allthecanadianpolitics:

A totem pole removed from an Indigenous burial site more than a century ago and kept on display in a Canadian museum has been repatriated to the Nuxalk Nation.

More than 100 Nuxalkmc traveled more than 600 miles from Bella Coola, British Columbia, to Victoria to reclaim their totem pole from the Royal BC Museum on Monday and bring it back to its rightful home.

As the totem pole was lifted out of the museum and lowered to the ground, its first time returning to Mother Earth, Nuxalkmc sang the Thunder Song – followed by women blessing and reawakening the totem’s spirit.

“We all cried when it landed on the ground,” Nuxalk Hereditary Chief Deric Snow told CNN. “It was the feeling when your emotions reach the highest point of your life. I’ve never dreamed we would be able to do this.”

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