“Our way of life has been subverted by the Canadian government.”

That’s what Gitxsan Hereditary Chief Molaxan Norman Moore said outside the Supreme Court building in Smithers, B.C., in early March, as Gitxsan Hereditary Chiefs gathered to demonstrate support for Wet’suwet’en Hereditary Chief Dsta’hyl — who was arrested in October 2021 and found guilty of criminal contempt this February.

Northwest B.C. reporter Matt Simmons watched them on that cold morning, before interviewing Gitxsan Chiefs to make sense of it all.

Unlike Wet’suwet’en Hereditary Chiefs, who oppose the Coastal GasLink pipeline through their territory, Gitxsan Hereditary Chiefs did sign agreements with the province in support of the Prince Rupert Gas Transmission project.

But 10 years later, as the promise of a new era for liquified natural gas (LNG) exports meets increasing skepticism, Gitxsan leaders are shifting their tone.

Buy-in from Indigenous communities to extract resources from their lands has been dubbed “economic reconciliation” — LNG could redress historic colonial wrongdoings — which is used by government and industry alike to garner support for these projects.

On paper, Gitxsan leaders still vouch for the pipeline. But it’s their criticism of government conduct that marks a shift from their previous position on the fossil fuel industry: they want to see a judicial review of these injunctions that often favour corporate interest by way of RCMP enforcement.

“We are forbidden from protesting and going in front and stopping it,” Molaxan told Matt in an interview. “They’re treating us as wards of the government. They’re treating us as minions.”
 

Matt says the devastating wildfires, floods and droughts with biodiversity loss in the past 10 years have also brought the reality of climate change into stark focus for communities.

“The narrative of LNG being a climate saviour has largely been debunked and communities can’t help but weigh the environmental and economic risks of building pipelines and LNG plants against the potential economic benefits, which are on shaky ground as countries around the world double down on climate commitments,” he said.

Gitxsan leaders are still willing to work together with the province — but not without respect and dialogue.

“The new LNG sector is changing northern B.C. landscapes in major ways,” Matt told me. “I’ll be here to document what those changes look like, for ecosystems and communities.”

Take care and keep the dialogue going, 

Karan Saxena
Audience engagement editor

This week in The Narwhal