New documentary explores how Gitanyow are protecting their way of life

Ha Nii Tokxw, a new documentary based in Northern British Columbia, follows the story and struggles of the Indigenous Gitanyow people.

Ha Nii Tokxw, which translates to “Our Food Table,” showcases the beauty and serenity of Meziadin Lake, where the Gitanyow harvest their salmon.

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The documentary was created by Farhan Umedaly of VoVo Productions. Umedaly is an award-winning filmmaker best known for his films about social causes, helping create change by working with marginalized communities, non-profits, and more.

He is also known for his Indigenous-focused documentaries, A Last Stand for Lelu and, more recently, The Sun on Top of the House.

Fighting for Future Generations

Umedaly told us how the Gitanyow people are fighting to protect their traditional lands and food table for future generations.

Beyond its visually captivating scenes, the documentary discusses the impacts that climate change has had on the salmon spanning, which is a huge part of their palette, culture, and way of life.

The documentary also captures David Suzuki describing that nature is resilient but that it needs time to heal and people to care. Many of the Gitanyow chiefs echo this message.

Later, the film delves into the dark history of colonization and mining exploitation in the area, which has further impacted their fragile ecosystem.

“They have created an Indigenous-protected area to ensure that no mining or any heavy industrial activity happens without their consent,” he said in an interview with Daily Hive.

He said this is why Indigenous people, in particular, in this area, are really good at maintaining their land — they look at each little area as an “island.”

“You can’t leave it and you have to stay within it, and if you need to cross over to do your harvesting, you have to have a trading relationship with that chief and that area.”

Indigenous Communities 101

Umedaly was inspired to start working on films with Indigenous communities because of what he believes is a huge disconnect and lack of knowledge about what’s going on in the communities.

“I am a filmmaker but I also teach Indigenous communities filmmaking, and I spend a lot of time with Indigenous communities, but people outside of that world still experience a big disconnect.”

He said he has received a lot of questions over the years from people outside of that “world,” especially immigrant families, asking about residential schools and reserves.

“I think there needs to be a better job done of explaining the basics to people who are new so they can support properly and really understand what happened… Also, so we can move forward together to protect our shared world,” he said.

As a result, Umedaly connected the stories in his film to residential schools and colonization, which are relevant to the extraction and exploitation of the area.

He explains how if Indigenous people were on their lands instead of being taken to residential schools, it would not be used for monetary gain.

“I was just so offended when I learned the truth about what happened in Canada because I was never taught that in school; they were telling me the opposite.”

“You could grow up without knowing a single Indigenous person in Vancouver … and I want to help people get past that.”

Support the Communities

Umedaly said that watching the film is one step towards supporting Indigenous communities by better educating yourself about what’s going on.

“We can spike for a better Canada. We can say that this isn’t how we want it to be. Just because we settled here and had our lives here doesn’t mean that we should say thank you for everything and turn a blind eye to anything bad,” he said.

“This is the bare minimum we should be doing for Indigenous peoples — helping them assert their own rights to protect something that’s going to feed them and is the basis for their culture… If that system fails, and mining happens to destroy that place, what do they have left?”

You can learn more by watching the documentary online here. You can also join the battle to support the Indigenous Gitanyow and their land by signing the petition.

“Inside all of us is an Indigenous heart. We’ve all come from Indigenous ancestors where a lot of us are looking for belonging and a place in this world. And by standing behind the Indigenous people here, we can reconnect,” said Umedaly.