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Summary of artist's statement:
It’s Time to Wear Our Blankets
Recently the Province of British Columbia decided to walk away from treaty negotiations with the Gitxsan, thereby exhibiting a colonial attitude comparable to that of the original creators of the Indian Act. In my view, with the negotiations no longer under way, it is vital that we define and hold fast to our aboriginal rights in order not to diminish our identity.
In other words, “it’s time to wear our blankets” – meaning the red and black button blankets traditionally worn by our chiefs as symbols of power. This statement made by Jim Angus, one of our former negotiators, eloquently sums up the current situation. Because so far, in our history with visitors, we have been too nice. Now it is time to exert the power we have in a way that real movement toward justice will take place…
This document has been re-purposed to make it more accessible to screen readers and search engine technology - to view a scan of the original document, please click here