Living Treaties: Narrating Mi'Kmaw Treaty Relations ed. by Marie Battiste (review)

THERE ARE NO SHORT CUTS in finding justice (114). In her book Living Treaties: Narrating Mi'Kmaw Treaty Relations, editor Marie Battiste skillfully weaves seventeen deeply descriptive chapters together to address the lived experiences of the authors and how these authors have come to know and encounter treaties as Mi'kmaw persons. This text is organized by individual stories, and it eloquently utilizes one of three orthographies (Listuguj or Metallic, Pacifique-Millea, Smith-Francis) of the maritime region. Each narrative shares insights, perspectives, and reflections used to understand how treaties are living, breathing entities that "remain part of the Mi'kmaw knowledge system" (1). In the introduction, Battiste invites the reader to learn more about treaties, how to relate to them, and how treaties continue to have an impact on people in historic and contemporary contexts. The introduction further shares the complexity of constitutional law and the "black hole or omission" (6) of cultural ways of knowing on the part of the Crown that have continued to negatively shape the day-to-day experience of many Mi'kmaw community members.

Objectives of this collective work include bringing the treaties to life and acknowledging the interconnectivity between treaties and constitutional law; the mobilization, restoration, and affirmation of Mi'kmaw identity; and the link to natural resources and cultural rights. Each chapter fulfills the expressed goals of the editor by offering stories through autobiographical participant self-reports and archival methods. The holistic nature of the stories encourages the reader to personally relate to the authors on an intimate level and to slowly unpack the arguments raised throughout the book. At the heart of the text lies a plea for the existing Canadian consciousness to be awakened to the nightmare of lies, injustices, and broken promises at the hands of Canadian statecraft and nongovernmental actors toward the Mi'kmaw people.

This storied collection offers an important contribution to various fields of knowledge, including Indigenous ways of knowing, sovereignty, cultural studies, law, history, education, food systems, economics, and health, among others. While earlier works have focused on similar legal precedence, statutes, and decisions, Battiste clearly and compellingly illustrates the lengths at which the various governmental branches have evaded their legal responsibilities toward the Mi'kmaw. Furthermore, the editor and contributors utilize Indigenous theoretical frameworks to illustrate long-standing traditions of research, resistance, and resilience that stand in direct contrast to the colonial ontologies found in systems and institutions of power.

Marie Battiste is noted for her contributions to the area of Indigenous education, curriculum, violence prevention, Indigenous knowledge and decolonizing methodologies; indeed, this work carries legal understandings of Mi'kmaw treaties and thus expands her scholarly repertoire to new and timely endeavors. Although most of the book achieves a strong vision for reconceptualization of Mi'kmaw culture, some chapters offer incidental perspectives of collaboration, research, and litigation. Furthermore, Battiste clearly illustrates the complex nature of treaties and the tensile strength between nations, communities, families, and treaty understandings.

Readers of this book may find further sources to contextualize their research in the appendices. Here specific legal and position documents are found, including the Mi'kmaw Declaration of Aboriginal Rights, Archival Research, Treaties, and the Nova Scotia Mi'kmaq: Aboriginal Rights Position Paper and Acknowledgements, and Communication to the United Nations Human Rights Committee about Treaty Violations. Overall, this text is well positioned to serve as a valuable resource for understanding Mi'kmaw culture and attempts to reposition the Crown's version of the treaty story. For this reason, Living Treaties should be considered a fundamental read for educators, activists, historians, researchers, policymakers, and similar others.