A potent symbol and practice of Indigenous cultures and traditions, the canoe has also been adopted to assert conservation ideals, feminist empowerment, citizenship, and multicultural goals. Documenting these various uses, this book asserts that the canoe is not merely a matter of leisure; it is folded into many facets of our political life.

Popularly thought of as a recreational vehicle and one of the key ingredients of an ideal wilderness getaway, the canoe is also a political vessel. The Politics of the Canoe expands and enlarges the stories that we tell about the canoe's relationship to colonialism, nationalism, environmentalism, and resource politics.