When I attended University in the late 1990s and early 2000s, something happened within me that changed the way I saw my people, the Crees. I have known for a long time that the Crees were adapting to a new lifestyle since the signing of the James Bay Agreement in 1975. It was during my studies that I realized that I had the power within me to inform people about the state of the Crees and the hardships they are living through. This awakening I experienced challenged my art making and myself as a Cree person.
At Concordia University I was an Art History major. Thanks to that program and the great teachers I had, I was introduced to the works of talented Native artists such as Jane Ash Poitras, the late Carl Beam, Lawrence Paul Luxweluptun, Faye Heavyshield and others. These artists captured my attention not only because of their talents as artists but also for their commitment to communicating their thoughts, feelings and views about Native people in this world. All of these artists had or have strong messages to transmit about current Native issues and identity. They were not afraid to tell the rest of the world about the lives and struggles of Aboriginal peoples throughout the world. These great artists inspired me, and my works have changed forever because of them. I am grateful to them.
Armed with the knowledge I have received from these contemporary Native artists and their art, and my desire to show the people what I thought about my culture and traditions, which were and still are slowly disappearing, I set out to express my views and ideas about the Crees and the things that are happening to them and their beloved land. Knowing that my art could be a means of communicating news, ideas and feelings I began doing so in the late 1990’s using various techniques and styles.
The signing of the James Bay agreement in 1975 changed the Crees’ way of life forever. I know because I experienced it first hand. Although I was only a child when that agreement was signed, it affected me in many ways.
First of all, it made us dependent on the white man’s technology. We slowly put our dogs and sleighs aside and opted for the snowmobile. Then when the automobile arrived we decided not to walk anymore. When modern houses were built en masse in Fort-George, we folded our tents and teepees, and when the television appeared we became lazy. In a matter of a decade our culture and traditions ended up in the backseat of the newly discovered automobile as we drove south on a freshly paved highway to Val-D’Or.
It was not only the white man’s technology that changed us; what they did to our land using their technology changed us as well. Thousands of square kilometres of Cree hunting land, our “grocery store”, was lost. Animals moved to other areas, fish became poisoned by mercury created by changes to the land. People decided to go to the grocery store for food, because it became easier to do so. In addition, hunting and trapping, which were important for our survival, are today only practised as sports and not for survival. As a result, many of us are diabetic, because we consume foods that are unfamiliar to our biological system. Many of us do not know how to hunt, trap or fish, or show no interest in these important activities that once made us who we were.
Why? Because we became too dependent on other people’s technology and ways of life. We have completely forgotten who we are. “Iyuu ituun” or “the Cree way” has disappeared and was replaced by something alien, something that we simply do not understand but used by us nevertheless.
I have nothing against technology; I use it everyday, and I am glad that it is there. But it angers me that we Crees were so eager to welcome it that we forgot our own ways and technology, which were also effective. Our old ways and technology were so effective in fact that they supplied us with all the necessities needed to live and survive in harmony with nature and with each other. Now that most of our ways has gone, we are desperately searching for a new identity. Many of us open our arms to traditions and culture that originate from other “tribes.” Many of us travel thousands of kilometres and bring back other “Indian ways” in the hopes that it will give us a new sense of identity.
What also angers me is that the Quebec government always looks up north when it needs land to exploit. They come up here, show us money and then destroy the land without considering the aftermath or the consequences. My people also sadden me. We are quick to accept the money the government offers us without thinking how it may affect us in the short and long terms.
We Crees always seem eager to accept money for land that is priceless. Who pays the price for the lost land? Our children and their children. I know money is important – it is needed to get ahead in today’s world, but do we have to lose a piece of land, a piece of ourselves in the process? Our leaders must find alternatives to raise money for our people.
Another issue that is important to me is education in Cree territory. With all the signings of agreements and our attempts to adapt to this new way of life, I believe we have put education on the back burner the last several years. The youth in our communities are not learning, as they should.
When compared to other youth either in this province or in the rest of Canada, Cree children are below par when it comes to learning.
Young Crees graduate from high school, then go on to post-secondary studies only to realize that they are struggling and will have to work extra hard to earn a CEGEP diploma and a University degree. Most of them will quit school and return home, while some will study extremely hard to succeed. Our school system will have to be changed if we want our children, our future leaders to get an education that will be useful for their future.
These are the issues that I deal with as an artist. My mission is to communicate the reality of the Crees to anybody who wants to see or learn.
In my work I offer my views on these issues, my ideas, my dreams, my goals, and what I think should be done to better our situation. I talk to people in my community about these issues and always try to use their views and ideas in my work. If I can reach one person with the messages I transmit in my work, and make that person see and care about my people’s actual situation, it is all worth it. As an artist I am not afraid to speak my mind. I may anger some people, but I know there are others who are grateful for what I do with paints and canvases.
All in all, being an artist does not always mean that he or she must paint or sculpt what is beautiful. An artist has greater responsibilities. The artist should express ideas and issues that are important to him or her and to others as well. This is important because artists have the talent and the ability to do so. Therefore we artists should exploit this ability and talent to the maximum. If artists don’t do that, what is the point of being one?
Jean-Pierre Pelchat