This letter was sent to Mobina Jaffer, Senator for British Columbia, and copied to The Chief for publication.
Dear Ms. Jaffer,
According to Friday's edition of the Squamish Chief, our Mayor Greg Gardner passed on your reminder that French, English and Aboriginal Languages are the founding tongues (languages) of Canada und thus must be reflected in the upcoming Olympic Games ["SSC gets 100K for Olympics," Jan. 15].
Where do you get the notion that aboriginal languages are equal to French and English as founding languages of the political entity that is called Canada? There is certainly no mention of it in the Official Languages Act of 1969, nor, as far as I know, in any of its subsequent amendments. Furthermore, witness Minister of Canadian Heritage Josee Werner in her Nov. 26, 2007 statement in Quebec "...we are all reminded that the French language is the founding language of Canada" or Prime Minister Harper from Ottawa on March 19, 2008 on the Journée de la Francophonie to Quebecers: "French is Canada's Founding Language" and finally James Moore, Secretary of State (Olympics 2010 and Official Languages) in August 2008, also on the celebration of Quebec City's 400th anniversary: "This celebration is a reminder that French is the Founding Language of Canada".
All of the above statements come from Government of Canada websites and not one of these utterances is followed by a "but" or "except" to refer to the aboriginal languages spoken long before the coming of European explorers and settlers.
That is not to downplay the part of such languages and cultures in the making of Canada, after all how could the early fur trading companies such as for example the Hudson Bay Co. have prospered and grown without the contribution of Natives, the frequent intermarriage of its traders with native women and the consequent tight bonds established with the aboriginal population?
Speaking and understanding a native tongue proved also very valuable in the English-French wars for colonial dominance of North America and also in 1812, if only to communicate with actual and potential native allies.
In this broad sense I would agree that aboriginal languages played a part in the building of Canada, but to make the leap from there to state that aboriginal languages are among the founding languages of Canada the Dominion, the nation, is a historical lie.
I don't see any Indian Chiefs in the famous Robert Harris painting of the Founding Fathers around the table helping to iron out the details of the union of the British North American Provinces, nor in any other Confederation picture thereafter. The fact is that they, along with their tribes, were disenfranchised wards of the various governments, therefore non-entities and simply ignored in the nation-building process.
I should wonder how Native would see this and also what their feelings might be about the phony bilingual signage now displayed along the Sea to Sky Highway to make it appear to the world that all is well in these parts.
Will this new official interest in aboriginal matters outlast the Olympics, or is it of the same quality as the above cited utterances on the occasion of Quebec's 400th anniversary?
You tell me.
Wolfgang Wittenburg
Squamish
