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Alan C. Cairns. Vancouver: University of British Columbia Press, 2000.
BY KRISTIN BURNETT
Citizens Plus: Aboriginal Peoples and the Canadian State by Alan Cairns is a response to the Report of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples (RCAP) released in 1996 which advocates Aboriginal self-determination and government. Cairns examines relations between the state and Aboriginal peoples, the impact of the government's assimilationist policies, and finally the emergence of a nation-to-nation paradigm as embodied in the findings of the RCAP. Ultimately, he is concerned with the potential impact of the Reports' recommendations on the unity of Canada. Criticizing the RCAP for ignoring viable alternatives to self-government, Cairns proposes a shared-rule federalism that recognizes and respects cultural diversity. Under the rubric of citizenship, Cairns believes that multiple Aboriginal identities and a Canadian identity can co-exist.
Rejecting the nation-to-nation paradigm, recommended by the RCAP and supported by many Aboriginal leaders, Cairns advocates a "citizens plus" approach. The phrase "citizens plus," coined in the 1966 Hawthorn Report, defined Aboriginal people as citizens "who possessed the same rights and responsibilities as other Canadians, in addition to those rights guaranteed through treaties and initial occupation of North America." "Citizens plus" status, according to Cairns, is...