The Mi'kmaq Anthology

by Lesley Choyce

  “Kiwnik, have you ever seen a shadow?” The otter eyed the Great Spirit, not wanting to answer. But his curiosity got the best of him as he shook his head No. “The shadow only comes out when it is very bright. It follows you everywhere and does what you do,” bellowed the Great Spirit, still amused at Kiwnik. “It can also take whatever form you wish it to be. Watch this,” he said to Kiwnik.

  With his hands, the Great Spirit made the shadow look like a bird, a dog, a squirrel and a snake. Otter was amazed by all the creatures the shadow had made and had forgotten his anger. Soon, Kiwnik grew tired, for the day had gone by and he had not yet slept. The Great Spirit had an idea which would make Kiwnik the day creature he was supposed to be. After he had fallen into a deep sleep, the Great Spirit carried Kiwnik back to his home by the river bank. As he looked about the animal world, the voice of the wind gently flowed throughout the land.

  “From this day forth shall come a great light so that a companion you shall have by day as well as by night. And as for you, my friend Kiwnik, you shall no longer live by night, for you and your companion will be able to frolic about in the light of day.”

  And this is said to be the birth of the sun who has given us the shadow as our companion to this day.

  Unama’ki

  From the first breath of life

  I have heard her song of plea.

  My spirit longs to answer,

  Yet my soul isn’t free

  To say that Unama’ki is a

  Part of our Mi’kmaq history.

  How do we battle the giant

  That has imprisoned us,

  Banning us from our land

  And causing much grief;

  Denying us our right to

  Roam the hills and plains,

  Where the wind plays the song

  Of this, our Mother Earth,

  While the trees sway and its

  Leaves sing in whispered mirth,

  And the grasses of the wild dance

  Beckoning us to join

  In their musical interlude of

  This Unama’ki land of ours.

  I cannot

  I cannot live in a city

  made of brick and cement.

  It has no soul, no life;

  just a sleepless town.

  Its towering structures hide

  the stars and moon at night.

  I strain my ears to hear

  the morning songs of the birds.

  But all I hear are the hum

  drum songs of cars and busses.

  I search for the peacefulness

  of the forest and meadows,

  But all I found were rushing

  people hurrying in all directions.

  Voices mumbling amongst the

  crowd waiting for trains or planes.

  I long to see the sunrise and

  sunset of each passing day

  But the smog of this city

  keeps it hidden away.

  My feet ache treading these

  paths of heated tar.

  How I long to feel the coolness

  of grass tickling my toes.

  How I long for the aroma of

  sweetgrass and flowers of wild;

  The scent of firs and pine, the

  whispering winds among the trees;

  To watch the creatures running

  about, perhaps playing hide and seek.

  So, you see, I cannot live in a

  City; it is not meant for me.

  Night of Darkness

  In the night of darkness …

  ancient drums beat freely,

  within my aching heart.

  Softly my feet begin its

  dance of the earth,

  on trails once formed by

  the mighty First Nation.

  In the night of darkness …

  I struggle to find the

  likeness of my spirit.

  But the search of my

  ancestors seems endless.

  The songs of the past have

  fallen into emptiness.

  Only echoes are heard from

  its darkening depths.

  In the night of darkness …

  I battle not only injustice

  but agonizing pain of prejudice.

  Yet my heart will not be

  angered by harsh words,

  nor will my spirit crumble

  with shame or weakness.

  In the night of darkness …

  I shall dance and chant the

  ancient steps of old.

  I shall dance and chant by

  the warmth of the fire,

  under graceful beams of a

  moon-filled night.

  Four Eagles and I

  Four eagles flying alone, soaring;

  the sky ever so blue.

  Round and round they went

  ’til their very wings met.

  Four eagles spreading out

  towards that of the four winds.

  I found myself standing alone

  in a field where I felt at peace.

  In a distance I heard laughter

  of children while playing games,

  as elders sat and spoke of their

  hunting days on the open plains.

  A cold chill crept down my spine

  as the sun hid behind a darkened sky.

  I felt so frightened, I began to run

  but couldn’t find a place to hide.

  Four eagles flying alone, soaring;

  the sky no longer blue.

  Round and round they went

  ’til their very wings met.

  Four eagles spreading out

  towards that of the four winds.

  Once again, I stood alone in

  a field, feeling betrayed

  For what I saw were ghostly

  shadows of our ancestor’s past.

  Now before me lies death, death

  of all Nations being torn apart.

  Rage grew inside like fire, tears

  filled my eyes, anger pierced my heart.

  I wanted to run but I couldn’t. “This

  cannot be. It cannot be,” I cried.

  Four eagles have again returned

  but they were not alone.

  I stood in a field once more

  unaware of what was about to unfold.

  For there, standing in front of me

  were leaders from every tribe

  in a circle that stretched

  for miles and miles.

  Onward I strolled only to meet

  the Grandfathers of our Nations

  dancing to the beat

  of our tribal drums.

  I did not know whether

  to be happy or cry

  as I watched the eagles

  flying ever so high.

  Round and round they went

  ’til their very wing tips met.

  Noel Knockwood

  Prayer

  A change is needed to move away from destructive by-products of our society that will contaminate our soil, air, water, animals, bird, fish, humankind, and life itself. We can create life-supporting systems, rather than life-threatening activities, through our innovative approach to waste management pyrotechnology. Mother Earth is sacred to the Indian people. All of the creatures on Mother Earth were made by the Great Spirit whose presence is felt in every object, in every person, and in every place. We are part of the earth, and She is part of us. We offer this prayer in her honour.

  Come, pray with me.

  Oh Great Spirit, we, the Aboriginal people of this land, know that the Creator placed us here. We thank the Great Spirit for the land upon which we were placed. This is our land, this is our home and we claim no other. Along with our sacred land, the Creator gave us our unwritten laws that govern our relationship to live in harmony with nature and humankind. It is the will of our Creator that we maintain a balance in mind, body, spirit and Mother Earth.

  Our spoken law
s, which have been handed down from generation to generation, through our ancient teachings, continue to define our rights and responsibilities to govern ourselves according to our ancient traditions. The Creator also gave us our spiritual beliefs, our languages, and Mother Earth who gives us food, clothing and shelter. For these gifts, we are grateful.

  As a true Mother, the earth continues to nurture us, her children. She gives us the air we breathe, the animals we kill to sustain our lives. To abuse Mother Earth is to heap contempt on God’s creation. To contaminate Mother Earth is sacrilegious to the sacred ways of the aboriginal people.

  Oh Great Spirit of Mother Earth beneath our feet, the Master of metals, the Germinator of all seeds, and the Storer of the earth’s natural resources, help us to give thanks unconditionally for Your present bounty.

  Grand Father, Grand Mother God, the Great Spirit, You are the ultimate force that created this universe and all life within. You have made the races of the world: the Red, Yellow, Black, and White people, and to each you have given a domain and a purpose. Today, as the Red stands before the Yellow, Black, and White people, I pray that You will enter their minds so that they will understand the purpose. As one body, one spirit and one voice, we have offered You our prayer, somewhat like our forefathers prayed to You thousands and thousands of years before European contact.

  Tahoe

  Noel Knockwood speaks on human rights violations, cultural genocide, loss of land of the Aboriginal Indigenous People

  Human Rights Violations

  Since time immemorial, humans have dominated and colonized others, often at a great cost to the victims: the loss of their homeland. Vast areas of North America were governed and ruled by the Aboriginal people who lived in harmony with nature and humankind. We were nations of people speaking our own languages and practising our own religious rites and beliefs. Then the Europeans arrived.

  Since colonization, indigenous peoples in the Americas have suffered gross and widespread human rights violations. Human rights abuses against indigenous people often arise out of disputes over land and resource use or ownership. Indigenous peoples are more vulnerable to abuses and less able to seek redress than others because of racial prejudice and discrimination. Discrimination may also be reflected in the criminal justice system.

  One case in Canada where racial discrimination was found to have been a factor was that of a Micmac Indian, Donald Marshall Jr., convicted of murder in Nova Scotia in 1971. He was released in 1982 after new evidence emerged that another man had been responsible for the crime. A Royal Commission (where I was the translator) examined the case and found that there had been errors and misconduct by the prosecution, and that “seemingly unconscious racism and racial stereotyping” played a part in Donald Marshall’s conviction, which had occurred, “In part at least, because he was a Native person.”

  Helen Betty Osborne, a nineteen-year-old Cree Indian from Norway House community in Manitoba, was murdered in 1971. It was not until 1986, sixteen years later, that one of the four men implicated in her killing was sentenced to life imprisonment for murder. The Aboriginal Justice Inquiry reported in 1991 that several aspects of the police investigation were marred by racist attitudes; that Helen Betty Osborne’s murder was motivated by racism; that neither the Department of Indian Affairs nor the Royal Canadian Mounted Police had exercised due vigilance to protect young Indian women from racial and sexual harassment which they were known to suffer from in The Pas, the town where the girl was murdered; and that the jury, which had no Aboriginal members, was not representative of the community where the trial was held.

  On July 11, 1990, a situation began in the town of Oka, Quebec, which includes the Kanesatake Reserve. The dispute was over land. The bones of the Mohawk dead are piled on top of one another in a tiny graveyard just off the highway west of the town of Oka. It is between the drive-way to the Oka Golf Club and the club’s parking lot. The cemetery has been left with no room to expand. The graves are tightly packed together, and stray golfballs are sometimes found strewn among the decaying headstones of this Christian burial ground. The ninth hole is just a few meters away. The names on the headstones tell the genealogy of the Mohawk people. The encroachment of the golf course on the Mohawk graves became for them a symbol of the relentless appetite of developers. The Mohawk crisis began.

  On August 14, 1990, an international team of observers signed a protocol agreement with the federal and provincial governments and the Mohawk Nation. On August 24, a car carrying human rights observers tried to enter the Reserve. When the car was attacked by a group of men armed with baseball bats, the police and soldiers standing a few meters away did nothing to stop the attack, and the car was forced to retreat. The team of observers returned at dawn after the mobs had left. Later in the day, they were airlifted. On August 27, when Premier Robert Bourassa announced that the official negotiations with the Mohawks were over, the premier asked the international observers to leave.

  In Paris, the International Federation of Human Rights began assembling a team of twenty-four observers to monitor the crisis at Oka.

  Federation President, Jean-Claude Fouque, who made an eight-day tour of the two Mohawk settlements, Kanesatake and Kahnawake, said he had found evidence of more than fifty human rights violations. In about half of the cases, non-Natives were the victims. Mohawks were the victims in the other cases.

  Cultural Genocide

  With the arrival of the Europeans came disease, death and destruction. Chicken pox, small pox, measles claimed thousands and thousands of lives. Alcohol, ammunition and aggression were parts of that experience. As these foreigners came to our Sacred homeland, they brought with them the three M’s: the Merchant, the Military and the Missionary. The Merchants exploited my people through the fur trade. The Military raided our communities and killed men, women, and children. And the Missionary declared our holy rituals and sacred ceremonies to be barbaric.

  They told my forefathers not to believe in Gji-nisgam, the Great Spirit, for they had come with the true teachings of God. The Missionaries could not understand our concept of God (Gjinisgam). They paid no attention to our beliefs, and on June 24, 1610, the first Mi’kmaq Grand Chief was baptized into a foreign faith known as Christianity. Today, some of our Elders claim that the Christian ritual known as baptism is an undisguised attempt to assimilate the Natives by taking away our original names and replacing them with Christian names. The evidence I produce to you is my name “Noel.” They went as far as saying that our language was savage-like and for us not to speak Mi’kmaq, the language given to us by the Great Spirit. We have paid until we could not pay anymore. We even paid with our land.

  Loss of our Land

  There was a time when my forefathers owned this great land. Their domain was from the rising to the setting sun. They had uncontested sovereignty over their land and resources. They lived in peace and tranquillity as they respected differences in languages and values. They honoured all life in plants, insects, birds, fish, animals and other human beings. They called their land Mother Earth. Chief Seattle made a speech in 1884 and these are his words:

  “… Teach your children what we have taught our children, that the Earth is our Mother. Whatever befalls the earth, befalls the sons of the Earth. If men spit upon the ground, they spit upon themselves. This we know, the Earth does not belong to man, man belongs to the Earth. Man did not weave the web; he is merely a strand of it. Whatever he does to the Earth, he does to himself. Contaminate your bed, and you will one night suffocate in your own waste. One thing we do know, which the White Man may some day discover — Our God is the same God. You may think you own Him as you wish to own your land, but you cannot. He is the God of Man, and His compassion is equal for the Red Man and the White Man. This Earth is precious to Him, and to harm the Earth is to heap contempt on His Creation …”

  This is our land. This is our home and we are the descendants of the Aboriginal people.

  How did we lose our land? Some lands were gi
ven away as land grants for the European settlers by absentee landlords. Some lands were taken by sheer use and occupancy. Other lands were taken by treaty violations.

  “As long as the waters flow, or grasses grow upon the earth, or the sun rises to show your pathway, or you kindle your campfires, so shall you be protected by this Government and never again be removed from your present habitations.” Senator Sam Houston of Texas said this in a discourse to the U.S. Congress in 1884, describing what was to have been the perpetual nature of the Reservation created for the U.S. Indians. Similar treaties were signed in Canada.

  Of all of the treaties that were signed by the White Europeans, not one treaty was kept. As for the Aboriginal people or nations, not one treaty was broken. Mi’kmaq treaties are a manifestation of British Indian policy. By deliberate design, the Covenant Chain bound the Crown to protect us and our ancestral lands. From this pre-Confederation obligation flows Canada’s responsibility for “Indians and land reserved for Indians.”

  Although the Crown had not acted expressly to limit or terminate Mi’kmaq treaty rights and has never approved any legislation that does so, the Canadian Government remains slow to fulfil its legal and moral obligations with respect to our rights. As yet, Mi’kmaq have not been compensated for the lands and resources that were unjustly taken from us and which Britain once so eagerly admitted were our natural entitlements.

  The treaty between the Mi’kmaq Nation and the British Crown was signed in 1752 and is yet binding today. At that time the Mi’kmaq occupied the lands known today as Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, the Gaspe Peninsula in the Province of Quebec and sections of Newfoundland. The Treaty of 1752 did not cede any land to the European settlers for it was a treaty of Peace and Friendship with no land surrenders. With that historical premise, all of these lands mentioned are being occupied illegally and the Mi’kmaq people have never been compensated for the use and occupancy of our ancestral homeland.

  Mi’kmaq Declaration of Aboriginal Rights

  From time in memory, our forefathers have lived in this land. This is our land. This is our home. Our history and our allegiance is to this land and to no other. Today we still live in this land that belonged to our forefathers, that still belongs to us and that we will pass on to our children yet unborn. Our existence in this land predates the coming of European explorers and immigrant settlers. Our existence in this land predates the establishment of colonial settlements and governments by Europeans. Our existence in this land predates the Confederation of Canada.