ABSTRACT
This chapter tracks the development of Indigenous feminisms, which have evolved in scholarship internationally since the1980s, but which the author argues have been in practice since the 17th century. The author examines how critical Indigenous kinship practices and radical relationality can be a means for addressing heteropatriarchy. With a focus on work in the CANZUS states (Canada, Australia, Aotearoa/New Zealand, and the United States), the chapter addresses the following: What are Indigenous feminisms? Where did Indigenous feminisms come from? How have Indigenous feminisms been applied? and Where are Indigenous feminisms going? These questions are explored through the lens of a story told by Metis Elder Maria Campbell about a woman leader in her childhood community in Saskatchewan, Canada. Indigenous feminist analyses provide an understanding of heteropatriarchy as a tool for colonisation, but uptake has been slow as, until recently, many Indigenous women have resisted identification with feminism. Among other issues, Indigenous feminisms have addressed gendered violence and the marginalisation of Indigenous women in self-determination efforts, moving from discussions of sexism and patriarchy to theorising the link between settler colonialism, heteropatriarchy and heteropaternalism. In recent years, queer theorists are expanding the possibilities for Indigenous feminisms by calling into question heteronormative and gender binary approaches.
