A new report commissioned and released by the University of Saskatchewan addresses the broader problem of Indigenous identity fraud in academia. Report author and Métis lawyer Jean Teillet discussed how universities have taken positive action by creating positions for Indigenous individuals, but have relied on self-identification to fill these positions and underestimated how many people would exploit this for their own gain. “It’s poison,” said Teillet. “It seeps out everywhere and then everybody is tainted by it and everybody’s damaged.” Teillet explained that universities tend to be ignorant of the complexities of Indigenous identity, resulting in inadequate checks and balances for detecting fraud. In the case of USask, Teillet encouraged the institution to take actions such as employing clear standards and warnings when handling false claims at the institution, creating a specific complaints process for false claims, and taking steps to evaluate how the university’s culture may undermine its Indigenization Strategy and Indigenous members. USask| CBC| Brandon Sun| Nation Talk| News 24 (FR) Note: Archived stories may contain dead links or be missing source links.
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USask shares report addressing broader issue of Indigenous identity fraud in academia
USask
| News 24 (FR)
| Brandon Sun