Justice for Natives (Searching for Common Ground)

A collection of thirty-five essays and stories, Justice for Natives came together around the Oka crisis between Native people in Quebec and the government. Against the backdrop of this deep-rooted conflict, Native elders and leaders, provincial and federal government representatives, leading academics, lawyers, and judges from across Canada and the United States joined to explore various aspects of Native peoples' struggle for justice and to search for solutions.

The collection follows a cycle of remembering the past, learning from the present, and planning for the future. In the first section of the book, "Conflict, Self-Determination, and Native Peoples," contributors, including Mohawk activist Ken Deer, Judge Rejean Paul, and scholar Brian Slattery, look at the historical roots of the conflict between Native and non-Native people, problems in the current justice system, and the movement for Native self-determination. In the second section, "Lessons from Oka," Native leaders Elijah Harper, Matthew Coon-Come, and Diom Romeo Saganash respond to the crisis at Oka and scholars Bruce Clark and Robert Venables consider constitutional alternatives and compare Canadian policy with that in the United States. Looking into the future, the final section, "Justice for Natives?" offers practical alternatives for improving relations, reviews actual measures being taken, and proposes models for change. Some of the solutions raised include increased recognition of Crown fiduciary duties to Native people, co-management strategies for land use, and an independent Native judiciary as envisioned by scholar Leroy Little Bear of Saskatchewan.

Justice for Natives makes an important contribution to Native, legal, and policy studies in Canada.