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Do We Need Kiwi Lessons in Biculturalism? Considering the Usefulness of Aotearoa/New Zealand's Pākehā Identity in Re-Articulating Indigenous Settler Relations in Canada

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  04 November 2016

David B. MacDonald
David B. MacDonald*
Affiliation:
University of Guelph
*
Department of Political Science, University of Guelph, 50 Stone Road East, Guelph ON, N1G 2W1, email: David.macdonald@uoguelph.ca
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Abstract

Canada is beginning to slowly embrace an ethic of Indigenous-settler biculturalism. One model of change is afforded by the development of biculturalism in Aotearoa/New Zealand, where recent Indigenous Māori mobilization has created a unique model in the Western settler world. This article explores what Canada might learn from the Kiwi experience, focusing on the key identity marker Pākehā, an internalized and contingent settler identity, using Indigenous vocabulary and reliant on a relationship with Indigenous peoples. This article gauges Pākehā’s utility in promoting biculturalism, noting both its progressive qualities and problems in its deployment, including continued inequality, political alienation, and structural discrimination. While Canada has no Pākehā analogue, terms such as “settler” are being operationalized to develop a larger agenda for reconciliation along the lines recommended by the Truth and Reconcilliation Commission. However, such terms function best when channelled towards achieving positive concrete goals, rather than acting as rhetorical screens for continued inaction.

Résumé

Le Canada commence lentement à adopter une éthique de biculturalisme autochtone-colon. Un modèle de changement est offert par l’évolution du biculturalisme en Aotearoa Nouvelle-Zélande où la récente mobilisation de la population autochtone maori a créé un précédent unique dans le monde de la colonisation occidentale. Cet article explore les enseignements que le Canada pourrait tirer de l’expérience « kiwi » en se concentrant sur le principal marqueur identitaire Pakeha désignant une identité intériorisée et contingente qui emploie le vocabulaire autochtone et dénote une relation avec les populations autochtones. Cet article mesure l’utilité de la notion Pakeha dans la promotion du biculturalisme en soulignant autant les qualités progressives que les problèmes inhérents à son déploiement, y compris une inégalité continue, l’aliénation politique et la discrimination structurelle.

Même si le Canada n’a pas de notion analogue, des termes comme celui de colon sont utilisés pour établir un programme plus étendu en faveur de la réconciliation allant dans le sens des recommandations formulées par la Commission de vérité et réconciliation. Toutefois, de tels termes s’avèrent plus efficaces lorsqu’ils sont orientés vers l’atteinte d’objectifs concrets et positifs, plutôt que de servir d’écrans rhétoriques perpétuant l’inaction.

Type
Research Article
Information
Canadian Journal of Political Science/Revue canadienne de science politique , Volume 49 , Issue 4 , December 2016 , pp. 643 - 664
Copyright
Copyright © Canadian Political Science Association (l'Association canadienne de science politique) and/et la Société québécoise de science politique 2016 

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