Reconstructing Theory: Explaining Aboriginal Over-Representation in the Criminal Justice System in Canada

Abstract

This paper1 attempts to explain the vulnerability of aboriginal people to involvement in the criminal justice system in Canada. It argues that one of the most important factors is a decline in interdependency among people in aboriginal communities. This has come about as the result of historical processes (such as colonisation and the creation of the reserve system) which have reproduced mainstream social structure without accompanying institutional development. This has been exacerbated by cultural dislocation and the decline of informal mechanisms of social control. The end result is socially stratified communities where limited resources and resource distribution create large groups of disadvantaged people, a growing youth sub-culture with few legitimate outlets or opportunities, decontextualised exposure to the mass media, and the lack of cultural and social resources to assist in identity formation which support pro-social values. Three factors are most conducive to a crime problem. The first is the large group of marginalised and non-integrated people in communities because of the uneven distribution of resources; the second is that reserves are not generally integrated into mainstream Canadian society (because of historical practices of exclusion and the second class status ascribed to aboriginal people) and the resulting alienation is most prominent in those with the fewest connections to mainstream society; and the third is that exposure to dysfunctional family life and childhood abuse (in addition to other factors conducive to criminal behaviour) have profoundly negative effects on individual development. The most marginalised groups in communities are most affected by these factors. When these groups leave reserves they have few tools for survival or for gaining status or integration into mainstream society. In the urban setting, the lack of education, employment skills, coupled with substance abuse problems and histories of family violence and dysfunction, lead to negative peer associations and the adoption of antisocial and pro-criminal attitudes. There is a growing problemof marginalised people leaving reserves to live in urban areas.