Celebrations marking National Indigenous Peoples Day on June 21 are a chance for Indigenous Peoples to share their culture with the world, says one of the organizers of a festival downtown this weekend.
George Melas Taylor, director of Indigenous Tourism B.C., said it felt good to see so many people come out to celebrate Indigenous cultures at the opening of the Victoria Indigenous Cultural Festival on the grounds of the Royal B.C. Museum. Taylor is from the Kwakwaka’wakw Nation on northern Vancouver Island.
“We’re moving up with the way we express ourselves with our culture, because at one point we couldn’t do it. And now we can,” Taylor said, adding the day is an opportunity to say to the world: “We’re still here and we’ll be here forever.”
The three-day festival kicked off Friday morning with the paddling of canoes on Victoria Harbour and traditional Songhees and Esquimalt welcomes. The festival gives a glimpse into Indigenous traditions with dance performances, drum-making workshops, storytelling events and a smudge ceremony.
Vendor Alva Bob of Pauquachin First Nation has had a booth at the festival since it started six years ago. She said she enjoys the opportunity for different First Nations to come together to celebrate and to give non-Indigenous people a chance to understand the cultures and histories.
Chief Rebecca David, also of Pauquachin First Nation, said the celebrations show that Indigenous peoples are acknowledged and respected as the first people on the land.
“There’s an instilled pride in terms of being able to be freely Indigenous and celebrate. Today has been a great day so far,” she said after addressing a crowd at the festival’s official opening outside of the Royal B.C. Museum.
Events were also held at Royal Roads University and the Sidney Museum to mark National Indigenous Peoples Day. Premier John Horgan attended the event at the university, which featured Indigenous food, art, craft workshops and performances by Esquimalt singers and dancers.
Horgan tweeted about National Indigenous Peoples Day, saying: “Today is a time to celebrate and honour the diverse cultures, knowledge, economies, governance, history and resilience of Indigenous peoples who have lived on this land since time immemorial.”
Green Party Leader Elizabeth May was at the Sidney Museum for the opening ceremony of an exhibition on the life of Tsleil-Waututh Chief Dan George, an actor and Indigenous rights activist who died in 1981.
National Indigenous Peoples Day was first celebrated in 1996, after the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples recommended its creation. The day coincides with the summer solstice to recognize the significance of the longest day of the year in many Indigenous communities. Originally called National Aboriginal Day, the day was renamed in 2017 by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
