GNED 410, 411, 412: First Peoples' Stories

"Resistance carries promise. A single voice within a movement may echo across hundreds of generations, and opposition in its most compelling forms can lead to lasting change. For Indigenous Peoples in Canada, resistance to colonization, assimilation, and the destruction of Turtle Island is a part of the fabric of their cultural identity" (Adam et al., Our Stories: Resistance Movements, ch. 3).

Kanehsatake: 270 Years of Resistance (1993) available via NFB Campus

In July 1990, a dispute over a proposed golf course to be built on Kanien’kéhaka (Mohawk) lands in Oka, Quebec, set the stage for a historic confrontation that would grab international headlines and sear itself into the Canadian consciousness. Director Alanis Obomsawin—at times with a small crew, at times alone—spent 78 days behind Kanien’kéhaka lines filming the armed standoff between protestors, the Quebec police and the Canadian army. Released in 1993, this landmark documentary has been seen around the world, winning over a dozen international awards and making history at the Toronto International Film Festival, where it became the first documentary ever to win the Best Canadian Feature award. Jesse Wente, Director of Canada’s Indigenous Screen Office, has called it a “watershed film in the history of First Peoples cinema.”

Incident at Restigouche (1984) available via NFB

On June 11 and 20, 1981, the Quebec Provincial Police (QPP) raided Restigouche Reserve, Quebec. At issue were the salmon-fishing rights of the Mi’kmaq. Because salmon has traditionally been a source of food and income for the Mi’kmaq, the Quebec government’s decision to restrict fishing aroused consternation and anger. Released in 1984, this groundbreaking and impassioned account of the police raids brought Alanis Obomsawin to international attention. The film features a remarkable on-camera exchange between Obomsawin herself and provincial Minister of Fisheries Lucien Lessard, the man who’d ordered the raid. Decades later, Jeff Barnaby, director of Rhymes for Young Ghouls, cited the film as an inspiration. “That documentary encapsulated the idea of films being a form of social protest for me... It started right there with that film.”

Keepers of the Fire (1994) available via NFB Campus

For half of a millennium, Indigenous women have been at the forefront of their peoples' resistance to cultural assimilation. Today, they are still fighting for the survival of their cultures and their peoples--in the rain forest and the city, in the courts and the legislatures, in the Longhouse and the media. Keepers of the Fire profiles Indigenous 'warrior women' in Canada who are protecting and defending their land, their culture and their people in the time-honoured tradition of their foremothers.

Inconvenient Indian (2020) available via NFB Campus

In this time of radical change and essential re-examination, Inconvenient Indian brings to life Thomas King’s brilliant dismantling of North America’s colonial narrative, reframing this history with the powerful voices of those continuing the tradition of Indigenous resistance.