Lytton, BC burns while La Conner, WA fiddles. Grass fires caused by irresponsible fireworks on the westside of the Swinomish Channel threaten the community. Response by the fire department may have saved destruction. Canadian brothers and sisters of the local Swinomish nation were devastated. The local land and the culture are reduced and scarred by the blackened ground and the fireworks waste left behind. Perhaps, the elders have forgotten how to teach, or, perhaps, they receive no respect. Thankfully, the tribal backhoe is not digging graves for the burnt – yet.

Henry Gunterman

La...