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There goes the neighbourhood: Joshua A McGonagle Althoff, ‘Managing Settlers, Managing Neighbors: Renarrating Johnson v. McIntosh through the History of Piankashaw Community Building’, Journal of American History, 110, 4, 2024, pp. 625-642

22Mar24

Abstract: On the evening of January 1, 1776, Peeyankihšiaki (Piankashaw people) gathered in the village of Vincennes (in present-day Indiana), several miles above the confluence of the Embarras River and Waapaahšiki Siipiiwi (Wabash River). They came to celebrate the coming of a new year with the Francophone residents of Vincennes. On behalf of the British at this fur-trading post, French commandant Jean Baptiste Racine dit St. Marie recorded the evening’s celebrations in his ledger of merchandise. St. Marie was most concerned with estimating the expense of gifts being distributed. Throughout the evening, he noted that eighty loaves of bread and twenty-five “carrots” of tobacco went to groups led by the akimaki (male civil leaders) Sakimia (Maringouin or Mosquito), Old Tobacco, and Young Tobacco. These akimaki were regular guests of St. Marie and leading families of Vincennes, and their company may have been a welcome reprieve to residents occupied with keeping warm. The evening’s quaintness belied the fact that these leaders had gathered not two months earlier to negotiate a deal with an afterlife that would become the foundation of contemporary American Indian law in the United States.


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Land titling is the beginning of dispossession (today too): Julie Wetterslev, ‘When the Forest and the Rivers is Home – Managing Indigenous Territory and Settler Relations in North Eastern Nicaragua’, Iberoamericana, 2024

22Mar24

Abstract: Based on a case study in the Mayangna territory of Awas Tingni, this article explores current conflicts over lands, resources and identity in the Northern Caribbean region in Nicaragua. Through ethnographic excerpts and analysis of interviews and observations, the study demonstrates that judicialization and land titling has not brought security and stability for rights bearing indigenous communities. Rather, the titling process has been followed by a process of monetization of the land that has facilitated colonisation with a range of detrimental environmental and socio-cultural consequences, leaving fractioned indigenous communities in a vulnerable position to protect eco-systems and manage the relations with the many new settlers in their territories.


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Once they were settlers: Marta Stachurska-Kounta, ‘Silencing the Indigenous Perspective in the Textbook Accounts of Norwegian Migration to America’, Nordisk tidsskrift for pedagogikk og kritikk, 10, 3, 2024, pp. 148-175

22Mar24

Abstract: The historiography of Norwegian migration to North America in the 19th and early 20th centuries had, until recently, largely ignored its impact on indigenous people. Taking as a point of departure the presentations of migration to America in Norwegian lower and upper secondary school textbooks in social studies and history, this article demonstrates that the displacement of Native Americans is mostly absent in these presentations, and almost none of the textbooks discuss it in terms of settler colonialism. Such a narrative sustains the perception of North America as a sparsely inhabited continent with enough space for everyone and ultimately justifies Europeans’ right to claim possession of the land. Given that the consequences of settler colonialism continue to persist to the present day, I argue that ignoring the fact that Norwegian migrants were also settlers reproduces historical power relations and oppressive epistemologies. Aligned with the view that history education based on a single master narrative hinders critical thinking, this article contends that there is a need to decolonize the teaching of Norwegian migration to America by incorporating the perspective of Native Americans.


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Militarised settlers: Federica Caso, Settler Military Politics: Militarisation and the Aesthetics of War Commemoration, Edinburgh University Press, 2024

22Mar24

Description: Analyses the relation between visual culture, militarisation, and liberal governance. Elaborates on the relationship between militarisation and settler colonialism. Reads militarisation as a governing rationality. Focuses on the under-explored case study of Australia’s militarisation. Contributes to critical military and war studies by centring settler colonial relations and Indigeneity. Settler Military Politics provides a thorough investigation of the relationship between settler colonialism and militarisation drawing from the Australian experience. In this book, Caso develops the concept of settler military politics to identify the relationship between settler colonialism and militarisation. The book argues that militarisation is a rationality for governing the settler polity and consolidates the settler colonial project. It investigates settler military politics through an in-depth analysis of the under explored aesthetics of war commemoration in Australia and the role of the Australian War Memorial.


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Talk to the hand: Estée Fresco, Red Mitten Nationalism: Sport, Commercialism, and Settler Colonialism in Canada, McGill-Queen’s University Press, 2022

22Mar24

Description: When Canada hosted the 1976 Montreal Olympics, few Canadian spectators waved flags in the stands. By 2010, in the run-up to the Vancouver Olympics, thousands of Canadians wore red mittens with white maple leaves on the palms. In doing so, they turned their hands into miniature flags that flew with even a casual wave. Red Mitten Nationalism investigates this shift in Canadians’ displays of patriotism by exploring how common understandings of Canadian history and identity are shaped at the intersection of sport, commercialism, and nationalism. Through case studies of recent Canadian-hosted Olympic and Commonwealth Games, Estée Fresco argues that representations of Indigenous Peoples’ cultures are central to the way everyday Canadians, corporations, and sport organizations remember the past and understand the present. Corporate sponsors and games organizers highlight selective ideas about the nation’s identity, and unacknowledged truths about the history and persistence of Settler colonialism in Canada haunt the commercial and cultural features of these sporting events. Commodities that represent the nation – from disposable trinkets to carefully curated objects of nostalgia – are not uncomplicated symbols of national pride, but rather reminders that Canada is built on Indigenous land and Settlers profit from its natural resources. Red Mitten Nationalism challenges readers to re-evaluate how Canadians use sport and commercial practices to express their patriotism and to understand the impact of this expression on the current state of Indigenous-Settler relations.


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Targeting Indigenous reproduction: Sarah Tomkins, Jennifer Liu, Lori ACR Campbell, ‘Meaningful Positioning: Insights on the Importance of Culturally Safe, Anti-racist Settler-Indigenous Relationships in Supporting Indigenous Maternal Health in Canada’, International Journal of Indigenous Health, 2024

22Mar24

Abstract: Indigenous women and birthing parents in Canada disproportionately face mistreatment in their maternal healthcare experiences due to systemic anti-Indigenous racism, ongoing harmful impacts of settler colonialism, and power differentials inherent in many healthcare relationships. Indigenous midwives and doulas are important leaders in resisting these conditions and reclaiming traditional Indigenous birth knowledge and practices. Ultimately, they work to uphold Indigenous self-determination and sovereignty. Grounded in an understanding of historical and current challenges regarding Indigenous maternal health, this qualitative study explored how best to situate oneself as a settler researcher and maternal health practitioner to support Indigenous maternal health in a culturally safe, anti-racist manner. In this article, key insights are shared from semi-structured interviews conducted with five prominent Indigenous scholars, midwives and community leaders. These consultants emphasized the central importance of intentional relationships in advancing the reclamation of traditional birth practices and providing culturally safe care, along with the indispensability of Indigenous midwives and doulas in these processes. Consultants also stressed the critical need for increased numbers of, and accessibility to, Indigenous practitioners in communities across the country. Settler practitioners are urged to understand the historical and contemporary impacts of settler colonialism, and the significance of building culturally safe, anti-racist relationships with their Indigenous colleagues and clients.


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Educating the settler, one indigenising step at a time: Stephany RunningHawk Johnson, Anthony Angel Keola Birano, ‘Decolonizing Curricula: Indigenization and Critical Settler Consciousness’, in Sheron Fraser-Burgess, Jessica Heybach, Dini Metro-Roland (eds), The Cambridge Handbook of Ethics and Education, Cambridge University Press, 2024

21Mar24

Description: This chapter begins by addressing settler colonialism and how it has affected and influenced educational practices in the United States. The authors discuss how they define decolonization and ask themselves and their readers if it is truly possible to decolonize schooling in the United States. They offer the concept of a critical settler consciousness to push back against settler colonization, and give multiple examples of communities and schools that are decolonizing their curriculums. The authors emphasize that decolonizing the curriculum is not easy; it is complicated, convoluted, and often unclear. They conclude that there is hope in the communities, parents, and students employing decolonizing practices to educate their young people.


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Tenacious indigeneity: Wanda Wuttunee, Fred Wien (eds), Engraved on Our Nations: Indigenous Economic Tenacity, University of Manitoba Press, 2024

21Mar24

Description: A testimony to Indigenous resilience in business. Despite investments in nation building, self-autonomy, and cultural resurgence, Indigenous economic development has remained an underexplored and underestimated area of research. Engraved on Our Nations overturns the discouraging deficit perspective too common in policy and academia and amplifies the largely undocumented history of successful Indigenous economic activity in Canada. Following David Newhouse’s overview of Indigenous economic history, the authors of this collection illustrate how First Nation and Métis individuals and communities have met and overcome an array of challenges. Case studies focus on First Nations from Membertou (Nova Scotia) to Tahltan (British Columbia) and Indigenous-led enterprises like McDonald Brothers Electric (Northwest Territories) and Neechi Commons (Manitoba). Simultaneously celebrating Indigenous entrepreneurs and exploring concerns around sustainable development, the book also asks: can capitalism be Indigenized? This first-of-its-kind collection shares stories not only of entrepreneurial excellence and persistence but savvy leadership, innovation, and reciprocity. In doing so, Engraved on Our Nations provides hope to Indigenous business leaders, youth, and elected officials working on the front lines to improve economic conditions and achieve “a good life” for their communities.


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Comic settler colonialism: James J. Donahue, Indigenous Comics and Graphic Novels: Studies in Genre, University Press of Mississippi, 2024

21Mar24

Description: In recent years, studios like Marvel and DC have seen enormous success transforming comics into major motion pictures. At the same time, bookstores such as Barnes & Noble in the US and Indigo in Canada have made more room for comic books and graphic novels on their shelves. Yet despite the sustained popular appeal and the heightened availability of these media, Indigenous artists continue to find their work given little attention by mainstream publishers, booksellers, production houses, and academics. Nevertheless, Indigenous artists are increasingly turning to graphic narratives, with publishers like Native Realities LLC and Highwater Press carving out ever more space for Indigenous creators. In Indigenous Comics and Graphic Novels: Studies in Genre, James J. Donahue aims to interrogate and unravel the disparities of representation in the fields of comics studies and comics publishing. Donahue documents and analyzes the works of several Indigenous artists, including Theo Tso, Todd Houseman, and Arigon Starr. Through topically arranged chapters, the author explores a wide array of content produced by Indigenous creators, from superhero and science fiction comics to graphic novels and experimental narratives. While noting the importance of examining how Indigenous works are analyzed, Donahue emphasizes that the creation of artistic and critical spaces for Indigenous comics and graphic novels should be an essential concern for the comics studies field.


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German-Texan settler colonialism: Daniel J. Gelo, Christopher J. Wickham, The German Texas Frontier in 1853: Ferdinand Lindheimer’s Newspaper Accounts of the Environment, Gold, and Indians, University of North Texas Press, 2024

20Mar24

Description: Ferdinand Lindheimer was already renowned as the father of Texas botany when, in late 1852, he became the founding editor of the Neu-Braunfelser Zeitung, a German-language weekly newspaper for the German settler community on the Central Texas frontier. His first year of publication was a pivotal time for the settlers and the American Indians whose territories they occupied. Based on an analysis of the paper’s first year—and drawing on methods from documentary and narrative history, ethnohistory, and literary analysis—Daniel J. Gelo and Christopher J. Wickham deliver a new chronicle of the frontier in 1853. Lindheimer reports in detail on the area’s Indian peoples. Some Lipan Apaches are killed when the army does not learn of their peaceful intentions; restitution is made at Fredericksburg. The Penateka band of Comanches honors the peace agreement they signed with the Germans six years earlier, but their days in the region are numbered.


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