First totem pole since 1970 to be raised in Smithers

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The return of a Wet'suwet'en totem pole in the town of Smithers will mark an important breakthrough in the relationship between the Wet'suwet'en First Nation people and the non-Native people in the area.

The red cedar tree selected for the totem pole is being carved into a all clan totem pole on the school grounds of Smithers Senior Secondary School by Wet'suwet'en carver James Madam.

Madam will carve out the clan figures under the guidance of Earl Muldoe, Chief Delgamuuk.

An all-clan totem pole will include: the grizzly bear, the human, the killer whale, the beaver, the big frog and the small frog.

A gryphon, the school crest, which is half eagle and half lion, will sit at the top of the totem pole. Students have a first-hand look at the totem's development. It's scheduled to be raised in late June.

"There were other poles in Smithers before, but they were cut down by the non-Natives in the 1970s. The Elders were apprehensive about having a pole put up in town again. They still remember the bad feelings in the past, but they are working with the school so that things might be different this time," said Madam.

The totem pole is a joint effort between the high school and the Wet'suwet'en people with the hope of building a bridge over a racial gap between Native and non-Native people.

"It was in 1996 when graffiti was written on the school that was about natives in Moricetown . . . they were racial slurs against Natives," said Madam.

Shortly after the graffiti was discovered, a special assembly took place where students talked about the racist attack. The cultural co-ordinator and officials with the school district kept meeting after the initial school assembly to talk about ways they could address racism at the school.

"We want to bridge the gap between us and the non-Natives. We want to show them that we have a culture, that we are not just hanging out in bars or waiting in a welfare line," explained Madam.

Meetings

The idea for a totem pole surfaced during the subsequent meetings between school district representatives and Aboriginal cultural workers. A steering committee established in May 1997 set the objectives to increase the awareness of Wet'suwet'en culture.

"We started asking all the chiefs to consider the project to try and bridge the gap between us and the non-Natives," said Darlene Glaim who is Gyologet, the hereditary chief of the territory where the pole will stand. She represents the Gidimt'enyu (bear) Clan.

Glaim believes there is not enough understanding among the general population in the northwest about the treaty process that is underway for First Nation communities.

"'Indians must die' was written on one of the walls," said Glaim.

The school principal and teachers met with the chiefs several times during the winter to seek their advice on Wet'suwet'en traditions and culture.

The committee hopes a greater understanding will come about between the Native and non-Natives in the community and sees the theme - bridging the gap - as the symbol of peace on Wet'suwet'en land.

"A few chiefs said that they wanted a strong agreement with the school district so that the pole will be respected. Like where that pole falls then that's where it stays," said Glaim.

A smoke feast at the high school last year, for the announcement of the totem pole and who would be hired to carve it, made students and teachers in the school part of an age old Wet'suwet'en tradition. Instead of using cigarettes at the feast, candy was passed out to signify the intention of the chiefs to raise the pole, said Glaim.

The pole will mark a very significant place in the history of Smithers for First Nation people and their place in the community, said Glaim.

"We not going away and neither are they, so let's find a way to work together," she said.

"We have always had concerns that First Nation children were not comfortable here," said Christine Dickinson, principal of the senior secondary school.

No level of racism is acceptable. Duing the special assembly that took place after the graffiti was discovered, the students in the school made that very clear, said Dickinson.

"It took us more than a year of talking with the chiefs and the bands. There were real concerns because of the past," she said.

That process of consultation is making Dickinson and school staff much more knowledgeable and understanding about Wet'suwet'en culture.

"One of the goals of the committee is to increase the sense of belonging for First Nation people here," said Dickinson.

She believes that is underway bec ause of the totem pole and what it represents.

The pole raising feast is expected to take place in late June and the Wet'suwet'en First Nation people will once again witness the return of their culture in the form of a totem pole.