television industry and when they are it often plays into negative stereotypes. However, Bailey evokes the narrative that Indigenous woman can be fully developed relatable characters who fulfill all of the facets required for representation female characters in cinema. The character of Joan in The Wake is actually the morally superior character between her and all of the white male characters which is highlighted throughout the film by her strong voice and judgment. Norma Bailey did a majority of her pure feminist filmmaking in the 1980s which was an important and radical time for the feminist movement. The 1980s were a time of radical social change were feminist ideologies and activists were publicly addressing sexism alongside re-examining the movements internal racism and classism. The films Bailey wrote, produced, and directed in the 1980s showcased this ideological re-working of the feminist movement through her treatment and dedication to creating serious and respectful Indigenous led content. Bailey consciously tried to redirect and dispel any connotations of racism, sexism, and classism while creating cinema surrounding colonial oppression in Canada. A variety of her 1980s era films highlight the shifting ideological framework of the feminist movement towards intersectional feminism while working against cycles of colonial oppression within the film industry. Taking into consideration the example of The Wake alongside a variety of her other films, it is easy to categorize Norma Bailey has an important feminist figure in the cinematic industry. Bailey has a distinctive perception of womanhood and the various roles women inhabit within society and portrays them onscreen to be representational of lived female experiences. She does not shy away from depicting true femininity and beautifully represents women as independent human beings who are capable of character and moral superiority over men and the patriarchal views, values, and ideals of womanhood commonly represented through cinema. Decolonization Settler colonialism has implemented heteronormative and patriarchal norms that directly oppress many traditional Indigenous expressions, structures, and kinships regarding gender. Western ideologies are the social norm and liberally expressing any kind of variation from the mainstream is punished through social isolation and ridicule. Colonialism is therefore, a naturally sexist structural institution creating a gendered hierarchy which is forced upon societies that differ from their heteronormative view on gender roles. An example of the link between colonialism and sexism would be the 1876 Indian Act, which forced a patrilineal social structure onto the traditional Indigenous matrilineal organization