Power Q & A with Crystal Smith
Q: Gitwaaɫtk is a story about the Highway of Rears in northern British Columbia. What compelled you to write this story?
A: T’oyaxsut’nuun, I really appreciate the question and I would like to answer it but I have to be honest, I, luckily, have not been touched by the loss of a loved one on the Highway of Tears. I wish everyday for the safety of my family that lives along the highway, my friends, my loved ones. I really wish for the safety of all Indigenous people along the Highway of Tears. I wrote this book because I wanted to bring more attention to the Highway of Tears. I mean the fact that the highway has been named “The Highway of Tears” is a major issue that I believe a lot of people just don't know about. This is not a Indigenous problem, it is a humanity problem that needs far more attention than it has been given. There are books, documentaries and other forms of knowledge circulating about the Highway of Tears and this story wanted to be added as well. I wrote this story but really the story came through me, a lot of it was just putting pen to paper (fingers to keyboard) and so I really believe the story wanted to be told. Our ancestors spoke through me with this one and I am just the vessel that brought it into our realm.
Gitwaałtk by Crystal AJ Smith is the story of a young Indigenous woman who loses her Sister-Cousin to the highway of tears and who embarks on a journey with her na̱xnox to find and bring to justice to the person responsible for her Sister’s disappearance. It’s an exploration of how grief and loss can find strength in family, community, and tradition.
Crystal AJ Smith is Haisla, Ts’ymsen and was adopted into the Heiltsuk nation. She is the proud mother of 4 beautiful children who are her world. She is a writer, poet, playwright and activist. She and her partner Raymond Shaw live in Liǧʷiłdax̌ʷ territory. She has her Master’s in Educational Administration and Leadership with a focus on Indigenous Leadership from UBC. She has stepped away from teaching in the colonial classroom to give her undivided attention to her children. She is actively learning and growing in culture and language, her family had their first feast in decades in 2022 for the hiłagwila of their son λugʷaləs K’ala’ask Shaw. She is now embarking on a journey to learn and understand her Haisla roots and has been learning Liǧʷiłdax̌ʷ culture since 2020.