Resistance and Recognition at Kitigan Zibi tells the modern history of Kitigan Zibi, the largest and oldest Algonquin reserve in Canada. This local history sheds light on the larger experience of the Algonquin First Nations whose traditional lands span the Ottawa River watershed and cross contemporary boundaries. Drawing on archival sources and interviews with community members, this work elucidates the relationship between culture and politics on the reserve during the twentieth century. Despite the disruptions of settler colonialism, the Algonquin have maintained a distinct identity and have waged a multifaceted struggle against assimilation and economic marginalization. This struggle has played out in political spaces including border-crossing celebrations, grand councils, and courtrooms. This fight has also informed strategic labour choices, interactions with game wardens, and protests against the Catholic Church. Resistance and Recognition at Kitigan Zibi demonstrates that the contest over recognition of treaty rights and traditional lands is longer, broader, and deeper than previously understood.

In The Secret Struggles of Kitigan Zibi Anishinabeg Leaders, Anny Morissette examines Kitigan Zibi Anishinabeg actors’ political resistance to the Canadian government amidst threats to the tribe’s traditional political structures. Morissette traces the Anishinabeg political identity through the preservation of traditional, spiritual, and symbolic influences, which have endured despite colonial disruptions. Morissette highlights daily forms of resistance, Indigenous narratives, and tactics of political power from the margins, demonstrating how Anishinabeg actors continue to defy political oppression.

Kitigan Zibi is the largest, oldest Algonquin reserve in Canada. This local history illuminates the larger experience of the Algonquin First Nations whose traditional lands span the Ottawa River watershed and cross contemporary boundaries. Drawing on interviews with community members and archival sources, Resistance and Recognition at Kitigan Zibi explores the twentieth-century politics and culture of the reserve. Despite the disruptions of settler colonialism, the Algonquin maintained a distinct identity and waged a multifaceted struggle against assimilation and economic marginalization. That struggle played out in political spaces including border-crossing celebrations, grand councils, and courtrooms, and informed strategic labour choices, interactions with provincial game wardens, and protests against the Catholic Church. Resistance and Recognition at Kitigan Zibi convincingly demonstrates that the contest for recognition of treaty rights and traditional lands has been longer, broader, and deeper than previously understood.