The anathema of aggregation: Toward 21st-century self-government in the Coast Salish world

There are significant tensions in state-sponsored attempts to formulate aggregated First Nations self-government bodies. In spite of decades of pressure from the Indian Act and Canada's Inherent Self-Government Rights Policy, and a dramatic privatization and alienation of lands and resources, F...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Thom, Brian
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: Anthropologica 2010
Subjects:
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/1828/15607
https://www.jstor.org/stable/29545993
Description
Summary:There are significant tensions in state-sponsored attempts to formulate aggregated First Nations self-government bodies. In spite of decades of pressure from the Indian Act and Canada's Inherent Self-Government Rights Policy, and a dramatic privatization and alienation of lands and resources, First Nations' visions of future self-governments continue to be distinctively local, with a few notable exceptions. This article looks at how the kin-based principles that underwrite Coast Salish leadership, property, political networking and the distribution of political power bases profoundly influence choices in self-determination. These issues challenge both state and First Nations negotiators to reconcile cultural difference in these agreements. Faculty Reviewed