Calgary Queer Arts Society would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge that we operate on the traditional territories of the people of the Treaty 7 region in Southern Alberta, which includes the Blackfoot Confederacy (comprising the Siksika, Piikani, and Kainai First Nations), the Tsuut’ina First Nation, and the Stoney Nakoda (including the Chiniki, Bearspaw, and Wesley First Nations) this land is also home to the Métis Nation of Alberta, Region III. We acknowledge the traditional care givers of this land and the importance of a commitment to continued decolonisation of our work for the dignity and equity of all. We would like also recognize that Treaty 7 is about a relationship we all actively share in, as settlers and original peoples. A relationship needs to be open, honest, respectful, mutually beneficial and grounded in meaningful reconciliation.

treaty-7-logo.jpg
5d4370b255028.png
Metis-Nation-of-Alberta_-Zone-II.jpg
Flag_of_the_Stoney_Nakoda_Nation.PNG
images.png

Towards Reconciliation

*Making a land acknowledgment is a small but important first step in the reconciliation process between Canada’s Indigenous people and those who came later. As we move further into the 21st century and place so much emphasis on welcoming recent newcomers to our country, it’s more important than ever to look back and acknowledge the early atrocities that we committed against our nation’s original inhabitants. We cannot truly celebrate being Canadian until we recognize our history, including the shameful parts we might rather forget. Remembering to acknowledge the inhabitants whose land we’ve built our lives on is but one small thing we can do to reconcile an ugly past with a hope for the future.

What Is a Land Acknowledgment?

Making a statement like the one above is known as acknowledging traditional Indigenous territories, or land acknowledgement. By acknowledging the traditional territories of local Indigenous people (the First Nations, Métis, and Inuit) and their descendants, we are recognizing a few important things about Canada.

What Is Treaty 7?

  1. We recognize the signing of Treaty 7, an agreement between the British Crown and the Indigenous peoples living in the area, that established the following:

    • An area of land for the local Indigenous people to live on;

    • Annual payments and provisions in exchange for the rest of their land (enabling European settlement);

    • Continued hunting and trapping rights on traditional Indigenous territories.

  2. We recognize the continued right of Indigenous peoples to their traditional lands and their right to future prosperity.

Why Do We Acknowledge the Land?

  1. We are all newcomers, whether our families have lived here for months or for a century. At some point, our families immigrated here and began new lives in a new land, Canada.  Did you know that Canada was already occupied by independently thriving Indigenous societies? In fact, the land around Calgary has been occupied by Indigenous people for over 10,000 years. With each wave of settlement, many Indigenous peoples were displaced from their traditional lands and ways of life. This consequently began a chain of atrocities, the effects of which persist until this day.

  2. As newcomers, we recognize the First Nations, Métis, and Inuit peoples of Canada as the traditional stewards of Canada. Additionally, we recognize their traditional ways of life and their ties to the land. We also recognize that we forcibly disrupted those ways of life to the benefit of our own.

* This information comes from The Immigrant Education Society Website. We sincerely thank them for providing such important and thoughtful information regarding Land Acknowledgement in Alberta. For more information visit their website.