Religion, Land and Democracy in Canadian Indigenous-State Relations
| dc.contributor.author | Shrubsole, Nicholas | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2013-05-22T20:14:05Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2013-05-22T20:14:05Z | |
| dc.date.issued | 2013-05-22T20:14:05Z | |
| dc.date.submitted | 2013 | |
| dc.description.abstract | Many indigenous communities perceive an intimate connection between land and religion, and land has, and continues to remain, at the heart of indigenous-state relations. This dissertation examines how philosophies of land and religion in correlation with histories of dispossession and differentiation contribute to socio-political structures that threaten the religious freedom of Aboriginal peoples and the very existence of indigenous religious traditions, cultures, and sacred sites in Canada today. Through a political-philosophical approach to ethical concerns of justice as fairness, national minorities’ rights, and religious freedom, I examine court decisions, legislation, and official protocols that shape contemporary indigenous-state relations. I identify philosophical and structural issues preventing Canada from protecting the fundamental rights guaranteed to indigenous peoples and all Canadians. More specifically, I examine the historical manifestations of concepts of land and religion in philosophies of colonization, emphasizing their effects in contemporary indigenous-state relations. I analyze the impacts of secularization, socio-economic expansion, and the dispossession of Aboriginal traditional lands on the protection of indigenous cultural rights and off-reserve sacred sites. Based on this analysis, I discuss communicative democratic theory and the potential benefits and limitations of the “Duty to Consult and Accommodate”—the most recent framework for indigenous-state relations—for the protection of indigenous religious traditions and the importance of the inclusion of indigenous peoples in administrative and decision-making processes. Finally, I explore indigenous representation, religious revitalization and the politics of authenticity, authority, diversity and cultural change. | en |
| dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/10012/7551 | |
| dc.language.iso | en | en |
| dc.pending | false | en |
| dc.publisher | University of Waterloo | en |
| dc.subject | Indigenous-State Relations in Canada | en |
| dc.subject | Religious Freedom | en |
| dc.subject | Liberalism and Postcolonialism | en |
| dc.subject | Justice and Democracy | en |
| dc.subject.program | Religious Studies | en |
| dc.title | Religion, Land and Democracy in Canadian Indigenous-State Relations | en |
| dc.type | Doctoral Thesis | en |
| uws-etd.degree | Doctor of Philosophy | en |
| uws-etd.degree.department | Religious Studies | en |
| uws.peerReviewStatus | Unreviewed | en |
| uws.scholarLevel | Graduate | en |
| uws.typeOfResource | Text | en |