Description
Book SynopsisDetailing the history of the aboriginal village of Iskut, British Columbia over the past 100 years, ‘We Are Still Didene’ examines the community's transition from subsistence hunting to wage work in trapping, guiding, construction, and service jobs.
Using naturally occurring, extended transcripts of stories told by the group's hunters, Thomas McIlwraith explores how Iskut hunting culture and the memories that the Iskut share have been maintained orally.
McIlwraith demonstrates the ways in which these stories challenge the idealized images of Aboriginals that underlie state-sponsored traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) studies. McIlwraith instead illuminates how these narratives are connected to the Iskut Village's complex relationships with resource extraction companies and the province of British Columbia, as well as their interactions with animals and the environment.
Table of ContentsContents Dedication Acknowledgments Notes on Orthographic and Transcription Conventions Introduction: The Persistence of Hunting Part I: Background Chapter 1: Aboriginal Hunting in an Era of 'TEK' Chapter 2: Iskut History and Hunting Part II: Stories about Hunting and History Chapter 3: 'That Bloody Moose Got Up and Took Off': Food Animals and Traditional Knowledge Chapter 4: 'Rough Riding All Day': Work Animals and Guiding Work Chapter 5: Chief Louie's Speech at Spatsizi Plateau Wilderness Park Chapter 6: Everyday Talk about Hunting Appendix 1: Tahltan Language Place Names Endnotes References
