The Carcross/Tagish First Nation was party to this movement and, along the way, has made many contributions towards making this dream a reality.

In the words of the people themselves, this book tells the story of the Tagish, Athapaskan and Inland Tlingit, who belong to the Carcross/Tagish First Nation. It is a story of struggle and victory, and of resilience and determination to move forward, regardless of obstacles.

This extraordinary movement began at a time when Yukon First Nations people knew they had to take drastic action in order to ensure their survival. By the 1960s, conditions for many of the Yukon's Aboriginal people had become bleak, with few signs for a better future. Struggling with racism and poverty, and with their spirits almost annihilated by the mission schools, tremendous determination was needed in order for the people to pick up the pieces and begin the long fight to regain their traditional way of life.

"We must understand where we have been in order to understand where we are going."

Doris McLean, a member of the Daklaweidi Clan, has worked for the progress of Yukon Indian people for many years. She was a key player in protecting the rights of Yukon Indian women and non-status people through the Yukon Association for Non-status Indians and later served in the position of Chief for the Carcross/Tagish First Nation. (Marilyn Jensen, Telegraph Creek, 2002)

The people of the Carcross/Tagish First Nation traditional territory are descendents of the Tagish and the Inland Tlingit, who originated in southeast Alaska. For thousands of years, the Tagish built a strong way of life that was dependent on the land and the animals to flourish. It was not an easy existence, requiring flexibility and innovation to develop a culture in harmony with the often harsh climate of the southern Yukon. Their Tlingit neighbours on the coast cooperated with the interior Tagish people in extensive trade and over time, the people began to inter-marry and merge their cultures.

Over the centuries, people followed an annual cycle, which took them to certain areas for fishing, hunting and berry picking. There was a constant and powerful connection to the land, which was seen as not something human beings own but simply what human beings care for. The old way of acknowledging the Creator meant that people respected and valued all that the environment gave, because every living thing contained a spirit.

A clan system ensured that there was balance, respect, reciprocity and protocols to provide boundaries. The people knew the traditional laws that guided them and held