Hereditary Chiefs' Special Flyer

10 September 1995

Interfor claims that this is "public and Crown property." We, the Nuxalkmc, have never NOR will we ever give our consent to Interfor or any other corporation to log out our territory. Our Territory is ours, the Nuxalkmc, and we have never ceded it (given it away) to the Canadian or British Columbia governments. The Hereditary Chiefs have requested that this information flyer be sent to the community so that our people can know and understand the logging protest at King Island. Our Hereditary Chiefs and members of the Nuxalkmc are at King Island to stop Interfor from logging in our Nuxalk Territory. The Hereditary Chiefs are being assisted by an environment group called Forest Action Network (FAN) to help fight against the logging plans of Interfor. The Hereditary Chiefs have signed a protocol agreement with FAN, a group which is trained in ways and means to battle the logging corporations and their destructive pillaging.

King Island has historical significance to our people. There are stories that our Elders talk about. Sniits, (Marjorie Tallio) tells about the beginning of time and she names the first people sent down to King Island (ISTA). The Nuxalk Cultural Centre has documentation that supports this evidence. We can no longer stand by and watch logging corporations destroy our lands. Logging corporations are destroying our old Nuxalk villages, hunting grounds, fishing grounds, grave sites and sacred areas. Our fish and animals that we need to feed our peoples are DISAPPEARING!!!! Our food plants, medicinal plants and trees are being trampled on and DESTROYED - all for the benefit of greedy corporations and their far away stockholders.
We know through our Hereditary Chief and Elders who we are as Nuxalkmc, and they tell us OVER AND OVER that this land was provided for us by Tatau, the Creator, not by the government. We have NOT signed any agreements with the Canadian or British Columbia governments about our land. The government is fooling a lot of Indian people today, and they say we have to settle our land claims through the B.C. Treaty Commission. The BC Treaty Commission is set up by the white government to wipe out all our rights as Nuxalk People. We DON'T have to sign treaties with ANYONE. The government has no right to take away what was given to our people by Tatau, the Creator. We, the Nuxalkmc, have never entered into any treaties with Canada or British Columbia. We, the Nuxalkmc, have never sold or ceded our land, and the Canadian court has no jurisdiction over our territory. The Hereditary Chiefs and community members were served with a court injunction on Saturday, 9 September at 10:30 am. They were informed that they had twenty-four hours to get off our own lands. In response, the Chiefs informed Interfor that they were the ones who were trespassing on Nuxalk Territory. The injunction notice was burnt as a sign to Intefor that our people do not recognize their illegal permits to log in our Nuxalk Territory. Our Elders always encourage us to be strong as Nuxalkmc, and continue to protect our lands and our resources. Our strongest words of encouragement come from a respected Elder in our community, and we must listen from our hearts to what he is saying.
At this time, we wish to acknowledge our Elder (right), Clayton Mack, and the message that he left with us concerning the destructive logging on our Nuxalk lands. Excerpts from Clayton's book: "Why does the government have to kill so many trees and kill them so fast? Trees been there hundreds and hundreds of years, why them white guys want to cut them all down in less than fifty years? What is the rush? Why are those white guys so damn greedy? Why does the government want to do that to all the grizzly bear and salmon river valleys?" "Indian don't do nothin', can't do nothin', we just sit and watch the white men do that to the land." It is true what Clayton said, we aren't doing enough to stop logging corporations from destroying our land. But, TODAY, we are making a stand. TODAY - it's not too late. It is time that we stand UNITED and come together as a people to put an end to all illegal and destructive logging within Nuxalk Territory. This flyer should also CLEAR UP the confusion that was created by the individuals who called the General Meeting at the Nuxalk Hall on Friday, 7 September 1995. This should clear up any MISINFORMATION that came about as a result of this meeting. We apologize for not sending this information out sooner, but time was critical and things had to be done immediately. We will do whatever is necessary to protect what little we have left for our children, our grandchildren and those yet unborn. Your prayers are much needed at this time. Our people who are making a stand against the government and the logging corporations have taken a big step. They are faced with a big challenge in protecting and saving our land for our future generations. Way!