About The yellowhead institute Red Paper
The Red Paper is Yellowhead Institute’s flagship research initiative.
It follows a tradition of Indigenous agenda-making reports, like the first famous Red Paper released in 1970 by the Indian Association of Alberta in response to Canada’s 1969 White Paper. Yellowhead released Land Back in 2019; it was informed by a community-based research methodology and primarily authored by Hayden King and Shiri Pasternak.
From the origins of settler colonialism to the era of reconciliation, land remains at the centre of the conflict between Indigenous peoples and Canadians. “Land Back,” breaks down the current status of land dispossession in Canada, focusing on alienation through resource extraction. The report examines various forms of redress, recognition, and ends with examples of reclamation — meaningful examples of Indigenous alternatives to Canadian political or economic frameworks. This Red Paper is ultimately about Indigenous consent.
CREDITS
Curriculum Developers
Shady Hafez
Algonquin Anishinabe and Syrian,
Kitigan Zibi Anishinabeg
Hayden King
Anishinaabe,
Beausoleil First Nation
With additional content by:
Riley Yesno
Anishinaabe,
Eabametoong First Nation
Producers
Hayden King
Anishinaabe,
Beausoleil First Nation
Yumi Numata
Kelsi-Leigh Balaban
Métis, Treaty 6 Territory
Narrator
Tara Williamson
Opaskwayak Cree Nation, Gaabishkigamaag
(Swan Lake, MB)
Copy Editor
Jasmyn Galley
Wiikwemkoong Unceded Territory,
London, UK
Advisory
Shalene Jobin
Cree and Métis, Red Pheasant Cree First Nation (Treaty Six)
Kelsi-Leigh Balaban
Métis, Treaty 6 Territory
Serena Eve Mendizabal
Cayuga Wolf Clan, Panamanian from Six Nations of the Grand River Territory
About YELLOWHEAD Institute
Yellowhead Institute generates critical Indigenous policy perspectives
Yellowhead Institute is an Indigenous-led research and education centre based in the Faculty of Arts at Toronto Metropolitan University. Launched in June 2018, the Institute privileges Indigenous philosophy and amplifies Indigenous voices that provide alternatives to settler colonialism in Canada today. Rooted in community networks, Yellowhead offers critical and accessible resources to support the reclamation of Indigenous land and life.
In 2021, Yellowhead Institute began developing a vision to grow from a research centre to a research and educational centre, with each wing committed to transformative change in the Canadian-Indigenous relationship. Yellowhead School was officially established in 2022. The School mobilizes, through educational initiatives, the findings and analyses produced by Yellowhead researchers. Our mission is to build on the collaborative research model to train the next generation of Indigenous leaders: to build capacity for a future where Indigenous people and communities design their worlds according to their values.
