What Has No Place, Remains: The Challenges for Indigenous Religious Freedom in Canada Today

Description

The desire to erase the religions of Indigenous Peoples is an ideological fixture of the colonial project that marked the first century of Canada’s nationhood. While the ban on certain Indigenous religious practices was lifted after the Second World War, it was not until 1982 that Canada recognized Aboriginal rights, constitutionally protecting the diverse cultures of Indigenous Peoples. As former prime minister Stephen Harper stated in Canada’s apology for Indian residential schools, the desire to destroy Indigenous cultures, including religions, has no place in Canada today. And yet Indigenous religions continue to remain under threat. Framed through a postcolonial lens, What Has No Place, Remains analyses state actions, responses, and decisions on matters of Indigenous religious freedom. The book is particularly concerned with legal cases, such as Ktunaxa Nation v. British Columbia (2017), but also draws on political negotiations, such as those at Voisey’s Bay, and standoffs, such as the one at Gustafsen Lake, to generate a more comprehensive picture of the challenges for Indigenous religious freedom beyond Canada’s courts. With particular attention to cosmologically significant space, this book provides the first comprehensive assessment of the conceptual, cultural, political, social, and legal reasons why religious freedom for Indigenous Peoples is currently an impossibility in Canada. Cover Page i Title Page Copyright Contents Preface A Comment on Terminology Abbreviations Introduction 1. The Depth of Religious Freedom The Concept of Religion The Exclusion of Indigenous Religions From Issues of Breadth to Issues of Depth Conclusion 2. Secularization, Dispossession, and Forced Deprivatization Secularization and the Conditions of Public Religion The Location of Religion in Canada The Dispossession of Indigenous Lands Aboriginal Rights, Compromise, and Disclosure Cameron v. Ministry of Energy and Mines Conclusion 3. Religions Plus? Competing Frameworks of Indigenous Religious Freedom Foundations and Interpretations Qualifying as a Right Ktunaxa Nation v. British Columbia Conclusion 4. Dealing with Diversity Poorly and the Gustafsen Lake Standoff The Politics and Complexity of Cultural Difference The “Imaginary Indian” and Indigenous Religious Traditions Diversity and the Sun Dance Ceremony Splitting the Sky and Transmitting the Sun Dance Ceremony The Gustafsen Lake Sun Dance Ceremony and Occupation The Standoff Conclusion 5. The Duty to Consult and Accommodate Communicative Democracy and the State The Consultation Doctrine The Voisey’s Bay Mine and Mill Project Negotiation Conclusion 6. The Potential and Limits of International Mechanisms of Redress The United Nations and the International Labour Organization Canada and International Indigenous Rights The Hul’qumi’num Treaty Group, Canada, and the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights Conclusion Conclusion: Challenges for Reconciliation Newness, Diversity, and Education Indigenous Self-Determination and Consent Forging a New Relationship Conclusion Notes Bibliography Index