Indigenous Food Systems Network

The Sir Wilfred Laurier Memorial outlines the history of the relationship between the Secwepemc (original inhabitants of the Shuswap geographic region in the southern interior of B.C.) and the European settlers up to the period of 1910. The memorial outlines how the colonial relationship was once based on respect, hospitality and sharing with the newcomers, and goes onto describe how it devolved to the current oppressive land regimes that has displaced the Secwepemc from our land and food systems and has led to the near extinction and/or extirpation of culturally important animals species from traditional harvesting sites areas throughout our traditional territory.

Dear Sir and Father,
We take this opportunity of your visiting Kamloops to speak a few words to you. We welcome you here, and we are glad we have met you in our country. We want you to be interested in us, and to understand more fully the conditions under which we live. We expect much of you as the head of this great Canadian Nation, and feel confident that you will see that we receive fair and honorable treatment. Our confidence in you has increased since we have noted of late the attitude of your government towards the Indian rights movement of this country and we hope that with your help our wrongs may at last be righted. We speak to you the more freely because you are a member of the white race with whom we first became acquainted, and which we call in our tongue "real whites.