Toronto has been home to Indigenous peoples for thousands of years. This forum attempts to bridge the gap between two deeply intertwined histories of Indigenous people and labour. Watch video »

Indigenous History in Toronto

Toronto has been home to Indigenous peoples for thousands of years, including the Wendat, Haudenosaunee, and most recently the Mississaugas of the New Credit First Nation. Today, it remains home to many Indigenous people from across Turtle Island.

It goes without saying that most of Toronto’s Indigenous inhabitants – like its other inhabitants – are, for a sizable portion of their lives, workers. And many are aware that the processes that gave rise to Toronto as a workers’ city – immigration, capitalist development, liberalization – went hand in hand with the dispossession of Indigenous peoples. In spite of this, we seldom bring together these two deeply intertwined histories of Indigenous people and labour. This forum attempts to bridge this gap.

Moderated by David Kidd. Presentations by:

Zachary Smith (Anishinaabe), PhD Candidate in Indigenous history at the University of Toronto.

(Anishinaabe), PhD Candidate in Indigenous history at the University of Toronto. Margaret Sault, Director of Lands, Research and Membership, Mississaugas of the New Credit First Nation.

For more information on the Toronto Purchase, check out:

Organized by Toronto Workers’ History Project | Recorded in Toronto, 24 September 2018.