In the summer of 2016, a subsidiary of one of the world’s leading aggregate companies announced it was about to commence exploratory surface drilling in the Lloyd Creek Area of Desolation Sound. This is in close proximity to the region’s foremost kayak and boating area and, consequently, brings a substantial income to local businesses. Had the venture gone forward, one of the regions few remaining old growth forests would have been cut down, an important fish bearing creek would have been devastated and a number of important indigenous sites would have been threatened. Lehigh Hanson Materials abandoned its application, but local author Judith Williams talks about a new threat to Desolation Sound.
Continue reading New Threat To Desolation SoundCategory Archives: Indigenous Nations History
Jessie Louie: Language Warrior
Originally Published on Cortes Radio.ca, as part of the Deep Roots Initiative, Season Two
Language Warrior is a story about Jessie Louie, and her life’s work preserving and revitalizing ʔayʔaǰuθəm a distinct dialect of Northern Salishan. Jessie knows the value of reclaiming language as a source of strength; a treasure to preserve, and a key to survival.
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The Arborglyph That Survived
Originally published on Cortes Radio.ca, as part of the Deep Roots Initiative, Season Two
British Columbia is known for its totem poles. Examples of a less known artwork have surfaced in more recent years. Aborglyphs are carved into living trees. One was discovered a few years ago, two hundred kilometres north of Vancouver in the midst of a clearcut in Toba Inlet. The Klahoose Arborglyh has been moved to the band’s multipurpose building in Squirrel Cove, Cortes Island. Deep Roots story producer Roy L Hales interviewed Michelle Robinson and Ken Hanuse, from the Klahoose First Nation, and local historian Judith Williams about the arborglyph that survived into modern times.
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2018: Food And Culture
Originally published on Cortes Radio.ca as part of the Deep Roots Initiative, Season Two
“It’s a mouth-watering touring through time in this piece as I explore how the preservation of food and culture are connected on and off the Reserve. Pull up a chair, all are welcome at the table as we learn about smoking salmon, stringing herring, and why all important events start with sharing a meal.” – Manda Aufochs Gillespie
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Tl’emtl’ems Left Squirrel Cove
By Roy L Hales
Its almost 550 km from Squirrel Cove, on Cortes Island, to Puyallup, Washington by car, but centuries by canoe. In 1884 the Canadian Government joined in a conspiracy to destroy the canoe traffic that had been plying coastal waters, from Alaska to California, since the beginnings of oral tradition. First Nations people were restricted to their reserves and had had to obtain permission to leave. The reawakening started almost 30 years ago, in what has since become an annual event. A different nation hosts the gathering every year and this summer the gathering is at Puyallup. The Klahoose canoe Tl’emtl’ems left Squirrel Cove at 10 AM this morning.
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