----Worksheet 9: Inuit of Canada

🇨🇦 Canada

Canada is a vast country in northern North America, known for its multicultural society and history of colonialism. While often presented as a modern liberal democracy, Canada’s formation and development have been deeply shaped by the displacement, marginalisation, and governance of Indigenous peoples.

Inuit women and children at summer camp, Fullerton Harbour, Nunavut, August 1906 (Guardian)

🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Indigenous Canada

Two main groups who are considered Indigenous to Canada are the Inuit and the First Nations. These groups have distinct languages, histories, territories, and relationships to the Canadian state.

🔍 Comparison Chart

Category	Inuit	First Nations
Used to be known as…	Eskimo (now outdated and considered offensive)	Indian (outdated; still used legally in the Indian Act but not preferred)
Region	Arctic regions: Nunavut, northern Quebec, Labrador, NWT	Southern and central Canada
Traditional Lifestyle	Nomadic, marine-based hunting (e.g., seal, whale, caribou)	Varied: agriculture, fishing, bison hunting, forest living
Language	Inuktitut and other Inuit languages	50+ languages (e.g., Cree, Ojibwe, Dene, Mohawk)
Colonial Experience	Not governed by the Indian Act; land claims process (e.g., Nunavut Agreement)	Often governed by the Indian Act and placed on reserves
Legal Status	Distinct Indigenous group under Canada's Constitution	Also recognized as a distinct Indigenous group
Governance	Self-government models, e.g., Nunavut	First Nations bands and tribal councils
Contemporary Issues	TB legacy, suicide crisis, housing, climate change	Land rights, policing, child welfare, water safety

❄️ Inuit

The Inuit are Indigenous peoples of the Arctic. Their traditional knowledge, seasonal rhythms, and survival practices in extreme environments have long fascinated anthropologists. Jean Briggs’ ethnography of the Inuit is highly regarded. For instance, in "Expecting the Unexpected", Briggs explores how Inuit children are socialised to navigate unpredictability and emotion with calm and restraint. If you're interested, you can read my summary of that articl  "Briggs, Expecting the Unexpected".

    Inuit woman ice fishing, Fullerton Harbour, Nunavut, 1905 (Guardian)

🗺️ Nunavut

Nunavut is a territory in northern Canada established in 1999 through the largest Indigenous land claim settlement in Canadian history. Its creation marked a major moment of Inuit self-determination, granting the Inuit greater control over land, resources, and governance. Despite this political progress, Nunavut continues to grapple with the ongoing legacies of colonialism—including the trauma caused by forced tuberculosis evacuations and the current suicide crisis—topics explored in Lisa Stevenson’s Life Beside Itself.

🧬 What is Tuberculosis?

Tuberculosis (TB) is a serious infectious disease caused by bacteria that most often affect the lungs. It spreads through the air when someone with active TB coughs or sneezes. Symptoms can include a persistent cough, fever, night sweats, and weight loss. Today, TB is curable with antibiotics, but in the past—especially before the 1960s—it was a major cause of death in many parts of the world. Crowded housing, malnutrition, and limited access to healthcare made Indigenous communities in Canada particularly vulnerable to TB outbreaks.

🦠 Tuberculosis in Inuit Communities

In the mid-20th century, Inuit communities in northern Canada faced a devastating tuberculosis (TB) epidemic. Lacking adequate medical infrastructure in the Arctic, the Canadian government began relocating Inuit with TB to southern sanatoria—thousands of kilometres from their homes and families. While officially framed as humanitarian care, these evacuations were often conducted without informed consent, and families were rarely told what happened to their loved ones. Many died in unfamiliar hospitals and were buried in unmarked graves. Anthropologist Lisa Stevenson has described this form of state intervention as a kind of “anonymous care”—well-intentioned yet impersonal, often experienced by Inuit as indifferent or even violent. The effects of these removals continue to echo today, both in the form of intergenerational trauma and in deep mistrust of state health institutions.