Synthesizing the Canadian Colonial State Field with Contemporary Organizational Network Perspectives

• In Event: 078 - Section on Sociology of Culture Refereed Roundtable Session
  In Refereed Roundtable 100min: Table 17. Nations, Collective Memories, and Immigration

Abstract

Understanding the tide of activism rising from Indigenous communities in Canada requires an understanding of the socio-political contexts within which it occurs, in other words, an understanding of the Canadian colonial state field (CCSF). Hence, I propose a Canadian interpretation of the theory of colonial state fields outlined by George Steinmetz (2008), by specifying the theory to the Canadian socio-political context. In an effort to incorporate considerations of Indigenous activist social networks (such as those leveraged by #IdleNoMore, for e.g. on Twitter), I build upon Steinmetz by proposing a synthesis of the CCSF with Mario Small’s (2009) theory of organizationally embedded networks, suggesting a field-analytic framework wherein Indigenous activist networks are conceived of contextually rather than as autonomous stand-alone entities. Key similarities and policy implications are discussed including the benefits to Indigenous activist groups of understanding social activism through a social field/network perspective, the mutual susceptibility of the CCSF and organizationally embedded networks to external colonial government policy, and the common presence of key actors in both structures.

Author

• Adam Colin Howe, University of British Columbia