"This paper provides an analysis of policy discourse as it concerns Indigenous labour market development in Northern Alberta. In the process, the authors unearth the manner in which current federal and provincial government policy obscures a long history of attempted colonial domination with respect to Indigenous peoples in Canada more generally. Typically, economic booms are spoken of as an opportunity to democratize labour opportunities, through the discourse of “partnership” and “social inclusion” in particular.
"It is generally acknowledged that European colonialists sought to establish new colonies in North America, from approximately 1500 onwards, for the purposes of trade, expansion and settlement. However, the role of capitalism as a driving force behind the dis-empowerment of Aboriginal peoples both past and present, is not generally acknowledged. In Canada, both on a general level and in particular cases, we can see how the needs of capital direct the interaction between Aboriginal peoples and the state. "
"Almost a decade after the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples (RCAP, 1996) - an international decade dedicated by the United Nations to Indigenous People - it is timely to reflect on the state of the Aboriginal economy, on what has been achieved in Aboriginal economic development, how success is measured, and what barriers persist.
