Coursework and Reflections
Fall 2024
- HRSJ 5010 – Foundations of Human Rights and Social Justice
- HRSJ 5020 – Indigenous Ways of Knowing: Resurgence of Land-Based Pedagogies and Practices
- HRSJ 5160 – Social Justice and Culture
Winter 2025
- HRSJ 5030 – Problem Solving in the Field
- HRSJ 5260 – Moral Economies and Social Movement
- HRSJ 5120 – Colonialism: Decolonization and Responsibility
Summer 2025
- HRSJ 5040 – Practicum
Fall 2025
- HRSJ 5110 – Genocide in the 20th Century
- HRSJ 5250 – Risk, Place, and Social Justice in a Turbulent World
Reflection on an Assignment
One of the most impactful assignments I completed was in HRSJ 5020 – Indigenous Ways of Knowing: Resurgence of Land-Based Pedagogies and Practices. My research paper, titled “Decolonization of Indigenous Peoples: Pathways to Reconciliation in Canada”, examined how reconciliation cannot be reduced to symbolic gestures but must involve structural change, particularly around sovereignty, land rights, and governance.
My approach was to draw from the works of Tuck and Yang (2012) on the concept of decolonization, as well as landmark Canadian court cases such as Delgamuukw v. British Columbia and Tsilhqot’in Nation v. British Columbia. I argued that reconciliation without restoring Indigenous control over land and decision-making risks becoming another form of colonial management.
This assignment was impactful for me because it pushed me to critically interrogate the limits of state-led reconciliation. It also deepened my awareness of how Indigenous knowledge systems and governance structures are vital not only for justice but for sustainable futures. The paper strengthened both my research skills and my commitment to centering marginalized voices in social justice work.
The most impactful assigned reading that I did for this program is hard to choose, because each text challenged me to think differently about human rights and social justice. However, one that particularly stands out is Glen Sean Coulthard’s Red Skin, White Masks: Rejecting the Colonial Politics of Recognition, which I read in HRSJ 5120 – Colonialism: Decolonization and Responsibility.
Coulthard’s work was transformative for me because it directly confronted my assumptions about reconciliation and recognition. Before engaging with this reading, I often viewed state-led recognition as an important step toward justice. However, Coulthard convincingly argues that such recognition frequently reproduces colonial structures rather than dismantling them. This shifted my perspective by highlighting that true decolonization requires more than symbolic gestures—it demands structural change, particularly in relation to land and governance. What made this reading especially impactful was how it connected with my own background. Growing up in Nigeria, where communities have also experienced marginalization, I resonated with Coulthard’s insistence that oppressed groups must reclaim agency on their own terms rather than relying on recognition from dominant structures. This insight not only deepened my understanding of Indigenous struggles in Canada but also expanded my awareness of how colonial logics operate globally.