“ We have grown tired of the poverty that is driven by the continued suppression of our inherent legal rights and will end it"
A Message To Yaqan Nukiy
Lower Kootenay people it is our time. We must stand. The creator put us here to protect this land and water. Our people have fulfilled this purpose for thousands of years. Our ancestors are watching us during this pivotal time and they are pushing us to stand up. There is power in our blood. The drum that beats in our hearts and the fire that burns in our souls is warrior’s blood. It has passed through generations from our powerful and feared ancestors. Future generations carry the same blood and will need to know their purpose. A warrior without purpose is a dangerous creature. We are hurting. Residential schools blurred our purpose. At the Center of government efforts was to diminish our strength and clear the land of our people. It caused chaos, dysfunction, and sadness. Visualize our people in one, two, three generations if we cast away the self doubt the government has imposed and embrace our sacred obligation. We are Ktunaxa, we are powerful, and we will no longer be held down in the mud. It is time to Stand and use our hearts, prayer, medicine, sweat, and blood to reclaim what is ours. They came and stole land, raped, and forced us to reserves when we were weak. But we are still here and we are growing stronger. Don’t sit in this last hour- hear the drum and answer it’s call. It is time to Stand. When stories are told of our generation what will they be? Let’s be a story worth telling- a story that inspires and awakens a pride in all Ktunaxa. No matter the outcome, I will Stand! Stand with us Yaqan Nukiy! Stand with us Ktunaxa!
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A Message To
Non-Indigenous Neighbours
IStand for Ktunaxa and the Yaqan Nukiy have no interest in upsetting your way of life. Settler families have been here for a long time as well and have called the Kootenays their home for generations. We view our long term interests as perfectly aligned. We are interested in the development of our resources in a healthy and sustainable fashion to the financial benefit of local businesses and families. We do not wish to see resources exploited for a short time only to watch international corporate entities abandon the Creston Valley once the profits are gone. The Lower Kootenay want to see local success entrenched here for generations.
Economic Activity
We will promote economic activity in two ways. One is to provide a physical outlet to display and sell products created by Artisans. The other is to develop and promote a tourist centred economy. IStand can assist in funding for materials for Art or other tourism projects. There will be some labour jobs that will be created when we take official Action.
Future Economic
Activity
We have a bright Future! We can keep our rights to the territory and resources by engaging in shorter term resource agreements and revenue sharing agreements with British Columbia and Canada. Rather than outright selling our lands and rights we will simply rent them out. In this way we can better fulfill our obligations as stewards and have greater authority to decline development where it is contrary to our well being. As contracts with the government expire there is an opportunity to renegotiate to reflect the current needs of the Ktunaxa and government agencies. This approach has been done by other Indigenous Nations, and has proven successful. It is seen as an alternative to a modern treaty that acquires the same benefit without the same loss. We have a detailed step by step approach modeled after other First Nations that have succeeded in asserting their rights. We have spent over 7 years strategizing, researching the law, and formulating a specific strategy for assertion of our rights. This Action Plan has been formed through years of diligent research and consultation with other scholars and other first Nation leaders in Canada. It will Succeed!
Legal Issues
IStand For Ktunaxa has an experienced legal team in place. The legal team will address any individual charges or collective litigation that arise from our actions. We should not be made criminals for embracing what is lawful. Any person that operates peacefully and consistent with our objectives can be assured they will have an intelligent competent legal team in their corner.
Who We Are
IStand for Ktunaxa is a collective of Ktunaxa citizens that seek to restore our rights. We operate on the principle that we are currently the true title holders of our traditional lands. The Supreme Court of Canada has confirmed this. Our title remains intact as we have not signed a treaty, nor ceded our land through any other mechanism. We invite all Ktunaxa from all Bands to reach out and join us in our efforts. We are not a government agency, we are not a band government, we are not a Ktunaxa Nation Council entity. While we pay respect to the work that all the above entities tirelessly do, we emphasize we are a citizen group.
What We Do
We organize and fund collective projects to assert our title. The action is designed to restore, within the minds of our citizens, that we possess the true title to our territories. This belief, once so strongly held by the Ktunaxa, has been eroded by years of residential schools, smallpox, influenza, and other assimilation policies. Our actions are concrete and will inspire. They are not abstract legal concepts or actions that are beyond the understanding of our members. What we will do in the spring of 2023 is both simple and profound- we will prove that we are the legitimate title holders of what has been improperly labelled as "crown land". We will physically reclaim territory in specific areas that the Canadian government has unlawfully deemed “crown land”. By reclaiming this territory, we will convey our authority to the Canadian government. More importantly, we will re-instill in the minds of our people, and our youth, that we in fact own our territory.
Our Vision
The Ktunaxa have always been a brave and powerful group of people. Residential Schools and other assimilative policies weakened our strength for a period of time. This weakness is not going to be our legacy! We will reclaim and reassert our inherent rights to our land. We will provide for our future generations, and we will leave them proud to be First Nations, and proud to be Ktunaxa. The reassertion over our traditional territory secures long term protection of our lands and resources. It also secures a powerful and bright future for our future generations.
Brief Timeline
The Ktunaxa people have lived in their traditional territory for thousands of years. Somewhere around 1910 major effort was undertaken by the Canadian Government to enforce the relocation of the Yaqan Nukiy from broad occupancy of their territory onto reservations. After the forced relocation to reserves the Canadian government came the imposition of assimilative, culturally genocidal, laws intended to destroy our ability to both challenge the acquisition of our lands, as well to effectively assimilate us into the dominion of Canada. Currently, the Canadian Government relies on our passivity to maintain its control over our land. 2021 is the year we end our passivity and reassert our rights. In the fall and winter of 2021 we are drawing on the collective skills of the Yaqan Nukiy people in preparation for a spring move. In the spring of 2023 IStand with Ktunaxa will assist Yaqan Nukiy citizens in reclaiming specifically selected traditional territory.
Contact
Laura Phypers, BA. JD.
Juris Doctor Degree, University of Calgary
Completed Juris Doctorate degree with focus on Indigenous Issues and Land rights. Conducted Independent Studies under the Faculty of Law at University of Calgary including: Sovereignty Strategy for BC First Nations out of Treaty, Indigenous legal traditions and Law Making.
Bachelor Degree in Arts and Sciences With a Major in North American Studies,
University of Lethbridge.
Completed the Degree and focused my studies on Indigenours land and Governance
Rights. Conducted Independent Studies under the Native American Faculty including: "An Attack on Mobilization." A study in which was an in depth Cultural/Political study of how the Ktunaxa ended up on reserves without ceding right to their territory.
Andrew D. Phypers, BA. JD.
Graduated with an honours degree from the University of Calgary in 2008 and achieved a Doctorate of Laws from the University of Alberta in 2012.
Andrew grew up poor. He has experienced first hand the difficulties that people can face. It is this unique background, coupled with a deep understanding of the principles of Law, that shape his approach to trial strategy. Andrew now practices primarily in the area of criminal law and he has defended all manner of cases including first and second-degree murder, manslaughter, attempted murder, aggravated assault, firearms, impaired driving, armed robbery, and drug trafficking. Andrew is a technical and savy trial lawyer with an eye for finding a defence where others cannot. Andrew has matters in all levels of court including Provincial Court, The Court of King's Bench, The Court of Appeal of Alberta, and the Supreme Court of Canada