His masters thesis, entitled,Facing the Challenge of Freedom: Dene Nationalism and the Politics of Cultural Recognition, was published at the University of Victoria in 2003.
His doctorate dissertation, supervised by philosopherJames Tully, was titled,Subjects of Empire? Indigenous Peoples and the "Politics of Recognition" in Canada, published in 2009 at the University of Victoria.[7] A version of this writing, entitled, "Subjects of Empire: Indigenous Peoples and the 'Politics of Recognition' in Canada", won best article of the year after being published inContemporary Political Theory in 2007.[8]
After receiving his PhD at the University of Victoria in 2009, Coulthard co-founded Dechinta, with programming beginning in 2010.[7][9] While he taught at Dechinta periodically, after 2015, Coulthard began spending half his teaching time there following a partnership between Dechinta and UBC.[10]
Coulthard has visited various universities, conferences, and organizations, being featured on panels or giving lectures on topics of Indigenous politics and colonialism (seeRecorded lectures/talks).
In 2014, Coulthard released his first book,Red Skin, White Masks: Rejecting the Colonial Politics of Recognition, garnering various academic awards (seeBooks) and critical success.[4][12][13] TheCanadian Journal of Law and Society said that Coulthard's book "immediately establishes itself as a cornerstone in the areas of Indigenous governance, political theory, and activism."[14] The title itself is a play on the title ofBlack Skin, White Masks byFrantz Fanon, a nod to the heavy influence of Fanon's anti-colonial work that Coulthard integrated into his writing.[15] As activist and journalistHarsha Walia states, regardingRed Skin, White Masks,
Coulthard's premise is a forceful one: there is no freedom to be found in or from thesettler-colonial state. Drawing primarily on Frantz Fanon, Coulthard interrogates how concessions by the state maintain both the objective and subjective realms of colonial power. He challenges theliberal pluralism of state-based efforts at recognition that serve to mediate and accommodate Indigenous claims through the Canadian state itself.[16]
Red Skin, White Masks featured the Coulthard's coining of the termgrounded normativity, which scholarLeanne Betasamosake Simpson describes as "the ethical frameworks generated by place-based practices and associated knowledges."[17] The book features criticisms of theTruth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada, which Coulthard says ignores the ongoing nature of colonialism.[18]
In November 2019, along withAngela Davis, the Palestinian Youth Movement,Winona LaDuke, and many other people and organizations, Coulthard co-signed an open letter calling on the United Nations to condemn thecoup inBolivia.[19]
He has placed the onus, the burden of proof, on Indigenous peoples to demonstrate their commitment to reconciliation on his terms – or on the terms of a weaponized majority – by pitting so-called 'regular Canadians and workers' againstIndigenous peoples who have been rendered minorities on their homeland due to colonization and a history of genocide.[23]
In October 2023, Coulthard co-signed a declaration of Indigenous solidarity with Palestinians in condemnation of Israel’s actions during theIsrael-Hamas War.[25]
“Beyond Recognition: Indigenous Self-Determination as Prefigurative Practice.” Ed.Leanne Simpson.Lighting the Eighth Fire: The Liberation, Resurgence, and Protection of Indigenous Nations. (Winnipeg:Arbeiter Ring Press, 2008).
“From 'Wards of the State' to Subjects of Recognition?” inAndrea Smith and Audra Simpson (eds.),Theorizing Native Studies (Durham:Duke University Press, 2014).
“#IdleNoMore in a Historical Context.” Ed. The Kino-nda-niimi Collective. The Winter We Danced. (Winnipeg: ARP Books, 2014).
“Subjects of Empire: Indigenous Peoples and the 'Politics of Recognition' in Canada.” (Feature Article: Theory and Practice)Contemporary Political Theory 6:4 (2007).
Indigenous Peoples and the Law. Book Series. Eds. Claire Charters, Glen Coulthard, Mark Harris,Denise Ferreira da Silva (New York:Routledge).
Recognition versus Self-Determination: Dilemmas of Emancipatory Politics. Eds. Andrée Boisselle, Glen Coulthard, Avigail Eisenberg, and Jeremy Webber. (Vancouver:University of British Columbia Press, 2014).
New Socialist: Special Issue on Indigenous Resurgence. Issue no. 5. Eds. Gerald Taiaiake Alfred, Glen Coulthard, and Deborah Simmons.
"Facing the challenge of freedom :Dene nationalism and the politics of cultural recognition." Thesis. (University of Victoria, 2003).
"Subjects of Empire? : indigenous peoples and the "Politics of recognition" in Canada." Dissertation. (University of Victoria, 2009)
Glen Coulthard, Mandee McDonald, Stephanie Irlbacher-Fox, and Matthew Wildcat. "Learning from the land: Indigenous land based pedagogy and decolonization".
"Place against Empire : the Dene Nation, Land Claims, and the Politics of Recognition in the North." Article. (University of British Columbia Press, 2014).
On This Patch of Grass: City Parks on Occupied Land. Sadie Couture, Daisy Couture, Selena Couture, Matt Hern, and Erick Villagomez. Preface: Denise Ferreira da Silva. Outro: Glen Coulthard. (Halifax &Winnipeg:Fernwood Publishing, 2018).
^Coulthard, Glen Sean (2003).Facing the challenge of freedom: Dene nationalism and the politics of cultural recognition (Thesis).OCLC858622713.
^abcCoulthard, Glen Sean; Tully, James; University of Victoria (B.C.); Department of Political Science; University of Victoria (B.C.) (2009).Subjects of Empire?: indigenous peoples and the "Politics of recognition" in Canada.hdl:1828/1913.ISBN978-0-494-66857-3.OCLC858655508.
^Coulthard, Glen Sean, 1974- (2014).Red Skin, White Masks : Rejecting the Colonial Politics of Recognition. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.ISBN978-1-4529-4242-1.OCLC891449749.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
^"#ThisIsACoup".Progressive.org. 2019-11-11.Archived from the original on 2023-09-06. Retrieved2020-04-10.
Quotations related toGlen Coulthard at Wikiquote