Beyond Bilingualism

In Living Language Rights: Constitutional Pathways to Indigenous Language Education, Lorena Fontaine’s ground-breaking work explores the constitutional foundations and growing recognition of Indigenous language rights in Canada. By documenting the history of First Nations’ language transmission on the prairies, Fontaine demonstrates how Indigenous language rights are deeply embedded in both First Nations law and Canadian constitutional law. Equal parts personal and scholarly, Living Language Rights highlights the sacred responsibility within First Nations law to preserve and transmit language. Fontaine argues that language transmission is not only culturally significant, but also a constitutionally protected right that Canada has a duty to uphold—especially following decades of attempted linguistic genocide.

Focusing on education as the path to Indigenous language revitalization, she examines the current health of Indigenous languages and urges governments to act. Living Language Rights is a crucial read, filling an important void for anyone seeking to understand Indigenous rights, language revitalization, and Canadian constitutional law.

Lorena Sekwan Fontaine (Maiigun Geezhik Iqway) is Cree and Anishinaabe and a member of Sagkeeng First Nation. She has appeared before the Standing Senate Committee on Aboriginal Peoples as an expert witness on the Indigenous Languages Act. She is the recipient of a Fulbright Research Chair and the Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee Medal.

Lorena Sekwan Fontaine's profile page