NO PLACE TO CALL HOME. INDIGENOUS PEOPLES AND THE PROBLEM OF HOMELESSNESS

Abstract

What is the meaning of the word ‘indigenous’? According to the Oxford English Dictionary, it means: ‘originating or occurring naturally in a particular place.’ Paradoxically, what was first taken away from the people we define by this umbrella term is a place of their own. It is important to realize that not only their birthright to housing and organizing their living space has been violated. The lack of place is also a contradiction of the word ‘indigenous’, and thereby a direct cause of most problems connected with the contemporary situation of indigenous peoples around the globe. That is why, this paper presents research on the topic of homelessness among indigenous peoples. For the purpose of discussing the problem in more detail, the focus is on two particular native groups: Indigenous peoples of America (First Nations, the Inuit, the Métis) and Aboriginal Australians. For the sake of clarity, First Nations, the Inuit, the Métis are referred to as ‘Indigenous’, and native Australians as ‘Aboriginal’, although these two words are in fact synonymous. The aim of this bipartite study is also to compare the situation of native groups and laws that govern public space from two entirely different parts of the world, and to check whether there are more similarities or differences regarding the issue of homelessness.