Government Agents, Literary Agents: Inuit Books and Government Intervention, 1968-1985

• Main Author: Rak, Julie
• Other Authors: Martin, Keavy, GAPSSHRC
• Format: Other/Unknown Material
• Language: English
• Published: 2017
• Subjects: hisphilso; scipo; Canada; Indian; inuit
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.7939/R32N5002W; https://era.library.ualberta.ca/items/ea43f888-1ce3-4c27-84a5-d9e0bd1e0de0

SSHRC Awarded IG 2018: From 1968 to 1985, a small division within the Department of Indian and Northern Affairs (DIAND)--now Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada (INAC)--pursued initiatives designed to encourage the development of Inuit literary production in Canada. At times acting without the knowledge of the writers themselves, officials within the Social and Cultural Development (SCD) Division made programs aimed at "literature development," and so intervened directly in literary production by Inuit, buying parts of the print runs of books and storing them in the basement of its headquarters, giving copies away for free to visiting dignitaries, arranging for writers to write for publication and even, in at least one case, negotiating a contract for an author with a major publisher. The research team will explore these questions: Why did the SCD Divison intervene as it did? Which books were affected and did any of the authors know what happened? What are the implications of this practice for Inuit literature as it is known and read today? Did Inuit editors and writers find ways of using the SCD Division goals for their own purposes, including cultural preservation and the pursuit of land claims? The research team will conduct archival research, interviews, and consultations in order to determine how the idea of "cultural development" found in the very name of the Social and Cultural Development Division was tied to other paternalistic government initiatives aimed at what it saw as cultural and economic development in the North, and how Inuit writers and editors responded.