從混血兒到原住民－加拿大梅蒂人之認同歷程

梅蒂人(Métis)乃是加拿大原住民與早期歐洲移民的混血兒，然而卻擁有被政府保護與承認之原住民地位。理論上，混血兒具有認同選擇的空間，例如要選擇認同母系、父系，或混血；而在涉及社會價值之利益分配時，其也可以視情境做出最佳之認同選擇。然而，就實際面而言，主觀的身份認同卻也常受到他者的認定所限制。例如，以台灣的平埔族與漢族之混血者的情形來看，認同父系（漢人）不但常常是混血者的個人選擇，更是國家政策的認定，即混血者不是原住民。因此，從台灣的觀點來看加拿大，本文所要探究的重點包括：(1)梅蒂人之混血族群認同從形成到鞏固的歷程爲何？(2)何以加拿大政府要認定梅蒂人是原住民？(3)認同政治在梅蒂族人與加拿大政府間如何運作？而加拿大的法律又如何制度化梅蒂人的認同政治？

關鍵字

梅蒂人；加拿大；原住民；族群認同；認同政治

並列摘要

The Métis peoples of Canada are an ethnic group of mixed Aboriginal-European descent. Along with the First Nations and Inuit, the Métis are one of the three officially recognized Aboriginal peoples in Canada. For the people whose thoughts have been deeply embedded with racial dualism, the case of the Métis provides them with an alternative perspective to see the mixed-bloods, i.e. a mixed-blood group not only can become a new ethnic group but also has the possibility of gaining legal status. The purpose of this paper is to explore and explain how a mixed-blood group, the Métis peoples of Canada, developed its nationhood and identity. Specifically, three themes are included: (1) What situational factors fostered the formation and consolidation of Métis identity? (2) What factors made the Métis a historically invisible people? (3) How did the Métis struggle to gain official recognition through political actions?