In 1884, traditional Indigenous ceremonies such as the potlatch, ghost dance, shake tent, and sundance were banned under the 1876 Indian Act. Our people were arrested for conducting or participating in traditional ceremonies and the Canadian government forcibly took their ceremonial materials away. Our songs, prayers, sacred items, and ceremonies were hidden in order to be secretly kept alive until such a time comes for our Peoples to return to our Land and live our traditional ways in a modern world. The ban on our traditional ways remained in effect until 1951.

While the effects of the criminalization of our beautiful Ceremonies are still felt today, that time of reclaiming our land-based traditions and ceremonies is now and we are living history by openly passing down our traditional knowledge to the next generation. We are waking up and reclaiming our identities, communities, songs, prayers, medicines, and trusting in the science of our ancestors. Trusting in ourselves as the Traditional Ecological Knowledge Keepers. Trusting in ourselves as the Keepers of the Water.

Indigenous cultures worldwide celebrate and honour the Summer Solstice with festivals and ceremonies as the Solstice marks the beginning of summer. Indigenous peoples track, record, and understand the movement of celestial bodies. Our continued existence as Indigenous Peoples has always been guided by the distinct seasonal changes we experience around us. This guidance we receive from the Land and all of the different forms of life we share territory with.

However, you choose to acknowledge and/or celebrate National Indigenous Peoples Day, today, Keepers of the Water honours those who fought for this day of Indigenous celebration and we honour those who have yet to come to celebrate with us. We also honour the life-giving Water and the Land we are genetically connected to.

No matter who you are, each one of us is born from the water before we ever breathe our first breath of air. It is up to each of us to keep the water for those yet to come. We must all be Keepers of the Water.

Keepers of the Water welcomes your donations to help grow our reach and sustain our work.

It is through your generosity that we have grown and are able to expand our reach. To make a general donation, click here. If you would like to make a contribution to a specific campaign we are working on, please contact our Office Manager, Brandon Gauchier by email at finance@keepersofthewater.ca.

If you have questions about other ways you can support our work, please reach out to Jesse Cardinal, KOW Executive Director, by email at ed@keepersofthewater.ca.