“Herring Roe: Dead or Alive, Part 1” SAMAQAN Season 4 Episode 46

The First Nations people of the west coast of British Columbia have been fishing pacific herring for centuries. Is this fishery dying out like other forms of fishery? In the community of Bella Bella, the First Nations right to harvest herring roe was recognized by the Supreme Court of Canada in a 1996 historic ruling under the label of Gladstone vs. the Crown. William Gladstone had been caught with 190 pails of herring roe on kelp. He was arrested but subsequently won the argument that it was his aboriginal right to harvest and market this precious, rare and delicate resource. The documentary follows several families at work in harvesting herring roe.

This fourth and final series of “SAMAQAN” examines the role of water in culture and spirituality of Indigenous people, their focus on stewardship and the efforts mounted to balance respect for the environment with development.

Directed by: Kristy Assu
Produced by: Marianne Jones, Kristy Assu, Jeff Bear