Wet’suwet’en Strong - The Symbol of Male Dominance over women.

The slogan “Wet’suwet’en Strong” with the fist raised is symbolic of male dominance and aggression against its own women, hereditary chiefs included. In this article we will show you what they have been hiding from the public. All too many times we have seen the “Wet’suwet’en Five” aka as the (Office of the Wet’suwet’en) with their hateful fists in the air. A sign of power, not intelligence, driven by hate and fear as opposed to being open to personal growth and change.

Never forget the slogan “Wet’suwet’en Strong” belongs to the anarchists who removed three women who were respected Hereditary Chiefs, it was an attack on female authority.

One observation you will become painfully aware of is the hidden real problem in all of this, the real problem comes down to a disagreement between two schools of thought, what is most staggering however is that its not based on ideologies but rather the stark differences between educated people and those who are very uneducated. The difference that drives ignorance vs that of a newer generation of educated First Nations.

Note its also the great divide with Wet’suwet’en Band counsels, but you need to see it all in perspective, and as an amateur writer, I hope my message will be clear.

If you think I am wrong, have a look at the educational backgrounds of those First Nations who support LNG as a good initiative, vs those who talk like the proverbial sky will fall down on us.

The old saying “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men.”

I first want to take you back to a refresher video, you may or may not have seen this production video from 2016. This version is one I have never seen in the mainstream press.

The 3 Hereditary Chief that were stripped of their names, blankets, and role as Hereditary Chiefs are as follows, most extraordinary is to see how educated and dedicated they really are.

• Hereditary Chief  Smogelgem, Gloria George from the Laksamshu Clan
• Hereditary Chief Woos, Darlene Glaim from the Gitdumden Clan
• Hereditary Chief Wihaliy’te,  Theresa Tait-Day from the Laksilyu Clan
  

Please remember when watching, this is a video edited to fit the propaganda theme of the “Wet’suwet’en Five” as opposed to unedited video, this is a production video intended to show only their side of the story.

LET US REVIEW THE VIDEO

It was not a case of “Wet’suwet’en Five” joining a meeting, it was a collaborated raid of the meeting, why would anyone stay?

They intentionally and rudely attended a function they were not invited to. They could have easily announced from their office in Smithers that they did not support this group called “Wet’suwet’en Matrilineal Coalition.”

They used brute force to terminate a meeting that was publicly, not secretly planned. This is just yet one more example of how they do not negotiate as equals, they negotiate at gunpoint, then they have the brazen audacity to accuse goverment of negotiating at gunpoint. The double standards they employ are sadly a norm with this group.

Note who is gleefully wearing the Smogelgem blanket!

Violet Gellenbeck who could have lived with her people all her life but chose to live in Terrace BC with her white security blanket, now playing the role of aboriginal caretaker. You talk about dignity, where is the respect you should have shown to Gloria who dedicated her life to serving your people while you were off enjoying your life away from your people? You betrayed someone in order to make yourself look like you dedicated your life to your people, indeed if you have where is the list of accomplishments?

Violet without the work of Gloria and her team, your family, even your mother would not even be a status Indian, is this how you show your gratitude?

Crab mentality, making yourself look better on the backs of others.

Then you have John Ridsdale blaming CGL, because he knows who buttered his bread even in hiding that he was attacking a woman he owes so much to. John goes on to say “We as Hereditary Chiefs do not allow that.” For heavens sakes man, they were Hereditary Chiefs, so what your really saying is if you want to be a Hereditary Chief they must agree with the gang of five, the men. Individuals who lacked the proper authority, so you consider those on your side as having authority, and those who do not agree with you as not having proper authority.

John as a man you speak as the authority over women vested with the same authority you operate under, by what rule are you superior? Male superiority? Based on your position on pipelines, all chiefs must obey? In the matrilineal descent system, the woman must be the most respected, not the least respected.

Look at the 4:34 mark where they are all laughing about what they had accomplished, enjoying their Judas moment.

Then near the end you have Warner Naziel bragging about how proud he is, gloating over what they had done, then it closes with his wife Freda declaring that its industry trying to divide the people. This couple was rejected by the Office of the Wet’suwet’en for their actions prior to the deaths of some of the Hereditary Chiefs.

This is a power play, by five men who do not want women with rights and a say in what they consider a mans world.

This production is not from the anarchists at the Hooligan’s Hotel, it comes from the Office of the Wet’suwet’en, unless they are also now officially using the same video production team.

 

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Forgive me, this will be a long article, but a lot needs to be told, a lot of truth needs to be shared. The “Wet’suwet’en Five” make a mistake when they impose the message of unity “or else.”

The educated Wet’suwet’en find ways and means to operate around them, they did not go away, the dissension continues to divide, and trying to buy back support with feasts is the latest tactic. Even the attempt to sell the love for our forefathers has the smell of questionable motive written all over it.

Let me say this is my opinion piece, you do not have to like or agree with it, but as an old man with a somewhat still sharp memory, you cannot fool me yet. Let’s begin with a journey back in time, all the way back to 1977 and the Grand Opening of the Smithers Indian Friendship Center. For those of you who still need to know who I am, here is a clue, I was there for that grand opening.

It was great for a number of reasons, the first for me was the food, just kidding, but it was indeed great food. More importantly it was the union of non-aboriginals and aboriginals celebrating friendship and community with the entire community of Smithers.

Straying off topic, also at this time I know certain male Likhts’amisyu that are now chiefs, who back then swore up and down they were immigrants from Quebec, that they were 100% pure French. Some of you need to remember what they say about glass houses.

The reason we need to go back to that date is due to one of the hardest working aboriginal woman bar none who without her help and driving passion this day might not have happened. A lady in her own class by the name of Gloria George, who hailed out of “Georgetown” for you old timers, and for you young pups, just outside of Telkwa, years ago there was a totem pole there across from the houses.

Gloria George - Goo-htse Awh Smogelgem was one of the victims of the “Wet’suwet’en Five” who did the proverbial hatchet job on one of their greatest leaders of all time. I am sure Andy, Leonard and Freddie are rolling over in their graves at what is going on here. So much for respect, it died when the last of the men in the George family departed from this earth. This group of Wet’suwet’en chiefs would never have dared to pull such a coup if these three bothers were alive.

In social media I was staggered by individuals I will not name at this point, who owed their careers to Gloria, but instead of standing by her, they like a pack of wild wolves went after her too in social media. Shame on the lot of you!

We have included 2 videos of interviews with this phenomenally humble lady, her message needs to get out there, especially to all Wet’suwet’en, and even all the other clans in the northwest. We need to honor and respect her, as one of the greatest gifts First Nations were ever blessed with. What the “Wet’suwet’en Five” did is beyond despicable. Watch the 2 videos so you can get a feel for the incredible woman she is.

Maybe if you get to know the woman she really is, you might grow some respect for her. This message is one that may well have a meaning for the “Wet’suwet’en Five”

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When I heard Gloria say ” Many of our younger generation have no clue who they are” my first thoughts go to those young people up on Morice River Road, so full of hate and bitterness. Its not a healing center, its the core of the problem, the festering boil that needs to be cleaned.

Listen closely to how she describes that no matter what blood we have in us, we need to be proud of who we are, not hating that part of us that is not aboriginal, or the other way around.

We did a story that included her in the past, having no idea that this lady was one of the Hereditary Wet’suwet’en Chiefs who was axed by the men only club called “The Office of the Wet’suwet’en”.

If not for the role played by Gloria George, this  “Wet’suwet’en Five” would likely be in retirement gowns not wearing prestigious Hereditary blankets. Gloria was such an ambitious woman with her organizing skills not only would the Friendship Center not be what it is today it might not even have existed without her, even the “The Office of the Wet’suwet’en” and the the famous Delgamuukw case, its questionable if they would have happened without her hard work.

Aboriginal people all across Canada owe their status cards to Gloria who was part of the group that had the law changed, so all aboriginals could be considered aboriginals, even Violet Gellenbeck has her Indian status thanks to Gloria.

Imagine Warner Naziel whose history started as an artist, with him winning the design for the Friendship Centers new building, end of accomplishments. And he will take over the prestigious title held by one of Canada’s hardest working aboriginal women is nothing short of the biggest contradiction in aboriginal history, and the least accomplished chief ever to hold the chiefs name “Smogelgem”.

If there was a single ounce of gentleman’s blood in that group of 5 dictators, they would have honored these women, who all have done so much for First Nations. They did not even have to agree with them, but like gang of thugs they went after 3 women who dedicated their lives to working for First Nations.

I am going to include a massive copy paste, because everyone needs to know the truth about who Gloria was and remains, one of the greatest Wet’suwet’en Hereditary Chiefs of all time.

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Gloria Mary Maureen George, Indigenous politician, activist and public servant (born 24 July 1942 in Hubert, BC). A tireless advocate for non-status Indians, George was elected president of the Native Council of Canada in 1975, becoming the first and only woman to lead a major Indigenous political organization.

Early Life and Education

 

Gloria Mary Maureen George, who uses an English name for interacting with Canadian authorities and in her professional career, was born of Wet’suwet’en (Dakelh), St’át’imc, Cree, Welsh and French heritage. George’s Wet’suwet’en name is Goo-htse Awh, which is the title of sub-chief in her Laksamshu (Fireweed) clan. She also holds the title of hereditary chief, Smogelgem. George was raised traditionally, on a small farm in Hubert, British Columbia (near Prince George), in the ways of the Wet’suwet’en people. George grew up with her siblings and extended family, learning to respect the land and each other.

 

When she started attending school, George became, in her words, a “chameleon” because she dressed in the contemporary fashion for school, but returned to traditional dress afterwards. From a young age, George learned how to effectively move between the worlds of Indigenous traditionalism and Western culture.

 

However, in a 2011 interview with the We Can BC campaign — an initiative to end gender-based violence — George expressed that this move between two cultural worlds was not easy. George said that at school, she was subjected to racism, stereotypes and discrimination. In addition, George disclosed that she had been abused as a child by older men and by a missionary on different occasions. She also shared how her parents removed two of her brothers from residential school after learning that they were being mistreated. This act of defiance caused her parents to lose their Indian status. George would go on to advocate for non-status Indians in her adult life. Her and her family’s victimization created deep and long-lasting psychological wounds that George only came to fully address later on in life. “Alcoholism,” George stated in the interview, “brought my family to its knees.” Now sober, George has advocated for Indigenous peoples suffering from the intergenerational trauma of residential schools, from abuse and addictions, and from being disadvantaged.

 

George attended the University of Saskatchewan’s Native Law Program, and she earned her Bachelor of Laws at the University of British Columbia in 1989. As of 2011, she was pursuing a Master’s degree in First Nations Studies at the University of Northern British Columbia.

British Columbia Association of Non-Status Indians

 

The late 1960s was a politically charged time for Indigenous people in Canada. The Trudeau government’s 1969 White Paper, which called for the removal of any special status for Aboriginal peoples, paired with increased oil and gas exploration in traditional ancestral lands by extractive industries, provided ample reason for Indigenous peoples to organize into formal policy organizations to protect their livelihoods, lifeways and traditional homelands. (See also Indigenous People: Political Organizations and Activism).

 

The British Columbia Association of Non-Status Indians emerged from this environment in 1969. George was one of the first involved with the association, serving as an officer. In this capacity, George worked to improve the opportunities for non-status peoples to receive quality education. She also pushed to uphold Indigenous women’s rights, and to eliminate discriminatory government legislation and policies based on fabricated concepts of Indian status. (See also Rights of Indigenous Peoples).

Native Council of Canada

 

Over time, more organizations emerged to represent both status and non-status peoples. While groups like the National Indian Brotherhood (now the Assembly of First Nations) worked to represent those who had status, others, like the Canadian Métis Society, developed to represent those without status. By 1971, the Canadian Métis Society was renamed the Native Council of Canada (now the Congress of Aboriginal Peoples), and served as the national voice of both provincial and territorial organizations that worked to represent Aboriginal peoples who did not have Indian status.

 

In 1972, George was elected the Native Council of Canada’s secretary-treasurer, a post she held until 1974, when she was elected vice-president of the organization. From 1975 to 1976, when George was president, she became the first woman to become an elected leader of a major Aboriginal political organization. As president, George advocated for greater government recognition of the Native Council of Canada and more consideration from police and the justice system with regards to the human rights of Indigenous peoples throughout the country.

Canadian Human Rights Commission

 

In 1977, Parliament passed the Canadian Human Rights Act with the expressed intent of providing equal opportunity to individuals who may have been victims of discrimination. As a result of this statute, the Canadian Human Rights Commission was established to investigate complaints of discrimination. George was elected commissioner of this organization in 1978, a post she held until 1980.

British Columbia Human Rights Commission

 

In 1980, George was appointed, alongside Charles Paris and Renate Shearer, as a commissioner of the British Columbia Human Rights Commission. The commission actively worked to distribute grants, to engage with the media on human rights issues and to produce educational booklets and short videos for teachers to instruct students on instances of discrimination. As vocal critics of the government, the commissioners worked consistently to reform and improve the code on which the commission was based. However, the commission’s recommendations for amending the Human Rights Code were never enacted. The commission was disbanded in 1983.

Indian Status and Indigenous Identity

 

After the passage of Bill C-31 on 28 June 1985 — an amendment to the Indian Act — George regained her Indian status, which she had lost as a child when her parents had also lost their status (see Indian and Indigenous Women and the Franchise). Although many saw Bill C-31 as a step forward in the protection of Indigenous women’s rights, George has stated that her Indian status carries little real value for her. George does not want to be defined by the Indian Act. As she told the We Can BC campaign in 2011, “No government should tell [Indigenous peoples] who we are.” George sees true Indigenous identity as defined by and connected to one’s Indigenous nation, culture, community and heritage.

We Can BC Campaign

 

In support of the We Can BC Campaign, George participated in an interview program called Breaking the Cycle. A project of the Justice Education Society of BC, Breaking the Cycle featured Indigenous leaders speaking about violence in their communities. George told personal stories and spoke about Indigenous identity, violence and abuse, and the ongoing intergenerational trauma of residential schools. She also offered advice on ways to break cycles of abuse, part of which, George argues, involves reconnection to Indigenous identity and heritage.

Teaching

 

As of 2011, George lived in Prince George, British Columbia, and was an instructor in the Northern Advancement Program at the University of Northern British Columbia.

Significance

 

George has worked to protect the rights of non-status Indians, Indigenous women and Indigenous peoples in general in Canada. Her efforts have raised awareness about the socioeconomic and historical factors that have disempowered many Indigenous peoples, the painful legacy of residential schools, Indigenous rights, and how stereotypes about Indigenous peoples must be identified and overturned.

Further Reading

 

Gail Guthrie Valaskakis, Madeline Dion Stout and Eric Guimond, eds., Restoring the Balance: First Nations Women, Community, and Culture (2009).

 

Dominique Clément, Equality Deferred: Sex Discrimination and British Columbia’s Human Rights State, 1953–84 (2014).

 

 

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Next lets look at Darlene Glaim and her background in relation to the Wet’suwet’en people, taken from Linkedin. I do recall she worked tirelessly at the Dze L’Kant Friendship Centre, she was so highly respected that she was named the alternate representative of the Gitdumden Clan for important Wet’suwet’en Hereditary Chief meetings. I have no real personal knowledge about Darlene, beyond her work at the Friendship Center, but the accumulated years of dedication to her own people speak for itself.

A number of people I spoke with say she is a class act, hard working, a loyal friend, and a kind generous lady.

Facilitator
Company Name Kopar - Work BC
Dates Employed Jun 2018 – Present
Employment Duration 9 mos
Location Prince George

Workshop Facilitator focused on employment skills to assist adults in resume writing, interview skill development, job maintenance and computer skills and managing career changes.
Wet’suwet’en Hereditary Chief
Woos, Casyeh House
Company Name Wet’suwet’en Hereditary Chief
Dates Employed Nov 2014 – Present
Employment Duration 4 yrs 4 mos
Moricetown Band Development Limited Partnership
Economic Development Manager
Company Name Moricetown Band Development Limited Partnership
Dates Employed Apr 2014 – Jan 2016
Employment Duration 1 yr 10 mos
Location Moricetown, BC

+LNG Coordination and Negotiation of the Pacific Trails Pipeline Agreement from start to ratification by the Band Council.
+Community Partnership Development and Management
*Esso Gas Bar - renewal of the business plans and beautification of the property including gas pumps and paving.
+Initial planning to hire consultants for the campground improvements.
*Development of the Economic Development Corporation

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Next we have Theresa Tait-Day, again I personally have not had any dealings with her, so I am dependent on what I can find online.

She is presently the First Nations Access Coordinator at Coast Mountain College in Smithers.

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Everything these three ladies did was legal, and for the benefit of the Wet’suwet’en Nation.
To insure nothing is hidden we will include material evidence in regards to what this “Wet’suwet’en Matrilineal Coalition” was all about.

The evidence shows a continuation of service to the Wet’suwet’en Nation, there was nothing sinister or wrong about what they were doing. The problem was the chiefs were too arrogant to ask, and too narrow minded to want to try understand, so they employed fear to bring it to a close. The typical reaction by uneducated people to something new they do not understand.

ARR-2017-71755

 

 

 

 

 

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