Increasing Support for Reconciliation in Settler Colonial Societies

Profound inequalities between Indigenous and non-Indigenous individuals persist to this day in settler colonial societies worldwide. Reconciliation processes require collective acknowledgment of past harm and reparations to redress it. However, this process may be challenged by widespread misapprehensions about, and animus toward, Indigenous populations. But what happens when citizens are confronted with information about the prevalence and extent of the ongoing consequences of settler colonialism? Leveraging the case of Canada, we argue raising awareness about structural inequalities should reduce misinformation and prejudice, ultimately helping make progress toward reconciliation. We field a national survey of 3,000 non-Indigenous Canadians to test two distinct informational interventions commonly used in the misinformation and prejudice reduction literatures: fact-checking and perspective-getting narratives. Both interventions prove successful, leading to increased recognition of inequality and support for policy reforms, reduced anti-Indigenous resentment, and higher rates of advocative behavior in the form of an anonymous note addressed to the House of Commons of Canada. Fact-checking more effectively motivates awareness and advocacy, whereas narratives boost support for actual policy change the most. Surprisingly, we observe diminishing effects of combining both interventions. These findings pave a way forward for advocates of reparations by identifying promising strategies to rally mass public support.