With Reserves: Colonial Geographies and First Nations Health

Health disparities between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples persist globally. Northern interior British Columbia, where many Indigenous people live on Indian ¹ reserves allocated in the late nineteenth century, is no exception. This article reviews findings from fifty-eight interviews with members of thirteen First Nations communities in Carrier, Sekani, Wet’suwet’en, and Babine territories. The results suggest that colonial geographies, both physical and social, along with extant anti-Indigenous racism, are significant determinants of the health and well-being (or lack thereof) of many First Nations in the region.