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Trick Or Treaty Analysis

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After reading the Payne article and viewing the documentary Trick or Treaty, I was able to come to the conclusion that the images of children and youth in Trick or Treaty problematize the narratives that Payne explores. According to Payne the narrative of Canada as a nation was created by the Canadian government to demonstrate the country’s harmonious cultural and geographical diversity (85). It was to show that Canadians are accepting and respectful of each others beliefs and values. However, this idea of Canada as a nation was not something Aboriginal people ever experienced. The opening of the documentary Trick or Treaty speaks volumes to this, as mentioned in the video Canada ranks in the top seventh of the UN Human Development while the First Nations rank sixty seventh. Moreover, the way that the …show more content…

That is the furthest thing from what a nation is supposed to be. Payne also describes the images of the children as markers of Canadian identity, the citizenry as a whole, and the country’s aspirations (85). After watching the documentary and seeing the strained relationship between the Canadian government and the Aboriginal peoples, I hope this is not what the country aspires for. The manner in which the Canadian government went about obtaining Treaty 9 is hard to believe. Hearing about this experience from the Aboriginal people and how they felt like they were taken advantage of just seems wrong. It really causes one to think about the Canadian government’s intentions and furthermore wonder how the Canadian government could have done such a thing and gotten a way with it for so long. Payne mentions the photo story “Canada’s future belongs to them” (88). This phrase holds much truth to it, as the future belongs to the youth. Do these youth include Aboriginals? If so, we must look for a way to repair the past before we can look

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