First Nations

Aboriginal Identities

In part, First Nations peoples’ identities have been constructed by a history of colonization, persecution, and cultural genocide—as is the case for most aboriginal societies where Europeans have migrated since the 17th century. The many different nations of the indigenous groups in Canada (from the Mi'kmaq in the East to the Caddo in the West) comprise very distinct identities. But their common struggles and experiences since the arrival of European colonists led to an additional shared identity as First Nations. In the evolution of this shared identity, First Nations peoples also have much in common with other aboriginal societies around the world.

In general, the governments of countries incorporating colonized aboriginal peoples—especially the governments of the British Commonwealth countries and their descendants—believed that it was in the best interest of the indigenous peoples that they be assimilated into a European-preferred style of living. Primary goals of this assimilation included changes in economic, educational, religious, and social attitudes. The quest to acculturate native peoples follows a similar pattern in these countries: contact, trade, resettlement, war, restriction of territory, reeducation attempts, removal of children to separate schools, abolition of cultural traditions (including language), and even genocide.

This is not to say that all intercultural contact in such situations has been malicious. Many intercultural experiences of aboriginals and Europeans have been benign or positive, as in the case of individual decisions to intermarry or voluntary affiliations with government institutions (such as the military). In addition, in all cases, aboriginal responses to this pattern of colonization and [Page 288]persecution have been active, not passive. Indigenous peoples everywhere have strongly resisted others’ attempts to control indigenous freedoms, particularly when cultural traditions were attacked. Nevertheless, in most cases, aboriginal peoples’ collective histories in colonized situations have been tragic.

Beyond these historic events, the interplay between indigenous peoples and the European colonists who arrived on their territory all over the world has yielded challenges to identity in the 20th and 21st centuries. These challenges are summed up in postcolonial theory. In most cases, past persecutions have kept indigenous peoples out of mainstream institutions and economic opportunities. The history of marginalization has yielded a cycle of poverty for most natives living in postcolonial contexts. In some cases, as with First Nations, the restriction of territory keeps people literally marginalized. First Nations reserves have been granted some degree of autonomy, and many First Nations leaders have succeeded in improving community life on the reserves. Yet, economic inequality is still pronounced in many places. Postcolonial theorists explore not just economic disruption but also identity issues impacted by culture and psychology. A history of violence and abuse at the hands of the colonizers has had a psychological impact on many postcolonial peoples and has caused enormous upheaval to peoples’ cultures, effacing or severely damaging customs and traditions. Postcolonial theorists are especially attentive to the disruptions to native peoples’ languages over the past few centuries. Many native languages have died out, and many have only a few remaining speakers; nevertheless, First Nations peoples continue to work at recapturing their native languages.

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