I Dreamed the Animals: Kaniuekutat: The Life of an Innu Hunter

Description

This is Kaniuekutat’s book. In it, he tells the story of his life and that of Innu culture in the northern parts of Labrador. The pages of this book are filled with the voice of Kaniuekutat giving his account of an Innu hunter’s life and the problems and distress that have been caused by sedentarization and village life. Kaniuekutat invites us to see Innu society and culture from the inside, the way he lives it and reflects upon it. He was greatly concerned that young Innu may lose their traditional culture and the skills necessary to make a living as hunters, and wanted to convey a message: the Innu must take care of their language, their culture and their traditions.

Georg Henriksen was Professor of Social Anthropology at the University of Bergen (Norway). He first carried out extensive fieldwork among the Innu in 1966-68, and for the rest of his life kept returning to Labrador. It was his deep concern for the future of the Innu people, and that of other indigenous peoples, that drove him to participate in the founding of IWGIA (International Work Group for Indigenous Affairs). He always retained a special fondness for the Innu people, and a great personal, professional and political interest in their affairs.