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Connecting the Dots with Kevin Brownlee
By Billy Granger
In the opening moments of my conversation with Kevin Brownlee, curator of archaeology at the Manitoba Museum, I detect something in his voice; a certain buoyancy – something suggesting a departure from the cautious optimism I have often heard in the voices of other Aboriginal leaders and community members. In seeking to identify it, I conclude that beneath his articulate words and professional demeanor, he struggles to contain an almost boyish zeal for something he has yet to let me in on. He is excited about something, but… what?
As our conversation wears on, I discover a man of deep commitment and fascinating interests, and the mystery of his enthusiasm gradually unravels as he brings me into the world of his life’s work. With a master’s degree focused on experimental archaeology, Brownlee has spent his academic and professional career making and using traditional tools used by boreal Aboriginal people prior to contact with the Europeans. Using only the technology that would have been available to Aboriginal people at the time, extensively experimenting with the tools he makes, and by consulting with elders living in the boreal forests of northern Manitoba, he rebuilds the narrative of a history that might have otherwise slipped away.
“The people living in northern Manitoba who have a connection to that land are the best resource to understanding these artifacts,” he explains. “Through archaeology and through engagement with these people, we strengthen our national identity.”
It is important work, to be sure, and it has brought him acclaim in Manitoba’s Aboriginal community. In 1996, at 23 years old, Brownlee was awarded the Aboriginal Youth Achievement Award for Culture for sharing his interest and enshrining traditional knowledge in his creations.
“It was really nice – really special – as it validated what I did and was a symbol that the First Nation community accepted me,” said Brownlee. As he tells me more about his past, the importance and personal gravity of that acceptance becomes clearer.
Born to a Cree father from Norway House and a non-Aboriginal mother in the early 1970’s, Kevin Brownlee’s birth parents put him up for adoption. Subsequently raised off the reserve, Kevin was fortunate to have adopted parents that made significant efforts to expose him to his cultural identity even though they were non-Aboriginal. He recalls outings to ceremonies in Souix Valley, and collecting arrowheads with his uncle near Souris, MB. What began as a child’s recreational interest in Aboriginal culture and archaeology, blossomed into a life-long passion to connect to his own past and rebuild the history of Canada’s first inhabitants.
To this end, Brownlee, now the first First Nation person to act as a curator of archaeology at a mainstream Museum in Canada, has been working on some remarkable finds. In particular, he has recently been shown places where First Nation people had been mining into bedrock for quartz to use in the production of arrowheads and other stone tools.
“Even though quartz is not the best material for stone tools, they put in an incredible effort – maybe thousands of years worth doing this!” Brownlee says, marveling at the 24’ long by 8’ wide by 7’ deep pit where the mining occurred.
“But the most fascinating thing of all,” Kevin explains, “is that quartz has many trace elements and minerals in it - it’s like a fingerprint.” He goes on to explain that, because of this, work can now be done to identify which stone tools came from where, and ancient boreal forest trade networks can be mapped. It is a remarkable concept with big implications for fleshing out the history of Canada’s first inhabitants. In Manitoba alone, that history stretches back over 10,000 years, pre-dating ancient Mesopotamia and Sumer.
But all is not well. Industrial developments in the boreal forest on the east side of Lake Winnipeg are advancing at a faster pace than archaeologists can work, and Kevin Brownlee has seen first hand the problems that can cause.
“My first exposure to impacted areas was in northern Manitoba where hydro projects accelerated erosion,” says Brownlee. “First Nations’ heritage is often sacrificed with development. When development occurs, it’s that top layer of soil that gets impacted, where our history is buried, “ says Brownlee, adding that with each artifact that gets lost, so does another page from the history books of Aboriginal people.
Brownlee suggests that industry needs to look at the bigger picture, because doing so would benefit everyone. He sites instances in Nelson House, where Aboriginal educators, William and Margaret Dumas, were teaching school children about their identity and helping them understand the connection between archaeology and their own personal history. Then when the time for Aboriginal Achievement Awards rolled around in the early 2000’s, the children from Nelson House won in a broad range of categories. Brownlee thinks there is a direct correlation between having a strong personal identity and success.
“It just goes to show, that when you give people roots, they grow, ” says Brownlee with firm tone. “Part of the cost of doing business has to be addressing heritage.” Brownlee notes that, while it is expensive and painstaking to puts pieces back together and to carry out the dating, its importance cannot be underestimated. As history gets lost, so does the knowledge belonging to that point in time.
Brownlee says that he would like to see more First Nations in the boreal forest on the east side of Lake Winnipeg and other parts of the province insisting that more of the projects receive funding and that they become involved, and he thinks the boreal forest on the east side of Lake Winnipeg should be protected for future generations.
“The occupancy of that area goes back thousands of years,” he says, adding, “There’s such a rich history there, we can’t afford to screw this up.”
Regardless of the challenges being faced, Kevin Brownlee remains optimistic about the future, stating that more and more Aboriginal people are practicing archaeology through the ranks. He also says that he has been greatly encouraged by the support and sensitivity by some of his colleagues, such as his mentor, Dr. Leigh Syms.
“As the collective involvement is building — so do we build our nation.”
January 5th, 2009 at 2:42 pm
Kevin is the Bestest!