Indigenous in the City: Contemporary Identities and Cultural Innovation ed. by Evelyn Peters, Chris Andersen (review)

Evelyn Peters and Chris Andersen’s collection analyzes “the resilience, creativity, and complexity of the urban Indigenous experience” in various settler nations: Canada, the United States, Australia, and New Zealand (9). While drawing on multiple methodological approaches, such as sociology, cultural studies, Native studies, and history, each of the scholars included in this collection writes against the notion upheld by racist attitudes and government policies that Indigeneity is naturally removed from city life. In the process, all the authors provide social and political contexts for scholars working in other disciplines, such as literary studies and education, who examine the contemporary Native American experience.

Part 1 focuses on urban Indigeneity in Canada, specifically the experiences of the North American Indians (commonly called First Nations) and the Métis, who are the descendants of European and First Nations persons. In the first chapter, scholars Mary Jane Norris, Stewart Clatworthy, and Evelyn Peters explore various factors behind Aboriginal population growth, such as natural population increase, net migration (in-migrants minus out-migrants), and, most interesting of all, increased self-identification on census forms. The authors refer to recent data indicating that those who identify as Aboriginal tend to have a higher level of education, an interesting point that highlights the relationship between economic class and cultural identity, which the authors unfortunately leave unexplored.

The remainder of this first section continues to explore this theme of identification. Yale D. Belanger’s chapter examines how the courts classify the community, while Ronald F. Laliberte’s chapter analyzes the government’s definition of Aboriginality, emphasizing the Métis’ struggle to be recognized as Aboriginals in order to receive the same economic and cultural initiatives provided to First Nations persons. In contrast, Pamela Ouart and the Saskatoon Indian and Métis Friendship Centre’s chapter explores how Aboriginal urban organizations conceive of themselves. This recurring analysis of how the community is defined, either by itself or by others, singularly showcases the sociopolitical forces that impose on Indigenous persons while also shedding light on Indigenous efforts—through social work, through sports, and through culture—to challenge them, thus illustrating the book’s multidisciplinary appeal.

Part 2 turns to the urban Indigenous experience in the United States. C. Matthew Snipp, drawing on information obtained from the US Census Bureau, points out that urban Indians identify with multiple racial heritages due to increased contact with non-Indians. However, further research on the extent and the nature of this contact would strengthen Snipp’s analysis. Whereas Snipp’s work is based on information from the US Census, Nancy Lucero bases her examination of the changes in cultural identity in families that have lived continuously in urban areas for three or four generations on her 2009 qualitative study. Lucero shares her interviews with at least one member of each generation to convey the heterogeneous nature of urban Indigeneity not only across racial lines, as per Snipp’s chapter, but also across generational lines. Addressing efforts to overcome the community’s diversity, Jay T. Johnson’s chapter explores how the powwow creates a pantribal space in an urban setting. Similar to Evelyn Peters and Carol Lafond’s chapter in the previous section, Johnson’s chapter highlights the importance of spatial belonging, which remains one of the most in-depth discussion points covered in the book.

The emphasis on space continues into part 3, which analyzes urban Indigeneity in Australia. Kelly Greenop and Paul Memmott examine efforts of Indigenous persons to create a sense of belonging through symbolic acts of place-making using song and dance. In contrast, George Mason’s chapter focuses on young Indigenous men incapable of transcending their disadvantaged lives due to a lack of employment opportunities and an inability to form “individual narratives of aspiration” (302). These two chapters are especially useful in initiating a dialogue on Indigenous agency either in our research projects or with students in a classroom setting. Aspects...