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This page provides information on finding primary source material supporting research in Gender and Social Justice.
Definition:
First hand observations of a time, person or event, or material culture associated with a time, person or event.
Some types:
newspapers... magazines... diaries... letters... proclaimations... speeches... minutes...photographs... paintings... military, church, synagogue records... menus... train schedules... meeting agendas... theatre tickets... shopping lists...
Acknowledgement: The resources gathered on this topic were originally compiled by Jane Forgay, and are borrowed from her research guide: Primary Sources: Canadian
Periodicals by feminists, student radicals, Indigenous peoples, anti-war activists, Black rights advocates, LGBTQ activists, extreme right-wing press, and more.
Coverage: 1950s - present
Coverage: 1970s - 1990s
"Black Images" (1970s), "Black Voice" (1972-1973), "Canadian Freeman" (1825-1873 some years missing), Canadian Negro (1953-1956), "Contrast" (1969-1972), "Dawn of Tomorrow" (1923-1984 missing 1973), "Spear" (1974-1978).
Coverage: 1825 - 1984
Find documents from 1st European contact to recent student activism, including items relating to Indigenous-settler relations, cookbooks, women's writings, and more.
Coverage: Pre-1970
Videos from the 1960s - present.
*Equality First: The Royal Commission on the Status of Women
*Gay and Lesbian Emergence: Out in Canada
*George Erasmus: Native Rights Crusader
*Pot and Politics
*Rights & Freedoms
*Sue Rodriguez and the Right-To-Die Debate
*The Berger Pipeline Inquiry
*Trudeau's Omnibus Bill: Challenging Canadian Taboos
*Voting in Canada: How a Privilege Became a Right
Manuscripts, pamphlets, books, paintings, maps and images relating to enslavement.
Coverage: 1490 - 2007
These databases contain primary sources.
Acknowledgement: The resources gathered on this topic were originally compiled by Jane Forgay, and are borrowed from her research guide: Primary Sources: Canadian
Includes Canadian locations:
* "Caribou" from Flat Bay, Newfoundland
* "Indian" from Hagersville, Ontario
* "Kamloops Wawa" from Kamloops, British Columbia
* "Secwepemc" from Kamloops, British Columbia
* "Ashigiamuk" from Metlakatla, British Columbia
*"Caribou News" from Nepean, Ontario
via Library and Archives Canada
Find documents from 1st European contact to recent student activism, including items relating to Indigenous-settler relations, cookbooks, women's writings, and more.
Coverage: Pre-1970
via the Canadian Museum of Civilization.
Coverage: 1864 - 1990
via Special Collections & Archives, Dana Porter Library
Link to books, articles, theses, documents, photographs, archival resources, and maps.
Catholic newsletter published in Alberta. Articles in Cree, French, and English.
Coverage: 1906 - 1920
An interactive map that identifies traditional territories of Indigenous peoples and their Western/colonial names.
Biographies, autobiographies, speeches, diaries, letters, and oral histories on Indigenous peoples of North America.
Coverage: 17th century - present
Audio files of stories of the Omushkegowak ("Swampy Cree") people of the Hudson and James Bay Lowlands of northern Manitoba and Ontario. In Cree and English.
Search digitized books and newspaper issues that date back to the exploration and settlement of the Canadian west.
Coverage: 1800s - present
Final report 1996
Department of Indian Affairs. Contains admission and discharge records of students as well as files on the establishment of individual schools.
Look for the "Help" link to find a pdf file that lists specific volumes, schools, and agencies and the corresponding microfilm reel number.
Coverage: 1879 - 1953
Final report 2015
... via the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation
1.1 The History, Part 1 - Origins to 1939
1.2 The History, Part 2 - The History, Part 2 1939 to 2000
2. The Inuit and Northern Experience
3. The Métis Experience
4. Missing Children and Unmarked Burials
5. The Legacy
6. Reconciliation
Coverage: 1986 - 2015
Check out these guides and news databases:
Looking for Canadian, American, or European primary sources? Check out these guides:
The Special Collections and Archives (SCA) at the University of Waterloo is a department located on the first (bottom) floor of the Dana Porter Library. Unlike typical library collections, archival materials are non-circulating, meaning that they cannot be borrowed or physically removed from the building. This is because these collections contain materials that may be rare or unique, such as diaries, manuscripts, letters, images, and artifacts. The items in SCA's collections are often used by researchers as primary sources.
If you are interested in viewing materials, we recommend that you contact the archives through their website before you visit to let them know what you're interested in looking at. If you would like to know more about archives and archival sources, visit the Archives 101 Research Guide. Below are descriptions for a selection of the archival materials related to the Gender and Social Justice.