“The real issue here is our sovereignty”: Interview with Jennifer Wickham on bringing Wet’suwet’en traditional governance back to the Yintah

Interview with Jennifer Wickham on bringing Wet’suwet’en traditional governance back to the Yintah

Moricetown_Canyon_Rapids.jpg

Wet'suwet'en fishing site on Wedzin Kwa (Bulkley River). Lizenz: Jerome Charaoui, Wet'suwet'en fishing site on the Bulkley River at Moricetown Canyon, British Columbia, Canada, Creative Commons ShareAlike 1.0 Generic
Lizenz: 
CC Attribution, Share Alike
Quelle: 
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Moricetown_Canyon_Rapids.jpg

Jennifer Wickham is a member of Cas Yikh (Grizzly Bear House) in the Gidimt’en (Bear/Wolf) Clan of the Wet’suwet’en people. In the interview she talks about how Gidim’ten Checkpoint has been set up to enact Wet’suwet’en law and jursdiction in the face of the largest LNG pipeline project in so called “Canada”. We also hear about some of the matriarchs fighting on the frontlines and how they are an inspiration for Indigenous youth to challenge mainstream gender roles and reconnect to their territory.

Jennifer fell in love with the river Wedzin Kwa in 2012 and moved home to defend her against the multiple pipelines proposed through her traditional territories. She is currently living in Gidimt’en yintah (territory) in what is now known as northern British Columbia. Jennifer has been the Media Coordinator for Gidimt’en Checkpoint since 2018 and is currently co-producing/co-directing the documentary film “Yintah” about the Wet’suwet’en fight for sovereignty. She loves to bead, write poetry and spend time with family. She dreams of freedom for her people and bright shiny futures for all the young people.