Royal couple find silent pipeline protesters on Haida Gwaii visit

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge paddled by canoe under spectacular sunny skies to land on the shores of Graham island in Haida Gwaii accompanied by members of the Haida Nation Friday. 

Some paddlers that shared the canoe with the royal couple wore traditional garb, but others wore bright blue T-shirts with the words NO LNG emblazoned across their chests, to protest the announcement earlier this week that the Pacific NorthWest LNG pipeline had been approved. 

Dozens of schoolchildren gathered to watch the royal arrival, with many wearing T-shirts marking Orange Shirt Day to honour those who survived and perished in Canada’s residential schools. Others held “No LNG” placards.

Prince William, Duke of Cambridge and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge paddle with Haida paddlers aboard a Haida war canoe.

The LNG pipeline announcement triggered mixed emotions this week among members of the Haida Nation, said Haida president Peter Lantin, who explained that there would be a silent protest expressed through the shirts.

“We are known as good hosts,” said Lantin on Friday. “The fact that the Duke and Duchess have identified our nation as something they want to learn more about, we take that very seriously and we are honoured to host them today.”

One person who wasn’t welcome to join the events in Haida Gwaii was B.C. Premier Christy Clark, who has been a fixture at many royal tour events this week.

“We did not want her here,” said Lantin, flatly. 

Lantin said the timing of the announcement of the LNG pipeline approval on Wednesday was “suspect,” and had a huge impact on the community as they prepared for the royal visit. 

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Hereditary Haida Chief and carver Guujaw speaks with Prince William, Duke of Cambridge and Kate, Duchess of Cambridge.

The Duke and Duchess were escorted into the Haida Heritage Centre in Skidegate draped with hand-knitted black and white mantles to symbolize their status as important guests. Haida performers honoured the couple with a series of traditional dances: a dance of peace, a women’s dance dedicated to Princess Charlotte, and a men’s dance dedicated to Prince George. 

After the dances, Lantin welcomed the couple and spoke about the birth of the Haida culture and the effects of colonization. 

“From the time of the arrival of the first tree, the birth of humans, and raven bringing light to the world, these islands birthed a magnificent culture and art form showcased throughout the world, which was developed over 15,000 years of occupation.”

William and Kate listened carefully as Lantin spoke, maintaining a composed and thoughtful demeanour, their heads tilted in his direction.

Lantin spoke frankly of the destruction of the Haida people, whose population dropped to “a mere 500,” from 10,000 upon first contact in 1774, he said.

“Let us briefly acknowledge that the federal and provincial governments tried to dispossess us of our land, resources, children and spirit but we are survivors,” Lantin said. “Today the Haida Nation does not ask you to advocate on our behalf with Canada or British Columbia.” 

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, walk with Peter Lantin, left, President of the Council of Haida Nation, in Haida Gwaii.

Referring to the anti-logging blockades of 1985 that thrust Haida Gwaii onto the world stage, Lantin said the ancestors told the Haida it was time to rise.

“It is time to rise again, and to take our children’s future into our own hands,” said Lantin. “We have taken direct action and litigation to protect Haida Gwaii, we have blazed a new path and remain deeply committed to achieve reconciliation for the oceans, the last frontier, through all means necessary, just as we respectfully returned the name, the Queen Charlotte Islands, we respectfully are returning to sustainable economic autonomy over Haida Gwaii.” 

William did not address environmental issues or colonization, but thanked the community for their warm welcome before the couple left for a private tour of the carving shed and cultural centre. 

The Duchess donned casual attire for her fishing trip Friday.

Lantin said that although they chose not bring the issue of the pipeline up directly with the Duke and Duchess, the community would not shy away from it.

The blue pipeline protest shirts were originally designed by the Skidegate Saints basketball team in February, and were worn prominently on Friday under traditional button blankets and dancers costumes. 

“The eyes of the world are on Haida Gwaii today,” said Lantin, before the Duke and Duchess’s canoe arrived. “In 1985 we stopped clearcut logging, we stopped Enbridge and we are going to push back against LNG. We are going to take a stand.”

Allan Davidson, whose ancestral name is Skilhiilans, Thundering Wild Spirit, is a Haida Nation member who wore the blue protest shirt on Friday. Davidson said he suspects the LNG announcement was made early because the Liberal government hoped the royal visit would quell protesters. 

“I know they (William and Kate) don’t directly influence the commonwealth government but there are other avenues they can use to influence decision-making.”

Davidson said Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, was involved with the World Wildlife Federation during the 1985 Lyell Island protests, and spoke in support of the Haida actions.

Davidson said he wasn’t surprised by the LNG decision, but that making the announcement during the week of the royal visit, which included several visits with First Nations communities, wasn’t helpful to reconciliation efforts. He said he expects the Haida Nation will take action.

“It’s our generation’s time to step up, just as our elders did 30 years ago.”

The royals’ day ended with a trip on a fishing boat before heading back to Victoria for their last evening in B.C.

The royal couple prepare to leave on a fishing trip in Skidegate.

The events in Haida Gwaii capped off a busy week of official events, including a tea party with little Charlotte and George yesterday that made front page headlines in six UK papers, at least as many American celebrity gossip blogs, and had Charlotte and George trending on Twitter. 

Images of the two children at the party emerged as the most captivating images of the royal family’s visit to B.C., despite the Duke and Duchess touring some of the most spectacularly beautiful places in the province. 

This was the couple’s second trip to Canada; they first visited as newlyweds in 2011, but it was the presence of the royal children that drew a record number of international media to this trip — including world-renowned royal photographer Arthur J. Edwards, Us Weekly, People magazine, Hello Canada, and Hello UK. 

George stole the show from the moment he walked off the plane on day one of the tour, first pressing his face against the window, looking out at the banks of photographers waiting for him and the red-coated Mounties. He was unsure of himself and had to be coaxed down the stairs of the airplane. On the tarmac he was distracted by a nearby helicopter, turned away from the dignitaries lined up on the tarmac at 443 Squadron in Victoria, tugged on his knee sock and couldn’t be coaxed to high-five low-five him or even to shake hands with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. 

Throughout the week there were nods to royal visits past: When she stepped off the plane Kate wore a platinum and diamond maple leaf brooch that had been given to Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother by her husband King George to mark the their visit to Canada in 1939. The brooch had been handed down to Queen Elizabeth, who loaned it to Kate for the visit.

While visiting Carcross in Yukon, William was intrigued to hear that a steam train the couple was touring had once carried his grandmother and grandfather, Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip. He gave his official secretaries, aides and security a tense moment when he spontaneously climbed down a ladder, and helped Kate down a ladder, then inched along the railway ties high above a freezing river.

Among the carefully staged and choreographed walkabouts and visits to charities and refugee centres, there was more than one politically-charged moment.

A ceremony held at Government House on Monday night to honour reconciliation became a lesson in the painful legacy of the Canadian government and Crown’s treatment of First Nations when Grand Chief Stewart Philip declined to attend the event, and instead issued a statement saying that reconciliation must go beyond “elegant public platitudes and paying lip service to the intention to move towards reconciliation.”

The ceremony went ahead, with William adding a silver ring representing reconciliation to the Black Rod, a ceremonial staff created in 2012 to celebrate the Diamond Jubilee of the Queen. 

William and Kate made it clear before coming to Canada that they wanted to meet as many Canadians as possible, and their choices on this visit reflected their interest in a wide range of difficult issues, from First Nations to mental health, to women dealing with addiction and parenthood on the Downtown East Side. 

On the eve of the visit, Robert Finch, chairman of the monarchist league of Canada, said that although William and Kate draw crowds like celebrities, their role is very different. 

“The modern reality is the most important thing of being a member of the royal family is not your bloodline, it’s your commitment to service.”

The couple would have been actively involved in the choosing to visit charities that reflect their own interests, but their choices also reflect the legacy of William’s mother, Princess Diana.

“I think it’s important for members of the royal family to take causes up that are easily neglected and shuffled to the side. Fifty years ago if the Queen were coming over to Canada she wouldn’t visit the Downtown East Side,” said Finch. The point is not just to see and be seen, it is to shine a light on something that might otherwise not get the attention it deserves.

That’s good news to Davidson on Haida Gwaii, who hopes the royal visit will result in something more than just an increase in tourism. “Hopefully William will get involved like his grandfather did.”

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