In August 2016, the Yahgulaanaas/Janaas clan of the Haida Nation held an historic potlatch, “Raven Always Sets Things Right”. It was held to strip two of their clan cheifs/spokesmen – litl’xaydaga – of their names and positions because they had clandestinely collaborated with the Enbridge oil pipeline company against the explicit wishes of their clan and matriarchs. Such a name stripping had not been done in living memory and was seen as a new strategy for dealing with industry corruption and “divide and conquer” tactics.
The photos here are primarily still frames from video documentation from the feast.
video documentation and participant observation research supported by a Doctoral Dissertation Improvement Grant from the National Science Foundation
