Photo credit: Mike Graeme
kʷu sn̓ʕay̓čkstx (we are Sinixt) pútiʔ kʷu aláʔ (we are still here)
We are a transboundary Indigenous Tribe in the United States and an Aboriginal People of Canada. We have rights in both countries.
Sinixt Statement on ONA Public Relations Campaign
The Sinixt Confederacy and the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation (CTCR) are aware of the recent campaign launched by the Okanagan Nation Alliance (ONA) to assert claims over Sinixt territory based on the false assertion that the Sinixt are part of a larger Sylix Okanagan Nation.
Jarred Erickson, Chairman of the Confederacy and the CTCR, issued this brief statement:
We are saddened to see the efforts being made by the ONA to exploit and participate in the erasure of Sinixt identity and history from the landscape, which colonial forces have been attempting since our forced relocation in the 19th century, continuing through to the declaration of extinction in 1956.
In the Desautel case, the Supreme Court of Canada found that we, the Sinixt, are an Aboriginal Peoples of Canada, with the same constitutionally protected rights as any other Canadian First Nation, because all of the available evidence confirmed we, and we alone, were living in our traditional territory in Canada when Europeans arrived. We are not now, nor have we ever been, part of a Sylix Okanagan Nation. We are proudly Sn̓ʕaýckstx (Sinixt), an Aboriginal People of Canada.
Since time immemorial, the Sinixt have been caretakers of our ancestral homeland, which the Supreme Court expressly confirmed ran from the Big Bend of the Columbia River north of Revelstoke all the way south to Kettle Falls, and we will not allow any organization, whether Indigenous or colonial, to usurp that sacred responsibility again.
We understand how challenging it is for Canadians to hear different and conflicting narratives about Sinixt history and identity. We encourage everyone to educate themselves, which is always the starting point in the truth and reconciliation process. Please visit https://sinixt.com/ and review all of the information on the site, including the historical maps, Richard Hart’s peer-reviewed article in Cartographica, and the province of BC’s own ethnohistorical report on the Sinixt. You will note that no similar information is to be found on the ONA’s website or their paid Facebook ads. We are confident that those seeking the truth of who we are will easily be able to find it.
We will have more to say in the days and weeks ahead, please check back on https://sinixt.com/ for further information. And should you wish to discuss this matter further, please do not hesitate to contact our Nelson office located at 02-514 Vernon Street (Phone: 509 419 9804).
