February 18, 2004 Culture e the other press © A Tribe of One: A Tree of Many a Tom Mellish OP Contributor A Tribe of One documents the fami- ly history of Chief Rhonda Larrabee of the Qaygqayt First Nation, also known as the New Westminster Indian Band. It is a tale of a moth- ers heritage denied, and a daughter's heritage regained. Rhonda Larrabee is the same woman who conceptualized the 500 medicine “Pouches for Peacekeepers” for Canadian troops in Afghanistan in 2003. She, present at the “Pulling Together Journey” that saw a number of hand-carved- from-cedar canoes travel down the Sto:lo, or Fraser, River. Her story has been featured in the Vancouver Sun, the Royal City Record, and the SFU Peak. She has been Chief of the New West band for eight years, active in the community, and ambassador to her ancestral lands. Made in eight months, the low- budget documentary was produced by Selwyn Jacob of the National Film Board (NFB) and directed by Eunhee Cha. Cha co-wrote the piece with Donald White. Cinematographed by Rudolph Kovanic, and edited by Debra Rurak, the work moves back and forth in time using the Sto:lo? and the setting of Woodlands for unity. The music, composed by Vince Mai, melds piano with First Nations chants and natural sounds. The motivating force behind A Tribe of One is the subject of identi- ty. A woman loses her heritage, yet it is recovered by her daughter. It is about standing up for one’s cultural identity as a human right. The documentary follows Rhonda on her quest to discover her true background and reclaim her identity. In the 70s, she asked her mother Marie about the roots of her family tree. Marie said that she would tell her daughter about her life once, but not to ask her about it again. Once was enough to sow and quicken into life a small kernel. On one side of Rhonda's genealo- gy is her father’s extensive Chinese family. On the other side there is only Rhonda's Auntie Doe. Then, her mother makes plain her past. Rhonda is half Chinese and half First Nation. Rhonda’s mother, Marie, was born into the New Westminster Band, on the South Westminster Reserve, and grew up in Brownsville. She was. born to George and Ida Joseph, and grew up with her sister Dorothy (Doe) and her brother George (Sonny). When smallpox reduced the Band to less than 100 members, the federal gov- ernment closed the reservation and effectively wiped out the band. The remaining Qayqayt were forced to seek adoption into other bands or to relocate. Marie’s family was dis- persed and she was sent to the Kamloops Residential School. In 1913, the federal government expro- priated the New Westminster Band’s reserve lands. Larrabee’s maternal grandparents were the last band members to live on the reserve. A Tribe of One is reminiscent of Eunhee Cha’s other films, namely Journey for Lotus (2001), partly nar- rated by Sandra Oh, and about the Japanese attempt to colonize Korea between 1910 and 1945. It is the type of story Cha likes to portray; the relationships and animosity between two peoples...personal yet historical. Outside of Korea, few people today ever learn of the thou- sands of Korean activists who were tortured and killed, and the young Korean girls who were taken from their families and forced into prosti- tution. Japan has recently put out textbooks that omit that part of his- tory, and there is much bad blood between the two. With beautiful archival footage and compelling interviews, this documentary cap- tures Rhonda’s quest to embrace her roots and make amends for her mother’s pain. As she works to restore the land, culture and pride of the Qaygqayt First Nations, she becomes an inspiration to the gener- ations that follow. Surviving the residential schools, Marie and her sister Dorothy moved to Vancouver. In Chinatown of the 30s and 40s, the two denied their Aboriginal background, and blend- ed seamlessly, if not mysteriously, into the Asian population. The pho- tos seem to be in New York, turn of the century, not the “Big Smoke” that is Vancouver. She is beautiful with an air of determination... Contemporary, hip, with 50s make- up and hairstyle, with her sister she is Chinese, and they blend into that community. In Chinatown, Marie met and married Art Lee. With him she had four children, Ronald, Rhonda, Rod, Robert. Rhonda was born in Vancouver's Chinatown in 1945 and had a rich childhood in a large, extended Chinese family. She grew up believing that she was Chinese. She finished school, got married, had three daughters, and then divorced. Marie herself had divorced from Art while she was quarantined with TB. Rhonda and her siblings were split up and sent to live with rela- tives. Then, Marie married with a family friend. She had managed to almost completely hide her past. When Marie passed away in 1985, the story was only starting. Marie’s brother George, or “Sonny,” had passed away in 1975. Marie’s sister Dorothy or “Auntie Doe” passed away in 1992. Dorothy was the last band member of the South Westminster Reserve. Her journey led to the life-alter- ing day (1993) when she received her status, becoming the only regis- tered member of her band. In 1994, her brothers elected her chief. Today, Band No. 566, the Qaygqayt First Nation, has the distinction of being the smallest First Nations in Canada, without a reservation, and with only six members. Rhonda submitted an application on behalf of her band to join the British Columbia treaty process, but it was rejected. It was sent back, and she was told that she couldn’t partic- ipate because she didn’t live on her own land. It has to be said how close Rhonda is with her daughters. Near the end of the documentary, the years roll back and there her heritage is before our eyes: a grandmother showing her granddaughters’ her past. It is a reassuring moment that speaks reams. A Tribe of One circles around the relationship of Marie with her daughter, and then finally the relationship of Rhonda with her own daughters and granddaughters. As Rhonda says, our story must be remembered—and this is true of everyone, regardless of culture. She has become more thaa she was, heal- ing her mother’s hidden pain, bring- ing it into the light, and letting it grow. A Tribe of One was the winner of the NFB’s first-ever Reel Diversity competition in 2002. It made its broadcast debut May 27 of that year, on CBC NewsWorld’s “Rough Cuts.” It is now on video and avail- able from the NFB website at: . Sylmarillion: Achieving New Depth in the World of Suck Trevor Hargreaves OP Contributor This album stinks worse than your dining room after inviting a hobo to dinner. Nothing annoys me more than a third rate indie band that’s completely out of touch with reality. The DIY (do-it-yourself) ethic is not always commendable. Just because your Aunty or Cousin heard you rehearsing in the basement and says your pretty good is not reason enough to mail copies of your crap- py album to newspapers across the country in hopes of a review. The result is just a host of irritated music journalists who feel that you've wast- ed their time. [Insert my menacing expression here]. The music of Sylmarillion is so tired it’s practically musical nar- colepsy. The songs consistently alternate from pedantic to idiotic while relying heavily on weak musi- cal ability and horrible songwriting. The vocals are vacant and tinny, off- set by a kind of power-chord instru- mentation I haven't heard since my grade six class covered “Country Roads” on acoustic guitar. Here’s a quick sample of the stellar songwrit- ing that tops it all off. “When we're alone, she sits and asks me ‘what is this life for’...hey, hey.” How about hey, hey, shut up. The ultimate irony is that these lyrics are taken from a song titled “Amazing.” Even the name of this band is irri- tating. Sy/marillion is gleaned from the title of a book published by J.R.R. Tolkien after the Lord Of The Rings trilogy. I don’t know about you, but I’m sick of Tolkien references. Is it not clearly stated in the unspoken Book of Rock that naming your band after a geeky fan- tasy genre is a bad move? Why not just call yourselves The Hobbits? Or perhaps Gandolf and Magic Spells? According to their press release, Sylmarillion is about to embark on a tour from their homeland of Manitoba to BC. Oh boy, now’s our chance to see them headline a sports bar in Surrey. This band isn’t fit for a high school battle of the bands http://www.otherpress.ca competition, let alone a western tour. I'm also completely confused at who this band is targeting as an audience. The CD arrived complete with an insane press package that resembled a sample of Teen Beat Magazine. It even included a trumped-up article about what a sexy hunk the lead singer is. The article even claims that girls scream “sex machine” at him whenever he hits the stage. It’s more likely they yell “who are you?” or perhaps just ignore him completely. I recommend they do the musical world a favour, put down their col- lective instruments and get back to concentrating on what’s really important in their lives. Namely their jobs at Subway, their unful- filled girlfriends, and their Dungeons and Dragons collection. Page 17