Full Circle

No one introductory textbook can bring down the entire wall. Such a book would have to be thousands of pages long. But a step on the path of knowledge involves realizing that there is so much information that needs to be conveyed. The interwoven stories of Aboriginal peoples in Canada cannot be taught in one course. The political, educational, and general cultural structures of ignorance need to be understood before they can be dismantled, and years of teaching and learning are required. This being said, Full Circle is an attempt to poke some holes in that wall. We have tried to achieve this through several means. Of key importance is the incorporation of Aboriginal voices into the text. This begins with an acknowledgment of the fact that there is no one Aboriginal experience; instead, there are many. There are many different languages still spoken in Canada. There are traditional stories that share some principles but hold meanings unique to different peoples. There are elders and there are young people with unique visions. There are men who, since contact, have often been separated from women by sexist laws, primarily the Indian Act. There are women who have had to fight to be respected by governments, non-Aboriginal peoples, the men in their communities, and each other. There are communities that have suffered dislocation from traditional lands, and those who have greater continuity in their sense of place. While the reserve experience has to be articulated, urban voices need to be heard as well. Most Aboriginal people now live, work, or spend significant parts of their lives in urban areas and have experiences that need to be spoken and heard.

Part One: Origins and Oral Traditions 1 Chapter One: Oral Traditions 1 Chapter Two: The Peopling of the Americas 11 Chapter Three: Connections to the Land 17 Chapter Four: Native Languages 23 Part Two: Culture Areas 43 Chapter Five: The Arctic 43 Chapter Six: The Eastern Woodlands 54 Chapter Seven: The Eastern Subarctic 70 Chapter Eight: The Western Subarctic 79 Chapter Nine: The Plains 94 Chapter Ten: The Plateau 108 Chapter Eleven: The Northwest Coast 117 Part Three: Legal Definitions 126 Chapter Twelve: The Royal Proclamation and the Indian Act 126 Chapter Thirteen: The Treaties 138 Chapter Fourteen: The Golden Lake Algonquin and Algonquin Park: Missed by Treaty 151 Chapter Fifteen: Fighting for Recognition: The Sheshatshit Innu and the Megaprojects 161 Chapter Sixteen: The James Bay and Northern Québec Agreement 170 Part Four: Effects of Colonialism 179 Chapter Seventeen: Religious Colonialism 179 Chapter Eighteen: Native Health Issues 187 Chapter Nineteen: Colonialism, Native Education, and “Child Welfare” 196 Part Five: Contemporary Debates and Social Action 218 Chapter Twenty: Social Issues: The Dudley George Story 218 Chapter Twenty-One: Fighting for the Sacred Waters: The Peigan and the Oldman River Dam 228 Chapter Twenty-Two: Native Policing 236 Chapter Twenty-Three: The Justice System and Natives 249 Chapter Twenty-Four: Native Governance 269 Chapter Twenty-Five: Undoing the Past 281