WE MOVED TO WWW.LIBERATEDYET.COM

Taiaiake Alfred, a Kanienkehaka Professor of Indigenous Governance at the University of Victoria, and Waziyatawin, a Wahpetunwan Dakota Associate Professor and Indigenous Peoples Research Chair at the University of Victoria offer some insight in Taiaiake's blog responding to the question "Is Decolonization Dead?".

In Peace, Power, Rightiousness by Taiaiake, he speaks about fundamentals that will become the converging point in indigenous struggle to decolonization, and the colonists presumed right to be colonists in relation to power:

Nowhere is the contrast between Indigenous and (dominant) Western traditions sharper than in their philosophical approaches to the fundamental issues of power and nature. In Indigenous philosophies, power flows from respect for nature and the natural order. In the dominant Western philosophy, power derives from coercion and artifice-in effect, alienation from nature.

In her book Remember This!, Waziyatawin in speaking about her upbringing in learning about her own existence and history, explains the historical practice in her peoples traditions:

[B]ecause these stories were told in our Native language, they also teach more about how we look into the past, how we make sense of that past, and how we remain affected today. A broader significance of these stories, then, also stems from our ability to define our history for ourselves, shaping our historical consciousness in a way that inextricably links it with our sense of identity. The stories have a transformative effect in our contemporary lives because they help determine our sense of who we are and where we are going. Through gifted storytellers the stories are interpreted through the generations, and we come to understand the meaning of being Dakota. This understanding and sense of identity is one that transcends time, the changing world, and modern technology. It is what will carry us into the future.

Liberated Yet?, a weblog that uses self-publishing technology and the internet to publish content like text, images, art, and sometimes video and sound, is a tool I began as a means to accomplish a goal. This goal was originally designed to express my indignation as well as my idea’s, for many of the time those two are interconnected for me. I also set out with the goal to communicate with other individuals, both from my people, and the world. This weblog, once published, is put onto the internet and can be accessed by anyone in the world. With other internet projects, it’s also stored in databases forever. It was birth from two previous blogs that I tried out, learned from, then decided to re-imagine to create Liberated Yet?

The name comes from a question about an idea. As an indigenous person who either out of passion and interest or circumstance learned the context for his existence. That context is he is colonized. Colonialism is not just a process, but a paradigm too. It is apart of the social fabric coming from European, and later Euro-Canadian or Euro-American dominance in the world through it’s ideologies and paradigms. It’s intend is to abolish a pre-existing set of ideologies, paradigms, and the people and land within those, indigenous people and land. Theft of land, breaking down of pre-existing local indigenous population, culture, and societies, are all hallmarks of colonization. I’ve discussed this on more detail before.

The name of this blog comes from a question to an idea. Liberation, as a chant of hope, as a means to work to overcome dominance and control from something, as an opportunity to say an end to the oppression, is something I call a path for myself, and others, to see our indigenous people rise up. In some context, peoples have taken up liberation movements to rise up and out of oppression and foreign control. It comes from the word liberty, the freedom to act or believe without being stopped by unnecessary force. It’s something, I believe, our people had before colonization, and something we do not have now, but only if we can remain our ancestral memory and not the inoculated existence our colonizers gave us. So the question is really, are you liberated yet?

Within my community, a nation of 7 villages and a population of over 3,000, communication is in a desire state. I understand it to be the focal point for any community to network and be cohesive in any sense, either as self-knowledge or to accomplish shared visions. If we look into the past, the level of community was much more cohesive because of the close quarters of living and harmonious lifestyles between branches of families, extended families, inter-tribal relations, and spiritual connection to ceremonies, traditions, and customs.

Presently, the SN puts out a weekly flyer in North Vancouver and Squamish with ads, job postings, and the odd informational flyer. Decisions at the highest level are decided upon by the Band Councilors at weekly meeting where information on the decision to be made are mostly presented at those meetings. The inner-workings of said councilors in projects, committees, and negotiations are done and information of that is kept within that section of the SN. These effect things like what happens on our land, with development, trespassing, cultural significant area’s, and homes, and other things like employees, programs working to create, restore, to accomplish something for the population. Like I said, the information, from the highest order, is mostly kept within their ranks. In some cases, the happening of said initiatives are held secret from the community.

The Squamish Nation Band Council is similar to all Band Councils in the regard of how it deals with community dialogue in issues of concern and opposition. Simply put, it doesn’t like it. Like all colonial institutions, this political system is adversarial in nature. It puts A vs. B. If something happens and information about something the community disagrees with, there is some resistance. Water-cooler talk, and gossip, and some level of indignant letter writing. I know that first-hand because I’ve taken part in this since I became interested in politics. Generally, they operate on this belief that if they wait it out, the opposition will eventually die down and they can get back to work. This tends to horribly bad for the future of the community because in some cases the guiding forces at the Band Council are foreign influences. The guiding interests in where we as a community should go does not come from the community. This create awful situations where short-term idea’s, or in some extremes, self-interested benefits, come from the politicians and many time, energy, and work is put into it.

Within my community, we have no media. Before the Vancouver City election, it came out through a leak to the media that the Vancouver City council had given $100,000,000 dollars to the developers for the Olympics village. The secrecy of this cause a stir in the public and created a wave against the reigning Non-Partisan Alliance party. To keep politics of the society aware, understood, and investigated upon, there is a media to do that. A media to share the stories, information, and beliefs from all area’s of it’s society. Some parts of the world, it’s illegal to do that, and you will most likely result in death.

In my community, there is nothing to keep the politicians honest. There is also no means to keep the public informed of the what is happening in our community, in our territory, in the rooms of the current political leaders.

I have taken a stance before, but I do not identify as Squamish Nation. The Squamish Nation is an Indian Act governance structure imposed on the Skwxwu7mesh-ulh as a tactic of colonialism to fracture the people and usurp our land. I identify as my ancestors for thousands of years have identified: Skwxwu7mesh-ulh. The amalgamation of 1923 that was the de-facto formation of the Squamish Nation is shrouded in more mystery and myth then anything known by our people. If we are to take the thought that the amalgamation was the signing of a document by the then 16 “hereditary” chiefs of 16 Indian Act reserves as truth, it was exactly that. Indian Act chiefs, originally placed into power by the church then later the government after appropriating the historical governing system of “siyam”, formation a coalition to protect the reserves from being sold out.

My land doesn’t end where the imagery line for the reserves starts. My land is thousands of hectares used and stewarded by my ancestors for thousands of years. It does not belong to me, or any one person, family, or government. It’s used for resources gathering, and carried in stewardship for future generations to have the same abilities as we presently do, and the same as our ancestors. This land was stolen from my ancestors, and remains so presently. At the moment the beneficiaries of that theft are still allowed to benefit off that criminal act. Yes, that’s you Canadian population.

I don’t recognize the Squamish Nation Band Council as “my” government. My government was destroyed by the colonizers many decades ago. I recognize that the Squamish Nation, because of colonial constructs, has been able to assert and find a significant amount of power. This is through power of will in the people believing in this false institution, and through the power to wield many resources like money, people (staff), and legal authority.

To think critically is to think of other possibilities. To question the status-quo, goes without saying, is a strong indicator of a strong society. To debate idea’s and positions is a way that we better find the collective wisdom to ensure the best possible choice for where we move forward as a people. As our ancestors asked of themselves, we must strive to live to our highest ideals. I mean, live, to them.

It isn’t always the case to live to them always, or even that they agreed on the same values. Some think this gives them to the right to disposes others by veiled threats and attacks of betraying their cultural values, and thus betraying their ancestors. I don’t mean that by any means. I know I can be arrogant and sarcastic, but I still strive to live to my, decolonized, most important values. It’s why I question, it’s why I think critically, it’s why and how I care.

Why do I feel the need to defend myself? Partly to educate some because the feedback I’ve received. But also to be firm, confident, and strong in my position, not just on this blog but as a person who cares about his community, his culture, and where those go into the future. I intend to be a strong member of my community in a way to help and create things for the better. I hope to find others to do the same. I wish to create change through alternative means, because the status-quo disgusts my integrity to create the change that by the current way. I want to find my place a leader, like all previous strong leaders in our community have, and hopefully create more leaders, not more followers. I want to have a strong community that can face the most serious threats and crisis.

I want liberation.

Searching for the "Need" In My Community

With the rise of success in capitalist business for First Nations, some of the indigenous communities where those First Nations are have experienced some offsetting effects. It could be apart of a larger systemic issue of bad governance, but it could also be tied to the nature of 'capitalism'- or both. Either way, it's manifesting in a type of individualism that shrouded in a veil of traditionalism and a gluttony in a "what they can (or should) do for me" ethic.

The individualism, which I see as a subcategory of capitalism, comes when self-guided interests guides individuals for their own, or very limited, benefit. That self interested approach is sometimes connected to our traditions, customs, and cultural knowledge in a way to prop themselves up and supplant others. Now we have a cultural elitism that pervades through the community where there isn't a successful succession of knowledge, empowerment, and traditions being passed on in a fluid of continuing motion. There's also this tactics, whether conscience or unconscious I don't know, where a person with cultural knowledge holds, not sharing it, for themselves. It's unfortunate, but in the elitism, you have to be from the right family to be apart of the culture.

As a community that's in a First Nation that exceeds a budget of $41 million, you would think it would be a 'progressive' nation ushering creative and innovative ways to combat the social issues, while at the same time promoting it's people in all area's. Far from the truth with the shiny but decaying Squamish Nation. As a community, we have made many leaps forward with community and individual health, as well as major accomplishments in cultural revival. It goes without mention, but there are still things like language loss, land return, education, alcohol and drug addictions, violence against women, corruption and embezzlement, youth self-esteem, intergenerational trauma, and assimilation, as well as a several of other issues that are still present in my community.

What could you do with 41 million dollars?


During the referendum on the Kistilano Land Settlement, which included 92.5 million dollars, it was outlined the priorities for how the money should be spent. Although the band council didn't agree with the creation of a Trust, instead wanting the $93.5 million to be moved into general source revenue, some of the main priorities for the Squamish Nation Trust were Housing, Land Return, Economic Development, and a few others. Housing is a big one for my people.

As of right now, every year (or so years) around 15 houses are built for Squamish Nation members. When you turn 18, you can place your name on the housing list, when your name comes up, you get $120,000 to built your new house on the assigned lot. If anyone drives over the Lion's Gate Bridge, you'll see major housing developments. Here is a google image of the reserve as of late. The idea is that eventually it will mostly become housing. This housing initiative has been going on since the mid 70's. The housing list also topples 1000 members. You sign up now, you'll get a house when your an elder.

In my search of conversations that need to happen, it brought me to the question of "What is the needs in my community?". For the most part, because of the ineffective and inefficient governance system for program and service delivery, as well as support for community initiative, the people are left to fight for their needs. The same gluttonous and individualism that exists helps this "Go for what I can get" sentiment. We neither have the space, not the mindset to discuss what each of our needs as a community are, commit to working together to address those needs, and work in wise and creative action plans to succeed, both short and long-term.

The immediate response to "What do you see as the need in our community?" is sometimes "Housing!". If we were to peer further into this, I wonder what other "needs" are deeper in this. Perhaps things like a need for community, a need for a home, a need to return home when they've never lived on the reserve before, a need to become involved and interest in finding their identity, don't have the initiative or education to attain the income they want or need to live in a house to their lifestyle, or a need to raise a family in a good environment. Those are all deeper issues then "I want my damn house!", and can be addressed in multiple ways then simply providing a family, individual, or otherwise with $120,000 to build their own house.

The need, when broken down, goes to the heart of the community issues. It's when we as responsible community members see what the common needs are we can collectively work together to address those issues.

Housing is just one example. I have my own take on the "needs" that "need" to be addressed, but don't know what others take on the same question is. Perhaps if people are interested in finding this out, approach me and we can work together to organize something in a way to gauge community interests and need, then self-organize around the common issues. I can't be alone in my thoughts forever, otherwise it will lead to self-destruction at the lack of growth or change. Do you want to see change in our community? Then let's damn do something about it.


Enough said.

Since September, I have had a question follow me around like a shadow. "What are the conversations that need to happen in my nation" not only placed in the position to host some wonderful conversations, but also put me through struggles to understand the dimensions in some of the darkest area's of my nation. Dark area's where injustice is the air and it's wind are embezzlement, corruption, and political manipulation of the firm kind.

Despite that, I've also realized many area's where my people haven't convened together to hold space in deep thought and feeling about very important issues. It comes back to the most important question of "Why host conversations that matter?"

I think when I say "hosting conversations that matter", I'm speaking about delving deeply and meaningfully into area's of our society that we may either think of individually, or carry short conversations between one or two other people, but don't. The problem is we are separated and individual in our thoughts to either revive, remodel, or transform the present situation of things. These things range from all kinds of area's like the violence among indigenous youth, to the effect of salmon health on community health.

So in searching for "What conversations need to happen", I'm looking for the focal point or "issue" of that question and conversation. Many years ago, the Squamish Nation had a couple general meetings and decided on an agenda that would be followed for the next few general meetings (each subject being devoted to a General Meeting). We never got further then number 5, mostly because the way the conversations are hosted in SN General Meetings. The highest issues were things like Finance, Housing, Children and Community Safety, Land, and others.

I think those are labels for the deeper issues. I want to find the conversations that need to happen in all of the issues in the community. I find those through the questions that come to mind that would be posed to the community, or the stakeholders (individuals who have a stake in any given issue) that should be brought together to convene about something. For me, so far, it's been about one of those two.


Here is a few of the conversations that I think need to happen in my nation:

• Inter-generational Dialogue between Youth and Elders
• Community: Artist in Dialogue
• Youth in Dialogue: Violence
• Is one form of leadership intrinsically better than another? By what criteria can we discern a leader of quality? (Taken from Peace, Power, Righteousness: An Indigenous Manifesto by Taiaiake Alfred)
• The Need in Indigenous Media
• Confronting Salmon Health and Community Survival
• What 'time' is it in our nation?
• Towards a Sustainable Legacy from the 2010 Olympics
• The Ghosts of Economic-Development Future
• Reflections on the Mother Language
  

Quite the list eh? The way I've been inspired or thoughts given rise to these questions is as wide ranging as the conversations themselves. I think some of these require different types of hosting for different types of conversations. Some are based out of need to either do something or do something different, where some are based out of a need to reflect and find understanding among many. Anyways, they are all extremely important. I'm interested in finding others from my community who are interesting in any of these dialogues and would want to help me organize.

My weakness and where I will ask for what I want is I need help. I desperately need help from others to see these through. If you don't know what that help will be or look like, it doesn't matter to me. I just need the feeling of "I'm not alone in my thoughts".


But I also want to know, what conversations do you need to host?

The following below was a speech written for the 100 Years of South Asian Presence in Canada Celebration at a panel at the Vancouver Public Library.

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mi chap uuys. siiyam, siiyay, s’ekwi7tel. nilh kwens spukwm-uystn nina7min sna. chen wa ten ens ta Skwxwu7mesh. Chen-t xway na tl’a xwmelch’stn uxwumixw. chen kwen men tumiyap tl’a itti.

My name is Dustin Rivers. I’m here to speak to about the myths of my peoples colonial legacy, especially in these lands. First of all, I would like to welcome you all to occupied Skwxwu7mesh territory. As guests in someone else's home, I welcome you on behalf of my people.

I also welcome you to occupied territory. I say occupied because that’s what my people live under. We never surrendered our lands, or our right to exist as a nation. We have an imposed form of government -- that of the Indian Band Council -- on my people, and we’ve been disposed from our ancestral lands. It is why I welcome to you occupied Skwxwu7mesh territory.


Perhaps some you didn’t realize that our view of colonization is still existent in our lives and memories. It’s one of the most prevalent myths in this country. That colonialism happened, has ended, and now we all live together as multi-cultural peace-loving Canadians. It is the strong myth taught in schools, in the media, and is shown in the current engagement of Canadian politics. I will say it: colonialism continues to this day in my peoples lands.


The intent of colonialism is to change our culture, to change our relationship to the land, and change our way of governing ourselves. Historically they had many ways to accomplish this. To undermine our culture by stripping us of our language and knowledge was Residential schools. By attempting to assimilate us into the dominant Canadian society, we would then be stripped of our connection to our land.

Land stewarded for generations by our grandparents, and their grand parents, and their grandparents. Laws were passed and vast resources were put in to installing reserves for my people. After that, a foreign form of government was placed and imposed on us. Whereas before we had our own laws to govern our communities, our resources, our laws, but it was felt that their form was better suited to control us.

From the beginning of our relationship with the Euro-Canadian society, we were always looked at something “in the way”. In the way of progress or expansion, but it was always held that indigenous people were the problem in the way of their progress.

Even to this day that view is maintained. A very deep example for me is the 2010 Olympics. The 2010 Olympics Organizing committee celebrates it’s accomplishment of Aboriginal involvement in the planning of the games, and subsequent benefits from the games.

Is there a connection between this and access to hectares of land for ski jumps or the appropriation of indigenous culture for profit? Is there a maintained view that by giving the First Nations, that is the band councils, some, largely insignificant benefits, they will agree to us doing the same things we’ve always done.

That with the 2010 Olympics games, we’ll have unparalleled opportunity for development of our lands and this will lead to some sort of salvation from the historical colonial legacies created by the last wave of colonizers. That we believe like they do: our lands are rich opportunity to exploit for greater resource and economic development. Business as usual in stealing the land, undermine culture, and change our relationship to the land.

The legacy of colonialism is one of myth. In the schools, Canadians are not taught that colonialism did not “win”, and the indigenous peoples did not “lose”. That we, the indigenous peoples, have been conquered, and thus the land belongs to them now. Can we really talk in terms like this when the colonialism is still not over and people are still resisting the colonial monster.

In the schools, they don’t teach you that we are indigenous nations, with our own laws of governing ourselves, with our own leadership, with our right to exist as nations. So it shouldn’t come as a surprise when Canada’s racist legacy creeps up saying we have received a lot from the government in past decades, and that we have “special rights” unequal with the Canadian society. What we are asking for is to be on equal level, on a collective level, to that of Canadian society. Nation to Nation as it was supposed to be.

When I was in high school, in the part of the history class where we learn about the racist policies against South Asian immigration to this country and this area of the country, the text book gives you examples of the views point of all the people at the time. The viewpoints of the racist White settlers, of the South Asian immigrants coming to this country. I remember my teacher, a White guy, saying he notices how sometime the text book will have some bias. He says how he noticed the book doesn’t give the view point of what the native people thought of the whole thing. Particularly with the climate Vancouver was in around the Komagata Maru. He asks me candidly if I had any thoughts about what my people may have thought of the whole thing. I laughed and said “Well, umm, you were all immigrants to us. You still kind of are.” He didn’t like that response that much.

Some say that the actions of their ancestors should not be reflective of their lives. It was not them who stole our lands, but people hundreds of years ago. It was not them who placed my grandparents in residential school, it was someone else.

But crimes like genocide, theft of land, and destruction of culture have not perished. In a legal sense, when criminals are brought to justice, neither they nor their families are permitted to continue to benefit from the profits of their criminal enterprises. Settlers continue to benefit from this crime.

And the actions of Canadians past has left us all with a legacy that all people from this land, both indigenous and non-indigenous, have a responsibility to make it right. So it stands that for non-indigenous to take root in this country legitimately, they would have to move beyond the Canadian myths and deal with the debt they have incurred and deal with indigenous peoples honorably.

We have a future ahead of us and our relationship between indigenous and non-indigenous does not have to be the same as it has been in the past. That this country Settlers want to be apart of, can change the connection my people have to the rest of Canadian society. That future generations of indigenous peoples will be born into a world where the legacy we have created is one where we’ve worked together in solidarity to rectify the sins of colonialism's past. This would mean supporting us in our fight for self-determination, for our journey to reclaim our culture, our language, our art, and our struggles.


Thank you all.

Between the South Asian Community and Indigenous Community
A group of South Asian academics, activists and community groups have come together to organize a week-long series of events in November (17- 23), 2008, to mark over one hundred years of South Asian presence in Canada, and to commemorate the 100th year anniversary of the Continuous Journey requirement. These events will pay homage to the struggles waged by South Asian communities in the past, celebrate our achievements, and build alliances as we face the challenges of the 21st century.

Dr. Sunera Thobani, an associate professor at the University of British Columbia, and one of the organizers of the event, stressed the importance of recognizing the Aboriginal community, whose land we all use. "It's really important that we have a dialogue in this country that builds solidarity between the South Asians and the Aboriginal people, because they are still struggling for their rights," she said. Thobani said that South Asians and the Aboriginal community have both been racialized in different ways, and by helping end racial discrimination towards other communities, the South Asian community can help end discrimination towards itself.

I will be speaking about racist and colonial legacy for indigenous peoples on this lands and working to build solidarity between the indigenous community and the South Asian community in working together in our struggles and against the forces that marginalize our communities.

http://southasianevents.blogspot.com/
http://www.thetyee.ca/Mediacheck/2008/11/17/SouthAsianEvent/