Women and Specific Claims

Reserve creation processes carried out by colonial and Dominion officials in the 19th and 20th centuries had profound impacts on the political, economic, and social power of Indigenous women. Processes of reconciliation must take into account the gendered nature of colonial harms. The Union of BC Indian Chiefs (under direction of the BC Specific Claims Working Group) has partnered with Halie Bruce and Dr. Sarah Hunt to study these impacts.

This project will include a discussion paper and a series of video interviews with community experts in their home territories, exploring how colonial gender bias resulted in historical losses of land and resources, as well as the loss of vital knowledge of Indigenous laws and matriarchal economic systems and governance structures.

These resources will become available on the “Our Laws Arise from the Land” site in 2021–2022.