Finding Our Way
(2010, 90 minutes)
Three 30-minute films, made in partnership with two First Nations bands in north central British Columbia --Ts'il Kaz Koh First Nation (Burns Lake Band) and Cheslatta Carrier Nation--describe conflict over land and sovereignty and ask if there is a way forward.
This is a story of a people dispossessed, deep historic wounds, and still unresolved conflict between Indigenous people, governments in Canada and industry. It's a story of the struggles of two First Nations in the Carrier territory of north central British Columbia, Canada, for land and sovereignty, for healing and revitalization. The DVD is structured into chapters of three 30-minute documentaries, and it comes with an extensive discussion guide.
Chapter 1, The Contagion of Colonialism, looks at the historical circumstances, including the settlement of the west, Canada's Indian Act and the Residential School system. It provides the background on how these First Nations people find themselves in the situations they face today.
Chapter 2, High Noon at Burns Lake, tells the story of the Ts'il Kaz Koh First Nation, or Burns Lake Band. Its people have been in conflict with the Village of Burns Lake over appropriated lands for almost a hundred years, a conflict that culminated in the municipality shutting off water and sewerage services to their Reserve in the year 2000. This led to a ruling in favour of the Band by the Supreme Court of British Columbia.
Chapter 3, Keeping Our Heads Above Water, tells the story of the Cheslatta Carrier Nation, whose people were evicted from their homeland in 1952 by Alcan's hydroelectric project. Today, they are still struggling to keep their heads above water, culturally and economically. This is 21st century Canada, and the story of two communities--colonizers and the colonized. It's a story with a question mark. After almost a century of apartheid in this region, the film asks: Is there a way forward?
Directors: Giovanni Attili, Leonie Sandercock
Producer: Leonie Sandercock
For educational licensing (DSLs) and educational DVDs visit https://movingimages.ca/
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FINDING OUR WAY 1
(24 min) Chapter 1: The Contagion of Colonization
Thousands of years before Europeans first set foot in the northern part of the North American continent, diverse Native peoples occupied these lands, each with their own tribal territory that provided the resources for survival. The arrival of E...
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FINDING OUR WAY 2
(31 min) Chapter 2: High Noon in Burns Lake
This chapter tells of the century long conflict between Ts’il Kaz Koh First Nation (Burns Lake Band) and the Village of Burns Lake, a conflict primarily about expropriated land, but also about “the two solitudes,” the apartheid that has separated Nativ...
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FINDING OUR WAY 3
(30 min) Chapter 3: Keeping Our Heads above Water
Chapter three relates the tragic story of the eviction in April 1952 of the Cheslatta Carrier Nation from their ancestral lands by the Aluminium Company of Canada (Alcan), in association with the government of Canada and the Province of British C...
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383 KBPricing and Discount Codes
383 KB
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Finding-Our-Way-discussion-guide.pdf
4.79 MB
