Video: Stz’uminus First Nation anthem

Stz’minus Elder George Harris wrote a song that was adopted as the Stz’uminus anthem.

[Elder George Harris] My name is George Harris. I am from Stz’uminus First Nation. My traditional name is Whul’qul latza, and that comes from my great-great-grandfather.

[Music]

This Stz’uminus anthem song is a song that I had in my mind for a long time. But in 2010, Pearl Harris, my sister-in-law, phoned and asked me if I would go with her to attend a meeting with the Town Council, and I think the Sports and Rec were there too. And what they were getting ready for was the 2010 Olympic Torch Relay that was coming through town, coming through Ladysmith. They were kind of in a situation where they were looking for a traditional song to be sung for the Olympic Torch Relay, and they were struggling with that, and trying to figure out who can they can get in short notice, and I put my hand up, and they asked me, “What is it, George?” And I said, “I got a song,” and they asked me, what song?”Well, you never heard it before, because I never sing it to anybody,” I said. So they asked me if I would attend another meeting the next day, and this meeting that were attending was in Ladysmith. But the next meeting, the next day, was in the Health Unit in Stz’uminus, and right after the language class. And it was eight o’clock, and I walked in, and I thought, oh wow, it’s just going to be a few people. There were lots of people there, our traditional speaker was there, the Chief was there, his wife, the counsellors and their wives, and other people that were there for the language class were there too. So they asked me to sing the song, and I sang it, and our Speaker got very emotional, saying that he said that no one’s going to wonder who we are now, Stz’uminus. No one’s going to wonder who we are when we sing this song. and this song that has been adopted by Stz’uminus as the anthem song, the Stz’uminus song.

And it’s been sung everywhere, in the States, for Tribal Journeys, and in the Mainland, and here, and pretty much everywhere. I even sing it because I belong to a National Leaders Working Group for Correctional Services Canada. I sang it back east in Moncton, New Brunswick, so it’s been everywhere, and I’m really proud to be able to contribute that song to our people. The little kids. It really really makes me proud when they sing it at school as their anthem song. And they sing it quite a few times in, you know, at the school.

I like singing. I got hundreds of songs in my mind, and lots of them are songs that other Nations and other people own, and some other songs are just mine. I sing it just for me. And I did introduce another song. It’s called the Celebration Honour Song, and we’re singing that in public quite a bit, out in different events and different social gatherings, and traditional gatherings.

Yeah, I am one that follows, and the sacred inheritance from our ancestors. And I do honour and respect what I get from them, and I know that the Stz’uminus anthem song came because of my traditional teachings, what we call Snu’y’uh, our teachings, that’s the laws of our Coast Salish Nation or Stz’uminus Nation. So I can say, yes, it does, it does come from our ancestors.

I guess all I want to say is that more of this, what we’re doing now, is good for our Nations, Stz’uminus, and us, also the general public, to have a greater and better understanding of who we are as Stz’uminus people. You know, we got the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People, we have the Truth and Reconciliation. I always kind of say I haven’t felt anything yet that feels like reconciliation for me. But I’m living a good life. I’m really honoured with my respect to my family, they follow the traditional way of life.

I want to explain a drum. This drum is called Journey to Reclaiming your Spirit, and it’s the design we used for a healing gathering we had at Penelakut Nation, about 10 -12 years ago, thereabouts. It was a two-day healing gathering, and it’s for us, and we’re on that healing journey, us, as Indigenous people, on, you know, because of the life we went through. I’m a Residential School survivor.

[Music]

[George Harris sings in Hul‘qumi‘num and drums]

Hul’qumi’num:

(hiikwut yuwen)

lhnimulh qweylh stz’uminus mustimuxw

lhnimulh qweylh stz’uminus mustimuxw

ah siem nu siye’yu

English:

(chant)

We are the Stz’uminus People

We are the Stz’uminus People

Oh, my respected friend

[G.H.] That’s the Stz’uminus anthem song. We are Stz’uminus people, and it says “ah siem nu siye’yu” that means all my respected friends

[Music]