An exploration of Indigenous‐settler relations in the Port Alberni Valley, British Columbia regarding implementation of the 2011 Maa‐nulth Treaty

• Published in: Canadian Geographies / Géographies canadiennes
• Main Authors: Morgan, Vanessa Sloan, Castleden, Heather
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Wiley 2014
• Subjects: British Columbia; Canada; First Nations
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/cag.12120; https://api.wiley.com/onlinelibrary/tdm/v1/articles/10.1111%2Fcag.12120; https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/cag.12120

Abstract On April 1, 2011, the Maa‐nulth Treaty went into effect; this treaty involves signatories from five First Nations, the Province of British Columbia, and Canada. Encompassing territories never before ceded—largely in the Port Alberni region of Vancouver Island—these First Nations have reclaimed a degree of self‐determination through the Treaty. Using it as a platform for analysis, this study sought to examine local Indigenous‐settler relations within a modern treaty context. During the week of Treaty celebrations and formal implementation, face‐to‐face semi‐structured surveys were administered to local residents of Port Alberni, asking their perspectives on the Treaty to determine the breadth and depth of comprehension—and tensions surrounding it. Our hypothesis was that in the heart of the region where impacts would be felt the strongest, there would be diverse (likely heated) opinions revealed through the data; to our surprise, however, over 40 percent were unaware of the Treaty's existence, let alone its implications. This resulted in some challenges in the extent to which our data could be interpreted but provided proof‐of‐concept for further exploration into why residents remain unaware of their own implication in modern treaty negotiations and their associated historical complexities.