Beans (2021) Characters, Setting & Themes Explained

Beans is set in Kahnawake, a Mohawk reserve along the St. Lawrence River in Quebec, and in Kahnesatake territory near the town of Oka. These locations become focal points of confrontation as the community resists a golf course expansion into their land and a historic burial ground.

• kahnawake
• kahnesatake
• mohawk
• quebec
• setting
• oka

Beans is set in 1990 during the Oka Crisis, a real historical conflict between the Mohawk community and the Canadian government over land rights and development on indigenous territory.

• 1990
• oka crisis
• time period
• historical
• quebec

The Oka Crisis is a protest against a golf course expansion that would encroach on Mohawk land and a historic burial ground. The conflict escalates with police raids, military deployment, and barricades that isolate the Kahnesatake territory, creating a tense standoff between the indigenous community and government forces.

• oka crisis
• protest
• golf course
• burial ground
• land rights
• mohawk

The film explores four interconnected themes: coming of age amid political crisis, indigenous land rights and protest, family and community resilience, and the impact of trauma and abuse. These themes weave together Beans' personal maturation with the larger struggle for sovereignty and cultural preservation.

• themes
• coming of age
• land rights
• family
• community
• trauma
• protest

Beans (Tekehentahkhwa) is a bright preteen from Kahnawake who stands on the cusp of adolescence. She dreams of attending a prestigious Montreal school and navigates the chaos of protest life while embracing her Mohawk identity and learning where she belongs in a changing world.

• beans
• tekehentahkhwa
• protagonist
• kiawentiio
• mohawk identity

Tekehentahkhwa is Beans' Mohawk name, which she embraces during the crisis as part of her growing connection to her indigenous heritage and identity.

• tekehentahkhwa
• mohawk name
• indigenous identity
• culture

April is an older girl Beans admires for her toughness, but she introduces Beans to rough behavior including smoking and dangerous peer dynamics. The friendship exposes Beans to difficult situations and hints at personal pain in April's life, including implications of a troubled home environment.

• april
• paulina alexis
• friend
• influence
• danger

Kahnawake is a Mohawk reserve located along the St. Lawrence River in Quebec, Canada. It is home to the Mohawk community and serves as one of the primary settings for the film, representing both the everyday life and the ancestral territory at the center of the Oka Crisis.

• kahnawake
• mohawk reserve
• st lawrence river
• indigenous community

The Oka Crisis forces Beans' family to endure evacuations, shortages, and displacement as they relocate between shelters and hotels. Their mother Lily guides them through the upheaval with quiet strength while managing her own pregnancy, demonstrating the strain and resilience of Mohawk families during the standoff.

• lily
• family
• evacuation
• displacement
• mohawk kinship

Hawi (Kania'tariio) is Beans' cousin who represents community leadership during the crisis. He helps guide the conversation toward protecting the burial grounds and works toward securing a government agreement, embodying the role of indigenous leaders advocating for sovereignty and land rights.

• hawi
• kania'tariio
• cousin
• community leader
• land rights