“Institutional barriers, including laws that disenfranchise women generally, sent strong messages that Indigenous women were not welcome in certain political spaces,” says Rebecca Major.

Her free public talk, “Indigenous Women in Politics: spontaneous tidal wave or sleeping giant?” 5 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 25, in the SoCA Armouries, will focus on Indigenous women’s agency and how reductionist explanations are harmful to their utilization of agency and competency.

“After the first term of Justin Trudeau’s reconciliation government (2015-19), Indigenous engagement in Canadian electoral politics increased, particularly that of Indigenous women,” Dr. Major says. “This was noteworthy, since Indigenous women’s intersectional identity left us with unique marginalized experiences resulting from colonization.”

Research chair on northern governance at Yukon University, Major is an associate professor adjunct in the UWindsor Department of Political Science. Aside from her academic experience, she worked as a policy analyst for the Métis Nation-Saskatchewan and served as a Métis local president and an area representative.

She is a member of the Métis Nation of Ontario from her mother’s side; her father’s family is recognized as Mi’kmaw from New Brunswick.

Thursday’s presentation is hosted by the Humanities Research Group and will be followed by a question-and-answer session.