Copyright © 2001 NLThomas
All Rights Reserved

My name is James Saul. I'm a 73 year old Secwepemc Elder. I'm a pipe-carrier and a Sundance Chief. I built a Sweatlodge at McGillivary Lake last summer. Another Sweatlodge was built by a female elder for the women to use. We've had many beautiful ceremonies there since that time. The Native youth have been training in their own culture with us. We've had many different healing ceremonies on our land since long before white people arrived in our country.

During the last year, medicine people have smoked their pipes up there to protect our land from being destroyed and stolen from us. Our Sweatlodges have always been our churches. That's one of our highest ceremonies on this mother earth. All Native people have the highest respect for our Sweatlodges. And non-native people are also learning about this way of life.

Last week Sun Peaks got a court injunction to prevent us from occupying our own land at McGillvary Lake. On Monday December 10, Sun Peaks, guarded by the RCMP, destroyed 2 of our homes and also the Sweatlodges that we had built. They destroyed our sacred Sweatlodges without any discussion or notice. This act was a terrible violation of our culture and humanity.

We don't go around destroying their churches. Even though this is our land, and even though we've been persecuted by Christianity, we respect their right to practice their own religion. If we did desecrate their churches we'd be charged with hate crimes. I feel they've committed a hate crime against us.

They're going to get hurt for what they've done. I don't mean by us.. They've committed a crime against the natural order and against our ancestors and spirit helpers. They themselves have no spirits, only what comes out of a bottle.

This crime was committed by Sun Peaks, BCAL, the Attorney General, and the RCMP. I'm sending this letter out to all reserves, because all Native people have a right to know what they did to our Sweatlodges. Niskonlith and Adams Lake have about 20 Sweatlodges in the village alone. Imagine how many in the Secwepemc Nation, never mind all Turtle Island.