To Share, Not Surrender

Indigenous and Settler Visions of Treaty Making in the Colonies of Vancouver Island and British Columbia

John Lutz editor Peter Cook editor Hamar Foster editor Neil Vallance editor Graham Brazier editor

Format:Hardback

Publisher:University of British Columbia Press

Published:1st Dec '21

Currently unavailable, and unfortunately no date known when it will be back

To Share, Not Surrender cover

Too often, history and knowledge of Indigenous-settler conflict over land take the form of confidential reports prepared for court challenges. To Share, Not Surrender offers an entirely new approach, opening scholarship to the public and augmenting it with First Nations community expertise.

The authors take us back to when James Douglas and his family relocated to Fort Victoria on Vancouver Island in 1849, critically tracing the transition from treaty-making in the colony of Vancouver Island to reserve formation in the colony of British Columbia. Informed by the spirit of cel’aṉ’en – “our culture, the way of our people” – this multivocal work includes essays, translations/interpretations of the treaties into the SENĆOŦEN and Lekwungen languages, and contributions by participants of the Songhees, Huu-ay-aht, and WSANEC peoples.

As an all-embracing exploration of the struggle over land, To Share, Not Surrender advances the urgent task of reconciliation in Canada.

The past is with us and history matters. Read To Share Not Surrender as a great example of how there can be different interpretations of the past.

-- Robin Fisher * The British Columbia Review *

"To Share, Not Surrender is a book that could help every British Columbian to better understand the historical, political, and relational fabric of this province – and the obligations that flow from this."

-- Alan Hanna, University of Victoria * BC Studies *
Until now, academic discussion of the Vancouver Island treaties has tended to be sparse, vague, and insufficiently attentive to Indigenous perspectives. In consequence, public knowledge of the Treaties, and especially the white settlers' collective failure to honour them, leaves much to be desired. To Share Not Surrender aims to overcome these shortcomings. In my opinion, it succeeds admirably. -- Martin George Holmes, University of Otago * Journal of Australian, Canadian, and Aotearoa New Zealand Studi

ISBN: 9780774863827

Dimensions: unknown

Weight: 660g

368 pages