The Sinixt people have always been part of the Syilx Okanagan Nation
The Syilx Okanagan, including the Sinixt, are nsyilxcәn-speaking people and we have always been—and always will be—united by our common nsyilxcәn language, our tmxʷulaxʷ (land,) and our sqixʷɬcaʷt (culture).
One Language. One Land. One Culture. One People.
The Syilx Okanagan Nation, as represented by the Chiefs Executive Council, is the representative and successor group for the Sinixt in Canada.
The story of the historical denial and alleged “extinction” of the Sinixt is tragic, but it should not be used to exclude the Syilx Okanagan Nation from our Territory or deny the identity of Syilx Okanagan peoples in Canada who are of Sinixt descent.
In 1846, the Territory and membership of the Syilx Nation were split when the Canada-United States border was drawn across our Territory without our consent. This had many impacts on our Nation, including the separation of our lands and the separation of families. Due to the tragedies of colonization, Syilx Okanagan/Sinixt people from the Eastern Parts of Syilx Okanagan Territory were dispersed. Some remained in what is now known as British Columbia, moving to sister communities in the Okanagan region of our Territory. Others moved within the Territory to what is now known as Washington State, settling at the Colville reservation. In 1956, the Arrow Lakes Band was declared extinct by the Government of Canada just prior to the flooding of ancestral village sites for hydroelectric projects under the Columbia River Treaty.
The Sinixt are still here: We were displaced from of our homes in the Eastern parts of our Territory. Some are in the US, but many are in Canada and live within the communities comprising the Syilx Okanagan Nation. Throughout all this time, we have continued to return to the Eastern parts of Syilx Okanagan Territory, including the Arrow Lakes area, to hunt, fish, pick berries, harvest, carry out ceremony and be present on the tmxʷulaxʷ (land), maintaining connection and responsibilities.
Despite the colonial border, longstanding kinship connections between members of the Syilx Okanagan Nation communities in what is now Canada, and the Colville Confederated Tribes continue to this day.
On July 15th, 2010, the Syilx Unity Declaration was signed by political representatives, Elders, and respected community members from the Okanagan Nation Alliance and Colville Confederated Tribes to reflect our longstanding shared history and family ties. It highlights our common cultural, familial, territorial, economic, and political ties as Syilx people.
The Syilx Unity Declaration opens as follows:
Members of the Okanagan Nation Alliance and Colville Confederated Tribes make this declaration to signify unity between the Syilx Nation. The Parties have owned and occupied their indigenous homelands since time immemorial; and without consultation or agreement with the Parties, colonizing governments established an international boundary, bisecting the Parties’ homelands; and the Parties never agreed the international boundary the Parties remain united through cultural, familial, territorial, economic, and political ties; and the Parties wish to strengthen this unity politically, culturally, and economically; and the Parties understand that working together for the Parties rights, title, and claims in unity best serves our collective interests.
Syilx Unity Declaration, 2010
Despite Colville Confederated Tribes’ decision to walk away from the declaration in recent years, the Syilx Okanagan Nation communities north of the border remain committed to our kinship ties, our collective interests, and the principle of unity.
The “Sinixt Confederacy” was created unilaterally by the Colville Business Council to assert exclusive rights and title in the Arrow Lakes area of Syilx Okanagan Nation territory in British Columbia, Canada.
The creation of this American-style confederacy, and Colville’s subsequent decision to walk away from the Syilx Unity Declaration, has caused conflict in our previously unified Nation.
For a full account of these concerns, please read Chief Robert Louie’s Opinion Editorial for the Vancouver Sun.
Educational Guides
To help you better understand our story and your role in reconciliation, we have produced a series of short educational backgrounders with guidelines for different audiences.
If you have questions about these guides, or about Syilx/Sinixt culture and history, please contact our Nation directly.
Sincerely,
Chiefs Executive Council, Okanagan Nation Alliance
Reconciliation requires taking the time to truly understand the Territory, culture and history of Nations—including the impacts of colonization and resulting complexities.
Contact
y̓ilmixʷm ki law na Clarence Louie, ONA xaʔtus
Email: chief@oib.ca