Inmates at the Yellowknife jail concentrate as they skin several squirrels, deftly moving their knives to remove the small animalsB次元官网网址� soft fur, then scraping the remaining flesh and fat away.
Surrounded by murals featuring eagles and wolves, the more experienced men offer tips to their peers.
Roy Inuktalik, who is Inuvialuit and from Ulukhaktok, said heB次元官网网址檚 been hunting and trapping since he was five years old, but this is his first time skinning a squirrel.
B次元官网网址淚t was a good experience,B次元官网网址� the 32-year-old said.
B次元官网网址淚B次元官网网址檓 always willing to learn anything new. We learn new things everyday.B次元官网网址�
Skills such as hunting, trapping and preparing animal pelts are traditionally passed from generation to generation, Inuktalik said, and itB次元官网网址檚 something he plans to keep on doing.
B次元官网网址淭he skills that IB次元官网网址檝e learned today will be locked into my memory.B次元官网网址�
Every two weeks, experienced trappers lead classes at the North Slave Correctional Complex teaching inmates outdoor skills from how to set traps to snow machine repair and survival skills.
The program, which began as a pilot last year, is offered through a partnership with the territoryB次元官网网址檚 Department of Environment and Natural Resources.
B次元官网网址淭his program is really great. ItB次元官网网址檚 helped me rejuvenate my soul and keeps me nice and calm and happy,B次元官网网址� Inuktalik said. B次元官网网址淚 like to learn different traditions and help keep them going strong.B次元官网网址�
Vincent Casey, education outreach coordinator with the department, said the program empowers inmates and it helps many of them reconnect with their culture.
B次元官网网址淎 lot of the individuals who participate in the program have done this in the past,B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 providing that connection, providing those skills and refreshing those skills B次元官网网址� ItB次元官网网址檚 empowering because they have this knowledge and they just need it to sort of percolate back up to the top.B次元官网网址�
Casey said when the program started, about five people attended, but now up to 20 inmates can come to the classes.
The territorial jail is the largest correctional facility in the N.W.T. with the capacity to hold up to 148 adults and 25 youth. However, the number of people behind bars has been historically low over the past few years partly due to efforts to decrease COVID-19 risks.
Inmates can have minimum to maximum security ratings and may be serving sentences under two years or awaiting trial.
Longtime trapper Carl Williams demonstrated how to prepare a fox pelt for sale, carefully handling itB次元官网网址檚 crinkling paper-thin skin, brushing its fur and pinning its ears. He says the fresh pelt was a B次元官网网址渃ity foxB次元官网网址� that was caught in Yellowknife, meaning it has more fat than animals that live in the bush.
B次元官网网址淭hey had a good life,B次元官网网址� he said.
The inmates end the class by roasting bannock on a stick over a crackling fire outside, a popular outdoor snack in the North, and enjoying the flame-cooked bread with butter and jam.
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This story was produced with the financial assistance of the Meta and Canadian Press B次元官网网址 Fellowship.
Emily Blake, The Canadian Press
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