Unsettling Settler Societies (Chap. 4 & 6)

In Canada fur trading was an important part of their economy and Native Women were also an important part of that too because the trade was based on exchange between Europeans and Native peoples and the women were needed to translate and sometimes mediate between the two groups. Women became a huge success for the fur trade industry but as marriage between Native women and European men became more common Native American women suffered a decline in their influence because most women were now mixed blood. Eventually by the late nineteenth century the fur trade was in complete decline and the Native Americans land was completely eroded. Non-native women formed a minority of the population and over the next 150 years only 2700 Amerindian and 1400 black slaves were recorded in Canada. From then on a lot of business with the British and Europeans took place in Canada to try and build their nation. It was until the 1900’s when women became active with movements and organizations. I think they contributed a lot to Canada’s laws especially with reshaping abortion rights and working on the trend of anti-racist pluralism.

Miscegenation is a key to understanding Mexico’s pattern of colonization and three factors accelerated miscegenation which was the early arrival of the African population, the high ratio of black men to black women, and the sharp decrease in the male Indian population due to both the spread of western diseases and forced labor. The settlement of Spanish females developed a pattern and they were mostly the ones who organized the house and were largely confined to the household duties. I think Spanish women had a lot of hardships to go through especially the Spanish women who were born in Europe because they had to go through the process of differentiation between the two groups. The economy in Mexico is discovering hardships especially with labor. The women of maquiladora industry are in my opinion being abused. I did my Women in the Labor force on the women of maquiladora and they are worked over time and paid under minimum wage and the owners of the maquiladora factories refuse to abide by the labor laws. Women however are striking back in Mexico and have challenged their traditional family role by involving themselves in campaigns, strikes, and assemblies. They have also taken action to create their own organizations.