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Gallery: Hudson's Bay Company artifacts at the Manitoba Museum

Gallery: Hudson's Bay Company artifacts at the Manitoba Museum

In better times, the Hudson's Bay Company made significant cultural donations, including more than 20,000 artifacts to the Manitoba Museum.
The most famous is the 16-metre replica of the Nonsuch, the ketch that sailed into Hudson Bay in 1668-69, commissioned by HBC to celebrate its tercentenary in 1970.
The museum's collection also includes brass tokens used as currency in the fur trade, a Plains hide dress and birch-bark canoe, and an array of other Indigenous and colonial objects related to navigation, exploration, retail and trade.
Amelia Fay, Curator of Anthropology and the HBC Museum Collection at the Manitoba Museum, shows paintings that would have been on display in stores.
Here's a small selection of items included in the massive collection.
Branded items that would have been sold in the stores.
Branded items that would have been sold in the stores.
Late 19th or early 20th century beaded wall pocket, unrecorded Anishinaabe artist.
Early 20th century Siberian wall pocket made from sealskin, unrecorded artist.
Desk calendar, reportedly left at Fort Chipewyan by Sir John Franklin.
Very large items sit covered in an alcove of the the HBC collections lab.
There are drawers full of HBC blankets and sashes.
Late 19th century binoculars owned by George Simpson McTavish Jr.
Early 20th century beaded bible bag, given to George Fowlie in York Factory, unrecorded artist
A beam scale from 1838, likely used at York Factory.
Late 19th century copper trade kettle, a popular trade good brought in by HBC.
The collection includes many handmade items of clothing.
A beaded Bandolier.
1970s HBC blanket coat with fur trim.
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Wildfires spark demand for Indigenous fire stewardship
Wildfires spark demand for Indigenous fire stewardship

National Observer

time5 hours ago

  • National Observer

Wildfires spark demand for Indigenous fire stewardship

Danny Masuzumi Sr. shakes his head, recalling the jumble of emotions he experienced as a raging wildfire bore down on the remote K'ahsho Got'ine community of Fort Good Hope, NWT. A year ago, local leaders, other emergency personnel, Masuzumi and his team of Indigenous Guardians had to make a terrifying decision to evacuate with most of the community living alongside the east bank of the Mackenzie River — or stay and fight the fire along with territorial wildfire crews. They chose to stay. 'We had no hoses, no pumps, no nothing,' said Masuzumi, executive director of the K'ahsho Got'ine Foundation that manages the protection of the community's new Indigenous and Territorial Protected Area with the help of its Guardian team working on the ground to monitor and care for lands and waters. 'It was kind of overwhelming how a person can feel when there's something coming right at you and could destroy your community,' Masuzumi said. While the K'ahsho Got'ine leadership scrambled to obtain necessary firefighting equipment, Masuzumi and the Guardians, along with another 30 or so residents, teamed up to protect their homes or evacuate residents. Some community members had recently completed basic wildfire training from Yukon First Nations Wildfire, an organization working to deepen and develop Indigenous firefighting capacity in the north, Masuzumi said. The team rounded up water trucks and other heavy equipment and started putting firebreaks in place to protect the community. A year after helping protect their community during the massive Fort Good Hope wildfire, K'ahsho Got'ine Indigenous Guardians call for year-round fire stewardship rooted in sovereignty. While most residents were transported to nearby communities, the Guardian crew also evacuated almost 100 residents and cared for them at a fish camp across the river that they'd been setting up for an elders and youth cultural exchange. It was round-the-clock work in difficult conditions, Masuzumi said. 'It was a really busy, really overwhelming two days of fighting the fire.' While buildings in the community were saved from the blaze — sparked by an unattended campfire — the wildfire burned for three weeks, preventing residents' return and scorching more than 8,200 hectares of land before people were given the all clear to return July 6. The wildfire underscored the value of Guardian involvement in a community-led response, Masuzumi said. He added the K'ahsho Got'ine Guardians could do more if they were funded year-round — not just for their environmental monitoring, but as wildfire stewards who work in cooler months to prevent, reduce the intensity and frequency of blazes, and lead recovery and restoration efforts in their territory after climate disasters. Cultural burning curbs catastrophic fires The longstanding process of extinguishing all fires, instead of letting them burn naturally, has led to the build-up of dead wood and brush, increasing the severity of fires when they occur, said Indigenous fire stewardship expert Amy Cardinal Christianson. Replanting after logging with a single species of tree that is often more combustible has also fuelled the intensity of fires, said Christianson, also a policy expert with the Indigenous Leadership Initiative (ILI). However, cultural burning, an Indigenous practice of setting selective fires in wet, cooler seasons, helps reduce catastrophic fires and protect important natural areas. 'Indigenous people have been living on the Canadian landscape for millennia in forests that need fire,' she said. However, traditional fire stewardship isn't well-supported by government policies or funding, Christianson said. 'In some seasons, hundreds of millions or even billions of dollars go into fighting wildfires, but little actually goes into prevention or mitigation,' Christianson said. 'We see having Guardians as a really cost-effective way to employ people on the land in a way that achieves big benefits." Australia is leading the way by including traditional fire stewardship as part of their Indigenous Ranger program, she said. 'Indigenous people [in Canada] have really demonstrated they want to be more involved in decision-making about fire in their territories,' Christianson said. It's imperative that fire management is included in the K'ahsho Got'ine land-use plan being developed for the new Ts'udé Nilįné Tuyeta conservation area, Masuzumi said. But sourcing the money from territorial or federal governments or conservation agreements — by applying for time-consuming, short-term grants — is always an issue. 'We always have to scratch our heads and figure out where the funding is going to come from,' he said. Wildfire training and certification is also controlled by outside agencies not typically geared to Indigenous communities' needs or aligned with their values, Christianson said. For example, the firefighting course the K'ahsho Got'ine took wasn't recognized at the time the wildfire threatened their community. Fire sovereignty Provinces and territories control who is a certified firefighter, and there's a growing push from Guardians and nations that want to develop training and firefighting objects suited to their needs, Christianson added. Standard wildfire suppression prioritizes human life and buildings and infrastructure while leaving wildfire to tear across open landscapes. However, all Indigenous communities have natural areas vital to their well-being that need to be included in fire management, Masuzumi said. 'When we have fires out in our territory — just like in every other First Nations territory — we all have burial sites or traditional areas where we go,' he said. 'We always try to protect those areas because those are sacred to us.' Water is also part of the equation, said Masuzumi, who has taken samples from important lakes in his territory for over a decade. 'The water that's from a lake that's got burnt trees … is not the same,' he said. 'It takes a long time for water to turn back to its normal state.' 'Our elders say we have to fight the fire around lakes because the fish are going to die. So, the government doesn't understand those kinds of things, right? They look at it from a different perspective.' There's increasing public conversation about Indigenous fire stewardship after the recent string of savage wildfire seasons, but that hasn't resulted in concrete changes on the ground, Christianson said. Long-term sustainable funding for Guardians to manage wildfire concerns, Indigenous-focused fire training, or the protection of culturally important areas when fighting fires isn't taking place, Christianson said. 'We're seeing a lot of talk, but not action in the way that we want, which is recognizing Indigenous sovereignty to the land and to fire management in our territories, and being able to make important choices,' she said. Masuzumi agreed. 'Our job as guardians is to make sure we're going to take care of the environment,' he said. 'We have the training to prevent [wildfires] from getting worse. We have to be the first line of action.'

Hundreds take part in St. Albert's annual Run for Reconciliation, organizer says support growing
Hundreds take part in St. Albert's annual Run for Reconciliation, organizer says support growing

Global News

time15 hours ago

  • Global News

Hundreds take part in St. Albert's annual Run for Reconciliation, organizer says support growing

The organizer of an annual Canada Day event northwest of Edmonton, a gathering that focuses on raising awareness about the history and impact of residential schools while promoting reconciliation, says it is getting more support than ever. 'There's been so much support — right from the first year,' Amanda Patrick, who helped organize the fifth annual Run for Reconciliation in St. Albert, Alta., said on Tuesday. 'We gather every year (on) July 1 — on Canada Day — to honour the past before we celebrate the future.' Patrick said the run has seen about 400 people take part each year, ever since the event was started in the wake of human remains being found using ground-penetrating radar searches near residential school sites. This year, Patrick said more than 500 people took part in the run, which began in St. Albert's Lions Park and ended at the St. Albert Healing Garden. Story continues below advertisement 'We walk and run in … remembrance of those who attended Canadian residential schools as survivors and those that live with intergenerational trauma,' she said. Many participants who took part in the walk or run wore orange shirts, the colour having become a symbol of reconciliation and showing respect for residential school survivors. Many people's shirts had the words 'every child matters' printed on them. Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy 'I'm very happy to be here today for this event and recognizing the people and the stories of this land that I live (on), love and grew up on,' James Rossmann told Global News when asked why he decided to take part. 'I think that's super important.' Hazel McKennitt, a venerated teacher, community volunteer and activist in the Edmonton area, has been actively involved with the run since it began and was there on Tuesday. Story continues below advertisement McKennitt said she spent 10 years attending a residential school from the age of six until she was 16, and said she believes the impacts and legacy of residential schools are still very evident today. 'Child welfare is still an extension of residential school,' she said. 'The trauma is still an extension of residential school, and it's going to continue if we don't tell the truth about residential schools and what happened.' Patrick said that not only has the event seen more support each year, but the people who put it on are becoming 'more and more organized,' and have started a non-profit organization called Kisakihikawin St. Albert. The non-profit is raising money through the run this year for the Poundmaker's Lodge Treatment Centre, an Indigenous addiction treatment centre. Patrick said the City of St. Albert has also been offering more and more support for the run each year. 'It's become a staple in a lot of people's lives for Canada Day,' she said. 'We have a lot of participants who say this is part of their day now. 'I think events like this offer a space where participants can learn about reconciliation, be in a space where they can ask questions and not feel judged … walk away with more knowledge and understanding of how they can have reconciliation in their life and what they can do going forward.'

How to pronounce Vancouver's Musqueam names
How to pronounce Vancouver's Musqueam names

Vancouver Sun

timea day ago

  • Vancouver Sun

How to pronounce Vancouver's Musqueam names

Not many people speak hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓ (pronounced hun'-q'um-ee'-num'), the language of the Musqueam Nation , fluently these days. Colonial policies almost extinguished the language. 'I had been conditioned to think that our language and our culture are primitive and that we should cast them aside,' said Victor Guerin, a Musqueam linguist who grew up in the era of residential schools. Various efforts are underway to try to preserve the language, including incorporating it into public spaces. Start your day with a roundup of B.C.-focused news and opinion. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Sunrise will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. On June 20, Vancouver city officials and members of the Musqueam Indian Band gathered in Kitsilano for the official renaming of Trutch Street as Šxʷməθkʷəy̓əmasəm (sh-xw-MUTH-qwee-um-awe-sum) Street, also known as Musqueamview in English. It was the first street sign in the city to undergo such a change. It joined a number of plazas, buildings and other locations in Vancouver that have received official hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓ names. Guerin, who has spent decades learning, teaching and trying to revitalize hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓, said renaming the street was a small but important step in the process of reconciliation. 'This is very important for our people to raise their own self-esteem back to where it was in the 10,000 years previous to this,' he said. A recent UBC study found that community-led Indigenous language programs were linked to better mental-health outcomes in those communities. The study showed that learning or teaching Indigenous languages helped individuals recover from trauma, including the long-lasting effects of colonization and residential schools. It found communities where more people spoke their Indigenous language reported lower rates of youth suicide and depression. Language was also found to support identity, self-esteem and cultural pride — key factors in mental and emotional well-being. 'Language was one of many parts of our Indigenous identities that histories of genocide attempted to eradicate,' Karleen Delaurier-Lyle, co-author of the study and a librarian at UBC's X̱wi7x̱wa (xwee-xwa) Library, said in a statement. 'Any support in rectifying that past for our ability to heal from that is important.' 'I think it contributes toward helping our people raise their regard for the importance of our language,' Guerin said of the recent street renaming in Vancouver. 'The visibility of our presence on the land, the place names and street names, are things that reflect our history on the land since time immemorial,' he said. The dense consonant clusters and unusual letters in hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓ can pose a challenge when it comes to pronunciations. Hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓ has 36 consonants, 22 of which are not found in English. Some, like t̕ᶿ, only appear in a handful of languages around the world. Postmedia worked with Guerin to put together a short pronunciation guide for the hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓ names of some well-known Vancouver locations and landmarks. It indicates the letter is glottalized, that is it has an audible popping sound upon its release. The little ʷ next to a letter means that the particular sound is made with the lips rounded. The hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓ word kʷe:l sounds very similar to the English word quell, for example. UBC has a website where you can hear how to pronounce the full alphabet . For those interested in learning the hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓ language, courses are available through UBC's First Nations and endangered languages program . ngriffiths@

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