Métis Health: The Invisible Problem

By: Carrie Bourassa, PhD

32.00USD

Dr. Carrie Bourassa has produced a Marxist analysis of Métis health status that makes this book a must read for anyone interested in Métis or social justice issues. Using 2010 Government of Canada data, that drew upon the 2006 Census, Dr. Bourassa notes that, “the Métis population increased by 33% since 2001 and 91% since 1996” (p. x). While this is an interesting fact, by itself, it becomes a concerning fact when Dr. Bourassa adds that, “[r]esearch has consistently shown that First Nations have a much shorter life expectancy than that for Canada as a whole… The pattern is similar for Inuit. However, mortality patterns among Métis are largely unknown” (p. xi).With this book, Dr. Bourassa provides the raw data needed to prove the existence of unconscionable inequality that the Métis continue to suffer. It is hoped that this book not only demands that action be taken, but will make not taking action a non-option.

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  • ISBN: 978-0-9811518-5-4
    Price: $32.00
    Binding: Paperback
    Date: 2011
    Rights: World
    Pages: 234
    Size: 6″ x 9″

  • Table of Contents

    Acknowledgements
    Dedication
    Table of Contents
    List of Figures
    List of Tables
    List of Abbreviations

    Forward
    Preface

    1. Overview of the Study

    2. Theoretical and Methodological Framework

    3. Dispossession from the Métis Homeland: Factors and Consequences

    4. Métis SES in Contemporary Canada: Some Basic Comparisons

    5. Métis Self-Reported Health Status: Effects of SES

    6. Summary of Findings

    7. Limitations, Future Considerations and Conclusions

    Appendix
    Endnotes
    About the Author

  • Carrie Bourassa, PhD

    Carrie Bourassa, PhD is a Member of the Regina Riel Métis Council (RRMC) and an Associate Professor within the Department of Interdisciplinary Programs at First Nations University of Canada.

  • With this book Dr. Carrie Bourassa, a Métis scholar, shows that Métis people have suffered injustices and oppressive inequalities because of colonization. Intrinsic to her research is the role colonialism has played in the deterioration of Métis health. Dr. Bourassa presents a Marxist analysis of social inequality in Canadian society and challenges established discourse that has functioned to maintain the prevailing unjust social order. Dr. Bourassa explains how race and racialization function within Canadian institutions and how this impacts upon Indigenous health issues. I found this book to be very interesting and useful, particularly her advocacy for Aboriginal/ Métis health and social justice.

    John G. Hansen, PhD

    Member, Opaskwayak Cree Nation
    Assistant Professor
    Dep’t of Sociology
    University of Saskatchewan

    Dr. Bourassa’s book, Métis Health: The Invisible Problem, is a valuable read for anyone interested in Métis history and the contemporary social issues that Métis People encounter. The description of Métis health status as it relates to the continued oppression of Métis People is of critical importance for Métis and all Canadians. The Marxist analysis of Métis health status seem to have fallen out of favour in health literature to be replaced with a neo-liberal or anti-neo liberal discourse. Dr. Bourassa demonstrates that Marxist theory is still applicable today.The first 3 chapters provide a fabulous introduction and overview of the context in which Métis health is realized. I especially enjoyed the third chapter on the dispossession of the Métis. No matter how much Métis history I read there is always something new to understand.

    Peter Hutchinson, PhD

    Chronic Disease Surveillance Program
    Métis Nation – British Columbia
    Adjunct Professor
    Faculty of Health and Social Development
    University of British Columbia – Okanagan

    I first Dr. Bourassa’s research as a graduate student. As a Métis woman, I was encouraged by her work as well as her words on being a Métis academic and community member. With this book, Dr. Bourassa provides insight into the major themes in Métis health, and speaks to the impacts of historical and current contexts. Dr. Bourassa’s work informs the significant gaps in Métis health research, particularly in the area of quantitative Métis health data. I thank Dr. Bourassa for this book on Métis health, and her call for advancement and advocacy in Métis health research, with and by Métis communities; Métis people deserve no less.

    Tara Turner, PhD

    Director of Health
    Métis Nation – Saskatchewan