Tait (people)

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The Tait are a group of the Canadian First Nations in the province of British Columbia . They live on the lower Fraser River and belong to the coastal Salish group . Although some of them belong to the Cowichan , “Tait” only refers to the groups that live on the Fraser, more precisely in the Yale District between Nicomen and Yale . They are predominantly represented by the Stó: lō Nation. Your neighbors are the Thompson River Indians . Their largest reservations are Chehalis First Nation, Cheam First Nation, Seabird Island First Nation, Chawathil First Nation, Shxw'owhamel First Nation, and Union Bar Band at Yale.

history

Of the perhaps 3,000 Tait around 1850, only 932 lived in 1890, in 1910 only 578. After Franz Boas , the Cowichan on Fraser included the following tribes: Chehalis, Chilliwack, Coquitlain, Ewawoos, Katsey, Kelatt, Kwantlin, Matsqui, Musqueam , Nicomen, Ohamil, Pilalt, Popkum, Scowlitz, Siyita, Sewathen, Snonkweametl, Skawawalooks, Squawtits. Sumass, Tait , Tsakuam, and Tsenes.

In 1869, Father Charles Grandidier proselytized with them, at a time when the massive influx of gold diggers had already brought them into serious distress since 1858. Allegedly, or so the British colonist from Victoria reported, he succeeded in freeing her from drinking problems and the decomposition caused by decrepit whites. The St. Mary's Mission in Yale, founded in 1861, was arguably less successful.

One of the most important groups of the Tait was the Yale Indian Band , whose chief around 1881 was Emmitt Liquatum. He was an eminent leader of the Stó: lo , often described as the Tait Indians . Their main locations were Yale, Chehalis, Cheam and Hope. Before the gold diggers arrived in 1858, the region was one of the most densely populated areas of the Pacific coast, divided by 30 tribes, the majority of which belonged to the Sto: lo.

In 1878 the government passed the restrictive Fisheries Act , a fishing law that deprived the indigenous peoples of their usual fishing rights, and in 1884 it banned the potlatch , in which fishing rights were traditionally distributed. The next year, the Canadian Pacific Railway reached the region, destroying burial grounds and villages. In 1913/14 there was hunger because the second line of the railway had led to massive landslides, which led to catastrophic fishing failures.

The Cheam are named after the mountain Lhilhequey (Mt. Cheam). Their hunt for mountain goats , whose wool they processed into blankets, is striking . These were coveted as commercial goods, but also had a high ceremonial importance and at the same time gave the weaver spiritual strength. The wool was not sheared, but collected from where it had caught. With the arrival of numerous gold diggers, hunting grounds were increasingly withdrawn from them in favor of the newcomers. In addition, cheap industrial products from England and soon Canada replaced the elaborate products of the Indians.

The Sumas fared even worse at Sumas Lake. From 1920 the lake was simply drained and a settlement displaced the Indians.

Current situation

It was not until 1992 that the tribes of the region were able to enforce their fishing rights at the Supreme Court. June Quipp, chief of the Cheam Indians from 1999 to 2003, is the descendant of her great-great-grandfather Leiemacha, who was chief from 1808 to 1866. Her father Albert Douglas held this office from 1952 to 1969, her brother was Grand Chief Sam Douglas (1941-2001), who held the office for 31 years. On January 10, 2007, all lawsuits against Indian fishing in their area, the Pilalt Territory, were dropped.

On March 31, 2003, the Sumas, headed by Chief Dalton Silver, blocked truck access to their reservation to protect their holy sites. Of the roughly 100 transformer rocks that are reminiscent of the origins of the trunks, only the oldest and most famous is in the Sto: lo area, dating from around 7000 BC. Chr. Processed Xa: ytem rock protected in Hatzic . In 1999 the Canadian National Railway blew up such a rock in the Yale reservation.

Only a tiny remnant of the original forest with huge trees remains in the Pilalt Territory on Elk Creek. In 2003, the Cheam protested against attempts by the Cattermole Timber Company to cut down the last of the giant trees. Added to this is land speculation and the construction of golf courses, lifts and tourist accommodation that threaten the reserves.

literature

Remarks

  1. ^ "The British Colonist," Victoria, March 26, 1861.
  2. ↑ This and the following from: firstnations.de .

See also

Web links