Читать книгу The 500 Years of Resistance Comic Book - Gord Hill - Страница 4

the world, Native peoples suffer the highest rates of poverty, suicide, homelessness, violent death, drug and alcohol addiction, disease, imprisonment, and dislocation. This is true whether one looks at Indigenous peoples in Chile, Canada, or Australia.

Yet our history also shows that our ancestors fought and inflicted many defeats upon European colonial forces. In some regions of the Americas, it took hundreds of years before European control was established. Even today, colonial states face ongoing Indigenous resistance. This legacy of resistance can inspire our people to continue to defend their territories and communities against ongoing colonial aggression.

The purpose of The 500 Years of Resistance Comic Book is to raise the levels of historical understanding and warrior spirit among Indigenous peoples and others. When we know and understand this history of oppression, we will be better able to fight the system it has created. Without a fighting spirit, we will have no will to resist (or even survive).

The strength of the comic book is that it uses minimal text with graphic art to tell the story. This format is useful in reaching children, youth, and adults who have a hard time reading books or lengthy articles. We use many diverse methods of communication—including newsletters, books, videos, music, posters, stickers, paintings, banners, and T-shirts—because no single one will be successful by itself.

I am grateful to the good people at Arsenal Pulp Press for this opportunity to share my art and writing with a broader public. I would also like to thank Dave Cunningham and Allan Antliff for pursuing efforts to get the comic published, and Ward Churchill for his valuable introduction.

I dedicate this comic to all Indigenous peoples, to our ancestors, and the future generations.

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Long Live the Warrior!

Gilakas’la

Gord Hill, Kwakwaka’wakw

February 2010