Review by Choice Review
Adese (Univ. of Toronto Mississauga, Canada) presents a captivating discussion of the politics and interpretations behind terms used to describe First Nations people, including Métis, Indigenous, Indian, Aboriginal, and Native, among others. Each term has inclusions and/or exclusions, expands or detracts from branding and marketing, and considers authenticity juxtaposed with tourism and efforts to assimilate. Such terms also impact cultural tourism, the ever-popular and highly competitive consumption of meaningful and authentic culture experiences that generates billions of dollars in revenue for Canada annually. This includes experiential tourism, which alone yields massive economic benefits. Still, as Adese points out, the authentic experience, often framed to reflect indigeneity, contradicts Euro-Canadians' so-called civilizing mission and the nefarious means employed to achieve it, including boarding schools, forced assimilation, and other tools used in the pursuit of American manifest destiny. This perspective causes some Euro-Canadians "paranoia [over] colonial civility's legitimacy." Success in creating authentically Indigenous experiences produces a two-fold problem. First, authenticity might play into the savage stereotype. Second, those who make a reasonable income selling authenticity are then considered supposedly civilized and thus no longer authentic. Summing Up: Highly recommended. General readers through faculty; professionals. --Eric Hannel, Saint Leo University
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Choice Review
