Description
In Search of Almighty Voice by Bill Waiser is the story of Almighty Voice, a member of the One Arrow Willow Cree, who died violently when Canada’s North-West Mounted Police shelled the fugitive’s hiding place in May 1897. Since then his violent death has spawned a succession of conflicting stories – from newspaper features, magazine articles and pulp fiction to plays and film. Almighty Voice has been maligned, misunderstood, romanticized, celebrated, and invented. Indeed, there have been many Almighty Voices over the years. What these stories have in common is that the Willow Cree man mattered. Understanding why he mattered has a direct bearing on reconciliation efforts today. Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond (Aki-Kwe), Director, Residential School History and Dialogue Centre, and Professor of Law, University of British Columbia states that the Truth and Reconciliation Commission challenged scholars to reckon with the past and address matters stuck in old doctrines of colonialism and denigration. She notes that this book responds to this challenge by interrogating mythical stories about Almighty Voice, working respectfully with the One Arrow community, and reprising his life and tragic death with critical skill. Almighty’s Voice’s defiance needs to be remembered, while the chilling indignity visited on his remains by police needs to be addressed.