“AS MUCH AS YOU WILL LEARN ABOUT TIM HORTONS, THERE IS AS MUCH YOU NEED TO LEARN ABOUT INDIGENOUS PEOPLE”: WHAT INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS KNOW ABOUT CANADA’S INDIGENOUS PEOPLES AND HISTORIES

Adam Aly, Ivan Wat, Ketzia Gregorio, and Serriz Peña

ABSTRACT

Despite the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s 93 Calls to Action to reconcile Canada’s relationship with Indigenous peoples, Indigenous communities continue to experience marginalization. Further, there exists a significant lack of accurate information regarding their histories and cultures within the media, academia and public discourse. The purpose of this study is to determine what international students living in Scarborough know about Indigenous communities in Canada; as well as to identify the resources available to them for and the factors affecting their acquisition of such information. By interviewing international students at the University of Toronto, the study reveals that participants possessed limited knowledge and access to resources, that most of their knowledge was acquired through the university, and that sense of personal obligation and the challenges of integrating into Canadian society significantly impacted the willingness and capacity to learn about Indigenous peoples. We recommend that changes be made to university curricula, promotion of university Indigenous events and groups be improved, and incentives be provided for participation to increase students’ exposure to, and interest in, Indigenous histories and cultures.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

ABSTRACT II

INTRODUCTION 4

CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK 5

REVIEW OF LITERATURE 8

METHODOLOGY 13

SCARBOROUGH CONTEXT 14

FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION 18

CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 26

REFERENCES 28

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INTRODUCTION

The history of Canada in relation to colonialism and Indigenous peoples is seldom

acknowledged in public discourse. Crimes and injustices perpetrated against Indigenous

peoples including the brutal history of conquest, resettlement of lands, cultural genocide

and the erasure of their diverse cultures are removed from official accounts and narratives

regarding the founding of the country. Indigenous peoples are treated as second class

citizens where their perspectives are excluded from mainstream discourse. While

increasing numbers of newcomers, immigrants, and refugees continue to migrate to

Canada, these racialized groups may also face similar challenges such as marginalization,

discrimination, and issues regarding recognition and citizenship within Canadian society.

In light of the ongoing marginalization and colonialism with respect to the

treatment of Indigenous peoples in Canada, the federal government has been called upon

by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission to revise a wide range of policies and

procedures. This includes the TRC Call to Action 93, which demands that newcomer

information kits be provided to immigrants and the content of citizenship tests reflect a

more accurate portrayal of Indigenous peoples (Truth and Reconciliation Commission of

Canada, 2015). While this Call to Action requires large scale policy change by the

Canadian government, we as sociology students, have made it our commitment to

conduct field research in the hopes of acquiring a better understanding on the issues that

relate to the TRC’s Call to Action 93. Our research will identify the preliminary steps that

are needed as well as provide us with the most effective methods that can be employed to

improve the intercultural relationships between newcomers to Canada and Indigenous

peoples.

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CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK

To understand the current state of affairs regarding ongoing colonialism in

Canada and its consequences for urban centres such as Scarborough, it is important to

examine the key features that differentiate Canadian “settler-colonialism” from more

traditional conceptions of “metropolitan-colonialism”. Hugill (2017) argues for such a

distinction where he illustrates how historical and societal differences between colonial

states and cities affect the types of goals pursued by their governments, resulting in

differences in the treatment of Indigenous populations. First, the conventional concept of

the “colonial city” is one where the city is seen as a node within a vast imperial network,

important for the extraction or transportation of resources. Such a city is typically

characterized by the compartmentalization and division of physical spaces, as well as

strict separation between the places occupied by colonial peoples and those inhabited by

the native population. The nature of the relationship between the metropolitan-colonial

powers and the Indigenous population can be understood as one of exploitation. (Hugill,

2017). The primary goal of colonization is to extract labour and resources from

Indigenous peoples and their lands, and then transport and utilize these things elsewhere

in the empire (Hugill, 2017). By contrast, settler-colonialism is fundamentally different as

it has less to do with empire and more to do with nation-building, as Hugill (2017)

explains “...colonists 'come to stay' and are foremost concerned with the construction of a

new society on the expropriated land base. They are, therefore, primarily driven by a

desire to possess and settle the land in perpetuity” (p. 4). Therefore, the displacement of

Indigenous peoples from their territories is crucial to the project of settler-colonialism, in

order to facilitate settlement of the land. Historically, a wide variety of techniques were

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implemented in the pursuit of these goals including violent extermination and

assimilation by force, as well as subtler tactics such as strategic exclusion and

pacification via integration (Hugill, 2017, p. 4). All strategies have been, to a greater or

lesser extent, employed against the Indigenous peoples of Canada.

Further, it is essential to obscure the inconvenient truths relating to settler-

colonialist policies in order to legitimize the newly-founded colonial state. Hugill (2017)

observes that the

“interpretations of city-building in settler colonies have often been shrouded in a mantle of colonial amnesia; in both official histories and boosterist accounts, settler-colonial urban environments are routinely (if dubiously) treated as sites of settler creation in 'wasted' or 'virgin' landscapes, great hubs of commerce, and exchange brought to life by the brilliance and ingenuity of rugged and ambitious arrivistes rather than spaces of conquest, eviction, and resettlement” (p. 5).

Thus, Indigenous peoples, nations, cultures, and histories must be erased from the official

narrative and made to disappear from public discourse. Instead, they are to be viewed as

“...unreal figures, rooted in the nation's prehistory, who died out and no longer need to be

taken seriously” (Lawrence & Dua, 2005).

The terrible consequences of cultural genocide by the Canadian government can

be seen in the tragic history of residential schools, as well as the Indigenous citizenship

programs implemented in the post-World War II period under the Canadian Citizenship

Act. Along with the post-war influx of immigrants who needed to be “Canadianized” as

per the state agenda of migrant assimilation, an effort was also made by the government

to frame Indigenous peoples as “immigrants too”. In other words, the goal was to

assimilate individuals of disparate cultural identities by encouraging them to adopt a

homogeneous “Canadian culture” (Bohaker & Iacovetta, 2009). Thus, the federal

Department of Citizenship and Immigration was charged with the combined tasks of

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managing immigrant admissions, reception, and citizenship, as well as “Indian Affairs”,

despite the fact that the Act made no specific mention of Indigenous peoples. At the time,

the legal status of Indigenous peoples was that of wards of the federal government, and

they were denied full citizenship rights due to the rationale that citizenship was linked

with taxation, and Indigenous peoples living on reserves did not pay taxes. These

assimilation programs served as a means for the federal government to reduce annual

treaty payment expenditures and to absolve themselves of other treaty obligations. To this

end, Indigenous peoples were encouraged to leave their reserves, move to urban centres,

and join the working class. While they were given access to resources for formal

education and vocational training (such as in farm work, trades, mining, construction for

boys, and domestic work such as cooking and sewing for girls), these programs also

sought to further undermine the survival of their traditional cultures, values, and

languages, all the while supposedly being in support of an official multicultural pluralist

agenda. As a result, many Indigenous peoples refused to participate, and rejected the

concept of “unitary Canadian citizenship” (Bohaker & Iacovetta, 2009).

In many ways, Indigenous peoples were given much more restricted access to

citizenship pathways, and their rights to citizenship infringed upon to a much greater

degree as compared with immigrants. The perceived validity of their citizenship is often

susceptible to being discounted or minimized by the mainstream as a result of appeals to

conceptions of unitary or universal citizenship. Bhatia (2013) attributes these sorts of

attitudes to a kind of “Goldilocks Citizenship” line of reasoning, where Indigenous

peoples are seen as merely relating to the country's past, and immigrant newcomers to its

future, and neither perceived to be relevant to its present.

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In addition, given that both Indigenous peoples and immigrants are minority

groups within Canadian society, it is certainly plausible that they might share other

commonalities in their lived experiences. These include experiences of discrimination

and marginalization, the dilemma of preserving their native cultures and languages, and

integrating into mainstream Canadian society. In “Indigeneity, Immigrant Newcomers

and Interculturalism in Winnipeg, Canada”, Gyepi-Garbrah et al. (2014) propose that

cultural exchange programs between Indigenous peoples and newcomers have been

effective in spreading knowledge and awareness on Indigenous issues to newly-arrived

immigrants. Such programs may be extremely useful in building intercultural

relationships, understanding, and solidarity in the face of multiculturalism policies that

promote the concept of universal citizenship through assimilation. Alliances between

such groups may prove to be invaluable in the pursuit of the shared goals of

decolonization and antiracism (Gyepi-Garbrah et al., 2014).

Therefore, if decolonization of urban spaces is to be achieved through inter-

cultural interaction, understanding, and cooperation, it is important to be aware of the

resources and information that are accessible to newcomers. It is also important to

identify the sources of such information and support, as bridging the gap between new

Canadians and Indigenous peoples is necessary to accomplish the TRC’s Call to Action.

REVIEW OF LITERATURE

Existing literature on the strategies implemented so far to inform immigrants and

migrants about the context and histories of Canada’s Indigenous peoples have been few

and far between. Research was drawn from academic, news, and grey literature sources

and indicated how newcomers receive information about Canada’s Indigenous peoples.

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Literature revealed that newcomers receive this information through formal processes

such as the Canadian citizenship information kit for newcomers and through the school

curriculum – however, these were not always accurate. They also receive information

through informal processes such as community organizations and programs that aim to

bring Indigenous peoples and immigrant groups together.

The Canadian citizenship information kit is one of the most effective ways of

reaching and educating new immigrants because individuals who wish to become

Canadian citizens have to go through the same process. As a result, this makes it

mandatory for all immigrants to learn about Indigenous communities and not solely based

on their personal interest. The kit includes information about the country’s physical

landscape, how the Canadian government operates, and the history of Canada. While

Canada’s Indigenous peoples are mentioned in the information kit, their history is only

briefly discussed. Barahona (2017) argues that although the government has made

changes to the citizenship information kit by naming Indigenous peoples as one of

Canada’s three founding peoples, the three paged history is insufficient as it creates a gap

between what Indigenous peoples actually experienced and what newcomers know about

their experiences. The federal government should take note of what other levels of

government have done to bridge this gap. For example, the City of Vancouver has

provided newcomers with a comprehensive 90-paged guide which includes accurate

information regarding Indigenous peoples and their treaties, teachings, cultures, and the

history and experiences of residential schools (Wilson & Henderson, 2017). Moreover,

Levitz (2017) discusses how the current citizenship kit is currently being revised to

reflect a more accurate and inclusive history of Canada’s Indigenous peoples. Revisions

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include the history and present-day lives of Indigenous peoples and their experiences in

residential schools. Through a revised information kit, these authors argue that

newcomers would be able to receive more accurate representations of the histories,

struggles, and experiences of Indigenous peoples.

For many newcomers, knowledge about Canada’s Indigenous peoples is only

acquired through the school system where the history of Indigenous peoples is embedded

within the curriculum. For this reason, it is important that school curricula include

accurate portrayals of Indigenous histories and current context. Fortunately, many

provincial governments are beginning to realize that the current school curriculum does

not do justice in explaining the histories of Indigenous peoples to newcomers. In the case

of Newfoundland and Labrador, Godlewska et al. (2017) states that the entire curriculum

is contradictory and contains inconsistent information as it lacks First Nation, Métis, and

Inuit content. This is unacceptable as it teaches Canadian children an inaccurate version

of Indigenous history which can create false and negative stereotypes. These textbooks

have yet to connect present day issues experienced by Indigenous peoples to long-

standing colonial practices and policies.   

Provincial governments such as Alberta’s and Quebec’s are also revising their

school curricula to include an accurate portrayal of Indigenous history and culture into

the education system. The government of Alberta has allocated $5.4 million for a new

initiative that will train teachers, superintendents, and other school staff to begin

instructing First Nations, Métis, and Inuit history and perspectives in its school

curriculum (French, 2016). Quebec’s high school history curriculum will also be revised

to include a greater focus on the histories of Indigenous peoples in Canada, their

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contributions, and their experiences in residential schools (Shingler, 2017). Since the

release of the Calls to Action by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, there has

been an increasing effort from several provincial governments to include accurate

Indigenous history in school curricula. This is important as educators such as Lilah

Marom (2016) state that there is a need for teacher educators to place themselves within

“a complex web of privileges and oppressions” (p. 34), so that they can truly understand

how to teach multiculturalism and the relationships between settlers, Indigenous peoples,

and immigrants. She also openly admits that many immigrant teachers are not informed

about Indigenous knowledge, perspectives, and political struggles and thus are unable

teach a topic that they do not know themselves (Marom, 2016).

Many programs have also been created by community organizations nationwide

to unite newcomers and Indigenous peoples. In Winnipeg, newcomers and Indigenous

peoples are working together to build their relationships through events that seek to break

down existing negative stereotypes. Gyepi-Garbrah et al. (2014) discuss how an

Indigenous organization called Ka Ni Kanichihk Inc. (KNK) and other partner

organizations in Winnipeg are working to overcome social distance and foster healthy

relationships between immigrant newcomers and the city’s Indigenous peoples. Through

intercultural initiatives such as Indigenous Awareness Workshops and Youth

Peacebuilding Gathering programs, Indigenous peoples and newcomers realized that they

shared many similarities such as the effects of colonialism, similar socioeconomic

challenges, and experiences of racism (Gyepi-Garbrah, 2014). The KNK takes initiatives

to decolonize the city by embedding Indigenous culture through teaching traditions,

customs and values to newcomer immigrants. Similar to Winnipeg, events are also held

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in Saskatoon where Indigenous people invite newcomers to celebrate their culture with

them through traditional dance and open dialogue about their experiences with

colonialism, past and present (Yard, 2017).

The Immigrant and Refugee Community Organization of Manitoba also runs an

an Indigenous community program called “Meet Me at the Bell Tower” which serves as a

venue for the two communities to meet, connect, and understand one another

(Kuropatwa, 2015). Similar to the other programs, immigrants are educated about

Canada’s residential school system and the effects of its colonial past through this event.

Programs and community events promoting accurate representations of Indigenous

peoples is an essential step toward reconciliation. It is also a way to educate new

Canadians of the rich and diverse histories, traditions, and cultures of Canada’s

Indigenous peoples. Without programs set up to help build relationships between the two

groups, data has revealed that negative preconceptions can be perpetuated about one

another based on false impressions (Gyepi-Garbrah, 2014). Thus, bridging programs are

important in contributing towards better cross-cultural understanding and relations within

a multiculturalist framework.

While programs such as these exist for newcomers and Indigenous groups, there

is a large gap regarding the types of information and support programs available to

international students residing in Canada. This may be due in part to their temporary

residency status, since many of them are expected to return to their home countries after

they have completed their studies, the government has not made it a priority to educate

them about Indigenous histories and contexts. However, given Canada’s emphasis on

Canadian experience in its skilled immigration policy, a significant portion of these

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international students may well decide to pursue citizenship upon graduation. This fact

holds true, especially for international students who have lived in the country for a

number of years. Therefore, we argue that it is important to conduct research on

international students and their access to information regarding Indigenous histories and

contexts. We also argue that it is important to conduct research on the relevant factors

relating to their acquisition of such knowledge in order to better facilitate the process of

intercultural dialogue and understanding, and towards the ultimate ends of anti-racism

and decolonization.

METHODOLOGY

Over the course of four months, we conducted research on eight international

students currently residing in the city of Scarborough. Five women and three men

participated in in-depth semi structured interviews, during which the research team

simultaneously took notes and audio recorded the interview. The participants in this study

are students at the University of Toronto Scarborough Campus (UTSC) who come from

different countries of origin (see Figure 1). Although our sample size was limited, the

diverse background of our participants gave our research a different perspective for each

interview session.

Name Age Gender Country of Origin Migrated to Canada (years)

Aaheli 19 Female Oman 1

Sebastian 19 Male Peru 2 months

Suyash 19 Male India 1

Alison 19 Female Hong Kong 3

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Anna 20 Female China 2

Simran 19 Female Dubai 1

Jenny 21 Female Hong Kong 3

Mike 22 Male Taiwan 4

Figure 1 - Participant’s Country of Origin

Participants were recruited through word of mouth from the social network of each group

member. A snowballing technique was also used where participants recommended other

international students with whom they had contact. Through the informed consent

process, participants learned about the purpose of the study, their rights as a participant,

and the option to use their real name or a pseudonym. We also asked participants a set of

questions about their understanding and knowledge of Indigenous histories and current

contexts. The interview analysis was split into three main themes with sub-themes under

each main focus. The first theme was related to the content of information. Questions had

to do with the knowledge that participants had regarding Indigenous peoples. Another

theme was sources of information, focusing on whether they received their knowledge

about Indigenous peoples from formal or informal sources. For this theme, we also

included the participants’ level of access to resources. Finally, we analyzed the theme of

interest or obligation to learn. This included whether the participants had future plans for

obtaining permanent residency and if this decision ultimately affected their choice to

learn more about Canada’s Indigenous peoples and their cultures.

SCARBOROUGH CONTEXT

Toronto history focuses on European colonialism and imperialism. However,

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there is limited awareness of the depth of this pre-contact settlement history, or general

knowledge of the societies that inhabited Ontario prior to the onset of Euro-Canadian

settlement (City of Toronto, 2004). Over the last 10,000 years, the city known today as

Scarborough, has changed historically and demographically as a result of the migration

and politics of the peoples who once inhabited it. It continues to be an important site for

Indigenous communities as the city has developed from being a “Toronto Passage”, to a

white middle-class suburb, to the diverse immigrant gateway it is today.

Scarborough was known as the “The Toronto Trail” or the “Carrying Place Trail”

because the Huron and Iroquois used it as a shortcut between Lake Ontario and the upper

Great Lakes to trade goods (Myrvold, 1997). The rivers in the area which connect Lake

Ontario to the St. Lawrence Valley, and the upper Great Lakes were well-known and

referred to as the Toronto Passage. These waterways made transportation to hunting and

trapping grounds in the north easier, and allowed traders access to resource-rich lands. A

14th century Indigenous village discovered in Scarborough featured “longhouses, sweat

lodges, and middens; excavation yielded 20 000 artifacts such as bone awls, bone beads,

graded stone axes, ceramic pottery, and seashells from the eastern seaboard, which

demonstrates an extensive trading network in the Americas” (Methot, 2012).

Scarborough would remain untouched by European settlers until the latter part of the

1700’s, when King George III issued a royal proclamation for all “Indian land” to be

surrendered to the crown and acquired only through formal purchase (Myrvold, 1997).

Racialized and discriminatory immigration policies allowed Scarborough to

develop into a middle-class, white suburban area. Since non-white and non-European

immigration was openly discouraged and prohibited, the British, French, Germans, and

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Scandinavians dominated immigration to Canada (Matas, 1985). The Great Depression

and World War II largely halted immigration, but post-WWII saw a period of exponential

growth and development for Scarborough.  Large-scale infrastructure including roads,

water mains, sewers, schools, parks, and Highway 401 were built for suburban

development (Sorensen and Hess, 2015). Scarborough’s population grew from 25, 482 in

1945 to 56 292 in 1951, and nearly quadrupling to 217, 286 in 1961, and continued to

grow, reaching 334, 485 in 1971 (Myrvold, 1997, p.118). The demographic changed

considerably as a result of the new immigration policies in the 1960’s.

Canadian immigration policy shifted away from a preference for White European

immigrants to a non-discriminatory points-based system in the form of the White Paper

Act of 1967 (Gabriel, 2015; Mann, 2012). The new immigration policy focused on

recruiting qualified immigrants while limiting sponsored immigration to avoid an influx

of unskilled labourers. The policy favoured immigrants based on their educational and

occupational skills and merits, rather than their ethnicity or national background. This

changed Toronto’s demographic significantly. “Until 1961, 9 of every 10 immigrants to

Toronto came from the United Kingdom and Europe; since the 1960s, fewer than 2 in 10

have followed the same route” (Siemiatycki & Isin, 1997).

By 1986, Scarborough would be home to a large population of newcomers and

refugees. Cowen and Parlette (2011) reveal that the City of Toronto began building

motels along Kingston Road which served as emergency shelters for refugee

resettlement. These motels accommodated at least 800 to 1300 refugees and homeless

families until the City decided to stop using them in 1999 (Cowen and Parlette, 2011).

Sponsored refugees and refugee claimants stated Scarborough was an ideal destination

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because of the proximity of relatives and friends, public transport, work and school, and

most importantly because of inexpensive rent costs (Murdie, 2008).

Scarborough is now known as an “Immigrant Gateway” due to its popularity as an

immigrant reception area and its tendency to settle large populations of immigrants.

Toronto and its inner suburbs (including Scarborough, North York, East York and

Etobicoke) are known as some of Canada’s gateway cities because of its trade,

investment, and transnational labour and migration flows (Bauder and Sharpe, 2002).

Recent studies show however, that Scarborough has become the new immigrant reception

area and that many migrants skip the downtown core entirely (Bauder and Sharpe, 2002).

Scarborough has become an attractive landing spot for newcomers and refugees due to its

affordable housing and the close proximity of schools, shopping malls, and places of

religious observation (Native Child and Family Services of Toronto, 2015).

Figure 2 - Top Five Mother Tongue Languages in Scarborough (City of Toronto, 2011)

Scarborough is now home to a diverse, immigrant population from countries such as Sri

Lanka, China, the Philippines, and Pakistan. More than half of Scarborough residents are

not born in Canada, and English is no longer the first language that most residents learn

(see figure 2). Viewed as a new centre for multiculturalism, the inner suburb has also

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been given the identity of a “racialized community” due to racialized processes of

poverty, crime, housing, employment, and education experienced by its residents. Today,

Scarborough consists of ethnic enclaves which are communities of people belonging to

the similar cultures and faiths.

FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION

By exploring awareness of Indigenous histories and contexts among a specific

subset of migrants (international students), we seek to bridge the gap between limited

research and a lack of knowledge within Scarborough. Before beginning the interview

process, the research team hypothesized that participants would have limited knowledge

and information about Canada’s Indigenous peoples. To ensure access to participants, the

research team decided to focus on international students attending the University of

Toronto, Scarborough Campus. After conducting interviews with eight international

students from a wide range of countries including the People’s Republic of China

(China), Hong Kong, Republic of China (Taiwan), Oman, Peru, India, and Emirate of

Dubai, we found two common themes among their responses. Common themes include

limited and inaccurate information about Canada’s Indigenous peoples and the individual

and personal underlying factors affecting a sense of obligation to learn about this topic.

There is limited information available to international students regarding the

history of Indigenous peoples and their culture. This fact is not surprising as for many

individuals who grow up in Canada, most knowledge about Indigenous peoples is

accumulated through formal institutions such as school. Knowledge of Indigenous

histories, although limited and general, is embedded within the provincial school

curriculum and is taught as early as elementary school (Godlewska et al., 2017). This

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type of school structure is a disadvantage for international students who migrate for post-

secondary education since information regarding Indigenous history and culture is not

readily available to them. For this reason, most of the information and knowledge that our

participants had regarding Indigenous peoples were acquired either from back home or

once they arrive. When participants were asked if they had any previous knowledge about

Indigenous peoples, a majority of them answered no and reported knowing more about

Indigenous peoples in the United States than in Canada. Anna, a 20-year-old international

student from China, said:

I thought that [Indigenous peoples resided] only in America, not in Canada, yeah, because I learned history back in high school back in China, and actually all I know about the “Indian people” they’re like the first immigrant to America, and I actually didn’t know about the Canada that they have it… but I thought that Canada is now like merged to different culture, I didn’t even know that.

The lack of accurate Indigenous information was also evident among other participants

including Sebastian, a 19-year-old international student from Peru, Suyash a 19-year-old

international student from India and Aaheli, a 19-year old international student from

Oman. Aaheli said:  

The idea of Indigenous was always something like in history textbooks or in the movies, like oh look Christopher Columbus… it was mostly like American, and also like Australians have Aboriginals… if I think back on it maybe people were just like hey North America and then in my head I was like oh America, but yeah, I was never like knew specifically about the Canadian history.

Participant responses highlight the lack of accurate information regarding the history and

culture of Canada’s Indigenous peoples. Although from very different countries, they

each identified a common stereotype that Indigenous peoples live only in the United

States and not in Canada. Evident through these responses, migrants are learning about

Indigenous peoples from not only a one-sided perspective, but also an inaccurate

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perspective. This one sided process does not take into account multiculturalism or a

multifarious learning of different communities in Canada (Basu & Fielder, 2017). In fact,

it only focuses on a dominant discourse that is not relevant to Canadian society. This is

largely due in part by how the media portrays Indigenous peoples in television shows,

movies, and in the news. Mike, a 22-year old student from Taiwan, said “I guess

Hollywood has produced movies in the past where they depict Native Americans as

either brutal savages or struggling people trying to protect their lands, identity and

whatever culture they have left against white imperialism.” Although this may not be

accurate or representative of all portrayals of Indigenous peoples in media, it does,

perhaps, reflect that Indigenous peoples are often depicted in an exotified, stereotypical

manner that essentially misrepresents their history, culture, and traditions.

Moreover, a majority of our participants who migrated to Canada for post-

secondary education reported only learning about Indigenous peoples and their culture

through two types of sources. The first source of information includes formal channels

such as university classes, and the second source includes informal channels such as

school activities ran by student groups. Mike said:

The only time the university ever mentioned First Nations was in my application to the university… besides that in class as well because I’m doing a specialist degree in political science so of course we come into contact with subject matters relating to Aboriginal Indigenous cultures.

Aaheli and Sebastian, who both live on residence at the University of Toronto

Scarborough Campus (UTSC), report learning about Indigenous peoples through the

school’s land acknowledgement. When asked if she had been told anything about

Canada’s Indigenous peoples, Aaheli said:

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Honestly, not really. The only reason why I think I got exposed to it in the very beginning was because of the land acknowledgement that they do in the beginning of presentations and stuff like that. But otherwise, I don’t think anyone specifically was acknowledging that idea that, this land is Indigenous and even the land acknowledgment are kind of just read out and then we move on and it’s not something we pay attention to.

Evident through Aaheli’s response, it is arguable that UTSC’s attempt to incorporate the

TRC’s Calls to Action into the school curriculum and school activities is insufficient. For

international students like Aaheli, meaningful discussion regarding Canada’s Indigenous

peoples is merely limited to presentations and is forgotten about soon after.  Similar to

Aaheli, Sebastian also recalled witnessing the land acknowledgement during a school

event. He said:

The only thing I know about Indigenous people is two things basically. The first one is that every time they do an event they start doing a speech about the Indigenous people… and I got invited to a Rouge thing, which was a walk, and they gave us some information like what kind of stuff they hunted for and I know that Canada got invaded by France and England, and I think it’s kind of the same as the US.

These responses also relate to Basu and Fielder’s (2017) discussion on how public places

play a significant role in the integration of newcomers and how they allow for

intercultural understanding and dialogue. Universities and their school activities

significantly influence what international students know and learn about Indigenous

peoples. However, it is noteworthy to point out that the information that they are

provided with is very minimal and basic and does not cover the entire scope of

Indigenous histories and cultures. The responses of Mike, Aaheli and Sebastian all

illustrate how public places and processes of integration can either facilitate (or hinder)

how immigrants receive accurate information about Indigenous peoples.

Moreover, the responses by these international students run counter to the case

study of Gyepi-Garbrah et al. (2014) who discusses how partner organizations are

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working to overcome social distance and foster healthy relationships in Winnipeg

between immigrant newcomers and the city’s Indigenous peoples. Evident through the

responses of these international students, Scarborough has yet to implement strategies to

overcome not only the social distance between Indigenous peoples and our participants,

but also the lack of accurate knowledge and basic information regarding Canada’s

Indigenous peoples. Programs and organizations designed to bring Indigenous peoples

and newcomers together are needed in Scarborough. Through the creation and

implementation of these programs, relationships between Indigenous peoples and

newcomers can be built to help overcome social distance. Mutual understanding between

Indigenous peoples and newcomers provides the basis for building cross-cultural

relationships that open up different cultural systems of meaning and overcoming the

social distance that would otherwise inhibit intercultural urbanism (Gyepi-Garbrah et al.,

2014). It is evident that international students are struggling to access these events around

campus and the city, which limits the potential for intercultural dialogue and

understanding, and hinders the building of cross-cultural relationships.

        The second common theme we found amongst the responses of international

students are the individual and personal underlying factors affecting a sense of obligation

to learn about Canada’s Indigenous peoples. These factors include other priorities such as

adjusting and integrating post-migration and participants’ plans for the future including

applying for permanent residency status or citizenship. As many international students

migrate to Canada by themselves and have usually never been here before, adjusting and

integrating into Canadian society is often a difficult task that takes time. For this reason,

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learning about Indigenous history and culture may be seen as less important. This is most

evident through Mike’s response who said:

I really hate to say this but I think immigrants and newcomers are probably more concerned with adapting themselves, although I myself didn’t have many problems but I know people from other cultures and other countries they might have a much harder time compared to me. We can’t take care of others if we can’t take care of ourselves.

When asked if it was important for newcomers to know about Indigenous peoples and

their history, there was the common answer of yes, but “not entirely”. For example,

Aaheli said, “Yes, I think it’s really important to know and to have that knowledge but at

the same time, I think if it was just me focusing on adjusting to a new country, it probably

wouldn’t be a priority”. This was similar to Sebastian’s response who said “I don’t think

it’s that important but like it won’t hurt… there so many more important things like

studying”. Based on their responses, it is evident that there are other priorities

international students deem as being more important, such as doing well in school,

getting accustomed to one’s new surroundings, and taking care of themselves. Aaheli’s,

Sebastian’s, and Mike’s accounts all illustrate how learning about the history of Canada’s

Indigenous peoples and their culture is important, but not as important as opposed to

other priorities such as adjusting, integrating, and studying.

However, there were several participants who agreed that learning about

Indigenous histories is important as a newcomer. Jenny, a 21-year-old international

student from Hong Kong, said:

Yeah I would say so. Cause like, um, as much as you will learn about Tim Horton's, there is as much you need to learn about Indigenous People, right? Because they're just part of Canada, like and, I would argue they're more like a real part of Canada, and the part of Canada that we don't celebrate.

Suyash had a similar response:

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I just feel like it’s something that first of all, basically when coming into a country I’m unfamiliar with, I’d like to know as much as possible - about the people there, and about the laws there and things of that sort…and not knowing who these Indigenous people are is sort of like you talked about, a barrier to adapting to a new country… that would sort of be a barrier if I were to come across someone who is from an Indigenous background or sort of associated with people of that background.

The responses of Jenny and Suyash highlight the importance for newcomers to learn

about Indigenous histories as it is a part of the “Canadian identity” and Canada’s long

history. Their responses support Lawrence and Dua’s (2005) discussion on how

important it is for us to recognize our role as agents of decolonization so that we can gain

a better understanding of how to decolonize ourselves and our relationships. Their

responses are also consistent with Hugill’s (2016) discussion on how we must recognize

the instability, impermanence, and contingency of the settler-colonial order of things (p.

7). By wanting to learn about Indigenous peoples and their cultures, we are

acknowledging that we are settler colonists and are working towards actively undoing the

divide between Indigenous people and migrants through decolonization practices that are

anti-racist (Lawrence and Dua, 2005). We are also acknowledging that despite the

discomfort of it, we are living our daily lives on stolen land. Jenny and Suyash’s

statements also highlight Marom’s (2016) comment that it is only by placing ourselves

within the framework of settler colonialism and its complex web of privileges and

oppressions that we can truly understand the relationships between settlers, Indigenous

peoples, and immigrants.

        The decision to apply for permanent residency or citizenship status also affected

international students’ decisions of whether or not they thought it was important to learn

about Indigenous peoples and their histories. Many participants said that if they make the

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decision to apply for permanent residency or Canadian citizenship, they would deem it

important to learn about Indigenous peoples because they see themselves as citizens in

progress or potential citizens. This relates back to the idea that knowing and learning

about Canada’s Indigenous peoples is a part of the “Canadian identity” as seen through

Jenny and Suyash’s responses. Sebastian, who migrated to Canada in September, said “If

I am staying here I will try to learn more about the Indigenous people… I think it’s

important to know where you come from.” Jenny, who also studies sociology at UTSC,

provides a different reasoning for learning about Canada’s Indigenous people. She views

it not as a Canadian obligation, but rather an obligation to oneself as a person. She says,

“I think it contribute to your identity as a person to understand there are people that are

struggling, right? Like, you don't have to be a Canadian to understand this. You can be

anyone to understand this.”

However, some of our participants said applying for permanent residency or

citizenship status did not affect their decision to learn more about Indigenous peoples.

Anna views it as a personal matter and says “I think if I really want to know something

it’s not where I live, it’s just how I want to know them”. Mike also had a similar response

to Anna and said, “If a Canadian wants to understand they should have the right and

freedom. They should be able to decide for themselves whether they want to understand

and if they don’t understand or don’t care that’s up to them.” These responses indicate

that participants are utilizing their individual agency when it comes to wanting to learn

about Canada’s Indigenous peoples. Evident through their responses, the participants

argue that they should have the ultimate freedom to decide for themselves whether they

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deem it a priority to learn about Canada’s Indigenous peoples, without the imposition of

other factors such as the government or the concept of the “Canadian identity”.

With the knowledge we have gained from conducting these interviews, it will be

interesting to see how the federal government responds to the Calls to Action listed by

the TRC and how newcomer information kits and citizenship tests will be revised to

include a more inclusive history of Canada’s Indigenous peoples. If newcomers are not

educated on the past and current transgressions against Indigenous peoples, they may be

susceptible to absorbing stereotypes and the racist perspectives towards Indigenous

peoples. Ensuring that newcomers to Canada are familiar with and support reconciliation

is vital for its success and growth. De Costa and Clark (2011) state reconciliation in

settler societies like Canada is an optimistic aspiration, but one that is hopeless without

improved relations between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people (p. 329). The

interviews we have conducted and the research that we have gathered on international

students regarding their knowledge of Canada’s Indigenous peoples is extremely

important and informative. It is a significant step towards understanding the type of

possible strategies that could be implemented to inform newcomers, citizens, and

international students about Indigenous peoples.

CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Overall, our research indicates that international students possessed a limited

amount of knowledge regarding Canada’s Indigenous peoples and their histories prior to

migrating. Three main issues affecting what types of knowledge they received were

identified in our research process. First, international students felt that accessibility to

relevant knowledge was limited.  Moreover, there seems to be a significant lack of

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accurate information available in academia and the mainstream media. Subsequently,

international students reported that they had other priorities post-migration (such as doing

well in school and settling down), which they perceived to be more important than

learning about Indigenous peoples. Thirdly, despite the fact that the students obtained

most of their limited knowledge from the university, UTSC’s efforts in promoting

Indigenous cultures and traditions within the campus appears to be insufficient. Of the

few resources and information outlets available on campus, few were adequately

advertised, and many of the students interviewed were unaware of their existence. Further

study is required and should be conducted on Indigenous peoples, perspectives, histories,

and cultures as Indigenous journal articles continue to be inadequate in the realm of

academia. By making adjustments to education policies, Indigenous peoples and the

challenges and oppressions faced by their communities could be given more exposure

within the school curricula. Providing incentives for students on campus, such as a free

meal or course credits, to participate in intercultural interaction and educational programs

would be beneficial towards attracting a larger audience, aid in sparking interest, and

facilitate the spread of information on the relevant topics. Such incentives may help

motivate students to get engaged with Indigenous communities and re-adjust their

priorities. Finally, UTSC should increase their efforts in promoting Indigenous cultures

by hosting more events which promote the support of Indigenous communities. Beyond

land acknowledgements and the celebration of Indigenous solidarity month, a

comprehensive understanding of Indigenous peoples and their histories as an essential

part of developing the Canadian identity ought to be actively encouraged and promoted at

the University of Toronto. We submit these recommendations in the hopes of improving

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intercultural relations between immigrant newcomers such as the international students

interviewed in this research and Indigenous communities. It is through intercultural

relationships and understanding that we believe the ultimate goals of decolonization and

antiracism in Canada can be achieved.

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