Office of Treaty Commissioner launches new book
- Winston McLean | August 03, 2014
On September 22, 1992, the largest Treaty-based land claim in Canadian history was signed at Wanuskewin, just outside of Saskatoon. The impacts of that event are still being felt over 22 years later on all Saskatchewan people.
To keep the Treaty conversation going in this province, the Office of the Treaty Commissioner hired two of Saskatchewan's top Aboriginal academics to produce The Land Is Everything: Treaty Land Entitlement. Their work was launched June 25 at the McNally Robinson bookstore.
Edited by Marilyn Poitras and Tasha Hubbard, The Land Is Everything is a collection of accounts and perspectives from people affected by the Treaty land entitlement story.
Elder Danny Musqua, Chief Marie-Ann Daywalker, Doug Cuthand, Harry Swain, Jarita Greyeyes, Mitchell Poundmaker, Robert Innes, Neal McLeod and Howard Walker share their stories. One of the most dramatic accounts was the result of the conversations held with students from the Oskayak High School in Saskatoon.
Treaty Commissioner George Lafond himself regaled over 40 guests and dignitaries at the launch with his own personal, and often humorous connections to the Treaty land entitlement deal. He noted the agreement was not just a political or economic deal, Treaty land entitlement is about "a spiritual journey, too."
Both Hubbard and Poitras stated how much of an honour it was to have been a part of the research, getting to meet and interview so many knowledgeable people.
"For me, I wanted the book to be a start for conversations," Hubbard stated, "about Treaty, about Treaty land entitlement, about our connection to land, for both newcomers and First Nation Treaty people."
Poitras is a Michif from southern Saskatchewan and is a lecturer at the College of Law at the University of Saskatchewan. Hubbard is an Assistant Professor in the Department of English at the University of Saskatchewan.