Noted radical American academic Ward Churchill, who has worked for decades on what he calls the “genocidal colonialization” of North America, spoke at a student anti-imperialism conference which took place in Toronto this weekend.
“All oppressions are not equal, some are more obvious, more easy to combat than others,” said Churchill in a wide-ranging talk that traced the history of imperialism in North America.
Though at times one had the sense that people found him difficult to follow, the crowd was sympathetic in general to Churchill’s theme. In his opening remarks, Churchill, a professor of ethnic studies at the University of Colorado-Boulder, gauged his audience.
“Is there a type of Marxist not in the room?” he asked. He also light-heartedly drew attention to the controversy that his ideas generate.
A noted advocate of aboriginal issues in the United States and himself a member of the Cherokee nation, Churchill said that “the struggle of indigenous peoples has to be the key struggle in an anti-imperialist effort.” He also emphasized the importance of identity to political self-determination.
“Naming is powerful and whoever does the naming has power. Don’t let others define you, that’s the first problem,” said Churchill. He also speculated on the merits of using the ideas of the philosophers Foucault and Nietzsche to analyze imperialism.
Even though most of his comments were focused on the United States, Churchill did not spare Canada.
“You’re the northern provinces of the U.S,” he charged. “If you don’t know that, your government does, and Washington surely does now.”
“The whole of the U.S. and Canada is founded on the oppression of indigenous peoples,” he continued. “Back when I was growing up, protestors would hold up signs saying things like ‘U.S. out of Vietnam.’ I’d like the U.S. out of North America! And how about Canada out of North America too?” said Churchill, to the cheers of the audience.
Hilda Torres, a Cuban activist, also talked about her experiences as an activist. She talked about the struggle to maintain grassroots organizations in a country that proclaims itself to be socialist, but where the rhetoric sometimes falls short.
Ward Churchill will speak on campus again in a week as part of the Arab Students’ Collective’s “Israeli Apartheid Week.”
