ECU adjunct professor steps down following Maclean’s article challenging claims of Indigenous heritage

Emily Carr University Adjunct Professor Gina Adams has resigned from her tenure-track position following the publication of an article in Maclean’s that challenged her Indigenous heritage, reports The Vancouver Sun. The Sun reports that Adams describes herself as a contemporary hybrid artist of Aboriginal descent. Maclean’s writer and former ECU staff member Michelle Cyca discussed Adams’ employment at the university, the accusations levelled against Adams’ claims to Indigenous heritage, and the events that followed. ECU issued a statement indicating that it “takes very seriously the allegations that a member of our faculty made a false claim to Indigenous identity,” and indicated that the university will be undertaking an Indigenous-led external review to secure recommendations on how it can assess identity in a culturally appropriate manner.