Constitution Gathering 4 Summary

Our future. Our voices. Our way. 

On February 9th, about 80 Squamish People attended the Constitution Gathering 4 at Totem Hall, Chief Joe Mathias Centre and online.  February 9th was a busy day in our community, and we are very grateful for everyone who was able to make it. We loved hearing all of your ideas!  

What happened at this meeting?

The Squamish People who joined us at the Totem Hall and Chief Joe Mathias Centre were first welcome to share a hot lunch together. Wellness support was also available for anyone who wanted it. Once the online participants joined us, the meeting was formally opened by some drumming and singing by a group of 5 young menmen at the Chief Joe Mathias Centre. 

The Gathering started with opening remarks from Danielle Mellish, Constitution Manager. She acknowledged that the day was busy with other events happening: a large family memorial, the Superbowl, and the Invictus Games in Vancouver and Whistler and thanked everyone who were able to make time in their day to attend either in person or online.  Danielle  reviewed what was shared at the Project Kickoff meeting, gathering 1, 2 and 3 and she shared brief recap of  those sessions.  

Danielle provided an update of the many ways that the secretariat staff  are engaging with our People near and far, and the efforts and importance of hearing everyone’s voice for this project. At this meeting we followed the same format as Gathering 3 and had four stations.  Each station had a set of questions that were relevant to the topic of each table, Dispute Resolution, Law Making,  Agreements and Amending the Constitution. Attendees were invited to participate in small group discussions at each station, or they could work on their own.Attendees were also welcomed to ask questions throughout. At the end of the Gathering, a total of 6 door prizes were drawn and awarded. 2 at each location and 2 to online participants.The day closed with Welhtima Kexwusem Youth Dance group at the Totem Hall location. We ended with encouraging everyone to sign up for a family dinner, 1:1 or to get answers on our website.

What was shared?

Here’s what was shared at the Gathering: 

• A recap of the Project Kickoff, and Gathering 1, Gathering 2 and Gathering 3
• A summary of what we’ve heard so far from Squamish People on this project
• Updates on the community engagement happening outside of Gatherings
  • Info Booths at community events, including:
    • Youth BBQ
    • Youth Powwow
    • International Indigenous Peoples Day
    • Pride Parade & Celebration
    • Amalgamation Day
    • Distribution Days x2
    • Fall Fair at Totem Hall
• Generational Plan EventSpecial meetings with Elders in North Vancouver and Squamish
• Special meetings with the Ayas Lam Family program in Squamish 
• Info Session with our Squamish People in Seattle, Washington 
• Family Dinners  
• Craft and chat events
• Door Knocking on Squamish reserves
• Overview of other engagement tools we’re using to reach Squamish People
  • Online tools: Website, Facebook and Instagram, X (Twitter), YouTube, Snapchat (ads only), TikTok (ads only), emails, surveys
  • Phone tools: Text messages, phone calls 
  • Mailed tools: Booklet, flyers in the newsletter and mailouts in the post. 
• A quick review of “What is a Constitution” and topics that might be included in a Constitution 
• An overview of the large Gatherings, including Family dinners and how to sign up
  

During the small group discussions, Squamish People could write down their thoughts. A dedicated facilitator was on hand at

each location and online to help attendees take part, scribe answers to the questions and to guide the process to answer the

following questions:

•  Dispute Resolution 
  • Tell us about a time or cultural teaching about how a dispute was resolved or People came to an agreement?
  • Thinking about those experiences or teachings, how would that look today? 
• Law Making 
  • How did we make laws back in the day?  
  • What lessons can we take from that time for today and the future?  
• Agreements 
  • Provide stories and examples of how agreements were reached traditionally.  
  • Are there lessons for making agreements? 
• Amending the Constitution
  • What do you think of the examples we have provided? (Please review the examples of amending the Constitution from other First Nations who have their own Constitutions in place)
  • What are some things we should think about in setting up a process to amend the Constitution? 
  • How should we change the Constitution if it doesn’t serve us anymore? 
  • What should it take to trigger a discussion on the amendment or changes to be made to our Constitution?  

It’s not too late to share your thoughts on these questions. We are still collecting information  from Squamish People. You can answer these questions and more on our website: https://Constitutionproject.net/resource/Constitution-survey/. Questions are skippable, so feel free to select which questions you’d like to answer. 

If you attended the online meeting and you typed into the fillable PDF questions booklet, be sure to send a copy of it to our  email address info@Constitutionproject.net or even if you used plan paper and pen, you can take a picture of your notes and  send that along to us in an email as well.  

If you attended the in-person meeting at either Chief Joe Mathias Centre or at Totem Hall, you may have written down some  thoughts in the grey and black booklets with plain lined paper that were handed out. Or you may have taken your questionnaire booklet home with you. If you did, you could take a photo of those notes and send it in an email to us at  info@Constitutionproject.net OR you can contact us to make arrangements to get your answers to us.  

What was learned?

Squamish People who attended had so many incredible things to share about dispute resolution, law making, agreements and amending our Constitution. Below are some samples of what was shared. 

Dispute Resolution – Tell us about a time or cultural teaching about how a dispute was resolved or People came to an  agreement? Thinking about those experiences or teachings, how would that look today?

• When we stopped fighting with People from the north. In the story I heard a Squamish man married a woman from the north. In the story she didn’t want her son to be fighting with her family from the north. We had a potlatch with the People from the north to come together and stop fighting. 
• Judicial circle 
• Fairness 
• Talking Lodge/circle 
• Enforcement, limitations 
• Responsibility  
• Roles 

Law Making – How did we make laws back in the day? What lessons can we take from that time for today and the future?  

•  Each family had their own set of rules for their villages. Many were similar. Often were done in family talks in longhouse or  ceremonies and family meetings. 
• To think and plan for future generations. When making laws we have to think about the future children. 

Agreements – Provide stories and examples of how agreements were reached traditionally. Are there lessons for making  agreements?  

•  Family discussions, Heads of Family, Groups  
• Updated by community as time moves on, Flexible on changes 

Amending the Constitution ~ What do you think of the examples we have provided? (Please review the examples of amending  the Constitution from other First Nations who have their own Constitutions in place). What are some things we should think  about in setting up a process to amend the Constitution? How should we change the Constitution if it doesn’t serve us  anymore? What should it take to trigger a discussion on the amendment or changes to be made on our Constitution? 

•  I think the 50% plus one of eligible voters is a good idea and then everyone gets heard. Especially the younger voters. I feel like that many People agreeing with each other on one thing like that is a great thing to have 
• Inclusive Process that ensures that all are included and receive information about the amendments – whether living within or  away from the community. 
• Meet every two weeks/monthly; Small Family groups; Bring concerns to in-house Legislative Circle; Meet the needs of  the community ongoing; Squamish language or English.
• Smaller percentage to vote in favour of a petition for an amendment – larger percentage to vote in favour of a referendum. In some of the examples, there was a 25% threshold for a petition, and 50% for a referendum. This might  be high for the Squamish Nation, considering our population numbers. However, we need to ensure that the number is  high enough that a small group of People can’t control the amendment process. 

How many People attended the Gathering?

• 45 online participants 

• 8 Totem Hall * some People didn’t sign-in, so attendance was likely higher 

• 29 Chief Joe Mathias Centre signed in, but we believe it was around 35-40 * some People didn’t sign-in, so attendance was  likely higher 

The transportation schedule was shared ahead of this Gathering. The opportunity to take advantage of child-minding and door  prizes was also advertised. The door prize winners are: 

Chief Joe Mathias Centre 

• Deborah Baker – $200 Presidents Choice gift card 

• Nicole Johnston – $100 White Spot gift card 

Totem Hall 

• Henry Williams – $200 Presidents Choice gift card

• Matthew Williams – $100 White Spot Gift Card 

Online 

• Roberta Jackie Williams – $200 Gift Card 

• Norma Nahanee – $100 Gift Card 

If there is anything you would like to share, please contact our Engagement Officer Yususult, Rosemarie (Rose) Williams, on  604-982-8600 or Rosemarie_Williams@squamish.net.

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