Wearing traditional regalia, members of the Bighorn Chiniki Stoney Nation danced to the steady beat of a drum to mark National Aboriginal Day, June 21.
The powwow attracted hundreds of onlookers who assembled on the front lawn of the information centre to learn about Jasper National Park鈥檚 indigenous history.
Supt. Alan Fehr and Mayor Richard Ireland both spoke during the ceremony, but it was the surprise appearance by Chief Jim O鈥機hiese from the Foothills Ojibway First Nation that had the most profound impact on the crowd.
Dressed in white with an eagle feather headdress he shared a message of peace and co-existence and reminded the crowd that his ancestors called Jasper home for thousands of years before Europeans arrived.
鈥淓veryday is Aboriginal day for me because that鈥檚 who I am,鈥� said O鈥機hiese.
鈥淚鈥檓 not a newcomer and I鈥檓 not a visitor to Jasper National Park, we used to be here.鈥�
He urged the crowd to live in co-existence and learn from one another.
鈥淔irst Nations were always making treaties with one another nation to nation before European contact so we already knew how to live in coexistence,鈥� O鈥機hiese said in a follow up interview.
鈥淔ast forward to the time when the treaties were made with the Queen of England, it was to share this land, to coexist and to learn from one another.鈥�
Earlier in the afternoon, Ireland reminded the crowd that Jasper National Park is located in Treaty 6 and Treaty 8 territories as well as in the traditional territories of the Beaver, Cree, Ojibway, Shuswap, Stoney and Metis nations.
鈥淛asper has an enduring tradition as a gathering place. An important aspect of that tradition is the long connection with Indigenous peoples,鈥� said Ireland.
鈥淟ong before today鈥檚 community gatherings, before regional, national and international tourism appeal, long before the European explorers and adventurers of yesteryear, Indigenous people gathered at this confluence of rivers and valleys under the shadow of these very same mountains.鈥�
He said many of the park鈥檚 place names and landmarks continue to bear the names originally ascribed to them by the First Nations, such as Athabasca, Chaba and Poboktan.
鈥淲e may never know the full extent of the First Nations presence in this treaty and traditional area, but we can acknowledge it is immemorial,鈥� said Ireland. 鈥淪everal years ago, along what is now known as the Overlander Trail, which is just north of our town an arrow head was discovered and was established to be about 8,000 years old, indisputable evidence that these trails and valleys have provided access to this gathering place for Indigenous peoples for millennia.鈥�
Wrapping up his speech he delivered a message of peace, hope and reconciliation.
"We have a shared past, we will have shared future, what we need most is a shared understanding of each,鈥� said Ireland. 鈥淟ets use this gathering, the celebration of National Aboriginal Day, to reflect on how we may use our shared past to best shape our shared future.鈥�
Supt. Fehr鈥檚 speech was significantly shorter, but he too touched on Parks Canada鈥檚 efforts to improve its relationships with Indigenous people across the country.
鈥淭here is no relationship more important to the government of Canada than the one with the Indigenous people, and as a agency Parks Canada has a responsibility to work in a respectful fashion to build strong and lasting relationships with our Indigenous partners across the country,鈥� said Fehr. 鈥淚 am very proud of the nation to nation building that has taken place at Jasper National Park through the Jasper Indigenous forum as we constantly try and renew Canada鈥檚 relationship with Indigenous peoples.鈥�
Paul Clarke
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