Chow, Lily Siewsan. “The Forgotten Ties : Relationships between First Nations People and Early Chinese Immigrants in British Columbia, Canada (1858-1947).”

Lily Chow highlights the migration of the Chinese to British Columbia, looking at their contacts with the First Nations people. She focuses on the relationships developed such as work partnerships, friendships, and intermarriage—emphasizing the benefits and challenges of these exchanges. She urges us going forward to bring awareness to the forgotten relationships between the two ethnic groups, recognizing the indigenous relationships as an essential component of Canadian history.

Ma, Suzanne. “A Tour Of The Deep Relationship Between B.C. Chinese Immigrants, First Nations.”

Ma urges us to consider the deep-rooted relationship between Chinese immigrants and First Nations communities in Canada in hopes of restoring the common history that the communities share. The need for a fair and accurate depiction of the Chinese and First Nations history in the Canadian school curriculum is proposed in order to acknowledge the injustices faced by Chinese immigrants and Indigenous communities.

Tao, Will. “After 150 Years of Solitude: Revitalizing the Stories of Chinese-Canadians and B.C. First Nations.”

This article discusses the importance of understanding and acknowledging the Chinese and First Nations relations in Canada. As a result, this highlights the Colonial government’s destructive and relationship-dividing policies on the marginalized groups and how these policies disrupted Chinese-First Nations exchanges. This article urges us to put greater emphasis on educating the Canadian public and new immigrants to clear up misconceptions and learn the shared social histories of the Indigenous groups. 

“ Their stories have revealed that relations between Chinese and First Nations were often respectful and mutually beneficial. In many cases, both peoples supported one another in the face of marginalization, racism, and assimilationist and destructive policies imposed by the Canadian government” (Tao)

Mittelstedt, Meg. “Touring BC’s ‘Hidden’ History Shared by Chinese and Indigenous People.”

Mittelstedt focuses on the damage of colonization on Canada’s Indigenous and Chinese populations in order to bring awareness of the shared history of the two groups, mainly highlighting the mutual relationships that the Chinese and the First Nations’ had developed while facing adversities of Christian-European settlement. We are urged to acknowledge that we are beneficiaries of our Indigenous and Chinese neighbours’ past sufferings, and that there needs to be justice before reconciliation can occur.

Hunter, Justine. “A Forgotten History: Tracing the Ties between B.C.’s First Nations and Chinese Workers.”

Henry Yu highlights the long historical bond between Chinese immigrants and First Nations people in Canada, suggesting that these groups had formed interdependent relationships before British Columbia joined the Confederation. Chinese nationals pre-confederation had already successfully established reciprocal relationships with the First Nations, allowing communities to live together and successfully cooperate. He urges us to recognize the exclusion of the First Nations and Chinese Immigrant histories in the Canadian school curriculum, and encourages us moving forward to acknowledge and discuss the adversities of the indigenous groups to promote greater social awareness. 

“The Chinese dealt in reciprocal ways with First Nations. They didn’t take, they asked. They brought gifts, they shared foods. They did relationship-building,” said Prof. Yu. (Hunter,  A forgotten history: tracing the ties between B.C.’s First Nations and Chinese workers)

“It is a beautiful story we need to know and to honour. … How, in the face of hardship, these beautiful relationships were created. That bond is part of the rich history we have in British Columbia. I feel so fortunate that the Chinese community, faced with extreme discrimination at that time, found friendship and support from the aboriginal communities.” (Hunter)

Chong, Gordon. “Bond between Chinese Canadians and Canada’s Aboriginals.”

Gordon Chong recognizes the bond between Chinese Canadians and the Aboriginal Peoples of Canada. He does this by connecting the distinct features and characteristics of the costumes and adornments of the Chinese minority nationalities in China to those of Canada’s Aboriginal communities—while also recognizing a symbolic association among Chinese immigrants and the Aboriginal Peoples of Canada. Chong advocates that moving forward, it is necessary for the Canadian public to recognize the misconduct and wrongdoings that have been inflicted on the Aboriginal Peoples of Canada, to build a better future for the nation.

“Telling Stories of Chinese and First Nations Relations: at Musqueam and Across Canada” 

This video delves into the hidden history of the Chinese and First Nation relations by observing their earliest encounters in Canada. The video is comprised of multiple short films and a short story reading that unpacks the previously-unknown histories. It solely focuses on the farmers of the Musqueam indigenous group in Canada. We are encouraged to understand both ourselves and the connections we create with our peers to start conversations and acknowledge our past social histories.

Cultivating Canada: Reconciliation through the Lens of Cultural Diversity (2011)

This book is the third and final volume in a series of publications produced by the Aboriginal Healing Foundation. The chapters are written by a group of intersectional and diverse artists, academics, activists, etc., each who have unique ties and/or history between their own cultural heritage and their relations to Indigenous peoples and communities. The perspectives of the authors diverge from the predominant French and British perspectives of new Canadians.

“Beyond Chinatown: Chinese men and indigenous women in early British Columbia” in BC Studies: The British Columbian Quarterly (2013)

Encouraged by her Chinese-Canadian graduate students, Jean Barman writes about the history of Chinese male immigrants and female First Nations – and how they interacted with each other, both as outsiders in a white-dominated society. She brings to light the fact that both groups of people were more than a general stereotype, with complex identities and histories that are so often left out of mainstream discourses.

-Dr. Jean Barman, The University of British Columbia

 “A forgotten history: tracing the ties between B.C.’s First Nations and Chinese workers” (May 2015)

Image: Bill Paul, a member of the Lytton First Nation, holds up a shovel left behind by Chinese miners in the 1800s along the banks of the Fraser River. (John Lehmann/The Globe and Mail)

Justine Hunter acknowledges a history between First Nations and Chinese immigrant communities in early British Columbia – a history which is often forgotten by mainstream Canadian history. This history is not completely forgotten or erased – but still lies in the memories of present members of both minority communities.

-Justine Hunter, B.C. Politics Reporter

“After 150 years of solitude: Revitalizing the stories of Chinese-Canadians and B.C. First Nations” (June 2014)

Image: scholar Lily Chow and John Haugen, who were interviewed by Tao. (Photo by Lily Chow)

“It’s impossible to write about British Columbia’s history without first being aware of the important roles played by Indigenous peoples and by arrivals from China, be it the gold fields or by Chinese men and Indigenous women having families together.” (Dr. Jean Barman, UBC, quoted in article)

-Will Tao, The Source writer/contributor