LibGuides: Indigenous Peoples in Canada: Wet'suwet'en Protests (2020)

Five terms to know regarding the Wet'suwet'en pipeline dispute (1:10) 2019 Here are five words you'll hear in the coverage of the Wet'suwet'en pipeline dispute and how to pronounce them.
Jesse Wente questions the myths that Canadians believe about themselves (5:59) 2020 Metro Morning columnist Jesse Wente asks individual Canadians to show real solidarity, as politicians revert to police-enforced "solutions" for Indigenous protests.
Indigenous youth talk to press in front of B.C. Legislature February 26, 2020 (36:14) 2020 Indigenous youth gathered on the steps of the B.C. Legislature repeat a series of demands, including calls for RCMP to leave Wet'suwet'en territory and for Coastal GasLink construction to end. They say they will continue to hold the space in solidarity with Wet'suwet'en hereditary chiefs at least until those calls are met. Among speakers are: Ta’Kaiya Blaney (Tla'Amin First Nation); Gina Mowat and Kolin Sutherland-Wilson (Gitxsan First Nation); Shay Lynn Sampson (Wet'suwet'en and Gitxsan); and members of the Heiltsuk First Nation.
Resource Development Challenges Indigenous Rights in B.C. (15:33) April 2020 In early 2020, Coastal GasLink started work on a 670-kilometre, multi-billion dollar pipeline project designed to move natural gas from the B.C Interior to the West Coast. That pipeline goes through the traditional territory of the Wet'suwet'en people. The company claimed it had authority from both the province and 20 First Nations band councils, including five Wet'suwet'en Nation band councils. Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs, however, say they are the decision makers on natural resources on their lands and were not consulted. Supporters of the hereditary chiefs shut down rail lines and staged large solidarity protests in numerous cities across Canada. This story looks at the unfolding of recent events, and it also looks back to the landmark Delgamuukw case in 1997 that a precedent for how treaty rights are understood in Canadian courts.
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NIR-20-04 Pipeline Protests Support Matierials and PPT available on Spark

As we begin yet another year, the Wet’suwet’en land defenders are still under continued surveillance and criminalization by the British Columbia (B.C.) provincial government and the Canadian federal government. At the source of the struggle is, the Coastal GasLink’s (CGL) pipeline construction that is cutting the Wet’suwet’en territory into two. The construction of the pipeline has been opposed by all five Wet’suwet’en clans. The Wet’suwet’en hold title and rights to their 22,000 km2 territory and their Chiefs say they have not consented to the pipeline according to their laws and customs.

Amnesty International, March 1, 2023

March 1, 2023

Does the B.C. gas pipeline need approval from hereditary chiefs? | Maclean's (2019) An influential hereditary leader explains the dilemma arising from Unist’ot’en protest, and what it says about Ottawa’s attitude toward First Nations
Here’s what government can—and can’t—do to end the Wet’suewet’en standoff | Toronto Star (2020) As railway blockades continue, lawmakers, companies and Indigenous communities are all taking a hard look at their possible next moves.
Wet’suwet’en Conflict A look at the conflict in the Wet’suwet’en Nation. In early 2020, solidarity actions took place in support of hereditary chiefs of the Wet’suwet’en Nation opposed to the Coastal GasLink pipeline crossing their traditional territory in northwestern B.C. This page is a collection of stories from APTN News to give you a deeper understanding of the ongoing conflict.
Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs rally in Vancouver (August 15, 2022)
Criminalization of Wet’suwet’en land defenders | Amnesty International (March 1, 2023)

Office of the Wet'suwet'en The Office of the Wet'suwet'en was created as a central office for the Wet’suwet’en Nation. The Office offers many services throughout the Nation focusing on the main areas of Lands and Resources (including Fisheries), Human and Social Services and Governance.