Indigenous-Settler Relations: 8th Fire


CBC has recently been running a series called 8th Fire, this tv and radio series focuses on the relationship between Aboriginal people and non-indigenous communities.  The complete series can be streamed online here.

8th Fire addresses topics such as land disputes, indigenous urban communities, and economic and demographic shifts which impact everyone within in Canada.  The series does a good job of presenting this information in a way that is tangible to everyone – even those with little exposure to Canada’s history or indigenous issues.

The series’ website also includes addition information and resources that has the potential to be used by educators.  For example, the section “Aboriginal 101” uses video clips, and often humour, to explain such topics as what does Métis mean and what does the average Canadian know about Aboriginal people.

The series is well worth a watch, even if the series does fall victim to common Canadian television cheesiness at times. 8th Fire provides a great look at historical and present day indigenous-settler relations in Canada,

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