True to life depiction of Native life impresses and teaches simultaneously

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North of 60 star Jimmy Herman had a chance to walk through the Syncrude Gallery of Aboriginal Culture recently and he liked what he saw.

"There's a lot of information here and you can find out things that you didn't remember or only heard about. It's like a library," said the 58-year-old actor.

Despite the magnitude of the exhibit--a 900 sq. m display of 11,000 years and

500 generations of Aboriginal life ranging from the earliest tools and fibres to the residential schools and the future of Aboriginal people--Herman said there is a lot more about the Aboriginal history that can be shown.

"There are a lot of Native stories yet to be told," he said. "There's more to say."

Despite that, Herman said the displays and information are "a good beginning," giving people a "better understanding of the Native people."

Herman, who also provided his voice to the recordings played in the exhibit, spent a lot of time looking at the pictorials and displays in the recent history section of the gallery.

Dubbed as the "dark period", the area depicts the residential schools, the Indian Act, and other pieces of information which attempted to assimilate and erase Aboriginal culture.

Gazing at the depiction of a residential school room, Herman said it brought back many memories.

"I am a product of residential schooling," he said. "Residential schooling taught me that I've been through the worst."

It also taught him to remember where he came from. Those memories of his own past and the history of his culture are what gave him strength.

Herman's favorite display was the Blackfoot Weasel Tail Suit Transfer Ceremony. He said that particular display shows very clearly the pride of the Native people and the spiritual significance of sacred items.

"It's all there and it's there without words," he said.

Herman said he was pleased that Aboriginal people played a significant role in creating the information presented in the gallery. The displays don't only show people where Aboriginal people came from and where they are going, they also teach that working together for a common cause can be very rewarding.

"This museum tells me that we Native people--all the different tribes--are making an effort to tell the Native stories. It is good to see that people can co-operate."