Chief gets full support

Page 5

Dear Editor:

Many years prior to becoming a traditional land-use researcher for my own people, I had the privilege of spending some time in the mid-1970s in northern Que., during which the Cree were engaged in stopping Phase I of the James Bay Project and getting the governments of the day to negotiate a settlement. Even then, we heard talk of young Matthew Coon Come as someone to watch. And in the '70s, the majority of Quebec Cree children were still raised in the bush and learning Cree as their first language before the inevitable trip out to residential school, which made Mr. Coon Come seem even more impressive.

So, please allow me to offer the following for consideration in any discussion of "spirituality." A First Nations individual who has been raised speaking his or her language and who also knows how to survive on the land is by definition practicing "Native spirituality." This is because our cosmology and spiritual values are embedded in the language itself, and in the ways we use our languages to describe our interactions with and out on the land.

I had many opportunities to reveal the extent of my own internal colonization while with the Cree, yet the universal response to my ignorance was kindness, humor and patience. No doubt Mr. Coon Come will deploy the same techniques when dealing with his political detractors. Our new national chief has my full and unconditional support.

Lynne Jorgesen

Upper Nicola Band

Spaxomin, B.C.