Canada is often portrayed as the more progressive and less racist neighbour of the United States. Overlooked in that perception is the country’s ongoing troubled history in dealing with its indigenous population.
Shedding a light on indigenous issues is Jason Camp and The Posers, a Haida Nation punkabilly band.
The band’s mission statement is described on the album’s Bandcamp page for their 2019 debut album, First Contact: “After 15,000 years of indigenous occupation and 150 years of colonisation we are prepared to bring you the very finest in post-colonial rage rock.”
One of the highlights of the raucous album is “Silver Tongued White Man.” Both the song and accompanying video addresses the various proposed pipelines that do irreparable harm to the environment and violates sacred land.
The lyric “Sure look pretty while you’re making a deal. Shake hands for the cameras on the land that you steal,” is a scathing indictment of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who presents himself as a champion of native rights, but the actions of his administration belie those claims.
“You wanna reconcile but won’t say genocide” also carries a lot of power because true reconciliation comes from acknowledging the past. If history continues to be whitewashed, nothing changes.