Unter dem Nordlicht

We were not born in Canada; rather, Canada was born on our land.

Bears by wild rivers, maple syrup, ice hockey, polite manners—our image of Canada is shaped by clichés. Similarly romanticized is our idea of the Indigenous peoples, who inhabit a large part of the country: campfires, eagle feathers, wild horses, and a life in harmony with nature. But how do they really live? Swiss historian Manuel Menrath shows us in this book. He ventured into remote areas in the far north of Canada, places where no road leads, and met Cree and Ojibwe in their reserves.

And they trusted him, the European—the Wemistigosh (wooden boat person). They took him to their ritual celebrations and hunting, and he lived among them. In over a hundred interviews, they shared their lives with him—their relationship with nature, their ancestors, their history—and the land that is now called Canada, whose creation is associated with great suffering for them. They spoke of vanished animals, ancient rituals, and the atrocities in the residential schools where their children were forcibly assimilated into white society. Their stories tell of the social and emotional devastation of cultural genocide, of depression, drug, and alcohol abuse. In the Cree village of Attawapiskat alone, there were 100 suicide attempts among youth in 2016—the very year Premier Justin Trudeau (far too late) recognized Indigenous rights.

Manuel Menrath's fascinating and deeply moving book recounts the lives of those who have lived in Canada for thousands of years—and allows them to speak for themselves.

This is an important book because it contains our voices. It is good that we are heard in Europe. For our history has been ignored for centuries. Chief Stan Beardy, Grand Chief of the Nishnawbe Aski Nation.