Control and Care: The Inherent Antagonism in the Identity Transformation of Indigenous Women During Reintegration

Abstract

This thesis examines the identity transformation experience of formerly incarcerated Indigenous women during reintegration. Reintegration is a pivotal carceral stage for Indigenous women, as it represents constraints and opportunities in discovering personhood outside the confines of the prison. However, mainstream criminological literature tends to focus on Indigenous women's entry into prison, resulting in less attention being placed on their navigation of post-carceral life. To address this gap, I draw on archival data (i.e., government testimonies, oral histories, podcasts and memoirs) to provide an in-depth analysis of Indigenous women's reintegration experience through the lens of identity transformation. This thesis theorizes the space of reintegration in a nexus of antagonism between settler colonialism and Indigenous cultural resurgence. Within this framework, this project situates and explores how these two forces meet and collide upon Indigenous women's identity formation during reintegration. I argue that while settler colonial attempts of control manifest as Indigenous women navigate their sense of self during reintegration, it is kinship-based resurgence that has a more powerful role in supporting Indigenous women's identity transformation. Collectively, this thesis contributes to ongoing discussions in Indigenous scholarship that emphasize the need to highlight Indigenous women's resilience and agency in the face of settler colonial attempts at domination.