First Peoples and Ecosocialism

In some Ecosocialist currents, much is made of the inspiration drawn from Indigenous Peoples’ perspectives and environmental practices, especially those of state-free peoples. References are made sometimes to concepts like Sumak Kawsay (Bien Vivir), often out of context. Such affinity, however, is usually vague and does not address the actual context, histories, and diverse political projects of Indigenous Peoples. Generic ecosocialist support for Indigenous Peoples’ self-determination struggles tends to neglect or paper over the long-standing tensions that may exist among different Indigenous communities. And the lack of specification regarding Indigenous value systems only reproduces a settler colonial perspective that sees the Indigenous as an undifferentiated mass. An example of how to address and support Indigenous People’s struggles is shown by The Red Nation, whose work will be discussed and analysed in relation to different kinds of Ecosocialist formations. In some respects, unless Ecosocialists devote most of their energies to overcoming settler colonialism, Ecosocialism is largely irrelevant to Indigenous Peoples. It will be shown that the converse is not the case; that is, for Ecosocialism to develop, settler colonial systems must first be dismantled worldwide.