Periodical
Nesika: The Voice of B.C. Indians -- Vol. 3 No. 10 (December 1974/January 1975)
- Title
- Nesika: The Voice of B.C. Indians -- Vol. 3 No. 10 (December 1974/January 1975)
- Is Part Of
- 1.06-01.02 Nesika: The Voice of BC Indians
- 1.06.-01 Newsletters and bulletins sub-series
- Date
- December 1974
- volume
- 3
- issue
- 10
- Language
- english
- Identifier
- 1.06-01.02-03.10
- pages
- 16
- Contributor
- G McEvitt
- Chief Victor Adolph
- Gerard Peters
- Gorde Sinclair
- Murray Munro
- Ida Russ
- Bill Williams
- David Chestnut
- Charles A Simpson
- Tim Pyrch
- Joy Hall
- Philip Paul
- James Wilson
- Type
- periodical
- Transcription (Hover to view)
-
Vancouver,
- Published by
UNION OF B.C. INDIAN CHIEFS
2140 W. 12th Avenue,
B.C. V6K 2N2
Telephone 736-6751
FREE TO ALL REGISTERED B.C. NATIVE INDIANS
- OTHERS: $5.00 PER YEAR
Vol.
_ (Chinook meaning “US”)
THE VOICE OF B. C. INDIANS
IH, No. 10°
aa, 18
. DEC: 1974-JAN. 1975
POSTAGE PAID IN VANCOUVER — SECOND CLASS MAIL Reg. No. 3025
JACOB KRUGER of. Penticton. was one of many vocal people at the
land cut-off meeting held in Victoria‘on Noy. 27 and 28. The meeting :.
enjoyed ‘an exceptional attendance with more than. one hundred
delegates and interested visitors turning out for each day.
the people
(LYTTON). —. The political
streigth of. Native ‘Indians was
brought to the attention of the
Native. members of the Yale-
‘Lillooet Riding October 26, 1974.
In this constituency it was noted-
that the Native vote was 46.8
percent of the total vote in the 1973
election.
This is. the combined status and
non-status vote for the con-
stituency and this figure can be
increased to 60 percent if all .
Natives vote. Therefore the Indian
vote has the potential of deter-
mining..the elected MLA.
In the 1972 election only 69.36
percent of the registered voters
cast ballots. }
Voiced at this first meeting was
the disappointments and
dissatisfactions of the Native
. people in the Government of the
NDP Party. Expressions of regret
were voiced as to the Yale-Lillooet
MLA and Cabinet Member, the
Hon. Wm. Hartley as to his silence
.
,B.C., V6K 2N2, Canada
lease return to Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs,
Postage paid in Vancouver — Second Class Mail Reg. No. 3025
2140 West 1 2th Avenue, Vancouver,
if undeliverable, p
: cut-offs have
in the
enn:
walled for a freeze o1
all land effected by the commission
until a settlement is reached with
the B.C. government.
The demand came at a- special
meeting on Nov. 27 and 28 of the 23
concerned bands and’ interested
parties called by the Union of B.C.
Indian Chiefs and was included in
the terms of reference drawn up
for an action committee elected out
of the delegates.
‘The nine man committee was
delegated with the responsibility of
spear-heading and co-ordinating
an all-out drive. to bring the
provincial governmént to the’
negotiating table to reach set-
tlement on the long standing
dispute.
The committee is chaired by
Penticton Band Chief Adam Eneas
Power continued
in Cabinet as. to voicing ‘the con---
cerns of the Indian people.
A working committee was struck
to gather further information and
formulate political strategy of the
Indian ‘people. This committee
consists of two members from the
Merritt area, two members from
the Lytton area and two members
from the Lillooet area. The com-
mittee is open ended te include the
BCANSI locals. to participate.
One major concern expressed
was the very ineffective and in-
convenient location of the polling
stations in the 1972 elections.
“Penticton;
meeting.
Stelkia, Osoyons: ‘Jacob oe
Joe Mathias,:. Squa-
mish; Howard Wale, -Hazelton
and George Watts, Sheshaht.
In the terms of reference, the
committee was given two main
functions: to act as a lobby and
pressure group in -achieving set-
tlement of the cut-off claims and to
communicate. with co-ordinate
related work and.research done at
the band level.
There was strong feeling ex-
pressed by the delegates that they
did not want the work committee to
bear the total responsibility of the
movement.
It-was suggested by Gilbért Joe
that to get the best results it would
be necessary for each band to put
continual political pressure on
their individual MLA’s. The
general recommendation, also,
was that each band. should be
responsible.for researching their
own claims.
UBCIC. Land Claims Research
director Philip Paul told the
meeting that the Alaska land claim
was successfully settled. only
because of the continuous pressure
applied over the years. “They
talked .to everyone who would
listen,’’ he said.
Paul suggested that everyone, on
and off the committee, should
spend as’ much time as possible
contacting and phoning govern-
ment people in Victoria.
The: initial pressure for . set-
foreground is UBCIC land claims ‘research director Philip Paul’ and just
off to his right is George Watts of Port Alberni: who chaired. the
— =(G. McKevitt photo)
é aeM
‘commissior although | land cut-offs
have resulted. from a wide variety —
of. causes.
It was felt that these specific cut-
offs be pursued because they were
the best researched and fairly
clear cut.
_ Chief Joe Mathias of Squamish
pointed out that every band in B.C.
has been effected by cut-offs of one
kind or another including, among
others, re-surveys, roads, ‘rail-
ways, hydro lines and Indian Af-
fairs sale. of lands not considered
reserve.
He said that to be most effective
the McKenna-McBride. cut-offs
should be isolated and settlement
pursued on them first.
In other business in the two day
meeting the delegates had a
chance to quiz two members of the
provincial official oppostion party.
One of the main objectives of the
conference had been to-involve as
many MLA’s as possible in lear-
ning and answering .questions
about the cut-off issue. To this end
invitations had been sent out two
months prior to the meeting to
every member of the legislature.
The only two to arrive and stay
for any period of time were Frank
Ricter and Hugh Curtis, both of
Social Credit. Public Works
minister’ Bill Hartley and NDP
backbencher Jim Gorst, turned up
for.a short time but refused to sit
on the panel to answer questions
saying they had not come prepared
and preferred to sit and listen.
~ Quebec
Quebec Indian representatives
have signed an agreement in
principle giving up aboriginal title
to lands in the north of the province
in exchange for $150 million and
land to live and earn | their
livelihood from.
The announcement of the sete
tlement between the province and
the -Cree people came on
November 15 and represents the
final outcome of a long standing
Indians settle claim
dispute touched off by a proposed
huge $12 billion hydro electric
project in the James Bay area.
In the agreement the Indians will.
receive $75 million over. the first
ten years and the remaining $75
million from hydro-electric
royalties over another ten year
period. ,
In terms of land they will receive
outright ownership of 2,000 square
miles plus exclusive hunting,
fishing and - trapping . rights to
another 25,000 square miles.
In addition they will get 25
percent of royalties for 20 years
from any other development in the _
territory in the next 50 years plus
an agreement to shift the LG-1 dam
site to mile 54 from mile 23 on La
Grande River.
The Fort George Cree Band,
which lives at the mouth of the
(Continued on page 2)
“progress being made. on
Audit asked
for cannery
By GERARD PETERS
(Staff) Skeena MP Iona
,Campagnolo who is parliamentary
secretary to the Minister of Indian
Affairs has asked that “‘a special
and specific audit” be done irito the
_ operation of the Port Simpson
cannery.
She said that his should be done
in order to ‘clear the air of
suspicion’ so that the cannery
could ‘‘get on with the work.”
Her assistant, Tom Mcllaterick
said that she took this: stand after
receiving -letters. from her con-
stituents and because of feedback
received during the party con-
‘vention in Vernon last Oétober.
Meanwhile there is a petition
being .circulated among the
members ‘of the Pacifié: North
Coast Native Cooperative. asking
that a general meeting be held‘at
the Fishermen’s Hall in Prince
Rupert. In asking for this meeting
the petition cites.concern about the
the
cannery’’ as: well the
management of it:
SITUATION SERIOUS
“Chairman. of. the. North Coast.
as
‘ District Council; Don Smith says
that if the situation was as serious
appeared _ complaints
nee probably: would have been ‘made to’
the,
District. Coun
mbly
November.
‘When I have an indication from
the District Council: then I’ll take
this seriously,” he adds. -
A source. near the operation says
that the management does not
have the expertise to run a can-
during..their- tout
- week of
_nery. Also there was a possible
conflict of interest because
members of the board of directors
of the cooperative also held can-
nery-related jobs.
Reynold Russ, chiefs’ council
representative for the North Coast
District and chief of the Massett
band contends that a report should
be made available to the bands.
Thus far, he says, there have. been
no reports made regarding the
cannery and its progress. ‘I think
it’s got to be done,” he says.
“RUMOURS”
Tom Greene, on the board of
directors of the cooperative says
that the petition was never brought
to the attention of the Board of
Directors. He said if it had, it
would be up to the beard to act on
. it. It was, he said, a dead issue.
“We can’t listen to rumours.”
A meeting between the board of
directors of the cooperative and
John Clifton, president of. the
Native Brotherhood:and the third
vice-president Fred Kelly -as well
as - Jamie Sterritt the
Brotherhood’s local manager in
Prince Rupert proved valuable
said Tom Greene. He. said that
there were general discussions and
that “Everything seems quite
’ favorable.”
Jamie Sterritt said that the
‘meeting ‘‘opened some doors”’ and
indications were that any dif-
ferences that the Brotherhood had
with the Cooperative should not
have existed.
MEETING SET
He adds that they have reached
an agreement to meet and really
resolye any differences. A tan-
tative date has been set for the first
week in January.
Feedback from one director was
(Continued on. page 2)
Quebec Indians
(Continued from page 1)
river, had wanted the elimination
of the dam, originally to be built 25
miles from their settlement, and a
scaling down of LG-2, the giant 590
foot dam now under construction,
76 miles from their settlement.
According to Native spokesman,
Chief Billy Diamond, all the
monies received will be tax
exempt. He also said that all
current court proceedings will be
suspended and will be renewed
only if the Quebec government has
not made the agreement in prin-
cipal official by Nov. 1; 1975.
Of the basic $75 million payment,
$32.75 million will be paid by the
federal government with the
remainder coming from the
province of Quebec.
The federal commitment in the
settlement may. be important to
_B.C. Land Claims as it represents
the first real action in recognizing
aboriginal title to land.
Tona Campagnolo, parliamen-
tary secretary to the minister of
Indian. affairs, reportedly said
after the settlement an-
nouncement: “‘My. own point of
view is that this will serve as a
benchmark and a precedent in the
negotiation of land claim set-
tlements.”’
.. “Even though the parameters of
settlement in B.C. may be of a
quite different scope,”’ she said, “I
feel the agreement in principle will
be of great significance to the
Union of B.C.. Indian Chiefs, the
Nishga Tribal: Council, the com-
mittee of the Haida Nation and all
other Indian groups in B.C. who
are seeking land settlements.”
“The example of the province of
‘Quebec. is one I would hope the
province of B.C. would emulate,”
she said, referring to the Barrett
government’ s refusal to par-
ticipate. in B.C.. claims
negotiations. :
The huge James Bay Devela
“ment project which will flood large
areas of lands that. provided a'
traditional livelihood for the Cree
Indians has been fought tooth and
nail by Quebec Indians and con-
cerned environmental groups ever
since its announcement several
. years ago.
A brief history of the battle in-
cludes the following:
Mr. Justice Albert Malouf of
Quebec Superior Court granted a
temporary injunction halting work
on the project. until the issue of
-hative rights was settled.
~The Quebec Court of Appeal
suspended the injunction until the
James Bay Development Cor-
poration had a chance to appeal the
injunction, permitting work on the
site to continue. '
-— The Supreme Court of
Canada rejected by a 3-2 vote a
request'to appeal the Quebec Court
of Appeal decision to suspend the
temporary injunction granted by
Mr. Justice Malouf.
Premier Robert Bourasa
made public a government offer to
the native peoples of $100 million
and 2,000 square miles of land to
which they would hold title forever.
The offer was rejected.
Audit asked
(Continued from page 1)
that the Coop received no in-
vitations to either the
Brotherhood’s or the District
Council’s meetings and con-,
ventions.
President of the Brotherhood,
John Clifton said that this was. not.
his knowledge. It was the intent of
the Brotherhood that the dialogue
be kept open.
PROBLEMS ARISE
The basic problem behind the’
management according to a source
near the operation is that while
employees must answer to the
general manager and he to the
board of directors a problem arises
when the board of. directors are
employees themselves.
VICTORIA (Staff)
“Everybody is talking about the
$150 million the Indians are getting
but nobody has .mentioned the
extent of the white man’s set-
tlement,”’ according to Philip Paul,
Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs Land
Claims research director.
Commenting on the recent
-settlement of land claims between
the Cree Indians and Quebec, Paul
said that the real winner in the deal
was the James Bay Development
Corporation, the Crown - Cor-
poration: in charge of the huge |
hydro-electric project that sparked
the dispute.
“This settlement,” he said, “has
more or less given the green light
_ project.
‘someone a department store for
two dollars with the understanding ©
Settle disputes
says Barber
QUEBEC .— Indian grievances,
dating back as far as 300 years, can
and must be negotiated by the
Canadian Government with a
determination. to reach “fair and
honorable agreements,’’ Indian
Claims Commissioner L. I. Barber,
told the Royal Society of Canada in
October.
Speaking to the society’s Sym-
posium on Amerindians, Dr.
Barber said that such agreements
would eliminate ‘‘token in-
volvement” by the native people,
who would have the power to play
an increasingly important part in
future developments in their parts
of the country. -
“Recent militancy demonstrated
by some Indians”. he said,. had
made it. ‘clear that native
frustration is building and that
solutions must be found. At the
same time, Canadians had before
them a unique opportunity to show
the world that we can deal with a
difficult problem in an enlightened
way.
Dr. Barber traced the complex
maze of treaties, word-of-mouth
understandings and misun-
derstandings that made the
problem of native grievances so
urgently. in need of solution. As a
result of the patchwork quilt of
arrangements’ inherited by the
federal and provincial govern-
ments, the ahswers will not be easy
find.
“The Indians have embraced
an approach to the settlement of -
their claims which is a_ radical
departure from the tradition of
dealing with the land rights. of
Indian people,’ he said. ‘They
have rejected the notion that land
settlement necessarily means the
extinguishment of rights.”’
The federal government, for its
part, enunciated its policy in
August, 1973: ‘‘In all these cases
where the traditional interest in.
land has not been formally dealt
with, the Government affirms its
willingness to do so and accepts in
principle that the loss and
relinquishment of that interest
ought to be compensated.”
Dr. Barber estimated that each
of the 550 or more Indian bands in
Canada will have one or more
specific types of claim to. submit
and that proper machinery must
be. set up by the federal and
provincial . governments to deal
with them.
-.“Indians are concerned’ with
their future as Indians .within a
large and powerful society,’ he
added. ‘“‘They are now demanding’
in an educated, articulate and
forceful. way, that past tran-
sgressions against their special
status and special'rights ‘be cleared |
up, as a pre-condition to their self-
determination about how they will
take their position, proud and
independent, side by side with us in
shaping a new future.”
Jam
es Bay
to JBDC to go ahead - with the
development.”
“When it comes: right down te it
the Indians got about one per cent
of the total. worth and the
whiteman,. through the JBDC got
the remaining 99 .per. cent,’’ Paul
said. .
Paul went on to say that from.
what he had learned of the.
ageeement he felt that much of
what was. granted already, in
reality, belonged to the Indians.
He also pointed out that half of.
the $150 million was to come from
royalties on the hydro-electric
“That. is like selling
that the remainder of ‘the money
will, come from profits earned
through the store,”’ he said.
“My initial gut reaction,’ Paul
said earlier, ‘‘is that I find it dif-
ficult to feel good about it.”
“When you examine it, it has the
flavor of the beads and blankets
philosophy behind it. There’s a bit
more money, maybe, but the same
underlying principle.”
“They (the governments) don’t
understand the Indian people and
their relationship to land,” he said,
“What they’ve done is to admit, in
a way, that land is a commodity.
“There’s something . very. im-
portant there. The underlying
philosophy responsible for this
-quickly.”’
Nhiteman the jeal winner”
settlement certainly ‘can’t be the
basis for B.C.”
The settlement does have some
positive aspects, however, Paul
noted: “The good thing I can say is
that it is a recognition of the
existence of aboriginal rights of the
Indian people.”
“By giving them areas to hunt
and fish, to.carry on the Indian way
of life, they’ve recognized that
Indian people have these rights.”
Regarding the money Paul said
that felt much of it “‘is going to slip
through Indian. hands very
“if I was given that kind of offer
as far as B.C. Indians were con-
cerned there’s. no way I would
commit myself to signing it,”’ Paul
id. ;
sai
CHIEF. HENRY PAULL (left) and band. manager Clarence Joe pose in front of ‘tha Sechelt students’
residence which has enjoyed a varied but useful! history. Built first in the early 1900s it was later destroyed
by fire. Built in its present form in 1923, with later additions-and renovations it has served to house and
educate Indian children from different reserves over a péprod nearly spanning three-quarters of this century.
- It is due to close June 30th.
Sechelt residence facing closure
By GERARD PETERS
SECHELT (Staff) — The Sechelt
students residence, in various
capacities has served to further the
education of Indian children for a
time spanning nearly three-
quarters of a century.‘
Chief Henry Paull of the Sechelt
band was notified in a letter dated
’ November 21 that, ‘‘From time to
time we, have been discussing the
closure of the Sechelt. Student
Residence and it was decided
yesterday that the Residence
would close on June 30th, 1975:” It
was. signed by district supervisor
W. J. Easton, Fraser District.
Despite the mention . of
discussion of closure the band
claims, however, that’ they were
not. notified of an. impending
decision to close the former school.
In fact, says Teddy Joe, who
serves. as education coordinator
and is on band council, the decision
was reached without: consultation
with the Sechelt. band.
Echoes fellow councillor Gilbert
Joe, “We suddenly got this as a
surprise.”
‘The band says that the word was
given first to band manager
Clarence Joe ata meeting attended
by the higher-ups in Indian Affairs.
Clarence.Jee was given no inkling
of the closure decision prior to this.
CAUSE AND EFFECT
Closure woild have far reaching ©
implications for the Sechelt band.
Twenty band members realize an
income of 1380 to 140 thousand
dollars from the residence.
The local school district will also
feel the bite. With perhaps 75 or 80
students removed from the district
their budget will be cut by nearly
$1000 per pupil.
It is estimated that 75 percent of .
the students in the residence are
from Mount Currie and Sliammon.
Teddy. Joe suspected that these
bands might have had consultation
with Indian Affairs about the
decision to- close. *
Boyce Banner, head of education
for Fraser district, however has
said that his office has had no
formal indication from either band
except that Mount Currie was
possibly leaning. toward taking
over its entire education
programme.
NO INFORMATION
He added that he had heard the
figure of $5000 maintenance per
pupil per year mentioned and a
figure of $1 million which would be
required te bring the residence up
to standard. He was not consulted
about the decision and he was
called in because he was given the
duty of notifying the administrator
and the school district.
He said it was a management
decision, meaning the Regional
office of the Department of Indian
Affairs. We were unable to contact
Al Friesen, head of education in the
regional offices by press time.
Sechelt says they have been .
getting good input from the bands
whose children live in the
residence and none had mentioned
pulling out entirely.
They point out that they’ve
received no monies from. Indian .
Affairs for the use of their reserve
land first for a school then as a
residence. The property is prime
economic development land.
OTHER USES ©
Their administration offices are
located in a former day school
which was built in 1952 after the
Sechelt band agreed to pull their
students from the residential
school to allow more isolated bands
to send their children to school.
Characteristically they’re now
looking for the best use to make of
their property.
They point out that former
residences, have been put to good
use. Port Alberni now provides
offices for. the West Coast District
Council. Alert Bay is now a marine
school.
The former residential school
turned students’ residence may
one day house the elderly or the
handicappéd.
By BILL WILLIAMS /
In a constructive recreation
wogram, participation from our
irst original citizens (Indians), is
coming more and more ap-
sarent. It is difficult to understand
vhy a study has not been made on
his subject. The fact remains that
nany young Indians show much
‘kill in most sports. Outlets to
urther their abilities must be
wromoted or provided for.
As much as I hate to think,
‘Could prejudice be a factor of
etting the young natives think they
xcel only. while they are in
ichool?”’ If this is not the cause,
‘Then why are they not further
ncouraged?’’.
For all ths studies that have been
nade on our Indians of Canada,
‘concerning their failures of un-
lerstanding the white methods of
sducation, politics and policies, no
me has taken the time to observe
heir credibility in the field of
Recreation
sports. Much of the talent is simply
being ignored ‘or is not being
developed. It is to my belief that if
this talent can be developed and
given the chance to grow, many of
the problems could be solved.
One of the answers’ is the
development of recreation
programs with native recreation
leadership. There should be.
Training schools. Each and every
Indian community should have
recreation committees. There has
to be more concern in developing
recreational sports and programs
for the younger native children. No
community spirit. means no
programs for the children.
Maybe all Native leaders should
look where the young people go for
social activity. From. what I have
seen and heard, the Native youths
have only the school to depend on.
When they go back to the Indian
community there is nothing or very
little done to keep them out of the
is the better way
juvenile deliquent courts. They
must be able to develop themselves
personally, or should be rewarded
if they try to start something such
as a Youth club on the reserve or in
the community. Remember the
youths of today are going to be the
leaders of tomorrow. If nothing is
done to show the youth how good it
is to live in the Native communities
and show a concern in their
learning years, they will all go to
the ‘non-Indian way of life and
living.
I believe that through the
development of - recreation
programs, Indian communities
will grow closer together and
develop a_ stronger community
spirit. With this the young Native
people will have a place in the.
community. They will. be more
eager and proud to better the
Native community as they grow
older and take over the leadership
of the Indian community.
Self respect the key
By CHARLES A. SIMPSON
Editors Note: Dr. Simpson is the
hairman of the British Columbia
Medical Association’s on Indian
ealth and wrote the following
irticle for the B.C. Medical
‘ournal.
The level of health among Native
ndians in B.C., both registered
nd non-status, is abysmally low.
‘he Indian Health Committee has ;
epeatedly stressed the appalling
igures in their reports:
— an infant mortality more
han three times that of ~non-
ndians, *
~ a horrifying infection rate in
ae young. }
— a frightening death
rom accidents. :
If one looks closely at these cold
tatistics it becomes clear that
1ese are all diseases of poverty,
ack of education, poor housing and
ocial conditions, overcrowding,
epression, alcoholism, and’so on.
These are not so much
‘medical’ diseases in the ordinary
iense but socio-economic diseases.
WHAT WILL HELP?
The mere availability of health
rate
care does not make the Indian
healthy. The Indian must want to
be healthy and have enough self-
respect and motivation to bé
healthier. Would a gigantic in-
fusion of funds from Indian Affairs
to all reserves with provision of
many good roomy sanitary house
make them healthy? It would help
but probably still wouldn’t succeed
without the self-generated desire
and motivation to be healthy.
Many of the problems of Indian:
health Gare delivery are those of
,remote area health care and these
can eventually be solved by the use
of efficient transportation, com-
munication, emergency . service,
nurse practitioners and other in-
novations. : : ie
The desire to be healthy,
however, cannot be taught, or-
dered, legislated or bought. It has
to come from the Indian people at
grass roots level. :
Will this desire for health
come ... and when?
Yes, it has started to occur, but
not rapidly. It has to develop and
growin its own good time, just as a
child does. Some children grow
faster than. others, similarly its
development will vary from
What has happened to
government’s new deal?
The provincial government
purned some sound advice when it
helved a report by a former civil
ervant on land claims by British
‘olumbia’s native Indians. Written
y an assistant to Frank Calder,
tho used to be minister without
ortfolio responsible for Indian
iatters in Premier Dave Barrett’s
dministration it recommended
iat B.C. immediately — this was
ight months ago enter
egotiations with Ottawa on
boriginal land claims and return
ost haste the cut-off lands taken
‘om Indian reserves in B.C. half a
antury ago.
The last-named include some of
1e choicest real estate in the
rovince today. One’ section
amoved from the Capilano
2serve in North Vancouver, at the
orth-end of Lions Gate bridge next
»-one of the largest shopping
antres in Canada, is estimated by
idians to be worth $18 million.
According to a confidential |
‘emo to the federal cabinet which
as made public a year ago,
ttling all types of native land
aims in B.C. and the Yukon
ould cost $600 million and 26
illion acres. ,
The official position of the
‘ovincial government hasn’t
idged. Most recently enunciated
'. Human Resources Minister
orman Levi at a demonstration
by several hundred Indians on the
lawn of the legislature, it states
with ostrich-like simplicity: “It’s
none of our business, it’s entirely
Ottaw’s responsibility.”
And of course, Ottawa can reply
(as Prime Minister Trudeau did in
April, 1973) that it is waiting for
B.C. to get into the picture since
the province controls almost all the
Crown land there is in B.C., land
which enevitably would’ be
required in any kind of settlement
of native land claims. Meanwhile,
the Indians get ground up in the
middle of the waiting game:
"Not to denigrate the provincial
government’s real accom-
plishments in bettering the lot
of the 100,000 Indians in this
province — bank rolling a cannery
and fishing fleet on the north coast,
cutting them in on a sawmill
project at Burns Lake, improving
housing in the far north — but the
land claims question is paramount.
It’s time the provincial govern-
ment swallowed its misplaced
pride and dismantled this blockade
on the path to Indian equality. Or
didn’t the government’s much
vaunted New Deal for People —
‘which promised support of a
mechanism to settle Indian land
claims — apply to the five per cent .
of B.C. residents who were born
with red skin.
—Victoria Times -
reserve to reserve and person to
person. .
POLITICAL AWARENESS
However, doctors frustrated by
the apparent lack of interest in
health among Indians must face
the realities. Health cannot come
without self respect. Self respect in
a.group cannot occur without
political awareness. —
The development of political
awareness is a turbulent process
and has its own priorities — health
is not high on the list. Land is. Land
claims are top priority in the In-
dian political awareness program
and ‘‘Wounded Knees’’ are the type .
of health problem most likely to
occupy: Indian: political attention
for some time.
To develop self respect the In-
dians_ have to .do things for
themselves on their own initiative.
They will need money, non-Indian
money, as they will never do things
with their own meagre funds. They
will need much more spent on
health the non-Indians to bring
them even close to the non-Indian
level. They must be given it to
spend as they think fit. :
Of course there will be some
incompetence, waste, graft and
misuse of funds — as in any long
established municipality or even
nation (Watergate?). If, after
many decades of so-called
civilization this still goes on, ‘so it
will go on in the learning process.
This is no reason to deny the funds.
M.D.’S ROLE .
While we are waiting for our
. levels of government to decide
whether Indian Health is a federal
or a provincial responsibility, what
can an individual physician do to
help? “8
First he can treat all Indian.
patients with the same courtesy
and consideration as _ other
patients, perhaps with more at-
tempt to understand their many
medical problems. I hope that
separate waiting rooms for Indians
are long since extinct. _
- Second, if an Indian, particularly
from a remote area presents
himself with a clear-cut medical
problem, the physician must
consider whether the clear-cut
. medical solution really is the best
for him. ,
Will it be best for his social
circumstances, his economic state,
his state of mind? Will. it cause
more problems than it solves?
Finally, the doctor can co-
operate to the fullest extent with
any local health education or
health delivery scheme for In-
dians, particularly if it is con-
ceived and' organized by Indians.
FUTURE OF COMMITTEE
I have said that good health
camnot.be bought or taught but has
(Continued on page 15).
Manitou
The tribe vanished
Our heritage
Children to be born
Before conception.
_ The eagle flies at dawn
Oh, Manitou.
The tribal song of union
With
The morning sun.
The pot-ash fires grow cold
Asa dusty sunset dies.
Village of spirit and light
Destroyed
The hands of conquering forces.
Now dead
Searching your face
Ride swiftly to our broken bodies
In our hearts
- . Evil progress slaughters
By David Chesnut.
Book review
_A dangerous attitude
he declares; ‘‘They. soon become
By TIM PYRCH
Douglas Leechman, Native Tribes
of Canada, W. J. Gage. Lid.,
Toronto, 1956. ;
Douglas Leechman’s book may
be. found in school libraries in
greater Vancouver. It is on the
curriculum of Grade 10 Social
Studies. At first glance, the book
appears useful. and it contains
several attractive drawings.
However, its usefulness is marred
by inaccuracies and misleading
statements. In the main, it is an old
fashioned statement of white
superiority and Indian inferiority.
The damage inherent in Leech-
man’s work. is evident early on. In
the Introduction, he devotes a
section to the physical appearance
‘of Indians. “In some places’, he
declares, ‘‘on the coast of B.C. for
instance, the Indians look so much
like Chinese that it is difficult to
tell one from another’’. One can but
wonder at his concern to em-
phasize and compare racial
features. Is not the emphasis on
physical differences suggestive of
hurtful and needless comparison?
Leechman organizes native
people into geographic areas and
provides some’ useful material
_about food, clothing, . dwellings,
social life, art, religion etc. Each
chapter ends with a tale or ‘legend’
of the people. He has done a
commendable job of . collecting
information, but presents much of
it as a kind of academic curiosity.
- He sees the native people as ob-
jects to be examined, and certainly
not equal to whites. That is hit
home when he sums up the present
conditions of native people. Leech-
man’s information is weak and
misleading when trying to describe
these conditions.
Excerpts from chapter con-
clusions illustrate Leechman’s
unfortunate negative attitude
about Indian people. For the In-
dians of the Eastern Woodlands, he
sees a future where “these in-
_teresting people” will be. fully
absorbed’ into ‘our. white
civilization’. About the “Eskimo”
most useful and. efficient
assistants’’. Leechman infers that
the Inuit will be nothing but
assistants to the superior whites.
The only hope he sees for native
people is for them to abandon their
age old culture and conform to
white society.
In summing up conditions of the
Indian people of the B.C. coast,
Leechman says; ‘‘In another
generation or two, the change from
the native ways to ours may be
almost complete’. How little he
knows of the native people!
Perhaps Mr. Leechman should
have asked the people what they
saw in their future rather than
suggest things which can do
nothing but anger a proud people
and confuse and mislead high
school students.
- Leechman’s conclusion is little
but an insult to native people. In .
past, he declares, the average
Canadian Indian lived in a state of
savagery. Is that a fit description
for a people who have flourished
for so long? The author believes an
Indian ‘‘. .. would never think of
killing a wounded animal simply to
cut short its suffering, but was
more likely to be amused by its
screams and struggles’’. Mr.
Leechman neglects to tell us where
‘he obtained such information, but
seems merely content to say such
outlandish things.
This statement that Canadian
Indians were treated much better
by government than was the case
elsewhere in the Americas is
equally unjustified. Nothing can be
done for older Indians, Leechman
concludes. However, he hopes the
young will live and think the white .
way.
Leechman quite rightly points
out the lack of adequate books
about Indian people. His con-
tribution has not helped matters.
Students will not be assisted by this
book in the real need to.learn about
Canada’s native people. Indeed, we
all are made poorer by the
presence of this book on school
shelves.
Page Six
First.
Land claims centre
what, where and why
By PHILIP PAUL
The Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs Land Claims Research Centre was
established in Victoria in September of 1973 in an effort to gather together
all the necessary research material that will assist the Indian people of
B.C. to prepare a comprehensive Land Claims settlement position.
There are nine people presently working at the Research Centre‘ and
twelve Land Claims Resource Workers out in the Districts.
The primary reason the Research Centre was established is that
there is no one source presently available that contains all the pertinent
information related to our claims. It is the hope of the Research Centre
staff to eventually have all the available material and information
located within this Central facility for the use of the Negotiating team of
the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs. ;
The primary function of the District Land Cliams Resource Worker is
to act as a liason between the districts and the Research Centre. The _
resource workers are responsible for setting up informational workshops
at the district level and assisting bands to initiate discussion on Land
Claims at the band level.
As we progress towards settlement their jobs will very likely change
as demands of the districts change. : :
For further information, please phone or write to this office or con-
tact your District Resource Worker. ,
Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs,
Land Claims Research Centre,
890-B McKenzie Avenue,
VICTORIA, B.C. TELEPHONE: 479-7166
RESOURCE WORKERS: AREA
1. Alfred Scow Kwawkwelth
P.O. Box 144,
ALERT BAY, B.C. 287-4551
2. Angus Dickie Fort St. John
P.O. Box 1140,
FT. NELSON, B.C. / 775-2208
3. Charlie Shaw Terrace-Kitimat
P.O. Box 47
KITIMAT, B.C. 632-7774
4. Wilson Bob South Island
R.R. #1 Soted 3
LANTZVILLE, B.C. 390-4731
5. Wes Williams Lytton-Lillooet
P.O. Box. 18,
LYTTON, B.C. 455-2276
6. Ms. Janice Mathias Fraser West
230 Whonnock Street,
NORTH VANCOUVER, B.C. 985-3637 ...
7. Mary Lou Andrews ‘Fraser East
P.O. Box 55
AGGASIZ, B.C. 796-9217
8. Ron Seymour Lakes
P.O. Box 1726
PRINCE GEORGE, B.C. 963-7610
9. Robert Pasco Thompson-Nicola
P.O. Box 283
ASHCROFT, B.C. 453-9098
* 10. Charles Chapman * Kootenay-Okanagan
P.O. Box 561
OLIVER, B.C. Oliver (MOBILE) 22L2
11. Danny Walkus , Bella Coola
P.O. Box 67 “
BELLA BELLA, B.C.
12. Moses Smith West Coast
.R. #3
PORT ALBERNI, B.C. 723-8165
Workshops discuss
“VICTORIA — According to
Philip Paul, Director of the Land
Claims Centre, the B.C. Indian
land claim will go nowhere unless. a
people’s movement continues to
build around the issue. ‘‘To get the
politicians to listen to us’, he
states, “‘the. claim: must have
meaning in every Indian com-
munity in British Columbia.”
To support the ‘‘people’s
movement’’, the Land Claims
Centre has organized a series of
_workshops. The first workshop was
held in the North Island District, at
Alert Bay, in the spring.
This fall there have been two or
three workshops each month. To
date workshops have been held in
Kamloops (Thompson-Nicola
District), Squamish (Fraser West
District), Bella Bella (Bella Coola
District), Glen Vowell. (Babine
District), Port Alberni (West Coast
District), Westholm (South Island
District) and Lytton (Lytton-
Lillooet District).
The West Coast District
workshop in Port Alberni was held
on the 2nd and 3rd of November
with ninety people attending.
Elizabeth George spoke eloquently
in the Nootka language. She is 103
and travelled from Nootka Island
to attend the meeting. Younger
people included George Clutesi, the
writer and Ron Hamilton the ar-
tist. : ,
Reuben Ware from the Land
Claims Centre discussed ‘the
history of reserves in the West
Coast District. Doug Sanders, also
from the Victoria office, gave .a
history of how the colonial legal
system saw native rights. His talk
covered four centuries and con-
cluded with a discussion of the
Nishga land rights case.
The South Island Workshop at
Westholm on November 9. spent
time talking about fishing rights.
Though salmon were running that
Saturday in Goldstream; a group of
about fifteen people attended the
workshop. The representatives
from the Cowichan -Band - were
N ES | KA
in_a continuing series
Dec. 1974-Jan. 1975
REUBEN WARE, a senior researcher for. the land claims research centre, speaks on the history of reserves at
a workshop held in Port Alberni on Nov. 2 and 3. To his right is the workshop chairman, Simon Lucas. The
meetings were well-attended by both young and old.
Land cut-off in many ways
Cut-off lands are those- lands
taken from Indian Reserves by the
1916 McKenna-McBride Royal
Commission. This amounted to
over 36,006 acres and included the
abolition of entire reserves. These
cut-off lands of: the McKenna-
McBride Royal Commission ‘are
only one. way in which Indian
Reserve land has been taken away.
The problem of land losses from
Indian Reserves arose soon after
the first reserves were set up in the
1860’s. Since then, Indian Reserve
land has been taken or lost in many
ways. For example, the size of
reserves has been whittled down
by encroachment by whites, by
government surveys, by. Federal
Orders-in-Council under the Indian
Act, by Department of Indian
Affairs’ policy of surrender and
sale, and by Provincial Order-in-
Council No. 1036. (29 July 1938), to
mention just a few ways.
The problem of land losses from
reserves is not restricted to those
cut-off lands taken ‘by the
McKenna-McBride Royal Com-
mission. Any land taken from an
Indian Reserve is a type of cut-off,
even though the legal situation
surrounding these other types of
claims
interested in the Indian
rights issue.
Seven band members have been
charged with violations of the
federal Fisheries Act. The trial is
set for January 14th to 17th.
Concluding the workshop, Philip
Paul stressed the need for local
people to become involved in.the
land claim. Indian involvement
and Indian money backing the
fishing
claim would be necessary, he said,
‘before any meaningful progress
would be possible. :
The workshops are described by
the Land Claims Centre staff as the
‘first round.”’ Additional
workshops will be held in any
District which requests them. By
‘the “second round’, the land
claims staff hope that the film on
the land claim, currently being
produced, will be available to show
workshop audiences. In addition,
the centre hopes to. produce half-
hour video tape programs on land
claims subjects for use at local
meetings and workshops.
land losses is different from the
McKenna-McBride Commission
cut-off lands. -
The issue of reserve land losses
is different from the - aboriginal
land claim. The aboriginal claim
deals with Indian ownership. to all
lands in B.C. and-is based on
Native Title prior to the coming of
the whites. Lost reserve lands are
those lands lost after the reserves
were established. The lost reserve
lands issue concerns all reductions
in the size of reserves by whatever’
method.
Let us now look at the clearest
example of land taken from Indian
Reserves, the cut-off lands of the
1916 -McKenna-McBride Royal
Commission.
HISTORICAL BACKGROUND
The McKenna-McBride Royal
Commission was set-up in 1912 to
settle a dispute between the
Federal and Provincial govern-
ments. This dispute had been going
on since 1871. when B.C. joined the
rest of Canada.
The first attempt to solve this
dispute was in 1875. To fulfill the
Terms of Union, the Indian
Reserve Commission was set up.
The Indian Reserve Commission
(1875-1910), often called the Joint
Commission, is different from the
Commission .
McKenna-McBride
(1912-1916). The job of the Indian
Reserve Commission was to allot
and survey Indian reserves. Over a
period of 35 years it did this for a
majority of the reserves in B.C.
The work of ‘the Indian Reserve
Commission did not stop’ the
dispute between the two govern-
ments. Both governments claimed
that they ‘“owned’’ Indian reserve
land. The Province claimed the
right to disallow any. reserve that
the Indian Reserve Commission
allotted. The Province protested
the amount of land that the Indian
‘Reserve Commission set aside as
reserves.
Finally, in 1910. the continuing
dispute over the size and location
of Indian reserves stopped the
work of the Indian Reserve
Commission.
In 1912 the Federal . and
Provincial Governments made the
McKenna-McBride Agreement.
The full text of the Agreement is in
the Laws and Treaties Section
(Blue section). This Agreement set
up the McKenna-McBride .Royal
Commission to look into problems
’ McBride
travelled throughout B.C. hearing —
—(G. McKevitt Photo)
of Indian reserves in B.C. Part of
the job of the McKenna-McBride
Commission was to review the
Indian reserves set up by the In-
dian Reserve Commission.
J. A. J. McKenna was a Special
Commissioner appointed. by the
Federal. Government: J; A. Jy:
McKenna was a long time em-
ployee of the Department of Indian
Affairs. In 1899 he was one of the
Treaty Commissioners for Treaty 8
in northern Alberta. He was also
Assistant Indian Commissioner
and Inspector for Manitoba,
Alberta and Saskatchewan from
1901 to 1910. Richard McBride was
the Premier of. B.C. from 1903 to
1915.
No Indians were consulted about
the McKenna-McBride Agreement
or in setting up the Royal Com-
mission. Section 1 of the McKenna-
McBride Agreement provided for
the appointment of two Com-
missioners by the Province and
two Commissioners by the Federal
government. The Provincial ap-
pointees were J. P. Shaw of
Shuswap, B.C..and D. H. Mac-
Dowall of Victoria.
These. four Commissioners
named another who was Chairman
of the Royal Commission. This
Chairman was Nathaniel White,
ex-Chief Justice of Saskatchewan.
No Indians. were named to this
Commission. :
Under Section 2 of the McKenna-
McBride Agreement, the Province
and the Federal governments
agreed that no land was to be cut-
_off a reserve unless the Indians
gave their consent. The McKenna-
McBride Commission also-had the
power to allot additional reserve
lands. It did this mostly on. the
north coast and in the northern
interior of B.C.
Another section of the McKenna-
. McBride Agreement said that the
Royal Commission had the power
to take Indian reserve land for
railroad rights-of-way or other
public works. It did this by making
Interim Reports which ordered the
right-of-way taken from the
_ reserve.
From 1913 to 1916 the McKenna-
Royal Commission
evidence from Chiefs, Band
spokesmen, Indian Agents, white
business groups and others. Cut-
offs were made from 35 reserves
totalling about 36,000:acres when
(Continued on page 7)
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Page Twelve
SECOND IN A SERIES
N ES I KA
Dec. 1974-Jan. 1975
Early Indian society was well structured
By JAMES WILSON
They cannot be understood,
however, solely in terms of the
degree of sociul development they
-had attained. The civilized Aztec
shared more in common with a
‘primitive’ Indian than he did with
an equally civilized European
because, in thousands of years of
isolation, American Indians had
developed their own characteristic
ways of looking at the world which
were profoundly unlike those of
Europe.
A comparison between, for
example; the wooden totem-poles
of the Haida from Canada’s Pacific
coast, Maya stone-carving and
European Renaissance sculpture
would’ serve as a_ simple
illustration of the similarities of
vision among disparate groups of
Indians, and the extent to which
Old and New. World cultures had .
diverged by the time of Columbus.
_ There are no reliable figures for
the North American Indian
population immediately prior to
the first white contact, and
estimates differ enormously. A
reasonable and moderate
assessment would. be about
30,000,000; of which more than
26,000,000 lived in Mexico and
Central America.
The people of what is now
Canada, although they occupied:
nearly half the continent,
represented-only a fraction of its
population, probably about one-
hundredth. The reasons for this
were primarily economic; while
many of the Indians further south
had an advanced agriculture which
could support large numbers of
people, the Canadian natives,
isolated from the source of
agricultural innovation in Mexico
and living in a climate that was
largely unsuitable for the spon-
taneous development of farming,
still depended almost: exclusively
on hunting, fishing and ‘food-
gathering for subsistence.
This kind of pre-agricultural
economy requires a huge amount
of land to feed a few people, and
more than half of pre-Columbian
Canada bore a population of
twenty-five or fewer per hundred
square miles. Because of these
smali numbers and a common
dependence on hunting, Canada
displayed less cultural diversity
than the southern part of North
‘America; in all, there were
probably between 200,000 and
300,000 Canadian Indians divided
among more than fifty distinct
societies, each one of which had its
own cultural characteristics and
languages into ten. different
‘families’, six of which were found
in the comparatively small area
West of the Rockies, and four over
the rest of the country.
GEOGRAPHY DICTATED
LIVING
The social and economic
“structure of each band depended to
a large extent on the geography,
climate and wild-life of the area in
which it lived. In aboriginal times
most of Canada was covered by a
huge sub-arctic coniferous forest
which: stretched almost unbroken,
except by rivers and numerous
lakes, from the atlantic coast to the
_ Rockies, bounded to the North by
arctic tundra and to the South by
prairie, scrubland and thorn
forest.
This forest region was populated
principally by Indians belonging to
two language families, the
Algonkians and the Athapaskans.
'The Cree, Montagnais, Algonkin,
Ojibwa and other Algonkians lived
to the south and east of Hudson’s
Bay, while the less numerous
Athapaskans, including such
peoples as the Slave, Beaver,
Yellowknife and Chipewyan,
inhabited the area to the North and
West of the Bay.
The majority of the forest In-
dians, Algonkian and Athapaskan
alike, lived by hunting large game
like caribou and moose, sup-
~plemented by smaller mammals,
wild plants and fish; and ‘this
economy forced them to lead a
nomadic: existence; living in
temporary shelters of bark, brush
or hide, and following the seasonal
migrations of their principal game
animals.
Without a means of preserving
meat for long periods, and Jacking
any major alternative source of
food, they were never very far
from the possibility of starvation,
and, their survival depended on
constant mobility and co-operation
and a‘strong sense of band. They
had no highly organized system of
leadership, but usually chose an
exceptional hunter or some other .
outstanding individual who would
allocate hunting territories and —
sometimes with the help of an
informal council of elder men —
give counsel and guidance to his
band.
Despite some cultural dif-
ferences, this social and economic
pattern was followed by the most
northerly Athapaskans and
Algonkians, who lived beyond the
tree-line in the arctic tundra
region, and also by the Siouan-
speaking bands, such as the
Assiniboin, who subsisted by
hunting bison in the prairies south.
of the forest.
COAST HAD IT BETTER
To the Wes’, however, across the
Rocky mountains, lay an area with
a more temperate climate and a
rich abundance of wildlife that
allowed its inhabitants to develop a
different, materially more secure
way of life. The peoples . of this
Pacific. coastal region — the
Kwakiutl, Haida, Salish and others
—lived partly’ by hunting and food-
gathering like their neighbours to
the east, but their economy was
based primarily on fishing.
By devising efficient methods of
catching and preserving the
salmon and other fish that: swar-
med through their rivers, they
were enabled to live in settled
communities with a comparatively
high population density and to
enjoy a degree of prosperity
seldom attained by pre-
agricultural socieities.
They built permanent villages
consisting of substantial timber
houses, and relieved. of the con-
stant threat of starvation which
kept the forest Indians perpetually
on the move, they were able to
develop a more complex society,
with a larger number of in-
dividuals and greater division of
labeur, than was possible for
people leading a nomadic
existence. ‘
This settled way of life could only
survive, however, if the West coast
Indians built up large stocks of
‘surplus food which could support
- them through seasons of scarcity,
_ and their social system reflected
the importance of meeting this
need.
They were organized
hierarchical chiefdoms,
comprising a number of villages
and several hundred people, in
which each individual had his or
her specific place on a scale of
rank, determined by birth and by
wealth. The first object of
economic enterprise was to
provide everyone. with enough to
eat, but when this had been
achieved the surplus was passed
up the hierarchy to the. chief,
whose prime function was to
arrange for the storage, and in
times. of need the appropriate re-
into
distribution, of his people’s
resources. ~
IROQUOIS WERE FARMERS
Some 4,000 miles east of the
Rockies, where the. coniferous
forest gave way to scrubland in
what is now Southern Quebec, were
often |
- peoples.
the Iroquoian-speaking peoples,
whose territory in aboriginal times
stretched south of the modern
U.S./Canadian border. Like the
West coast Indians, the Iroquoians
lived in comparatively populous
settled communities, but they
subsisted principally by farming,
rather than fishing, and _ their
social and economic life was very
different from that of the Pacific
region.
They were the most northerly of
a series of eastern farming tribes,
who occupied most of the Atlantic
seaboard of what is now the United
States-and had probably learnt the
skill of cultivation originally from
Mexico; and th ey were the onl;
people in aboriginal. Canada to
practise agriculture to any great
extent.
The Iroquoians lived in per-
manent villages, defended by a
wooden palisade, round which they
cleared an area where they grew
maize, tobacco and other planis.
Inside;. the village consisted of
large wooden ‘longhouses’, each of
which housed an extended family;
families were matrilineal — that
is, they traced discent through the
female line — and were presided
over by the most senior woman.
As is’ common in early
agricultural _ societies, the
matrilinies owned the houses and
land and women did most of the
cultivation of crops, while the men
defended the settlement from
attack by neighboring tribes and
supplemented the predominantly
vegetable diet by hunting. _
Although men held the offices of
leaders and decision-makers their
appointment was usually the
responsibility of the ‘head-women’
in‘the matrilinies, and. in this way .
each of the groups upon whom the
tribe depended economically was
represented in its political and
social life.
THE CONFEDERATION
The Irequoians were a warlike
people, constantly feuding among
themselves, and at some point in
the . sixteenth century,
years or so after Columbus’
discovery of North America but
before there was any white set-
tlement north of Mexico, they
formed themselves in to three
confederacies, each of which was
designed for the mutual defence of
its members.
Two of these inter-tribal’
organizations, the Huron and. the
Neutral, perished before much
could be learnt about them, but
they seem to have been similar to
the third confederation, the League
of Five Nations, about which more
is known.
The League was made up of the
Mohawk, Seneca, Onondonga, .
Oneida and Cayuga peoples, each
of which was represented in the
Leagué by a number of ‘sachems’
appointed by the matrilinies in
every. tribe. There were fifty
sachems in all, whose business was
to settle inter-tribal disputes within
the League and to formulate a
common ‘foreign policy’.
They did this simply by talking
among themselves until
unanimous agreement — was
reached, and although this system
appears flimsy, in fact it worked
extremely efficiently and kept the
Iroquois a major political force in
North America until two hundred
years ago.
It will be seen from this brief and
very general survey that ‘the
Canadian Indian’ is a term which
refers to a wide range of different
‘Canada’ itself is a
product of European politics; its
external and internal boundaries
are arbitrary, bearing little
relation to the distribution of its
native people and none at all to
their sense of identity. The Indians
had no overall knowledge of their
continent and its inhabitants; each
seventy .
independent band knew its own
region’ and its immediate neigh-
bours, but was only vaguely aware,
if at all, of other societies living
further away. Despite this, they
shared a number of underlying’
characteristics that were, and are,
distinctly alien to a white man.
Like everyone else, the Indians
faced the problem of welding
collections of individuals into
- coherent social groups, despite the
tension, aggression, envy, com-
petitiveness and other destructive
tendencies of human life; but by
European standards their societies
were tiny, without a strong
_territorial identity, and lacking the
human and material resources to
build ‘up the kind of political and
legal institutions on which ‘law and
order’ in France or England
depended.
Even a West Coast chief, while
he enjoyed considerable prestige
and respect, had no military police
organization with which to enforce
his authority. At the same time, the
very smallness of each band, and
the precariousness of its economy,
made a high degree of social order
and co-operation between its
members essential for survival.
Any internal dispute which
threatened the common enterprise
of living and working peaceably
together to secure a_ livelihood
eff. ectively endangered the lives of
everyone in the group.
This problem was overcome, and
social harmony maintained, in a
number of different ways. In every
Indian society taboos played an
important part, powerfully af-
fecting the individual in every area
of his life; from the conduct of his
relationships to the way in which
he carried out such everyday tasks.
as hunting and | preparing his food,
it laid down the principles by which
he. acted and prompted him to
socially acceptable behaviour.
Strongly linked with a system of
taboo was the band’s kinship
structure, which provided a rigid
framework giving each person a
sense of identity and defining his
relationships with other members
of the community.
In form and complexity it varied
from people to people, but most
bands were sub-divided into two or
more clans or totem-groups, each
of which consisted of families who
were physically or mythically
related to one another. These
groups were usually exogamous —
that is, their members could not
marry each other, but were obliged
to find partners from another clan;
and this arrangement extended the
interdependence of the band, and
increased its chances of survival,
because every individual had a
relationship of mutual’ respon-
sibility with his own parental
family,.with his clan, and, when he
married, with his wife’s family and
clan.
if a hunter met with death, ac-
cident or misfortune a number of
other people were bound by family
ties, taboo and affection to provide
for his dependents. The kinship
structure not only determined who
the individual might marry, but
the nature of his relationship with
the other members of the band. A
man was expected to behave
respectfully . towards his elders,
affectionately towards chidren,
and so on; but within this general
framework there were numerous
subtle differences, depending on
the precise relationship of the
individuals concerned.
To some extent this was
reflectedin language; among most
of the Algonkians, for example,
there were two words for ‘aunt’,
one signifying ‘mother’s sister’ and
the other ‘father’s sister’, and each
implying a different kind of
relationship. In this way, each
person’s position within the group
was well-defined and secure, and
the possibility of abnormal or
socially unacceptable behaviour
was greatly reduced.
In most bands, except for those
in the harsher and more remote
parts of forest region, there were,
.in addition to the family-based
clans, societies which men could
join, after an initiation ceremony,
when they reached adulthood.
Again, these varied in number and
function from tribe to tribe — there
were warrior societies, hunting
societies, religious societies and
others — but they invariably
provided another series of
relationships, otuside clan and
family, which bound members of
the band together and integrated
the whole community.
UNIVERSAL SANCTIONS
The taboos, ethos and social
system of the band were
strengthened by custom, con-
sensus and the universal sanctions
of praise and ridicule,. but
ultimately they derived their
power from a religious vision of life
whose immediacy, intensity and
extent are difficult for a European
to comprehend, and which, with
cultural variations, was common
to all the Indians. Indian religion
was animistic. — that is,. it. at-
tributed souls or spiritual qualities,
to animals, plants and inanimate
objects as ‘well as to people—and:
based on the idea of a spirit world,
parallel to our own, composed of,
powerful and enigmatic super-
natural beings who exercised great
influence over humian life.-
Spirits could affect people
beneficially or malignantly; they.
were unpredictable but all-
pervasive, able to appear in
dreams, visions and visitations,
and to manifest themselves
anywhere in the form of.a stone or
an animal. The Universe was thus
awe-inspiring and poised con-
stantly on the brink of miracle and
disaster; everything in it was, at—
least potentially, of great”
significance, and to be regarded
with both wonderment and caution.
Incorporated with all the physical,
social, emotional and other aspects
of Indian existence, which it
inevitably touched, this spiritual
view of life formed a unified ‘and
satisfying world picture.
Tt was made up of a series of
-inter-connected. relationships
between spirits, people, animals,
- plants and elements, in which each
component was significant on a
number of different levels.
Animals, for instance, were im-
portant in Indian cosmology in
many. ways: not only did they
provide the bare essentials of
survival, in the form of meat and
the materials for clothing and
shelter, but they were represen-
tatives.of the spirit world, they
appeared repeatedly in magic and
myth, and within Indian society
their names were used _ to
distinguish both groups, such as
clans, and individuals who sup-
posedly shared their charac-
teristics.
Although he could not fully grasp
the ultimate nature of the universe,
aman could and should help in the
vital task of harmoniously
maintaining this web of being by
devoutly observing the taboos and
the prescribed rituals of his band.
He was expected to be a brave
hunter and warriors, but among his
own people to be kind, compliant,
unassuming, unaggressive and,
except among the West coast
tribes, who hierarchical social
structure made a certain rivalry
acceptable, uncompetitive in
everything but physical prowess.
. He must approach everything in
Creation with reverence — it was
customary, for example, to offer a
prayer for the soul of an animal
killed in hunting — and his reward
for thus upholding the principles of
(Continued on page 13)
Page Fourteen
NESIKA
Events from around the
SETTLE SAYS STUDY
TERRACE — An environmental
and social impact study released
here has recommended the Nishga
land claims should be settled
completely before any more
development in the Nass River
valley takes place.
The report, commissioned by the
Meziadin Environmental Advisory
Team, suggests that once the
claims are settled a “‘Nass River
Authority”’ should be set up in-
volving all local interests to plan
resource use and prevent conflicts
of interest.
If there is not strong local control
oi development in the area, the
report warns, the ensuing rapid
growth brought about by the ex-
tension of the railway and _ in-
creased industry will be socially
and environmentally disruptive.
The short-term effects included:
— Sudden growth of Terrace
resulting in physical and social
problems.
— Disruption of the north-west
trapping industry.
Loss of land and possible
social problems of the Kit-
sumkalem Band five miles north of
Terrace.
— Risk of open hostilities
between Nishga Indians and
construction in the Nass River
Valley. :
— Loss of hunting and fishing in
the Nass Valley. -
The more serious long. term
effects listed are: :
— The harmful domination of a
forest industry economy.
Population growth which
would make the Nishga Indians a
minority in the Nass Valley. ‘
— Increased. highway traffic’
burdening the communities of
Kitwanga,- Kitwancool, Hazelton
». and Nass Camp.
The report noted that the
Nishgas now enjoy. a very good'
relationship with white residents
and workers in the area but this
could be jeopardized by the sudden
influx of -workers to build the
railway and a major new sawmill
projected for Dragon Lake. Only
careful planning can lower the
“risk of a serious social conflict,”’
the report states.
The Kitsumkalem Band five
miles north of Terrace would lose
part of a reserve to a railway
tunnel and their people should be
consulted in all work planned, the
report said. In addition, the In-
. dians should be consulted about the
conditions and expected behavior
of the contractors and men who
cross Indian land. f
Consultation should also occur
with trappers whose lines would be
crossed, it notes.
. SIT-IN
OTTAWA — A sit-in at the
headquarters of the National In-:
dian Brotherhood ended peacefully
after police asked the 25 members °
of the militant Native Peoples
Caravan to leave at normal closing
time.
The occupation was staged to
reinforce demands that the N.I.B.
turn over $3,500 for an aboriginal
people’s conference planned at the
federal building the caravan
natives have occupied since their
arrival here:
Amidst police and reporters, the
National Indian Brotherhood
halted all operations and «with the
support of many of its member
Indian organizations took the stand
that since they are themselves
dependent upon government for.
funds that the Native . Peoples
Caravan should demand funds
from government. Other Indian
organizations refusing to hand
over funds felt that the occupation
was wrongly directed at the
National Indian Brotherhood and
that any financial support. would
have to come from other sources.
MASSET SAWMILL .
MASSET — The Skeena-Queen
' Charlotte Regional District ac-
cepted in principle a letter from
Frank Collison, band manager of
the Masset Band~ Council, ex-
plaining a proposed sawmill
operation that the Band is involved
in on the Islands. The Board also
referred the letter to the advisory
planning commission and _ the
technical committee for further
study.
In_ his letter to the Regional
District, Mr. Collison explained
that the sawmill will be locally
controlled and he estimates initial
operating size will enable the
operation to produce from 15,000 to
20,000 board feet of lumber per.
y.
The Regional District Board
members also received a_ brief
prepared by W. Carey Linde, of
Skidegate, the solicitor for Nadu
Mills Ltd., outlining further details
of the proposed sawmill and ex-|
plaining the operations. in greater
detail.
In his brief to the Regional
District, Mr. Linde introduced
Nadu Mills Ltd., as a new venture
in the operations of local industry
on the Queen Charlotte Islands. He
explained that a joint venture is-
being undertaken by the Masset
Band Council and a local sawmill
operator that will, for the first time
anywhere, see native people being
given an equity share in a Com-:
pany receiving funding assistance
aimed at creating jobs within the ;
native community.
Mr. Linde also stated that the
Masset Band Council passed a‘:
resolution giving full endorsement
to the efforts of Nadu. Mills Ltd.,
and in the same resolution it urged
both levels of government to do all.
within their power to speed up the
process and help get the mill
operating soon.
DEVELOPMENT
CHEMAINUS — The Penelakut
Band of Kuper Island have finally
got approval from Ottawa for a 760
acre recreational development on
their main reserve. The approval
came after two years of waiting
since the initial application and
five general band votes.
The development project is
projected to begin by the beginning
of November and will eventually
include a 450 house subdivision, a
golf course, marina and riding
stables.
The first phase of the project to
be built, according to band
manager, Myrus James, will be
the 400 berth marina. This will
include, he said, float plane
docking facilities, a fuel float,
loading; unloading facilities for
work barges and.a service complex
consisting of a store-post office, a
craft shop, showers.and an Inn.
The band had some problems in
getting the go ahead from Ottawa
with four of the five general votes
being disallowed by. the Depart-
ment of Indian Affairs. The first
did not attract over fifty per cent of
the band voters and the next three
were disallowed because of
technicalities.
Although the band going ahead
with the project they have not yet.
received off-shore rights from the
province. Since there is a general
freeze on development in the gulf
islands the province is somewhat
disturbed by the Kuper Island
project which is not under its
control.
The provincial government has_
come through, however, with an
allotment of $450,000 to fund the
building of a car ferry wharf on the
island.
CHIEF APPOINTED,
CANIM LAKE — Charlotte
Christopher, former chief of the
Canim Lake Indian Band has been
Native Land
appointed to the 100 Mile and
District Hospital Board. ‘
The appointment came as a
result of a request initiated by the
band for the appointment of one of
its members to the board. After
checking with Victoria at the
request of_the board, Hospital
Administrator Alex Smart saw
through the necessary changes in
the Society’s by-laws for the ad-
dition of the member.
“I don’t know what will be ex-.
pected of me as a board member,”
Mrs. Christopher said. ‘‘But quite a
few Indian people go into ‘the
hospital all the time, and we should
know what is going. on.”’
Mrs. Christopher described
health services on the reserve as
“pretty good right now — we have
‘a community aide who makes the
rounds and sees everyone every
_ day. And we have a public nurse
who comes out twice a week. Then
Dr. Gloeckner comes out on
Wednesdays and sees people.”
Indians have ‘been appointed to
hospital boards elsewhere in the
Province, but usually only in cases
where the hospital is right on the
reserve, as in Bella Bella, or where
there is an extremely high Indian
percentage in the total population,
as in Bella Coola. :
The appointment of Mrs.
Christopher to the board comes at
a time when other changes are
being made in the boards’ com-
position to:give more local control
to board appointments. Previously
four of the board’s members were
appointed by Victoria, one was by
'. Village Council and three came
from the Regional District. There
are now two appointments from
Village Council. and four from
Regional District, and the Victoria’
appointments have’ been: reduced
to 1.
CACHE CREEK — Although
Minister of Indian affairs Judd
Buchanan agreed that housing on
the Bonaparte Reserve was
inadequate, he told Chief Ken Basil
that raising the $10,000 housin
grant was not the answer. .
Buchanan made a short five
house tour of the. reserve ‘on
November 9 as part of a holiday
weekend trip through the B.C,
interior and Skeena river areas.
Meeting with Basil for about an
hour afterwards Buchanan
repeatedly stressed that the grant
should not be looked at as an end
all and be all. He said the in-
dividual building the house must be
expected to carry the remaining
financing himself through Central
Mortgage and Housing or some
other available loaning agency.
AS an example, he said, he had
recently seen a project at. Fort
Alexander, Man. where the in-
dividuals took on $7,000 CMHC
mortgages to provide six $17,000
_homes (the $7,000 mortgage plus
the $10,000 grant).
He said adequate homes can be
built at this price on the reserves
because the price of land is not a
factor.
“There will be a long hard
struggle if Indian people depend
100 per cent on the federal
government for fulfillment of
housing needs,’”’ he told Basil.
Basil, on the other hand, told
Buchanan that housing was the
important need facing Indians
today. He said that the grant
should be raised at least to $35,000
and that.all money being spent by
the DIA on other programs should
be redirected into housing.
During the tour of the houses,
Basil pointed out to the party,
which besides Buchanan consisted
of Skeena “MP, Iona Campagnolo;
Kamloops-Cariboo MP, Len
Dec. 1974-Jan. 1975
According to Buchanan
housing not top priority
Marchand and several aides, the
signs of disrepair and over-
crowding. One house had been
renovated three times, he said, but
the wall and ceiling panelling was
coming loose, and a bedreom had
not been finished.
He said the carpentry was poor
and the work not inspected.
_Basil said that the federal
government had an obligation to
insure that Indian housing was up
to the standard enjoyed by other
Canadians. :
Buchanan stressed here,
however, as he did earlier in a
meeting with the district in Lytton,
that the key to better housing and
living standards was in economic
development.
“The only solution,’ Buchanan
said, ‘‘is to create satisfactory jobs
for all the -people.”’
The. minister’ also made the
remark that although ke was not
happy with the standards of Indian
housing in B.C., compared to the
situation some other parts of
Canada, many B.C. Indians were
living in “‘palaces.”’
-His words were echoed by MP
Iona. Campagnolo, who is -also
Parliamentary Secretary to the
“ministry.
She said that she was still. ex-
* periencing “‘cultural shock” after
a Thanksgiving weekend visit toa
reserve at- Grassy Narrow,
Manitoba.
She described living conditions
on the mercury poisoned reserve
as deplorable and utterly beyond
belief.
When taken in the context of the
rest of Canada, Mrs. Campagnolo
said, the housing conditions in-
reserves in the B.C. interior should
be regarded as low priority. She
went on to say that the houses she
saw at Bonaparte were decent
places for children to grow up in..
After four years
_ Spahomin Cattle Co. thriving
Four years ago, Chief George
Saddleman and members of the
Quilchena band council formed the
Economic Development Com-
mission to approach the provincial
and federal governments with a
proposal.
The idea was sirnple in principle,
though the legal foundations on
which it had to rest are quite
complex. .
A study had. been taken to
determine the alternatives in land
use open to the Quilchena and
Douglas Lake reserve Indians. The
forest resources were pretty well
depleted, and it was determined
that the leasing of reserve land to
outside interests was really a
losing proposition, in relation to the
income that land could return.
under proper management from
within the reserve.
What better solution than the
formation of a cattle company, to
make the best use of the natural
assets of the land.
The Spahomin Cattle Company
did not emerge from the dream to
reality overnight. The special
Agricultural Rural Development
Agreement was created by the
federal government to review
' proposals for such projects, and
determine the allocation of funds.
It took. almost two years of
presentations to the federal and
provincial bodies, plus a lot of
effort in convincing the Indian
people themselves of the benefits
they would eventually enjoy. But
sheer determination and faith in.
the proposal resulted in grants
under the Indian Economic
Development Fund and the old
First Citizen Fund, plus
authorization by the band to. use
some of its funds.
Immediately, a 7-member board
of directors was formed, and the
first step was to establish enough
hayland for the projected cattle
population. The company leased
about 120 aeres from the holdings
of individuals on the reserve, to
supplement the hay that was
already being. produced on the
band land. :
An additional 200 acres at
Chapperon Lake were broken up
this spring, and the first hay crop is
coming along very well. A dam on
the lake outlet was built to provide
‘a controlled water. reservoir for
irrigation. A 4 line wheek wheel
sprinkler system has been set up.
Swathing and baling operations
are presently contracted out to
individuals on the reserve who own
the machines. This way, haying
operations are handled entirely
within the reserve itself, obvious
advantages to the local economy.
Grazing lands under lease to
the company are considerable,
amounting to seme 27,000 acres at
Quilchena, and a further 700 acres
at Chapperon Lake.
This is the land available for the
five year program that has been”
drawn up, of which the company is
now in its second year. Stock now
numbers about 300, and an ad-
ditional 200 head this fall will make
up the last major cattle purchase.
Natural increases are expected to
expand the herd to about 900 head.
in the next three years. By this
time, ranch manager Arthur Fink
anticipates hay production will be
balanced to the number of cattle
-being run. At present, the reser-
vation produces a-surplus of hay
each year.
There is plenty of work ‘to be
done, enough to employ six people
- full time, expected to rise to 12 at
peak. Buildings are under con-
struction, mainly working pens
and calving sheds and a number of |
feed storage facilities and corrals
are complete, it is hoped that a
weighing chute will be operating
next year.
All of these facilities are or will -
be made available to the owners of
some 400 individual head that are
grazing alongside company-owned
cattle. In the five year plan ample
provision has been made for the
increasing Iand ‘and - hay
requirements of these private
owners.
The Quilchena and Douglas Lake
reserves have a unique opportunity
with the Spahomin Cattle Com-
pany. Where. other reserves are
primarily hay producers,. ranching
will provide the main economic
base here,
Under a capable ranch manager
and an energetic board of directors
(who incidentally aren’t just
decision makers, but get out there
and work), one can’t foresee
anything but progress for the
venture. /
Reprint — THE RANCHER
Dec. 1974 - Jan. 1975
TEACHERS GET the tables turned on them as they occupy the students’ place while
' Phyllis Chelsea and May Dixon attempt to teach them ‘the Shushwap language in a
classroom setting. In an interesting exchange the teachers, who were in attendance ata
language workshop in Williams Lake were asked to reply to simple commands such as
N ES 1K A
Page Fifteen”
sit, stand, what's your name, are you a boy/girl, we're in a house, and so forth. The .
teachers admitted alienation, confusion and a fear of being asked by the “teacher” to do
“something. It led one teacher to exclaim, “! don’t understand!” —(G. Peters Photo)
- Workshop turns tables on teachers
By.GERARD PETERS
~ WILLIAMS LAKE (Staff) — For
a young Shushwap student in the
local school district this classroom
setting would have been a pleasure
to behold. -
Here-a roomful of teachers sat in
perplexed fear of being asked to
respond to such simple commands
as stand, sit, what’s your name,
are you a boy or a girl. All in the
Shushwap tongue.
This was the final day of a
language workshop’ sponsored by
the Fish Lake Cultural Education
Centre. Teachers were here from
the local school district and from
Indian day schools. Linguistic
experts interested in the native
tongues were present as were
members” of “the. Indian com-
munities. All would leave: richer
for their experience. :
With an exchange of ideas and
suggestions from both groups the
teachers and Indian represen- ©
tatives would. achieve a_ better
understanding of the uniqueness of
education as it applies to Indian:
students. /
' The teachers would better un-
derstand the cultural gulf between
themselves and their Indian pupils.
The Indian .parents would be
questioned about their attitudes
toward education as it applies to
their children. The linguists would
have an. opportunity to show. their
progress. And all. would benefit
from. the resource material that
each had brought. :
Mary Answorth, with the English
. department at UBC in response to
the exchange in Shushwap between
Phyllis Chelsea and May Dixon
and the teachers said that “Your
language is a part of your history -
and if you deny your language you
deny your history.” g
She asked for the teachers’
reaction to the language demon-
stration. ‘How did you feel when
you were sitting there listening to
Shushwap? Particularly those of
you who got picked on.” .
- Howard
VANCOUVER (Staff) — The
hiring of former NDP federal MP,
Frank Howard by the provincial
government asa special consultant
on Indian matters has been termed
by. the UBCIC council, a “diver-
‘sionary tactic.”
““\The general concensus of the
Chiefs after Howard came before _
the council in Vancouver was that
unless he was willing to talk about
land claims and cut-off lands his
role would be ineffectual.
Howard’s. appointment was
apnounced. in Victoria on
December 5. by human resource
minister Norman Levi. |.
Howard said at that time that
a diversion, say Chiefs
although he felt land claims was
the most important issue facing
B.C. Indians he was not going ‘to
get involved in them.
As a liason between the govern-
ment and Indians, he said, there
were other issues he could become
involved in.
These include, he said, hunting
rights, loss of reserves for high-
ways, mineral reserves, education,
housing and economic develop-
ment. :
Howard said he expects to work
closely with Indian groups in B.C.
and to co-ordinate action between
Indians and the government. ~
Cowichan band
DUNCAN In 1969 — the
' Cowichan Indian Band formed a
co-operative to use agricultural
productions as a means to a:better
quality of life and to.create jobs for
people living on the Cowichan
reserve. Since then they have
expanded its ‘farming ' operation
which produces forage crops and
small fruits. The approved project
also makes possible the
development in two phases of 200
acres of horticultural crops and 300
acres of hayland.
A further extension was the
‘
In their meeting with Howard,
CO-Op a success
erection of their Farm Produce
‘Building. This .was officially
opened by Dave Stupich, minister
of agriculture, November 23, 1974.
The project will provide $143,748
annually to the.Cowichan Indian
Band in the form of permanent
wages for 37 full-time and part-
time employees by the end of 1976.
As well, $56,500 will be made
available to part-time workers
harvesting berries and $11,700 will.
be paid to Indian locatees who. are
leasing their land to the co-
operative.
the Chiefs’ council expressed
strongly that the land claims was
the main issue they and other B.C.
Indians were interested in.
Up until the last federal election,
Howard had served for seventeen
years as the MP for Skeena.
' He was defeated by Iona Cam-
pagnolo who was recently ap-
pointed parliamentary secretary
‘to Judd Buchanan.
_ Self respect
(Continued from page 4)
to grow from individual feelings
and desires. It is because of this
that many members of the BCMA’s
Indian Health Committee, in-
cluding myself, feel that the
committee has outlived its
usefulness. It does not have the
status it should with the Indians
‘and it lacks political power.
' We would like to see a Com- .
mittee on Indian Health set up by
‘status and non-status Indians with
medical consultants and advisers.
Perhaps from this beginning,
‘band councils might develop health
groups or committees and even- °
tually individual Indians might
-develop an interest in health and
actively seek it out. Such a health
committee of their own might also
‘keep health more to the forefront of
. the minds of individual Indians and
their leaders.
The teachers admitted to feeling
alienated ....sort of separated
from..the teacher. Confusion
ranked high and because of it they
experienced fright.
There was a general difficulty in’
hearing. “Your ears aren’t attuned
to listening to. those sounds,”
concluded Miss Answorth. —
If you felt all of these things,
Miss Answorth asked, ‘‘How do you
think children felt when you
proceeded. to bombard them with
, this strange tongue?” referring to
English. /
Unless your teacher happened to.
be English, she pointed out, “Do
you realize you couldn’t even ask to
.£0 to the washrooms? You have-to
be aware of the feelings and the
needs of the children,
She said, too, that they were
fortunate to have teachers who
could speak Shushwap properly
because-a good model is essential
‘in language learning.
When ‘teaching English as a
-second language she stressed that
the teacher must know something
about the learner’s first language
and it is important to knew what
materials are available and of
these, which are best suited to their
Students.
“You do need .to understand
something about the cultural
differences,’’ she said. Of the.
materials being prepared jointly
by the linguists and the Indian
people involved she said, “I can
guarantee that the materials that
are being structured here and now
by people who speak the language
and know the culture will be far
better than any. of the- materials
produced in far away Ottawa or
‘elsewhere.”’
The Council for Yukon
people living in B.C. and
Land Claims to
Yukon.
NOTICE
from
; Council For Yukon Indians
contact James F. Smith,
Enrollment Officer, 22 Nisutlin Drive, Whitehorse,
Indians are asking those
eligible for Yukon Indian
ePLYWOOD @ TRUCKS
BANNERS eo WINDOWS
B.C. INDIAN ARTIST
“CARVINGS MADE TO OR
PHILLIP OPPENHEIM “Opie”
Vancouver, B.C.
ENTERING).
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2425 Venables Street
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Page Sixteen
n. 1975
. Dec. 1974
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“The Union of B.C. Ind
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Part of Nesika: The Voice of B.C. Indians -- Vol. 3 No. 10 (December 1974/January 1975)