Divided Power: How Federalism Undermines Reconciliation
Public event
Mar 11, 2026 — 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Come and join us for a public talk with Emily Grafton on Divided Power: How Federalism Undermines Reconciliation. Drawing on her recent book, Grafton examines how Canadian federalism, rooted in settler colonialism, has dispossessed Indigenous Peoples and continues to constrain meaningful reconciliation. This talk invites critical reflection on whether truth and reconciliation can be fully achieved within existing federal structures.
About the Event
Divided Power: How Federalism Undermines Reconciliation brings together critical scholarship and urgent political questions at the heart of Canada’s reconciliation project. Drawing on her recent book, Emily Grafton examines how Canadian federalism deeply rooted in settler colonialism has structurally marginalized Indigenous Peoples and continues to obstruct meaningful truth and reconciliation. While reconciliation, as articulated by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, calls for new relationships grounded in mutual respect and dignity, this talk asks a difficult but necessary question: can reconciliation truly be achieved within a political system built on coercive exclusion?
Hosted by the University of Ottawa’s Centre on Governance, in partnership with the Forum of Federations Research Chair on Comparative Federalism and the Jean-Luc Pepin Chair on Canadian Politics, this public talk invites students, scholars, policymakers, and community members to critically reflect on the limits of federalism and to reimagine pathways toward justice, decolonization, and genuine reconciliation in Canada.
Emily Grafton
PhD in Native Studies from the University of Manitoba
Emily Grafton holds a PhD in Native Studies from the University of Manitoba (Winnipeg) and specializes in decolonial politics and research. As a descendant of a Métis family who received a Halfbreed land allotment in St. François Xavier, Manitoba, the politics of settler-based dispossession have influenced both her family life and scholarship. Currently, Grafton is an associate professor of politics and international studies at the University of Regina (Saskatchewan), where she teaches courses on Indigenous rights, reconciliation, feminism and gender politics, international relations, and Canadian government. Her research is community-driven, and she collaborates with local non-profits in Regina. She is the author of Divided Power: How Federalism Undermines Reconciliation (Fernwood Publishing) and co-editor of a book series, On Colonialism in Canada (URPress). Additionally, she serves as the faculty lead for the Saskatchewan Electoral Parity Project and is a member of the Board and Reconciliation Committee of the Canadian Political Science Association.