Mi’gmaq artist Phyllis Grant is offended that her artwork has been distorted and utilized to promote a 100-mile race along the Nepisiguit Mi’gmaq Trail.
“It disturbed me to see,”
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said Grant, a member of Pabineau First Nation.
“And the thing that disturbed me — it was on a trophy for a sporting event. We are trying so hard to not have that type of imagery out there. People work so hard to get rid of this concept of mascots and tokens and trophies, and it’s appropriation, if you really look at it.”
Grant created the masterpiece and sold it to Pabineau First Nation sometime in the 90s. It was ultimately used as the logo for the Nepisiguit Mi’gmaq Trail, which starts from the Daly Point Nature Reserve in Bathurst to the center of Mount Carleton Provincial Park.
Grant said she used the outline of a turtle to represent Turtle Island, which for some Indigenous groups to North America. She additionally integrated other culturally significant elements such as trees, a waterfall and the 4 colours that represent four directions.
Recently she noticed the artwork had been distorted, and the turtle was made to seem to be running.
“It was too much for me to take and too much for me to be silent about — especially with the news lately … finding the children at the residential school and dealing with … this historical trauma.
“This might not be as big as that, but still, they’re taking something that represents our culture and our community and they’re relating it to a sporting event.”
Grant said she was also concerned by the use of the word Mi’gmaq in the name of the race.
When contacted through Facebook, the event organizers refused to be interviewed, and the exact relationship between the race event and the Nepisiguit Mi’gmaq Trail.
They offered a comment, saying the “organizing committee of the Mi’gmaq 100 Trail Race acknowledges the concerns brought forth in regards to the use of the Mi’gmaq name and the event logo.
“For this reason, we have reached out to the Pabineau First Nation band council to schedule a meeting, where these concerns can be addressed in a formal and constructive setting. It is our sincere wish to ensure the interests of all parties can be met in a thoughtful and meaningful way.”
Grant said she is not infuriated, but she hopes to start some talk and education
“and make people who want to work with First Nations think about how they approach communities and how they approach utilizing something that is a symbol of something that is sacred.”
Messages sent to Pabineau First Nation on Friday were not responded to either.
