This project builds on similar work by other libraries, including Kwantlen Polytechnic University Library’s Indigenous Authors local subject term project, Camosun College Library’s Authentic Indigenous Voices (AIV) icon and designation, and X̱wi7x̱wa Library’s “First Nations author” local note.
Thanks to Camosun College Library for allowing us to borrow and adapt language from their AIV guide here.
To amplify Indigenous voices in the collection, the Emily Carr University Library has created an “Indigenous creators” local subject term.
The subject term is being applied to materials that have been created in whole or in part by people who self-identify as Indigenous to Turtle Island (colonial “North America”). This includes Indigenous authors, illustrators, directors, producers, and other creators. Resources tagged with the subject term are searchable by doing a subject search for Indigenous creators.
The Library + Archives team started adding this local subject term to materials in the spring of 2024. It is ongoing work to retroactively add this to our catalogue records.
The Indigenous creators local subject term is applied to all types of materials (books, artists’ books, exhibition catalogues, magazines, films, and other media) where any of the following apply:
Following KPU Library’s approach, the local subject term is not applied to works purely edited or translated by or with a foreword by an Indigenous person. The term is also not added to materials about Indigenous peoples by authors/creators who are not Indigenous.
You can find works which have been tagged with the Indigenous Creators local subject term by searching the library catalogue using the following steps.
Please be aware that there are currently a limited number of resources searchable in this way. As work on this initiative progresses, more resources with the Indigenous Creators subject term will be discoverable in the library’s catalogue.
To check if the Indigenous Creators local subject term has been applied to a work:
The Indigenous Creators local subject term is manually applied to materials in the ECU Library catalogue. Works are assessed on a case-by-case basis using the best knowledge available at the time of application. The term is only applied when a clear and reputable source is located which identifies a creator as Indigenous, such as a self-identification or biography.
Identifying Indigenous authors, creators, and contributors can be challenging for several reasons. These include:
Library users are ultimately responsible for making their own decisions around what qualifies as authentic Indigenous content for their own purposes – this includes conducting their own research into the resources’ creators and content. Those seeking more information about Indigenous identity are encouraged to engage with the resources listed at the end of this document.
The ECU Library is working to make Indigenous authors, illustrators, contributors, and creators more discoverable in its catalogue and library guides by using the Indigenous creators subject term. This is a necessarily time consuming and manual process.
We need your help! If you know of a resource by an Indigenous creator that is part of the library collection and not already tagged with an Indigenous creators subject term in the library catalogue, please let us know by submitting a suggestion here. Recommendations will be reviewed using the selection guidelines outlined above. Please include a link to information or a few sentences about the creator in your recommendation.
Members of the ECU community wishing to challenge the appropriateness of a resource tagged with an Indigenous creators local subject term are welcome to submit their reasoning by submitting a suggestion to the library. All complaints or challenges will be considered carefully with consultation and research. If you'd like us to get back to you, be sure to include your contact information.
Arcand, Mark. "Indigeneity is for Indigenous People to Define." The Globe and Mail, 18 April 2022. https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A700983154/CPI?u=ecuad&sid=ebsco&xid=5ac44c0e
First Peoples Group. ‘GII-IKIDONAANIWAN’ ‘It Has Been Said’: Queen’s University Indigenous Identity Project: Final Report. Queens University. 2022,
https://www.queensu.ca/indigenous/sites/oiiwww/files/uploaded_files/FPG%20Queens%20Report%20Final%20July%207.pdf
Hayden Taylor, Drew. "Proposal for an Indigenous Identity Act Presents a Moral Quandary: Opinion." The Globe and Mail, 25 Jan. 2021. https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A649583422/CPI?u=ecuad&sid=ebsco&xid=db41e1a9
Kolopenuk, Jessica. "The Pretendian Problem." Canadian Journal of Political Science, vol. 56, no. 2, 2023, pp. 468-473. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0008423923000239
Leroux, Darryl. Distorted Descent: White Claims to Indigenous Identity. University of Manitoba Press, 2019. https://emilycarr.bc.catalogue.libraries.coop/eg/opac/record/125830549
NIIF (National Indigenous Identity Forum). Indigenous Voices on Indigenous Identity: What Was Heard Report. 2022, https://www.fnuniv.ca/wp-content/uploads/Indigenous-Voices-on-Indigenous-Identity_National-Indigenous-Identity-Forum_Report_March-22_June-22-FINAL.pdf
Strong Nations Publishing. “Strong Nations Bookstore Authenticity Labels.” https://www.strongnations.com/download.php?f=203. Accessed April 18, 2024.
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