First Nations use royal visit as platform to talk reconciliation, environment
VANCOUVER — As the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge toured British Columbia and the Yukon over the past week, they heard impassioned speeches on reconciliation and saw protest T-shirts emblazoned with slogans opposing oil and liquefied natural gas.
The focus on First Nations issues was already built into Prince William and Kate’s itinerary, with stops in Bella Bella, the home of the Great Bear Rainforest, and Haida Gwaii, a remote and stunning archipelago sacred to some aboriginal people.
Some indigenous leaders embraced the opportunity to criticize their federal and provincial governments in front of the duke and duchess. But there’s a long tradition of aboriginal people appealing directly to the Royal Family, experts say.
First Nations have at times turned to the royals as a kind of “court of appeal,” said Charles Menzies, an anthropology professor at the University of British Columbia.