By Brian Lee
To some, the community gathering hosted by the Sechelt Indian Band last month was a disappointment. Their complaint was that the SIB didn’t accept questions. I think they missed the point.
If nothing else, it was an opportunity for "us" to listen to "their" story and to consider our role in the complex experiment of reconciliation. Fights over docks and parks might be distracting us from appreciating that the story of the culture living in Pender Harbour before us is also part of our own.
And despite your take on the politics simmering under the surface of the day, I think all must applaud the courage it took for the Sechelt families to bring their elders and children into what they must have assumed could be a hostile environment. Clearly someone saw the potential for tensions to bubble over — at least four cops stood by outside.
So, I was especially proud of the community for keeping its manners. Though questions could be heard muttering through the crowd, both sides respected each other as guests. It was a positive day — but it’s hard to build trust on words alone.
On April 11, we will learn what 13 years of negotiations between the SIB and the province mean to local foreshore rights. But should it be resolved satisfactorily, there’s still another snag that sits blocking meaningful progress. It’s those "longhouses."
The community gathering was a chance to explain, to reassure and to renew ties and I think it moved our two communities forward. And it should have happened last summer. If it had, the SIB might better appreciate how protective residents of Pender Harbourt are of their home. Or that the vociferous opposition to political symbols in local parks is rooted not in racism but a longheld distrust of outsiders. And make no mistake, if you live in Sechelt, you are considered an outsider.
Despite the first structure being built on land left to the community by an amputee war vet, we might have understood if consulted about it. After all, Fred Claydon’s home had already been occupied for centuries before he landed there.
But before we could absorb that shock, the SIB started up another one in our newest park, Francis Point. It was a gut punch to anyone who rallied to preserve the land or revelled in its rare, undisturbed appeal.
The SIB acknowledge they erred in building that structure in fee-simple Francis Point Park yet still refuse to remove it. Chief Craigan defended its construction by pointing out the preservation of undisturbed ecological areas reflect our cultural values, not theirs. And maybe that’s true. But it shows the chief considers an insult to one of our community’s proudest achievements as collateral damage in his fight with the province.
Still, I have to think even the SIB would agree their political gambit could have rolled out smoother. Luckily, there’s a way back:
The SIB needs to clean up their mess in Francis Point Park.
We listened to your story. Now we ask you to listen to ours.
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