The fossil fuel industry, the politicians across the political spectrum that continue to support it, and right-wing think tanks understand that the increased power of Indigenous nations asserting their sovereignty on their lands poses a threat to the expansion of extractive industry. This is why companies and governments are actively working to establish social acceptability for their projects on Indigenous lands. Their new strategy is to adopt the concepts of "economic reconciliation" and partnership with Indigenous communities. Not to be fooled however, pretending to be an ally of Indigenous people while simultaneously profiting from the exploitation of their territories, is nothing more than redwashing.
Of course, the extractive industry cannot carry out all this propaganda on its own, so it has found allies in band councils to defend these positions. Just as anti-feminist men rely on anti-feminist women to legitimize their discourse (Denise Bombardier comes to mind, for example), colonial elites seek the approval of Indigenous peoples to further their activities. In the case of the fracked and liquefied natural gas industry, there is the First Nations LNG Alliance which was formed in 2015 to unite communities that have signed benefit agreements with the natural gas industry, backing projects like CGL and PRGT. The goal of the "Reconciliation through Economic Development" strategy is to set an example and raise the profile of Indigenous communities that support the fossil fuel industry. In the case of the PRGT, the Nisga'a Nation took the bait and became a co-owner of the project.
Sibo Chen, a scholar and critical communications policy analyst of the British Columbian government, argues that “improved relations between Indigenous nations, the state, and extractive industries often result in the social legitimization of further extractivist activities on Indigenous lands” [1]. These colonial elites make no secret of their efforts to influence communities in favor of their projects, with pro-industry research consistently using the term “social license to operate.” Economic reconciliation has become a key phrase for the industry as it seeks to continue its century-old strategies of extraction, this time under the guise of partnership with Indigenous communities. After the fur trade, logging, and fishing, natural gas is the next target.
Meanwhile, big banks finance oil, gas, and mining companies to the tune of billions, then polish their image by participating in the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, hiring a few Indigenous individuals, financing the education of some young Indigenous people, or sponsoring Indigenous museums. These financial capital giants use the same colonial redwashing strategy as extractive corporations.
Janelle Lapointe, an Afro-Indigenous activist from the Stellat'en Nation, has written extensively on this industry and the State's discursive strategy. She explains how the new language of economic reconciliation is a way of evading the deeper issue of returning land and sovereignty to Indigenous communities. Lapointe echoes the argument of Arthur Manuel, a well-known Indigenous author, who asserts that Indigenous populations have long suffered from impoverishment due to colonization. Indigenous people are not poor because of any biological or cultural defect, but because they have been confined to reserves that represent only 0.2% of Canadian territory—the source of all the country's wealth.
Communities are presented with a binary choice with natural gas prohjects, one which emphasizes that integrating their community into the capitalist system is the only way to end the suffering of their people. Therefore, it's important not to blame the communities that buy into economic reconciliation, as this is ultimately a reflection of the ongoing colonial process.
The history of communities buying into economic reconciliation will, and already is, serving to silence opposition to the PRGT pipeline. Certain left-wing identity politics have fostered a fear of opposing anything Indigenous-led. Politicians and business leaders have recognized this and are exploiting it to their full advantage by trying to secure as many Indigenous partnerships as possible. Liberals, Conservatives, extractive companies, and the Indigenous people who work with them are all too eager to argue that Indigenous leadership is being centered in order to dissuade opposition to the project. Indeed, many who would otherwise oppose this new project are discouraged from doing so simply because it has the backing of Indigenous communities. This redwashing is nothing more than smoke and mirrors: whether carried out by non-Indigenous or Indigenous people, the devastation of Indigenous territories always has colonial roots!
1. Chen, Sibo. "Promoting BC LNG." In Energy politics and discourse in Canada: Probing progressive extractivism. Routledge.