Consent has long been used to establish the legitimacy of society. But when one asks â who consented? how? to what type of community? â consent becomes very elusive, more myth than reality. This is particularly true when the spotlight is on the relationship between indigenous and nonindigenous peoples. In this volume, leading and emerging scholars in legal and political theory explore the various meanings that have been attached to consent as the foundation for political community and law, especially in indigenous contexts. From explorations of specific historical examples â such as consent in Gitksan society in the early years of the fur trade or relations between indigenous and nonindigenous Australians in the 1950s and 1970s â to a reconsideration of consent in political and legal theory, the authors examine the language of consent and how it has ordered indigenous societies and shaped their relationships with governments.Between Consenting Peoples explores the kind of consent â the kind of attachment â that might ground political community and establish a fair relationship between indigenous and nonindigenous peoples. In doing so, it draws perspectives from indigenous relations into the heart of political theory.
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