Cultural anthropologist Dr. Tad McIlwraith spoke to Radio-Canada about British Columbia’s reconciliation efforts. following the decision that disputes over land between Indigenous communities and the province of British Columbia are to be determined in court. 

McIlwraith said the decision contradicts B.C.’s reconciliation commitments, and there is a disconnect between the ongoing conflict in Wet’sutwet’en territory and how that community’s rights are recognized.  

A professor of anthropology in the College of Social and Applied Human Sciences, McIlwraith has researched the use of Indigenous culture at Canadian summer camps. He has also worked as an anthropologist with First Nations communities throughout British Columbia and northern Alberta.