Sociology Commons^™

Dancing Around And Through Harm: Examining The Lived Experiences Of Women Of Colour With Gender-Based Violence In The Toronto & Kitchener-Waterloo Latin Dance Communities, Lexi Salt

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Given the systemic nature of gender-based violence in Canada, as well as the increasing popularity of Latin dance, it is important to better understand the particular and culturally-specific ways gender-based violence manifests itself within the Latin dance community. This research study examines the lived experiences of women of colour with gender-based violence in the Toronto and Kitchener-Waterloo Latin dance communities. Two groups of participants took part in semi-structured interviews: 14 women of colour dancers, and six “Power Players”, leaders in the Latin dance community who are in a position of power (e.g., instructors, organizers, DJs). The data was analyzed using …

Exploring The Relationship Between Gender, Race, And Space, And Toronto Community Housing Policy, Anita Rachel Ewan

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

This dissertation presents the racial-gendered lived experiences of Black women living in Toronto Community Housing (TCH; subsidized housing). This research found that Black women and their families are disproportionately faced with challenges due to barriers caused by housing policy and procedures that also affect the overall development and wellbeing of their children. It also highlights the ways in which Black women continue to thrive and survive in the face of detrimental and derelict living conditions; accomplished through community development and support initiatives, and fostering strong communities.

This is a qualitative research project that includes an art-based method. Utilizing a feminist …

More Than Stone And Iron: Indigenous History And Incarceration In Canada, 1834-1996, Seth Adema

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

This dissertation examines Indigenous (First Nation, Métis, and Inuit) history as played out in Canadian prisons. It argues that in the prison, processes of colonialism, decolonization, and neocolonialism took place simultaneously. In the nineteenth century, the prison was built as part of a network of colonial institutions and polices. It was imagined, designed, and built by representatives of the Canadian state alongside other colonial institutions, drawing on similar intellectual traditions. It maintains the imprint of this colonial origin. Prisons also became arenas for Indigenous cultural exchange and cultural creation, which in most cases subverted the logic of the prison. This …

Holding Canada Accountable: An Evaluation Of Canada's Compliance To The United Nations Declaration On The Rights Of Indigenous Peoples, Jackson A. Smith

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Compliance of human rights norms requires the application of pressure from a multitude of directions and levels. It takes individual advocacy, micro-system/organizational/community-level pressure, and macro-level pressure from other nation-states and international organizations and governance bodies. This MA study focuses on the mechanisms employed by the United Nations to monitor the compliance of signatory nation-states to the standards established in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), with particular focus on Canada. A crucial goal of this study is to translate the UN Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNSRRIP), James Anaya’s, findings on the …

Aboriginal Students And Postsecondary Education: A Participatory Exploration Of Experiences And Needs At A University And Community College In Northeastern Ontario, Wendy Darlene Young

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Aboriginal people are increasingly seeking forms of post-secondary education that meet their cultural, political, social and spiritual needs. Universities and colleges have a responsibility to become involved in the decolonization process by taking a proactive stance in relation to the changes which are required to meet these needs. The research described in this dissertation is a bicultural, participatory action project which sought to document the experiences and needs of Aboriginal students at a university and community college in North Bay, Ontario in order to lay the groundwork for new programs and services which might be developed. Research Circles and Individual …

The Measurement Of Effective Parenting In Native Communities, Adje Van De Sande

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

In Native communities across North America, there are initiatives currently being taken by Native people to develop culturally relevant child welfare programs to deal with the problems of child maltreatment. One example of such a program is Cherish the Children, a training program developed by the Minnesota Indian Women’s Resource Centre to teach “parenting skills to Indian mothers with young children” (Minnesota Indian Women’s Resource Center, 1988). It was developed by Anishnabe (Ojibway) people and encourages Anishnabe parents to return to “the old ways” of parenting. The purpose of this study was to develop a culturally-sensitive instrument that would measure …