First Nations Cultural Heritage and Law explores First Nations perspectives on cultural heritage and issues of reform within and beyond Western law. Written in collaboration with First Nation partners, it contains seven case studies featuring indigenous concepts, legal orders, and encounters with legislation and negotiations; a national review essay; three chapters reflecting on major themes; and a self-reflective critique on the challenges of collaborative and intercultural research. Although the volume draws on specific First Nation experiences, it covers a wide range of topics of concern to Inuit, Metis, and other indigenous peoples.
Catherine Bell is a professor of law at the University of Alberta. Val Napoleon teaches in the Faculty of Native Studies and the Faculty of Law at the University of Alberta.
Contributors: Kelly Bannister, Dale Cunningham, Dorothy First Rider, Marianne Ignace, Ron Ignace, Allyson Jeffs, Lea Joe, Susan Marsden, Heather McCuaig, Eric McLay, the Mookakin Cultural Society, George Nicholas, Brian Noble, Richard Overstall, Heather Raven, Emily Snyder, Michael Solowan, Graham Statt, Brian Thom, and Frank Weasel Head
The essays in these two volumes [First Nations Cultural Heritage and Law and Protection of First Nations Cultural Heritage] invoke national, international, and First Nations customary law as a channel for reversing and providing redress for a major effect of colonialism. They gather substantial information around this theme in a discourse of advocacy, providing a strong focus for discussion but leaving to one side significant issues that are likely to require nuanced consideration when specific questions concerning particular aspects of heritage require resolution.