CITIZENSHIP

 CITIZENSHIP

Thomas King's Borders is a story about a young mom and son who go to the border to escape poverty and avoid being on welfare. They are stopped at the wall trying to cross into Canada as Blackfoot Indians because they do not carry proper citizenship papers. The central conflict in this story is how an Indigenous identity can be overlooked by law or policy but how it is still there in action, therefore creating a tension between indigenous identity and citizenship. Although the mom and son are stopped at the border by guards, their identities as Blackfoot Indians are still in action. Thomas King's Borders is a story about a young mom and son who go to the border to escape poverty and avoid being on welfare. They are stopped at the wall trying to cross into Canada as Blackfoot Indians because they do not carry proper citizenship papers. 

The central conflict in this story is how an Indigenous identity can be overlooked by law or policy but how it is still there in action, therefore creating a tension between indigenous identity and citizenship. Although the mom and son are stopped at the border by guards, their identities as Blackfoot Indians are still in action. However, Thomas King does not distinguish between Indigenous identity and citizenship. Thomas King's Borders focuses on the question of identity versus citizenship. Another conflict in this story is how the guards do not overlook Blackfoot's Indigenous status but still stop them from crossing the border because they do not have proper citizenship papers. The guards are more concerned about their guns than the mom and son. They are more worried about their guns than helping them cross. This creates tension between identity and citizenship, in this case, conflict for the mom and son at the border.

 At a young age, Leah is already represented as an Indigenous woman in today's society. She shows how she has overcome bias by being an Indigenous woman and reducing her status as an Indigenous woman. The lady is a powerful speaker and writer and also a fantastic role model for younger Indigenous peoples in Canada. The speaker uses alternative sources, such as the media, to get her messages across to the public. This is what makes her a very eloquent speaker. She goes on to explain how Thomas King does not make a distinction between status and citizenship and how this causes tension between identity and citizenship. In addition, she uses the power of the media and news to her advantage. The media becomes Leah's source of going beyond the borders within society because it represents more remarkably than what it seems via its ability to reach out to and act upon others. 

The narrator focuses on the guards' guns because they are the instrument that represents the power of the border. The border is there to keep them out, and they represent a threat to their survival. The media plays a significant role in the conflict at the border because it can make their voices heard (Sarkowsky, 2012). This shows how Borders does not make a distinction between Indigenous identity and citizenship. Leah Brandon's essay Indigenous Identity, Status, and citizenship demonstrates her understanding of Thomas King's Borders. Her essay identifies critical issues in this short story. Furthermore, her writing reveals a clear sense of Indigenous identity, status, and citizenship throughout this essay. When Leah told her story about when she was stopped at the border, it brought up many contemporary issues in Canada. 

The problem that she addresses in her essay is what lies at the core of this issue in Canada, which is discrimination against Indigenous peoples in Canada and their children who have no way of proving their identity because they are not citizens. However, Thomas King does not make a distinction between Indigenous identity and citizenship. This shows how Borders does not make a distinction between status and citizenship. In conclusion, Leah Brandon, through her essay, identifies the core issues behind the conflict in Thomas King's Borders. It clearly illustrates the reasoning behind the actions. She discovers that Thomas King does not make a distinction between status and citizenship, which causes tension between status and citizenship.