Unsettling settler colonialism: The discourse and politics of settlers, and solidarity with Indigenous nations

Abstract

Our goal in this article is to intervene and disrupt current contentious debates regarding the
\npredominant lines of inquiry bourgeoning in settler colonial studies, the use of ‘settler’, and the
\npolitics of building solidarities between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples. Settler colonial
\nstudies, ‘settler’, and solidarity, then, operate as the central themes of this paper. While
\nsomewhat jarring, our assessment of the debates is interspersed with our discussions in their
\noriginal form, as we seek to explore possible lines of solidarity, accountability, and relationality
\nto one another and to decolonization struggles both locally and globally. Our overall conclusion
\nis that without centering Indigenous peoples’ articulations, without deploying a relational
\napproach to settler colonial power, and without paying attention to the conditions and
\ncontingency of settler colonialism, studies of settler colonialism and practices of solidarity run
\nthe risk of reifying (and possibly replicating) settler colonial as well as other modes of
\ndomination.