WLCS News
WLCS Executive Director Posting - December 2020The WLCS is looking for a qualified person to serve as our Executive Director. If you are passionate about Witsuwit'en language revitalization, are highly skilled, motivated, and have experience managing education and research-based programs please check out our job posting!
WLCS FAMILY BASED MAP PROGRAM 2020_21 - APPLICATION CLOSED
WLCS FAMILY BASED MAP PROGRAM 2020_21 - ONE SPOT LEFT!
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New Witsuwit'en Language Learning resource!
"Tsë Cakh Wit'en: AN Evening in the village"
September 2, 2020 - The WLCS is pleased to announced the release of "Tsë Cakh Wit'en: An Evening in the Village." This language resource consists of a booklet and language CD set. The project started in 2017 in partnership with Hagwilget Village, who provided a portion of the funding, to bring back the voices of Tsë Cakh (Tse-Kya) Elders recorded and compiled in the 1990s by linguists Sharon Hargus and James Kari. After sitting on the shelf for three decades, Witsuwit'en learners will have the pleasure of hearing the voices of Tsë Cakh's Elders, while learning new vocabulary. We hope to make this resource available in a digital format in the future.
We have published a limited number of copies and priority will be given to Witsuwit'en language learners. Given the COVID-19 situation, we are working on a distribution plan to ensure that we can deliver copies safely to each of the six Witsuwit'en communities. We will be contacting you in the coming weeks! For Witsuwit'en people living off-yin tah (outside the territory), please contact the WLCS at: info@niwhkinic.org
Witsuwi'ten bï yets'olhdic! (Let's speak Witsuwit'en!)
We have published a limited number of copies and priority will be given to Witsuwit'en language learners. Given the COVID-19 situation, we are working on a distribution plan to ensure that we can deliver copies safely to each of the six Witsuwit'en communities. We will be contacting you in the coming weeks! For Witsuwit'en people living off-yin tah (outside the territory), please contact the WLCS at: info@niwhkinic.org
Witsuwi'ten bï yets'olhdic! (Let's speak Witsuwit'en!)
WLCS Family based MAP PROGRAM 2020_21 - APPLICATIONS DUE
SEPTEMBER 11, 2020
We are pleased to announce our family based mentor-apprentice program (MAP). Three (3) teams can be funded!
Priority will be given to:
Program features:
APPLICATION DEADLINE: September 11, 2020
Please forward your applications by email to Program Coordinator, Mélanie Morin, at mmorin@niwhkinic.org
Note: Our office will continue to be closed to the public until further notice. We apologise for the inconvenience.
DOWNLOAD APPLICATION AND WORK PLAN NOW (Word and PDF formats available)!
Priority will be given to:
- Family based MAP teams – an individual living in a family unit with or having formed a “bubble” with a fluent speaker
- Mentor-apprentice teams that can demonstrate that they have a COVID-19 safety plan for their fluent speaker
- MAP teams who have access to the Internet to receive coaching, report progress and submit time
- Teams who have a well thought out language learning plans
Program features:
- Mentor and apprentice learning time is covered by program honoraria ($25/hr for the mentor and $20/hr for the apprentice).
- Teams are expected to complete 225 hours (average of 15 hours weekly for 15 weeks) of language learning by March 5, 2021
- If needed, teams can access a loaned WLCS tablet or laptop computer to complete necessary reports and video meetings with program coordinator
APPLICATION DEADLINE: September 11, 2020
Please forward your applications by email to Program Coordinator, Mélanie Morin, at mmorin@niwhkinic.org
Note: Our office will continue to be closed to the public until further notice. We apologise for the inconvenience.
DOWNLOAD APPLICATION AND WORK PLAN NOW (Word and PDF formats available)!
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| wlcs_map_application_2020_21.pdf |
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WLCS MAP Program 2020_21 - Applications coming out soon!
August 2020 - Witsuwit’en bï yets’olhdic!
Due to the COVID-19 situation, the Witsuwit’en Language and Culture Society has restructured its adult language learning program to ensure the safety of Elders and students. We unfortunately will not offer our regular in class adult program this year.
We are pleased, however, to announce our family based mentor-apprentice program (MAP). Three (3) teams can be funded! Applications will be available soon! The program will start this September. MORE INFORMATION TO COME! 'AWET ZEH!
Due to the COVID-19 situation, the Witsuwit’en Language and Culture Society has restructured its adult language learning program to ensure the safety of Elders and students. We unfortunately will not offer our regular in class adult program this year.
We are pleased, however, to announce our family based mentor-apprentice program (MAP). Three (3) teams can be funded! Applications will be available soon! The program will start this September. MORE INFORMATION TO COME! 'AWET ZEH!
WLCS AND COVID-19 UPDATE
August 2020 - COVID-19 coincided with the year end of many of our programs. As a result, all our staff was laid off until we were able to determine our course of action. Since many of our programs are based on close-contact, hands-on learning, we have had to rethink how we will continue to support Witsuwit'en language learning safely. The safety of fluent speakers is our priority. We will offer some limited language services and take this time to strengthen the society. Though we continue to be committed to Witsuwit'en language revitalization, our capacity is quite limited at this time. For the safety of staff and Elders, our office will continue to be closed to the public until further notice. We apologise for the inconvenience. Any inquiries can be directed to our Program Coordinator at: info@niwhkinic.org. Wiggus and so' ghuhdlï!
Niwhkinic, Niwh'it'ën Program: Witsuwit'en Adult Language Classes BeGin Third Week of September! 2019
We are pleased to announce that our adult program will begin again the third week of August. We welcome our new language nest parent group, as well as returning students! We are entering our third year of programming! Neniwhost'ën'!
WLCS Has a new TElephone Number!
A recent thunderstorm blew our communication system! Ah niyh! We now have a new telephone system and number for our office: 250-847-3166
WLCS's First Newsletter! Summer 2019
Melanie Forsythe has just completed our first ever newsletter devoted to Witsuwit'en language work! Gwa haa! Download to read below!
| wlcs_newsletter_summer_2019.docx |
WLCS Language mentor-apprentice opportunity april 15, 2019
The WLCS is offering Witsuwit'en people interested in learning the language an opportunity to apply to its mentor-apprentice program. This six-week program aims at exposing learners to one-on-one immersion. To apply, please download the application and work plan. Applications are due by April 26, 2019. For more information or to submit your applications send to info@niwhkinic.org.
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| wlcs_map_work_plan_2019.docx |
Government of Canada Introduces Indigenous Languages Act in Parliament
The long-awaited, co-developed Indigenous Languages Act has finally been introduced in the House of Commons. It will undergo three readings there and will then undergo another series of readings in the Senate. It is hoped that all this work will happen before July, after which parliament sessions in preparation for the next election.
The contents of the legislation can be reviewed below. First Peoples Cultural Council has requested feedback on the legislation. The WLCS is currently reviewing its contents and will provide FPCC comments by February 15, 2019.
The long-awaited, co-developed Indigenous Languages Act has finally been introduced in the House of Commons. It will undergo three readings there and will then undergo another series of readings in the Senate. It is hoped that all this work will happen before July, after which parliament sessions in preparation for the next election.
The contents of the legislation can be reviewed below. First Peoples Cultural Council has requested feedback on the legislation. The WLCS is currently reviewing its contents and will provide FPCC comments by February 15, 2019.
| government_bill__house_of_commons__c-91__42-1__-_first_reading_-_indigenous_languages_act_-_parliame.pdf |
January 8, 2019
WITSUWIT’EN HIWHLHTIS (Witsuwit’en People Are Strong)
STATEMENT OF SUPPORT FOR THE DEFENSE OF WITSUWIT’EN YIN TAH
The Witsuwit’en Language and Culture Society (WLCS) supports the Witsuwit’en Hereditary Chiefs, Houses and Clans (as represented by the Office of the Wet’suwet’en) as they exercise their responsibility to protect Witsuwit’en Yin Tah (territory) at the Gidimt’en check-point and Unistot’en (C’ilhts’ëkhyu) house territories in response to the court injunction that was handed down by the Supreme Court of British Columbia in December 2018 in favour of TransCanada’s proposed Coastal Gaslink pipeline to be constructed through Witsuwit’en Territory. The WLCS is a nation and clan-based, non-profit organisation whose mandate is as follows:
The revitalisation of the Witsuwit’en language is intrinsically tied to the land. As the late Wigidimsts’ol Dan Michell once said, “I don’t think we can forget our past, our ways. But God created us as we are and our boundaries. Otherwise, we would all speak the same language. These are not man-made boundaries…We didn’t create our language. It was given to us by our Creator.” The Witsuwit’en cin k’ikh (oral histories) stem back to last ice age. The history of the Unistot’en, a term applied to the C’ilhts’ëkhyu from the Widzin Kwah (Bulkley River) headwaters, and those of other Witsuwit’en clans are well-know, elaborate testimonies to their continued occupation, use and protection of their house territories. The Witsuwit’en Hereditary system emerged from the land and the Witsuwit’en language defined the boundaries and laws that direct Witsuwit’en governance and spirituality through the balhats (feast).
Though the forces of colonisation have tried to erode this relationship, it lives on and is constantly under threat, as is the Witsuwit’en language. Only 3 percent of Witsuwit’en people speak their language fluently because of being forcefully removed from traditional territories during the settlement period, the effects of residential schools and the Sixties Scoop and the impacts of on-going colonisation. It is impossible to separate the language, the people and the land. Witsuwit’en Yin Tah (territory) has been gradually degraded by industrial development and the cumulative impacts are threatening not just the land, but the survival of Witsuwit’en people and language.
If British Columbia and Canada truly want reconciliation with Indigenous peoples, they must once and for all recognise the rights and title of Witsuwit’en Hereditary Chiefs, Houses and Clans, as asserted by the Delgamuukw and Gisday Wa (1997) and Kelah (Canadian Forest Products Inc. v. Sam, 2011) decisions. Civil law suits against individuals do not demonstrate good faith. The Witsuwit’en have a legitimate right and responsibility to protect their territories and by extension their culture and language.
During the early colonial era, Witsuwit’en people actively resisted forceful removal from their house territories, the potlatch ban and the removal of their children and were jailed for doing so. The actions of Witsuwit’en houses and clans in current times is an extension of their ongoing struggle to be recognised and respected. All those historical wrongs were supported by laws, which are now generally considered ethically and morally reprehensible. The United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), which Canada “commits” to implementing, stipulates in Article 8 that:
1. Indigenous peoples and individuals have the right not to be subjected to forced assimilation or destruction of their culture.
2. States shall provide effective mechanisms for prevention of, and redress for:
(a) Any action which has the aim or effect of depriving them of their integrity as distinct peoples, or of their cultural
values or ethnic identities;
(b) Any action which has the aim or effect of dispossessing them of their lands, territories or resources;
(c) Any form of forced population transfer which has the aim or effect of violating or undermining any of their rights;
(UN 2008)
The UNDRIP explicitly stipulates that free, prior, inform consent be obtained in decisions that will have major impacts on the lives of Indigenous peoples. This is not was is happening here in Witsuwit’en Yin Tah (territory). Despite, this Canadian government’s commitment to the UNDRIP, the historical pattern of state oppression and use of force was evident yesterday with the number of RCMP deployed to arrest a small group peaceful Gidimt’en people and their supporters. It is time to end the colonisation of the Witsuwit’en and other Indigenous peoples in Canada. Human Rights violations can no longer be tolerated. The WLCS calls on governments and the public to educate themselves and respect the rights of the Witsuwit’en Hereditary Chiefs, Clans and Houses to determine their future within their Yin Tah.
Wiggus (with respect),
Mélanie Morin, WLCS Program Coordinator
WITSUWIT’EN HIWHLHTIS (Witsuwit’en People Are Strong)
STATEMENT OF SUPPORT FOR THE DEFENSE OF WITSUWIT’EN YIN TAH
The Witsuwit’en Language and Culture Society (WLCS) supports the Witsuwit’en Hereditary Chiefs, Houses and Clans (as represented by the Office of the Wet’suwet’en) as they exercise their responsibility to protect Witsuwit’en Yin Tah (territory) at the Gidimt’en check-point and Unistot’en (C’ilhts’ëkhyu) house territories in response to the court injunction that was handed down by the Supreme Court of British Columbia in December 2018 in favour of TransCanada’s proposed Coastal Gaslink pipeline to be constructed through Witsuwit’en Territory. The WLCS is a nation and clan-based, non-profit organisation whose mandate is as follows:
- To ensure Witsuwit’en peoples have the right to maintain, control, protect and develop our cultural heritage, traditional knowledge and traditional cultural expressions, as well as the manifestations of our sciences, technologies and cultures, including human and genetic resources, seeds, medicines, knowledge of the properties of fauna and flora, oral traditions, literatures, designs, sports and traditional games and visual and performing arts. We also have the right to maintain, control, protect and develop our intellectual property over such cultural heritage, traditional knowledge and traditional cultural expressions.
- To support the integration, implementation, and understanding of Witsuwit’en language and culture within the Witsuwit’en traditional territories and amongst the non-Witsuwit’en population that lives within and visits the territories.
- To be representative of all five clans of the Witsuwit’en peoples.
- To support and implement Witsuwit’en Hereditary law, customs, and beliefs into all programs and services.
The revitalisation of the Witsuwit’en language is intrinsically tied to the land. As the late Wigidimsts’ol Dan Michell once said, “I don’t think we can forget our past, our ways. But God created us as we are and our boundaries. Otherwise, we would all speak the same language. These are not man-made boundaries…We didn’t create our language. It was given to us by our Creator.” The Witsuwit’en cin k’ikh (oral histories) stem back to last ice age. The history of the Unistot’en, a term applied to the C’ilhts’ëkhyu from the Widzin Kwah (Bulkley River) headwaters, and those of other Witsuwit’en clans are well-know, elaborate testimonies to their continued occupation, use and protection of their house territories. The Witsuwit’en Hereditary system emerged from the land and the Witsuwit’en language defined the boundaries and laws that direct Witsuwit’en governance and spirituality through the balhats (feast).
Though the forces of colonisation have tried to erode this relationship, it lives on and is constantly under threat, as is the Witsuwit’en language. Only 3 percent of Witsuwit’en people speak their language fluently because of being forcefully removed from traditional territories during the settlement period, the effects of residential schools and the Sixties Scoop and the impacts of on-going colonisation. It is impossible to separate the language, the people and the land. Witsuwit’en Yin Tah (territory) has been gradually degraded by industrial development and the cumulative impacts are threatening not just the land, but the survival of Witsuwit’en people and language.
If British Columbia and Canada truly want reconciliation with Indigenous peoples, they must once and for all recognise the rights and title of Witsuwit’en Hereditary Chiefs, Houses and Clans, as asserted by the Delgamuukw and Gisday Wa (1997) and Kelah (Canadian Forest Products Inc. v. Sam, 2011) decisions. Civil law suits against individuals do not demonstrate good faith. The Witsuwit’en have a legitimate right and responsibility to protect their territories and by extension their culture and language.
During the early colonial era, Witsuwit’en people actively resisted forceful removal from their house territories, the potlatch ban and the removal of their children and were jailed for doing so. The actions of Witsuwit’en houses and clans in current times is an extension of their ongoing struggle to be recognised and respected. All those historical wrongs were supported by laws, which are now generally considered ethically and morally reprehensible. The United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), which Canada “commits” to implementing, stipulates in Article 8 that:
1. Indigenous peoples and individuals have the right not to be subjected to forced assimilation or destruction of their culture.
2. States shall provide effective mechanisms for prevention of, and redress for:
(a) Any action which has the aim or effect of depriving them of their integrity as distinct peoples, or of their cultural
values or ethnic identities;
(b) Any action which has the aim or effect of dispossessing them of their lands, territories or resources;
(c) Any form of forced population transfer which has the aim or effect of violating or undermining any of their rights;
(UN 2008)
The UNDRIP explicitly stipulates that free, prior, inform consent be obtained in decisions that will have major impacts on the lives of Indigenous peoples. This is not was is happening here in Witsuwit’en Yin Tah (territory). Despite, this Canadian government’s commitment to the UNDRIP, the historical pattern of state oppression and use of force was evident yesterday with the number of RCMP deployed to arrest a small group peaceful Gidimt’en people and their supporters. It is time to end the colonisation of the Witsuwit’en and other Indigenous peoples in Canada. Human Rights violations can no longer be tolerated. The WLCS calls on governments and the public to educate themselves and respect the rights of the Witsuwit’en Hereditary Chiefs, Clans and Houses to determine their future within their Yin Tah.
Wiggus (with respect),
Mélanie Morin, WLCS Program Coordinator