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Environmental racism discourse and indigenous peoples

This thesis argues that the environmental policies and processes o f the Canadian state have adversely affected the sustainability of Aboriginal societies and are racist. An expanded concept o f environmental racism is developed to analyze this circumstance since current environmental justice theory has concentrated on civil rights discourse or ethnic minority rights, ignoring Aboriginal human rights as peoples/nations. The adverse environmental impacts borne by First Nations must be considered from a human rights perspective since they are both ‘legally’ and morally entitled to groups rights as original peoples and to the individual rights generally associated with civil rights provisions. The concept o f environmental racism, and its accompanying analytic, are expanded by taking into account sociological and biophysical factors affecting the human right to security of person and the right o f self-determination. These are operationalized by: examining the loss o f First Nations lands as necessary means of subsistence; analyzing systemic racism in legislation and process that excludes First Nations; detailing the toxic racism associated with exploitive resource development; and affirming tribal sovereignty as a means for resisting environmental displacement and degradation. The environmental racism faced by Indigenous peoples in Canada is argued to be neocolonialist in nature since producing the ‘colonialist’ effects o f destruction and displacement by ‘toxic’ means, rather than through direct violence. I argue that the assertion and affirmation o f First Nation sovereignty may facilitate redressing the environmental racism they face.