Chiefs raise alarm about First Nations languages in B.C.
Chief Ian Campbell says the Squamish language is on the brink of vanishing.
A Squamish Nation chief says it’s “very alarming” that the number of people who speak the Squamish language fluently amounts to one soccer team plus a substitute.
“We have about 12 fluent speakers out of a total of 3,600 people,” Chief Ian Campbell, cultural ambassador for the Squamish Nation, told the Georgia Straight by phone. “That’s less than one percent of our tribe right now speaking. The young people know a lot of words in the language, but they are not conversing in the language.”
The 37-year-old chief said he is proficient in the Squamish language, but not fluent. According to Campbell, a few weeks ago, the Squamish Nation council conducted a “strategic-planning exercise” in which he recommended that the band government “separate language from education, in the sense of really creating a language and heritage department within the Squamish Nation”.
Campbell said he’d like that department to oversee “the archiving and usage of language in rights and title and governance, and also have an educational role where we are teaching the children” the Squamish language.
In April, the First Peoples’ Heritage, Language and Culture Council released its Report on the Status of B.C. First Nations Languages 2010. The report found that “every First Nations language in B.C. is in danger of being lost,” according a fact sheet. It states that B.C. is home to 32 distinct First Nations languages, around 60 percent of the national total.
The report also found that only 31 percent (53 communities) have recordings of their language available as a community resource, while only 52 percent (88 communities) have curriculum materials for teaching the language.
Revitalization is important, according to the report, because language “represents the identity of a people and holds cultural, historical, scientific and ecological knowledge”.
Grand Chief Stewart Phillip, president of the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs, told the Straight by phone that, when he was less than a year old, he was taken from his family and placed in foster care. He did not return to his community for more than two decades, and at age 60 he understands only snippets of his ancestral tongue.
According to Phillip, the report’s findings are “very much at the top of everyone’s political agenda”. He said he’s certain the issue will be raised at the Assembly of First Nations’ upcoming annual general assembly, which will take place in Winnipeg from July 20 to 22.
“It’s an enormous concern of all First Nations communities from across the province and across the country,” Phillip said.
Phillip gave Prime Minister Stephen Harper a failing grade in the area of language preservation.
“If I had to choose a word, it would be abysmal,” Phillip said. “The Conservative government of Canada has been very adverse and hostile towards aboriginal peoples in this country. When they first came to power, the first thing they did was trash the so-called Kelowna Accord, which represented $5.2 billion in desperately needed investment into our communities, in the areas of education, health, housing, and economic development.”
An opportunity was missed again in 2008, according to Phillip, when Harper apologized to residential-school survivors but did not earmark sufficient resources for the preservation of languages and culture.
“We’re at the brink,” Phillip said. “We’re staring into the abyss. And I think, by and large, the national aboriginal leadership—as well as regional aboriginal leaders, as well as local aboriginal leaders—are finally starting to offer a greater standing and priority to the recovery of language and culture.”
Indian Affairs Minister Chuck Strahl was unavailable for comment. Strahl’s staff referred the Straight to Heritage Minister James Moore, who did not return a message by the Straight’s deadline.
Phillip said his five-year-old grandson Marcus recently gave him cause for optimism by singing a song in the Okanagan language.
“When he’s happy, he sings,” Phillip said. “One day, I started to listen to what he was singing, and I was absolutely shocked. He was singing an Indian song. That’s what he’s learning at [his band-operated] school.”
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Comments
Though after reading so many racist comments over the whole Stanly Park name change proposal It's obvious so many people lack respect for our native people!
I guess it's just all to easy to stereotype!
With all these programming advances in applications and software, can't you create a database of Native languages? Maybe throw in an interfacing tool to teach it to future generations, even translate it through different Native dialects or into Chinese or English or French.
The Internet, go for it.
Screww off.
$5.2 billion!??!?! For 3600 people?!??! That's $1.4 million per person! I'm all for breaks for natives but that's nuts.
That 5.2 Billion was for all FN - it was a national. Some of that was for infrastructure. You may not have taken cheques from the government but you do benefit from government spending as well. All the roads, water and sewage treatment, policing, health care, transit, postal services, education - are all government services that all Canadians access. No one in the country has not accepted services from the government. The 5.2 Billion was intended to rectify systemic problems such as clean drinking water, emergency services etc.. If you have a student loan then you have been to post-secondary schooling - and it is common knowledge that tuition does not cover the costs of education - therefor you received government subsidy for the education you enjoyed. Not that there's anything wrong with that - but it is important that people understand the realities of government spending when talking about these issues.
The media is partially to blame for the lack of understanding of what these agreements entail or the situations being discussed when it comes to aboriginal issues.
You have it wrong right off the top. The answer to your emphatic !??!?! ?!??! is NO NO NO NO and NO AGAIN!!! $5.2 billion is country-wide, spread across this country and addressing the needs of aboriginal communities across this country.
Grand Chief Phillip is not from the Squamish Nation, which is where the 3,600 population figure is drawn. He is President of the UBCIC and has been for many years. He's based in the Okanagan, and the money he's talking about with the $5.2 billion is part of the Kelowna Accord, which was a NATIONWIDE initiative which former PM Paul Martin was ushering into being before his minority government was toppled by Layton, Duceppe and Harper in 2004.
So when Phillip refers to Harper coming in and "trashing" the accord, he's referring to Harper's first term as minority prime minister, starting in January 2006.
Matt Burrows
But the language is on its last legs regardless. If 100% of the Nation learns it, that's 3,600 people. That's not a market for publication. More importantly, that's not a sizeable audience for anyone who wants to learn it.
The cited chiefs in this article are showing no leadership to the most important element of their own constituency, which is, I submit, their children and the future children. These young people need an additional barrier of otherness, alienation, melancholy for the past, and grievance against the majority culture like a drowning man needs a BMW. Real leaders would show real courage by diminishing their own importance, and trying to encourage the young to gain the skills to succeed in the present day world, which even they must know is much larger than just Canada or just the white man. We're a species, boys and girls, one that needs people who can look out and forward.
All other goals are secondary, particularly the stupid, disproven, and evil notion of gaining psychological strength through maximizing our cultural differences.
@ Let the Culture Die: survival of the fittest? and thats why idiots like you are still around eh?... riiiiiiight... from the sounds of it, if it were that simple you would've been long gone with the lack of knowledge you carry...well i'd like to think that at one point everyone in this world has gone through a level of imposed assimilation and abuse, but with the advances in technology in medicine and nonsense systems of law and so called justice, racist morons are able to stumble around in the bliss of ignorance. Furthermore, with colonization and attempted abolishment of native people happening only a little over 100 years ago, don't you think that such a beautiful place like "Stanley Park" would have had a name since the beginning of time (before Stanny boy)? its important for the general public to acknowledge native people and the importance we continue to have in connection to this land with the use of our language. A place to start is to have our place names represented and respected publicly.
"A people who don't contribute anything?" well i guess if you really think about it things like LAND, and saving people (your ancestors probably) by the boatload, from scurvy and freezing to death is a whole lot of nothing eh? geez not only did we get taken advantage of, killed etc, but it’s just swept under the rug, like anything that makes the govies look bad, and makes the general public think, and stop running in there lil hampster wheels.
One more thing, i don't kill eagles, not every native person does things like that. The main reason eagles are low in numbers is due to the encroaching greed and filth that has thrown off the ecosystems balance. i do not agree with the killing of animals that are doing what they can to heal from the effects of decisions made by people who have no right to take more than they need or can give back. I do agree with extreme punishment of people who take more than they need and do not give back, but do the people who make a lot of earth-altering decisions value and enforce such important things? no and that is why this earth will eventually stop bleeding oil for the greed and comfort of people and start forcing them to take responsibility and give back the respect and love they stole from the earth. i am a part of this as i type on my mac book, and sit in a house full of things made with oil, but i'm doing my best to not use more than i need, give back as much as i can and redistribute the knowledge i am lucky to be given.
@rick, its not just "NOW" that its "whitey's" fault, it happened a bit more than 100 years ago, hahaha... but for real, how can one who was nearly killed repeatedly for speaking their language, teach a youth who is so consumed by gadgets and propaganda taught to them in school and society systems where they are taught false truths of "HISTORY BOOKS in FIRST NATIONS STUDIES?" if at all.
@ Derra, i haven't seen any money of that range, especially for language preservation, and i don't know of any native person who has, unless they've made it themselves.
@Requinte, there are people who are doing what they can with the little they have to create programs such as these, but it has many challenges as most native languages were oral and were never written.
@Bo Gann, yes the Maori are a very beautiful and amazing people that have done so much hard work. They also have one general language for a large amount of folks. BC has about 32 entirely different languages and cultures for groups of people who's numbers are not what they used to be.
Imagine not speaking, reading, writing English at a level sufficient to get into university or trade school, and thereby to get a well-paid, interesting career, with which to raise a family, educate them, keep them entertained, and fed wholesome food. Imagine this being your priority. Or you could imagine that everything is the white man's fault, and mix up some red crush.
Maybe if in general, the pride of the neighborhood reflected the pride in ones self, such pride would translate to other areas of self initiative. How can the ordinary person have bi and trilingual children and you cannot?
When I was in elementary school we had a social studies teacher who was fluent in Spanish. He garnered interest in children learning simple conversation even though most were enrolled in mandatory French. At noon, and after school he had plenty of volunteers to learn. Children love to learn new things. So I ask again what is your problem in not teaching them?
"teach a youth who is so consumed by gadgets and propaganda...."
Seriously? When was the last time you visited or volunteered in an elementary school? Propaganda? As I noted above, the children I am familiar with were bi and trilingual BEFORE starting elementary school, which means their PARENTS taught them before formal education, while toddlers. So what is your problem in not teaching them, holding their interest, generating enthusiasm?
Did you see the news of the Greeks seeming to think that due to WW2, the Germans should still pay for their unsustainable lifestyle? That's you!
Natives get billions of dollars already and seem to have time for stupid demands about changing place names and such. If you want your language to survive, teach it to your children. Don't expect all of us to pay for that.
You can learn languages phonetically, and thus you can record them phonetically. Its just a matter of dividing up words and sentences to make them into phonetic letters. And from there you can make programs with many capabilities.
My grandmother, who is native and went to residential schools, can, LUCKILY, still speak her native language.
It was exciting to see that I could learn to communicate to her, in our language, our ancestor's language... however, this language is not taught at ubc. Its not taught in any school.
Racism is a major problem, and its not just about the "whities". Natives can have internalized racism, and this causes people to feel ashamed. Imagine a world where your ethnicity is invisible, and no matter how well you do for yourself, you are always assumed to be an alcoholic, an addict of some sort, a person who depends on the system. You will likely feel ashamed. You will likely embrace the dominant culture, although this culture has historically disrespected your ancestors. You will likely teach your children English, and tell them to go to school - get a degree and become someone.
I wish my family taught me our native language. But they did not. For this, I blame our government who under funds programs which can help sustain OUR (everybody who lives in Canada) history. I would hate for future generations to look at a history book, only to find that there is no information on this land prior to European colonialism. I urge everybody to learn another language, no matter how old you are. Communication can help bridge gaps and correct misunderstandings (and lack of communication causes gaps and misunderstandings).
Lets not think "them" vs "us" but, rather, that we can all gain something from encouraging people (native, or not) to learn a first nations language.
@doing the best i can - I am grateful that there are people like you, willing to stand up against racism. Kudos!
And there it is in a nutshell, blame others for your problems. The government cannot fund everybody's wish list so get over it. There is no racism here, just a message to quit relying on everybody but yourself. One of my neighbor's ancestry is from mainland China and his dialect is not supported by our government and so it should not be. It was not until his visits to his ancestors homeland area and subsequent visits by his relatives, was he aware that he (Canadian born) had a link to the area in question and a distinct dialect. Well, guess what? He has taken it upon himself to learn this dialect. Despite the oppression of the Chinese government, the dialect is alive and will now become harbored in this country as well. No government grants or funding either. If he can do it long distance I am sure with a little effort you can do it here to.
So you are a UBC student. Who is paying for your tuition?
Learning a language works the most efficiently when it’s spoken aloud and with someone (mentor, teacher, grandmother). Sadly, no digital/electronic platform will be capable of fully teaching an Aboriginal language. Also, culturally, because so much of the sociological workings of Abroiginal people is through spoken forums, it makes more sense to Elders to teach it through talking. Many of the written transcriptions of Aboriginal languages were created by English-speaking folks who travelled over here from back east. That is another challenge in learning. For instance, my mother speaks Tsilhqot’in but does not know how to write or read it because it was not taught in residential school and therefore would only be able to teach it through speaking.
As a UBC student, I am lucky enough to have to work full-time to pay my tuition and pay taxes all the way.
"It was exciting to see that I could learn to communicate to her, in our language, our ancestor's language... however, this language is not taught at ubc. Its not taught in any school."
Is your language writing compatible? That may be why you can learn Latin and Sanskrit, both dead languages, because there are written records of the languages.
"Racism is a major problem, and its not just about the "whities". "
Oh we know, its a whole spectrum out there.
If your ethnicity is invisible then how is there racism if their is no visible ethnicity to discriminate against? As for being an alcoholic or drug addict, tragic statistics don't lie.
"You will likely feel ashamed. You will likely embrace the dominant culture, although this culture has historically disrespected your ancestors. You will likely teach your children English, and tell them to go to school - get a degree and become someone."
Assimilation, what you teach your children is nothing different than what every immigrant goes through coming to Canada, or even going to a different country.
The truth hurts.
Maybe they'd have more funds if EVERYONE in Canada paid taxes and didn't get free utilities. Federal and provincial budgets survive on collecting taxes.
"Lets not think "them" vs "us" but, rather, that we can all gain something from encouraging people (native, or not) to learn a first nations language."
You say that as you find it discouraging and hurtful teaching your kids English. What an about face.
Consider this: British columbia is formed on unceded native land - this means Canada does not "own" it (yet). Yet, the languages offered at the so-called "best" school in the province - a school built ON land that is not theirs - only offers 3 native languages? Yikes! Is it really so much to ask for more than just 3 languages? Or, just a promotion of Native languages? Hmmm.....
There is nothing wrong with learning English. But there is something wrong with being forced to learn English (residential schools). The Canadian government really screwed things up in the past, but! There is hope yet! (ie the Indian Act reforms which is no longer sexist)
There have been big problems in the past, but we are to learn from our past and make a better future.
Assimilation, I hate to say it, is racist. Whose morals are we assimilating to? For example, if I went to a grocery story whose foods am I seeing? and what foods are considered "ethnic" foods? Does assimilation mean being OK with buying band-aids that are made for white skin? Does it mean pretending that I'm not who I am if I can "pass" as "white"? Assimilation is conforming to the dominant ideology. And its important to question whose ideology this is to begin with.
Also, just for general information - most First Nation's languages do not have writing. This little fact is exactly why, historically, speaking and passing on native language to offspring was made illegal. Oh, and people in residential schools were beaten badly just because they spoke their native language. The reason why so little first nations people have "lost" language is because of the residential schools (hmm who decided on this one?) not because mothers just didn't teach their language.
I see nothing wrong with talking it out, JCollins, as I feel that we can all learn a lot from each other and not pretend to be race-blind but, rather, we can face the reality that people are treated differently because of how they look, and act. And this reality is not about pointing fingers but about accountability. If I broke your leg because I didn't think you should walk on it, who should pay for the medical costs and rehabilitation?
I hope this clarifies a few things.
And, yes I, too, pay for my own tuition and taxes. Just because I'm native does not mean I am exempt from such costs.
I see lots of blame being assessed by you, but I hear no solutions, no internal efforts, no coordination, no leadership. Rather than "you owe me because", you will get farther with I am doing this, and I need your help with it. Consider that people are more than willing to give to a neighbor when he canvasses for a specific disease foundation that affected him or a friend and he is out there enlisting help and donations. He usually gets it. It is recognized he is volunteering his time, showing concern and leadership in making a difference for others.
You're not ever going to get the keys to the Province, and even if you did, it still will not solve the inertia of your community no to do from within on saving a language or anything else.
You pay your tuition and taxes. Good for you. Have you taken advantage of the Aboriginal only funding:
http://www.longhouse.ubc.ca/awards.htm
http://www.grad.ubc.ca/prospective-students/aboriginal-students/funding-...
Just to name a few avenues not available to the general
And do not confuse capitalism with racism. If there was a market for native food, it would be stocked with all the rest of the groceries or in the ethnic sections. You could point to the high demand for Native Art in various forms. Lots of success stories there, are there not? http://www.artistsincanada.com/php/~aboriginal.php
http://www.artcyclopedia.com/nationalities/Native_American.html
http://www.onemoon.ca/html/darlene_gait_bio.html
Just to name a few.
"If I broke your leg because I didn't think you should walk on it, who should pay for the medical costs and rehabilitation?"
What kind of question is that? I would expect better reasoning coming from a university student.
For example, take the Blackfoot term “Natoyi pai tapi wahsin”. (spelling is mine, since there is no official spelling). The simple translation is “Spirituality”. The English term spirituality can be used by anyone, even hate groups can claim spirituality, but the Blackfoot term implies a much more holistic type of spirituality that leaves little room for negativity. Specifically, the Blackfoot term refers to following a path toward holiness, or in other words it implies becoming a better person. There is no word that simply means “spirituality”, but that does not mean the Blackfoot had no concept of spirituality.
What we can discern from this one term (and in conjuction with other terms I’m not going to elaborate on) is that the Blackfoot never talked about spirituality in ambiguous and uncertain terms, instead they probably didn’t have any significant divisions in their understanding of the Creator. Their belief in the Creator seems to have been implicit in their lives. There doesn’t seem to have been any atheistic sort of beliefs among the ancient Blackfoot - they simply accepted the existence of a Creator - and from that perspective comes a lot of insight into the language and the ways of life of the ancient Blackfoot. As I’ve studied more and more words of the Blackfoot language I’ve come to discover that the ancient Blackfoot were, by today’s standards, very devout in their belief in the Creator. Their devotion to the Creator was very explicit in the words they used and how they used the words. Unfortunately, that same natural sort of devotion to the Creator manifest in the language is not understood today because modern Blackfoot people learn English first. We learn English perspectives first, and then have little choice but to analyze Blackfoot language in English. English is very secular, but Blackfoot had a specific belief system and traditions that were represented by the language. It would not be acceptable in today's public educational system to study the Blackfoot language in its entirety because of its fundamental inclusion of God (today it is taught from a secular perspective and no wonder hardly anyone is learning it fluently!). To really catch the “spirit” of the language you need to study the beliefs and traditions of the Blackfoot.
The prohibition of the Blackfoot language was a devastation to the Blackfoot people, not only in a linguistic sense, but moreso because a fundamental understanding of the world is being forgotten.