Indigenous language and culture part of Regina's Canada day celebrations

As Canadians celebrated 150 years of confederation, Lorne Kequahtooway was teaching a 1,000 year old practice by Indigenous peoples to passersby.

In Wascana Park—Wascana being derived from the Cree word Oscana which means 'pile of bones'— Kequahtooway was demonstrating how to tan and flesh a bison hide. 

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Kequahtooway used a serrated piece of moose femur to rend connective tissue from the stretched hide, which was purchased from a bison ranch near Mellville, Sask. Several of the tools were either wooden or bone, and all were made by hand.

People decked out in red shirts and clothing emblazoned with the Canadian flag came by the tanning rack to learn and take part in the demonstration. For Kequahtooway, it was important for to be a part of Saturday's celebrations so he could teach people about his culture.

"As much as people are celebrating Canada, there's a long history of what's happened to our Indigenous people." 

"For me to be here to show people what we've been doing for thousands of years – I'm celebrating my Indigenous culture," Kequahtooway said.

He said he didn't take issue with the celebration, but was grateful to be able to share his knowledge and culture on the day.

"It's an honour and it's very humbling to able to share what I know."

Many of the people taking part in the tanning were children, which Kequahtooway found encouraging. When children wanted to take part, parents and grandparents would gather around, which gave him an opportunity to explain the significance of bison to Indigenous people from the plains.

"This is our clothing, our food, our shelter. That's what these buffalo hides represent to us," said Kequahtooway.

Nearby Lynne Cote and Darren Okemaysim were teaching Cree and Saulteaux syllabics. 

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For Cote, taking part and celebrating Canada Day meant teaching people about the language and how it conveys culture.

"I was really happy to come out and do this because it gives a chance to educate people on our history. On us. That we're here and we're not going anywhere," said Cote.

People were able to learn how to say and write their name in the language. 

Cote used to speak Saulteaux but the lost the language when she went to school, having recently gone back to learn it.

"It made me feel proud."

"I enjoy teaching it. Telling people what I learned and sharing with them. Especially our own people. We have a lot of lost people," she said.