In a first, Birdtail gifted bison

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This article was published 04/12/2024 (331 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

BIRDTAIL SIOUX FIRST NATION — Accompanied by a posse of Sioux Valley Dakota Nation Unity Riders and a caravan of cars and trucks, a trailer carrying young bison made its way down to the river valley of Birdtail Sioux First Nation on Tuesday to take part in a ceremony organized to foster stronger relations among the two first nation communities.

Members of Birdtail Sioux First Nation, including more than 50 children, gathered outside a newly constructed enclosure that will house a herd of 11 young bison — a gift from Sioux Valley Dakota Nation.

Drummers stepped up the tempo as chants and prayers were offered by the group, including Birdtail Sioux First Nation elder Terry Wasteste, before the ceremonial handover, which saw the gifted bison barrelling out of a trailer to rush into the enclosure that would be their new home on the reserve.

Sioux Valley Dakota Nation Chief Vince Tacan said the gift was a way to build new bridges between the people of the two nations, which he hoped would encourage continuing support and resource-sharing among future generations at Birdtail.

“There’s a prophecy that when every First Nation has buffalo, that we’ll all get back to where we should be,” Tacan told the Sun. “Buffalo have sustained our people before. They need to be here as a safety net.”

Bison and buffalo are often used interchangeably in contemporary culture, with buffalo considered a colonial usage popularized by settlers for bison, which have been indigenous to Canada and the United States for centuries.

They are also referred to as “tatanka” in the Dakota language, and hold considerable cultural and spiritual significance for Indigenous peoples residing across North America.

This was also evident during Tuesday’s ceremony, which started on Highway 86 North and was led by the Sioux Valley Dakota Nation Unity Riders on horseback, along with First Nations Police. The group rode for about five kilometres, heading into the valley, where the approximately 400-strong community of the Birdtail first nation currently resides on-reserve.

Eagerly awaiting the caravan from Sioux Valley Dakota Nation, elders, families, including children began singing and drumming as the group drew closer.

After prayers were offered, the bison were let loose into the enclosure, which took Birdtail a little over a year to construct in anticipation of an earlier promise made by Chief Tacan about a year ago.

Tacan said he had been in talks with an elder from Birdtail about how his community could lend support to the band. The promise to gift the buffalo was part of that commitment, which he followed up on once the residents of Birdtail finished erecting a fenced enclosure and secured the requisite feed needed for the buffalo.

“Then it was my turn to put my money where my mouth was.”

He eagerly shook hands with the Birdtail children, who had come to see the new herd of bison — a first for Birdtail Sioux First Nation.

Doug Hanska, who lives in Birdtail, said the first nation sees the gift as an important contributor to future prosperity and growth.

“We relied on the buffalo a long time ago for food and shelter,” said Hanska. “And bringing the buffalo back is going to give us the strength to do that again.

“Today is really a significant day. I’m really grateful for Sioux Valley (Dakota Nation) talking with us and helping us achieve what we’re doing for our future generations here.”

Doug Hanska Jr., who was one of the singers leading the ceremony, told the Sun the song they chanted was a prayer for the strength and health of the buffalo. It is also to honour the animal, he added.

“That is our life source for our people,” said Hanska Jr. “That’s why it’s a big day for us, because we’re welcoming them back.”

He further explained that the Birdtail had not owned buffalo for hundreds of years, adding they had located an earlier buffalo pen next to the Assiniboine River.

Large skulls from buffalo existing in these parts long ago could still be found near the riverside pen, some of them nearly reaching waist-high.

The skulls were found buried underground and nearly eight feet-deep, he said, and have been unearthed several times during landslides. With the gift of bison received Tuesday, a historic re-introduction of buffalo into the community had been completed.

Travis Mazawasicuna, one of the unity riders who led the convoy on horseback, was heard telling the children that the bison would become a source of prosperity in their futures.

“When you grow up to be men and women, whatever you’re going to be, doctors, lawyers, nurses, teachers, these will be your buffalo to look after,” he told the children gathered around him. “And they’re good to eat. Oh! Are they delicious!”

The children cheered and agreed. Mazawasicuna added that the gift is also important for the community’s growth and evolution.

“This is about the future, for keeping our tradition and culture alive. The buffalo mean a lot.”

The theme of the buffalo being important for Birdtail’s future was reiterated by several elders at the event.

While the buffalo are good for food, they are also a source of many other things, Tony Tacan from Sioux Valley Dakota Nation said, placing an additional emphasis on how the gift would help build new bridges between the two nations.

“Get along with each other,” Tony said to the group of children. “You’re all related. They’re going to teach you that. Don’t let politics or anything ruin that for you. Get along with each other and help each other up.”

“What they’re (the bison) going to do is give you kids strength to do what you wanna do in life,” said Tony. “These buffalo will help you get there, like it helped our people in Sioux Valley.”

Of the 11 buffalo gifted Tuesday, one is white. Chief Tacan explained the importance of the white buffalo through a story about prosperity. During a famine many generations ago, a White Buffalo Calf Woman appeared and brought a promise that her people would prosper.

Tacan said the story held similar significance in that a white bison calf was gifted to the Birdtail on Tuesday.

He added that the Sioux Valley Dakota Nation had received a similar gift of a white calf from a zoo in Winnipeg in the early 2000s; the first nation now has a 130-strong herd of bison, up from 14.

Tacan said he hoped that Birdtail would let the gifted bison herd grow and prosper similarly.

» cmcdowell@brandonsun.com