Introduction to Indigenous Studies- Vocab

Shooting of Thomas Scott

Prisoners try to escape and are not successful
In turn, Louis Riel captures Thomas Scott
This aggravates John A Mcdonald and leads him to send an army of 1000 men after Riel.

Dominion

(Dominion Of Canada)
Total control- were supreme rulers

Racial Segregation

Systematically separating groups based on race, often against the will of the people

Ammenments

Changes to the Indian Act
Criminalize cultural practices/events

Adopt Indian and Meteis

A program ran by the Saskatchewan government during the time of the 60's scoop

Miscegenation and anti-miscegenation laws

Races should not mix

Columbus

Discovered the "Americans"
Explorer looking for gold
He was responsible for public beheadings of ingenious, putting girls into slavery, abducting girls, forcing people to get gold for him and punishing people who did not reach his quota by cutting their hands off.
Became stripped of his title because of the brutality

Millennium Scoop

50% of children in foster care were indigenous

Self Determination

Being able to define yourself and not let others tell you who you are

homogeneous

of the same kind

Indigenous

Refers to First Nation, Inuit, and Metis people.
One's relationship to the land and to pre-colonialism

Aboriginal

Refers to First Nation, Inuit, and Metis people.
Homogenizing
Aborigional= same ethnicity

Indian

Racial Slur in Canada
It is used in the states by people who self-identify as "Indian."
Meant for someone to be considered sub-human and is homogenizing
Where the word came from is still a debate

First Nations

Refers to specific groups of people, not the same as Indigenous

Native American

"Native" Slang and informal

Inuit

Has replaced the term "Eskimo"
Negative connotations
Inuit means people

Metis

People of mixed European and indigenous ancestry

social constructionism

People construct their understandings of the world, which depend on shared meanings and assumptions.
How things in the world are constructed socially.
Ex. Money or crime

Ratialization

Ascribing a racial or ethnic identity to a group that does not identify as that.
Attaching traits to someone based on how they look.

Social Construct

An idea that appears to be natural and obvious to people who accept it, but may or may not represent reality.

Race

Imposed on people
Cannot be biologically defined

Ethnicity

Cultural identity is often tied to community and nationality, more specific than race.

Treaties

Formalized records of negotiated agreements between parties, usually state, but sometimes people.
Often were not written.

Turtle Island

Now Called "North America"
A great flood happened, animals were asked to gather soil from the bottom of lakes/ocean and put it on the turtles back. The turtle became the center of creation.

Three Sisters

squash, corn, beans

Pneumatic communities

Communities that were constantly moving, sometimes based of season or following the bison in their circles.

Matriarchy

Society was lead by woman

Historical Narrative

Telling a story based on a collection of facts

Historical Fact

something that is true and known to have existed
Can be based on archeological archive

History

A series of stories based on historical facts

Euro-Maps

Maps that mapped where the enemies were and had little to do with relation to the land

Genocide

Intentionally killing/eliminating and identifiable social group

Settler colonialism

+/- elements
( - )dissolve native societies
( + )New societies were built on the stolen land

Kaswentha

The distinct identity of the two peoples and a mutual engagement to co-exist in peace without interfering with each other's affairs.

Two Row Wampum Belt

A treaty of respect for the dignity and integrity of both parties involved stresses the importance of independence and non-interference.
Visual representation of the Kaswentha

Land surrender treaties-1800

Relationship treaties shift to land treaties
Relationships with indigenous were not as crucial as before because
- Trade was not as important between indigenous and Europeans
-Military relations were no longer needed because there were no more wars

Doctrine of Discovery

Idea of discovery through Christian roots

Enlightnment

Birth of science

Age Of Reason (Myth)

Religion and science have separated from each other, and religion is less important.

Religious Scientific Hybrid

A scientific method to affirm personal beliefs and methods.

Noble Savage

wild people
Need the Christian God in their life

Religious Ideas

Good/evil
Sin, goodness, absence of God
souls

Scientific Ideas (Race Pseudoscience)

Objectify
scientific method
Biology. psychology, ect

Civic Ideas (liberalism)

Human rights
Progress and technology
Enlightenment
Modernity
Democracy

Secularism

Separating the church from a government body

Civil Religion

the set of beliefs, rituals, and symbols that makes sacred the values of the society and places the nation in the context of the ultimate system of meaning

Manifest Destiny

America had the right and was destined to expand across North America.

John A Mcdonald

First PriceMinister of Canada
Used the word "Aryan" races (White= superior race)
Came up with the idea that Indian children should be separated from parents

Indian Act

Force all indigenous to register
The legal definition of "Reserves" and "Indian."
Enforced reservations
Better managed the risky population
Govern the rules of the reserve system

Reserves

Disrupted family, houses, clans, and social networks
Determined without consent who/where you lived
Live with strangers

Family structure=

Important to culture (This is why the government tried to take away family structure)

Nuclear Family

Two parents and dependent children
Christin family

RCMP

Royal Canadian Mounted Police
"Mounti" means nobility
reinforced indigenous act
Enforced residential school compliance
Survalenced indigenous communities

Wild West

Wild because of all the conflict- lawlessness

Para Military

Not an official military but organized like one
Could use force if needed

Pass System

Canadian government illegally created this to keep indigenous people on reserves
The could only leave if permission was granted

Indin Agent

Residential school compliance
Represented Canadian government
Stationed on reserves to make sure the Indian act was being followed
Suppressed cultural practices

Reserves

Prevent indigenous culture

Separation From Family

Indian boarding schools removing children from their home, meaning children were stripped away from their family

Assimilation of Culture

"Kill the Indian"
Cutting your hair short, not speaking your cultural language, not participating in cultural practices, western clothing and religious teachings

Abuse

Emotional and physical
Punishments such as malnutrition and starvation and food-related experiments

Death and Decease

Death due to the health experiments and disease was easily spread as children were living so close to one another

Funding by the government

Schools were funded by the government but run by churches
Living standards were low because of low funding
Children had to maintain and cook at the schools

After math of residential schools

Immediate: Confusion between what is good/bad, had low education (no university), didn't feel like you belonged anywhere

Phycological Effects: Mental health and trauma (PTSD)

Indian Question

What do we do with the Indians?

Result: Eliminate the culture

Sixties Scoop

Provincial government made policies that allowed child welfare sweeping powers to take and remove Indian children from their home (without consent)and put them up for adoption to move in and life with white families.

This happened as a result of changes (amendments) to the Indian Act

Canadian Government paid families to take the kids

Indian Kids

Not considered Canadian kids, therefore had different laws/rights

Foster Care

Temporary child care

Adotion

Legally getting new parents

Social Workers

Removed kids from their homes during the 60s scoop
Were not trained or familiar with indigenous cultures

Eugenics

Idea that humans should selectively breed to get rid of unwanted traits

Devolution

Opposite of evolution

poverism

The condition of being poor is inheritable

Sexual Sterilization act

Used to protect the gene pool by stopping undesirable traits
Sterilized indigenous woman
Eugenics board did this without consent of the patient by classifying the patient as mentally ill under the mental diseases act

John Maceachran

Professor at the University Of Alberta
Head of Eugenics board
Approved sterilization for individuals