Economic Globalization In Canada

The focus of this research paper is Indigenous women’s resistance to economic globalization in Canada. Economic globalization involves the exploitation of natural resources on Indigenous peoples’ territories which further marginalize undermine Indigenous peoples’ right to self-determination (Kuokkanen, 216). This research paper asks the following questions: what forms do economic globalization take and how do Indigenous women mobilize and resist these forms of economic globalization which threaten their existence? The paper is concerned with these questions because Indigenous women are often ignored and rendered invisible as “patriarchal and ‘globalocentric’ frameworks disempower women and their politics”, by marginalizing and making their

First, I will define the concept of economic globalization and look at the different forms which affect Indigenous communities. To provide general background information on the issue, I will broadly discuss how these forms of economic globalization have had a negative impact on Indigenous communities, and more specifically Indigenous women. Second, I will define what I mean by resistance and then I will provide three to four specific cases of how economic globalization has intensified cases of oppression against Indigenous women in Canada. The cases that I plan to use as my examples are, the Voisey Bay nickel mining project in 2002, the Heiltsuk First Nation and their resistance to Enbridge’s Northern Gateway Project, and the rise of the Idle No More movement and Chief Theresa’s Spence resistance to Bill C-45. I will first outline a brief summary of each case and then in each case, I will examine how Indigenous women have challenged or led resistances against economic globalization to the benefit of their communities. I will also examine the modes of resistance utilized in each case and analyze the effect and outcomes to understand the impact of resistance. I will then consider whether resistance contributed to change in the form of legislation, polices or by bringing indigenous issues to the forefront of public consciousness. Finally, I will address the issue of how Indigenous women’s concerns and issues have been relegated as secondary to that of Indigenous peoples’ as a