Over the past 20 years I have had the opportunity to review approximately 30 books for the Canadian Journal of Archaeology, Canadian Journal of Native Studies, Great Plains Research, Journal of Anthropological Research, and Plains Anthropologist.  All were informative and presented cutting edge research using innovative paradigms; however it was not until this month that I read a book that was truly inspirational.  Coincidentally that book is an AU Press publication and was purchased using a gift certificate I received as a service award from AU.

For students of indigenous studies , history, anthropology, and archaeology may I recommend We Are Coming Home: Repatriation and the Restoration of Blackfoot Cultural Confidence edited by Gerald T. Conaty (AU Press, 2015).  This book includes chapters by Piikani, Kainai, and Silsika elders, Glenbow Museum staff, and Alberta government officials who recount their personal stories of the repatriation process that evolved in Alberta in the 1990's and culminated in the  return of hundreds of ceremonial artifacts and the implementation of the First Nations Sacred Ceremonial Objects Repatriation Act (2000).  It is a narrative of hope and perseverance of individuals, organizations, and communities.  It speaks to the benefits of respectful listening and collaboration in furthering cross-cultural understanding, building relationships, and fostering reconciliation.  Allan Pard (Piikani) asserts that ongoing use of ceremonial objects has restored the "cultural confidence" of our peoples and Frank Weasel Head (Kainai) confirms that this has in turn led to important initiatives in education, health care, child welfare, and the justice system.

The exceptional person responsible is the book's editor, Gerry Conaty.  Gerry served as the curator of ethnology at the Glenbow Museum from 1990 until his passing in 2013.  He was hired to build relationships with First Nations peoples in Southern Alberta and he was eminently successful.  His chapters on the development of museums and the impact of their colonial policies on First Nations, plus his description of the sacred life of the Niitsitapiisinni form the book's foundation.  In his concluding chapter, Conaty states, "... diversity is a crucial component of resilience, and resilience is vital for the survival of any ecosystem, including human society.  We need many ways of understanding the world to help us cope with the social, political, economical, and environmental changes that confront us all" (p. 269).  

It is worthwhile to situate the book and the success of collaborative endeavors centering on repatriation within the current discourse about revisioning government-First Nations relationships in Canada that has been articulated by John Ralston Saul in The Comeback (Viking, 2014) and in speeches by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.  I believe that the lessons revealed in We Are Coming Home clearly demonstrate that new relationships between First Nations and the broader Canadian society are essential and achievable.