Stk'emlúpsemc te Secwépemc Nation

Stk'emlúpsemc te Secwépemc Nation
Name	Stk'emlúpsemc te Secwépemc Nation
Other name	Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc (common)
Location	British Columbia, Canada
People	Secwépemc
Language	Secwépemctsín (Secwépemc)

Stk'emlúpsemc te Secwépemc Nation is an Indigenous community of the Secwépemc people located in what is now British Columbia, Canada, historically associated with the Thompson River valley and surrounding plateau. The Nation engages with provincial authorities, federal institutions, and national bodies while maintaining cultural connections to Secwépemc families, hereditary leaders, and intertribal networks.

History

The Nation's ancestry is rooted in pre-contact Secwépemc lifeways linked to the Thompson River, Fraser River, and Columbia River watersheds with seasonal rounds that involved connections to the Shuswap, Okanagan, Ktunaxa, and Nlaka'pamux peoples and interactions referenced in accounts of the Hudson's Bay Company, the North West Company, and early missionary reports. Contact-era developments included encounters recorded during the fur trade era alongside figures such as Simon Fraser and David Thompson, and the demographic, social, and legal impacts of colonial policies enacted by the Government of Canada and the Province of British Columbia, including the Indian Act and the reserve system administered by the Department of Indian Affairs. Twentieth-century events saw engagement with organizations like the Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs and participation in landmark disputes echoing cases such as Calder, Delgamuukw, and Tsilhqot'in Nation, while community responses paralleled actions by Indigenous organizations including the Assembly of First Nations and the Native Women's Association of Canada. Recent history has involved interactions with media outlets, national inquiries such as the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, and collaborations with museum institutions, universities like the University of British Columbia and Simon Fraser University, and archives preserving Secwépemc oral histories.

Governance and Membership

The Nation's internal governance incorporates elected leadership, hereditary systems, and community institutions that relate to federal frameworks like Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada and provincial mechanisms such as the Ministry of Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation, and engages in nation-to-nation negotiations with the Crown and participation in legal processes similar to those in cases like Haida Nation, R. v. Sparrow, and R. v. Gladstone. Membership and citizenship policies reflect customary law and band council codes aligned with protocols seen in the Indian Act electoral system, custom election codes, and membership codes referenced in jurisprudence from the Supreme Court of Canada, while intergovernmental advocacy connects with bodies including the British Columbia Assembly of First Nations, the First Nations Summit, and Indigenous Services Canada. The Nation liaises with regional institutions such as the Kamloops Indian Band, Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc administration, and neighbouring communities like the Secwepemc Nation tribal councils and engages with non-Indigenous municipal leaders in Kamloops, Thompson-Nicola Regional District, and provincial ministries on service delivery and land matters.

Territory and Communities

Traditional territory encompasses lands along the North and South Thompson River corridors, Nicola Valley, and plateau regions with place-name links to Kamloops, Savona, Chase, Merritt, and Ashcroft and overlaps with areas administered under historical instruments such as colonial land surveys, the Royal Proclamation, and numbered treaties in other regions. Reserve lands and settlement areas include parcels recognized under federal reserve designations and intersect with provincial designations like protected areas, municipal boundaries of the City of Kamloops, national transportation routes including Canadian Pacific Railway and Trans-Canada Highway, and resource landscapes involving the Interior Plateau, Bonaparte Plateau, and Fraser Canyon. Local communities maintain relationships with neighbouring First Nations including the Nlaka'pamux Nation, Okanagan Nation Alliance, Shuswap Band communities, and Métis organizations, and interact with regional economic actors such as BC Hydro, CN Railway, Teck Resources, and forestry companies.

Culture and Language

Cultural life emphasizes Secwépemc traditions, including ceremonies, potlatch practices, songs, oral histories, and place-based knowledge transmitted in the Secwépemctsín language, with language revitalization programs partnering with institutions like the First Peoples' Cultural Council, the Provincial Heritage Branch, Simon Fraser University, and local schools. Artistic expression involves carvers, weavers, singers, and authors whose work appears in museums such as the Royal British Columbia Museum, the Canadian Museum of History, and in festivals like the Shuswap Nation Friendship Centre gatherings, while collaborations occur with arts councils and grants programs from the Canada Council for the Arts and the British Columbia Arts Council. Cultural preservation engages with archival collections at Library and Archives Canada, university special collections, and initiatives similar to those by the Endangered Languages Program and the Indigenous Languages Act.

Economy and Infrastructure

Economic activities encompass fisheries on the Thompson River and Fraser River systems, forestry interactions with timber companies, involvement in ranching and agriculture in the Nicola Valley, and business ventures including partnerships with provincial development agencies, Indigenous-owned corporations, and regional chambers of commerce. Infrastructure concerns address housing on reserve lands, connections to provincial transportation networks such as Highway 1, railway corridors of Canadian National Railway and Canadian Pacific Railway, energy projects involving BC Hydro and independent power producers, and municipal services delivered in coordination with the City of Kamloops and Thompson-Nicola Regional District. Economic development has involved agreements with mining companies, contractors, and federal funding programs administered by Indigenous Services Canada, and participation in regional initiatives promoted by the Southern Interior Development Initiative Trust and the First Nations Finance Authority.

Land Claims and Legal Issues

The Nation has engaged in land assertions, treaty discussions, and litigation concerning Aboriginal title and rights similar in legal context to cases like Calder v. Attorney General of British Columbia, Delgamuukw, and Tsilhqot'in Nation v. British Columbia, negotiating with Crown negotiators, the British Columbia Treaty Commission, and federal departments. Specific disputes relate to reserve allotments, resource tenures issued by provincial agencies, impacts from infrastructure projects such as the Trans Mountain pipeline and forestry licenses, and consultations required under Crown duty to consult jurisprudence including Haida Nation and Mikisew Cree First Nation. Remediation efforts and site assessments have involved Environment and Climate Change Canada, provincial ministries such as the Ministry of Energy, Mines and Low Carbon Innovation, and federal cleanup programs, while advocacy has included engagement with human rights institutions, truth commissions, and media coverage.

Health, Education, and Social Services

Health services coordinate with Indigenous Services Canada, First Nations Health Authority, and provincial health authorities including Interior Health, while community wellness programs address mental health, substance use, and pandemic responses in partnership with the Public Health Agency of Canada and Canadian Medical Association guidelines. Education initiatives involve local schools, school districts such as School District 73 Kamloops/Thompson, post-secondary partnerships with Thompson Rivers University and indigenous education departments, language immersion classes, and curriculum development influenced by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's Calls to Action and provincial education policy. Social services engage with Indigenous child and family service agencies, legal aid providers, and national organizations such as the Native Women's Association of Canada and the Assembly of First Nations to address housing, employment, and cultural continuity.

Category:Secwepemc