Documentary Reflection
October 31, 2024 By: Josie Bates
Civil disobedience plays a noteworthy role in the environmental history of Haida Gwaii, where Indigenous activism joined with environmental efforts to defend the area’s forests from industrial logging. In April 2024, the Haida Nation and the Province of British Columbia signed the Gaayhllxid/Gíihlagalgang “Rising Tide” Haida Title Lands Agreement. This agreement formally acknowledges that the Haida Nation has Aboriginal title over the entirety of Haida Gwaii. The “Rising Tide” is a landmark, historic achievement in the Haida Nation’s long standing struggle for recognition and validation of their Aboriginal title.
This agreement renews the legacy of the Haida’s 1985 Lyell Island blockade; a monumental example of civil disobedience that halted industrial logging in Haida Gwaii’s ancient rainforests, and started an across Canada discussion on how Indigenous stewardship supports environmental protection. In contrast to the early, economically motivated conservation efforts in North America that emerged in the 1880s as a response to timber shortages (Little, 2015), the Haida’s efforts were motivated by their deep cultural and spiritual connection to the land. The Lyell Island blockade, led by a hereditary Haida chief, began on October 30th 1985. Then for the next three months, the country watched as Haida community members stood their ground to defend their land. Seventy two blockaders, including several Indigenous elders, were arrested during the blockade. The Haida succeeded in defending their ancient forest, and in 1988 roughly 1,470 sq. km of Haida Gwaii was converted into the South Moresby National Park Reserve, later renamed to the Gwaii Haans National Park Reserve.
https://bcanuntoldhistory.knowledge.ca/1980/lyell-island-blockade
Little, Jack. “Question 9 – Canadian Forest Conservation Movement.” November 17, 2015. Thompson Rivers University, 5:41. https://youtu.be/jFrxNEDheOY.