chapter Five describes how federalism can offer a unique
opportunity to reconfigure the Canadian state and decolonize the relationship between the Crown and
indigenous peoples.
Roy, Susan H. (1999) "Making history visible: Culture and politics in the presentation of Musqueam history." M.A.
The ongoing struggle for aboriginal rights in British Columbia has been matched by an ongoing attempt on
the part of scholars to analyze it. The focus of many of these studies has been the court room, that is, the legal
battles to define aboriginal title and sovereignty. While important, this research does not address the political
content of aboriginal cultural expression as it occurs in varied contexts. Throughout the 20th century,
mainstream Canadian society has understood aboriginal culture and politics as separate areas of activity.
This thesis suggests that First Nations have not made such a rigid distinction between culture and politics.
Musqueam cultural forms such as houseposts, dances, and weavings were a form of political expression
about the past. Indeed, the thesis argues that they were a form of public history, produced to identify the
community to others and to further their land claims vis-à-vis non-Natives and other First Nations. While
these cultural presentations served particular political ends, they did so without violating Musqueam
boundaries between public and private knowledge. This thesis examines three instances of Musqueam
presentations of their culture and history to non-Natives. In preparation of the 1913 visit of the Royal
Commission on Indian Affairs to the reserve, the Musqueam decorated a community hall with two carved
houseposts. In 1966, they organized a dance performance for a provincial centennial event. More recently, in
the early 1980s a group of Musqueam women produced weavings for sale and display in non-Native contexts.
Over the course of the last century, Musqueam's traditional territory has been engulfed by the City of
Vancouver and the Lower Mainland. This proximity to a major urban centre has tended to overshadow the
community's visibility. Cultural presentation was a way to identify a distinct community with continuing ties
to a territory -- it was a way to make history visible.
Rushforth, Brett H. (2003) "Savage bonds: Indian slavery and alliance in New France." Ph.D. Dissertation, University
of California, Davis. 265 pp.
Between 1660 and 1760, the colonists of New France pursued two seemingly contradictory policies toward
their Indian neighbours. Through compromise, gifts, and Native-style diplomacy they negotiated the most far-
reaching system of Indian alliances in colonial North America. At the same time, they also developed an
extensive system of Indian slavery that transformed thousands of Indian men, women, and children into
commodities of colonial commerce in French settlements. This dissertation analyzes these seemingly
contradictory elements of French-Indian relations, arguing that French-Indian alliances paradoxically
generated the practice of Indian slavery, and that slavery in turn influenced the structure of the alliance
throughout the 18th century.
To demonstrate the close connections between the French practice of Indian slavery and their strategic
alliance building, this study is organized as a conversation between East and West, between the core
slaveholding settlements along the St. Lawrence River and the centres of trade and diplomacy in the western
Great Lakes. After discussing the relationship between slavery and the western alliance system in the first
chapter, I shift in chapter 2 to Montréal, Québec, and nearby villages to evaluate the place of these slaves in
New France's economy and society. This slave system required a constant supply of new Indian captives,
which western allies eagerly provided. The slave supply, discussed in chapter 3, thus implicates the St.
Lawrence slaveholders in the devastating western violence of the 1710s, 1720s, and 1730s. During these
years, hundreds of captives came into New France, seized violently in their home villages and taken to
Montréal as slaves. Chapter 4 traces the lived experience of these slaves, discussing identity and family life,
race and religion, resistance and punishment. Finally, chapter 5 analyzes the effects of the Seven Years' War
and Pontiac's War on the Indian slave system, assessing the ways in which the French-Indian alliances of
these crucial periods responded to the demands of slavery and vice versa.
Russell, Alan G. (2002) "The search for an authentic Christianity in a pragmatic, religionless society: A theological
reflection on the origins of Australian society." D.Min. Dissertation, Fuller Theological Seminary. 174 pp.
This dissertation arises out of a need to understand the origins of Christian witness within Australian society
and how such origins have influenced the effectualness of the gospel within Aboriginal life and white
settlement. Such origins have laid foundations for mission and evangelism strategies that cry out for review.
The Christian witness that is primarily Protestant and Catholic in Australia still carries the baggage of
religious trauma that was experienced in the first 50 years of white settlement and resultant aboriginal
conquest.
This dissertation is divided into four parts that will allow historical analysis of Christianity from 1788 to
1838 in New South Wales, and a theological reflection in the light of this analysis.
Part One. The dreamtime and the search for the great south land. The purpose of this part is to show the
critical exchange that took place between Aboriginal culture and Western Culture and, in particular, the
British form of that culture: a crisis in spiritual perception.
Part Two. The origins of Christianity in the penal colony: The Church of England. The purpose of this part is
to examine the incongruity of the Chaplains of the Anglican Church who, as magistrates of the law courts,
found themselves preachers of mercy and pronouncers of judgment to a convict community already subject to
condemnation.
Part Three. The planting of denominational Christianity in a colonial gaol: The Catholics, the Independents
(non-conformists), <the Presbyterians, and the Methodists. The purpose of this part is to portray the
denominational expectations that developed, creating sectarian strife and a confusion of purpose for the
clergy of each of the denominations. Each struggled with the environment in which they were called to
minister. Competition and condemnation did not enhance their coping in birthing Christianity in Australia.
Part Four. Theological reflection on the origins of Australia with special reference to the Trinitarian
Incarnational Model. The purpose of this part is to use the Trinitarian Incarnational Model to address the
issues of condemnation, racism, moralism, legalism, religionlessness, pragmatism. All of these come as
baggage today over which the church stumbles. What can be an authentic Christian response to these
legacies and current issues of concern? The goal of this dissertation is to provide an historical analysis and
theological reflection that will encourage my peers to review with me the issues of an authentic Christianity
in Australia and give direction to our evangelizing today.
Russell, Wendy H. (1998) "Regaining control: Community development and self-determination in Fort Albany First
Nation." Ph.D. Dissertation, McMaster University. 305 pp.
This study documents the social process of economic and community development in the Omushkego
(Western James Bay Cree) community Fort Albany, Ontario in the period 1994-97. Informal and formal
development planning defines the settlement's relationship to various other locations or social structures:
regional and national economies; federal and regional levels of government; the territory drawn together in
the traditional mixed economy. I examine these relationships through the experiences of day-to-day life in the
settlement, where all community members participate in the mixed economy. The mixed economy
encompasses harvesting and market oriented production within codes of reciprocity within the extended
family. Residential households are thus interdependent in every feature of daily life, and this sharing ensures
economic stability. Sharing resources, technology and work permits households to achieve self-sufficiency
while individuals demonstrate their competence. The significant features of the mixed economy are thus at
once economically and socially valuable, features that are promoted in community and economic
development in the settlement. It is by making a link between the existing, distinctive settlement economy and
development that the community strives to achieve social, political and economic authority within relations
that often exploit and marginalize the settlement. Formal development strategies improve settlement
infrastructure, and strengthen settlement institutions in ways that are consistent with the values of the mixed
economy: increasing access to the means to be self-sufficient and to acquire competence. The settlement's
entrepreneurs perform informal development, providing for their extended family, reproducing the values of
the mixed economy and reducing outside exploitation of the settlement's cash economy. At both levels, locally
invented development is a route to settlement self-sufficiency and self-determination, a conclusion framed
here in the recommendations of the Final Report of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples.
Ryser, Rudolph C. (1996) "Fourth World geopolitics, coexistence and the new international political order." Ph.D.
Dissertation, Union Institute (The). 187 pp.
The author elaborates a new general theory of international relations that emphasizes the balance between
realpolitik and universalist legal principles within a framework of Fourth World Geopolitics. The text reflects
the author's personal experience in Indian Affairs in the United States of America, and a thorough study of
relations between nations and states in the international realm. This 'bottom up ' analysis (as opposed to 'top-
down') of international relations examines the recurrent phenomenon of reemergent nations and the role they
play in what the author calls 'international relations in a temporal pause.' After reviewing key international
events in the last century of the millennium and defining the need for a new general theory of international
relations, the author examines the stakes over which there is contention between nations and between nations
and states. An analysis of the various forms of political status that would give nations a clear and consistent
identity within the international realm further amplifies the reader's understanding of what nations are, how
they relate to each other and with states. Building from the theoretical framework constructed in early
chapters, the author directly addresses the modalities and new international institutions that would join
nations and states into a cooperative effort to implement a new international political order where disputes
between nations and between nations and states become a legitimate subject of international conflict
resolution. Under the new general theory of international relations the smallest of nations and the largest of
states have an equal stake in the settlement of disputes and maintenance of peaceful relations between
peoples.
Saenz, Karen E. (1994) "Space, time, and gender: An archaeology of human relations in post-contact aboriginal
northern Australia." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of California, Los Angeles. 607 pp.
Prospects are currently favourable for an archaeology of gender influenced by feminist theory. However,
much of the new archaeology-of-gender literature stems from those traditional archaeological research
designs that feminist archaeologists have criticized, thereby creating a demand for feminist archaeological
research. To meet this demand, this research aims to assess appropriate epistemologies and methods for
engendering the past using a particular case study. Specifically, the research concerns the social and
historical constructions of gender relations by Wardaman-speaking people in northern Australia, and the
archaeological preservation of these constructions. An initial project epistemology of feminist empiricism is
rejected in favour of feminist standpoint theory, which acknowledges both marginalized and dominant claims
to knowledge. In addition, a multimethod strategy is used: historical records are examined; ethnographic
data are collected by interviews and participant-observation; and archaeological data are collected by site
surveys and rock art recording. Further, male and female activities are targeted across method boundaries in
four dimensions of task execution: social, temporal, spatial, and material. The case study suggests that
gender relations are not always rendered spatially or materially; archaeology, therefore, cannot recover all
aspects of past gender relations. However, some aspects can be recovered if two research design
requirements are met: (a) a change of focus, from traditional concerns like technology and subsistence to the
actors and actions that produce them; and, (b) a change of scale, from large concerns like trade to smaller-
scale interpersonal relationships. Further, the reflexive assessment of project epistemologies and methods
suggests that (a) multimethod research strategies and task differentiation frameworks are well suited to
engendering the past; and, (b) these methods are compatible with feminist standpoint theory. However, it was
found that feminist standpoint theory is not a true epistemology, as it lacks clear standards for choosing
between competing standpoints. To transform feminist standpoint theory into an epistemology, then, it is
suggested that multiple standpoints be chosen for the requirements of particular (gendered) communities
situated in particular locations (space) at particular historical moments (time).
Saldaña, María J. (1994) "The discourse of development and narratives of resistance." Ph.D. Dissertation, Stanford
University. 237 pp.
This dissertation is a critique of post-World War II theories of national development emerging out of the First
World as a method of surveilling newly decolonized nation-states in the Third World and, co-extensively, of
the neo-Marxist theories of economic development and of the development of self-identity and subjectivity
that emerge out of some of these Third World spaces in the struggle for national independence. I begin with a
consideration of modernization theory, and the ethical, autonomous subject it entailed, as first articulated in
1960 by W. W. Rostow in Stages of growth: A non-Communist manifesto. Then, I consider the critique of
modernization theory offered by neo-Marxist dependency theory, and the 'revolutionary subject-in-waiting'
that replaces Rostow's 'ethical subject' in dependency theory.
I go on to consider why revolutionary movements (in the United States, in Central America, and in the
Caribbean) have often met with resistance from the very people these movements intended to liberate --
women and men of colour, indigenous peoples, and the land poor peasantry. I argue that an Enlightenment
and masculinist paradigm of progress as revelation and transcendence still pervades the ideology and
leadership of revolutionary movements. In making this argument, I consider Sandinista agricultural policy
between 1979-1989, and then the diaries and autobiographies of three important revolutionary figures:
Ernesto 'Che' Guevara's Pasajes de la guerra revolucionaria, Mario Payeras' Dias de la selva, and Malcolm
X's Autobiography of Malcolm X.
I conclude with an examination of the alternative model of revolutionary consciousness and development put
forth by the feminist and indigenous revolutionary Rigoberta Menchu in her recent autobiography Me llamo
Rigoberta Menchu y asi me nacio la conciencia. Menchu strategically vacillates between the position of
autonomous liberal subject and the other of Western discourse to critique modernization from a gendered,
classed and ethnic position, and to critique teleologies of consciousness put forth by her male counterparts
that are predicated on the 'transcendence' of her present subject position.
Salem, Lisa B. (1993) ""A weird and waning race": Representations of native people in the works of Duncan
Campbell Scott." M.A. Thesis, Carleton University. 120 pp.
During the period in which he occupied the position of Deputy Superintendent General of Indian Affairs,
administering the government's policy of civilization and assimilation, Duncan Campbell Scott also enjoyed a
successful career as a poet. His work includes several poems which have become known collectively as the
'Indian Poems.' Through these poems, Duncan Campbell Scott found imaginative expression for his complex
personal beliefs and feelings regarding native people. This dissertation will examine the writings of Duncan
Campbell Scott, including several of the 'Indian Poems,' four short stories and a selection of his non-fiction
material, as a means toward gaining insight into the ideologies which informed these works.
Salice, Barbara F. (1991 ) "Palapala: Language, literacy, and learning among Native Hawai'ian women in Waimanalo,
Hawai'i." Ed.D. Dissertation, University of Southern California.
Culture and oral literacy have been creatively blended in the Hawai'ian community from royal times. In the
absence of written records, the survival of oral forms of expression have been the foundations of learning and
communication among the Hawai'ian people. An identity has been established among Hawai'ians through
their language. To define a Hawai'ian, it is necessary to comprehend the meaningful role language and
literacy have played in their culture, history, and traditions.
Research on literacy among indigenous people (American Indians, Alaskans, and Native Hawai'ians) in this
country has been sparse, with data gleaned almost exclusively from anthropology and sociology. Most
researchers have looked at the consequences of becoming literate (learning to read and write) rather than
investigate the role literacy plays in an adult's daily life. This study concentrates on the literacy/education
phenomenon found among Native Hawai'ian women whose experiences were unique and different from North
American women and have not been adequately documented.
The purpose of this study was to determine the function of reading and writing in the lives of women in the
rural community of Waimanalo, Oahu, Hawai'i. This study attempts to identify the attitudes and expectations
these women have regarding the usefulness of literacy for social, educational, personal, and professional
goals. The study of these women will provide a view of the Waimanalo community, its women, and the effects
literacy has had on their lives.
This study describes women in Waimanalo, Oahu, and their attitudes towards learning to read and write. In
so doing, the goal of this study is to suggest strategies for improving services while contributing to the
knowledge base concerning literacy in the Hawai'ian Islands and focusing on the significant aspects of
gender, ancestry, and language in this indigenous culture.
Salmon, Amy. (2005) "Beyond guilt, shame, and blame to compassion, respect and empowerment: Young aboriginal
mothers and the First Nations and Inuit Fetal Alcohol Syndrome/Fetal Alcohol Effects Initiative." Ph.D.
Over the past decade, the "problem" of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and Fetal Alcohol Effects among aboriginal
peoples has received increasing attention from the Canadian nation-state. However, few feminist, anti-racist,
anti-ableist, and anti-colonial scholars have offered a critique of FAS/E "prevention" policies aimed at
aboriginal women. In this dissertation, I present my analysis of the "official knowledge" and "public
pedagogies" articulated in one such policy, The First Nations and Inuit Fetal Alcohol Syndrome/Fetal
Alcohol Effects Initiative (herein "the Initiative"). This analysis unravels the complex and contradictory
tensions in contemporary state policy formation. My findings show how the Initiative paradoxically supports
the development of inclusive, grassroots approaches to FAS/E prevention in aboriginal communities while at
the same time eclipsing the voices and concerns of aboriginal women.
Though neglected in the official policy texts and talk of the Initiative, young aboriginal mothers' agency and
insights are central in the dialectic of ideology, discourse, and lived experience that this study documents. To
facilitate this shift, I engage a productive methodological synthesis of textual analysis, institutional
ethnography, and participatory research, by grounding my analysis of the texts in in-depth group interviews
with six aboriginal mothers whose lives include substance use and FAS/E.
This study offers significant implications for the development of future policy, research, and "culturally
appropriate" pedagogy for and about FAS/E "prevention". My findings do not support the outright rejection
of medical models of disability, as has been favoured by many critical theorists and activists on the grounds
that such models are universally oppressive and disenfranchising. Rather, the women's insights into their own
lived experiences emphasize the simultaneously enabling and disabling consequences of medicalization.
Accordingly, my findings underscore the urgent need to reconsider the roles of "race", gender, class, nation
and dis/ability in contemporary theories and practices of substantive citizenship and nation-building in and
outside of education.
Samson, C. Mathews. (2004) "Re-enchanting the world: Maya identity and Protestantism in the western highlands of
Guatemala." Ph.D. Dissertation, State University of New York at Albany. 275 pp.
The primary question addressed in this work is: What does it mean to be both Maya and Protestant in
Guatemala? To answer this question I employ an ethnographic approach, rooted in the concern for human
agency embodied in practice theory, to examine religious practice in the Mam and Kaqchikel Maya
presbyteries of the National Evangelical Presbyterian Church of Guatemala. The study adds a comparative
case of indigenous Protestantism within a historical denomination to the literature on religious pluralism in
Mesoamerica. The presbyteries represent the second and third largest Maya language communities in
Guatemala, and the uniqueness of the case resides in the manner in which the groups seek to reinterpret
historical Protestant Christianity in terms of Maya culture. The frame for the research emphasizes local
activity in the context of forces emanating from beyond the local community itself. Primary among these
forces are the violence from a 36 year civil war and a rise in organizing for cultural rights embodied in the
pan-Maya ethnic renewal movement that coalesced in the early 1990s. Through analysis of the iconography
of church buildings (templos) and their place on the landscape and excerpts from conversion-related
narratives, the Mam emerge as more traditional in their integration of Maya identity and Protestant practice.
Nevertheless, church symbolism shows an embracing of aspects of Maya culture and cosmology, and the
narratives reveal tension caused by the rejection of aspects of Maya culture required by spiritual dictates of
evangelicalism. In contrast, the Kaqchikel challenge Protestant symbolism represented by the pulpit and the
authority of the minister in scriptural interpretation by organizing themselves along the lines of communities
rather than congregations. The way in which the Kaqchikel constructed the identity of an assassinated
minister as a martyr for Maya culture, ecumenical Christianity, and human rights shows a politically
engaged evangelicalism. Both groups manifest a communitarian ethic that challenges the notion of
Protestants as individualistic and uninvolved in political or communal affairs. Despite differential
approaches, both cases testify to a 're-enchantment of the world' by bringing Maya culture to the
reinterpretation and renewal of Protestant identity.
Samuels, Cheryl E. A. (1997) "Resilience of American Indian adolescents of the northern plains." Ph.D. Dissertation,
University of Michigan. 230 pp.
Protective and compensatory factors, gender, and northern plains traditionalism were examined as they
relate to resilience (behavioural competence and/or absence of a psychiatric diagnosis) for high-risk
American Indian adolescents. Of 109 adolescents (ages 13-18), this study considered the 61 participants (34
women, 27 men) for whom data was available from adolescents, a parental caregiver, and a teacher.
Findings were consistent with two models of protection from the effects of stress. A protective function was
found for paternal relationship quality which moderated life events stress (during the past one and two
months) to predict behavioural competence. Support for the compensatory (main effects) model was as
follows: intellectual functioning, maternal relationship quality, peer relations, multiple caregivers, and
humour were associated with behavioural competence; paternal relationship quality, peer relations, multiple
caregivers, and humour were associated with absence of a psychiatric diagnosis; and peer relations,
intellectual functioning, and paternal relationship quality were associated with resilience. Adolescent women
had higher mean scores for maternal relationship quality. Of participants with a psychiatric diagnosis, only
women had internalising disorders only; men were comorbid for internalising and externalising disorders.
Women with internalising disorders only had higher behavioural competence scores than peers with
externalising disorders only. Gender interacted with life events stress during the past one and two months,
with highly stressed adolescent women scoring lower on behavioural competence than highly stressed
adolescent men. Competent and resilient adolescents did not differ from their peers on traditionalism. A
moderate level of traditionalism was associated with behavioural competence in the presence of life events
stress during the past one month. However, among highly stressed adolescents, highly traditional adolescents
were more likely to receive a diagnosis, and scored lower on behavioural competence than less traditional
peers. The findings on traditionalism were discussed relative to life span development of protective
functioning of traditionalism, and in terms of potential for both protection and vulnerability associated with
high levels of traditionalism across differing domains or cultural contexts.
Sanchez, Susan L. (2003) "The selling of California: The Indians Claims Commission and the case of the Indians of
California v. the United States." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of California, Riverside. 258 pp.
In 1851 President Fillmore appointed three commissioners to conduct treaties with the native peoples of
California. The United States wanted California opened up for settlement, and 18 treaties were completed
with several tribes. Congress never ratified these treaties, but the native peoples of California were
dispossessed of their lands and relocated onto reservations. By the end of the 19th century the majority of
land holdings and legal title held by the native peoples of California belonged to others. The dilemmas of the
native peoples of California were brought to public notice during the 1870s and 1880s due to several
humanitarian movements that became active during this time. This eventually led to the passage of the 1928
Jurisdictional Act, a federal law that provided for Congressional examination of the land title of the native
peoples of California. The native peoples of California prevailed in this case, proving that they once owned
the area that was included in the 18 unratified treaties. The Indians Claims Commission Act was passed on
August 13, 1946, that allowed for land claims to be filed against the federal government by native groups.
Three groups from California filed before the ICC claiming to represent the native peoples. These three
claims were consolidated into one case that became the Indians of California. The ICC commission would
hear this case, with notable scholars testifying for the California Indians and the government. The
government would propose that the Native peoples did not use all of the land area, while the California
Indians would refute this theory. The ICC found in favour of the native peoples of California, with a
settlement offered of $29,100,000. This would amount to $668.51 per individual, and caused division among
the native peoples of California whether to accept or reject the settlement. A 70% majority of the native
peoples of California voted to accept the settlement, and it was dispersed in 1971. This case was an anomaly
in how a large geographical area would be used to define a multitude of ethnic/cultural/social groups known
as the single entity of the Indians of California.
Sanford, Victoria D. L. (2000) "Buried secrets: Truth and human rights in Guatemala." Ph.D. Dissertation, Stanford
University. 376 pp.
In my dissertation, Buried secrets: Truth and human rights in Guatemala, I focus on political transformation
through ethnographically detailed case studies of the exhumation of clandestine cemeteries, the excavation of
collective memory and community mobilization. I trace political changes from the micro of political
mobilization in relatively unknown rural villages to the macro level of national political events. From the
monolingual Maya widow who survived a massacre to the widows organization she founded, from the
exhumation of a clandestine cemetery to the survivor's interactions with the new legal system, from the
signing of the Peace Accords in Guatemala City to the closing of the army base and reintegration of guerrilla
combatants into rural villages. I demonstrate that these transformations are not only relational, but mutually
constituted at the local and national levels through the discourse and practice of truth, memory and human
rights.
My central hypothesis, which is supported by 24 months of field research, is that increased participation and
nonviolent mobilization of civil society, particularly the rural Maya sector, are key factors shifting the
balance of power away from the Guatemalan military toward the civilian branch of government. Based on
the multi-site collection of more than 350 testimonies in five Maya ethno-linguistic areas, I demonstrate that
integration of the lived experiences of rural indigenous survivors of La violencia into the collective national
consciousness is key to understanding the violence of the past and ensuring that this violence is not repeated
in the future.
In my analysis, I problematize the phenomenology of violence and genocide, collective trauma and healing,
and the reconstruction of truth and memory in communities which have suffered extreme violence at the
hands of the state. My research points to the importance of political events in remote regions of Latin
America and their significance to political processes that have hitherto been conceptualized as urban and
elite. The outcomes of my project will contribute to interdisciplinary debates about democratization, human
rights and reconstruction of a viable judiciary, putting popular voice at the centre rather than the periphery.
Saranchuk, Andrew. (1997 ) "Aboriginal and treaty rights: Collective or individual rights?" LL.M. Thesis, Université
Laval. 150 pp.
Aboriginal and treaty rights are usually referred to as 'collective rights', even though the western legal
tradition strongly resists collective rights. However, several courts have also referred to aboriginal and
treaty rights as individual rights. This thesis explores this tension and concludes that aboriginal and treaty
rights are indeed collective rights that vest in Aboriginal collectives, despite the fact that very few other
rights in Canadian law are collective rights in the true sense of the word. However, these collective rights
also have an integral individual dimension and the courts have allowed individual rights to limit the rights of
aboriginal collectives in certain circumstances. Thus, the author concludes that the liberal-individualist
perspective of Canadian courts will ultimately prevent them from recognizing aboriginal and treaty rights as
collective rights for all purposes.
Sarvé-Gorham, Kristan. (2001) "Answering the western: The frontier myth in American Indian fiction." Ph.D.
Dissertation, Emory University. 305 pp.
'Answering the western' explores the response to the Euro-American myth of the frontier by four American
Indian writers. Popular Western novels and films articulate the frontier myth by celebrating and
romanticizing the dispossession of American Indians from the land of North America through physical and
cultural genocide. Mourning Dove's Cogewea, Leslie Marmon Silko's Ceremony, Louise Erdrich's
Matchimanito cycle of Tracks, Love Medicine, and The bingo palace, and N. Scott Momaday's The ancient
child share common points of convergence in answering the Western. First, Mourning Dove, Silko, Erdrich,
and Momaday utilize the trope of the medicine woman as a symbol of survival to counter the perception of
native extinction advanced by the Western. Second, through the medicine woman's expression of indigenous
land ethics, Mourning Dove, Silko, Erdrich, and Momaday challenge the unscrupulous seizure of land and
assert the sacred symbiosis of humans and land. Third, they respond to the authority that the frontier myth
holds as the definitive story arising from the American land by integrating stories from native oral traditions.
Fourth, the use of a powerful woman to anchor the narrative moves women and Indians from the margin to
the centre of the story.
Each writer, however, answers the western from a unique perspective. Mourning Dove directly confronts the
western by positioning an Indian subtext beneath her western story, thereby creating a multi-layered
narrative. Silko questions the construct of male heroism as iconized in the western by posing an alternative
heroic model. Erdrich deconstructs simplistic notions of the frontier by referencing historical factors that add
complexity to discussions of frontier experiences and maintaining that the frontier remains open today
through controversies over Indian gaming. Momaday undermines the dominance of the Anglo myth of the
frontier by appropriating a popular frontier story and fusing American Indian experiences and stories onto it.
Cogewea, Ceremony, Erdrich's Matchimanito cycle, and The ancient child offer a foundation for the evolving
Indian Western by reimagining the story of the American frontier.
Saunders, Paula C. (1996 ) "Linking northern native communities and economic development: Assessing the role of
air transportation." M.A. Thesis, Queen's University at Kingston. 142 pp.
This thesis examines issues surrounding the establishment of economic development in the northern native
communities located in the provinces of Manitoba, Ontario and Québec. It proposes that the long distances
created by the geography of the provinces generate the need for links. For economic development purposes,
these links are needed to provide efficient and reliable movements between the northern native communities
and Canada's main southern markets. First, the literature is examined to identify the importance of economic
development for native communities in light of self-government goals. Next, the most appropriate form of
economic development for native communities is discussed. Of the three models taken from the literature, the
community development model is recognized for its ability to incorporate native ideologies into development
projects and initiatives. Third, the literature identifies transportation as a much needed support system for
economic development in northern regions. In comparison to the three other main modes of transportation,
rail, road and water, air transportation is viewed as the most appropriate form of the link. Air transportation
is recognized for its ability to tailor itself to the needs of the small, scattered northern markets and to
overcome the geographic barriers of the provinces' northern regions. Native involvement in the air
transportation link is explored with an introduction to the present service characteristics of native airlines in
the provinces of Manitoba, Ontario and Québec. A closer look at one native airline, Air Creebec Inc. of
Québec, presents the creation and operation of a successful native enterprise playing a part in the link
between native communities, southern markets and economic development. Air Creebec is assessed as a
possible model for the creation of other native airlines.
Saville, Deborah M. (1998) "Language and language disabilities: Aboriginal and non-aboriginal perspectives." M.Sc.
This ethnographic study combines qualitative and quantitative research methods to examine the relationship
between culture and language disability. Nine Cree and nine non-Cree couples, all parents of a language-
disabled child, were interviewed. The parental responses from the two cultural groups were compared.
Comparisons of interest included language socialization patterns, the influence of culture on the concept of
language disability and perceptions of speech-language pathology service delivery. Few cross-cultural
differences in parental responses about caregiver-child interaction and about language disability were
identified. It is hypothesized that a process of cultural blending may account for these findings. However,
differences relating to the perception of speech-language pathology service delivery were found. While both
groups described poor access to services, long waiting periods for intervention and insufficient quantity of
service, there were differences in degree reported between the Cree and non-Cree families. The clinical
implications of these findings are discussed.
Sawchuk, Joseph S. (1983 ) "Metis politics and Metis politicians: A new political arena in Canada." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of Toronto.
Contemporary native political organizations in Canada, particularly Metis organizations, are almost totally
nontraditional in their organizational structure. Their structure is very much determined by the day-to-day
aspects of administration and operation in a modern bureaucratic setting, and is also imposed from the
outside by government regulations and the fact that since the mid-1960s, the operations of these
organizations have largely been sustained by funding from the federal and provincial governments. This
dissertation is concerned with the way in which these organizations are structured by government regulations
and how they in turn structure relations between native peoples and the federal and provincial governments
in Canada. One particular Metis organization is examined in detail as a political arena in which interest
groups and individuals compete for the control of organizational resources, such as money in the form of
grants from government and private granting agencies; specific programs such as land claims or economic
development; personnel such as section heads and special consultants; technical knowledge, such as that
possessed by a lawyer or constitutional expert, and many others. Control of these resources allows
individuals within the organizations to determine the goals and directions of the organizations, and to secure
and enhance their own positions either as elected politicians or employees. According to this analysis, the
goals of the organization are continually changing, and are determined by whatever group or individual is in
power at the time. Further, because the organization is so dependent on outside funding for its operations,
the structure as well as the goals of the organization will change as the source of funding changes. Thus it is
the nature of Metis leadership and its resultant power struggles, as well as government regulations and
government funding, which are seen as the variables which ultimately determine the actions of Metis political
organizations in Western Canada. These same factors can also be used to illustrate the changing roles and
goals which have been associated with these organizations from the late 1920s to the early 1980s.
Schaniel, William C. (1985) "The Mäori and the economic frontier: An economic history of the Mäori of New
Zealand, 1769-1840." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Tennessee (The). 421 pp.
This dissertation investigates the evolution of New Zealand Mäori institutions of livelihood and movement of
goods which was engendered by pre-colonial contact with Europeans. Data were collected from letters,
journals, and official records of vessels, missionaries, traders, colonial officials, and visitors to New Zealand.
The primary sources along with later secondary sources provided contrasting analysis and interpretation of
Mäori social process, change, and innovation which had to be considered in the development of the
investigation. The roles of chiefs, warriors, women, and slaves changed in response to European trade in
iron, white potatoes, and firearms within their traditional frame of reference. Inter-tribal relations changed
with changes in the volume of foodstuffs grown, the strategy of warfare, the volume of goods transacted, and
the extent of regular gift relations. A new layer of transactional institutions developed to manage the flow of
goods and services to and from Europeans. Missionaries, whalers, traders, and visiting vessels were viewed
as separate groups, desiring and providing different goods. Each group was transacted with by different sets
of rules. Both Europeans and Mäori interpreted the actions and conduct of the other within their own
traditional frames of reference.
Scholtz, Christa S. (2004) "Negotiating claims: Recognition, citizenship, and the emergence of indigenous land claim
negotiation policies in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the United States." Ph.D. Dissertation, Princeton
University. 571 pp.
This study asks: 'Why do governments choose to negotiate indigenous land claims rather than resolve claims
through some other means?' I explore why a government would choose to implement a negotiation policy,
where it commits itself to a long-run strategy of negotiation over a number of claims and over a significant
course of time. This study therefore examines the emergence of a particular type of policy response and the
institutions that support it.
Why is the negotiation outcome interesting? For policymakers to choose a negotiation policy, policymakers
must reach two prior conclusions: (1) that they will recognize indigenous special land and political rights
claims by enshrining the principle of indigenous consent in the policy process; and, (2) that policymakers will
not divorce themselves politically from the outcomes of negotiation by delegating their decision-making
power to another party. To negotiate is to recognize collective rights while inviting possible blame for policy
outcomes that will likely prove unpopular.
I examine the development of indigenous land claims politics in four countries, primarily since World War II:
Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the United States. I argue that the emergence of negotiation policies is
explained by the interaction between judicial change and indigenous political mobilization, and not judicial
change alone. Specifically, the sequencing of political mobilization prior to judicial determinations regarding
indigenous land rights significantly changes policymakers' evaluations of their policy alternatives. Political
mobilization before significant court decisions means that policymakers must make policy choices in a
context where indigenous people can credibly threaten to impose future political costs. The study links
collective action and judicial change to explain the emergence of new policy institutions.
I also identify three mediating variables that further condition policymakers' evaluations of the negotiation
option. These variables are: (1) political norms that affect policymakers' underlying preference for
delegation; (2) the cohesion on average of the country's indigenous claimants; and, (3) federalism,
specifically the allocation of legislative competence over aboriginal affairs and resource management.
Schouls, Timothy A. (2002) "Shifting boundaries: Aboriginal identity, pluralist theory, and the politics of self-
government in Canada." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of British Columbia (The). 294 pp.
While Canada is often called a pluralist state, there are no sustained studies by political scientists in which
aboriginal self-government is discussed specifically in terms of the analytical tradition of pluralist thought.
Aboriginal self-government is usually discussed as an issue of cultural preservation or national self-
determination. Aboriginal identity is framed in terms of cultural and national traits that are unique to an
aboriginal community and self-government is taken to represent the aboriginal communal desire to protect
and preserve those traits. Is such an understanding of what motivates aboriginal self-government accurate,
or does it yield an incomplete understanding of the complex phenomenon that aboriginal self-government in
Canada represents?
The political tradition of pluralism allows for analysis of aboriginal self-government that addresses questions
left unattended by the cultural and nationalist frameworks. Pluralism is often viewed as a public arrangement
in which distinct groups are given room to live side by side, characterized by mutual recognition and
affirmation. At the same time, there are different faces of pluralist theory and each addresses questions about
the recognition and affirmation of aboriginal self-government in different ways. Those three contemporary
faces can be distinguished by the labels communitarian, individualist, and relational.
The major hypothesis advanced is that aboriginal self-government is better understood if an 'identification'
perspective on aboriginal identity is adopted as opposed to a 'cultural' or 'national' one and if that
perspective is linked to a relational theory of pluralism as opposed to a communitarian or individualist one.
The identification approach examines aboriginal identity not in terms of cultural and political traits, but in
terms of identification with, and political commitment to, an aboriginal community. Relational pluralism in
turn, examines the challenge of aboriginal self-government in terms of power differences within aboriginal
communities and between aboriginal and Canadian governments.
Applying these approaches to aboriginal politics in Canada confirms their suitability. Contrary to what
previous scholarship has assumed, aboriginal self-government should not be seen primarily as a tool to
preserve cultural and national differences as goods in and of themselves. The politics of aboriginal self-
government should be seen as involving demands to equalize current imbalances in power so that aboriginal
communities and the individuals within them can construct aboriginal identities according to their own
design.
Schwartz, Jennifer C. (1995) "GIS applications and indigenous land use information in the Canadian north: An
evaluation." M.A. Thesis, University of Guelph. 164 pp.
The introduction and diffusion of GIS technology throughout the north has been a result of several
developments; the negotiation and implementation of First Nations' land claims. Northern land use planning
and the devolution of administrative responsibilities from the federal to the territorial governments. These
developments have also brought about increased opportunities for public involvement in northern planning
and resource development and a corresponding rise of First Nations' power and influence in decision-making
processes. As a result, government and First Nations have begun to recognize the necessity of incorporating
indigenous environmental knowledge, also known as Indigenous Land Use Information (ILUI) into resource
management processes. However, the oral tradition and nature of ILUI does not conform to the Euro-
Canadian scientific framework used for collecting and recording data for resource management. GIS has
been proposed as the most viable means, given the technology available for portraying ILUI for integration
into existing resource management regimes. In this thesis, a framework for evaluating GIS use and ILUI
applications was established, based on prerequisites for planning, implementing and operating GIS identified
in the literature and the collection and use of ILUI. This framework served to illustrate the opportunities and
constraints and limitations of using GIS for depicting ILUI. Although the nature of ILUI imposes several
limitations for using GIS to integrate the two knowledge frameworks, the lack of careful planning and
inappropriate GIS implementation were found to be seriously affecting the success of GIS use for ILUI
applications. However, despite the present failure of most organizations in the north to use GIS effectively for
ILUI applications, it presents several advantages, such as enhanced opportunities for decision-making, the
ability to co-ordinate use for data sharing and resource management activities, and the ability to view the
landscape both cumulatively and holistically.
Scott, Gerry. (1991) "Beyond equality: British Columbia New Democrats and native peoples, 1961-79." M.A. Thesis,
Simon Fraser University. 107 pp.
In British Columbia, the New Democratic Party responded to native concerns in the 'traditional' manner of
the European-inspired left: historical grievances arising from cultural and/or racial experiences were viewed
as secondary to the class-oriented socioeconomic factors that dominate modern societies. In the 1960s and
1970s, the leadership of the British Columbia New Democratic Party did not readily accept native demands
for recognition as 'citizens plus' and for negotiation of land claims. Native resistance to the NDP programme
led to direct and deep conflicts with the province's first and only social democratic government. Only after
two years of such conflict, the defeat of the first NDP government, and the defection of the NDP's only native
legislator, did the party accept the agenda of native people themselves as the starting point for the
development of a more stable political relationship. Specifically, the leaders of the NDP offered provincial
government participation in the negotiation of land claims based upon aboriginal title.
Scott, Mark A. (1999) "Aboriginals' quest for recognition: Assimilation and differentiated citizenship." M.A. Thesis,
University of Western Ontario (The). 82 pp.
The author argues that opposition to the 1969 White Paper on aboriginal peoples unified and strengthened
aboriginal organization in Canada and forced the federal government to move from advocating an
assimilationist position, in order to promote the equal treatment of aboriginal people, toward one that
embraced a differentiated citizenship approach. The differentiated approach is examined from three different
theorists' perspectives and the author finds that each of the three approaches fails to guarantee the equal
treatment of aboriginal people. The 1969 White Paper proposals are re-examined and are found to have
some value in terms of promoting the equal treatment of aboriginal people in Canada and providing some
new ways of looking at aboriginal demands for special rights.
Scott, Richard T. (1993) "Bringing home methylmercury: The construction of an authoritative object of knowledge for
a Cree community in Northern Québec." M.A. Thesis, McGill University. 207 pp.
The thesis examines aspects of the construction of methylmercury as an authoritative object of knowledge for
Chisasibi, a Cree community on the James Bay coast in Northern Québec. I describe the evolution of a
particular set of spheres of exchange which mediate economic relations between the Cree communities, the
governments of Québec and Canada, and state and corporate structures tied to the state. Knowledge claims
about mercury can be seen as situated among claims of injury in a moral economy which is based on conflict
over the James Bay hydro-electric project. The politicization and subsequent medicalization of these
knowledge claims are described. Finally, I trace the emergence of particular concepts of 'normality', 'risk'
and 'risk group' in medical and technocratic discourses about the effects of methylmercury on Canadian
aboriginal populations.
Scott, Stephen O. (1987) "Primitive accumulation, the British Columbia salmon industry and Indian labour." M.A.
Thesis, Carleton University. 151 pp.
The thesis examines the concept of 'primitive accumulation' in the creation of the salmon fishing and canning
industry in British Columbia. It is argued that the labour of the native Indian population of British Columbia
and its salmon resource were transformed into labour-power and capital for use in the fledgling capitalist
salmon industry. This transformation required the separation of the native Indian population from its
historical means of production. It is argued that the access of Indian fishermen to the salmon resource was
progressively restricted by the application of commercial and subsistence fishing regulations. As a result the
native Indian population became a reserve pool of labour which the salmon canners could use to reduce the
price of labour to a minimum.
Sebescen, Margaret R. (2000) "Overcoming the odds: Resiliency in First Nations adults." M.A. Thesis, University of
This research explored factors related to resiliency in a sample of First Nations adults. Using the
complementary orientations of the salutogenic, phenomenological and humanistic models, interviews were
conducted with 2 male and 2 female resilient First Nations adults. Consistent with current definitions of
resiliency, these adults have reputations within the community and among their peers as being successful role
models, healers or leaders as well as survivors. Interviews assessed life histories as well as methods of
coping. Data consisted of interview transcripts and was analyzed using qualitative methods. Results support
the validity of the theoretical models of Kobasa's hardiness construct and Antonovsky's sense of coherence as
well as the personality theories offered by Maslow, Adler and Rogers. Additional findings indicate that
forgiveness and spiritually transformative events may contribute to resiliency.
Selverston, Melina H. (1999) "Contemporary indigenous politics in Ecuador: The contribution of ethno-nationalism to
democratization." Ph.D. Dissertation, Columbia University. 200 pp.
This dissertation demonstrates that the indigenous movement in Ecuador during the 1980s and 1990s
successfully opened a political space for indigenous Ecuadorians to participate in local and national politics.
The author argues that indigenous leaders developed an identity-based ideology around which to mobilize
the indigenous population. The indigenous population had been excluded from political participation. In their
struggles for indigenous rights, it is demonstrated, they undermined clientelistic structures, potentially
clearing the way for more democratic systems for the society as a whole. Inherently, as excluded actors, their
main demand is for inclusion or political participation, which can benefit democratic development. The
indigenous demand to participate, without sacrificing their distinct cultures, challenges assumptions of
nation-building that call for national homogeneity. It is argued that the state must be equally loyal to the
different cultures it governs in order to establish the stability needed for democracy to thrive. The research
demonstrates the relationship between local and national political systems, important in a rural society.
There is extensive literature regarding collective political action and what it means to people. This study
builds on that literature to demonstrate the important impact of the indigenous movement on the political
system.
Semerjian, Victor. (1997 ) "In search of the primordial communists: Andre Breton, surrealism and the indigenous
societies of North America." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of British Columbia (The). 340 pp.
During the 1920s and 1930s in Europe, Andre Breton was actively engaged in anti-colonial pursuits as a
result of his commitment to socialist international revolutionary politics. That this was the case is evident in
the numerous treatises and lectures in which Breton spoke out against imperialism and its oppression of non-
Western peoples. During the same period, Breton also collected and displayed North American indigenous
objects. When Breton was forced to flee to New York in the 1940s due to fascist persecution, he continued to
engage in these practices. Rather than viewing these activities as separate and unrelated, this thesis intends
to argue that one of the reasons North American indigenous objects were collected and evoked by Breton was
because the societies that produced them occupied an exalted place within European socialist ideology.
Certainly, there have been art historical studies devoted to the subject of Breton's aligning surrealism with
socialist international revolutionary causes. Moreover, in the existing writings on surrealism and indigenous
peoples, the attention paid to North American indigenous societies by Breton has been noted. However, in
this latter discourse, Breton's interest in North American aboriginal groups, whether in Europe or in the
United States and Canada, has been confined to issues of mythology, psychoanalysis, aesthetics and
connoisseurship and, hence, the left wing political importance of these societies has been overlooked.
Drawing upon the body of post-colonial critiques engaging the cooption and appropriation of other cultures
by the West, this thesis will investigate the European socialist significance of North American indigenous
societies and bring it to a discussion of Breton's collecting and display practices. Of particular importance in
this matter are the writings of Friedrich Engels in which ethnographic data on North American aboriginal
peoples was used to offer 'proof' that the first human communities existed in a state of primordial
communism. What will be argued is that varied dimensions of these imaginary societies were evoked by
Breton in left wing strategies during the 1930s and 1940s as part of an oppositional stand against bourgeois
ideology, imperialism, fascism and war.
To be sure, the collecting and exhibiting of indigenous objects brimming with socialist significance was not
solely defined by political activism; these pursuits were as well bound up with issues of avant-gardism and
so-called 'primitivism.' In order to pursue this matter, this thesis will also draw upon analyses of modernism
and the avant-garde in order to provide a clearer view of how and why certain North American aboriginal
peoples were drawn into Breton's artistic and political international revolutionary avant-garde strategies at
various moments and in differing geographic locales.
Sepez, Jennifer. (2001) "Political and social ecology of contemporary Makah subsistence hunting, fishing and
shellfish collecting practices." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Washington. 380 pp.
This dissertation documents and analyzes the subsistence hunting, fishing, and shellfishing practices of the
Makah Indian Tribe during 1997-99. Ethnographic and survey data are employed to analyze contemporary
uses of fish, shellfish, land mammals, marine mammals and birds. A random-sample survey of 15% of
reservation households provides quantitative data for more than 51 different animal resource types,
representing over 80 species. Results indicate that 99% of reservation households participated in subsistence
activities in some manner during the survey year. The quantitative analysis includes an examination of per
capita harvesting and consumption by resource, subsistence consumption as a proportion of the diet, and a
comparison of contemporary species diversity to evidence of ancient and historical subsistence. The
dissertation also examines contemporary subsistence in political, economic, and sociocultural contexts. An
historical political ecology of tribal resource access (with special attention to fishing, sealing, and whaling)
suggests that government policies which affect resource access should be considered as much as ecological
factors in order to understand subsistence dynamics. A preliminary examination of economic issues indicates
the role of subsistence foods in the local economy. Estimated replacement costs and contingent valuation
provide information for assessing the economic value of subsistence, including a reassessment of the
subsistence settlement resulting from 1991 oil spill. Sociocultural factors examined include the values,
knowledge, and practices associated with the community's ongoing relationship with the local resource base.
An in-depth analysis of sharing practices indicates that these play a key role in the distribution of subsistence
goods and the maintenance of community social ties. The dissertation shows that subsistence activities are a
pervasive and vital aspect of contemporary life in Neah Bay. They contribute to the social, cultural,
economic, nutritional, and spiritual sustenance of the community as part of the long-term relationship
between the tribe and its lands and waters.
Settee, Priscilla. (1999 ) "Honouring indigenous science as a means of ensuring scientific responsibility." M.Ed.
This research actually began many years ago before it was foreseen that it would end up as a research thesis.
It has been a culmination of work to date about topics that are near to my heart, the work around indigenous
sovereignty and preservation of the natural world. Through a process of personal contacts with Latin
American Indigenous groups in the early 1970s and more recently work with the Indigenous Women's
Network, the Indigenous Environmental Network and others, my knowledge about the state of environment
and Indigenous peoples has increased. This thesis documents this knowledge. My work with many fine
insightful leaders from our various Indigenous nations, as well as other colleagues exercising their solidarity
with Indigenous peoples, has been a very rewarding and inspirational experience. Long travels to the far
reaches of the earth have permitted me to witness first hand the ravages left behind by western development,
and has permitted me to learn how people organize to respond to those ravages. A most inspirational part of
my education has been my contacts and conversations with elders from various communities. Their unending
optimism, humour and great strategic insights into important world matters have been a deep source of
inspiration and motivation through difficult times. I believe that as educators and citizens we have a
responsibility for the protection of our Earth Mother for future generations. This thesis will serve, I hope, as
an inspiration to how people can overcome their sense of isolation and work towards building a better world
for those who will come after us.
Shafer, John A. (1995) "Alcohol: What do Native Americans think?" Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Nebraska --
Lincoln (The). 129 pp.
This research examined the beliefs of Native Americans about the causes of alcohol abuse. Surveys and
interviews were conducted with 256 Native American respondents in four geographical regions. Respondents
offered open-ended explanations that were categorized and compared against dominant theories about the
issue. These categorized explanations were tested against the independent variables of residency status
(reservation/non-reservation), gender, region, tribal affiliation, and socioeconomic status to determine the
effect of these factors on explanations given. Four dominant theories (differential association, biological
difference, cultural marginality, blocked opportunity) were compared to the respondents' lay explanations.
Although a 'blocked economic opportunity' explanation was the clear choice of respondents, significant
effects were seen for gender and socioeconomic status. Those of higher socioeconomic status gave greater
credence to explanations based on personal factors and showed less favour for explanations based on
structural obstacles. To a lesser extent, other effects due to residency status and region were also evident.
Some portion of these effects are likely due to intervening influences of gender, tribal affiliation, and
socioeconomic status. Blocked opportunity was offered most frequently as an open-ended explanation and
was selected most frequently as the best dominant theory. The other dominant theories in the literature did
not fare well when compared to the non-prompted explanations. Collectively, the three other dominant
theories were offered as the best open-ended explanation by only slightly over 15% of the respondents.
Respondents' explanations revealed a recognition that causes for alcohol abuse are multi-faceted and due to
many factors. There is some homogeneity in explanations offered by those of different statuses (residency,
gender, etc.) but differences based on these and other factors still exist and are worthy of future research.
Sharvit, Cheryl Y. (1999 ) "A sustainable co-existence? Aboriginal rights and resource management in Canada."
LL.M. Thesis, University of Calgary. 258 pp.
This thesis argues that the principle of cultural sustainability should guide the implementation of s. 35(1). It
further argues that aboriginal jurisdiction over land and resource use is protected as an aboriginal right
under s. 35(1) of the Constitution Act, 1982. Aboriginal peoples' relationships with their lands, and the rules
and institutions designed to ensure the continuity of those relationships, are integral elements of aboriginal
societies.
This thesis concludes that provincial legislation is inapplicable to the extent that it impairs the effectiveness
of existing aboriginal management systems. Federal legislation interfering with the exercise of
unextinguished resource management rights constitutes an infringement of s. 35 that must be justified.
Alberta's Forests Act and the Canada Mining Regulations are examples of legislative schemes that interfere
with aboriginal peoples' ability to protect their relationships with their lands. Neither scheme attempts to
accommodate aboriginal peoples' management systems or laws.
Shaw, Alexander C. (1995 ) "Perceptions of control, justice and hope: A study conducted in the Lillooet community."
M.A. Thesis, Simon Fraser University. 90 pp.
In this study perceptions of control, justice, and hope were explored in the Lillooet community using both
structured and semi-structured questionnaires. Specifically, the relationships between the constructs of Locus
of Control, Just World, and Anasakti (Indian construct of 'non-attachment') were elucidated. The study also
determined the extent to which these constructs were predictive of Hope. Participants were asked to complete
a questionnaire composed of two parts. In the first part they were given Miller's Hope scale, Levenson's
Locus of Control scale, Naidu and Pande's Anasakti scale, and Lipkus's Just World scale. In the second part
of the questionnaire they were asked to select the issue of greatest concern to them in the Lillooet community,
and to describe the issue. They were also asked to indicate how hopeful they felt about the future with
regards to this issue and how much control they had over it. Finally, they were asked similar questions about
a resource related issue which they also selected. Analyses revealed significant correlations between
Anasakti and Locus of Control and between Internal Locus of Control (a subscale of Locus of Control) and
Just World. Locus of Control and Anasakti contributed significantly to the prediction of Hope for the entire
sample. Participants with First Nations status were found to be less hopeful, and less Anasakt than their non-
First Nations counterparts.
Shaw, Karena. (1999) "Leviathan's angels: Indigenous politics and the limits of the political." Ph.D. Dissertation,
Johns Hopkins University (The). 348 pp.
The struggles of indigenous peoples for political subjectivity, specifically in Canada but also more broadly,
offer crucial challenges to ongoing debates within contemporary political theory. They especially challenge
the framing of debates over issues of identity and difference, and the possibility of developing a more
pluralistic understanding of political community. These challenges, I argue, demand a more sustained
engagement with sovereignty, and with early-modern assumptions about what constitutes a properly political
community expressed in claims about sovereignty. Drawing upon early-modern theorists such as Thomas
Hobbes and Alexis de Tocqueville, I argue that modern political institutions and practices depend upon
sovereignty as their crucial precondition. Sovereignty, in turn, is dependent upon the reproduction of a
shared ground of ontological homogeneity -- or identity -- as the basis upon which disputes can be reconciled
and order established. This claim to a necessary sovereignty has not only sustained a high degree of order
and stability in the context of North America, but has also legitimated significant violences towards and
exclusions of the original inhabitants of North America. Inasmuch as contemporary institutions and practices
of politics have assumed and reinforced rather than problematised the necessities that underlie modern
productions of sovereignty, they have reproduced a series of double binds for Indigenous political
movements. While the work of those theorists who have struggled fiercely against the constraints of modern
thought imposed by sovereignty, such as Gilles Deleuze and Félix Guattari, or against the treatment of
Indigenous peoples enabled by modern thought, such as James Tully, productively engages challenges posed
by Indigenous political movements, even these efforts remain constrained by the limits of political possibility
produced by discourses and practices of sovereignty. The dissertation begins with an analysis of Hobbes,
Tocqueville and the reproductions of sovereignty in the modern scholarly disciplines of international
relations and anthropology. It then develops a critical readings of contemporary Indigenous politics in
Canada and key texts by Tully and Deleuze-Guattari.
Shell-Hill, Patricia A. (2004) "Seeking Lakota elder wisdom on grief and healing: The role of Lakota women,
historical grief, and educating children on healing from grief." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of South
Dakota. 190 pp.
Lakota people have maintained an indigenous society guided by a social system with an intrinsic spiritual
core manifested by the seven ceremonies specified and delivered by the White Buffalo Calf Woman, Pte-san
Winyan, to this nation approximately nineteen generations ago. The "Keeping of the Spirit" or "Wanagi
Gluha" ceremony for the family in mourning provided a healing process for "letting go" of the "spirit" of the
family member. With Euro-American lifestyle and values introduced into Lakota society, changes occurred
without consideration for the values and life ways of the Lakota. Consequently, many of the life ways and
pathways involving mourning and grief of the Lakota have been considerably impacted. Bearing this in mind,
this qualitative (emic-ethnographic phenomenological) study attempts to explore, with eight Lakota elders
(six women and two men), their perspectives on grief issues. Namely, the role of Lakota women in healing
grief, and the role of "historical grief," and the guidance they have on helping children deal with grief. This
study attempts to provide assistance to mental health professionals in understanding the strengths of the
Lakota culture, and the view of the traditional elders. Qualitative coding methodology utilizing thematic
analysis and interactive procedures was employed to analyze the interviews by individual participants, and
collectively, across all participants.
Shepherd, Jeffrey P. (2002) "Building an American Indian community: The Hualapai Nation in the twentieth century."
This dissertation discusses Hualapai history from the mid-19th to the end of the 20th century. It argues that
connections with the land, tribal leaders, and a strong sense of community enabled Hualapais to adapt to life
in modern America. Like many Indigenous people, Hualapais confronted forces beyond their control, but this
dissertation emphasizes how they have persisted despite those changes. This study challenges assimilation-
resistance models of culture by focusing on why Hualapais made particular decisions and it argues that the
meaning of these changes tells us more than the material manifestations of change. By combining oral
histories, fieldwork, and archival research, this dissertation offers a balanced discussion of a persistent and
enduring community.
In the early 1800s decentralized bands constituted Northeastern Pai identity but by the 1940s, these bands
coalesced into the Hualapai Nation. By discussing the evolution of Hualapai ethnic boundaries this study
highlights how Native people define themselves over time. In the early reservation era Hualapais opposed
land allotment because of cultural connections to the land and their reliance on it for sustenance. Moreover,
they struggled to bring a boarding school close to them, and they participated in World War I to defend their
community and country.
This dissertation contributes to the growing literature on American Indians in the 20th century. This study
argues that Hualapai government maintained legitimacy with the community because prominent families had
leaders on the Tribal Council and the Council retained hereditary chiefs. During the mid 20th century
Hualapais won a Supreme Court Case against the Santa Fe Railway, promoted the Bridge Canyon Dam on
the Colorado River, and struggled with the National Park Service to protect their sovereignty.
In the late 20th century Hualapais continue to innovate and endure. Tribal leaders developed a language
program to maintain cultural identity yet the community combated alcoholism, unemployment, and poor
health care. In spite of these challenges Hualapais established a tourist industry and accepted federal grants
for childcare, community planning, and preventative medicine. Although Hualapais face fundamental
economic obstacles, they still hold onto their land and make their own choices about who they are and where
they want to go as a community.
Sherman, Daniel J. (2004 ) "Not here, not there, not anywhere: The federal, state, and local politics of low-level
radioactive waste disposal in the United States, 1979-99." Ph.D. Dissertation, Cornell University. 304 pp.
This dissertation seeks to explain (1) the surprising devolution of disposal responsibility for commercially
generated low-level radioactive waste (LLRW) from the federal government to state governments and
regional compacts, (2) varying levels and types of activism in twenty-one counties named as candidate sites
for LLRW facilities between 1986 and 1993, and (3) varying degrees of progress toward site construction
across these candidate sites.
Forty years of nuclear energy legislation, congressional hearings, debates, and other documents relevant to
the formation of the 1980 LLRW Policy Act reveal a federal bureaucracy that steadily lost environmental and
safety credibility in the eyes of state governments. The state governments did not trust the federal government
to locate and construct safe waste sites. The federal government devolved disposal responsibility of LLRW as
a token to states, while it jealously guarded authority over high-level waste disposal. All government actors
drastically underestimated the potential for local opposition to LLRW disposal sites.
Quantitative analysis of twenty-one candidate sites for LLRW facilities reveals that standard variables from
the social movement literature and the waste siting literature fail to account for different levels of community
activism. A paired comparison of two North Carolina counties, one highly active and one relatively inactive,
demonstrates that collective action is closely linked to the ability of activists to actively appropriate county-
wide social sites and link the opposition to community identity. Quantitative analysis of all twenty-one cases
demonstrates a significant relationship between the active opposition of local government to the LLRW
facility and a lack of disruptive forms of activism in the community at large. A paired comparison of two
highly active New York counties shows that local government involvement moderates the type of activism
citizens express.
Implementation analysis shows a strong correlation between low levels of active public opposition and
progress toward site construction. Local public opposition to LLRW quickly diminished the implementation
efforts of state governments. Ultimately the LLRW Policy Act failed to locate any new LLRW disposal sites.
Shewell, Hugh E. Q. (1995) "Origins of contemporary Indian social welfare in the Canadian liberal state: An historical
case study in social policy, 1873-65." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Toronto. 818 pp.
The First Nations' level of dependence on social assistance historically exceeds that found in the Canadian
population. The dominant state's solution to this dependence has consistently been located in the liberal,
capitalist discourse of the Indian individual's capacity and ability to labour. This solution represents an
extension of the state's continued efforts to destroy First Nations as collective entities, to make of them a
wage-dependent working class, and to assimilate them as individuals into the dominant society. Thus, Indian
welfare dependence must be considered on the continuum of the historical relationship between First Nations
and Europeans which originated as a trading partnership and then evolved into the First Nations' resistance
to the penetration of capitalism and the introduction of liberal culture into North America.
Social assistance became an ideological and economic weapon used by the state to subdue First Nations and
to force them to engage in the liberal market-place as self-supporting wage-earners. Consumed by fears of
Indian dependence on the state two principles guided social assistance policy over the entire study period.
First, Indians were to be treated in a manner comparable to other Canadians in similar circumstances and
second, Indian poverty was to be defined as an individual not a collective problem. Using archival documents
the thesis analyses the development and administration of Indian welfare policy over two periods,
subjugation (1873 to 1945) and citizenship (1946 to 1965).
From 1873 to 1945 relief was harshly and meanly administered. While state measures abetted the destruction
of Indian economies and governments, social policy attempted to force the able-bodied into the labour
market. After 1945, social assistance was linked to rights of citizenship. To advance Indian citizenship, the
state enlisted the help of social scientists and national welfare organizations. Concurrently it sought the
cooperation of the provinces in extending their welfare services on to the reserves. The period culminated
with the implementation of a community development program to encourage Indian self-reliance and
citizenship. Ultimately it resulted in the devolution of the welfare bureaucracy to the reserves. The thesis
concludes that Indian welfare dependence can only be reduced if Indian autonomy is restored.
Short, Christine W. (1999) "The cultural metamorphosis of Cree education." M.A. Thesis, University of Calgary. 245
pp.
This thesis examines the educational situation of the Little Red River Cree Nation in Northern Alberta. Issues
surrounding student retention, achievement, Cree language, and cultural identity within First Nations
education are addressed, with particular attention paid to curricula and practice in one of the Nation's
schools: Jean Baptiste Sewepagaham School, Fox Lake. The legacy of Western colonial schooling, pertinent
to this community, is traced with reference to academic literature and theory, the personal experiences of the
author, and the words and art of First Nations people. First Nations art provides the focus for a discussion
on the cultural metamorphosis of Indigenous education which is suggested as a suitable ideological
foundation/process for the school. This realistic approach to cultural change and personal/collective identity
formation involves collaborative community-based educational planning, multidimensional teaching
methodologies, cooperative learning strategies, and broad ranging assessment practices.
Short, Damien. (2004) "Australian reconciliation: The latest stage in the colonial project." Ph.D. Dissertation,
University of Essex. 300 pp.
In the 1990s several countries that had been divided by episodes of mass violence or gross human rights
violations instigated projects of national reconciliation. Reconciliation initiatives sought to provide an
alternative to traditional state diplomacy and realpolitik by focusing on restoring and rebuilding
relationships in novel and context sensitive ways that promoted state legitimacy, forgiveness and social
stability (see Lederach 1999). In 1991 the Australian parliament unanimously passed the Council for
Aboriginal Reconciliation Act (CARA, 1991), which heralded the start of a process of reconciliation between
indigenous and non-indigenous society. The following thesis seeks to evaluate and interpret this
reconciliation process. The preamble to the CARA 1991 founded the need for reconciliation on the injustice
of colonial dispossession and its legacy, which it suggested would be 'addressed progressively.' During
Official Reconciliation both the Keating and Howard governments had the opportunity to give legislative
effect to common law indigenous land rights, but as this thesis will show, the legislation that was supposedly
enacted to enshrine indigenous land rights more closely reflected the needs of commercial interests and
actually functioned to dispossess indigenous people still further. Furthermore, Prime Minister Paul Keating
and the Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation positively promoted an overt nation building agenda which
aimed to cosmetically legitimise the settler nation, by the inclusion of previously excluded Aboriginal people,
while at the same time indigenising settler culture and effectively restricting indigenous aspirations to
participation 'within' the political and cultural confines of the nation state. In short, the thesis argues that,
rather than being a genuine attempt at atonement that is responsive to key indigenous aspirations, for
meaningful land rights and redress for state sanctioned child removal policies, Official Reconciliation is
perhaps better understood as but the latest stage in the colonial project.
Shortall, Stacey A. (1996) "Aboriginal self-government in Aotearoa/New Zealand: A view through the Canadian
lens." LL.M. Thesis, University of Alberta. 203 pp.
This thesis argues that the right to aboriginal self-government exists in both Canadian and Aotearoa/New
Zealand jurisprudence. Common law aboriginal rights provide the legal basis for self-government in
Canada. Viewed through the lens of Canadian jurisprudence, similar self-governing rights exist under the
Treaty of Waitangi in Aotearoa/New Zealand. Part One of this thesis explores the nature of claims to
aboriginal self-government. In looking to the Canadian experience, it provides an understanding of what is
meant by the right to aboriginal self-government. It establishes the legal status of this right and considers the
recognition of indigenous governance. Part Two focuses on the realization of aboriginal self-government in
Aotearoa/New Zealand. Legal status for this right is established under article two of the Mäori version of the
Treaty of Waitangi. Constitutional entrenchment of this treaty is proposed as a means of realising aboriginal
self-government and honouring promises made to Mäori people.
Silva, Noenoe K. (1999) "Ke Ku'e Kupa'a Loa Nei Makou: Kanaka Maoli resistance to colonization." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of Hawai'i. 228 pp.
This dissertation contests the myth that the Kanaka Maoli (Native Hawai'ians) did not resist colonization.
Analysis of the political content of 19th century Hawai'ian language newspapers reveals resistance of many
varieties to the political, cultural, and religious oppressions of colonialism. Chapter 2 analyzes the resistance
discourse in the first Hawai'ian language newspaper free of missionary control, Ka Hoku o ka Pakipika,
which emerged in 1861 during a period of repression of hula, traditional medicine, and the indigenous
religion. I contrast it to the discourse in the other Hawai'ian language papers, which were all assisting in
colonizing the Kanaka Maoli. Chapter 3 analyzes the emergence of Ka Hoku o ka Pakipika in the era of
plantation/colonial capitalism in Hawai'i, which meant a rise to political and economic power for the US
missionaries. Through Ka Hoku o ka Pakipika, the Kanaka Maoli claimed the power of the press for
themselves, affirming their identity as a people/nation, and resisting attempts to convert them into plantation
labourers. They reproduced their native, forbidden, culture on the printed page in stories, poetry, and song,
and contested the colonizers in political essays. Chapter 4 shows how King Kalakaua built upon this
resistance movement by bringing the forbidden cultural practices off the page and into performance and
pageantry. He brought history/legends from the oral tradition and enacted them as national narratives.
Chapter 5 documents the mass anti-annexationist movement of the 1890s, which included a political
organization of over 11,000 Kanaka women that has never before been viewed as important by historians.
The dissertation conclusively demonstrates that reading the archive in the Hawai'ian language can effectively
challenge the debilitating myths and stereotypes of the Kanaka Maoli created by mainstream historiography
Silver, Peter R. (2000) "Indian-hating and the rise of whiteness in provincial Pennsylvania." Ph.D. Dissertation, Yale
University. 402 pp.
This dissertation tries to explain how the whirling, discordant variety of early Pennsylvania's native and
European populations -- especially after the social transition of the 1720s, when the impact of unprecedented
Irish and German immigration began to be felt -- was simplified into a new racial and political order by the
time of the American Revolution. For most of this period, Pennsylvania's landscape was a crazy patchwork of
overlapping racial, linguistic, and religious zones, where the inhabitants of multiple human frontiers
continually collided. This intermixture of groups in space provoked not harmony or affection, but a disgusted
anxiety to be more distinct, an anxiety that set off what are best understood as nativistic revivals among both
Indian and European groups. It was the experience of general military mobilization against Indians at mid-
century that brought many of Pennsylvania's European communities first into alliance and then,
unexpectedly, into sympathy, setting in motion a crude white nationalism by means of which race traitors like
the Quakers, and to a degree Mennonites and Moravians, were in time elbowed out of the political nation.
Exploring the turbulent relations of European-descended peoples in the mid-Atlantic colonies with Indians
and with each other, this dissertation ties both to the central features of early America's 18th century history:
its waves of immigration, the revivalism of the 1740s, the French and Indian War, and the unsettlement that
attended postwar crises like Pontiac's war and the Paxton riots of 1763-64. It demonstrates how the
persistent presence of Indians both continually disrupted provincial society and eventually built up, on the
foundation of Indian-hating, a new governing coalition of non-pacifist Europeans. Indian-hating was the first
prod to mass political awareness in pre-revolutionary Pennsylvania; Indian controversies provided a sort of
school in which many of the colony's diverse groups first learned to act publicly. By 1776, I argue, a long
series of religious, military, and political disputes centering around Indians had almost accidentally thrown
up a usable white identity, across national and denominational lines, in the most diverse of all colonial North
America's societies.
Silvern, Steven E. (1995 ) "Nature, territory and identity in the Wisconsin Ojibwe treaty rights conflict." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of Wisconsin -- Madison (The). 522 pp.
In 1983 the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit affirmed the Wisconsin Ojibwe's right to
gather certain natural resources on northern Wisconsin lands that they ceded to the United States in 19th
century treaties. Since that decision the Ojibwe have exercised their legal right to fish, hunt, and gather from
these off-reservation lands. In response to the exercise of these rights, anti-treaty rights groups organized
rowdy, and sometimes violent protests at the boat landings during the spring Ojibwe spearing season. This
dissertation explores the relationship between territoriality, nature, and cultural identity in the conflict over
Indian treaty rights in northern Wisconsin. It examines the importance of territorial control for the definition
of cultural identity and for the conception and use of nature. Nature and culture are connected through
place; who controls place or territory, at least partially controls this relationship. Territoriality is a strategy
facilitating the creation and shaping of place so that it reflects the ideologies of the dominant culture. As used
by the state, territoriality is a very effective means to enforce specific conceptions of nature and natural
resource use. Territoriality was used by the State of Wisconsin to limit Ojibwe subsistence and commercial
uses of nature in northern Wisconsin. The Ojibwe, however, legally challenged assertions of state
territoriality and have pursued an alternative vision of place and the nature-culture relation. They seek to
share power with the state in order to shape culture-nature interactions in northern Wisconsin according to
their own vision. The tribes' quest for co-management and their opposition to metallic mining in northern
Wisconsin are just two key examples of their struggle to be included in the decision making affecting the
human use of nature. Understanding the role that place plays in such conflicts -- how place weaves together
nature and culture -- may help to promote resolution to this and other social conflicts. This dissertation
contributes to the geographical discourse on the social construction of place and nature and expands
understanding of territorial conflicts between indigenous communities and the dominant societies within
which they reside.
Simeone, William E. (1990) "Identity, history and the Athabaskan potlatch." Ph.D. Dissertation, McMaster University.
283 pp.
A basic theme underlying Athabaskan culture and the potlatch is the duality of competition and cooperation.
In the literature on both the Northwest Coast and Athabaskan potlatch this duality is most often considered in
one of two ways: as a cultural phenomenon which is functional and ahistorical in nature, or as a product of
Native and White contact. In this study I take a less radical view. Within Athabaskan culture and the potlatch
cooperation and competition exist in a historically reticulate duality which provides the internal dynamic in
Northern Athabaskan culture and continues to motivate attempts to redefine the culture and the potlatch. In
the context of political and economic domination, however, the duality becomes an opposition in which
competition is submerged and reshaped into a symbol for the White man, while cooperation becomes a
symbol for unity and Indianness. The resulting ideology, or 'Indian way,' becomes a critique of the current
situation and a vision of things as they should be. The potlatch is the major arena in which this vision derived
from the past is reproduced.
Simmons, Deborah L. (1995) "Against capital: The political economy of aboriginal resistance in Canada." Ph.D.
Dissertation, York University. 402 pp.
This thesis evolved out of an attempt to analyze aboriginal agency and resistance in the aftermath of the
Mohawk conflict at Oka, Québec, which took place in the summer of 1990. However, the existing political
economy literature on aboriginal oppression founded in the 'staple theory' outlined by Harold Adams Innis
does not account for the historical significance of aboriginal resistance in Canada. The thesis undertakes a
critique of the inherent assumptions in staple theory -- its anthropologism, its fetish of the commodity form,
and its geographical determinism -- which effectively reduce aboriginal peoples to the position of passive
victims in contemporary capitalist society. An alternative historiography is then proposed which considers
Canadian economic and political development as the outcome of struggle. The agency of aboriginal peoples
is understood in terms of their specific and changing historical position as producers, from the early fur
trade to the forging of a capitalist economy and post-colonial state. If the rise of commodity wheat
production is the key to the transition to capitalism in Canada, it follows that the aboriginal struggle to retain
their land rights was an important obstacle to such development. The aboriginal struggle for land continues
to be an obstacle to capitalist expansion; in the current context of economic integration under the North
American Free Trade Agreement, such resistance has international implications. In the current climate of
scapegoating and cutbacks which accompany the restructuring process, aboriginal aspirations for land and
self-determination also coincide with the aims of other social movements to oppose such attacks. In fact,
aboriginal self-determination is central to the broader project for social change in Canada.
Simon, Michael P. (1986) "Indigenous peoples in developed fragment societies: A comparative analysis of internal
colonialism in the United States, Canada and Northern Ireland." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Arizona
(The). 487 pp.
The purpose of this dissertation was to compare British policy towards Ireland/Northern Ireland and United
States and Canadian Indian policies. Despite apparent differences, it was hypothesized that closer
examination would reveal significant similarities. A conceptual framework was provided by the utilization of
Hartzian fragment theory and the theory of internal colonialism. 18 research questions and a series of
questions concerned with the applicability of the theoretical constructs were tested using largely historical
data and statistical indices of social and economic development. The research demonstrated that Gaelic-Irish
and North American Indian societies came under pressure from, and were ultimately subjugated by
colonizing fragments marked by their high level of ideological cohesiveness. In the Irish case the decisive
moment was the Ulster fragmentation of the 17th century which set in juxtaposition a defiant,
uncompromising, zealously Protestant, 'Planter' community and an equally defiant, recalcitrant, native
Gaelic-Catholic population. In the United States traditional Indian society was confronted by a largely
British-derived, single-fragment regime which was characterized by a profound sense of mission and an
Indian policy rooted in its liberal ideology. In Canada the clash between two competing settler fragments led
to the victory of the British over the French, and the pursuit of Indian policies based on many of the same
premises that underlay United States policies. The indigenous populations in each of the cases under
consideration suffered enormous loss of land, physical and cultural destruction, racial discrimination,
economic exploitation and were stripped of their political independence. They responded through collective
violence, by the formation of cultural revitalization movements, and by intense domestic and international
lobbying. They continue to exist today as internal colonies of the developed fragment states within which they
are subsumed.
Simonian, Ligia T. L. (1993) ""This bloodshed must stop": Land claims on the Guarita and Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau
reservations, Brazil." Ph.D. Dissertation, City University of New York. 521 pp.
This dissertation analyzes land claims on Indian territories in Brazil, and compares claims laid on the
Guarita and the Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau reservations. Archival and ethnographic data are used to reveal past and
contemporary transformations. Despite the differences between the two reservation settings and the
differential time gap in the colonial encounter, conquest and process of domination and accommodation,
both the Guarita and the Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau reservation Indians have undergone similar dispossessing
experiences. Indian land loss, depopulation, kin and biological changes are, therefore, examined. The state,
non-Indians and Indian role as claimants are simultaneously analyzed, as well as the role of some Indians as
usurpers of their own kin possessions and natural resource rights are explored. Emphasis is given to recent
land claims in a discussion of the consistent and persistent control exercised by the state and local elites on
Indian lands. This process of control has been accomplished through state sponsored developmentalist
policies, usually in collaboration with international interests. The research suggests that in the Amazon these
policies have been imposed since the mid-1940s during the rubber-boom, and continued ever since with
mining, road building, colonization and lumber exploitation. In the south they have been imposed through a
'green revolution,' primarily with the intensification of crops such as wheat and soybean, the latter for export.
Indian land and natural resources have been great, both in the Guarita and the Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau
reservations, where the Indians have suffered genocidal policies and actions. Finally, these processes are
compared with similar situations worldwide, where the state, non-Indians, and eventually Indians have
deliberately sponsored anti-Indian policies and strategies. Changes in Indian land policies have also
occurred as the state began to recognize vast areas as Indian lands, but threats persist through powerful non-
Indian economic and political interests. Growing Indian political organization may be a sign of hope,
especially if the ongoing inequalities including Indian landlessness within and between different groups, is
addressed by the state, non-Indians and Indians in the near future.
Simpkins, Maureen A. (2000) "After Delgamuukw: Aboriginal oral tradition as evidence in aboriginal rights and title
litigation." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Toronto. 222 pp.
The integration of aboriginal oral tradition within many academic disciplines, legal cases and land-use
disputes means that Euro-Canadian institutions now have to examine their relationship to and their
understanding of aboriginal oral tradition. Both the legal and the contextual issues involved in cross-cultural
interpretation of oral and written historical materials have implications for how aboriginal communities may
chose to share, validate and evaluate their oral traditions. As well the identification of these issues have
implications for how Euro-Canadian institutions may choose to approach aboriginal oral tradition as
evidence.
The eight people interviewed gave their thoughts and opinions about the use of aboriginal oral tradition as
evidence, using the Supreme Court recommendations in Delgamuukw (1997) as a focus. The interviewees
had either; (a) given evidence in the form of aboriginal oral histories in a court case; (b) been involved in a
court case where aboriginal oral histories were called upon as evidence; or, (c) done research/writing in the
area of aboriginal oral histories. Their opinions represent a particular segment of informed opinion post-
Delgamuukw (1997). The combination of the issues that emerged from the legal research and the interviews
contributes to two main bodies of research and literature:
(1) Aboriginal rights and title litigation: systemic barriers were identified that make it difficult for aboriginal
oral histories to be evaluated equally alongside written historical evidence. A number of issues such as
testing for aboriginal rights, frozen rights, how rights can be extinguished by the Crown and how the Crown
rationalizes assertions of sovereignty, emerged as systemic barriers within aboriginal rights and title
litigation.
(2) Cross-cultural communication: issues such as interpretation, evaluation and comparison of aboriginal
oral histories alongside of written historical documents were identified as some of contextual issues that need
to be dealt with. These issues have more to do with the nature, the content and the role that aboriginal oral
histories play not just in the courts, but in other forums where aboriginal oral histories are being evaluated
and compared in cross-cultural contexts.
Simpson, Audra. (2004) "To the reserve and back again: Kahnawake Mohawk narratives of self, home and nation."
Ph.D. Dissertation, McGill University. 302 pp.
This dissertation investigates the social and cultural contours of citizenship and nationhood of Kahnawake
Mohawks. The central question that I seek to answer is "What other narratives of nationhood and citizenship
are there than those of membership in the American or Canadian states?" Mohawks and other Iroquois
nations have long asserted their ideological, and in the case of some, economic independence from the
governments of Canada and the United States. My multi-sited research illustrates that this historical
assertion is more than rhetoric; it is also a practice or 'praxis,' as Mohawks configure citizenship across the
imposed borders that separate their reserves from cities and states from states. This dissertation engages
contemporary theories of nationhood, historical and contemporary ethnographic literature on the Iroquois,
as well as contemporary literature in political theory and policy to examine the gendered and sometimes
racialized contours of Indigenous nationhood and citizenship across borders. Kahnawake Mohawk
narratives and the choices that they entail have implications for the way that all "post-colonial" nationals
attempt to imagine and construct their place and their membership within and beyond the boundaries of their
communities and that of the state.
Simpson, Leanne R. (1999 ) "The construction of traditional ecological knowledge: Issues, implications and insights."
Indigenous peoples living in North America have been using their knowledge to live sustainably for
thousands and thousands of years. Recently, the dominant society has developed an interest in what has
become known as Traditional Ecological or Environmental Knowledge (TEK). The objective of this study is
to examine the concept of TEK from aboriginal and non-aboriginal perspectives using the current literature
and my own experiences in a First Nation community; to use an appropriate non-western methodology to
learn about Indigenous Knowledge from members of a First Nation; and to use my experiences working with
the community to demonstrate how western society constructs TEK, the implications of textualizing oral
knowledge and of sharing knowledge in terms of marginalization and the appropriation. Chapter One
provides an introduction and a brief theoretical overview of TEK research in Canada, and Chapter Two
consists of a literature review of TEK and its uses by aboriginal and non-aboriginal societies. Chapter Three
is a detailed outline of the Anishinaabe methods of inquiry, including learning-by-doing, dreaming,
ceremonies, story telling and self knowledge. Chapter Four consists of a personal narrative that is
interwoven with excerpts from aboriginal experts in the literature regarding TEK and discusses the
manufacturing of TEK by the dominant society, textualizing, sharing knowledge and the misappropriation of
TEK. Chapter Five concludes by pulling together a series of recommendations for TEK research in the
future.
Sioui, Georges E. (1991) "La civilisation Wendate." Ph.D. Dissertation, Université Laval. 384 pp.
['The Wendate civilization']
The important role played by the Wendate in the large aboriginal society of the northeast is generally
recognized by history. However, few historians to date have looked at the perceptions the Wendate have had
of themselves. The study of the oral traditions in this work reveals close correspondences between this auto-
perception and what we can see of it in terms of archaeology, as well as what was presented in Euro-
American ethnographic works. In addition, this three-fold approach to Wendate society instructs historical
sciences on the existence and nature of a North-Amerindian way of thinking that can legitimately present this
society as the centre of a true civilization that has been little understood until now. The Wendate civilization
is a study of the history of the Wendate between 1000 and 1649, year their country ended as well as a
reflection on the ways of survival for their ideology and the interest in it for all modern individuals and
societies.
Skupien, Mary B. (1998) "Domestic violence on the San Carlos Apache Indian Reservation: Incidence and prevalence,
associated depression and post-traumatic stress symptomatology, and cultural considerations." Ph.D.
Dissertation, Johns Hopkins University (The). 295 pp.
Domestic violence has been said to be a major problem for American Indian/Alaskan Natives (AI/AN), but
most Tribal Councils and communities are unwilling or uncertain how to address such a complex and
sensitive problem on the reservation. The purpose of this study was to investigate the extent of the domestic
violence problem on the San Carlos Apache Indian reservation, assess the association of depression and
post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms with domestic violence and examine cultural considerations
when describing the problem on the reservation.
For this self-selected, volunteer sample of San Carlos Apache women (n = 163), recruited by local flyers in
the community and the local cable channel, the yearly incidence rate of injury and physical assault abuse is
31.3% and 41.7%, respectively. The relationship prevalence of injury and physical assault abuse is 62% and
76.7%, respectively. Most of the women reported alcohol/drinking as the number one cause of domestic
violence on the reservation. 57 of the women witnessed abuse as a child. In the bivariate analysis for abuse
risk factors, being under the age of 46 years old; having fewer than four bedrooms in the home; having more
people in the home; having an income below $800 per month; being on public assistance; having no
occupation or being a mom/homemaker, firefighter; being in a current relationship lasting less than 16
years; being in a common law relationship; and having you or your partner decide how the money is spent
were significant sample characteristics predicting relationship injury and physical assault abuse.
In the multivariate analysis, being younger than age 46 years old, having fewer bedrooms in the house than
four, having an income below $800, and being in a relationship now were the significant predictors of injury
and physical assault abuse.
For depression, being under 46 years old; injury and physical assault abuse; more than four children in the
home; being in a relationship; and having the woman or her partner decide how most/all the money is spent,
were significant risk factors for symptoms of depression (CES-D).
For PTSD symptoms, being under 46 years old; injury and physical assault abuse; having an income less
than $800 per month; being in a common law relationship; being out of a relationship less than 6 months to a
year ago; and having the woman or her partner decide how the money is spent most/all of the time, were
significant sample characteristics predicting PTSD (DTS-F). Injury and physical assault abuse were the
significant predictors of increased depression and PTSD symptoms in multivariate analysis.
89% reported they would like to have doctors and nurses screen for domestic violence at the hospital on the
reservation. 58.9% of the women would like to see family and individual counselling services increased on
the reservation to deal with the domestic violence problem on the reservation. These needs identified will be
addressed by the San Carlos Tribal leadership.
Slattery, Brian. (1979) "The land rights of indigenous Canadian peoples, as affected by the Crown's acquisition of
their territory." Ph.D. Dissertation, Oxford University.
Sliwa, Sophie D. (2004) "A bitter irony: Indigenous people, societal perceptions, and citizenship in Canada." M.A.
By embracing a more holistic approach to indigenous-Canadian relations, this thesis first examines the
marginalized socioeconomic and political location of indigenous peoples in Canada from a multi-
dimensional perspective that uses the legal and citizenship status of indigenous peoples as its point of
reference. Central to this project is the impact of societal perceptions generally held by Canadians of
indigenous peoples. The thesis explores how images of indigenous peoples have been constructed throughout
Canada's history so as to 'Other' the original inhabitants of this land and how this has served to assist
Canada in creating its own sense of national identity. How the constructed images of indigenous peoples
have been used in determining the policies and legislations that have immediate and direct impact is also
explored. Throughout the thesis run the themes of social, political and structural violence and its use in
marginalizing indigenous peoples.
Slowey, Gabrielle A. (1997) "Deconstructing the myth of self-government." M.A. Thesis, University of New
Brunswick (The). 118 pp.
This thesis is an examination of self-government as a form of colonial oppression and cultural genocide. To
draw this conclusion, literature pertaining to colonialism and self-government is reviewed. Some literature
accepts the myth and advocates the incorporation of aboriginal peoples into the Canadian polity. Other
authors articulate the fundamental cultural differences between native and non-native cultures (better,
ontologies) but fail to adequately explain how self-government is oppressive as a result. What is absent from
almost all of the literature, though, is a consideration of the relationship between the respective political
economies of native and non-native cultures. This thesis makes the argument that western/aboriginal
conflicts are best understood as economic conflicts. Hence, antithetical property forms constitute the basic
reason for the fundamentally incompatible notions of western-imposed aboriginal self-government and
aboriginal-initiated self-determination. By also examining the respective ontologies, as they emerge out of
political economy, this thesis shows how self-government, in its current form, will result in the assimilation
and deculturation of aboriginal peoples.
———. (2003) "The political economy of aboriginal self-determination: The case of the Mikisew Cree First Nation."
Although the impact of globalization on state sovereignty and citizenship has been the focus of many studies,
few have yet to consider its affects on aboriginal people. This research begins to fill this gap. Drawing on the
experiences of one 'resource-rich' community, the Mikisew Cree First Nation (MCFN), this study explores
how state-market-MCFN relations have changed in the neoliberal era. Combining document analysis with
primary research, it identifies challenges raised by shifting state policies and market relations and provides
insight into the way MCFN is managing the political and economic demands of aboriginal self-
determination. It argues that the political economy of aboriginal self-determination reflects the neoliberal
logic that the well-being of First Nations in the new economic order is a function of their ability to compete
as autonomous, self-governing and self-sufficient entities in the global marketplace, rather than as wards of
the state. Federal and provincial welfare state policies, once blamed for aboriginal socioeconomic problems,
have been replaced by policies designed to promote aboriginal market participation and self-sufficiency. By
changing the definition of the 'Indian problem,' from needing state protection to seeing the state as the
barrier to aboriginal socioeconomic development, the shift in the direction of the state vis-à-vis aboriginal
policy, from paternalism to partnership, makes sense. Interestingly, it is within this shift to neoliberalism that
some aboriginal communities are able to find space within which to develop their own solutions to their many
problems. Therefore, this study concludes that globalization, being closely wedded to neoliberalism, provides
a framework through which we can better understand and explain the political economy of aboriginal self-
determination as it reflects broader changes occurring in the state-aboriginal relationship as well as within
aboriginal communities.
Smith, Andrea L. (2002) "Bible, gender and nationalism in American Indian and Christian right activism." Ph.D.
Progressive scholars and activists now debate the possibilities for revolutionary change in this era of near-
hegemonic multinational capitalism. Some sectors of the left blame people of colour, and by extension native
communities, for fracturing the left with identity politics and an inability to organize around economic issues.
At the same time, other sectors of the left view native communities as magically resistant to all structures of
oppression. Many scholars of social movements note that oppressed communities are politically
heterogeneous and that no group automatically acts as a collective agent for social change. However, while
progressive theorists comment on the unstable nature of leftist political alliances, they often assume a stable
and unitary character to conservative communities such as the religious right. Rarely do scholars identify
patterns of resistance within communities like the Christian right. People of colour involved in these
movements, are viewed as unthinkingly complicit in their own oppression.
My dissertation aims to explore and trouble the categories of 'resistance,' 'accommodation,' and
'acquiescence' to structures of oppression. I will investigate how the interplay of Bible, gender, and
nationalism within American Indian and conservative evangelical political activism challenges social
movement theory regarding both the categorization of movements as either 'left' or 'right' and the role of
religion in social movements. In particular, I focus on the following case examples which point to the
difficulties in defining movements as simply conservative or progressive: Christian right prison organizing;
native peoples in the new charismatic Christian movements, evangelical feminism, and native women's
activism.
To analyze these questions I will employ a socio-theological framework, engaging primarily with social
movement theory and liberation theology. I use social movement theory as a tool to assess how these forms of
activism operate and to identify the possibilities for intervention within these movements. I use liberation
theology because religious/spiritual understandings fundamentally shape these movements in ways that often
go unnoticed by social movement scholars. In this dissertation, I claim an interested and situated point of
view: I am rooted in these movements, and am interested in how the study of these movements can encourage
liberatory political projects.
Smith, David H. (2000) "Ethnicity and earnings: An assessment of the white-native earnings differential among males
employed full-time, full-year." M.A. Thesis, Dalhousie University. 77 pp.
Little study has been conducted on the white-native earnings differential in Canada. Only two studies by
George and Kuhn (1994) and De Silva (1999) have addressed this issue. This thesis follows up on their
studies, and expands on them by providing an initial assessment of regional differences within Canada. This
thesis utilizes the 1996 Census Public Use Microdata File, and focuses on white and native males engaged in
the full-time, full-year labour market of Canada, Ontario and British Columbia.
At the Canadian level of study, the earnings differential is significant at 29%. For Ontario, the earnings
differential is smaller (23%), while in British Columbia the white-native earnings differential is larger than
the Canadian figure at 35%. Differences in observable characteristics such as experience, place of residence,
skill level, education, and language account for over three-quarters of the earnings differential in Canada,
85% of the differential in Ontario, and less than 50% of the earnings differential in British Columbia. Of
particular interest are the earnings premiums awarded to certain observable characteristics, notably
education, which provide a basis for policy and program initiatives to address the issue of the white-native
earnings differential.
Smith, Kristen L. (1998) "Fisheries co-management and the Tahltan First Nation: From the Aboriginal Fisheries
Strategy to a treaty regime." M.S. Thesis, Wilfrid Laurier University. 211 pp.
For several years now, the Canadian Federal government's Aboriginal Fisheries Strategy has provided a
means for substantial co-management of fisheries resources by First Nations. Unfortunately, there is a
widespread lack of understanding of the Aboriginal Fisheries Strategy (AFS) by all interested parties. This
study examines the AFS agreement of the Tahltan First Nation of north-western British Columbia and other
fisheries co-management agreements in place in BC It does so by comparing them with the provisions and
process of development of comprehensive claim based co-management agreements elsewhere in Canada. It
also offers an assessment of aboriginal fisheries co-management arrangements and provides insight into
sustainable aspects of the regimes.
Evaluation criteria were derived from a 1994 study by McDaniels, Healey and Paisley that outlined
objectives important in guiding the design of fisheries co-management initiatives involving First Nations in
BC The most successful agreements and claims analyzed included the following achievements: Aboriginal
rights were respected, fisheries co-management regimes were community-based the community's economic
well-being had improved, trust and cooperation had been built between parties, technical expertise had been
developed, participation occurred at both a local and regional level, and adaptive learning was taking place.
This assessment also suggests that successful fisheries co-management regimes do not require ratification in
treaties. The Tahltan Aboriginal Fisheries Strategy is a good example, although it could still be further
improved. Recommendations for improvement included: the development of a strategic plan; block funding
or a trust fund; improved training programs; recognition of a more traditional leadership system; active
participation at the watershed level; and improving and supporting local commercial fishery activities.
Smith-Morris, Carolyn M. (2001) "A political economy of diabetes, pregnancy, and identity in the Gila River Indian
Community." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Arizona (The). 236 pp.
More than half of all Pima Indians over age 35 have Diabetes Mellitus and prevalence rates continue to rise;
this despite billions of dollars spent every year on research and prevention activity by the National Institute
of Health, the American Diabetes Association, and the Indian Health Service nationwide. Because of the
many health problems which can occur in conjunction with uncontrolled diabetes, including heart disease,
kidney disease, neuropathy, retinopathy, and depression, the insidious or symptomless nature of this disease
creates an urgent need for early detection, prevention, and effective treatment. Several anthropological
studies of Native Americans have been conducted over the last century, but few have focused on Native
American understandings of and response to diabetes, particularly its sometimes 'latent' quality, as in
gestational diabetes which 'goes into remission' after childbirth. Biomedical concepts such as risk,
prevention, disease latency, and genetic predisposition or heritability are critical to the prevention of many
chronic illnesses, but do not translate well or effectively across cultural lines. This dissertation presents a
focused ethnography examining this process of integration between Native American and biomedical health
models at the Gila River Indian Community, particularly around the issue of diabetes. Because diabetes is a
complicating factor in pregnancy and childbirth due to fetal stress, high birth weight, and necessitated
caesarean-section deliveries, and due to the relationship between gestational diabetes and the subsequent
health of both the mother and infant, pregnant women are the focus of this research.
Smith, Nancy J. (1995) "Linguistic genocide and the struggle for cultural and linguistic survival: A participatory
research study with a Zapotec community in California." Ed.D. Dissertation, University of San Francisco.
311 pp.
This study examines the relationship between economic and political domination, linguistic policy and
ultimately the cultural and linguistic genocide of the Oaxacan Zapotec people in California. It aims to
understand why the children of Zapotecs living in the United States often do not speak the language of their
parents, and to look at what conditions are creating a situation in which the Zapotec culture and language
are in the process of extinction. Through a Participatory Research methodology, based on the work of Paulo
Freire, a forum is created for Zapotec children and adults to speak, to tell their stories. Participatory
Research provides a collaborative structure of doing research in dialogue with the people and not for the
people, it encourages the development of voice and personal and societal decision making through data
collection of the actual words of the participants. Taped dialogues are then transcribed and used as a basis
of further reflection. This study also created family writing projects as a primary means of data collection.
The results of this study are found in familial transformation and reflection. The investigation of generative
themes of exploitation, abuse, racism, victimization and silencing indicate that Zapotecs often find themselves
victims of internalised oppression. The loss of the Zapotec language is a direct result of these findings. In
conclusion, not only is great consideration given to identifying conditions of linguistic genocide, but also an
explanation is sought of language shift among the Zapotecs who have immigrated to the United States. This
study extends the scarce literature on the Zapotecs, and serves to document the minds and hearts of those
courageous Zapotecs, unclassified economic refugees, who have travelled the long road north to the United
States in search of a better life.
Smolewski, Magdalena. (2004) "Learning from "the Known": Historical and cultural factors influencing the position
of women in two Australian Aboriginal societies." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Toronto. 235 pp.
This research examines historical and cultural factors affecting the position of women in two Australian
Aboriginal societies. Two contributing factors are introduced: the "mission syndrome" in the case study of
Yolngu women of northeastern Arnhem Land, and the "stolen generation syndrome" in the case study of Kija
women of the East Kimberley region. This project explores social and cultural mechanisms that led to a
similar development of women's social roles in those two, otherwise dissimilar, regions, and delineates the
perimeters of women's social and cultural knowledge which is presently a vital, active component in the
process of (re)defining women's Aboriginal identity. It is also proposed that, although the methods of
assimilation and subordination used by white officials and white missionaries were seemingly different in the
two contexts, in both cases they were intended to marginalize women's roles, destroy their cultural and social
domains, restrict their social mobility, and create and/or accentuate inequalities within Aboriginal
communities.
Findings of this research indicate that the extensive forced exposure of Aboriginal women to the white
hegemonic system strengthened and reinforced their capacity for social resolution and social action. From
all the conflicting cultural meanings that women were forced to internalize, they were able to create a new
modus operandi to resolve the tensions inherent in the task of formulating new social and cultural identity
during a time of change and possibility.
A cognitive social learning theory of learned helplessness, and of internal versus external locus of control is
discussed in the context of social identity formation and reactivity to historical and social forces influencing
inter and intra group relations in an Aboriginal context. It is concluded that, because of the dialectical
interplay of many cultural and historical factors, women were able either to retain (in case of women from
East Arnhem Land) or re-direct (in case of women from the East Kimberley region) their internal locus of
social control which, in turn, significantly decreased their negative emotional responses to a variety of social
stressors, and increased their sense of social and cultural competence.
Smye, Victoria L. (2004) "The nature of the tensions and disjunctures between Aboriginal understandings of and
responses to mental health and illness and the current mental health system." Ph.D. Dissertation, University
of British Columbia (The). 321 pp.
Aboriginal peoples continue to be affected by the mental health policies, structures, and social organization
of the dominant culture which tends to exclude them. This study explored the nature of the tensions and
disjunctures between aboriginal understandings of and responses to mental health and illness and the current
mental health system. Using an ethnographic design informed by postcolonial and critical perspectives, in-
depth individual interviews were conducted with aboriginal people working in mental health and related
fields; policy makers, both aboriginal and non-aboriginal; and nurses. A focus group interview was also
conducted with health care providers (n = 31). The 1998 Mental Health Plan and several documents of
reform were also critiqued. Incorporating aspects of postcolonial theories, this study illustrates how
dominant culture ideologies, mental health institutional policies, and everyday practices intersect to shape
the tensions and disjunctures. Using the interview data and policy critiques, I describe how mental health
institutions and policies support the embeddedness of an assimilation ethos -- revealed as paternalistic care,
ethnocentrism, and the notion of [im]partial policy decision-making. Aboriginal perspectives are largely
excluded vis-à-vis the intersection of the dominance of the biomedical model (i.e., psychiatry) and the
ongoing jurisdictional debate regarding who is responsible for aboriginal mental health. Dominant cultural
frameworks and a lack of clarity about who provides what are interwoven and reproduced in the everyday
world of mental health service delivery, being marked by acts of omission, colonial ambivalence, and the
normalization of aboriginal suffering. Nevertheless, where normalization occurs, there are powerful points of
aboriginal collective resistance and healing. The study concludes by arguing for the development of critical
consciousness to challenge sustaining ideologies, institutional discourses, and predominating practices that
exclude aboriginality. The concept of cultural safety, positioned within postcolonial perspectives, is discussed
as a means of fostering critical consciousness. By examining historically mediated relations of power,
longstanding patterns of paternalism, ethnocentrism and assumptions about aboriginality from a cultural
safety lens, there is the potential to shift knowledge and attitudes in nursing and more broadly, in health care.
Locating aboriginal mental health and mental health care within its wider historical, social, political and
economic context can help nurses to more fully contribute to social justice in the area of aboriginal mental
health.
Soloff, Edward. (1999) "Transformations in Seven dreams: A book of North American landscapes by William T.
Vollmann." Ph.D. Dissertation, State University of New York at Stony Brook. 335 pp.
This dissertation analyzes William T. Vollmann's use of transformation, shape-shifting and the American
Myth of Violence in the three published volumes of Seven dreams: A book of North American landscapes, a
proposed seven volume sequence. These texts deal with the European incursions into North American and the
disastrous consequences upon both the indigenous peoples they encounter and on the landscape itself. Each
of these texts represents Vollmann's self-proclaimed attempt to create an alternative, 'symbolic history' to the
written history imparted to our modern culture by the invaders through his metaphorical creation of the
Seven ages of wineland the good. I analyze Vollmann's conceptualization and use of historical materials,
prior textual sources, and narratology in accomplishing his stated goals. I examine the effects that these
European incursions, and the technologies that they brought with them, have had upon these indigenous
Amerinds, who have had their cultures submerged, their histories negated, and their lives uprooted or totally
destroyed -- in this process. The ice-shirt deals with the Icelandic early exploration and attempted
colonization of Vinland with its bringing of the Iron Age to North America. Vollmann traces the violence that
appears, from textual sources, to be inherent in their cultural backgrounds. Vollmann proposes that they
suffer from a cultural tunnel-vision that allows them to overlook the existing cultural values of the Amerinds
whom they encounter. I suggest that the Icelanders tunnel-vision and resort to violence becomes the modus
operandi for those who come to North America after them. Fathers and crows explores the effects of the
introduction of Christianity and improved weaponry into New France. I examine the destruction and
submersion of the Huron by the Iroquois after the Jesuits open missions in the interior areas. I analyze the
results of the Jesuit efforts to save the souls of these Amerinds at the cost of their very existence, and compare
Vollmann's narrative with the source materials that form the matrix of this extended narrative. The rifles
deals with an intertwining of the final Franklin expedition to discover the Northwest Passage, the modern
experiences of Captain Subzero, and the relocation of the Inuit after World War II by the Canadian
government. I explore and assess carefully Vollmann's extended conceit that both the final Franklin
expedition and the Inuit die of lead poisoning, as well as Vollmann's contention that the Franklin expedition
of 1845 leads directly to the destruction of Inuit folkways. In conclusion, I challenge my own subjectivity and
preconceptions, as well as my prior historical expertise and training.
Sparke, Matthew. (1996) "Negotiating nation-states: North American geographies of culture and capitalism." Ph.D.
The nation-state has for a long time appeared to have eluded the attempts of scholars to encapsulate its
essence in theory. Rather than propose another attempt at encapsulation, this dissertation represents a form
of geographical supplementation to these efforts. As a work of geography it focuses on the negotiation of
nation-states, and, in doing so, traces a double displacement of encapsulation. Primarily, the four major
studies comprising the dissertation represent geographical research which, using a wide range of archival
and contemporary media material, makes manifest the irreducible complexity of the negotiations in, over and
between nation-states at the end of the 20th century. Focused on Canada and the USA, these studies trace
how a diversity of cultural as well as political-economic processes come together in the inherently
geographical negotiations of First Nations struggles, Canadian constitutional politics, continental free trade
developments, and American patriotism. These are negotiations where no one process fully encapsulates an
explanation of the events and where their collective but contested territorialization calls out for an open-
ended and anti-essentialist analysis. Secondarily, while the dissertation's first and more central work of
displacement is enabled by poststructuralist critiques of essentialist explanation, its other displacing effect
comes in the form of a geographical deconstruction of so-called poststructuralist theory itself. This
represents an attempt to turn the elusive nature of the nation-state vis-à-vis theory into a living and
politicized site for investigating the limits of poststructuralist theorising. Overall, the geographical
investigations of the dissertation illustrate the value of anti-essentialist arguments for furthering
geographical research into the nation-state while simultaneously calling these epistemological innovations
into geographical question. Using such questioning to critique the limited geographical representation of the
nation-state, it is concluded that geographers cannot not persistently examine such limits.
Spaulding, Richard. (1995) "Are aboriginal rights discriminatory?" LL.M. Thesis, Queen's University at Kingston. 414
pp.
The question whether aboriginal rights are discriminatory recurs in political debate, judicial proceedings
and treaty negotiations in Canada and elsewhere. This paper reviews the answers that have been given to
this question in the cases and commentaries, and, building on the work of David Williams, Will Kymlicka and
Patrick Macklem, suggests a negative answer derived from the values represented by the equality rights
guarantee in Canada's Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Because this issue is usually debated and decided in
moral terms, and because s. 25 of the Charter precludes a direct, legal answer to the question, the inquiry
pursued is a normative one. This paper argues that the liberal morality informing Charter equality rights
treats birthright citizenship criteria as a special case, to which Charter equality's ordinary standard of
concern and respect for individuals applies only in a relaxed form. The differential treatment called for by
aboriginal citizenship based on descent meets this relaxed standard, as does the analogous treatment entailed
in Canada's birthright citizenship criteria (descent, for persons born outside Canada, and birthplace, for
others). The main limitation that the value of liberal equality places on birthright citizenship criteria is that
they be impartially applied. Alternatively, and tentatively, it is argued that the vulnerable cultural condition
of aboriginal polities grounds a Charter equality right to differential treatment in this context, such that
aboriginal citizenship based on descent meets the unrelaxed measure of Charter equality. In any case, it is
argued, aboriginal rights are not racially based. Blood quantum criteria, however, meet neither equality
standard, where aboriginal self-determination is recognized.
Specht, Angela L. (2004) "Stony Plain: Making and representing a heritage community." Ph.D. Dissertation,
This dissertation research explores the complex and often contradictory relationships between
representation, community, and identity that are negotiated through the production, circulation and
consumption of cultural heritage within the Town of Stony Plain, Alberta. The research is grounded within
poststructural and sociological theory and relies upon discourse analysis, representational literacy, and the
deconstruction of community. This dissertation is divided into three essays that complicate how Stony Plain is
constructed and represented through heritage tourism. Through deconstruction, the terms and texts of
'community' are interrogated to expose what the limits of community are, and how the limits of community
are regulated and naturalized through the use of dominant/mythic language. Discourse analysis is used to
examine the links between community/economic development, citizenship training and violence by disrupting
the assumed naturalness associated to popular conceptions of community; and, by exposing how community
as public concern, self-fulfillment within community as private concern, and the collation of public and
private concern into 'way of life', are often the result of detailed, specific, strategic, and ethically oriented
public (and private) interventions. The dissertation concludes with a pedagogic work that encourages
readers to think about the context of representations, the social knowledge that heritage representations
portray, and the social implications of such representations by complicating multicultural themed mural
representations of First Nations people and culture.
Speed, Shannon. (2001) "Global discourses on the local terrain: Grounding human rights in Chiapas, Mexico." Ph.D.
This dissertation examines the dialogic relationship between 'the global,' 'the local' and the nation-state,
focusing on the globalized discourse of human rights and the local production of cultural identities and forms
of resistance in indigenous communities of Chiapas, Mexico. It makes several interrelated arguments
regarding globalization, human rights, and indigenous resistance in Chiapas. It begins by examining the
history of human rights in Chiapas. I show that the discourse of human rights has three conceptual and
practical trajectories in that state: natural law, positive law, and indigenous rights. This last, while it
contains important elements of the first two, has important distinctions which subvert dominant
conceptualizations of rights and rule. I then argue that globalization, and particularly the globalization of the
discourse of human rights, produces the potential for the realization of increased diversity at the local level.
The subsumption of discourses of resistance into the dominant discourse of human rights really reflects the
reappropriation of the term and the fractalization of its usage based on distinct subjectivities. I demonstrate
that local identities and forms of resistance emerge in dialogic interactions with non-local discourses, and
that today, because human rights discourse is globalized, it has become a principle interlocutor in that
dialogue. Finally, I argue that the practice of law in defence of autonomy projects, when done by indigenous
communities without intermediaries, represents a significant challenge to the legal order of the state, and in
fact to the state and global forms of rule those legal regimes underpin. I conclude by suggesting that the
research agenda of anthropologists and other social theorists should stop conceptualizing the new global
order only as a system of oppression and domination, and should begin to recognize the potential for
resistance to domination and oppression that globalization offers. This dissertation reflects an attempt to
explore the ways that specific discursive practices harness that potential to challenge the emergent global
order and its particular configurations of power.
Spence, Cynthia D. (1998 ) "Education, self-government and the building of a First Nation." M.A. Thesis, University
of Calgary. 97 pp.
Aboriginal communities throughout Canada are examining the structure and effectiveness of provincial and
federally run programs/organizations such as child services, health, justice, and education. This study
attempts to capture the mindset of one particular community, the Peguis First Nation, in transition as the
people struggle to move from a past of colonial domination and inferiority toward independence and
retrieval of aboriginal identity. Aboriginal people as oppressed people and the current self-government issue
are key components to the study. The discussion on education (formal schooling and socialization patterns)
also reveals the differences of perception between aboriginal people and mainstream Canadians allowing us
a glimpse into the issues aboriginal face as original landowners of this country.
This exploratory case study provides a narrative from the aboriginal perspective. Whenever possible,
transcribed data from participant interviews were used verbatim to give the reader a realistic portrait of the
community and struggles they face.
Squire, Mariella R. (1996) "The contemporary Western Abenakis: Maintenance, reclamation, and reconfiguration of
an American Indian ethnic identity." Ph.D. Dissertation, State University of New York at Albany. 313 pp.
Less than 30 years ago, history texts in northern New England maintained the region had no indigenous
people and that it had been uninhabited prior to European colonization. These statements were false.
Northern New England was and is home to the Western Abenakis, whose ancestors stayed in their homeland
by strategically adapting to the dominant Euro-American culture. Since the 1970s the Western Abenakis have
asserted themselves publicly, revitalizing their indigenous heritage, reclaiming ethnic connections with
Abenakis in Québec; and forging a public space within New England' s ethnic mosaic. They have revived the
ancestral language, crafts, practices, and beliefs. In reconfiguring their collective and individual identity, the
Abenakis are also undermining the Anglo-American and French-Canadian domination of the region.
The Western Abenakis exist among many dimensions of ethnic and racial identity. Two of their six bands are
federally recognized by Canada, with reserve territories in Québec. No American band has either state or
federal recognition, despite the common culture, family ties, and language between the recognized and
unrecognized groups. Over half of the collective are American citizens and anglophone, but at least a third
are francophone Canadian. Many are Christian, some of the more ethnically active leaders are not. While
some are full-blood, most Abenakis are mixed-race (Métis). Families live in urban ethnic enclaves, in small
towns, on reserves, and scattered throughout the rural northeast. Despite the differences of residence,
citizenship, language, faith, legal status, band history, and class, this Native American ethnicity collectively
maintains its identity as distinct from English or French.
This ethnic revival and renegotiation of Abenaki Indian identity in New England has implications for the
wide fields of ethnicity, ethnic revival, and the renegotiation of collective identity. It is also important to the
study of contemporary east-coast Native America and American race relations. This text is also a
contribution to indigenous scholarship. It is written by an Abenaki storyteller and ethnic activist.
St. Germain, Jill M. (1998) "A comparison of Canadian and American treaty-making policy with the Plains Indians,
1867-77." M.A. Thesis, Carleton University. 265 pp.
This thesis offers an examination of the long-held self-perception of Canada as a benevolent nation in the
realm of Indian policy. Through a comparison of Canadian and American Indian policy, specifically in an
investigation of the origins, context, terms and programs of the 1867-68 American treaties at Medicine Lodge
Creek and Fort Laramie and the 1870s Canadian Numbered Treaties, questions are raised about the
accuracy of this Canadian conviction. Superficial impressions based on the violence of the American west,
which contrasts sharply with the more serene Canadian frontier, give way in a closer scrutiny of treaty-
making motives and practice to conclusions which challenge conventional wisdom on the nature of Canadian
policy. Recent studies of Indian policy in a national context have characterized it as one of 'indifference and
neglect.' This conclusion is confirmed in the broader framework offered by a comparative investigation
juxtaposing the Canadian and American reserve and 'civilization' programs which were elaborated in these
treaties.
Stacey-Diabo, Carol K. (1995) "Self-determination: Protecting the right of aboriginal peoples in urban areas." M.A.
This paper examines the concept of self-determination from an aboriginal perspective, and the application of
these rights to aboriginal peoples who live in urban areas. One of the greatest concerns for aboriginal
peoples has been the unequal treatment of the various aboriginal groups by government. This is a particular
concern to aboriginal peoples living in urban areas because of their diversity. As a result of this, they are
frequently either neglected by their political leaders, or left out of political negotiations altogether. Many of
the issues identified in this paper were based on certain sections of the Preliminary Integrated Research Plan
developed by the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples. Therefore, it is also an attempt to address some
of these problems and to develop ideas that might be useful in a discussion on implementing self-
determination/self-government in urban areas.
Stainton, Michael S. (1995) "Return our land: Counterhegemonic Presbyterian aboriginality in Taiwan." M.A. Thesis,
York University. 392 pp.
This thesis studies the role of the indigenous Presbyterian Church in Taiwan in the creation of the Taiwan
Aboriginal Return Our Land Movement. It argues that a counterhegemonic aboriginality resulted from this
process, which owes its inspiration to ideas of covenant, chosen people, and right of resistance derived from
the theology of Calvin and Knox. After reviewing how the history and land policies of successive regimes
developed a hegemonic aboriginality of dependency, the thesis shows that the same history interpreted by
covenant theology developed an ethos of resistance in the Presbyterian Church of Taiwan. In a detailed
micro-political study, covering the period from 1982 to 1988, it shows how the church network linking
global, national and local levels mobilized the Return Our Land Movement. The local church and minister
are posited as the nodes linking aboriginal villages to the national movement. Sermons on covenantal texts in
the Bible are analyzed to show how Reform theology, the ethos of resistance, and new ideas of aboriginality
became part of local praxis.
Stalmach, Adele. (1995) "Native women and work: Changing representations in photographs from the collections of
the National Film Board and of the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development." M.A. Thesis,
Aboriginal women's identities have been manufactured and manipulated by white culture through
photography and other visual media. By referring to archival, post-colonial, historiographic, photographic,
and feminist theories, and to the historical context, this study argues that Department of Indian Affairs and
Northern Development (DIAND) and National Film Board (NFB) photographs that portray aboriginal
women at work between 1940 and 1970 are in fact mirrors of white cultural values. The images illustrate
what white women, not native women, were to aspire to and how they were treated with respect to work,
within and without the home. Actual aboriginal women's histories and experiences are absent from images
made by departments who sought to define and direct native culture in Canada 40 years ago. In NFB and
DIAND photos, native women are either created in the image of white women and re-named as 'non-Indian',
or they are portrayed as the 'other.' By demonstrating how photos of native women are reflective of white
cultural values, this study invites further study of massive archival and non-archival collections of
photographs related to Indian Affairs.
Stanley, Lawrence W. (2000) "A conceptual framework for the development of a sustainability strategy by the Métis
of northern Saskatchewan." M.A. Thesis, Royal Roads University. 133 pp.
This thesis presents a conceptual foundation for the eventual development of a sustainability strategy by the
Métis of northern Saskatchewan. In particular, it focuses on the role of the Métis culture in the development
of that foundation. Specifically, this work addresses the following questions: (1) What is the context of the
northern Saskatchewan Métis culture, its values and needs? (2) What is a sustainability strategy; why is such
a strategy important for the Métis now, and how can the Métis of northern Saskatchewan use their strategy
most effectively? (3) How can the values in the northern Saskatchewan Métis culture be captured in the
strategy? (4) How can a capacity for continuous learning be entrenched in a sustainability strategy for the
Métis? (5) What goals of a sustainability strategy for the Métis of northern Saskatchewan exist now, and
what are the gaps that must be addressed? (6) What are the next steps the Métis of northern Saskatchewan
should take to implement a system of performance measurement and progress assessment? The study
contemplates the unique role of the Métis in the development of northern Saskatchewan over the last 250
years.
Stanzell, Sharon. (1997) "Assessment of law-violating youth and gangs: A psychosocial analysis of American Indian
adolescents in Los Angeles County." Ph.D. Dissertation, California School of Professional Psychology -- Los
Angeles. 179 pp.
The social problem of violence and gang activity represents a major challenge for all ethnocultural groups in
modern American society. The current research explored the dynamics of delinquency, gang affiliation, law-
violating youth groups, violence, and cultural identification in a sample of 83 American Indian adolescents
ranging in age from 11 to 18 years old. More specific research questions which were addressed in the study
were as follows.
(1) Does aggressive behaviour affect delinquency and/or gang membership.
(2) Does previous delinquent behaviour affect gang membership?
(3) Do problem behaviours affect gang membership?
(4) Do psychological problems affect gang membership?
(5) Do psychological symptoms affect gang membership?
(6) Does parental drinking affect gang membership?
(7) Does adolescent substance use affect gang membership?
(8) Does previous exposure to domestic violence affect gang membership?
(9) Is participation (or lack of participation) in traditional American Indian ceremonies related to gang
membership?
The study was based on an exploratory study employing a correlational design. The independent variable in
the study design was that of gang membership, defined as a dichotomous variable at the nominal level of
measurement. Dependent variables were measured based on the Achenbach Youth Self-Report Profile
(Achenbach, 1991). More specifically, the Youth Self-Report instrument measures eight core syndromes
(withdrawal, somatic complaints, anxious/depressed, social problems, thought problems, attention problems,
delinquent behaviour, and aggressive behaviour).
Results showed that there were no differences between gang members and non-gang subjects on most
indicators. However, they demonstrated higher levels of Delinquent behaviour, and higher rates of alcohol
and drug use.
Gang members were more likely to have been removed from their homes as children. An important additional
finding was that Apache youth were more likely to be gang members. Further, Apache youth demonstrated
significantly more troubled behaviours on seven of the eight Achenbach measures.
Steinhauer, Noella R. (1999) "Sohkastwawak: They are resilient." M.Ed. Thesis, University of Alberta. 94 pp.
This study is an examination of the factors that impact the academic achievement of First Nations secondary
students. Through interviews and discussions the perceptions of aboriginal teens are recounted. The study
shows that although students respond to issues of achievement they are bounded by a system which does not
allow them to succeed. Sohkastwawak captures the spirit of resilience that the students demonstrate.
Stevens, Laura M. (1998) "“The poor Indians”: Native Americans in 18th century missionary writings." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of Michigan. 299 pp.
While English missionaries tried to Christianize Native Americans, they created an array of letters, journals,
and sermons to publicize their work for a domestic audience. Studying these writings alongside related works
by John Dryden, Daniel Defoe, Alexander Pope, and Elkanah Settle, this dissertation explores the role that
missionaries' portrayals of Native Americans played in 18th century British and American culture. Christian
mission, this project shows, did more than justify imperialism: it influenced European perceptions of Native
Americans and it provided arenas where readers in England could become involved imaginatively and
emotionally with colonial activity.
Because English missionary groups had to seek funding, textual portrayals of Christianized Indians
outweighed the presence of actual converts. Cultural production, in other words, exceeded conversion. The
figure of “the Poor Indian” dominated these portrayals, as it highlighted the Indians' need for assistance and
constructed beneficent readers eager to help them. As they tried to save the Indians, readers renewed their
own faith, strengthened the home front against incursions of paganism or popery, and invested British
Christianity with philanthropic fervour. Descriptions of American Indians thus became items of evangelical
exchange, constituting returns on the money, emotions, and prayers exported by the British. These portrayals
occupied important positions in the British cultural imagination, constructing an imperialist ideology
through religious intentions and racialized pity.
The first chapter, “"We seek not only theirs, but them": Conversion, desire, and the rhetoric of commerce,”
shows how missionaries drew on a commercial model of exchange to assert that Native Americans needed
the English. Chapter Two, “"Beloved brethren": Poor Indians and the building of British collectivity,”
argues that missionary writings built modes of affiliation that strengthened transatlantic ties and contributed
to nationalist sentiment. Chapter Three, “"Here they were now murdered!": Death, waste, and the husbandry
of souls,” proposes that the trope of the dying Indian has an underacknowledged origin in missionary
writings. Chapter Four, “The invisible Christian Indian: Reading the words of Native American converts,”
studies converted Indians who tried to represent themselves outside the images that missionaries used to
portray them.
Stevenson, Winona L. (2000) "Decolonizing tribal histories." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of California, Berkeley.
341 pp.
Historians of the Native American past are now considering how Indigenous oral histories can broaden our
understanding of events in the distant past. Even the most intrepid, however, still grapple with questions
concerning the nature and quality of oral history, oral history methodologies, and how oral histories can be
textually represented without compromising scholarly or tribal integrity. For most historians, the major
prohibiting factor is that Native American oral histories do not neatly conform to modern Western
imperatives. Trained in the Western mode, historians are confronted with content and form that often bear
little resemblance to what they know and work with. Unfamiliarity breeds suspicion which results in
rejection, omission by avoidance, or superficiality. Historians fear what they do not understand and so they
“other” Indigenous voices right out of their own histories.
The present study provides a comprehensive overview of academic debates concerning the nature, value,
reliability, and forms of oral histories and how recent intellectual innovations from the New History
movement, New Historicism, postcolonial studies and postmodernism have initiated a breakdown of
traditional disciplinary barriers which promise inroads for historical traditions outside the conventional
mold. This study demonstrates that long before these internal challenges emerged Native American writers
have been writing in the oral tradition and have been consistently calling for a New Indian History based on
Indigenous oral traditions. A case study of nêhiyawak, Plains Cree, historical traditions, will further
demonstrate that relearning history from within a tribal-specific framework not only provides insight on
Indigenous philosophies, methodologies, and aesthetic narrative forms, it also provides a foundation for the
writing of New Indian Histories.
On the bases that the silencing, marginalization, and patronizing of Indigenous voices, in the writing of
Indigenous histories, epitomizes intellectual colonialism, this study asserts that the decolonization of
Indigenous histories must begin from within a tribal context. This study further asserts that the
transdisciplinary approach of Native American Studies provides the most appropriate and fertile field for the
development of an Indigenous oral traditions-based New Indian History.
Stewart, Michelle R. (2001) "Sovereign visions: Native North American documentary." Ph.D. Dissertation, University
of Minnesota. 228 pp.
My dissertation investigates the development of native media as a creative form of cultural activism that is
tied to a political program of cultural revival, self-determination, and national sovereignty. Since the late
sixties, native Canadian and Native American activists have taken up the camera to reclaim Indian history
and representation, to reinvigorate native language use, to preserve the wisdom of an elder generation, and
most significantly, to help fight legal battles over stolen artefacts and treaty rights. While many scholars have
addressed the ways in which native-produced documentary launches an explicit critique of both Hollywood
and ethnographic representations of Indians, few have analyzed these works in terms of their socio-political
significance. In contrast, my research examines how the exchange of film and video between Indigenous
nations has fostered a transnational, 'Fourth World' consciousness and enabled indigenous nations to take
their claims to international fora and to the 'court' of global public opinion. Specifically, my thesis traces the
historical development of this transnational indigenous activism from the days of reliance upon mainstream
media outlets to the birth of its own documentary production which travels across national borders to build
support for constitutional rights, environmental justice, and Native sovereignty.
Stogre, Michael. (1992) "Papal social thought on aboriginal rights: A study in history." Ph.D. Dissertation, University
of Ottawa. 367 pp.
The issues of political sovereignty and self-government that preoccupies so many aboriginal peoples today
were also central when Innocent IV began his deliberations about the right of non-Christian peoples to
dominium, the right to exercise political power and to own property. The question for both Innocent IV and
Hostiensis was: did non-Christian peoples have de iure dominium? Innocent IV, basing his argument on
natural law, affirmed the universal human right of peoples to political sovereignty. Hostiensis, arguing from
a theological base, denied de iure dominium to all non-Christian peoples. Because they both supported the
Church's mission to evangelize the nations their theories differed little when it came to implementation. In the
era of European colonial expansion the issue of dominium was shunted aside in favour of working out
relations among the colonial powers themselves. In this context of inevitable European expansionism, the
papacy, including Alexander VI, tried to carry out a two-fold ministry of protecting and evangelizing the
newly discovered peoples. Alexander's solution was to use the conflict and rivalry between the colonizing
powers, and the mechanism of a line of demarcation, to ensure for the Church a space for evangelization.
This overriding missionary concern of the papacy was confronted with new ideological challenges during the
pontificate of Paul III. Paul III affirmed the humanity of the Indian peoples and defended aspects of
dominium, but within the sphere of Iberian political sovereignty. He did this principally because an authentic
response to the Gospel message required freedom on the part of those receiving it. Thus justice issues were
seen as subordinated to, and as necessary conditions for, the work of evangelization. Leo XIII and his
successors took the issue of universal natural rights for granted. In doing so they brought Catholic social
teaching on slavery into line with modern teaching and practice. More importantly, Leo XIII began to treat
human rights concerns as issues in themselves, and not just as necessary conditions for the successful
reception of the Gospel. Leo also retrieved a fuller understanding of dominium. A review of this Catholic
social teaching as applied to 'minorities,' and particularly to 'aboriginal peoples,' from Leo XIII to John Paul
II reveals both continuity and innovation. The earlier overriding concern for evangelization has definitely
continued. What is new is that issues of justice, development, and more recently, liberation, are now seen as
integral to, and constitutive of, evangelization. This shift occurred principally during the pontificates of John
XXIII, and Paul VI. In the pontificate of John Paul II, a growing ecological consciousness has influenced the
teaching on the rights of aboriginal peoples. I submit that the Vatican has recognized the special relationship
that aboriginal peoples have with the land. Thus the right to an adequate land base for indigenous peoples
has been supported in a unique way by linking it with the fundamental right to life.
Stone, Helen E. (1993) "Living in time immemorial: Concepts of 'time' and 'time immemorial': Why aboriginal rights
theory is problematic in the courts and around the negotiating table." M.A. Thesis, Carleton University. 174
pp.
Why are judicial and non-judicial methods of mediating aboriginal rights problematic? A seeming
incongruence of indigenous-based knowledge structures with western-based structures, with different
underlying assumptions about the meaning of history and the nature of truth in knowledge, lead to a shared
incomprehensions. Concepts of 'time immemorial' as a basis for rights recognition, and 'time' as a basis for
notions of history, are examples of such incongruence. Two cases highlight the problem: comprehensive
claims/litigation by the Mi'kmaq in Newfoundland, and a legal challenge by the Gitksan-Wet'suwet'en in
British Columbia.
Stone, Joseph B. (1998) "Traditional and contemporary Lakota death, dying, grief, and bereavement beliefs and
practices: A qualitative study." Ph.D. Dissertation, Utah State University. 233 pp.
Bereavement beliefs and practices in the modern, American culture have been well documented. However,
virtually no research has been conducted on traditional and contemporary death, dying, grief, and
bereavement beliefs and practices among native tribes, such as the Lakota. The present study was conducted
with the Lakota, and fulfilled two goals. First, the contemporary and traditional death, dying, grief, and
bereavement beliefs and practices of the Lakota were documented and summarized. Such documentation may
help bereaved Lakota tribal members who are experiencing problems with death and bereavement, and may
help preserve traditional knowledge, beliefs, and practices. Second, the consensus of opinion among Lakota
tribal elders about death, dying, grief, and bereavement practices and beliefs was qualitatively evaluated and
compared with that of mental health and substance abuse workers who serve the Lakota. Two main
theoretical conclusions to this study were reported. First, the Lakota elders' preferred interventions for
bereavement for their people included family, social, community, tribal, and ceremonial activities. These
findings likely resulted from the functional aspects of these types of culturally appropriate practices not only
to help the bereaved Lakota individual, but also to help 'fill the hole in the circle' left by the death of a tribal
member. A cultural mechanism for continued tribal unity and wholeness is provided by these tribal
bereavement practices. Second, the ancient historical Lakota ceremonies used to ameliorate grief within the
tribe appear to have been fragmented over time, but these rituals still exist and their derivatives are used in
various contemporary forms. Two main clinical findings were reported. First, a careful clinical assessment of
the bereaved Lakota client's level of acculturation is required as a prerequisite to treatment planning.
Second, intervention with grieving Lakota clients should include informed attention to both 'western'
bereavement treatment methods and traditional Lakota family, community, and social bereavement practices.
The relative value of various Lakota family, social, community, and tribal bereavement practices and a rank
ordering of various Lakota ceremonies were provided. These ceremonies and Lakota tribal practices were
compared to modern 'western' bereavement treatment methods.
Stonechild, A. Blair. (1989) "The Indian role in the North-West Rebellion of 1885." M.A. Thesis, University of
Regina (The).
———. (2004) "Pursuing the New Buffalo: First Nations higher education policy in Canada." Ph.D. Dissertation,
University of British Columbia (The). 223 pp.
This thesis examines the historical evolution of Indian higher education from tool of assimilation to
instrument of empowerment. Using archival records, government reports, policy studies and interviews, it
explores policy history, objectives, processes and issues as they relate to First Nations higher education
programs. As times changed, so too, did public attitudes towards, the policy framework, and levels of
political participation by First Nations. The thesis situates First Nations higher education policy within the
context of federal policies such as assimilation and integration, the recognition of Aboriginal rights, and the
struggle for Aboriginal self-government. Factors that have been examined include funding programs for First
Nations students, the efforts to gain recognition of higher education as an Aboriginal and treaty right,
support for Aboriginal-controlled institutions and the politics surrounding government cutbacks. The thesis
finds that policies concerning First Nations higher education, such as efforts to increase access to higher
learning, have evolved significantly over time. Although government programs designed to attract First
Nations students to universities have resulted in increased participation rates, significant obstacles remain to
making higher education relevant and in supporting the student culturally and socially. A solution promoted
by First Nations is the creation of their own institutions of higher education. The study finds that there exists
a fundamental policy disagreement between First Nations and federal governments over whether higher
education is a treaty and Aboriginal right obtained in return for the sharing of lands. Finally it speculates
about the measures, such as recognition of higher education rights and increases to institutional capacity,
that need to be implemented in order for higher education to truly be the "New Buffalo" ensuring a strong
and prosperous future for First Nations.
Stotik, Jeffrey P. (1994 ) "Incorporation and resistance: The native southeast and the world-economy, 1670s-1830s."
Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Tennessee (The). 235 pp.
Between the late 1670s and the 1830s the Creek, Cherokee, Chickasaw, and Choctaw were incorporated into
the world-system. Their incorporation took place in two phases. Phase one was characterized by intense
imperial competition and conflict. The mechanism of incorporation during this period was the deerskin trade.
The second phase of incorporation was characterized by settler expansion, more complete economic and
political restructuring for the southeastern societies, and their ultimate removal. During this phase, the
southeastern nations experienced the development of private property and the emergence of class divisions.
Both phases of incorporation were resisted by the southeastern societies. The first phase was notable for
open rebellion and political resistance. The second phase was marked by a wider variety of forms of
resistance, including rebellion and diplomatic and legal resistance. Ultimately this project argues for an
expansion of the concept of incorporation. Many theorists adhere to an orthodox view, which defines
incorporation as the integration of an area's production processes into the world-wide division of labour.
However, there are cases where a region becomes hooked into the world-economy, but not to this degree.
Analyses of incorporation must recognize this, as well as the existence of resistance.
Stotz, Gertrude. (1993) "Kurdungurlu got to drive Toyota: Differential colonizing process among the Warlpiri." Ph.D.
Dissertation, Deakin University.
This thesis is based on fieldwork I carried out between December 1987 and June 1989 while living with the
residents of a small Warlpiri Outstation Community situated ca. 75 km north-west of Tennant Creek in the
Northern Territory of Australia. Colonialism is a process whereby incommensurate gender regimes impact
differently on women and men and this is reflected in the indigenous response which affects the socialization
of Western things. The notion of the indigenous KIRDA-KURDUNGURLU reciprocity is shown to be
consistent with a gender system and to articulate all exchange relations as pro-creative social relationships.
This contrasts with the Western capitalist system of production and social reproduction of gendered
individuals in that it does not ascribe gender to biological differences between women and men but is derived
from a land based social division between Sister-Brother. Social relationships are put under great strain in
an effort to socialize Western things for Warlpiri internal use, I argue that the colonization of Aboriginal
societies is an ongoing process. Despite the historical shift from a physical all-male frontier to the present
day cross-cultural negotiations between Aborigines and Non-Aborigines, men still privilege men. The
negotiation process for ownership of a Community Toyota is the most recent phenomenon where this can be
observed. Male privilege is established by linking control over the access to the Community Toyota with
traditional rights to land. However, the Toyota as Western object has a Western gender identity as well. By
pitting women against men it engages people in social conflict which is brought into existence through an
organisation of Western concepts based on an alien gender regime. But Western things, especially the
Community Toyota, resist socialization because the Warlpiri do not produce these things. Warlpiri people
know this and, to satisfy their need for Western things, they engage them in a process of social differentiation.
By this process they can be seen actively to maintain the Western system in an effort to maintain themselves
as Warlpiri and to secure the production of Western things. This investigation of the cultural response to
Western influences shows that indigenous gender relations are only maintained through a socially stressful
process of socializing Western things.
Suarez, Darlene M. (2003 ) "Gambling with power: Race, class, and identity politics on Indian lands in southern
California." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of California, Riverside. 257 pp.
This dissertation is an ethnographic study that examines the complex ways in which race and class has
informed the political identities and economies of one small, marginalized community of Kumeyaay Indians
at Jamul Indian Village in Southern California. It is a study about identity formations and categorizations
resulting from the processes of imperialist expansion, with its ensuing white privilege and power. This study
offers an understanding of Euro-American conceptions and treatment of California Indians based on racist
ideologies and structures. It is a study about claiming, reconfiguring, and transforming Indian identities and
lands by three settler societies entering California, and reclaiming them back by the Kumeyaay through
revitalization processes such as political resurgence and ethnic renewal. The study also examines the
complexity of identities in constant states of flux and negotiation. Theoretical interventions in this study
include oral histories, nationhood, the politics of identity, dialectical identities, the politics of turf,
neighbourhood activism, commodified neighbourhoods, racialized political economy, critical race theory,
Marxist labour and class theory, and exclusionary practices. The methodology used in examining this study
included collecting oral histories as primary data; vast research of secondary data; site surveys; participant
observation; and unstructured and semi-structured interviews. The widespread expansion and growth of
tribally-owned and operated gambling establishments have created many changes in our society, including
the emergence of tribal-state conflicts, revolving around competing economic and ideological interests. Both
conflicts concern themselves with issues of sovereignty -- tribal and state. The spread of capitalism in the
United States and the resulting social relations of production have given rise to a romantic vision of the
countryside, commodified neighbourhoods as status neighbourhoods, and coalitional groups who try to exert
control over the externalities that take the form of unwanted land use on their local turf. All of these are
grounded in capitalist relations of production but when viewed from the world of appearances, obscures the
fundamental class nature of the conflicts. neighbourhood activism and externalities as political issues are
historical products.
Sutherland, Jessie. (2004) "Reconciliation from the inside out: Worldviewing skills for everyone." M.A. Thesis,
In recent years, reconciliation has evolved as a potential approach to address First Nations-Canada
conflicts. However, there has been no comprehensive study of what reconciliation means or entails. This
thesis suggests the heart of reconciliation is essentially a parallel process of personal and political
transformation from systems of domination to relationships of mutuality. It also suggests four guiding
touchstones to create conditions for reconciliation: drawing on the fundamental worldviews of the parties
themselves, transcending the victim-offender cycle, engaging in large-scale social change, and assessing
appropriate timing and tactics. As a relatively new field, reconciliation calls for a research design which
stresses the importance of aligning methodology with a given research topic as a way to produce what Patty
Lather has called 'emancipatory knowledge.' Consequently, the four guiding touchstones became the
methodology. As this thesis explores in greater detail the role worldviews play in creating conditions for
meaningful reconciliation it emphasizes the important connections between the role worldviews play in
human survival, the global loss of meaning, and violence today. Three main worldviewing skill sets are then
described in fuller detail: (1) connecting parties to their fundamental worldview; (2) learning to engage
across worldview difference; and, (3) regenerating indigenous cultures and re-civilising Western cultures.
Sutherland, Linda. (1996 ) "Citizens minus: Aboriginal women and Indian self-government: Race, class and gender."
M.A. Thesis, University of Regina (The). 165 pp.
The purpose of this study is to develop a theoretical framework which will encompass elements of race, class,
nation and gender as they are applicable to the position of First Nations women in Canadian and Indian
society. In order for Indian women to be empowered to struggle for a fundamental change in their position, it
is mandatory that Indian women, and Indian people in general, develop a social class consciousness. It is
time for Indian people to confront the kinds of traditionalism and nationalism that justify and condone
maltreatment of Indian women and their children. This conservative nationalism is the dark side of 'liberal'
multicultural policy in Canada. It is divisive and destructive. This study seeks to develop a new theoretical
framework which will critique the prevailing ideology which fosters reactionary nationalism and ensnares
Indian people in neo-colonial hierarchies which destroy their hope and vision for the future. Indian self-
government is viewed by many as a panacea for improved conditions for Indian people. This study
demonstrates that Indian self-government will probably be a continuum of past neo-colonialism in the
absence of socialist consciousness.
Sutherland, Patricia L. (2002) "A group therapy program for Aboriginal women and children who have been exposed
to family violence." M.S.W. Thesis, University of Manitoba (The). 169 pp.
This practicum consisted of a two-phase group approach to working with Aboriginal women and children
who had been exposed to partner abuse. The families were all headed by women who were parenting alone
and who had been out of their abusive relationships for approximately a year or more. The women in the
group had experienced many losses in their own childhood as a result of colonial systems such as residential
schools and the child welfare system. The group goals included enhancing the parent and child relationship
and breaking the secret of the family violence within and between families. A total of five parent-child dyads
were involved with this practicum and three families completed the group. The treatment modality included
an initial eight week parent group that focused on adult play and information related to theraplay, as well as
information related to the effects of exposure to family violence on their children. Another eight weeks was
spent in a multi-family group with both the parents and their children. Puppets were utilized as a means to
present relevant themes and the families participated in theraplay activities together. Clinical impressions
suggest that while the women's lives remained extremely stressful, they were able to support their children to
discuss their feelings about the family violence. Families also expressed enjoyment in relation to the play
time together and did demonstrate some improvements within their parent-child relationships.
Sutter, Virginia J. (1995) "American Indian mental health program implementation issues: An exploratory study."
D.P.A. Dissertation, University of Oklahoma (The). 285 pp.
American Indians have a unique historical and legal relationship with the United States government that is
best described as a government-to-government relationship. Most federal programs for Indians are
administered by the Department of the Interior's Bureau of Indian Affairs. The federal health programs,
however, are administered chiefly by the Indian Health Service (IHS). In addressing the health needs of
Indian people, the IHS admits mental health has lagged behind. In 1993, the IHS called substance abuse the
number one health problem among American Indians. Issues associated with substance abuse are chief
among the mental health problems addressed by American Indian mental health programs. This exploratory
study develops an unusual approach to understanding implementation issues in mental health programs for
the American Indian. Questionnaire data for this study were sought from four American Indian communities
representing diverse societal and cultural contexts: Saulte Ste. Marie, Michigan; Second Mesa, Arizona;
Warm Springs, Oregon; and Muskogee, Oklahoma. The overall rate of return for the questionnaire was 64%.
Mental health policy development does not appear to be of significant interest to respondents. Policy
guidelines for the mental health programs are considered culturally relevant. However, over one-half of the
respondents do not believe Indian people have a role in policy development. Also, the data provide support
for policy recommendations to include more American Indian cultural input in the evaluation process for the
Indian mental health programs. The respondents do not believe evaluation data are translated into
meaningful recommendations for future American Indian mental health program development. The
administrative findings appear to show a more positive trend for the recognition of cultural issues by the
personnel of mental health programs than previously believed by some authors and professionals. The
respondents in the study believe there are no on-going efforts to evaluate the effectiveness of the traditional
healers providing services, even though the views of the traditional healers are not opposed to the delivery of
the mental health program services. The respondents believe the tribal leaders are not interested in
understanding the dynamics of mental health problems. Also, tribal leaders apparently do not communicate
well with the general tribal population in regard to community mental health problems.
Swaney, Gyda I. (1997) "A program evaluation of the Mental Health Program, Tribal Health and Human Services,
Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Montana. 121 pp.
An evaluation of the Flathead Mental Health Program was undertaken to better understand this type of
program, and on the assumption that identifying factual and descriptive information about the Program
would assist and aid decision making and program planning. All files of clients referred to the Mental Health
Program in fiscal years 1990, 1991, and 1992 were examined and demographic information (age, sex,
community, resources) was extracted. In addition, the referral source, presenting problem, Team Staffing's
recommendation (and rating when available), provider to whom referred, acceptance or non-acceptance of
that referral, length of time in therapy, and estimated cost of therapy, were all identified and coded. Referrals
related to alcohol or chemical use, abuse, and dependence were tallied, as were referrals coming from
physicians, emergency rooms, probation officers, courts, and law enforcement officers, in an effort to identify
'costs' to Indian Health Service and the Tribes. Of particular interest was the 'cost' of domestic abuse and
sexual abuse. Finally, information regarding suicidal ideation, gestures, attempts, and completions was
tabulated. Based on a compilation and analysis of these data, a critical analysis of the Flathead Mental
Health Program was done and a set of recommendations presented. A major recommendation is that
program use/cost information be routinely tallied, because prior to the compilation of these data the Mental
Health Program had no baseline date from which to plan programs based on need/demand, no factual data
to report to the contracting agency (i.e., the Indian Health Service or United States Government), and no
base from which to make recommendations to both Tribal and Federal administrators. The implications of
these findings are discussed for both decision making and program planning, recommendations for future
research are made and the strengths and weaknesses of the study are identified.
Swanson, Katherine E. (2005) "Begging for dollars in Gringopampa: Geographies of gender, race, ethnicity and
childhood in the Ecuadorian Andes." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Toronto.
In the mid-1990s, rural indigenous women and children from an isolated Andean community began migrating
to beg on the streets of Ecuador's largest cities. Although initially a survival strategy, their involvement in
begging has since evolved to intersect with conspicuous consumption, status, educational fulfilment and the
drive to be included in consumer culture. For this community, begging has become a way to actively contest
poverty and to engage with the processes of modernization. Ironically, begging has become a way to get
ahead. This dissertation aims to unravel myths surrounding the lives of young indigenous beggars. It is
organized around four main themes: indigenous childhoods, migrant youth identities, the symbolic place of
the beggar, and urban exclusion. To begin, this dissertation reveals how the 'modern' construction of
childhood is reconfiguring notions of gender, sexuality, work, play, and learning within this small Andean
community. It then explores how indigenous youth's gendered, racialized and ethnic identities shift between
the rural and urban spheres as they become informed by Western norms and consumer culture. It suggests
that indigenous girls, in particular, are challenging what it means to be an indigenous woman in the Andes. It
then examines how indigenous beggars are both represented and imagined within capitalist society. It reveals
how begging governance relies on the dual discourses of 'child saving' and 'bad motherhood' to justify
indigenous women and children's removal from the streets. It further demonstrates how their exclusion
intersects with urban restructuring and the push for global tourism. In doing so, it provides an example of
how revanchism takes shape in the South. It suggests that Ecuador's particular twist on revanchism may be
through its more transparent engagement with the project of blanqueamiento or 'whitening.' This research
brings attention to the differentiated ways in which modernization and globalization take shape in a
marginalized region of the periphery. It further demonstrates how children become central sites of struggle in
debates over the 'proper' use of public space. Finally, this research is a call to planners, policy makers, and
social workers to consider the complex and varied factors that push marginalized people into begging.
Tait, Caroline L. (2003) ""The tip of the iceberg": The 'making' of fetal alcohol syndrome in Canada." Ph.D.
The knowledge production and practices associated in Canada with the diagnostic category “fetal alcohol
syndrome” (FAS) have identified Aboriginal populations as groups who are most at risk for birth defect
caused by prenatal alcohol exposure. In this context, Aboriginal peoples are most closely associated with the
central risk factor, alcohol abuse and with the “primary” and “secondary disabilities” associated with FAS.
The diagnostic category exists within a medical context in which consistent standardized tools and
measurements for diagnosing illnesses caused by in-utero alcohol exposure do not exist. Medical
assessments, partially due to a lack of diagnostic tools and related factors such as the high cost associated
with patient assessment and a shortage of physicians who are trained in FAS diagnosis, are very difficult to
obtain in all regions of the world, including Canada. This has resulted in very few individuals actually being
evaluated, and even fewer diagnosed with FAS. In Canada less than 1% of the estimated population believed
to have FAS are currently diagnosed. Clinical diagnostic inconsistencies have also been shown to be
common and widespread and epidemiological evidence is inconclusive and/or methodologically
questionable. Despite this, a sense of urgency has arisen in North America, leading to campaigns to stop all
pregnant women from drinking alcohol.
This dissertation examines the relationship between public representation of events, social groups and
individuals, and social action, and moves beyond contested descriptions of what exactly FAS is, and who is
said to be at risk, into an examination of the motivation behind the discourse, the grounds upon which it is
legitimated and reproduced over time. Particularly, the specific implications the association of FAS with
aboriginal peoples in Canada has had in the lives of aboriginal women, their children, and their
communities.
Tangseefa, Decha. (2003) "Imperceptible naked-lives and atrocities: Forcibly displaced peoples and the Thai-Burmese
in-between spaces." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Hawai'i. 283 pp.
This study follows the becomingness of the Karens: as an indigenous people, as an ethnic nationality, as an
ethnic minority, and as a forcibly displaced people. The questions that guide this dissertation are: What is it
like to be forcibly displaced beings, taking flight in, following Walter Benjamin, the real state of exception?
How can the Karens transgress those grave conditions, and at what costs? Why has protecting them from the
wrongs done to them been, by and large, impossible? Why have their struggles and sufferings not been
adequately perceived? As political theory, the dissertation interweaves notions of violence, perceptibility, and
protection. The study is also informed by the symbolic and experiential conditions of forcibly displaced
Karens along the Thai-Burmese border zones. This study evinces four major issues: firstly, how Karens'
forms-of-life have been stripped off and their nakedness revealed by the Burmese and Thai nation-states;
secondly, how their struggles and sufferings have been imperceptible because the Karens have been rendered
as unqualified political subjects and because we -- the peoples who have adequate juridical protections --
view the world only from state-centric paradigms, and only hear a single voice, i.e., the univocity of statist
discourses; thirdly, how the paradox of perceptibility, where the very power that has attempted to render the
Karens' sufferings imperceptible is, willingly or not, the same power that enables them to strengthen their
form-of-life as a Karen nation; and, finally, how the forcibly displaced Karens' quotidian lives have not
confirmed the glories of the Appadurian ethnoscape. They are not parts of the subjectivities who can freely
move in this world. On the contrary, they have often been recognized as the parts that have no parts in the
human community. They are 'the exception' in motion whose lives have been under fire, dreaming
passionately of becoming parts of the 'general.' They have dreamt to live such lives for more than half a
century, ever since they officially started their 'revolution' in 1948. One of the most important arguments,
therefore, is that, as forcibly displaced peoples, the Karens are political subjects and not sheer facts of living.
Tanner, James N. (2004) "Why labour works: The valuation of subsistence economies." Ph.D. Dissertation, University
of Calgary. 175 pp.
Prior to 1982, aboriginal culture and traditional livelihood in Canada were legally governed by common law
and treaties and there was an underlying presumption that the aboriginal culture and economy would
eventually be assimilated into the larger Canadian society. However, in 1982 aboriginal rights were placed
under the protection of the Canadian Constitution. The Constitution now demands that aboriginal culture
and livelihood be defended as vigorously as other Charter rights. This change in legal status has had an
important impact upon the way that aboriginal economic activities can be valued. Previous methods that
were used to value aboriginal economic activities were consistent with the assimilationist view. For example,
the replacement cost method was based upon replacing wild meat with the value or price of meat in a grocery
store. Although more appropriate methods have recently been proposed by welfare economists, most of these
methods have not escaped the biases of western thought and are not accepted as appropriate by aboriginal
groups. Given the large volume of claims and infringements of aboriginal rights, a valuation method that is
acceptable to aboriginal people, industry and governments is needed.
The challenge for this study was to propose and apply a valuation method that was consistent with aboriginal
culture and would also be acceptable to government and industry. Such a method would have to provide
reasonable estimates based upon transcultural principles of valuation.
This project included a review of the philosophical and theoretical basis of value and valuation. The project
then discussed the legal aboriginal context in Canada including common law the Constitution and Treaty 8.
Based upon these underpinnings, existing theories and methods used in anthropology and welfare economics
were discussed. A valuation method was then proposed, which was intended to be consistent with aboriginal
legal rights and would be understandable to western based negotiators. This method used labour time to
value the economic activities of aboriginal subsistence activities. The method was applied in the Fort McKay
Community of northern Alberta. It involved modeling the annual cycles of the subsistence economy and using
elders' estimates of labour time hunting for, gathering and processing traditional products. Upon comparison
with other methods, this valuation method generated higher estimates and took into consideration a wide
range of traditional activities associated with their economy.
Tayac, Gabrielle A. (1999) "'To speak with one voice': Supra-tribal American Indian collective identity incorporation
among the Piscataway, 1500-1998." Ph.D. Dissertation, Harvard University. 308 pp.
Collective identity incorporation is the social psychological process through which individuals adhere to
social movements, essential sites of ethnic renewal. The cultural synthesis argument shows that collective
identity incorporation depends upon newly created inclusive cultural practices developed by self-determining
actors when structural opportunities are present. The cultural synthesis argument is derived from empirical
study of an indigenous group, the Piscataway, who expand their definition of themselves from a localized
society to an inclusive supra-tribal participant through the cultural creation of a new collective identity. The
incorporation process was not an automatic response to external amalgamations, but an indigenous
innovation. Empirical study on the Piscataway over five centuries reveals that the group adds a supra-tribal
American Indian collective identity when state policies (structural opportunities) form and expansive and
supportive environment for indigenous individuals to develop common origin narratives, ceremonial rituals,
and fictive kin relationships (cultural practices) that cut across original tribal lines. Conversely, when state
policies restrict and isolate indigenous interactions, the tribe withdraws into a submerged condition in which
supra-tribal American Indian collective identity sharply declines due to lack of innovative common cultural
practices. Informed by illustrative comparisons to other revitalized indigenous peoples throughout the East
Coast, this study's findings suggest relevance of the cultural synthesis argument to the general situation of
American Indian collective identity development and incorporation, an explanation for the sharp rise in
American Indian population found on the 1990 US census.
Taylor, Janis S. (2000) "America's first people: Factors that affect their persistence in higher education." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of Iowa (The). 318 pp.
This qualitative inquiry into the collegiate lives of Native American undergraduate students at a
predominately white university examined factors that positively or negatively affect their success and
persistence in higher education. 16 students participated in in-depth interviews using open-ended questions.
Secondary participants included support staff noted by the students as aiding in their persistence. Field
observations were made of students at weekly meetings at the Latino/Native American Cultural centre over a
period of two years as well as during special cultural events. Field notes and audio tapes were used to
document interview and observation data. The qualitative data analysis software Atlas/ti aided the ongoing
and iterative process that triangulated findings across different types of data. A multi-framed analysis
process viewed the data through both a realist lens and a critical race theory lens. This analysis resulted in
finding a number of factors which combine to create an alienation from the campus community. These factors
include a lack of understanding by faculty and staff, being stereotyped, being treated as Other, value
conflicts, discrimination, a curriculum and pedagogy which is not inclusive, and a perception of lack of
support by the institution. Contributing to the persistence of these students were supportive people including
faculty and staff, family, and other native students. A second positive force supporting persistence was a
place that the students felt was their own, in this case the campus cultural centre. The dual perspectives
through which these findings were interpreted resulted in enhanced understandings of the issues perceived by
the students. White privilege and the systemic nature of racism in society were implicated by this study.
Tengan, Ty P. Kawika. (2003) "Hale Mua: (En)gendering Hawai'ian men." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Hawai'i.
390 pp.
This dissertation examines the intersection of gender and culture in the process of identity formation among
Kanaka 'Oiwi Maoli (Indigenous Hawai'ian) men in the Hale Mua o Maui. Throughout the neocolonial
Pacific, indigenous Oceanic men have engaged in gender practices that historically have had widely different
consequences for their positions of power or marginality; the cases of Hawai'i and Aotearoa/New Zealand
offer important insights into the gendered dynamics of colonialism, decolonization, and reclamation.
Focusing in on a deeper history of colonization and revitalization at Pu'ukohola heiau (Kawaihae, Hawai'i),
I highlight the ways in which the birth of a newly gendered tradition of bravery and warriorhood in Na Koa
(The Courageous Ones) led to a reconsideration of men's roles in different sectors of the Hawai'ian
community. One outcome was the formation of the Hale Mua, or the 'Men's House,' on the island of Maui.
Against the legacy of American colonialism and its concomitant discourses of death, disappearance,
feminization, and domestication, the Hale Mua has endeavoured to build strong, culturally grounded men
that will take up their kuleana (rights and responsibilities) as members of their 'ohana (families) and the
larger lahui (nation). In particular, I examine the role of discursive and embodied practices of ritual,
performance, and narrative in the transformation, (re)definition, and enactment of their subjectivities as
Hawai'ian men. The processes through which the members of the group come to define, know, and perform
these kuleana articulate with the larger projects of cultural revitalization, moral regeneration,
spiritual/bodily healing, national reclamation, and the uncertain and ambiguous project of mental and
political decolonization. Likewise, the very writing of this dissertation has fore-grounded both the
possibilities and problematics of conducting indigenous anthropology and research at home.
Tessier, Donald S. (1991 ) "A people in transition: Local control comes to a reserve." M.Ed. Thesis, University of
Alberta. 117 pp.
Parents want and deserve input into their children's education. Without local control of education, this input
does not exist for many native Canadians. The gaining of this self-determination is a major development for a
small community. This study's aim was to delve into this process. Study contributors represented the reserve's
administrators, parents, educators, former students, elders, and members of the Department of Indian and
Inuit Affairs. In depth reporting of their comments forms the bulk of the study. Study participants' role in the
community had a profound bearing on their perceptions. Federal teachers felt threatened by local control
because of the potential loss of jobs. The politicians saw local control as a source of revenue and
employment, while parents and former students hoped for more say in the school and more relevant
curriculum. The study revealed much dissatisfaction with the current education system, a fear of inadequate
funding, and a definite feeling of empowerment in shaping their children's educational destinies.
Tetzloff, Jason M. (1996 ) "To do some good among the Indians: Henry Roe Cloud and 20th century Native American
policy." Ph.D. Dissertation, Purdue University. 212 pp.
A study of Henry Roe Cloud, a full-blood Winnebago Indian from Nebraska, offers an extraordinary vehicle
to add to the field of Indian biography. Born on the Winnebago reservation in Nebraska in the 1880s, Cloud
attended government and mission schools for his primary and secondary education. In 1901 he left Nebraska
to study at Mount Hermon Preparatory School, an elite institution that served as a conduit for entry into Yale
University. Cloud attended Yale, receiving his AB degree in 1910 and his AM degree in 1912, purportedly the
first full-blood Indian to do so. Cloud also attended seminary and became an ordained Presbyterian minister.
Cloud's education, elite by any standard, allowed him throughout his public life to assume a variety of
important roles. In his more than 40 years of public life, Cloud acted as a reformer, an educator, and Indian
Service official. As arguably the most prominent Indian figure of the 1920s and 1930s, Cloud's life
demonstrates how and to what extent Indians were able to influence federal Indian policy. His life also
provides a window into the close ties between progressive ideas and the evangelical Protestant Christianity
that prompted and guided many of the reform efforts in the first decades of the 20th century. Cloud's work
also shows him to be capable of moving beyond this Progressive Era paradigm of assimilation and
embracing new currents of reform such as the push for cultural pluralism. This dissertation provides a
picture of this important Indian leader's life and places his life in historical perspective. It ties the key events
in his life to the major currents in 20th century American Indian policy and clearly identifies the role that
Cloud played in the formation and the implementation of this policy. It also analyzes how and why Cloud's
role changed over time.
Teufel, Nicolette I. (1989) "Energy balance, obesity and acculturation among Hualapai Indian women of Arizona."
Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Colorado at Boulder. 247 pp.
Obesity among some native North American populations has reached epidemic proportions over the last 50
years. The modification of food habits and activity patterns which has occurred with acculturation, is
frequently cited as a major factor contributing to the trend of increasing adiposity. This study examined the
relationship between obesity and acculturation as exhibited by Hualapai Indian women living in northwest
Arizona in 1985 and 1986. The research was designed to test the hypothesis that obesity is positively
associated with acculturation. A secular trend of increasing weight for height among Hualapai women was
established by reviewing ethnohistorical and medical records. Food habits, activity patterns, nutrient intake
and energy expenditure of 14 obese and 14 non-obese Hualapai women were compared using dietary and
activity histories and 24-hour dietary recalls and activity diaries over a seven-day period. Standard and
project generated measures of acculturation were used to evaluate subjects' adherence to traditional and
non-traditional lifeways. Study results revealed that both obese and non-obese Hualapai women consumed a
high carbohydrate, low fibre diet and engaged in relatively few strenuous activities. The higher energy
intakes of the obese women could be attributed to a greater consumption of non-alcoholic and alcoholic
beverages. Non-obese women often limited their caloric intake by selecting foods and beverages advertised
as 'low calorie.' Non-traditional food habits and activities dominated the diet and lifestyle of both obese and
non-obese women. The introduction of high calories foods and labour-saving technology can promote
obesity. Yet in 1985 and 1986, many non-obese Hualapai women had adopted not only non-traditional foods
and activities but also current behaviours associated with the management of these foods and activities.
These behavioural differences indicated that non-obese women were more completely acculturated than were
obese women and that among the Hualapai, non-obesity has a stronger positive association with
acculturation than does obesity. Health programs designed to reduce obesity among the Hualapai should
capitalize on the strong social network, emphasizing support groups, team sports and regular exercise and
diet classes.
Teuton, Sean T. (2002) "Homelands: Politics, identity, and place in the American Indian novel." Ph.D. Dissertation,
Cornell University. 417 pp.
In Homelands, I explain the theoretical implications of the process of decolonization by exploring the ways
cultural recovery and political awakening are closely intertwined. In American Indian history, these two
concepts are inextricably linked, because US colonialism oppresses Native peoples both with political
subjugation and with cultural deprivation. Drawing on a body of theory which has been emerging in recent
years, an interdisciplinary “realist” approach to identity and culture, I offer an alternative to the sharp
essentialism-postmodernism opposition that, I argue, will not allow us to understand the nature of indigenous
struggles. This work is thus concerned fundamentally with the question of how we can develop a theory of
identity which explains not only the Native novel, but also the everyday lives and hopeful futures of those to
whom it refers. Native scholars use postmodernist theory to explain the American Indian colonial condition,
and have successfully challenged the dominant society's essentialist demand that Native culture be
“authentic” by deconstructing the often detrimental racial category of “Indian.” But in subverting the very
notion of racial and cultural difference, postmodernist theorists are also unable to confront why the world
might actually be different for colonized Native peoples, who daily experience real racial and national
oppression, than it is for majority peoples. The realist theoretical tradition reconceives (American Indian)
cultural identity not as foundational or authentic but as relational; realists argue that what is called
“identity” has a cognitive (as opposed to a purely affective or emotional) basis, and is capable of referring
accurately to social facts that constitute American Indian lives. Thus theorized, the process of cultural
recovery is not a search for ahistorical essences, but is instead understood as an ongoing dialectic of inquiry
through identity and experience. Historically situating the Native novel in the Red Power movement of the
late 1960s and 1970s, a moment of radical political empowerment and cultural recovery for American
Indians, I show how three novels responding to the events of this era, N. Scott Momaday's House made of
dawn, James Welch's Winter in the blood, and Leslie Marmon Silko's Ceremony, represent a realist process
in which political awakening and cultural recovery go hand in hand. In my readings of these novels, I
develop a non-essentialist conception of Native cultural identity by charting the recovery of the relationship
to the land, and the values this process generates. My dissertation concludes by extending this exploration of
political and cultural growth from the Native novel into daily life, in a study of the incarceration of American
Indians in the US prison system today. I show how my understanding of Native experience and identity better
supports our political interventions, and explain the need for praxis in American Indian Studies to root
Native lives in the real world.
Thibault, Simon. (1998) "The Zapatista uprising." M.A. Thesis, Carleton University. 116 pp.
This thesis provides a theoretical framework for explaining the Zapatista uprising. It suggests that native and
peasant grievances over land, political autonomy and representation, economic rights and resource
management, as well as social and cultural rights, highlight the underlying issues of the crisis in Chiapas.
The framework also argues that members of the diocese of San Cristobal de Las Casas and other grassroots
political activists created favourable conditions for the spread of the EZLN among several indigenous
communities of the Selva Lacandona region (Chiapas). Finally, the theoretical framework suggests that a
specific economic and political conjuncture in Chiapas radicalized the small peasantry and facilitated the
EZLN's. penetration into several native communities of the rainforest in the 1980s.
Thompson, Shirley J. (2002) "Environmental justice in a toxic economy: Community struggles with environmental
health disorders in Nova Scotia." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Toronto. 406 pp.
The impoverished communities of Whitney Pier and Pictou Landing in Nova Scotia are struggling against a
toxic economy that degrades human and environmental health. Proponents of environmental justice see these
communities as part of a larger pattern, in which the poor and people of colour are disproportionately
exposed to environmental hazards from toxic development.
In the United States, considerable research shows a strong correlation between environmental health risk
and the social positions of race and class. In Canada, however, prior to this study, no comparable empirical
research had been conducted. Through two approaches -- statistical and descriptive -- the relationship,
between equity and environmental health, was determined to be similar to that in the US. However,
aboriginal reserves and industrial towns, including pulp and paper and steel towns, appear more at risk,
rather than inner cities.
A strong relationship between environment and health was evident with worse health outcomes (i.e., more
cancer, respiratory and circulatory deaths per 100,000 deaths) occurring in areas with higher environmental
health risks (p < 0.01). Environmental health risks, specifically abandoned waste disposal sites, hazardous
facilities and toxic emission scores, were statistically significantly greater for: reserves (p < 0.05), poor
communities (p < 0.01); and minority or aboriginal communities (p < 0.05). This research found reserves to
be in 'double jeopardy', suffering from both race and class barriers. These findings were used to build on the
Healthy City Model by adding another key input -- equity -- to create a new model called the Equitable
Health Community Model.
In addition to the statistical investigation, interviews with community activists provide recommendations for
ecosystem-based policies relating to human health and political economy. Case studies for Pictou Landing
Reserve and Whitney Pier in Sydney were contrasted with three white middle class communities in Halifax
finding differences in government responsiveness and other areas.
Thompson, Thomas J. (1995) "Manitoba Hydro, northern power development, and land claims pertaining to non-
status aboriginals in Norway House and Cross Lake." M.A. Thesis, University of Manitoba (The). 132 pp.
This thesis explores one aspect of the potential legal obligations which flowed from the extensive hydro
electric projects undertaken in northern Manitoba in the 1970s. It addresses the history of the legal
relationship between governments and non status aboriginal people in the affected areas, in particular those
people in Cross Lake and Norway House. The thesis reviews charter, statute and case law on the topic from
1670 until 1993, concentrating on the period after 1930. The main argument of this thesis is that, although
federal legislation applies to status Indians in the area, there are no specific legal obligations to non status
aboriginals in northern Manitoba.
Thomson, Duncan D. (1985 ) "A history of the Okanagan: Indians and whites in the settlement area, 1860-1920."
Ph.D. Dissertation, University of British Columbia (The).
This study's primary focus is on white settlement and Indian dispossession and marginalization, the theme
being developed in the context of a comprehensive local history. A number of sub-themes are developed
including the relationship between political power and landholding, the changing role of chiefs in Indian
society, the importance of the railway in consolidating economic power, the connection between
transportation and changing industrial activity. After an introduction and outline history the paper is
organized in three parts. The first deals with the institutions which supported settlers and were imposed upon
Indians. The four institutions examined are missionary activity, political, judicial and educational structures
as they affected Indians and whites. The notable characteristic of these institutions is that the services
delivered to the two racial groups were markedly different, that Indians never received the benefit of their
support. The second section considers the critical question of Indian access to resources, the conditions
under which reserves were assigned and then repeatedly altered, and the question of aboriginal rights to the
land. The discrepancy in the terms in which whites and Indians could claim land and the insecurity of tenure
of Indians is documented. The third section considers economic sectors: hunting, fishing and gathering,
mining, stockraising and agriculture. In the latter two industries, pursued by both Indians and whites, the two
communities are juxtaposed to observe differences in their conduct of those industries. The critical elements
determining different performance are identified as the differing quantities of obtainable land, and the land
and water tenure regimes under which the participants operated although other factors such as increasing
capitalization, an oppressive Department of Indian Affairs, inadequate access to education and health
services and restricted rights in the political and judicial spheres were contributing factors. Okanagan
society in the pre-World War I era is seen as a racist society, one in which a completely different set of rules
existed for each race and in which social distance between races increased over time. White settlers
succeeded in building a society with all the features of the modern world. But this development occurred at
the expense of the Indian population.
Thue, Laura A. (1996) "The Young Offenders Act and aboriginal models of youth justice: Challenging the crime
control trend through bifurcation and restorative justice." M.A. Thesis, Simon Fraser University. 141 pp.
Criminologists argue that the present trend in youth justice is towards crime control oriented policy. In
contrast, aboriginal views of justice are more restorative in nature. This thesis explores the hypothesis that
the principles of the Young Offenders Act are incompatible with aboriginal views of youth justice. The
research suggests that the present direction in youth justice is towards twin trends -- bifurcation, where
minor offenders receive diversion and unintrusive sentences and major punitive sentences are reserved for
violent offenders. While recent amendments to the YOA have concentrated on crime control objectives there
is also evidence of increasing support for restorative justice. An examination of the principles of the Young
Offenders Act further reveals that the underlying Modified Justice Model has the capacity to facilitate
restorative justice practices. Most aboriginal communities that are assuming control over justice are
proceeding incrementally. Often lacking the basic infrastructure and resources necessary to develop and
maintain autonomous justice programs, communities have opted to take responsibility gradually. Contrary to
YOA critics, the bifurcated YOA appears capable of meeting present First Nations aspirations. However,
incremental objectives lies within the broader goal of self-government, which could pose complex political
challenges for aboriginal youth justice in the future. Despite the encouraging initiatives, the current political
and media emphasis on crime control reforms in youth justice policy is inappropriate for aboriginal youth. It
is argued that a bifurcated approach in youth justice policy should be intensified and promote community-
based justice programs that are more restorative in nature. As well, aboriginal communities need to develop
the necessary community justice infrastructure. Finally, aboriginal youth justice will require far greater
policy coordination with provincial and federal governments.
Tiedje, Kristina. (2004) "Mapping nature, constructing culture: The cultural politics of place in the Huasteca, Mexico."
Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Oregon. 511 pp.
Through ethnographic description and anthropological interpretation, this dissertation is an attempt to
understand the ways in which members of historically marginalized groups construct their identities and
reclaim natural and urban spaces in the Huasteca landscape. The Huasteca is a multi-ethnic region where
indigenous speakers of Nahuatl, Teenek, and Xi'Oi (Pame) cohabit with Spanish-speaking Mestizos. This
research explores how identities are linked to place in the physical environment through over 500 years of
changing historical, social, and political economic contexts. Stereotypes of indigenous people formed by the
non-indigenous elite during the colonial period set in motion segregation and exploitation that continues to
affect people living in the region today. Segregation was reflected in the physical landscape: Indigenous
people lived in the rural hamlets; elites lived in county-seats. Despite a history of assimilationist policies
during the national period that sought to eliminate cultural, ethnic, and linguistic diversity, geographic
segregation and spatial relations continue to affect both feelings of marginalization and empowerment of
indigenous peoples. Feelings of marginality pervade the collective memory of indigenous people who live in
the rural hamlets. Indigenous men and women presently contest elite definitions and confront the
misrepresentation that historically defined indigenous people as different from the norm. They utilize their
suffering as a motivation to revitalize their cultural traditions as well as to voice their rights in a country that
has made multiculturalism a new brand of nationalism since the 1990s. To illuminate this process of place-
making in a contemporary context, I discuss the meanings of indigenous ecology at a local and regional
level. Ethnographic case material focuses on two major areas; local Nahua wisdom stories, beliefs, and
ritual regarding Nahua perceptions of the physical environment; and regional ritual practices that mobilize
indigenous peoples across linguistic and ethnic boundaries. Both serve to advance sacred land claims and to
reclaim certain urban spaces -- spaces that have historically been set aside for urban Mestizos. Through
participation in local and regional organizations, indigenous Nahuas, Teenek, and Xi'Oi mobilize ritual
practice and performance to relocate themselves nationally and regionally.
Tiger, John B. (1991) "American Indians, Alaskan Natives and their attributions for success or failure in the
classroom." Ed.D. Dissertation, Harvard University. 169 pp.
The development of causal belief patterns was examined in relation to the Weiner model of achievement
motivation and it was hypothesized that ethnicity would account for attribution patterns distinct to the sample
of white and American Indian students. Explorations into attributional patterns of success and failure in the
classroom have ignored the presence of aboriginal peoples until now. This investigation was part of a larger
study of an urban school system where students in grades four through eleven participated. The sample size
consisted of 253 American Indians and Native Alaskans and 541 whites. The Survey of Achievement
Responsibility is a 40-item instrument used to assess causal attributions for success and failure in three areas
of academic course content: math/science, language arts/social studies, and physical education. The study
design represented the multi-factor experiment with repeated measure which used the analysis of variance
with repeated measures (ANVAR) for the statistical analysis. The findings did not support the hypotheses that
ethnicity would elicit effort and ability patterns along the internal dimension of Weiner's model. Ethnicity was
a factor, however, for outcomes along the external dimension for the task difficulty and luck attributions.
The similarities of achievement scores of Indian and white students were associated with the attribution
patterns which resulted, and were supportive of findings from other studies. Developmental differences
occurred where high school students displayed greater differences between ability and effort attribution than
elementary students. Course content accounted for dissimilar patterns and student score differentials for
language arts/social studies were larger than for math/science especially at high school levels. Gender
differences were found with girls CAT score achievement higher than boys, but girls exhibited dysfunctional
patterns for the effort and ability attributions. Ethnic differences were not a factor on the internal dimension
of the model, but were displayed on the external dimension for task and luck attributions. Implications for
practice include teaching proper attributional responses to assist low achievers, or attribution retraining;
provide for balanced curriculum requirements in physical and social science course content; diminish sex
stereotyping in school subjects; and increase the awareness of ethnic composition of student bodies and
faculties by school boards and administrators.
Timmins, Brenda M. (1999 ) "Peacemaking: An adaptive mediation model for young offenders." M.A. Thesis,
University of Western Ontario (The). 132 pp.
While significant advances have been made in conflict resolution, mediation still largely employs an outdated
perspective toward communication.
Through a critique of mediation procedures, fieldwork among young offenders, actual mediation cases
conducted with adults, and a review of aboriginal youth justice initiatives, I argue that a new non-face-to-
face mediation model should be considered alongside standard mediation. The purpose is to accommodate
the abilities and fears of marginalized people. Using a cross-cultural review of Mäori, Japanese, Ojibway,
Nuer and Navajo successes with youth justice, I argue that the ideals behind those initiatives can also be
achieved in mediation talks with those reluctant to enter the current face-to-face process. I also argue that
mediators must become more sensitive to the concerns and needs of participants, particularly young
offenders.
I suggest the current face-to-face model be adapted to accommodate causes of resistance to mediation
expressed to me by young offenders, and that disputants be given more choice in terms of process. The one-
size-fits-all mediation process is not adequate for a diverse population.
Timpson, Joyce B. (1992) "Four decades of child welfare services to native Indians in Ontario: A contemporary
attempt to understand the 'sixties scoop' in historical, socioeconomic and political perspective." D.S.W.
Dissertation, Wilfrid Laurier University. 567 pp.
This research seeks to understand the high rates of Indian children in the care of Ontario's Children’s Aid
Societies from the 1950s to the 1970s. It examines historically the interaction of public policy, child welfare
services and First Nations' social, economic and cultural change. The author uses interview data from Native
persons, CAS workers and public servants. In addition, government archives and the records of one child
protection agency are used as data sources. The research examines in-care rates of Reserve Status Indian
children from 1955 to 1976 in Ontario and admissions rates in one agency. It uses financial reports to
complement and explain some trends. Admissions rates between 1964 and 1974 show variations between and
within communities that are analyzed using oral histories, archival data and the literature. An association
between sudden change and child-in-care rates is demonstrated. The reasons for the high rates of Indian
children in care are complex. Many of the Ontario Indian children in care in the 1690s and 1970s were
children and grandchildren of two generations damaged by the effects of post World War II expansion.
Aboriginal people in northern Ontario experienced serious cultural trauma following relocation, loss of
independent means of support, and new educational systems that were incompatible with their traditional
beliefs and life styles. These stressors revealed themselves in a high rate of alcohol abuse precipitating
incidents involving the child protection agency. Traditional systems were either strained or inaccessible to
the Children’s Aid Societies. Child welfare workers, faced with new problems in the late 1950s and 1960s,
recognized differences and made creative adaptations probably keeping the in-care rates lower than might
have been expected. Gaps in jurisdiction and accountability in the larger system prolonged the situation of
escalating rates because the out-of-control costs and their implications could not be easily detected. Three
interacting pandemic factors drove program development and hindered the development of more appropriate
approaches despite a flexible federal-provincial agreement. They were: equality ideology; an ignorance
about aboriginal people; and lack of systemic disincentives for other approaches in Indian child welfare
financial administration. Individual service providers and the public servants were pivotal in hindering or
maximizing the agreement's potential. This hinged on their denial or recognition of inherent differences in the
First Nations. Jurisdiction and accountability disputes still prevail. First Nations' self-governing institutions
face the dual task of healing the wounds of the past and building appropriate systems to deal with the future.
Tisdale, Shelby J. (1997 ) "Cocopah identity and cultural survival: Indian gaming and the political ecology of the
lower Colorado River delta, 1850-1996." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Arizona (The). 389 pp.
This study examines how the Cocopah maintain and express a sense of continuity with their past and how, in
today's world, they use their understanding of the past to maintain their cultural identity in the present. An
ethnohistorical reconstruction of Cocopah identity from the early period of contact explores the ways in
which the political ecology of the Colorado River have influenced Cocopah identity. In approaching Cocopah
identity from a political ecology perspective, it is argued that the federal bureaucracy's criteria for tribal
status and the recognition of individuals as belonging to particular tribes are based on the commonly held
notion of Indian tribes as being clearly distinguished, unchanging cultural entities occupying exclusively
bounded tribal territories in stable ecosystems. Political ecology, in contrast, provides anthropology with a
dynamic analytical framework in which to understand culture as adaptive systems. Political ecology provides
a practical approach in which the interface between history and the dynamic complexities of diverse cultures
within a local-global economic context can be examined. I add ethnicity theory to this political ecology
framework in order to examine how these historical processes operate at the local level and how they affect
Cocopah identity and cultural survival. The coping strategies that the Cocopahs applied to the ecological
transformations of the lower Colorado River delta throughout the past 150 years have played a significant
role in shaping present-day Cocopah identity. Recent economic development, provided by Indian gaming, has
given the Cocopahs the opportunity to revitalize, redefine and perpetuate their cultural identity through the
process of planning and developing a tribal museum and cultural centre complex on the West Cocopah
reservation in southwestern Arizona.
Tkachuk, Tammy L. (1994) "Native women in Canada and the politics of feminism." M.A. Thesis, Dalhousie
University. 150 pp.
The aim of my thesis is to examine the assumptions of feminist theories, admittedly using western-style
analysis based on assumptions about rationality, and explore my own part in both challenging and
reproducing elite feminist assumptions. By deconstructing feminist theory and examining the situation of
native women in my own country, I hope to appreciate any parallels between postmodern feminist arguments
about elite feminism and the experiences of native women in Canada. In comparing the arguments of third
world feminists and postmodern feminism to the experiences of native women in Canada I begin by
discussing the interviews I conducted with native women from around the Maritime provinces. This thesis
then moves on to discuss the relevance of liberal feminism, Marxist feminism, socialist feminism and
postmodern feminism to the concerns and actions of native women. I also hope this thesis will indicate what
white, middle-class feminism can do to assist the important work of affirming the identity, experiences and
aspirations of native women in Canada. Feminist theorizing must move beyond the acceptance of difference
and acknowledge its role in the oppression of native women and its responsibility in changing this pattern.
Tobin, Anita M. (1999) "The effect of centralization on the social and political systems of the mainland Nova Scotia
Mi'kmaq (Case studies: Millbrook -- 1916 and Indian Brook -- 1914)." M.A. Thesis, Saint Mary's University.
115 pp.
In the 1910s the Canadian Federal Government developed a Centralization Policy for the Mi'kmaq of Nova
Scotia. By 1919, 55 members of the Halifax County Band had moved to the Millbrook Reserve. The
population was listed as 124 by 1931. The political structure of the Mi'kmaq was established at this time and
leadership was strong on the Millbrook Reserve under Chief Joseph Julian. The Mi'kmaq were included in
the decision making process and their ideas, including procurement of additional resources, were
incorporated into the program. Relocation can be viewed as only a minor disruption to the social and
economic structure of those involved.
During the Great Depression, and as Canada was preparing for World War Two, the government felt the
need to ease the economic burden of providing for the Mi'kmaq. Referring to the economic success of the
Millbrook centralization, it was decided in 1941 that the Mi'kmaq would be centralized to the two larger
reserves, Indian Brook and Eskasoni. By 1946, 816 people were living on Indian Brook where only 41 people
had resided in 1931. The political structure was unorganized and representation was weak and
inexperienced. The move was forced on an uninformed people under threat of enfranchisement and loss of
government financial support. Without the acquisition of additional resources, the overcrowded conditions
had serious consequences on the social and economic stability within the Indian Brook Reserve.
Tough, Frank J. (1987) "Native people and the regional economy of northern Manitoba, 1870-1930." Ph.D.
Dissertation, York University.
This study in historical geography examines the experience of native people in the regional economy of
northern Manitoba between 1870 and the 1930s. As such, it entails an analysis of the post 1870 fur trade,
and the new economic forces and organization which affected socioeconomic life in the region. The
'surrender' of aboriginal title had important consequences for the political economy of natives (control over
resources and state support for the native economy) and it also influenced settlement patterns. New resource
industries (commercial fishing and lumbering) and new transportation modes (steamboats and rail ways)
also altered native roles in the regional economy. Economic change in the post 1870 period was a spatially
uneven process. Complex fur trade post and regional economies were simplified and disrupted; this reduced
the demand for local labour and resources. For natives, this situation was aggravated by stagnant fur prices
in the world market until 1900. In contrast, those natives north of the Interlake's commercial boom were
restricted to participating in a stagnant fur trade. After 1900, however, the development of new external
markets and free traders stimulated the growth of competitive fur-buying markets. This had the effect of
reducing the influence of the Hudson's Bay Company, but it also tended to retrench natives in the fur trade.
The contrasting economies which developed within northern Manitoba created migration pressures;
however, in the post 1870 period native migrations were restricted by the state. In 1870, the native economy
was oriented towards mercantile exchange; subsequent development of the regional economy, in which
natives played an essential role, was controlled by outside agencies and it became increasingly dependent
upon external forces.
Traudt, Barbara A. (2001 ) "The evolution of democracy: From a Lockean to a Native American perspective." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of Denver. 234 pp.
'The evolution of democracy: From a Lockean to a Native American perspective' is an intellectual addition to
both ancient and current democratic theory. Specifically, the work contrasts traditional Lakota (Sioux) and
Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) socioeconomic and political systems with John Locke's political and economic
theory. The work seeks to examine both systems in detail, arguing that the above Native American nations
created societies more democratic and egalitarian than the Lockean societies that exist today. From vastly
distinct philosophic ideas of mankind's relationship with one another; with all living creatures; and with the
earth herself, opposing views on property and property relations emerge between the two theories. Locke
views man's relationship with earth as essentially hierarchical, with mankind on top and the Earth and all
other creation below, for his use. Conversely, Native Americans view life as cyclical, where everything exists
in relationship to one another and is inherently interdependent. Mankind is merely one point in the circle of
life: not its master. A political system emerged from Lakota and Haudenosaunee philosophy that promoted
above all, harmony and respect. These became the objective of politics and economics, as well as mankind's
existence itself. The system was democratic and egalitarian. It was one of extensive deliberation where every
voice was heard, and decision-making was based on consensus, in order to facilitate harmony. This was
possible because the objective of politics was to work for the common good, never for individual pin. The
system gave no power per se to leaders: rather they held a position of responsibility for the well being of the
entire community. Generally, the work compares John Locke's theory of representative government as well as
his views on property and labour with the philosophy and systems of the Lakota and Haudenosaunee nations.
The work argues that the philosophy and systems of these two Native American groups were far more
democratic and egalitarian than are the Lockean systems common in the Northern Hemisphere of the world
today. Thus, the Lakota and Haudenosaunee's traditional social systems offer us a valuable insight to the
possibility of creating truly democratic and egalitarian societies in the 21st century.
Trevithick, Scott R. (1998) "Conflicting outlooks: The background to the 1924 deposing of the Six Nations Hereditary
Council." M.A. Thesis, University of Calgary. 124 pp.
The Dominion government deposing of the Six Nations Hereditary Council at Grand River in 1924 was
highly significant at the time, and it remains so today. This thesis seeks to explain this event through
examination of the political history of the Six Nations from the 1870s through 1924. Factionalism, a
longstanding belief in sovereignty, and a local reform movement remained constant throughout these years.
At the turn of the century a burgeoning Six Nations nationalism found expression in a number of unrelated
claims against the government and other First Nations. Nationalism continued to grow through the first two
decades, fuelled principally by the Department's encroachment on Council's traditional jurisdiction. In order
to defend Council's local autonomy, the Chiefs fought for recognition of their claim to sovereignty first
domestically and then internationally, eventually provoking the Department of Indian Affairs into imposing
an elective system.
Tuinei, Sylvia M. (2000) "Renationalization of the Hawai'ian Islands through the historical law of aloha, Hawai'ian
national laws, and international law." Ph.D. Dissertation, Union Institute (The). 339 pp.
Pre- and post-colonial laws governing First Nations indigenous people occupying islands and continents
throughout the world prior to European discovery have been generally overlooked in the renationalization
processes occurring today. In South Africa, for example, Nelson Mandela used only western governance and
promised government-generated solutions. Sovereignty movements in Hawai'i have utilized western
governance forms. This form of government disregards indigenous values and has two major problems. First,
it creates social and financial dependency on government. Second, it gives decision-making power to only a
few. In August 1994, the United Nations Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of
Minorities adopted a draft declaration covering the rights and freedoms of indigenous people (The Rights of
Indigenous Peoples, Fact Sheet No. 9 (Rev. 1) p. 8). However, if First Nations Indigenous people give up
their rights through acculturation to western colonial values, they give up these freedoms. The real question
is: How, in this ever-evolving global economy, can a people survive socially and economically while
maintaining the integrity of their "cultural characteristics and distinct identities"? Is it even possible? The
aim of this dissertation is to attempt to answer this question by showing how cultural integrity and the use of
existing laws can provide a solid social and economic foundation for the renationalization of First Nation
people in this global society, using the Hawai'ian Island government, and its present problems, as an
example. Methodology included the extrapolation and definition of ancient and modern laws through a study
of history. Thereafter, the application of these laws were used to formulate a theory for renationalization.
Included were ideas for responsible internal social and economic self-rule; reclamation of land through the
use of ancient and Hawai'ian Islands national laws; and equitable international relationships between both
the Hawai'ian Islands, the US, and their citizens.
Turner, Dale A. (1997) ""This is not a peace pipe": Towards an understanding of aboriginal sovereignty." Ph.D.
This dissertation attempts to show that aboriginal peoples' ways of thinking have not been recognized by
early colonial European political thinkers. I begin with an examination of Kymlicka's political theory of
minority rights and show that, although Kymlicka is a strong advocate of the right of aboriginal self-
government in Canada, he fails to consider aboriginal ways of thinking within his own political system. From
an aboriginal perspective this is not surprising. However, I claim that Kymlicka opens the conceptual space
for the inclusion of aboriginal voices. The notion of “incorporation” means that aboriginal peoples became
included in the Canadian state and in this process their aboriginal sovereignty was extinguished. Aboriginal
peoples question the legitimacy of such a claim. A consequence of the Canadian government unilaterally
asserting its sovereignty over aboriginal peoples is that aboriginal ways of thinking are not recognized as
valuable within the legal and political discourse of sovereignty. In chapters two through five, respectively, I
examine the Valladolid debate of 1550 between the Spanish monk Bartolome de Las Casas and Juan
Sepulveda, The Great Law of Peace of the Iroquois Confederacy, Thomas Hobbes's distinction between the
state of nature and a civil society, and Alexis de Tocqueville's account of democracy in America. Each of the
examples, except for The Great Law of Peace, generate a philosophical dialogue that includes judgments
about aboriginal peoples. However, none of these European thinkers considers the possibility that aboriginal
voices could play a valuable role in shaping their political thought. To show the value of an aboriginal
exemplar of political thinking I consider the Iroquois Great Law of Peace. The Iroquois view of political
sovereignty respects the diversity of voices found within a political relationship. This was put into practice
and enforced in early colonial northeast America until the power dynamic shifted between the Iroquois and
the European newcomers. I finish this dissertation with a brief discussion about the role that aboriginal
intellectuals can play in bringing their voices into the dominant legal and political discourse of sovereignty. I
use the notion of a “mediator” taken from James Tully's Strange multiplicity and ask who is an aboriginal
mediator. I conclude that aboriginal people must embrace the language of legal-political discourse of
sovereignty in more imaginative ways for the simple reason that they need this knowledge and skills to
survive.
Turner, Ruth A. (1999) "Risk and protective factors for propensity for suicide among British Columbia adolescents
using the Adolescent Health Survey." Ph.D. Dissertation, Simon Fraser University. 69 pp.
The majority of research on resilience, or risk and protective factors for maladaptive behaviour among
adolescents, does not identify cultural or ethnic variables. Of the existing studies that include ethnicity as a
factor, many are based on American samples. The present study explores factors (e.g., depression, substance
use, parental support, self appraisal) that predict or prevent a particular maladaptive behaviour --
propensity for suicide attempt -- among a large sample of Canadian minority adolescents, specifically British
Columbia First Nations youth. The study also aims to determine the extent to which the selected factors
contribute to high or low propensity for suicide, and whether these findings differ from those for non-First
Nations youth. Research participants were 576 First Nations and 13,370 Non-First Nations youth ages 12-
19, who participated in a province-wide health survey that was conducted in British Columbia in 1992. The
final sample of 13,946 represented 89.7% of the total sample of 15,549 surveyed. Respondents completed a
123-item, paper-and-pencil Adolescent Health Survey (AHS) that contained questions pertaining to health
status and risk behaviour, and included items on suicidal ideation and emotional distress. There were no
meaningful differences between First Nations and non-First Nations groups in terms of propensity for
suicide, even though the results were statistically significant due to the enormity of the sample sizes. There
were also no differences in risk and protective factors for propensity for suicide between the two groups.
Specifically, regression analyses revealed that depression and abuse were seen as the leading risk factors for
propensity for suicide for both groups, and parental support and self-appraisal were leading protective
factors for both groups. In terms of previous suicide attempts, however, 12.8% of the First Nations
adolescents indicated they made at least one suicide attempt, compared to 6.5% of the non-First Nations
adolescents.
Turner, Stephen F. (1995 ) "Cultural encounter, aesthetics, and the limits of anthropology: Captain Cook and the
Mäori." Ph.D. Dissertation, Cornell University. 242 pp.
This thesis concerns an episode in cultural contact in the late 18th century, specifically the encounter
between Captain Cook and the Mäori of New Zealand. In New Zealand, the British found themselves in the
'state of nature,' and were unable to determine a common basis for negotiating the differences between the
Mäori and themselves. The encounter is bound up with the breakdown of the Enlightenment belief in the
underlying uniformity of human nature, and the perception of a new kind of difference. The 18th century
narrative of the stadial advance of commerce and civilization had been informed by cultural contact, and
helped to explain the differences between Europeans and other peoples. However, the condition of the New
Zealand Mäori contradicted the Enlightenment conception of man, and the rationality of progress. The
perception of a specifically cultural difference thus entered into the self-conception of Europeans through
contact with so-called primitive peoples. The reciprocity of cultural exchange -- the genealogy of 'culture' --
complicates the uni-linear narrative of the advance of European civilization. The idea of cultural difference
is a product of the expansion of Anglo-European capitalism. The construction of the British self-
understanding as a high-culture among the peoples of the world followed the extension of Empire as a
commercial enterprise. This development enabled both the emergence of aesthetic value, such that
specifically British cultural characteristics came to be seen as universal virtues, and the emergence of
ethnology as a field of intellectual inquiry. The condition for the split within the idea of 'culture,' which refers
at once to the refinement of the 'arts' and to the existence of distinct or plural worldviews, was provided by
cultural contact. The thesis offers an implicit critique of English literary culture as a form of cultural capital,
and an explicit critique of anthropology as a master narrative of indigenous cultures. The genealogy of
culture uncovers unrecognized differences within discursive fields constructed by the intersection of western
capital and western knowledge. The specific genealogy inscribed by this thesis is that of the Pakeha -- the
descendants of Europeans in New Zealand.
Turpel, Mary Ellen. (1997) "First Nations law: Post-colonial resistance." S.J.D. Dissertation, Harvard University.
Udel, Lisa J. (2001) "Revising strategies: The literature and politics of native women's activism." Ph.D. Dissertation,
University of Cincinnati. 244 pp.
This work examines native women's activism in contemporary North American decolonizing movements.
Looking at native women's political literature with particular attention to their theories of gender, post-
colonialism, indigenism, feminism, and the reformative obligations of the writer, this study is concerned with
several questions. First, how do native women activists and writers analyze their experiences of hegemonic
and patriarchal oppression, how do they outline and enact their political vision, and how do they theorize
'race' and 'gender' in 20th and 21st century North America? Second, how does the history of conquest, going
back at least three centuries, continue to affect contemporary native women's theories and praxes of activism
today? Third, what are the intellectual, cultural, and political responsibilities of the native activist/writer
living in modern America? Finally, how have native women constructed their political vision against and
alongside white women's movements? Can they coalesce for political reform?
Native women's decolonizing movements include a critique of Eurocentrism, grounded in an analysis of
specific historical contingencies, along with the reintegration of native traditions of social and political
praxes into contemporary tribal life. Several native writers characterize this movement as 'indigenism' which
presupposes several assumptions: that indigenous people worldwide share a common experience of
colonization and subsumption into a capitalist, hegemonic nation state; a shared investment in the attainment
of sovereign nationhood; and a fundamentally non-disruptive, integrative relationship to the natural habitat.
Chapter One examines native women's life narratives, concentrating on questions of writing as witness and
the achievement of a liberatory voice through inscription.
Chapter Two reviews the differences between native and western feminist activism, arguing that these
differences are determined, in part, by native and white women's divergent histories of gender.
Chapter Three explores the political and artistic theories of 'Two-Spirit' women writers which argue for their
responsibility to mediate between worlds in conflict.
Chapter Four demonstrates the ways that native women activist writers promote Indigenism and sovereignty,
concluding with a discussion of the authors' designs upon the reader and that reader's role as a consumer of
and participant in texts with an overtly indigenist agenda.
Unger, Ray P. (1992) "Erasing borders: Toward tribes." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of California, Santa Cruz. 400
pp.
This is the culmination of some 15 years of research and rumination (from a Mennonite or Radical
Reformation perspective) on what it might mean to make peace with the indigenous tribes in what Bartolome
de las Casas referred to as 'these Indies.' The content of the form is part of the content of the document; the
moral and environmental crisis has advanced to the point where we must finally begin the process of
revaluing all values as suggested by Nietzsche. After a personal prologue in which I try to sketch the crisis as
I see it, the first five chapters are a critical engagement with the social and theological thought of Jacques
Ellul. Ellul argues in his sociology for updating Marxist analysis, replacing the idea of Capital with the idea
of la technique (efficiency more than machines) as the most determinate force in the 20th century. In his
theological ethics, Ellul offers the vision of a transcendent, prophetic Word urging us toward freedom from
the chains of this tyrant, quintessentially manifest in the vast bureaucratic infrastructure of the modern
nation state. My essential critique of Ellul is that his idea of freedom is too individualistic and, hence, too
much a part of the political rhetoric of democratic mythology, which perhaps more than anything provides
legitimacy to these massive institutions and their habitual and unquestioned cooperation with capitalism. The
relation of Ellul's la technique to his vision of coming apocalypse and anarchy is given special attention. An
extensive annotated bibliography quotes from and comments on the range of writers most influential in my
research. An even more extensive 'concluding tribal artefact' tries to imagine a Mennonite 'tribe' smoking the
peace pipe with a Sioux tribe; this proceeds by way of a series of longer quotations and comments from the
best of my reading -- from Dostoevsky, Marx and Nietzsche to Homer, Socrates and Samuel to Lame Deer,
Black Elk and Vine Deloria, Jr. -- loosely outlined around the Beatitudes of Jesus as recorded in the so-
called Sermon on the Mount.
Urbanoski, Karen H. (2001) "Counselling in shelters for aboriginal women." M.S.W. Thesis, University of Calgary.
176 pp.
The aim of this study was to explore the experiences of one shelter for aboriginal women abused by their
intimate partner. Qualitative methodology was used in interviews with ten aboriginal women. The findings
indicate concerns of violence, racism and substance abuse in aboriginal communities. Shelters provide
necessary safety and crisis counselling, but there is also a need for ongoing counselling in shelters in
addition to liaising with community resources and supports. The importance of the aboriginal communities in
addressing the ongoing problem of woman abuse is necessary for this process. Understanding cultural
differences in experiences of abuse is essential for effective intervention.
Valdez, Norberto. (1995) "Ethnicity, class, and the struggle for land in Guerrero, Mexico." Ph.D. Dissertation,
University of Wisconsin -- Madison (The). 265 pp.
As Mexico has tried to emerge from its colonial past and its crises of dependent development, policy has
oftentimes focused on Indian lands due to their perceived inefficiency, lack of productivity, and need for
modernization. This dissertation takes as its central problem the explanation of the roles of ethnicity and
class in the strategies of the Amuzgo people of Guerrero to resist this process of penetration as they struggle
for their lands and community in the context of poverty and insecurity. It addresses the question how and why
Indian communities have retained and maintained a common land base under the dominant system of
capitalist development whose expansionist tendencies target the land which is the heart of Indian subsistence,
culture, and identity. This dissertation proposes a non-oppositional framework that focuses on the
intersection of ethnicity and class as a means of revealing the various ways in which indigenous communities
mobilize socioeconomic and political capital in order to negotiate paths toward acquisition and maintenance
of community lands and the means of survival. The Amuzgo people are involved in relations of domination
and subordination as part of the agrarian structure, but this hegemony is a lived process in which they are
subjects or agents of history who also contribute to the character of its formation. Research in municipal,
state, and federal archives, combined with a community study of Xochistlahuaca, Guerrero revealed that
strategies employed by campesinos have historically involved alliances that cut across both ethnic and class
boundaries. Situations of domination and subordination cultivate new ground for adaptation and resistance.
As campesinos continue to experience aspects of their country's economic crisis, they have been forced not
only to diversify but to intensify their economic activities in order to contribute to their well-being. At the
same time, this process affects community and family relationships, creating conflict and increasing burdens
on women. This study reveals the deeply-embedded structural aspects of uneven development that are at the
root of rural insecurity. This dissertation shows that the struggle for land has been paramount in the
struggles for subsistence and the defence of community and Indian identity.
Vallance, Neil. (2003) "The use of the term 'culture' by the Supreme Court of Canada: A comparison of aboriginal and
non-aboriginal cases since 1982." M.A. Thesis, University of Victoria. 125 pp.
This thesis is intended to provide both a preliminary reconnaissance of the use of the term 'culture' by the
Supreme Court of Canada in non-aboriginal rights cases, and a basis for comparison with aboriginal rights
cases. First, the extent of the use of the term by the Court in all aboriginal and non-aboriginal rights cases
over the last 21 years was surveyed. Secondly, selected cases were subjected to a more in-depth analysis. The
survey confirmed that there is no equivalent, in any area of Canadian law, to the 'distinctive culture test' in R.
v. Van der Peet (1996). In no area of law, other than aboriginal rights, were cases found where claimants
were required to prove anything about their 'culture' as a prerequisite for entitlement to rights. Analysis of
the selected cases revealed the Court's use, without any critical awareness, of out-dated concepts of culture.
Van Winkle, Nancy W. (1981) "Native American suicide in New Mexico: A comparative study (1957-79)." M.A.
Thesis, University of New Mexico (The). 200 pp.
Suicide has been shown to be a problem among some groups of Native Americans. This study examines
completed suicides among the Apache, Navajo and Pueblo Indians of New Mexico from 1957 to 1979. Death
certificates are used as the primary data source. Suicide rates for the Apache, Navajo and Pueblo are found
to be increasing from the mid-1960s to 1979. The Apache have the highest suicide rate followed by the
Pueblo and Navajo. A combination of traditional and contemporary social integration and social
disorganization due to acculturation are suggested as explanations for these findings. Variations in suicide
rates among subgroups of these cultural groups are found with the level of acculturation suggested as a
possible explanation. Other significant findings include a 9:1 male to female ratio for completed suicides and
an age range of 10-39 for 81.4% of the completed suicides.
Van Woudenberg, Gerdine M. (1999) "The political constitution of indigenous land struggles: A case study of the
aboriginal 'rights' trickster." M.A. Thesis, Carleton University. 175 pp.
Heading into the 21st century one of the enduring challenges facing indigenous peoples is access to and
control of land, critical to indigenous cultural revitalization and preservation initiatives. Efforts to resolve
indigenous land struggles generally occur within domestic spheres of conflict resolution, thereby placing
primacy on the spatial sovereignty of nation-states. Using as a case study a recent land conflict between
Wabanaki peoples and the Province of New Brunswick and placing it within the cultural production of
landscapes, this thesis disrupts the national (Canadian) narrative by problematizing the domestic strategy of
aboriginal 'rights' discourse. By moving beyond the material process and physical primacy of land, this thesis
explores the ways in which aboriginal 'rights' discourse instigates contestations over the meanings of
landscapes, shapes cultural politics and symbolic practices, which in turn give rise to and indelibly
adjudicate the outcome of territorial disputes. Within this context, the case study reveals that rather than
securing Wabanaki peoples a more self-determined existence, the aboriginal 'rights' trickster drains
aboriginal communities of their collective power by enveloping them further into the spatial imagery of the
nation-state.
Vanderpool, Michael A. (2003) "Determining if the Canadian Forces Aptitude Test is biased against Canadian
aboriginal peoples." M.Sc. Thesis, Saint Mary's University. 166 pp.
The primary purpose of this study was to determine if any items on the Canadian Forces Aptitude Test
(CFAT) possessed any degree of bias on the basis of aboriginal status. A secondary goal was to investigate
the possibility of using another well-established measure of cognitive ability to select aboriginal peoples for
employment in the Canadian Forces (CF). To achieve these ends, the CFAT, Wonderlic Personnel Test
(WPT), Raven's Standard Progressive Matrices (SPM) and Mill Hill Vocabulary Scale (MHV) were
administered to aboriginal peoples (n = 101) living in special access and remote communities. The same four
tests were also administered to a reference group composed of recruits (n = 108) undergoing basic training
in the CF.
The "four-fifths" rule was used to determine if the CFAT had an adverse impact on aboriginal peoples. The
CFAT scores of the aboriginal participants were compared against the scores of Anglophone Non-
Commissioned Member applicants. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)
Vedan, Richard W. (2002) "How do we forgive our fathers: Angry/violent aboriginal/First Nations men's experiences
with social workers." Ph.D. Dissertation, Simon Fraser University. 237 pp.
The extent of male violence in its many forms has been reported by the report of The Royal Commission on
Aboriginal Peoples (1996) as being of epidemic proportions and escalating. The purpose of this study is to
contribute to the elimination of violence and to discover, through the stories of aboriginal/First Nations
males who have experienced issues with violent behaviour, what aspects of helping relationships are
perceived as beneficial, and what aspects of helping relationships are perceived as detrimental.
An emergent themes grounded theory case study methodology is used to examine the life stories of six First
Nations men who are participants in a talking circle program to ameliorate violent behaviour. The
researcher undertook an ongoing holistic autobiographical process to establish authenticity of identity while
engaging in a 14 week participant observer process prior to conducting the interviews. The autobiography
and participant observer process are material to the outcomes of the interviews.
The six men's stories are told against the back-drop of First Nations colonial history and a description of
First Nations contemporary social conditions. The stories tell the legacy of violence, drug and alcohol abuse,
residential school trauma, received from parents and grandparents and passed on to spouses, children and
grandchildren.
An emergent themes grounded theory approach generated 1,054 statements made by participants regarding
social relationships in their lives from early childhood to the present. The individual statements led to the
emergence of 29 categories of relationship which were further refined into four themes: (1) powerfully
contradictory experiences and feelings related to immediate and extended family; (2) multigenerational
trauma and multigenerational post-traumatic stress disorder; (3) marginalization and alienation within the
community at the micro and macro levels; and, (4) relationships with helping professionals and
policy/program structures that are inconsistent, erratic, irrelevant and irrepressible.
The study findings provide valuable insights into relationship, policy and program requirements in a number
of social work practice areas.
Veilleux, Barbara J. (2003) "Culture stress and its impact on self-esteem." M.S.W. Thesis, University of Manitoba
(The). 174 pp.
The purpose of this practicum was the implementation and evaluation of a six-session intervention which
would provide the participant with an opportunity to begin to heal in the areas of her life impacted by culture
stress. This would be accomplished by using an Aboriginal approach to healing integrated with ecological
and cognitive theories. The primary focus of this practicum was to: (i) increase the participants awareness of
the factors that contributed to her childhood abuse and the resulting current problems; (ii) give permission
and encouragement to the participant for self-care; and, (iii) provide the participant with the opportunity for
personal growth and development through an educational process. The main goal of this practicum was to
provide an opportunity for the participant -- a survivor of culture stress -- to begin to understand the concept
of culture stress and its impact on her life and through this begin to work toward increasing her self-esteem
Venkateswar, Sita. (1997 ) "Policing power, governing gender and reimagining resistance: A perspective on the
contemporary situation of the Andaman Islanders." Ph.D. Dissertation, Rutgers The State University of New
Jersey. 283 pp.
This dissertation is a comparative analysis of three groups of Andaman Islanders with very diverse historical
experiences of colonialism and 'development.' Within the context of internal colonialism and the ongoing
ethnocide of the islanders, the dissertation examines various articulations of the process, with emphasis on
the dynamics of power and gender, as deployed in terms of policy and in specific ethnographic situations.
The first part of the dissertation examines the links between colonialism and 'development', and the many
continuities in the policies of the earlier British colonial administration with the present Indian colonization
of the Andaman Islands. Within this framework, I analyze the situation of the Onge, Andamanese and Jarawa
as integrally intertwined with and affected by shifting agendas of 'development.' National discourses which
medicalize the islanders as 'rare' and 'endangered' contribute to the formulation of government policies,
which seek to either 'preserve' an 'authentic' way of life, or a unique people. These discursive formations are
problematised by the contradictory policy options that follow from such representations. Since the islanders
have been labelled as 'rare', the administration is compelled to make available a substantial forest resource
base for the islanders' use, to maintain their unique life way. But, because the islanders are also designated
as 'endangered', they are considered in need of administrative protection. The representations have
legitimized the Indian government's attempts to deploy a policy of sedenterization overseen by social and
medical welfare providers. Thus, the medicalization of the islanders reinforces the necessity to sedenterize
them, eliding the primary fact that these people are endangered only through the encroachment into their
territory. As past events have demonstrated with different groups of Andaman Islanders, there is a recurrent
pattern to these shifting representations of the islanders and the policies that follow thereafter. As soon as
plans can be formulated for large-scale utilization and a more commercially profitable use for the islanders'
territory, government policies are clearly resolved in favour of sedenterization of the islanders. In the second
section, I analyze how 'development' and the welfare policies of the current Indian administration is a
fundamentally gendered process, with profound, although unexpected and uneven effects on local gendered
relations of power. Using ethnographic data, I explore and explain how impositions of particular masculine
identities on the Onge and Andamanese have reconfigured gender relations in these groups, manifested as
mundane, quotidian and protracted struggles for and over power between genders. Finally, the dissertation
considers the positionality of the anthropologist within the matrix of gender, power, race and class in both
constructing and constituting the research process.
Venne, Janique. (2003) "L'Accord définitif Nisga'a: Un modèle d'autonomie gouvernementale post-colonial?" M.A.
['The Nisga'a Final Agreement: A model of post-colonial governmental autonomy?']
This thesis evaluates the scope of the Nisga'a Final Agreement as a marker in the development of aboriginal
self-determination in Canada. Through a detailed study of the parameters of the Nisga'a governmental
autonomy model, an examination of the potentialities of the agreement in terms of the third level of
governments meant to respond to the concerns of the First Nations has been conducted. According to the
author, the Nisga'a Final Agreement establishes a third level of aboriginal government in the Canadian
federation without putting into question the historical foundations at its basis, as well as the traditional
policy of the federal government in the area of governmental autonomy.
Vermette, D'Arcy G. (2004) "Colonial oppression and the law: Myth, voice, culture and identity in Aboriginal rights
discourse." L.L.M. Thesis, Queen's University at Kingston. 248 pp.
This thesis begins with an examination of my struggles in law school. It was those struggles which motivated
me to examine why I found the law so frustrating. To assist with interpretation of the case law, I have
adopted a colonizer/colonized and oppressed/oppressor dynamic. This thesis is not meant to provide an
internal analysis of legal rules. Instead, I see my writing as a form of resistance whereby I attempt to utilize
"voice" rather than a particular disciplinary approach to the law. The debate is both legal and moral.
Aboriginal people experience many barriers when confronting Aboriginal rights discourse in the law. The
first barrier is trying to overcome historical myths and contemporary legal fictions which stabilize the
creation of Aboriginal rights within the law. This problem is created by and exacerbated by the lack of
recognition that Aboriginal people's voice is given in legal disputes and in the structure of Canadian law.
Utilizing the themes of myth and voice, I undertake an examination of Aboriginal people's interaction with
the law. My focus is on rights discourse in section 35 of the Canadian Constitution of 1982 but is not
exclusive to this jurisprudence. An effort is made to show that Aboriginal rights discourse still embodies
colonialism as its base of interpretation. To this end, I look at how Aboriginal culture and Aboriginal identity
are put on trial. This thesis does not conclude with specific solutions to the problems posed. Instead, the
analysis in this thesis is offered as a contribution to a dialogue that is necessary to bring about liberation for
Aboriginal people.
Vicary, David A. (2002) "Engagement and intervention for non-Aboriginal therapists working with Western
Australian Aboriginal people." Ph.D. Dissertation, Curtin University of Technology. 317 pp.
Many Australian psychologists are confronted by the paucity of information pertaining to culturally
appropriate methods of assessment and therapy with Aboriginal clients. In the past, the mental health of
Aboriginal people has been largely neglected in Australia. While there is some epidemiological and
anecdotal literature that addresses the issue of Aboriginal mental health, some of this material is limited by
methodological constraints and does not guide practical applications of the findings. There is some literature
available to the mental health professional that provides detailed and practical insights into Aboriginal
mental health, but these are generally case studies and/or discussion papers. There continues to be deficits in
knowledge about Aboriginal attitudes and beliefs pertaining to: (1) mental health; (2) western
psychotherapy; and (3) non-Aboriginal counsellors/therapists. The present investigation addresses these
deficits through exploratory qualitative research that examines five broad areas pertaining to Aboriginal
mental health. These broad areas are: (1) Aboriginal conceptualizations of mental health; (2) traditional or
culturally appropriate mental health interventions; (3) attitudes and beliefs about western psychotherapy and
non-Aboriginal practitioners; (4) culturally appropriate therapeutic interventions; and, (5) culturally
appropriate methodologies. A qualitative study was conducted both in the Kimberley and metropolitan Perth
regions of Western Australia. In total, 70 subjects, 35 from each geographical region, were interviewed.
Eight focus groups were conducted after the initial results were obtained so that the data, and subsequent
interpretations, could be culturally validated.
Results from the two studies indicate that there is a gulf between Aboriginal and western conceptualizations
of mental health. Aboriginal conceptualizations of mental health appear more holistic and contain elements
that are both cultural and spiritual. Extending from this Indigenous mental health model are traditional
psychological treatments that endeavour to address the cultural and spiritual components of the mental
illness. The research found that these treatments are hierarchically organized, depending on cause, severity,
type of practitioner required and treatment. Aboriginal people generally seek traditional interpretations and
treatment of illness and exhaust these avenues, prior to contact with the western mental health system. The
research also delineated Aboriginal beliefs about western psychotherapy, including conceptions that western
therapy is not culturally appropriate and at times may disadvantage Aboriginal clientele. A large proportion
of the participants in this study maintained that they would deal with a mental health problem themselves,
regardless of the consequences, rather than have contact with the western system. Findings from the research
also delineate culturally appropriate therapeutic interventions and work practices. A model that
amalgamates the findings pertaining to culturally appropriate therapeutic engagement is also proposed.
Vickery, Paul S. (1996) "The prophetic call and message of Bartolome de las Casas (1484-1566)." Ph.D. Dissertation,
Oklahoma State University. 275 pp.
The purpose of this work was to examine the events leading to the 'conversion' or prophetic call, of
Bartolome de las Casas and his subsequent message to the Crown. This dissertation examined the copious
published material of Las Casas, the relevant primary documents relating to Spanish colonial policy, and the
subsequent historical interpretations of the man and his works. Findings and conclusions. In 1514, while
preparing to deliver a sermon, Bartolome de las Casas believed that he received a 'call' and message from
God, and, in an act of penance, he changed both his attitude and actions. He changed his occupation from
combination businessman/cleric to full-time advocate for the rights of the Amerindians. As a cleric, member
of the Dominican Order, and Bishop, his ministry became one of confronting the Crown in an effort to
change colonial policy. Specifically, his goal was to alter or abolish the system of forced labour, known as
the encomienda, which was decimating the natives. In an ethically consistent manner, Las Casas both
preached and exemplified this message by his life. Although the manner in which he delivered his message
matured over the decades, his basic theme of Spanish responsibility to demonstrate Christianity and thereby
convert the Indians to the Catholic Church remained unchanged.
Viel, Debbie. (2005) "Aboriginal women: Promoting self, family and community health." M.N. Thesis, University of
Manitoba. 180 pp.
This study tells the stories of 16 Aboriginal women of how they promote their health, as well as the health of
their families and communities. There is a focus on the definition of health using a medicine wheel depiction
and the determinants of health that are currently recognized by Health Canada. Four additional
determinants were identified by the women in this study and a discussion regarding each is included.
This study was viewed through a feminist lens. The qualitative method used was women-centred interviewing
of a convenience sample of 16 Aboriginal women residing in rural Manitoba. Content analysis of the
verbatim transcripts revealed the following themes and sub-themes: health defined ---lifestyle choices;
physical, emotional, intellectual and spiritual health; healthy self, I need to be me---the importance of self
care ---promoting my health; having faith; hopes and dreams; barriers to being healthy ---shame; racism,
addiction; domestic violence; abuse, teenage pregnancy; poverty; promoting health in my family ---healthy
family; taking care of my children; perceived social supports; and promoting health in my community, it
takes a community to raise a child ---healthy community; strong leadership; employment, housing, education
and safety; and lack of available services. The categories are identified in Health Canada's determinants of
health with the exception of faith, social equality, healthy partner relationships and strong community
leadership.
Implications for nursing education and practice, policy and research are discussed. There are 10
recommendations for future consideration.
Villanueva, Miguel A. (1997) "The Hopi Vietnam veteran, post-traumatic stress disorder, and the influence of culture
(Hopi senom tsa win du ya annung yehseh)." Ph.D. Dissertation, Pacific Graduate School of Psychology. 191
pp.
This population study established the prevalence rate for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among Hopi
Vietnam veterans and measured military, educational, occupational, and marital variables. It also measured
levels of Agent Orange/Dioxin exposure and rates of skin disorders in the children of Hopi Vietnam veterans.
Referencing the histories of Hopi, Mexico, US, and southwestern tribes, this study examined the role of
culture on PTSD. Roots of this dissertation lay in 2 Congressionally mandated studies: The National Vietnam
Veterans Readjustment Study (NVVRS), which found significantly higher rates of PTSD among Hispanic
(28%) than among White (14%) Vietnam veterans, and the Matsunaga Project, which established prevalence
rates for PTSD among American Indians. However, the Matsunaga Project selected 2 tribes by non-random
methods from a universe of 500-plus tribes. Similar in their social and cultural sanctioning of war, both
tribes endured substantial trauma by the US military. Psychological research on American Indians
historically has ignored tribal differences; moreover, the Hopi Pueblos have different political experiences
from other Southwest tribes and Pueblos. Primarily an agrarian society with a defensive perspective on war,
Hopi promotes personal stewardship of the Earth and eschews aggression.
Using similar clinical instruments to the NVVRS and the Matsunaga Project, the present study established a
prevalence rate of PTSD among the Hopi Vietnam veteran population of 86%, significantly (p < .001) higher
than the 27% rate for Southwest Indians and the 31% for Northern Plains Indians given in the Preliminary
Draft Report from the Matsunaga Project. Findings supported the relevance of culture to PTSD, but the
relation proved complex. Violations of Hopi pacific traditions by combat actions threatened the very identity
of soldiers, who could no longer claim to be Hopi. As well as making war more traumatogenic, the close-knit
Hopi culture, particularly through its men's societies and family stability, provided powerful resources for
healing. Unfortunately, forcing Hopi children to attend boarding schools has had its intended effect of
weakening cultural ties; those far from home at the age of initiation were less prepared as veterans to avail
themselves of traditional healing resources. The 86% PTSD rate is one result.
Villebrun, Gwendolyn D. (2002) "Facing storms: An interpretive inquiry into aboriginal women's healing from
depression." M.Sc. Thesis, University of Calgary. 204 pp.
This interpretive inquiry aimed to understand the lived experience of aboriginal women's healing from
depression. A hermeneutic-phenomenological approach, coupled with critical theory, guided this
investigation into the meaning of what motivated aboriginal women toward healing and what facilitated their
healing process. This study sought to emancipate the experience of aboriginal women by giving them a voice,
while being mindful of their unique historical, social, cultural, and political backgrounds. The stories of five
aboriginal women who feel they have experienced healing from depression are represented utilizing a
metaphor of 'facing the storm.' This written account of the investigation ends with a discussion of the
counselling implications that arose from the women's stories of healing.
Voss, Joachim H. (1984) "Capitalist penetration and local resistance: Continuity and transformations in the social
relations of production of the Sagada Igorots of northern Luzon." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Toronto.
The central problem of the thesis is to analyze the effects of the penetration of capitalist market and
commodity relations on the indigenous social relations of production and reproduction of the Sagada Igorots
of Northern Luzon in the Philippines. In particular, Lenin's thesis that capitalist penetration into agrarian
societies will eventually lead to polarization of access to the means of production and the formation of a
rural proletariat is critically examined. This is done by considering the specific history of incorporation of
the Igorots into the Philippine state; followed by an analysis of continuity and change in the indigenous
social relations, in terms of access to resources, the distribution and circulation of the means of production
and the social surplus and the organization of labour. Throughout there is an emphasis on the ways by which
the Sagada Igorots have resisted the loss of control over their resources and the excessive disruption of
community and household based cooperative relations of reciprocity and exchange. The analysis shows that
this resistance has been less against increasing involvement in market relations (there is a long history of
increasing trade for external commodities); but rather, that resistance has focused on attempting to keep the
terms of such incorporation on a locally favourable basis. Internally, much of the resistance to capitalist
commodity relations has dealt with managing the central contradiction arising out of the increasing
monetization and market orientation of the society. This is seen to be between the concentration and
reinvestment of surplus as capital -- to be used for personal benefit through the expanded capitalist
reproduction of some households at the expense of others -- and the utilization of surplus for redistributive
feasting as the basis for personal prestige and for the maintenance of traditional community ties. It is
concluded that the maintenance of such non commoditized social relations as reciprocal and cooperative
community labour has been instrumental in limiting class differentiation of a capitalist nature and in
providing risk insurance for individual producers, thus allowing many Sagadans to move into the capitalist
economy as entrepreneurs, wage workers and petty producers, on terms which are considerably less onerous
than those which are often imposed on pure proletarians who have been dispossessed of their own means of
production.
Voyageur, Cora J. (1997) "Employment equity and aboriginal people in Canada." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of
Alberta. 430 pp.
The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact and effectiveness of the Federal Employment Equity Act
on aboriginal people in Canada. It was designed to curb workplace discrimination on two fronts. The first
deals with the reduction and elimination of pre-employment conditions such as unequal access to jobs or
insufficient educational preparation. The second involves correcting systematic discrimination that prevents
equal participation in the workplace. Although the Act has been in existence in Canada since 1986, there has
been no comprehensive analysis conducted to assess the effectiveness for aboriginal people. Its impact on
aboriginal people is important since aboriginals occupy the lowest social and economic position in Canadian
society and the legislation has the potential to greatly benefit them. This study evaluates to what extent
aboriginal people have benefited from the program and determines whether the legislation's objective of
improving the employment prospects of historically disadvantaged groups has been met. Comparisons are
made between the progress of other designated groups under this legislation and aboriginal people. This
project identifies successful and unsuccessful employment equity models and offers interpretations about why
specific programs are more beneficial than others. The study has three parts. The first is secondary analysis
with aggregate trends are drawn from a series of Legislated Employment Equity Program (LEEP) Annual
Reports from federally regulated employers and crown corporations. The second is case studies involving:
The Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (financial sector), Alberta Government Telephones
(communications sector), the University of Alberta (education sector) and Syncrude Canada (resource
sector). Similarities and differences between these organizations provide insights into their efforts toward
achieving employment equity and their effectiveness. The third involves profiles of some employees currently
employed, or who were employed, with a case study organization. The analysis of the native employment
experience is significant to other employers or crown corporations who must maintain required levels of
employees from the designated groups. Attracting and retaining aboriginal employees is important to
employers since the native community is the fastest growing segment of Canadian society and will represent
a larger portion of the employee pool in the future.
Wagstrom, Thor A. (1999) "Daniel's book unsealed: Protestant missionaries and indigenous prophecies in 19th
century New Zealand and South Africa." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Nebraska -- Lincoln (The). 478 pp.
When evangelical missionaries fanned around the globe during the 19th century, they brought with them
messages of prophecy and of millenarian expectation. In their eagerness to evangelize the world, they spread
these messages to indigenous societies but did not have the resources to control how these messages were
interpreted or used by those to whom they preached. The purpose of this thesis is to investigate the influence
that the messages brought by evangelical missionaries had on innovative religious movements particularly
among the Xhosa on the eastern frontier of the Cape Colony and among the Mäori in New Zealand.
This thesis examines the sources of missionary messages, the transmission of those messages, and the effects
that they had on indigenous people. It makes two main contributions to the study of innovative religions in the
wake of European expansion. First, it looks closely at the process of communication of Christian beliefs by
missionaries and at the breakdown in that process, which permitted independent interpretation. In this effort,
the perspectives and behaviours of both the missionaries and the indigenous people are considered. Second,
it makes comparisons throughout between two contexts: the eastern Cape frontier and New Zealand. In
showing the similarities between these two cases, the argument is made that missionary influence was one of
the primary reasons that the religious aspects of indigenous resistance to European colonization took such
similar forms in South Africa and New Zealand.
Waldram, James B. (1983) "The impact of hydro-electric development upon a northern Manitoba native community."
Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Connecticut (The). 357 pp.
The purpose of this dissertation is to describe the process of underdevelopment among the Cree Indian
people of South Indian Lake, in Northern Manitoba, Canada, following the construction of the Churchill-
Nelson River Hydro Project in 1975. The dissertation seeks to link the ecological, political, economic, socio-
cultural and health aspects of the impact of the hydro project within the framework of the historical process
of underdevelopment as it has occurred in Latin America, among Native people in the United States, and
among Native people in Northern Canada. Utilizing both qualitative and quantitative data, a process of
increased dependence is described as the product of two related processes. The first process is the
impairment of the local commercial and domestic economy caused by the flooding of Southern Indian Lake,
which has resulted in a decline in local productivity. The second process is the enhancement of consumerism
through rising consumer expectations and a post-project increase in available goods and services which the
people are increasingly unable to afford. The overall result has been a process of economic divergence at the
local level. The dissertation concludes that the process of underdevelopment which has occurred in South
Indian Lake has been the result primarily of changes in the local ecological system caused by the
construction of the hydro project. These ecological changes have, in turn, resulted in secondary changes in
the socioeconomic system.
———. (1980) "Relocation and social change among the Swampy Cree and Metis of Easterville, Manitoba." M.A.
Thesis, University of Manitoba (The).
Walker, Cheryl A. (1999) "Native illness meanings: Depression and suicide." Ed.D. Dissertation, University of
Toronto. 315 pp.
Depression and suicide rates are prevalent amongst native people living on reservations in North America.
The literature indicates that the emotional difficulty termed 'depression' is common among native people
(O'Nell, 1993). However, western understandings of the term 'depression' may not always be applicable in
native contexts. Studies indicate that in some native communities the particular impact of social
circumstances on mood is related to native peoples' experiences of depressive illness. It is important to
understand the meanings native people give to the term 'depression,' their experience of it, and the sources
they ascribe to it, both social and individual. It was the purpose of this study to assess from the native
participants' understanding, whether depression and suicide does affect those living on a reserve in north-
western Ontario. This study's aim was to explore whether both depression and suicide, as the terms are
understood in western culture, are a problem for these native peoples. Also, it was the aim to understand
what the illness experience of depression and suicide means for these native people, both at the social level,
the contextual level and the personal one. It was intended that from this research, knowledge would be
gleaned about what these native peoples' explanatory models were regarding the sources of low mood and
suicide. This exploratory narrative investigation revealed the participants' themes or meanings that they gave
to their illness experience. These themes spoke to psychosocial sources for which these native individuals
attributed their experiences of psychological distress. In their understanding, both female and male
participants experienced episodes of depressive mood and certain symptoms. Participants also had
experienced suicidal thoughts and intentions. Importantly, participants sourced their mood difficulties to
social causes and not to their own biologically-based predispositions or diseases as posited by western
medicalized perspectives as sources for mood problems. Rather, the occurrences of psychosocial stressors
that began in early life and continued into adulthood were described as major contributors to the illness
experience of mood difficulties by participants in this study.
Walker, Kimberly. (2005) "An exploration of the transmission of historical trauma in urban native Americans." Psy.D.
Dissertation, Alliant International University. 81 pp.
The understanding of the experiences of Urban Native Americans is an important undertaking, as they are
over-representative in statistics of suicide, drug and alcohol addiction, domestic violence, unemployment,
and income levels (UIN CDC, 1998). It is a fast-growing group of people with more than half of Native
Americans living outside of a reservation in an urban environment. The topic is focused on Urban Native
Americans because it is this population that has a multitude of risk factors and it is this population in general
that will be most likely to participate in mainstream mental health settings. This study aimed to allow the
participants to give voice to their individual stories and experiences regarding Native American historical
trauma. Furthermore, the participants were divided into the three generation groups (young adult, middle
adult, and elder) to illustrate any intergenerational differences in the experience and transmission of
historical trauma. Participants were recruited from the Native American Health Center in Oakland,
California and via www.craigslist.org.
Fifteen participants took part in this study, which utilized a qualitative method. Interview questions were
developed by the researcher and based on previous research on historical trauma in Jewish Holocaust
survivors as well as conceptual-analytic research on historical trauma in Native Americans. Part A of the
interview questions consists of demographic questions, intended to gather a better picture of the participants'
backgrounds. The main themes of the questions in Part B include knowledge of history, relationship with the
Native American community, relations with their family, and personal effects of historical trauma.
In addition, the results of this study reveal that the majority of participants are grappling with the effects of
Historical Trauma. Such effects manifest in feelings of anger towards the dominant cultural group, feelings of
responsibility towards their cultural group, and feelings of connectedness with their Native American
ancestors regardless of connectedness with one's own family. Trauma symptoms in the form of traumatic
dream imagery and depressive ideation were reported by the majority of participants despite the majority of
participants reported growing up disconnected from their tribal cultures and customs. There was a
generational difference in how participants gained knowledge of their history and culture in that all of the
participants in the elder group more likely to report gaining knowledge through a family elder.
This study revealed that urban Native Americans do experience psychological effects related to historical
trauma. It also points to the need for further research regarding historical trauma in Urban Native
Americans. Such research would have clearly defined inclusion criteria and having varied recruitment
methods.
Wall, Denis V. (1987) "Internal colonialism and Northland School Division # 61: A context for decision-making."
This investigation is an analysis of decision-making at the level of the board of trustees within a large
northern Alberta school jurisdiction: Northland School Division. Approximately 98% of the student
population is of Native ancestry. The theoretical framework used in the analysis is that of the internal
colonial model.
The main focus of the dissertation is a critique of the internal colonial model, including an address to some
fundamental social science questions which appear as limitations of the model. The first of these limitations
is the relationship between logical levels of analysis. Other such social science questions are how social
scientists characterize change and 'power', how social scientists delineate the populations they investigate,
and the ascendant issue of the role of the social scientist in the methodological and theoretical design of
investigations.
A further subissue addressed is the ideology of racism that is evident in colonial situations. The problem is
whether or not idealist or materialist conceptions of the origin of racism are most appropriate in social
science investigations of internal colonial situations.
The dissertation provides a description of the context in which the Native people of northern Alberta live: a
context in which Native people are subject to rule by other ethnic groups as exemplified by economic and
political domination and distinct land tenure rights. It is within this context that the relations between Alberta
Education (the provincial department of education) and the school division are described.
The decision-making relations within the jurisdiction in two time periods 1980-81 and 1984-85 are then
described. The descriptions are based on four areas of decision-making: budgeting, professional staffing,
policy making, and high school programming. The processes of decision-making are assumed to be very
similar to those of other school jurisdictions in Alberta. It then becomes necessary to provide an explanation
of the relationship between (a) the macro social context in which the school jurisdiction is dependent on
Alberta Education; and, (b) the micro social context internal to the division where the board and the
administration interact often on an equal footing, not as individuals but as small groups. It is found that the
macro social context of domination structures certain micro social decision-making situations.
The dissertation ends with an interpretation of how social scientists who use the internal colonial model
could fruitfully address discussions of 'power' and change appealing to more clearly defined notions of
structure and process and logical levels of analysis. Racism, population delineation, and the role of the social
scientist in investigations are also addressed further.
Wallace, Pamela S. (1998 ) "Yuchi social history since World War II: Political symbolism in ethnic identity." Ph.D.
From allotment to the current day, most scholars assume the various towns that originally formed the Creek
polity have become assimilated into a single homogenous Creek culture. The Yuchi community has
maintained a separate identity while being encapsulated within the Creek governmental structure for over
200 years. Following removal, the Yuchi maintained identity and community cohesion through geographic
locations and agrarian subsistence that allowed for daily face-to-face encounters among members, the Yuchi
language, and long ritual sequences. The entrance of community members into the post-WWII wage-labour
economy changed these forms of community interaction that had maintained cohesion since removal. This
work is an ethnohistoric, ethnographic, and demographic analysis of the Yuchi (Euchee) Indian community
during the latter half of the 20th century. In this study, I will demonstrate how the Yuchi established interest
group organizations for episodic political encounters with both Creek Nation and the United States
government. Following WWII, these encounters brought the community together for decision making, but
more importantly created venues to express and reinforce identity and cohesion. In the end, Yuchi mterest
group organizations have become themselves symbols of Yuchi identity and community persistence.
Wallner, Jennifer M. (2002) "The Assembly of First Nations: Pressure group or intergovernmental organization?"
M.A. Thesis, Dalhousie University. 147 pp.
The Assembly of First Nations (AFN) is the national political organization for First Nations peoples in
Canada. As such, the assembly is a key player in the emerging world of Aboriginal politics in the country.
This world of Aboriginal politics presents a very serious political challenge to Canada in the coming century.
Despite its importance, the AFN has garnered little explicit academic attention. Considering the significance
this organization, it is important to appropriately explain and understand this national political body.
Therefore, the question that must be answered is: what is the most appropriate political description for the
AFN? Since the pressure group paradigm provides an insufficient explanatory tool for the AFN, what
paradigm should be applied to the organization? There are two potential conceptualizations for the AFN.
First, the AFN could be a nascent confederal government. As a confederal government, the AFN would have
certain authority over the governance of its membership. Second, the AFN could be described as an
intergovernmental organization. Under this formulation, the AFN would retain virtually no authority over the
governance of its membership, instead providing a forum at the disposal of the participating First Nations
communities.
Walls, Martha E. (1996) "Native responses to the Indian residential school at Shubenacadie, Nova Scotia, 1928-51."
M.A. Thesis, Dalhousie University. 190 pp.
Like its counterparts across Canada, the Roman Catholic-operated residential school at Shubenacadie, Nova
Scotia, educated hundreds of Maritime Native children in basic literacy and agricultural skills between 1928
and 1967. While many children were forced by the federal Department of Indian Affairs to attend the
institution, some families voluntarily placed children at the school. As well as providing a educational
opportunity, families utilized the school to cope with poverty, illness, and unruly behaviour. Regardless of
enrolment circumstances, many families and sometimes pupils themselves, attempted to influence school life
by challenging unpopular regulations. Families spoke out against school policy in letters to Department and
school officials, solicited the support of community leaders in arguing their cases, and even initiated legal
action. Children also voiced their opposition to the school by misbehaving and by attempting to flee the
facility. These protests succeeded to varying degrees. Although these efforts failed to permanently alter
school policy, occasionally they did, though in isolated instances, succeed in undermining Department
regulations.
Walters, Karina L. (1995 ) "Urban American Indian identity and psychological wellness." Ph.D. Dissertation,
University of California, Los Angeles. 260 pp.
The 1992 civil unrest in Los Angeles highlights the need for social work mental health researchers to treat
racial and ethnic relations in urban settings as serious areas of inquiry. As we begin to piece together
epistemological understandings of ethnic dimensions of human behaviour, social work researchers and
practitioners are confronted with inadequate theory and methodological tools. In particular, the assumptions
that ethnic groups are homeogenous and have a monolithic identity persist. For American Indian peoples,
identity has long been considered important for cultural continuity and psychological wellness. Despite
progress from Indian researchers, inappropriate assumptions regarding identity continue. This study
addressed such inadequacies with the development of an urban American Indian identity model and scale
that captures the multidimensionality of Indian identity development in urban settings. 332 American Indian
women and men ages 18-84 years completed a structured interview measuring urban American Indian
identity attitudes, acculturation, and mental health indicators of self-esteem (Rosenberg's Self-Esteem Scale),
depression (CES-D), anxiety, hostility, paranoid-ideation, and interpersonal-sensitivity (SCL-90R).
Expanding upon modified versions of Parham and Helms (1985), Cross's (1971) and Sue's (1990) identity
models, the Urban American Indian Identity (UAII) model and its corresponding Scale (UAIIS) was
formulated to assess urban Indian identity attitude development. The UAIIS assesses four distinct
psychological stages (internalization, marginalization, externalization, and actualization). The psychometric
results indicated that the UAII model and scale had four distinct stages, was very reliable, and had good
criterion-related validity. Consistent with findings among other minority groups, the results also indicated
that the UAII stages accounted for significant change in self-esteem, depression, anxiety, hostility, paranoid-
ideation, and interpersonal-sensitivity. Out of the four stages, marginalized identity had the greatest net effect
on poor psychological functioning. Moreover, the results indicated that although identity and acculturation
were related, they had differential effects on psychological functioning, suggesting that identity and
acculturation cannot be used as proxies for one another in mental health research. Implications for social
work mental health research, clinical and agency-based practice, policy, and social work education are
discussed.
Walton, James T. (1996) "Being accepted: An evaluation of the Aboriginal Student Policy in a Canadian university ."
The research problem for the study was to examine the effects of the Aboriginal Student Policy of a university
in western Canada on the participation and academic persistence of aboriginal people at the university.
Interviews were conducted with 19 participants representing aboriginal students and prospective students,
university service providers, faculty members and administrators, and government.
Results showed that policy measures such as the Transition Year Program, the aboriginal student quota, the
Aboriginal Student Policy, and Native Student Services were regarded as most important by respondents.
Other successful measures were the aboriginal student law program, set-aside faculty seats, outreach
programs, better interactions between aboriginal students and instructors, and special programs for
aboriginals.
Unexpressed policy goals were identified, including education leading to better conditions and employment
prospects for aboriginals, aboriginal university students being role models, increasing aboriginal control
over their post-secondary education, and improving the university's standing by achieving the quota.
The study's overall finding was that many of the policy measures have been successfully implemented and
that aboriginal student participation and academic persistence was improving. However, the measures such
as improving sensitivity to aboriginal students and incorporating aboriginal content in curricula still
required considerable effort on the part of participants in the process in order to be fully implemented.
Wan, LiLynn. (2005) "Space, power, and the emergence of the liberal order: A comparative study of the Okanagan
and the Mi'kmaq, 1870-1890." M.A. Thesis, Dalhousie University. 157 pp.
A comparative study of the Okanagan and the Mi'kmaq in the late nineteenth century, with a focus on the
consolidation of the reserves in the 1870s and 1880s, demonstrates that native people did not only respond to
government policy but initiated change in accordance with their own interests. Despite a general policy of
racism and assimilation held by non-native governments, the Okanagan and Mi'kmaq were active agents in
constructing the spaces in which they lived, and in their own economic development. The resilience of distinct
native cultures reflects both resistance as well as self-assertion in adapting to new economic, political and
social realities.
Regional differences, specifically environmental factors and settlement patterns, played a fundamental role in
shaping the implementation of government policy. The weakness of the state and settler society in the
Okanagan Valley differed crucially with the prolific and well established non-native population and
institutions in the Annapolis Valley and Windsor Lowlands region during the same time period. In practical
terms, this meant that west coast native groups possessed a measure of autonomy that native people in the
Atlantic region had long since relinquished.
The centrality of land to state formation and relations between native and non-native peoples constitutes a
focal point in this study. Agricultural development was a crucial point of conflict, given its centrality in the
economy and culture of both the Okanagan and Annapolis Valleys. During this period, the intrinsic position
of land as the basis of both native and non-native economies resulted in political battles, such as those that
led to the creation of the reserve system, as well as cultural conflicts over the definition of land itself.
Ward, Tayria J. (2003) "Reawakening indigenous sensibilities in the Western psyche." Ph.D. Dissertation, Pacifica
Graduate Institute. 264 pp.
Indigenous peoples not exposed to the civilizing processes of the West maintained access to modes of
perception and sensing capabilities that kept them in a flow of intelligible communication with the nonhuman
as well as the human world. Modern persons have allowed these innate capacities to atrophy. The result is an
overvaluing of the human and a forgetting of the delicate inter-dependence of the earth community. This has
effected a tragic loss of health, balance, and harmony ecologically, psychologically, emotionally, and
spiritually. As humans, we are inherently endowed with these indigenous sensibilities. Though dormant, they
can be recovered. The endeavour, however, requires a strong commitment to the processes such an
awakening initiates. This dissertation is a heuristic and hermeneutic description of my own journey as the
indigenous dimension of my psyche began to revive. I discovered that the ways in which Westerners have
regarded and treated indigenous peoples the world over -- the unapologetic conquest, disrespect, violence,
oppression, and marginalization -- are exactly how we have tacitly been trained to treat the indigenous
aspects of our own natures. To recover respect and a voice for the indigenous mind is to go against fierce
internal and external structures built specifically to disavow and exclude these ways of knowing and being.
My contention is that this work has become imperative for Westerners if we are to regain ecological and
internal equilibrium. The split from our own natural selves has caused us to become destructive to ourselves,
each other, and the natural world -- for the most part unwittingly, without evil intent, not realizing the
consequences of styles of thinking and living unquestioningly pursued. The inertia is hard to interrupt, yet a
radical reversal is required. In my case, the reversal was violent, devastating, and unwelcome until I began
to grasp the importance and meaning of what was happening and why. My hope is that if these meanings can
be communicated and understood, other persons may be able consciously and creatively to bring about
changes that will assist individuals and thereby the larger culture and our planet in necessary recovery and
reawakening of the indigenous mind.
Warhaft, Eldon B. (1998) "A vision of wellness: A First Nation community takes control." M.A. Thesis, Simon Fraser
University. 127 pp.
In the context of the constitutional recognition of existing Aboriginal rights and the acknowledged failure of
the criminal justice system to meet the needs of Aboriginal peoples, in 1994, the First Nation community of
Healing Rock, British Columbia, moved to assume greater control over the design and delivery of its justice
services in the form of a community-based justice initiative called the Community Wellness Program (CWP).
The CWP is an innovative community-based treatment and aftercare program for perpetrators and victims of
sexual abuse. Unlike other community justice initiatives, the CWP emphasizes treatment and offender
reporting, as opposed to incarceration and victim disclosure, to effect individual and community-wide
change. The objective of this thesis was to document the process by which the CWP moved from a community
idea to reality. A combination of in-person interviews and archival data documented the lived experience of
those community members who were most closely involved in the initiation and maintenance of the CWP.
Government personnel were also interviewed to provide a framework for understanding the political
environment in which Aboriginal community-based justice programs receive or are denied support.
Warkentin, Kevin E. (1995) "Quantifying the subsistence harvest of the Cross Lake First Nation: Development of the
Harvest Study Questionnaire." M.N.R.M. Thesis, University of Manitoba (The). 133 pp.
This practicum was carried out as part of the Cross Lake Harvest and Consumption Study sponsored by the
Cross Lake First Nation, Manitoba Hydro and the Government of Manitoba. It documents the development of
a questionnaire designed to quantify the 1993/94 annual subsistence harvest of fish and wildlife by the Cross
Lake First Nation. The questionnaire was adapted from one used in a previous study in the Mushkegowuk
Region of Northern Ontario. In order to make the questionnaire pertinent to the harvesting practices of the
Cross Lake First Nation, a species list and seasonal harvest cycle were developed, and the boundaries of the
harvest area were defined. This information was gathered from key community informants prior to the
development of the questionnaire, and during training and pretesting of draft questionnaires. Informants
identified 39 subsistence species harvested, and divided the year into three seasons: summer/fall (July 1 to
freeze up), winter (freeze up to break-up), and spring (break-up to June 30). the harvest area matched the
area covered by the Cross Lake Resource Area/Registered Trapline (RTL).
The basic unit of study used was the household. This caused some problems with the administration of the
questionnaire because of the difficulty of accounting for the harvests of all members of a household. A
stratified sampling design was utilized in the selection of participants for the study, in which households were
categorized on the basis of the time and effort put into harvesting by the most productive harvester in the
household. The categories used were: intensive (spends a month or more at a time in the bush), active
(spends a week or more at a time in the bush), occasional (spends a day or a weekend at a time in the bush)
and non-hunter. A 100% sample was sought from the intensive category, while the active, occasional and
non-hunter categories were randomly sampled at levels of 60%, 40% and 20%, respectively.
Common deficiencies in previous harvest studies were addressed through the use of specific methods
designed to reduce the effects of response bias (intentional or inadvertent misrepresentation of harvests),
non-response bias (the harvests of those not participating in the survey may be significantly different from
those of respondents) and double counting (shared species, e.g. moose, is reported by more than one
respondent). The development of a clear and concise questionnaire focusing on the most recently completed
harvest cycle, the use of locally respected interviewers, an emphasis on community ownership and long term
resource management, and the stratified sampling design were meant to address these deficiencies.
Community input also identified a possible gap in the harvest data obtained by the questionnaire. This gap
was that fish harvested under the Cross Lake Domestic Fishing Program (DFP) would not be reported in the
questionnaire due to the commercial nature of DFP harvests. The DFP brought a total of 209,783 pounds of
fish into Cross Lake during the summer/fall 1993 to spring 1994 harvest cycle, representing an estimated
20,896 lake whitefish, 8,636 walleye, 9,864 northern pike and 6,844 coarse fish. these figures represent the
amount of fish which must be added to those reported in the harvest study interviews in order to determine
the full extent of the amount of local food available to the population of Cross Lake for the summer/fall 1993
to spring 1994 harvest cycle.
Warren, Stephen. (2000) "Between villages and nations: The emergence of Shawnee nationalism, 1800-70." Ph.D.
Dissertation, Indiana University. 299 pp.
The history of the Shawnee Indians between 1800 and 1870 reveals much about notions of tribal identity in
the 19th century and the ways in which the reservation system transformed the political culture of previously
autonomous village societies. As Native Americans lost ground in the Old Northwest, their multi-cultural
world gave way to new settlers and the early development of several Midwestern states, while forced removal
to tribal reservations transformed Shawnee politics. Underneath this shadow of defeat and loss, Shawnee
nationalism developed, and conflicting notions of sovereignty began to guide their relations with the United
States. Accordingly, the Shawnees' experience in what is now Kansas helps explain modern tribes and the
incomplete autonomy that characterizes Native American relations with the United States today.
More generally, most histories struggle to incorporate Native American history into larger narratives after
the tribes became economically and militarily subordinate to white pioneers. I argue that what happened to
the Shawnees merits a closer look, because they continued to have a significant impact on the development of
the Midwest, on changing notions of race and identity in antebellum America, and on other marginalized
groups that reacted to those trends.
Watson, Tara E. (2003) "The determinants and consequences of residential isolation." Ph.D. Dissertation, Harvard
University. 203 pp.
This work presents three essays concerned with the determinants and consequences of residential isolation.
The first chapter examines the residential location decision in metropolitan areas, and the following two
chapters consider outcomes for a particularly geographically isolated population, Native Americans.
Chapter One focuses on neighbourhood sorting by income within metropolitan areas. In particular, it
examines the relationship between income inequality and neighbourhood-level residential segregation by
income using 1970, 1980 and 1990 tract-level Census data. An index of income sorting is developed that is
based on income percentiles and is therefore not mechanically related to changes in the income distribution.
The main finding is that a one standard deviation increase in income inequality raises residential segregation
by income by 0.3 standard deviations. Inequality can fully explain the rise in income segregation between
1970 and 1990. The essay also explores the U-shaped relationship between the economic success of a city
and its growth in income segregation.
Chapter Two analyzes the impact of 3,700 projects that were part of a widespread Federal initiative to
improve sanitation infrastructure on US Indian reservations starting in 1960. Sanitation investment
substantially reduced the cost of clean water for households, leading to sharp reductions in both waterborne
gastrointestinal disease and infectious respiratory disease among Native American infants. The sanitation
program was quite cost-effective, in part because improvements in the overall disease environment also
reduced infectious respiratory disease among nearby white infants.
Chapter Three examines the impacts of Native American tribal colleges. The results of the analysis suggest
that individuals coming of age with a tribal college in their state of birth complete an additional 1.1 years of
schooling and are 7.2 percentage points more likely to attend at least some college. Women, in particular,
experience employment gains and increased concentration in professional occupations. The implied return to
schooling is 9.8% for this group. The labour market gains to women are offset by employment losses among
men within the cohort, however, suggesting that general equilibrium effects in the labour market are
important.
Weber, Michele E. (1996) "Native wisdom: Indigenous identity and community activism." Ph.D. Dissertation,
University of California, Riverside. 256 pp.
This study explains how contemporary indigenous identity positively affects the relative success of community
based social movements. Using a predictor outcome matrix, the study examines the impact of identity upon
internal community support, community agendas, and effective outside support, comparing the resistance
efforts of two indigenous and two non indigenous rural communities. Qualitative data compiled from field
work, interviews, and archival resources helps explain the influences of such factors on successful resistance.
The results of the study have implications for academic understandings of identity. The results also inform
pragmatic discussions relevant to community based organizing and non-governmental organizations
supporting grass roots community development.
Contemporary indigenous identity is dynamic, influenced by cultural ties to first peoples, a history of
oppression and resistance, adaptation to the dominant state culture and degrees of assimilation. The identity
of indigenous communities manifests itself through a number of social variables relevant to resistance.
Indigenous communities have broader social networks, more flexible leadership structures, and more reasons
to want to preserve relations to a given geographic area. For these reasons, indigenous identity increases
internal community support for resistance and results in quantitatively greater and qualitatively better
resistance strategies. Indigenous community identity increases external contacts to a community out of
shared interests, sympathy, or study. These contacts often become sources of support for activist resistance to
state policies that threaten rural communities. Thus indigenous resistance in the contemporary period is
more likely to improve land rights, political autonomy, sustainable economic development, and social
development.
The extensive pressures being brought to bare upon rural communities in a broad, international context
demonstrate the frailty of independent community movements as they attempt to counter state forces whose
own objectives do not account for their survival needs. There are negative environmental effects of current
rural land use policies in many regions of the globe. The coercive enforcement of state policies threatens
human rights guarantees in many regions. The lessons learned from successful indigenous community
activism are potential tools for use in the broader struggle of rural communities and broader efforts to attain
more humane, sustainable lifestyles for our global population.
Wegmann-Sanchez, Jessica M. (2002) "Cross-border critical race theory: Black and native fiction, American and
Canadian legal policy." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. 508 pp.
My dissertation presents a comparative critical race theory, contrasting the ways people are classified into
race or ethnicity in the United States and Canada. It defines differences in group categorization in
governmental policy, looking especially at the evolution of the federal census, and it shows how the changing
definitions of race and ethnicity affect the national literatures even as these works may influence changes in
federal ideology. I propose a range of differences in American and Canadian modes of categorization, in
particular the following: exclusive races versus optionally multiple and self-determined ethnicities, a clear
dividing line with blacks as the primary disenfranchised Other versus a subtle racism not based primarily on
skin colour, and strong racial cohesiveness versus a weaker resistance resulting from multiple divisions and
affiliations. Paradoxically, each national census recently moves in the direction of the other's paradigm of
division, yet neither country's debate takes into account the mode of categorization of the other. My
dissertation discusses the national differences I outline in a representative selection of influential American
'passing' and 'tragic mulatto' narratives as well as works about 'mixed' heritage characters by black
Canadian, Native American, and native Canadian authors. I show how Nella Larsen, James Weldon Johnson,
Kate Chopin, William Faulkner, George Schuyler, and Toni Morrison expose and challenge the Black/White
binary and one drop rule, targeting their respective contemporary audiences with a specifically American
understanding of race. Contemporary Black Canadian writers, Mairuth Sarsfield, Suzette Mayr, André
Alexis, and Lawrence Hill, react against the American writers by overturning readers' expectations and
multiplying the ethnic affiliations of their characters. I then examine works from both sides of the border that
comment on the government's rhetorical redefinition of Native peoples in order to remove privileges granted
in treaties. Exposing this slippery and self-serving legal categorization, John Joseph Mathews, D'Arcy
McNickle, Leslie Marmon Silko, and Gerald Vizenor target an audience with an American understanding of
exclusive racial categories whereas Beatrice Culleton, Joan Crate, and Thomas King address Canadian
beliefs in multiculturalism.
Weiner, Brian A. (1994) "The sins of the parents." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of California, Berkeley. 196 pp.
The dissertation investigates the responsibilities entailed in being a member of a political collectivity, that,
like all political collectivities, has committed unjust deeds. If past injustices have yet to be redressed, what is
the present just course of action? This question has been debated recently within United States Courts and
Congress regarding American Indian land claims and reparations for Japanese Americans interned during
World War II. I examine these debates and the underlying conceptions of membership, political
responsibility, and forgiveness. Defining who 'We' are has proven problematic in both cases. Although not
our political ancestors, as members of a political collectivity existing over time, we are to a certain extent
identified with them. Drawing boundaries between past and present thus lies at the root of debates over the
appropriate response to past wrongs. American political discourse disavows inherited responsibilities, as
evinced in the oft-repeated maxim: the sins of the parents shall not be passed on to the children. The
dissertation disputes that maxim's justness as well as its political practicality. Chapter One traces the Oneida
Indians' attempt to regain six million acres of land by arguing that late 18th century treaties and laws
regulating trade contravene land transactions conveying title from the Oneidas to New York State. Chapter
Two examines responses to reparations demands by Japanese Americans interned during World War II,
showing the transformation of their demand into a reaffirmation of American liberal political principles.
Chapters Three and Four address directly the theoretical concerns of membership and responsibility.
Chapter Three examines the relationship between political membership and memory, and explores what a
political collectivity may do if conflicting memories serve as a divisive force. Chapter Four argues for
members' political responsibility to respond to past wrongs. Chapter Five analyzes Hannah Arendt's concept
of forgiveness to argue that it offers the possibility of constructing a political response that recognizes the
need to respond to past wrongs and acknowledges the importance of moving beyond them. The dissertation
concludes with the argument that forgiveness may transform a people as they work through the ambiguous
legacy left by their political ancestors.
Weiss, Lawrence D. (1979 ) "The development of capitalism in the Navajo nation." Ph.D. Dissertation, State
University of New York at Binghampton. 330 pp.
Welch, Peter H. (1986) ""Taking care of your own": Identity and dependency among the Northern Arapahoe." Ph.D.
Dissertation, University of Pennsylvania. 343 pp.
This study focuses on the contemporary and historical distribution of resources among the Northern
Arapahoe Indians living on the Wind River Indian Reservation in Wyoming. The discussion is presented in
light of a conflict which arose in the course of field research having to do with the criteria entitling a person
to receive the benefits of Northern Arapahoe tribal membership. Among the many benefits of enrolment is the
right to a share of the oil royalties received by the Northern Arapahoe tribe. The conflict over enrolment is
examined in terms of contemporary concerns and also in terms of a broad historical perspective
encompassing nearly three centuries of Plains Indian history. Data collected during fieldwork is placed in
the framework of historical analysis to illuminate the underlying structural contradictions which have
developed in the course of direct and indirect contact between the Northern Arapahoe and the Euro-
American world economic systems. From the point of view of Indian controlled resources -- labour, land, and
minerals -- the major periods in Arapahoe history are discussed (the shift to the horse/buffalo complex, the
establishment of European trade as a vital element in Arapahoe life, the elimination of the Arapahoe food
base with the destruction of the buffalo, the erosion of the Arapahoe land base through treaties and other
land transfers, and the recent development of a mineral-based economy). It is shown that while there has
been a continuing struggle by the Arapahoe to retain sociopolitical independence, there has been a
concurrent erosion of economic independence. Over the course of their history on the Plains the Arapahoe
are shown to have become increasingly reliant on the products of European manufacture, converting Indian
controlled resources, such as furs, land and minerals, into commodities and services provided by the
encompassing Euro-American economic system. The recent conflict over tribal enrolment is viewed as an
outgrowth of this history of dependency.
Werry, Margaret L. (2001 ) "Tourism, ethnicity, and the performance of New Zealand nationalism, 1889-1914." Ph.D.
Dissertation, Northwestern University. 559 pp.
This study considers the role of tourism in the construction of New Zealand nationalism from 1889 through
1914. It understands nationalism in this settler colony as a dynamic process in which ethnic definitions were
proposed by the indigenous Mäori population and pakeha (white) settlers, and claims forwarded on the basis
of those definitions. The performance practices of tourism both differentiated the two populations and
'imagined' ideal communities that reconciled the interests and cultural frameworks of Mäori and pakeha,
articulating both with those of a trans-national bourgeoisie. The political and cultural economy of tourism
endowed the signs of ethnic difference with value, explaining the intense and paradoxical investment of
pakeha New Zealanders in Mäoritanga (in a policy climate promoting assimilation or the erasure of
indigenous lifeways) and providing Mäori with a condition of opportunity to more effectively create ethnic
solidarity, represent and advance their corporate agendas.
The first of three sections interprets performances by Mäori as cultural labour that produced the tourist
experience of difference, giving Mäori bargaining power with the state tourism apparatus, an avenue of
ethnic expression, and prompting attempts by the state to alienate and routinize that labour. The second
section investigates the spatial representations and performances of pakeha tourists as a means by which the
imaginary geography of nation was constructed, ethnoterritorial sentiment fostered, and racial subjectivities
fashioned. The final section deals with Mäori women working as tour guides, in particular the famous
Makereti Papakura, in whose work performance operated as political rhetoric, forwarding ethnic counter-
discourses in the arena of public opinion created by the tourism encounter.
This study is primarily an historical ethnography informed by feminist, post-colonial and post-structuralist
theory. It examines the publicity literature of tourism, accounts by tourists, administrative records of the state
tourism department, oral histories and autobiographies of tourism workers, pictorial evidence, and the
spatial configuration of tourism environments. Analyzing this data in the context of contemporaneous public
dialogue about race, ethnicity and nation, and the political economy of the late colony, it aims to reconstruct
and interpret performance practices, ethnic structures of feeling, and processes of meaning making.
Werther, Guntram F. A. (1990) "The quiet revolutions: Public policy and the structure of aboriginal self-determination
movements in the First World." Ph.D. Dissertation, Washington University. 258 pp.
Scholars of ethnonationalism in the First World have been unable to account for differences in success
across the whole range of ethnonational movements because they have either ignored or misunderstood the
movements of groups making an aboriginal status claim against the state. By focusing upon the structure,
content, and referents (in law and theory) of various claims asserting a right to self-determination, and by
studying patterns in policy response by states to those claims, in this dissertation I suggest a framework for
understanding why and how different ethnonationalisms obtain concessions from states. An important finding
is that groups claiming aboriginal status are usually able to obtain state-legitimated rights to positive
discrimination. Further, as states accommodate aboriginal self-determination goals, they must subtend
liberal notions of individual rights enough to admit the legitimacy of national rights-based political claims
against the whole polity within modern democracies. This fundamentally alters the theoretical grounding
from which modern democratic states allocate rights. Aboriginal groups within countries using a reserved
lands administrative strategy rely on special laws and bureaucracies to process political claims, while
groups in countries without reserved lands rely mainly on lobbying and aboriginal political parties to obtain
concessions. Within the former, political change is incremental, broadening, in sequential fashion, from
conflict over natural resources through policing functions to commerce regulation. In non-reserve countries,
political change is discrete.
Wesley-Esquimaux, Cynthia C. (2004) "Raven saw: Tradition, transition, and transformation in a northern aboriginal
community." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Toronto. 277 pp.
This research examines the internal and external influences affecting community health and well-being
across northern Ontario and the many factors that have contributed to increasing youth suicide. The
devastating effects of close to 20 years of youth suicide have culturally and socially impacted Nishnawbe-
Aski Nation (NAN) communities. This dissertation seeks to identify factors that contribute to and exacerbate
the act of suicide as a solution to increasing community breakdown and cultural loss among the young
people. This project explores the breakdown of important social mechanisms and traditions, which in turn,
have prompted a transition, and contemporary transformation for the Oji-Cree. The transitioning has left
their children, bereft of intimate knowledge and personal experience of traditional Oji-Cree lifeways and
language.
This research introduces a phenomenon which I have entitled 'an explosion of community' and suggests that
youth have found a way, albeit unconsciously, to re-create and perpetuate 'traditional forms of culture and
community interaction and response' through the taking of their own lives. The sacrifice of their lives so that
others might live and experience 'community' and spiritual renewal can be seen as a cry for acknowledgment
and instruction from their parents and grandparents. In other words, these children are dying to be heard.
Findings of this research indicate that much of what is happening throughout the north in regards to the
suicide epidemic can be directly related to spiritual malaise and the loss of practice of traditional values,
language, and on the land experiences for children and youth. There are the 'usual' problems in relation to
the external impacts of modernity through television, political changes, sedentary behaviours, inactivity and
unemployment, all of which have contributed to youthful boredom and a growing apathy. Then there are the
more obvious problems associated with alcoholism, domestic violence, and declining health and wellness that
plague the adults. More significantly, there is a very serious and mostly hidden plague of sexual abuse and
denial that is devastating the children and blocking the vision of a healthy future.
Findings further indicate that the extensive impacts of historic external and then contemporary internal
change has allowed the Oji-Cree people to lose touch with their children and to discontinue the daily
teaching experiences that would connect their children to the land. The children, in desperation, have
unconsciously found that the aftermath of suicide creates the link to traditional activities that they have
otherwise been denied.
Following James Waldram (1997) I have endeavoured to make this dissertation narrative accessible and
interesting to the Aboriginal community, while making every effort to satisfy the rigorous academic
requirements of a doctoral thesis for the University Toronto.
West, Amy E. (2004) "The experience of social anxiety in Native American adolescents." Ph.D. Dissertation,
University of Virginia. 139 pp.
Preliminary research suggests that Native American youth may be at an increased risk for problems with
anxiety. Social anxiety is the most common type of anxiety experienced by adolescents, yet there is a paucity
of research on social anxiety in Native American youth. This is unfortunate given that social anxiety may
negatively impact important developmental tasks of adolescence for Native American youth such as ethnic
identity development. It is possible that social anxiety might impede social and interpersonal exploration
necessary for ethnic identity development, as well as increase the chance for depression and low self-esteem -
- two factors that may, in turn, deplete an adolescent's confidence to self-initiate ethnic identity exploration.
This study was designed to further the understanding of the complex social ecology of Native American
adolescent anxiety symptoms, and to assess the consequences of social anxiety and its correlates in early
adolescence for the development of ethnic identity. 86 Lumbee Indian adolescents were assessed for social
anxiety, ethnic identity, temperament, and a range of cognitive, affective and interpersonal variables that
were expected to relate to both social anxiety and ethic identity. Parents also reported on temperament and
social competence. Based on previous research, the hypotheses were that:
(1) There would be higher levels of social anxiety in this sample relative to a comparison non-native sample;
(2) Temperamental behavioural inhibition would be significantly associated with social anxiety in
adolescence;
(3) Social anxiety would be associated with lower levels of ethnic identity; and,
(4) The relationship between social anxiety and ethnic identity would be mediated by important cognitive,
affective, and interpersonal influences.
Results indicated that, overall, adolescents in this sample reported lower levels of social anxiety than those in
a comparison sample of adolescents. However, the Lumbee adolescents did report greater levels of social
anxiety specific to new social situations. Furthermore, social anxiety symptoms during adolescence were
significantly associated with childhood temperament levels of behavioural inhibition. Social anxiety was also
related directly to other concurrent affective and interpersonal indices of psychosocial functioning, however,
it was not directly related to ethnic identity exploration during early adolescence. Nor was the relationship
between ethnic identity and social anxiety mediated by the other affective and interpersonal variables
studied. It appears that, although social anxiety demonstrates an association with temperament in childhood,
and with other psychosocial functioning in adolescence, it does not relate to ethnic identity strivings in this
sample. Findings are discussed in the context of previous literature and limitations of the current study
design.
West, Randolph A. (2002) "Place psychological experience: A Native American perspective." Psy.D. Dissertation,
Antioch University/New England Graduate School. 165 pp.
Initially, this project was designed to explore interactions between traumatic stress and place psychological
experience among Native Americans. However, a literature search revealed little information on this topic.
Following a qualitative research design (Creswell, 1994, Miles and Huberman, 1994), as the researcher
analyzed narrative data early in the project he shifted the emphasis toward the need to first understand the
Native American experience of place before investigating interactions between place psychological
experience and traumatic stress. Therefore, this is a qualitative investigation of the 'psychological experience
of place' (PPE) and its relationship to perceptions of health among Native Americans. The literature suggests
that primary functions of place are to engender attachment, sense of belonging, and security with one's
places. In this study, the concepts of 'Place Cosmology' and 'Place Loss' are introduced and integrated with
Place Attachment, Sense of Place and Place Identity to develop PPE. Place Cosmology highlights spiritual
relationships with place. Place Loss recognizes disruptions of place. Place, frequently an unconscious
experience in Western society, is a conscious experience and a source of strength for some people. This
investigation is an examination of the range of place experiences and their covariance with mental health in
Native Americans. Assumed in this study was a relationship between one's PPE and the experience of stress.
Findings are that survival knowledge was embedded in the meanings of participants' places, practicing
subsistence lifestyles and knowledge of one's native language enhanced relationships with place, and
disconnection from one's places was synonymous with depersonalization and contact with nature was
healing. Because Elders imparted place knowledge participants believed they were losing the meaning of
their places as their Elders died. Similarly, Reservations were seen as a last refuge of Native American
culture and participants believed their Reservations were threatened by the dominant society. Implications
range from changes in intervention practices, cultural heritage programming, land policy, environmental
awareness, and refugee acculturation. This study proposes that place psychological experience has a
dramatic influence on human perceptions and meanings, and a direct influence on psychological well-being
and overall health. Realized at a cultural level, place psychological experience has positive impacts not only
to the improved quality of human life but to the environment as well.
Wetzel, Michael G. (1995 ) "Decolonizing Ktaqmkuk Mi'kmaw history." LL.M. Thesis, Dalhousie University. 479 pp.
This study examines two English colonial myths from Newfoundland, about the Mi'kmaw people who used
and occupied Ktaqmkuk (Newfoundland). One English myth states that the Mi'kmaw people were brought to
Ktaqmkuk by the French, who encouraged them to exterminate the Pi'tawk'ewaq (Beothuk), the other First
Nation on the island of Ktaqmkuk. The English myth contends that the Mi'kmaw people were not indigenous
in Ktaqmkuk prior to the arrival of Europeans, and, therefore, have no aboriginal rights in Ktaqmkuk. I have
called this myth the Mi'kmaw Mercenary Myth.
This myth has been handed down by Newfoundland Euro-immigrant historians in their texts on the history of
English colonization in Newfoundland. This myth has come to be accepted as 'true' history within the
Province of Newfoundland and Canada. The Government of Newfoundland approved the use of the myth in
history text books used throughout the Newfoundland school system from 1949 to 1970.
For generations this myth has gone unchallenged for there were no Mi'kmaw or other aboriginal people in
Ktaqmkuk who had overcome the assimilative process of the Newfoundland educational system with their
culture and identity intact. No Newfoundland writers have ever directly challenged the Mi'kmaw Mercenary
Myth and examined the historical record to check its accuracy. Several writers have recorded the accounts of
Ktaqmkuk Mi'kmaw elders about the history of the Ktaqmkuk Mi'kmaw, but have not compared this
information with other historical sources.
The second myth concerns the date when English sovereignty was established in Newfoundland. The
Government of Newfoundland asserts that the English discovered Newfoundland in 1497, and established
sovereignty over all of the Island in 1583. The Government of Newfoundland asserts that the Mi'kmaw people
were not in Newfoundland before this date and, therefore, have no aboriginal rights on the Island.
In preparing to examine these myths a First Nations methodological perspective was developed to provide
guidance in researching, critically analyzing and deconstructing the assumptions, assertions and bias in the
English history of the Ktaqmkuk Mi'kmaw. The methodology also aimed at generating an alternative
Ktaqmkuk Mi'kmaw historical discourse that questions and challenges the colonial myths of the past. This
discourse of resistance was incorporated into a methodology of decolonization with the objective of
stimulating dialogue and critical thinking among the Ktaqmkuk Mi'kmaw people and Canadians about
Eurocentric thinking.
The English version of Ktaqmkuk Mi'kmaw history has become an integral part of the English discovery myth
that legitimizes the English occupation, or control of Ktaqmkuk Mi'kmaw family territories in Newfoundland.
However, official British records, laws and treaties with the Ktaqmkuk Mi'kmaw tell a different story, one
that, heretofore, has not been heard. This thesis speaks from a Ktaqmkuk Mi'kmaw perspective and features
the voices of the Ktaqmkuk Mi'kmaw who have an alternative story to tell.
Whaley, Gray H. (2002) "Creating Oregon from Illahee: Race, settler-colonialism, and native sovereignty in western
Oregon, 1792-1856." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Oregon. 428 pp.
This dissertation analyzes the power of different people to shape western Oregon in the early 19th century, a
time of fundamental changes to identity, environment, and demography. First, it explores the nature of
settler-colonialism as practiced in western Oregon, particularly regarding how legal and folk beliefs about
empire, citizenship, property, and race affected the level and nature of colonial violence and Native
dispossession. Second, it explores Native sovereignty through the metaphor of Illahee, meaning land or
homeland in the region's Chinook trade jargon. The dissertation addresses the ways in which Native peoples
defined themselves and their territories from 1792-1856 and the effects of such constructions had on relations
both among Indians and between Native and colonial populations. The dissertation draws on a wide breadth
of source materials regarding British and Euro-American colonial projects correspondence, journals, and
sundry governmental reports. As well, it uses ethnographic, linguistic, folkloric, and the unpublished field
notes of 'salvage' ethnographers and linguists (ca. 1880-1940).
Whelshula, Martina M. (1999) "Healing through decolonization: A study in the deconstruction of the western
scientific paradigm and the process of retribalizing among Native Americans." Ph.D. Dissertation, California
Institute of Integral Studies. 200 pp.
The goal of this inquiry was to contribute to the transformative healing of Native American people in North
America. I had three major intentions: (1) to trace the development of colonization; (2) to identify the
manifestations of colonization in the Western Hemisphere; and, (3) to develop a process of healing through
decolonization.
The first part of the inquiry explores the epistemological and psychological underpinnings of the Western
scientific paradigm. This study traces the psychological history and philosophy of the Western European
paradigm, providing a good case for the supposition that European/American cultures were created out of
psychopathology. It also demonstrates how the current culture maintains the psychopathology and
retraumatizes its young through the enculturation process.
The second part of the inquiry provides a detailed description of the brutal colonization process perpetrated
upon the Colville Tribes in Washington State and a general discussion of its manifestations in the Western
Hemisphere. The accounts of the colonization process are examined through a psychological study of the
trauma suffered by its victims.
The third part of the inquiry offers an approach to healing through decolonizing. The decolonization process
is a process that emerged from the deconstruction of the western scientific paradigm. This study explores the
importance of retribalizing through recovering the cosmology and traditional knowledge of Indigenous
cultures. Two case studies, as well as my own deep process, provide insight into the emerging decolonization
process. Interviews and dialogue deepen the inquiry enabling the richness of the experiences to emerge.
The findings of this study warrant the further development of programs like the Traditional Knowledge
Program and Indigenous language programs around the nation. It was through these types of programs that
I was able to deepen my own inquiry to such depths. The Traditional Knowledge Program was the catalyst
for my own profound transformation and healing, and it was the elders of my tribe that showed me the way.
White, Andrew P. (2003) ""Keeping clear from the gain of oppression": 'Public friends' and the de-mastering of
Quaker race relations in late colonial America ." Ph.D. Dissertation, Washington State University. 201 pp.
This dissertation focuses on the site of 18th century Quaker texts -- particularly the journals of travelling
ministers -- as they converge on the political and military crisis of late colonial Pennsylvania. In particular,
the present study is concerned with the religious and ideological response to these events that triggered
major reforms in the Society of Friends, including efforts to protect the land rights of the Delaware Indians
and the abolition of slavery. One always writes in reference to power structures, and the foregrounding of
Quaker life writings in the Seven Years' War (1756-63) elucidates a nascent critique of the British colonial
modes of expansion and production (particularly dishonest land deals and slave labour), in which binaries
such as self/Other, civilized/savage, us/them are complicated and challenged. Chapter One examines the
nature of the declension diagnosed by reformist ministers and the consequent redefinition of Quaker relations
with the world in the face of secularization. Unlike earlier leaders of Pennsylvania, the ministerial elite saw
material prosperity as detrimental to spiritual health, rather than an accompanying blessing. Chapter Two
takes up the revitalization of pacifism by Quaker ministers in the 1750's, the 'testimony' that typifies this
newly constructed relationship of opposition with the world. Increasingly, they recognized the inextricable
connection between material prosperity and the exigency of defence. Chapter Three discusses Quaker-Indian
relations during the Seven Years' War. The revitalization of pacifism involved an attempt to counter
racialized violence in the colony, a position which Quaker leaders came to reluctantly because of their
commitment to the myth of Pennsylvania as a uniquely peaceable space in British North America. Chapter
Four examines the issue of Quaker anti-slavery as it relates to pacifism and the advocacy of Indian land
rights. Ministers denounced the inherent violence of slavery, emphasizing universal 'love' which, when put
into practice, de-mastered inequitable power relations and had the potential to 'extirpate oppression' from
the world.
White, Kalvin G. (1998) "Navajo adolescent cultural identity and depression." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Utah
(The). 145 pp.
Depression is one of the leading mental health diagnoses within American Indian youth and has been
associated with substance abuse, school dropout, teen runaways, and other social ills. Clinicians and
American Indian parents, educators, leaders, and elders have suggested that a lack of cultural identity in the
American Indian youth is related to depression.
The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between Navajo adolescent cultural identity and
depression. In order to accomplish this task, the Navajo Cultural Identity Measure (NCIM) was developed.
The NCIM consists of three knowledge scales and three attitudinal scales. Internal consistency reliability
indices for the NCIM were above.80.
The clinical and content depression scales of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory, Adolescent
Form (MMPI-A), the Children's Depression Inventory (CDI), and the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of
Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM-IV) were used to assess depression. Navajo adolescent norms were
generated for each of the these measures. Navajo adolescents reported more depressive symptoms on these
measures than the nonnormative population, with the exception of the CDI. Navajo males scored higher than
females on the MMPI-A, which is opposite the MMPI-A normative sample. The Navajo females had higher
mean scores than the Navajo males on the CDI and the DSM-IV, which contrasts with the normative sample
of the CDI. The DSM-IV has no adolescent reference group to compare with the Navajo sample.
The factor structure of Navajo cultural identity and depression, as well as the relationship between these two
constructs for 399 Navajo adolescents, were explored through structural equation modeling (SEM). A
knowledge and attitude factor of the NCIM was found as a result of the SEM. In addition, the attitude factor
had a significant but modest relationship with depression.
It was concluded that the construct of Navajo adolescent cultural identity could be empirically studied and
that it consisted of knowledge and attitude factors. In addition, attitude about Navajo culture is modestly
related to Navajo adolescents' reports of depressive symptomatology.
Whiting, Kyle J. (2002) "Indigenous-industry partnerships and capacity building for aboriginal economic
development: The case of forest industry joint ventures in north central British Columbia." M.A. Thesis,
University of Northern British Columbia. 139 pp.
The purpose of this thesis is to explore how forestry joint ventures between indigenous people and the forest
industry are building indigenous capacities for economic development.
A review of literature surrounding applied economic development theories and policy regimes related to
development of indigenous people in British Columbia, Canada, Australia and New Zealand demonstrates an
increasing trend of private sector-indigenous partnerships in natural resource development. A case study
examination of forestry joint ventures in north-central British Columbia demonstrated local elements of
emerging indigenous-industry policy regimes and showed that capacity-building elements articulated in
development theories of community and aboriginal economic development (CED/AED) are linked to venture
successes.
Activities involved in joint ventures do address and/or introduce aspects of capacity building for AED.
Nonetheless, joint venture activities do not completely fulfil criteria of an ideal approach to AED. Generally,
there are no mechanisms involved that provide inclusive community participation, conflict resolution and
integration of culture in either venture-related activities or the determination of the overall nature of local
economic development and share of benefits. First Nations do not retain full ownership of the factors of
economic production nor do they share control with industry or the government in the management of
natural resources on traditional territories.
The utility of joint venture activities to widely address capacity-building was limited by a number of factors:
timber supply licences are often limiting; ventures were often viewed from a short-term, return-on-investment
economic perspective; minimized-risk ownership levels may limit greater First Nation participation in
management and future increases in ownership; First Nation partners involved in consortia suffered from
inter-Nation conflict; few opportunities for on-going advanced training and resource-planning experience
were available for First Nation employees; hardly any culturally-sensitive management approaches were
applied; and, overall relations between First Nations and industry are often antagonistic.
It is apparent that capacity building may be better facilitated if both partners support and invest in capacity-
building activities for joint ventures. Greater investment in capacity-building activities is possible if both
partners can realize the mutual benefits of joint ventures.
Wieneke, Christine E. (1983) "Destruction and survival: Articulation of Aboriginal and capitalist modes of production
in three specific areas of colonial and contemporary Australia." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of New South
Wales.
After nearly two centuries of European settlement, Aborigines still constitute a subordinated group, lacking
social and economic equality with other Australians. Attempts to explain this continued inequality and
subordination using theories of 'race' relations have not proved adequate. Using a neo-Marxist framework,
this thesis explores the material bases of inequality between Aborigines and Europeans in the colonial and
contemporary situation. The thesis adopts the general theoretical framework of the articulation of modes of
production. Within this framework, a critical examination of the specific model of the articulation process
developed by Pierre-Philippe Rey provides the basis for this study. Data from three specific regions and
different historical periods are used to test Rey's proposition that the process of articulation between
capitalist and non-capitalist modes of production displays three identifiable, sequential phases. While the
initiation of relations of subordination and domination between Aborigines and Europeans during the first 30
years after settlement in the Sydney region constitutes the principal focus of this study, brief case studies of
the Northern Territory pastoral industry and the Cape York Peninsula bauxite mining industry are also
presented to determine the applicability of Rey's theory or model in situations where, unlike in the Sydney
region, labour and raw materials, respectively, are required by particular capitalist enterprises. In all three
cases, Europeans required ownership of, or access to, land owned and occupied by Aborigines as a
production factor in the development of a capitalist enterprise. Rey's three-phase model of articulation,
however, is only directly applicable where capital exploited labour drawn from the Aboriginal mode.
Synthesis of Rey's theory with Bradby's arguments that, at different stages of its development capitalism
fulfils varying external needs from non-capitalist modes, helps to account for variations in the articulation
process in these three Australian case studies. Nevertheless, despite their differences, the relationship
between capital and labour remains central. In all these instances, the availability of labour for exploitation,
and the level of productive forces determining the labour-intensiveness of capitalist enterprises, contributed
substantially to these variations in the articulation process.
Wiik, Flavio B. (2004) "Christianity converted: An ethnographic analysis of the Xokleng Laklanő Indians and the
transformations resulting from their encounter with Pentecostalism ." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of
Chicago (The). 365 pp.
This dissertation presents contemporary ethnographic information on the Xokleng (Laklanő) Indians, a
southern Gę group that lives in the highlands of Santa Catarina, Brazil. It analyzes their contemporary social
formations, political dynamics, and culture. In it, I argue that, since the Xoklengs' "conversion" to
Christianity in the mid-1950s, they have developed an embodied version of Pentecostalism in which the
central structural elements of their culture mediate ongoing social practices and political dynamics. Xokleng
Pentecostalism has led to the formation of broad socio-religious and political corporate groups, which I term
"corporations of substantiated spiritual kinship," out of the membership of extended family units. The social
relations maintained among people who form these corporations are oriented by central Xokleng cultural
constructions of bodiliness: substance, substance transmission, and co-substantiality, as well as by the
Xokleng kinship system. The indigenous Pentecostal church defines the Xoklengs' social organization at the
highest, communally-shared level and determines the content of their social groups and their constituent
relations. In order to adequately frame Xokleng society and culture, I consider the historical contexts and
conjunctures that marked their contact situation with the encompassing national society. Among the Xokleng
(as well as other Gę societies), bodiliness, socio-cultural formations, and macro-historical conjunctures must
be concomitantly analyzed as an interdependent triad in order to understand ongoing social formations and
political dynamics. This dissertation is intended to contribute to theories of cultural mediation.
Wilk, Piotr. (2005) "Self-employment on Indian reserves." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Western Ontario (The).
173 pp.
Using the 1996 Census of Canada and the administrative data from Indian and Northern Affairs Canada, this
study examines the nature of self-employment in First Nations communities. The comprehensive model of
self-employment proposed here posits that decision to become self-employed is a joint function of
characteristics of First Nations communities (contextual effects) and characteristics of prospective
entrepreneurs living in these communities (compositional effects). Hierarchical generalized linear modeling
techniques were used to conduct the analysis. The results indicate that, at individual level, the probability of
self-employment is related to age, educational attainment, gender, marital status, and ethnic origin. The
between-reserve variability in self-employment is affected by the following reserve characteristics: relative
income from self-employment, the rate of employment in the public sector, the reserve population size,
availability of housing infrastructure, and the degree of self-determination. However, the between-reserve
variability was found to be unrelated to reserve's unemployment rate, proximity to urban center, cultural
heritage, or level of acculturation into the dominant culture. In total, the model accounted for about forty
percent of the between-reserve variance in self-employment.
Wilkes, Rima C. (2001) "Competition or colonialism? An analysis of two theories of ethnic collective action." Ph.D.
The internal colonialism and ethnic competition theories provide contrasting predictions about the effect of
cultural and economic characteristics on ethnic group collective action. Studies comparing the two theories
have considered political mobilization by the Québecois, the Flemish, the Basques, the Irish, the Scottish, and
the Welsh. This dissertation re-examines these theories by using First Nation people's political mobilization
at the band level in Canada from 1981-2000 as cases of ethnic collective action. To date, no study of these
theories has used political mobilization by indigenous/native peoples as cases. This study extends previous
work on the internal colonialism and ethnic competition models in three important ways. First measures of
the wider regional context (provincial location) within which the bands are located are included as variables.
Second, in addition to cultural and economic characteristics, this study also includes socio-demographic
characteristics of the bands. Third, this study measures the economic, cultural, and socio-demographic
characteristics at the group level rather than at the regional level. Results from a series of negative binomial
equations demonstrate that the most important predictors of band-level collective action between 1981 and
2000 are band population size, unemployment, previous events, and regional context. Some support is
provided for the ethnic competition theory. Future studies of ethnic collective action should give greater
consideration to socio-demographic factors, the time period, and the regional context within which political
mobilization takes place.
Wilkins, Robert K. (1998 ) "Unchartered territory: Fundamental Canadian values and the inherent right of aboriginal
self-government." LL.M. Thesis, University of Toronto. 236 pp.
Those who seek judicial accreditation, under Canada's constitution, of meaningful rights of aboriginal self-
government face two competing challenges. They must strive to maximize constitutional space for aboriginal
difference by opposing all unnecessary mainstream interference with the use of such rights. At the same time,
they must demonstrate that courts will be able, even after accepting self-government as a constitutional right,
to ensure that its exercise does not compromise the arrangements and values fundamental to the mainstream
constitutional order. Without such assurance, Canadian courts almost certainly will not take responsibility
for declaring such rights to be constitutional rights.
The present work suggests a way of meeting and reconciling these two challenges. In doing so, it does not
rely on the Charter of Rights, because the Charter most probably would not govern the exercise of aboriginal
rights of self-government, and would not meet either challenge adequately if it did.
Wilks, Susan. (2002) "To the seventh generation: A promise kept. Keeping the spirit strong." M.A. Thesis, Royal
Roads University. 110 pp.
Few Aboriginal teachers enter the public school system. Fewer still remain. Employment equity targeted at
increasing the number of Aboriginal teachers in our system will be of little value if we are not able to support
and retain them beyond the first few years of service.
The purpose of this project is to explore and find meaning from the lived experiences of Aboriginal teachers
who have demonstrated the ability to be successful educators within the public school system while at the
same time maintaining the traditions, knowledge and beliefs of their Aboriginal cultures.
Through this study we seek to understand how these teachers view themselves in relation to the school system
and to their Aboriginal heritage, to discover how they find coherence between what they believe and what is
expected of them in their roles at school, to identify the information they need in order to be successful in two
very different worlds, and to explore ways in which these understandings given to us by Aboriginal teachers
can contribute to our ongoing learning. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)
Williams, Amy J. (2004) "Risk factors for selected health-related behaviours among American Indian adolescents: A
longitudinal study." Ph.D. Dissertation, Utah State University. 186 pp.
Suicide and accidents are the leading causes of death among American Indian (AI) adolescents. Engaging in
health-compromising behaviours (HCB) is higher among AI youth than among multicultural, national
samples of adolescents. These HCBs include: smoking, drinking alcohol, drug use, and delinquency. Studies
that identify legitimate predictors of these behaviours among AI adolescents are needed to guide research
and interventions.
Primary socialization theory (PST) suggests that peer groups, family, and school are the only areas where
adolescents are directly taught to accept or reject deviant or normative behaviour. Gateway theory indicates
that use of certain drugs by adolescents, such as cigarettes or alcohol, leads to the use of additional illicit
drugs. Both of these theories were investigated in the current study as possible guides to identifying risk
factors for HCBs among AI adolescents.
The behaviours investigated in this study were alcohol use, cigarette use, illicit drug use, delinquency,
suicidality (i.e., ideation and behaviours), and self-protection (seatbelt and helmet use) at Time 2. Predictor
variables included behaviours and intrapersonal factors at Time 1 (one year earlier). All variables came
from measurements provided by the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health. Multiple linear
regressions were calculated for all youth together, males only, and females only to determine which
combination of predictors accounted for the most variance in the target behaviour.
Support was found for PST across behaviours in that variables measuring the primary socialization sources
(i.e., peer groups, family members, and involvement with school) were significantly predictive of HCBs one
year later in all regressions calculated. Little support was found for gateway theory regarding substance use,
as experimentation with alcohol and cigarettes at Time 1 was not predictive of illicit drug use at Time 2.
There were 398 self-identified AI adolescents at Time 1, and 298 at Time 2, included in this study.
There were 175 females and 123 males, ranging in age from 13 to 20 at Time 2. One limitation of this study
is that all information was obtained via self-report. Other limitations, implications for future research, and
areas for prevention or intervention with AI youth are discussed.
Williams, David I. (1995 ) "Environmentalism, development, and the last frontier: The rise of environmental thought
and the Canadian north, 1958-74." M.A. Thesis, University of Alberta. 175 pp.
This thesis examines why public attitudes towards northern development changed so drastically between
1958 and 1974. In 1958, when the Conservatives were elected on a platform that included grandiose
northern development plans, many Canadians saw the north as a vast reserve of minerals that should be
exploited in order to make Canada rich. By 1974, when the MacKenzie Valley Pipeline Inquiry stopped a
massive pipeline project, a growing number of Canadians viewed the north as a pristine wilderness and the
home of Canada's native peoples. This significant shift in thought was largely due to the efforts of a group of
Canadian scientists who, fearing the destruction of the northern environment by the oil industry, consciously
worked to shape public policy regarding northern development. This thesis traces the development of
environmental ideas within this group of scientists and examines their early efforts to put those ideas into
action.
Williams, Gerry C. (1985 ) "Dependency formations and the Spanish-American community: An interpretative and
theoretical study of modernization in New Mexico." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Oklahoma (The). 355
pp.
This study is concerned with the factors which underlie the economic development of New Mexico with
particular reference to the Spanish population and the period of United States expansion and colonization of
this region. A model based upon a world-system approach and dependency formation is developed. It is
argued that the development of a class structure, in which the majority of the Spanish population were found
at the lower end, came as a result of their participation in what has been termed a modernization process.
The analysis suggests that since the 16th century New Mexico has been part of a larger system of worldwide
economic relationships and it is only within this context that we can interpret and understand the nature of
the growth and development of this region.
A detailed history of the factors which affected and changed this region is presented. Utilizing government
documents, business records, case studies, and published works, data was collected on the period from the
mid-1600s to the late 1940s. Special emphasis was placed on gaining an historical perspective to the
colonization of the region by the Spanish and their subsequent relationships with the native populations.
Data is also presented on the natural environment, pre-1840s population trends, economic structures, and
the socio-cultural characteristics of the Spanish population. The 19th century is viewed from the perspective
of the conquest of the region by the United States and the subsequent establishment of a foreign social order.
Materials on the United States expansion and the status of the Spanish population under United States
territorial rule are discussed at length. Special attention is given here to the economy, demographic patterns,
land ownership transformations, wage labour formations, and the political order. Data on the 20th century
focuses on the more specific impact of economic dependency and exploitation at the local village level. Ten
case studies including the villages of Guadalupe, Sandoval, Alameda, Concho, Villanueva, Dona Ana,
Placitos, Manzano, San Jose, and El Cerrito are presented as illustrations of this general pattern.
Williams, Joan W. (2000) "Mayan women: Survival, transformation, and hope -- living through times of violence and
reparation." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Texas at Austin (The). 226 pp.
This ethnographic exploratory study investigated how long-term exposure to multiple experiences of violence
during youth for Guatemalan Maya Ixil women is currently being redressed via culturally specific
mechanisms. These women endured and actively survived the State-sponsored fratricide that beleaguered
their community between the late 1970s and mid-1990s. Data was compiled while living in a highland village
of Guatemala during the period of a year. The researcher participated in an ongoing indigenous women's
participatory action research (PAR) project, FotoVoz [PhotoVoice] and in local exhumations of clandestine
gravesites. Interviews conducted in conjunction with the women's research project and during the
exhumations were triangulated with collateral data gathered via ongoing participant observation within the
PAR project as well as numerous other sites, corroborative interviews, and key documents. Six culturally
specific and dynamic mechanisms were identified that the women are using to redress the effects of the
violence: (a) somatic illness vs. alternative expression of pain; (b) silence vs. voice; (c) distrust vs. trust; (d)
altered grief vs. resolved grief; (e) existential dilemma vs. renegotiating meaning; and, (f) static identity vs.
role transformation. It is suggested that these culturally specific mechanisms are a means of redressing
imbalances to areas of attachment, cognitive schema, and neurobiology that are affronted by traumatic
incidences. In addition, analysis found that resiliency and healing was enhanced via active participation in
activities that broadened women's understanding of the social and political conditions in Guatemala,
increased literacy and linguistic skills, and enlightened participants about their rights as women, indigenous
Maya, and human beings. Membership in Communities of Populations in Resistance during the violence,
educational activities, and the PAR project, FotoVoz, were all seen as imbuing resilient strength for the
women. Critical methodological and ethical considerations found crucial to the current investigation are
addressed that speak to research conducted among populations who have traditionally been oppressed and
marginalized. Finally, challenges addressed by the researcher as a result of conducting the investigation in a
remote community that was linguistically and culturally distinct from hers are presented. Participation in the
local PAR research activities are described and noted as a vital link to the investigation's success.
Williams, John A. (1963) "Mäori society and politics, 1891-1909." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Wisconsin --
Madison (The). 238 pp.
Williams, Joseph V. (1988) "Te Mana Motuhake Me Te Iwi: Mäori indigenous self determination." LL.M. Thesis,
University of British Columbia (The).
Williams, Michael S. (1998) "An investigation of internalizing social-emotional characteristics in a sample of Lakota
Sioux children." Ph.D. Dissertation, Utah State University. 75 pp.
It has only been recently that research in childhood psychopathology has focused on a group of disorders
referred to as internalizing disorders. Internalizing disorders can include such problems as depression,
anxiety, social withdrawal, and somatic complaints. Even though research has begun to focus on
internalizing disorders with majority children, there has been very little research conducted on ethnic
minority children, Native American children in particular. The present study involved obtaining a Native
American sample and determining their internalizing symptomology utilizing the Internalizing Symptom
Scale for Children (ISSC), the Reynolds Child Depression Scale (RCDS), and the State Trait Anxiety
Inventory for Children (STAIC). The study sample was compared to a matched normative sample from the
ISSC database. Statistical procedures included bivariate correlations, analysis of variance (ANOVA), and
discriminant function analysis. Correlations between the ISSC and the two comparison measures (RCDS and
STAIC) were in the expected direction and of moderate to strong magnitude. The total internalizing
symptoms scores of the Native American (Lakota Sioux) sample were similar to those of a matched
comparison group from the ISSC national normative database. However, the study sample evidenced a
unique pattern of responses on the ISSC subscales, reporting lower rates of both internalizing distress and
positive affect. Teacher nominations of potential 'internalizers' proved to be a poor predictor of their self-
reported symptoms. Implications of this study for clinical practice and future research directions in this area
are discussed.
Williamson, Peter B. (1998) "So I can hold my head high: History and representations of the Oka crisis." M.A. Thesis,
This thesis studies the history behind and the representations of the Oka crisis involving the Mohawk nation
and various agencies of government in Canada. The thesis proposes the crisis is best understood in terms of
the government of Canada acting to suppress the nationalist expression of the Mohawk people. During the
past 20 years, a series of histories written from a Mohawk perspective have become available. A historical
study derived from Mohawk and other sources details a relationship of continual conflict between Natives
and Euro-Canadian authorities in which Native nationalist expression has been consistently suppressed.
Journal articles written between 1990 and 1995 and the hearings before the House Standing Committee on
Aboriginal Affairs have used as a guide to the representations of the Oka crisis. The government attempted to
locate its representations of the crisis around the issue of supposed Mohawk criminality. In doing so, it
disguised the part that the social structuring of native/non-native relations played in the conflict.
Wilmoth, Stanley C. (1987) "The development of Blackfeet politics and multiethnic categories." Ph.D. Dissertation,
University of California, Riverside. 579 pp.
This dissertation describes the development of council politics on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation. Local
efforts to construe family economic interests as ethnic interests are a major subject of this study. Outsiders
have taken vast amounts of Blackfeet resources, and many Blackfeet feel that access to remaining resources
is controlled by a local co-opted elite. Internal colonialism is felt to be the correct frame of reference with
which to interpret these developments. Divisive interests and dependency have been fostered by internal
colonialism, and these developments are described in a detailed historical narrative. Development of a co-
opted elite and expectations of familial favouritism, have resulted from contradictory pressures for
assimilation and distinctiveness, white discrimination, and differential wealth and emulation. Rank and
economic interest have been confounded with ethnicity. Ethnic categorizations initially arose from federal
policies confusing cultural competence and blood quantum. Through the allotment of reservation land, and
the alienation of much of that land by fraudulent forced patents, the interests of legally competent and
landless mixed-bloods came to be opposed to the interests of landed full-bloods. The historical
transformations and individual transactions involved in cultural constructions of ethnic categories are
explored in a semantic extensionist model which is contrasted with a graded category approach. The
negotiated and rhetorical construction of multiethnic categories is related to rank competition by co-opted
elites. Elite manoeuvres to redefine legitimacy and justify privilege produced a nationalistic retribalization
movement in this encysted society.
Wilson, Patrick C. (2002 ) "Indigenous federations, NGOs, and the state: Development and the politics of culture in
Ecuador's Amazon." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Pittsburgh. 326 pp.
This dissertation studies indigenous federations in Amazonian Ecuador, and the historically changing
relationships between them and the Ecuadorian state, national and international non-governmental
development organizations (NGOs), and multinational oil companies. Their interaction is partially situated
within conflicting understandings of development and its objectives, in which development is understood both
in economic and cultural terms. State elites and NGO personnel typically view development in terms of
economic modernization, and state policies and NGO projects for Amazonian indigenous communities have
included agrarian reform, colonization, and the wider participation of indigenous people in the market
economy. Elites and NGOs attempt to impose particular visions of economic and cultural behaviour on
indigenous people as 'backwards' and 'underdeveloped,' while hoping to transform them into 'modern,'
'productive' national citizens.
Since the 1960s, indigenous leaders have used federations to contest these models of development by
negotiating with and/or challenging state and NGO officials, rejecting the perpetuation of culturally-based
hierarchies with pseudo-racial undertones which relegate indigenous people to the bottom. Increasingly
since the 1980s, and in the context of neoliberal reforms and the rapid growth of NGOs in Ecuador and
elsewhere, indigenous leaders, instead of rejecting 'development' altogether, have used it as a stake in
cultural politics by forging alliances with sustainable development and conservation NGOs. They have
proposed alternative visions of development to reconfigure local economies in culturally-sensitive terms,
dismantle prevailing 'racial' hierarchies, and reconceptualize the Ecuadorian nation as plurinational.
The study of indigenous federations helps broaden our understanding of the relationships between social
movements and the state in the context of economic, political, and socio-cultural processes shaping them.
Ideologies of development, globally conceived by international development organizations and locally
implemented through neoliberal reforms, decentralization, and permissive expansion of NGOs, present a
multi-dimensional stage on which economic and cultural politics are played out. This has further
implications for our understanding of 'race,' ethnicity, and the politics of culture, as development ideologies
and practices generate prescriptions for the ethnic and cultural (pseudo-racial) composition of local
populations. Development becomes intertwined with issues of cultural politics and national identity, as
different actors create and contest conflicting representations of each other.
Winny, Beverley M. (1999 ) "Canadian fiction for adolescents from 1970-90: The rise of the aboriginal voice and the
decolonization of the curriculum of Ontario." M.A. Thesis, Trent University. 285 pp.
'Canadian fiction for adolescents from 1970-90' is considered in relation to forces directing its shape and
development. Of 464 novels, 134 are currently in print (1998). A 21 field record was designed for each of
these 134 novels to form a database that, upon analysis, reveals the largest category is aboriginal in focus
and divides into three distinct groups, all of which participate in an aspect of the Canadian postcolonial
discourse: residual colonialism; settler recognition of aboriginal abuse and the yearning towards
indigeneity; and aboriginal resistance, resurgence and movement towards a hybridized model of coexistence.
The valorization of aboriginal literature is then considered in the context of literary and political
pedagogical forces with particular reference to decolonizing the curriculum of Ontario.
Winter, Stephen G. (2001 ) "In dialogue with 'citizens plus': Towards a different model of citizenship." M.A. Thesis,
Dalhousie University. 155 pp.
Countering Alan Cairns' argument that multinational states must emphasise the common institution of
citizenship, the thesis argues this requirement cannot justifiably accommodate the sovereignty rights of
Aboriginal nations. Conventional theories of citizenship, whether emphasizing either its active or passive
aspects, stipulate that the state and the citizens share a commonality of purpose and identity. Denying the
justice of this commonality, the thesis extrapolates a model of 'difference-based citizenship' for multinational
states in which citizenship is 'de-synchronised' from the state. Reflecting on Canada's Aboriginal nations,
difference-based citizenship divides the state into discrete independently sovereign citizenships arguing
justice requires that collective social goods arise from inter-group negotiation rather than normatively
disputable transcendent identity commonalties.
Witt, Norbert W. (1998) "Opening the healing path: The cultural basis for a solvent abusers treatment program for the
Attawapiskat First Nation." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Toronto. 416 pp.
Solvent abuse, particularly gasoline sniffing, has developed into a problem for the Attawapiskat youths since
the 1980's. While there are treatment centres for solvent abusers, the success rate for treatment among First
Nation youths is very low. In the community researched in this dissertation it is 0%. Among the causes
identified for the low success rate in healing programs among Attawapiskat youths are cultural differences,
culture shock and inability to function in a 'white' society. This dissertation is based on the suggestion that
not only are acculturative stress and loss of the own culture the major contributing factors for the
development of the problem, a cultural basis for the treatment program is also the only solution for
successful treatment. The causal model for the solvent abuse problem in Attawapiskat and the cultural basis
for a healing program was analyzed on the basis of interviews among the people of the community and
solvent abusers themselves. Much of the discussion about the cultural basis refers to statements of elders of
the community who are seen as the link to the people's culture. The presence of these cultural structures in
the mind set of the people, even though they have been exposed to a life long assimilation attempt by the
dominant society, can be identified from the statements of the solvent abusers themselves and other
community members.
Woodworth-Ney, Laura E. (1996) "Tribal sovereignty betrayed: The conquest of the Coeur D'Alene Indian
reservation, 1840-1905." Ph.D. Dissertation, Washington State University. 354 pp.
Between 1840 and 1905, the interior Pacific Northwest witnessed the arrival of Jesuit missionaries, the
negotiation of treaties with native people, the creation of Indian reservations, and the attempt by non-Indians
to dominate tribal resources. Throughout this period, the Coeur d'Alene tribe of northern Idaho consistently
repelled assaults on its territory and culture. The National Archives records of the Bureau of Indian Affairs,
the Office of the Secretary of the Interior, the Indian Claims Commission, the United States Army Continental
Commands, the Office of the Adjutant General, and the Colville Indian Agency reveal that the tribe struggled
to maintain sovereignty of its aboriginal land and waterways within its dealings with federal and local
governmental entities. In 1873, President Ulysses S. Grant recognized Coeur d'Alene land claims by issuing
an executive order that created a sizeable reservation, surrounding Lake Coeur d'Alene, for the tribe. In
1887, an agreement with federal negotiators reaffirmed Coeur d'Alene possession of the reservation. An
emergent extractive economy altered the relationship between the Coeur d'Alene tribe and the federal
government. Competition for tribal resources resulted in the negotiation of the Simpson Commission
agreement in 1889. Coeur d'Alene leaders withheld their consent to the release of reservation resources, but
the deceitful tactics of federal negotiators and the 1889 Agreement's intentional ambiguity allowed for a
fraudulent interpretation. Congress and the State of Idaho used the document to force the Coeur d'Alene tribe
to surrender large portions of Lake Coeur d'Alene and the Coeur d'Alene River. In submitting to the interests
of local profit-seekers, the Simpson Commission deserted a 40 year history of federal recognition of tribal
land claims. The tribe retained its original title to the land and water it had not agreed to release.
Throughout the reservation period, the tribe asserted ownership of its resources. Nevertheless, with the
underhanded dealings of 1889, the federal government abandoned its trust relationship with the Coeur
d'Alene people and betrayed the tribe's sovereign right to its reservation.
Woolford, Andrew J. (2002) "Between justice and certainty: Treaty making in modern-day British Columbia." Ph.D.
The British Columbia Treaty Process was established in 1992 with the aim of resolving the outstanding land
claims of First Nations in BC Since that time, two discourses have been prevalent within the treaty
negotiations taking place between First Nations and the governments of Canada and British Columbia. The
first, that of justice, revolves around the question of how to remedy the past injustices that were imposed on
BC's First Nations so as to improve their current circumstances. The second, that of certainty, asks whether
this historical repair can occur without significantly disrupting the social order, and whether it can be done
in a manner that provides a better future for all British Columbians. Each discourse, as it unfolds in the
negotiation process, is characterized by competing visions of what justice and certainty should mean. This
thesis examines the interplay between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal visions of justice and certainty and
queries: is there a space between justice and certainty in which modern treaties can be made? On the basis of
interviews, fieldwork, and a document analysis of treaty-related materials, I argue that the BC Treaty
Process, as it currently stands, fails to provide a reliable means for the parties to negotiate 'between justice
and certainty.' In particular, the procedural model on which the BC Treaty Process is built lacks clear
substantive guidelines, leaving it susceptible to the manipulations and 'symbolic violence' of the more
powerful parties -- i.e. the provincial and federal governments. This has resulted in negotiations that are
defined by the visions of justice and certainty forwarded by the non-aboriginal governments, visions which
prioritize the economic and political interests of business and government over a serious reckoning with the
past. These 'affirmative reparations' render justice equivalent to achieving certainty in the form of clear and
stable business and governance relations between aboriginal and non-aboriginal peoples. In opposition to
this affirmative perspective, I argue that the aboriginal and non-aboriginal peoples, which sharply contrasts
with First Nations' demands that non-aboriginal governments provide a forthright acknowledgement of and
apology for infringement on aboriginal rights and title, significant monetary compensation and land
restitution, and recognition of broad powers of aboriginal self-governance. However, these First Nation
justice demands do not meet the economic and political imperatives of neoliberal globalization, and it is on
the basis of these broader societal forces that the non-aboriginal government vision of certainty rests. For
them, 'rational' and certain settlements need to be forged through treaty-making to ensure the ability of
governments and businesses to operate efficiently in the global marketplace. In opposition to this affirmative
perspective, I argue that the negotiation process needs to be redesigned so that the symbolic and material
justice demands of First Nations form the basis for treaty-making. Unless the BC Treaty Process opens itself
to the possibility of transformative justice contained within these demands -- that is, to a justice that
reconfigures symbolic, political and economic relationships between aboriginal and non-aboriginal peoples -
- the certainty desired by non-aboriginal governments and businesses is unlikely to prevail. Indeed, the
economic and political assimilation that is attempted through affirmative repair is more likely to lead to
future conflict than to the trust and mutual respect between Aboriginal and non-aboriginal societies
necessary for certainty to be realized.
Wortley, Debra R. (2003) "Community-based forest management planning in the Yukon: The difficulties of
government transfer of responsibility and authority to community agencies." M.Sc. Thesis, University of
Alberta. 204 pp.
The responsibilities and challenges of two community-based organizations, the Alsek Renewable Resource
Council (Alsek RRC) and the Champagne and Aishihik Traditional Territory Forest Management Planning
Team (CATT Planning Team) involved in Yukon's first forest management plan are explored in this thesis.
Finalization of comprehensive land claims and the subsequent formation of Renewable Resource Councils
has created the framework for the involvement of community members who desire a meaningful role in forest
management planning. Data for this project was collected primarily through interviews with community,
forest industry, and government representatives. Yukon community members face many challenges as
responsibility for forest management planning is devolved from the federal, territorial and First Nations
governments to community agencies. Key challenges included a breakdown of trust between community and
government partners, the CATT Planning Team's inability to resolve membership issues, limited involvement
of Champagne and Aishihik First Nation members, inadequate policy support, and forestry staff with limited
skills to implement co-management projects or serve as a community liaison. This thesis demonstrates that
the federal government agency responsible for forest management is uncertain about what role Yukon RRCs
have in, or how to incorporate, decisions made by the community-based group into forest management plans.
Experience of the Alsek RRC and the CATT Planning Team illustrates that if community-based forest
management planning is to succeed number of changes are required in how government and communities
interact; the foremost being a strengthening of trust between government and community partners.
Wuttunee, Wanda A. (2001 ) "Economic development in selected aboriginal communities: Lessons in strength,
resilience and celebration." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Manitoba (The). 236 pp.
The research objectives addressed are: (1) to ascertain the place held by aboriginal wisdom in economic
development theory; (2) to document the blend of approaches and economic development strategies currently
employed in selected aboriginal communities; and, (3) to identify the role of aboriginal wisdom in selected
Aboriginal communities that are striving for economic development in tune with individual community
rhythms. In examining the cost of development, the literature suggests that a variety of approaches are taken
by researchers in diverse disciplines. Examining the traditional philosophies held by aboriginal peoples
suggest approaches that have much to offer this discourse. Scholars from within aboriginal society are also
questioning the process and quality of development taking place and offering alternative approaches.
Modern economy influences have diluted the universality of the role of tradition, many aboriginal
communities are attempting to blend traditional approaches with modern economic strategies. Four
communities shared experiences for this research. A model entitled Elements of Development, created by and
for aboriginal people, was used as a framework for the results of the research. Several conclusions can be
drawn including the demand that re-examining sustainable development is imperative since an aboriginal
perspective cannot be grafted onto the current discourse, that on the whole lacks an appreciation for the role
of spirituality. This micro-examination of communities does not lend itself to the development of universal
models that may be rubber stamped onto other aboriginal communities. Sensitivity to the process of
development and the unique influences and common attitudes are more helpful in fostering the growth in
Canada's aboriginal economy. That said, some of the more interesting features of this research include: (1) a
sophisticated screening of business opportunities that holistically includes those aspects of community that
have been given priority by the members; (2) a process for building a financial strategy that involves
extensive community input with sensitivity to tradition; (3) organizations working together in an urban
setting that have promise for meaningful aboriginal contributions; and finally, (4) striving for a beneficial
partnership with a corporate conglomerate.
Wyrostok, Nina C. (1997) "First Nations women: A case study." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Alberta. 156 pp.
The purpose of this investigation was to develop a case study of contemporary, First Nations women of
western Canada. Undertaken in the qualitative paradigm, this study examined First Nations women's poetry
as a primary source of information and asked the question, 'When First Nations women write, how are we
informed about their realities'? The poems were written by western Canadian, First Nations women from
diverse tribal, educational, and economic backgrounds. Some were published, some were not. In addition,
four poets collaborated in this investigation through the process of interviews. The themes which were
derived from the poetry and interviews were descriptive of a community of women who are experiencing a
complex of issues relating to loss, grief and disconnection on the one hand and a complex of experiences
relating to reclamation and reconnection on the other. Specifically, they wrote and spoke of loss and
disconnection from their land, their own bodies, and the men in their lives. They wrote and spoke of their loss
of safety and trust, the loss of their culture and disconnection from themselves. On the other hand, the poets
also spoke of ways in which they are reconnecting to their land and the men in their lives. They wrote of
reclaiming their own bodies and their cultural identity. They described healing and reconnecting through
spirituality, reconnecting to their mothers, loving their children, and reclaiming themselves as human beings.
These themes were explored in light of the historical context of the colonization and residential schooling
experiences of First Nations people. Finally, the themes of disconnection, on the one hand, and the themes of
reconnection on the other, are integrated into interactive circles which incorporate the more global concepts
of the Land, the People, the Family and the Self.
Yellow Horse Brave Heart, Maria. (1995) "The return to the sacred path: Healing from historical trauma and historical
unresolved grief among the Lakota." Ph.D. Dissertation, Smith College, School for Social Work. 224 pp.
This study asserts that the Lakota (Teton Sioux) suffer from impaired grief which has an enduring and
pervasive quality. This grief is the result of massive cumulative trauma associated with such cataclysmic
events as the assassination of Sitting Bull, the Wounded Knee Massacre, and the forced removal of Lakota
children to boarding schools.
This investigator examined the effectiveness of a culturally syntonic four day psychoeducational intervention
designed to initiate a grief resolution process for a group of 45 primarily Lakota human service providers.
The study methodology included assessment at three intervals: (a) a pre- and post-test, utilizing a Lakota
Grief Experience Questionnaire and the semantic differential; (b) a self-report evaluation instrument at the
end of the intervention; and, (c) a six week follow-up questionnaire.
The results confirmed the hypotheses that: (a) education about historical trauma would lead to increased
awareness of the traumatic Lakota history's impact and associated grief related affects; (b) sharing these
affects with other Lakota in traditional context would provide cathartic relief; and, (c) grief resolution would
be initiated, including a reduction in grief affects, more positive identity, and a commitment to individual and
community healing.
Yellowhorn, Eldon C. (2002) "Awakening internalist archaeology in the aboriginal world." Ph.D. Dissertation, McGill
University. 377 pp.
This thesis is one step in defining the parameters of archaeology in an aboriginal context. It is designed to be
a practical guide for imagining the past from an internalist perspective because archaeological methods offer
the opportunity to represent antiquity that is simultaneously rational and familiar. However, an ancillary
objective is to utilize symbols from antiquity as markers of modern Indian identity. Archaeology appeared on
the radar of First Nations because their growing populations demand housing and economic opportunities.
Recent settlement of land claims has brought large tracts of land under the control of Native people.
Archaeological sites, by their very nature, are defined by their geographical location. artefacts and sites are
the products of past human labour and as such are a unique cultural legacy that must be understood within
the context of a generalized world history. Internalist archaeology mediates between a local understanding of
antiquity and the ancient history of humanity on a global scale. It is a product of the dialogue that began
when the world system intruded on the local experience of aboriginal people. Modern prehistory was
accessible only by employing archaeological methods and traditional history, as related in story, was
relegated to the margins along with its authors. Myths were discounted as plausible sources of explanation
for antiquity as archaeologists constructed their theories to explain the data they accumulated during their
excavations. Internalist archaeology is an analytical tool that will play a prominent role in rehabilitating
oral narratives by deploying methods to search for the signatures they would leave in the archaeological
record. It is also a means to examine folklore so as to discover the messages that are encoded in myths.
Myths act as mediating devices which connect the high levels of abstraction, those informing the traditional
worldview, with lower levels of abstractions, as represented by customs. Ecological messages are encrypted
in narratives which are then transmitted between generations. Each generation must decipher the meaning
embedded in a myth to benefit from it. For internalist archaeology, mythology is a reservoir of explanation
that has been ignored by mainstream research but which can be the basis for this brand of archaeological
research.
Young, Catherine. (2003) "Best interest of the child: The directors of Indian child and family services speak." M.S.W.
Thesis, University of Regina (The). 152 pp.
Their different cultures, norms and values have led aboriginal people and Eurocentric people to differ in
their interpretations of the expression 'the best interest of the child.' Each society has a unique and significant
way of life that is foreign to and misinterpreted by the other. As aboriginal social workers, we are
responsible for ensuring that children are protected from abandonment, neglect or abuse and for helping
aboriginal families that are struggling in the Eurocentric system to maintain their inherent culture and
values. I decided to investigate how the Directors of Indian Child and Family Services (ICFS) interpreted the
phrase and by how much their interpretation differed from the Eurocentric interpretation. Using qualitative
research, I was able to draw out some major themes. These included the Directors' distinctive styles of
working with children and their families; their distinct interpretation of 'the best interest of the child' and the
responsibilities and accountabilities of running an ICFS agency. The Directors of ICFS suggested that
culturally appropriate services provided to children and their families can in turn benefit the community by
creating thriving, healthy families that are able to contribute as individual and collective members of society.
Young, Deborah G. (2000) "The historical development of Indian welfare policy in the prairies, 1940-67." M.S.W.
The purpose of this investigation is to trace the historical development of the Department of Indian Affair's
welfare policy for the on-reserve population. Specific attention is given to the years of 1940 to 1967 when,
under the auspices of Indian Affairs Branch, a separate federally funded welfare system solely for status
Indians living on-reserve was initiated and implemented. It is recognized, however, that several participating
factors occurred before 1940 which forced the federal government into action. Therefore, a critical
component of this investigation was to examine the factors that ultimately influenced the federal government's
decision to implement a separate federally funded welfare system for the reserve Indian.
The Department's Indian welfare policy can be seen as unfolding in three distinct stages. The first stage
commenced during the latter part of the 1880s and early 1890?s. It was during these years that numerous
reports of extreme hardship, and even starvation, among First Nation people and their families were
publicized. Ottawa had little choice but to respond to the dire need of First Nation people. The government's
response was to implement a rudimentary ration system for individuals who were considered to be destitute.
Despite the government's own hesitancy, the ration system would remain the backbone of Indian welfare
administration for the next 50 years.
The second stage of Indian welfare occurred during the 1950s. By this time it was becoming increasingly
apparent that the government's previous interventions, however meagre, were simply not working. The Indian
welfare and unemployment rates were increasing at an astounding speed. The federal government began to
investigate another mechanism that would allow First Nation people to assume greater responsibility over
their affairs. In 1958 the department replaced the ration system with a more progressive model -- the Cash
Allowance system. Then, in 1959, the Manitoba government released its socioeconomic study on the
population of Indian and Métis living in Manitoba, and with it began a campaign to introduce a third
approach to Indian welfare policy.
The 1964 community development model was the culmination of the third stage in the department's Indian
welfare policy. The department had argued that this comprehensive strategy would be the ultimate solution
for Indian communities. 'Helping Indians to help themselves' became the mission and the department
designed the program to achieve that goal. However, a critical component of the community development
framework would remain unresolved; that is, the provincial government's unwillingness to assume
jurisdiction over Indian welfare. At the end, the provincial governments, with the exception of the Ontario
government, refused to endorse the federal-provincial cost-sharing agreements. In the present day, First
Nations welfare rates remain exceedingly high, and the overall socioeconomic conditions continue to fall
below Canadian standards. Although the department's Indian welfare policy has undergone minor changes
since the mid-1960s, the community development philosophy remained relatively unaltered. Evidently, the
department's long-term strategy to eradicate the Indian problem has yet to become reality.
The findings of this investigation provide a first step toward understanding the complexities behind the
department's decision to implement a separate federal welfare system for the on-reserve Indian. The results
are also of interest to contemporary issues. First, there are policy implications pertaining to the unique
circumstances of First Nation and aboriginal people, and a number of possible policy options that could be
adopted in addressing social assistance reform. Second, the study also gives rise to suggestions about this
knowledge and how it can be used in relation to social work practice and education.
Young, Donovan Q. (1983) "The North West Rebellion of l885: Armed resistance to internal colonialism." M.A.
Thesis, University of Regina (The).
Young, Wendy D. (1996) "Aboriginal students and post secondary education: A participatory exploration of
experiences and needs at a university and community college in northeastern Ontario." D.S.W. Dissertation,
Wilfrid Laurier University. 709 pp.
Aboriginal people are increasingly seeking forms of post-secondary education that meet their cultural,
political, social and spiritual needs. Universities and colleges have a responsibility to become involved in the
decolonization process by taking a proactive stance in relation to the changes which are required to meet
these needs. The research described in this dissertation is a bicultural, participatory action project which
sought to document the experiences and needs of aboriginal students at a university and community college
in North Bay, Ontario in order to lay the groundwork for new programs and services which might be
developed. Research circles and individual interviews were held to gather participants' stories. The circles
and interviews were tape recorded and transcribed and the results shared with participants. In two data
analysis circles the participants identified acceptance, sharing, awareness, and support as key categories
into which to organize their experiences. The medicine wheel became a useful model for understanding and
portraying these experiences and fit with the circular nature of the research process as well as with
traditional native teachings. The research circles became important sources of support and learning in
themselves and one of the recommendations that came out of the research was that they should continue to be
available for support purposes after the research concluded. This confirmed the empowering potential of the
participatory action research process. Experiential analysis provides justification for a dissresult which goes
beyond research results to include a discussion of the research process and a personal narrative related to
the experience of the primary researcher with the research. Popular education, feminist, aboriginal, critical
ethnographic and qualitative research literature also provide theoretical justification for this circular
participatory action research project. The participants' stories and comments are presented verbatim in
order to preserve the authenticity of the reporting and to confirm their legitimate role as co-researchers in
this participatory project. Their oral testimonies are powerful historical documents that will be important
sources of learning for anyone who reads them. The research adds to a growing body of literature that
argues that culture and control are intertwined and that institutions of the dominant society such as
universities and colleges have an important role to play in the reattainment of a balanced and harmonious
relationship between native and non-native people.
Youngbear-Tibbetts, Holly. (1996) "The struggle to preserve turangawaewae: Symbolic discourse of Mäori political
activism." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Wisconsin -- Madison (The). 304 pp.
Beginning in the 1970s, Mäori activists developed a social and political critique which sought to reaffirm
native entitlements in the present political state of New Zealand. While similar appeals had been previously
made by Mäori leaders, this movement mobilized individuals to join in a mass movement which ultimately
forced a crisis of legitimation for the state of New Zealand which has since began examining reparative
claims to assure social justice. This dissertation examines the symbolic discourse used by Mäori activists in
an appeal to individual sentiments of affinity to place, which the Mäori express as turangawaewae. That
discourse of place relied on Mäori sensibilities as the tangata whenua (people of the land) as elaborated
through individual whakapepaha (genealogical record), the ideological landscapes of Mäoridom, and their
status as sovereign peoples as acknowledged in the treaty negotiated with the British Crown in 1840 at
Waitangi. This dissertation chronicles the cultural resistance demonstrated by Mäoridom to the hegemony of
the Crown, and examines how those themes inspired a popular Mäori movement which has brought to public
attention the validity of their claims for social justice. It illuminates much of the force of native symbolic
systems which secure affinity to place, and situates the Mäori experience within comparable contemporary
struggles of indigenous peoples resident in post-colonial political states.
Youssef, Michel. (1995) "The survival of native territorial sovereignty in Canadian land claims law: Acknowledging
and historical fact." LL.M. Thesis, University of Ottawa. 289 pp.
The thesis of this dissertation is that the sovereignty of natives over their ancestral lands not transferred by
treaty or conquest was always recognized by the various colonial Powers who successively claimed Canada.
The focus of the paper is legal. The aim is to prove the maintainability at law, and specifically at Canadian
law, of native territorial sovereignty. The paper does not attempt to describe the qualities this legal
sovereignty possesses. To prove the thesis, the study takes a primarily historical perspective in determining
what was the law of the various Powers at the relevant time as concerns the status of indigenous populations
and their territories in newly discovered lands. The dissertation begins in chapter two, by examining
international law. Chapters three, four and five then look at the practices, respectively, of Spain and
Portugal, of France and of England as the principal Powers involved in the colonial history of Canada. In
chapter six, the study turns to the judicial arena and examines Canadian case law, and its American
influences. It also engages in a comparative review of the case law in Australia and New Zealand. Finally,
having established that native sovereignty is at least theoretically part of the law Canada inherited and that
the issue has not been judicially foreclosed, chapter seven examines the treaty and comprehensive land
claims agreement processes in Canada. To show that vast parts of the country which were occupied by
Indians at the time of European contact, remain so today, and are not yet under treaty. These areas constitute
territories over which Canadian sovereignty has wrongly been assumed which potentially could be lost to
Canada if not secured by treaty.
Zbeetnoff, Darrell M. (1979) "Water management and native land claims: Problems, issues and alternatives for the
Canadian north." M.N.R.M. Thesis, University of Manitoba (The).
Zieba, Richard A. (1990) "Healing and healers among the northern Cree." M.N.R.M. Thesis, University of Manitoba
(The). 206 pp.
Native healers and beliefs concerning healing were investigated in a Muskekiwininiw (Swampy Cree)
community in northern Manitoba, and an Asiniitniw (Rocky Cree) community in northern Saskatchewan. Two
traditional roles were distinguished: herbalist, and ritualist charismatic (shaman). A third type, native
Pentecostal charismatic, in the Muskekiwiniw community was a derivative of the traditional ritualist
charismatic. The herbalist activity was declining in the Muskekiwiniw community, while both ritualist types
were active. In the other community, both herbalist and ritualist roles were active. Active healers were
capable of alleviating stress associated with changing cultural conditions. The herbalist role could not
provide adequate coping mechanisms in the face of escalating violence and alcohol abuse. Elements of older
belief were still present in both communities; the concept of dream visitors, the pawakanak, was known
among younger people and still subscribed to by elders. The pawakanak are a source of power for healing,
and in the past, a source of help in hunting and gathering activities. In both communities, sickness was
categorized in two ways: that amenable to treatment by traditional herbalists or non-native medical people,
and illness induced by a person with powerful pawakanak.
Zontek, Ken. (2003) "Sacred symbiosis: The Native American effort to restore the buffalo nation." Ph.D. Dissertation,
University of Idaho. 372 pp.
Native Americans and bison maintain an ancient relationship characterized by spiritual affiliation and
utilitarian use. Near the end of the destruction of the great herds in the late 19th century, Native Americans
including Sabine and Samuel Walking Coyote of the Salish nation, Mary Good Elk Woman and Frederick
Dupuis of the Lakota, and the Canadian Métis James McKay initiated efforts to bring back the buffalo in its
habitat by establishing captive breeding programs. The progeny from these herds proliferated and remained
under native aegis until 1926 when the loss of communal land and the changing political economy finally
severed the physical bison-Indian relationship.
Emblematic of the rejuvenated cultural recognition for native people, bison returned to reservations
including the Crow and Lakota Pine Ridge agencies from the public domain beginning in the 1930s and
accelerating during the period from 1974 through 2000. In 1992, American Indians coalesced into the
Intertribal Bison Cooperative (ITBC) and consolidated both herd increases and bison range acquisition with
an excess of 10,000 bison running on more than 100,000 acres by 2003. The ITBC, 50 tribes strong, also
worked to improve the plight of the Yellowstone bison for greater free range and use of population excess for
tribal herd seed stock. Meanwhile, although with less coordination, Canadian First Nations continued to
bring back the bison on reserves. Native Canadians also began co-managing free-ranging bison in northern
Alberta and the Northwest Territories. Cultural affinity and respect for the indigenous landscape epitomized
the Native American bison restoration effort across North America.
Zygmuntowicz, Catherine E. (2000) "The domain specificity of resilience in native adolescents from a remote
community." M.A. Thesis, McGill University. 49 pp.
The present study is based on Luthar's finding (1991) that resilient inner-city adolescents, those adolescents
that displayed high behavioural competence despite high stress, experienced significant difficulties in
domains of social-emotional adjustment. The characteristics of resilience were examined among 61 native
adolescents from a remote community. Stress was operationalized by scores on self-report measures of
uncontrollable negative life events and demographic stressors. Definitions of social competence were based
on school grades, peer ratings, and teacher ratings. In addition, social-emotional adjustment was based on
self-report measures of depression and anxiety. Contrary to previous findings, resilient adolescents did not
display significant amounts of depression or anxiety. Furthermore, the findings indicate that resilient
adolescents have lower levels of anxiety than adolescents from high stress backgrounds with lower levels of
competence. The prevailing constructs of social competence and stress, and their appropriateness for the
study of resilience in native adolescents, are discussed.

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Bibliography of Theses and Dissertations on Indigenous Peoples – 2007 Jan.

Carranza-Mena, Douglas G. (2003) "Indigenous communities and the ethnography of governmentality in El

Freeman, Melissa L. (2006) "Urban dreaming." M.Arch. Thesis, Dalhousie University.

Morris, Carolyn T. (1998 ) "Characteristics of internalizing social-emotional behaviours of southwestern Native

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