Research & Writing

I study the history and political economy of settler colonialism, capitalism, and education in what is currently Canada. I am also interested in critical pedagogy, comics, and history education.

Selected Publications

Books

• Lessons in Legitimacy: Colonialism, Capitalism, and the Rise of State Schooling in British Columbia (Vancouver: UBC Press, 2022).

• Dissenting Traditions: Essays on Bryan D. Palmer, Marxism, and History, edited with Ted McCoy and Julia Smith (Athabasca, AB: Athabasca University Press, 2021).

Peer-Reviewed Articles

• “‘I don’t need any more education’: Senator Lynn Beyak, Residential School Denialism, and Attacks on Truth and Reconciliation.” Settler Colonial Studies 11, no. 4 (2021): 466 –486.

• “‘The children show unmistakable signs of Indian blood’: Indigenous Students Attending Public Schools in British Columbia, 1871-1930.” History of Education 50, no. 3 (2021): 313-337.

• “Settler Anxiety and State Support for Missionary Schooling in Colonial British Columbia, 1849–1871.” Historical Studies in Education 29, no. 1 (Spring 2017): 57–76.

• “Drawn to Change: Comics and Critical Consciousness.” Labour/Le Travail 73 (Spring 2014): 151–177.

• “Rebranding Canada with Comics: Canada 1812: Forged in Fire and the Continuing Co-optation of Tecumseh.” Active History.ca, Reviewed “Papers” Section (14 April 2014).

• “Colonizing Minds: Public Education, the ‘Textbook Indian,’ and Settler Colonialism in British Columbia, 1920–1970.” BC Studies 169 (Spring 2011): 101–130.

Reports & Research Notes

• “Ruling by Schooling: Israel Wood Powell and Settler Colonialism in British Columbia.” The Name Matters. February 5, 2024.

• with Reid Gerbrandt. Debunking the “Mass Grave Hoax”: A Report on Media Coverage and Residential School Denialism in Canada. Centre for Human Rights Research. October 2023.

• “‘Poison for the minds of our pupils’? The 1920 Banning of a History Textbook Controversy in British Columbia,” CHA Intersections 6, no. 1 (2023): 14–15.

• with Wacey Little Light. “Old Sun, New Buffalo: A Siksika School’s Transformation from Residential School to Community College.” Prairie History 4 (Winter 2021): 88-91.

Graphic Books

• Graphic History Collective with Paul Buhle and Iain McIntyre, Mr. Block: The Subversive Comics and Writings of Ernest Riebe. Toronto: Between the Lines, 2023.

• Graphic History Collective, with Althea Balmes, Gord Hill, Orion Keresztesi, and David Lester. Direct Action Gets the Goods: A Graphic History of the Strike in Canada. Toronto: Between the Lines, 2019.

• Graphic History Collective and David Lester. 1919: A Graphic History of the Winnipeg General Strike. Toronto: Between the Lines, 2019.

• Graphic History Collective, with Paul Buhle, eds. Drawn to Change: Graphic Histories of Working-Class Struggle. Toronto: Between the Lines, 2016.

• Graphic History Collective. May Day: A Graphic History of Protest. Toronto: Between the Lines, 2012.

Review Articles

• “On Violence and Vengeance: Rhymes for Young Ghouls and the Horrific History of Canada’s Indian Residential Schools.” Decolonization: Indigeneity, Education, Society (24 October 2014).

•  “Illustrating Racism: Confronting Canada’s Racial Amnesia with Comics.” Histoire sociale/Social History 46 (November 2013): 509–522.

Book Reviews

• Review of Iroquois in the West, by Jean Barman. Labour/Le Travail 90 (Fall 2022): 307-308.

• Review of The Story of Radio Mind: A Missionary’s Journey on Indigenous Land, by Pamela E. Klassen. BC Studies 212 (Winter 2021/22): 209-210.

• Review of 21 Things You May Not Know About the Indian Act: Helping Canadians Make Reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples a Reality, by Bob Joseph and Talking Back to the Indian Act: Critical Readings in Settler Colonial Histories, edited by Mary-Ellen Kelm and Keith D. Smith. Canadian Historical Review, 101, no. 4 (December 2020): 648–649.

• Review of Power through Testimony: Reframing Residential Schools in the Age of Reconciliation, edited by Brieg Capitaine and Karine Vanthuyne. Ontario History 110, no. 2 (Fall 2018): 252–254.

• Review of What We Learned: Two Generations Reflect on Tsimshian Education and the Day Schools, by Helen Raptis, with members of the Tsimshian Nation. BC Studies 194 (Summer 2017): 218–219.

• “Revisiting The Shocking Truth About Indians in Textbooks.” Review of The Shocking Truth About Indians in Textbooks: Textbook Evaluation, by Manitoba Indian Brotherhood. Jeunesse: Young People, Texts, Cultures 9, no. 2 (2017): 162–165.

• Review of The 500 Years of Resistance Comic Book, by Gord Hill. Left History 15 (Fall/Winter 2011): 120–122.

Popular Writing

• with Reid Gerbrandt. “We Fact-Checked Residential School Denialists and Debunked their ‘Mass Grave Hoax’ Theory.” The Conversation (17 October 2023).

• with Niigaan Sinclair. “Residential School Denialism is on the Rise. What to Know and How to Confront it.” The Tyee (20 June 2023).

• “How Public Schools Supported Settler Colonialism in BC.” The Tyee (16 December 2022).

• with Jackson Pind. “Raising Awareness about Canada’s Indian Day Schools with Digital History.” ActiveHistory.ca (29 November 2022).

• “Reckoning with the History of Public Schooling and Colonialism.” The Conversation (26 September 2022).

• with Jackson Pind. “Canada’s Reckoning with Colonialism and Education Must Include Indian Day Schools.” The Conversation (12 July 2022).

• with Kisha Supernant. “Fighting ‘Denialists’ for the Truth about Unmarked Graves and Residential Schooling.” CBC (3 June 2022).

• with Andrew Woolford. “Ignore Debaters and Denialists, Canada’s Treatment of Indigenous Peoples Fits the Definition of Genocide.” The Conversation (25 October 2021).

• with Kathleen McKenzie. “Hiding in Plain Sight: Newspaper Coverage of Dr. Peter Bryce’s 1907 Report on Residential Schools.” ActiveHistory.ca (29 September 2021).

• with Daniel Heath Justice. “Truth Before Reconciliation: Eight Ways to Identify and Confront Residential School Denialism.” The Conversation (5 August 2021).

• with Omeasoo Wahpasiw and Adele Perry. “Nostalgia and the Politics of Selective Remembering.” ActiveHistory.ca (5 May 2021).

• “Lynn Beyak has Retired, but Residential School Denial Remains a Barrier to Reconciliation.” National Observer (28 January 2021).

• “The Sounds of Solidarity: An Oral History of Rhythm Activism’s Oka and Oka II.” ActiveHistory.ca (5 August 2020).

• “Black and Indigenous Solidarity: An Oral History of Maestro Fresh Wes’s “Nothing At All.” Canadian Dimension (30 July 2020).

• “Thirty Years After the Oka Crisis, Canada is Struggling to Learn Vital Lessons from the Clash.” Globe and Mail (11 July 2020).

• “Decolonizing the Zombie Apocalypse: An Interview with Jeff Barnaby about his New Film Blood Quantum.” Canadian Dimension (26 April 2020).

• “Coronavirus Colonialism: How the COVID-19 Crisis is Catalyzing Dispossession.” Canadian Dimension (23 March 2020).

• “Might is Not Right: A Historical Perspective on Coercion as a Colonial Strategy.” Canadian Dimension (21 February 2020).

• “Putting the RCMP Raid on the Wet’suwet’en in Historical Perspective.” Toronto Star (11 February 2020).

• “An Oral History of Propagandhi’s ‘Oka Everywhere.’” Canadian Dimension (4 February 2020).

• “All Eyes on Kanehsatake: What You Need to Know About the Hunger Strike to Stop Colonial Land Fraud.” Canadian Dimension (16 October 2019).

• “The Legacy of Oka in the Era of Supposed Reconciliation.” The Conversation (24 September 2019).

• ‘“This is Our Land: An Interview with Ellen Gabriel about Ongoing Land Fraud in Kanesatake.” Canadian Dimension (7 August 2019).

• with Jesse Thistle. “Reconnecting Métis Webs of Wahkootowin.” ActiveHistory.ca (26 July 2019).

• with Kirk Niergarth, and Julia Smith. “The Workers’ Revolt in Calgary.” ActiveHistory.ca (19 June 2019).

• “Chanie Wenjack and the Histories of Residential Schooling We Remember.” ActiveHistory.ca (26 October 2018).

• “The Legacy of ‘Oka’ and the Future of Indigenous Resistance: In Dialogue with Ellen Gabriel.” Canadian Dimension 52, no.2 (Summer 2018): 20–24.

• “Thrashing Colonialism: Skateboarding, History, and the Power of Education.” Canadian Dimension (13 June 2018).

• “Indian Horse is a Film All Canadians Must See.” Canadian Dimension (11 April 2018).

• “Confronting Canada 150: Kent Monkman’s Shame and Prejudice: A Story of Resilience.” Canadian Dimension 51, no. 4 (Autumn-Winter 2017): 27–30.

• “John A. Macdonald Was the Real Architect of Residential Schools.” Toronto Star, July 9, 2017: A17.

• “Confronting the Secret Path and the Legacy of Residential Schools.” ActiveHistory.ca (26 October 2016).

• “Decolonizing Cottage Country: Anishinaabe Art Intervenes in Canada’s Wild Rice War.” Canadian Dimension (16 September 2016).

• with Crystal Fraser, and John Milloy. “Assessing the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation.” Activehistory.ca (26 November 2015).

• “‘We Meant War Not Murder’: A Punk Rock History of Klatsassin and the Tsilhqot’in War of 1864.” ActiveHistory.ca (24 October 2014).

• “Dispossessing Democracy: Colonialism, Capitalism, and the Consequences of Bill C-45.” Rabble.ca (31 January 2013).

• “Idle No More: A Longer View.” Canadian Dimension (26 December 2012).