In this incredibly beautiful setting on Cowichan Bay, B.C. on Vancouver Island, we see three canoes paddling in the bay on June 15. They are filled with 2016 Aboriginal graduates from several Cowichan Valley schools. They are on their way to the shore on Cowichan Tribes Recreational Property beside the OceanFront Suites Hotel where their graduation ceremony will be held. Upon arrival, they were greeted by drummers, singers and dancers to celebrate the event. This was the first time graduates were paddled in by canoe to honour students in a traditional way with a traditional activity.
From time immemorial, canoes have formed an integral part of Aboriginal culture in British Columbia and throughout Canada. They were transportation between villages, a means of communication, socializing, trade, travel, fishing and war. They required strength and unity among rowers who often participated in the building of the canoe. They were also used for sport in traditional indigenous games. This of course built character, instilled personal and social values, and taught respect for elders who passed on their knowledge. Canoes were a cultural and spiritual link with the past. They very importantly represented transformation from once living trees that survived centuries, sustaining the lives of birds, insects, and mammals to the purpose of a canoe. All stages of construction were blessed. The canoes came to represent whole clans and communities.
Canoe culture flourished in British Columbia until the end of the 19th century when European settlement brought repression of the Aboriginal culture and great social and economic change. The impact was so huge, knowledge of the canoe’s construction and use had nearly disappeared from Aboriginal culture by the early 20th century. But a resurgence of the culture gradually came about and we see it celebrated during Expo 86 in the form of canoe journeys. The first took place when the Heiltsuk Nation paddled from Bella Bella to Expo 86 in Vancouver. Then, Bill Reid’s “Lootas,” the first large Haida canoe carved in the 20th Century, was commissioned at the end of Expo 86, and paddled north from Vancouver to Skidegate on Haida Gwaii. This resulted in the now annual event, Tribal or Canoe Journeys, held in the summer months in BC. Paddlers from several communities make the canoe journey to the location of the host community who welcomes up to 5,000 visitors and guests for about five days. Traditional songs and dances are shared and it becomes a meaningful event for the whole community, both old and young. For troubled youth, it’s a chance to heal, and gain strength both physically and spiritually by reconnecting with an essential part of their culture.
For the 2016 graduates, their canoeing to high school graduation is a transformative journey paddling their way to a future prepared through modern and traditional education.
The graduates were from several schools in District 79: Cowichan Secondary, Frances Kelsey Secondary, Lake Cowichan Secondary, Chemainus Secondary and Cowichan Valley Open Learning Centre (CVOLC). The drumming and dance group were composed of students from Cowichan Secondary, Khowhemun Elementary and CVOLC. In the picture, we see a blue flag with a white symbol, which is the Metis flag. This might seem out of place but School District 79 caters to all Aboriginal students living in the area, who may or may not be from local Nations.
As is well known, success for Aboriginal students completing high school faces a lot of barriers. Educators and the community in District 79 have worked hard together to improve the situation and in the last 4 or 5 years have increased the rate of graduation from roughly 35% to 55%. This progress is certainly connected to the development of pride in one’s Aboriginal background. The importance of experiences like canoeing and the accompanying resurgence of honoured traditions are changing the face of what it means to be an Aboriginal person.
