Sdahl Ḵ’awaas, Lucy Bell
The British Columbia Reconciliation Award recognizes extraordinary individuals and organizations who have demonstrated exceptional leadership, integrity, respect, and commitment to furthering reconciliation with Indigenous peoples in the province of British Columbia, or inspired others to continue reconciliation efforts. Learn more about the BC Reconciliation Award recipients.
Watchmen, Skyáanaa ‘la’áaylang, stand atop Haida poles, watching for visitors and for danger. Lucy Bell, Sdahl Ḵ’awaas, PhD (ABD), has served as a Watchman in the museum world, advocating for reconciliation, repatriation, and anti-racism.
As a founding member of the Haida Repatriation Committee, she has spent nearly 30 years helping return over 500 ancestral remains to Haida Gwaii, guided by Yahgudang (Respect), and reconnecting the Haida with their 12,000 belongings in global museums.
As the inaugural Head of Indigenous Collections and Repatriation at the Royal BC Museum (RBCM), Lucy advanced reconciliation, co-authored the Indigenous Repatriation Handbook, and pushed for systemic change despite facing institutional racism. Her public resignation led to a year-long investigation and significant changes in the museum sector. She received the Sterling Prize for Controversy for speaking out against racism. Lucy will soon host a Haida Tla Yahda (Making it right) ceremony with the RBCM for closure, and to receive an apology in a Haida way.
Lucy continues to speak out for reconciliation and justice in the heritage field, advising the BC Museums Association, and the Canadian Museums Association. Her co-authored From Stealing to Healing Report on repatriation costs and benefits for First Peoples’ Cultural Council is a first of its kind in Canada.
Lucy is passionate about protecting and supporting her daughter and other upcoming museologists. She co-created a UVic course on decolonizing museums and co-founded Indigenous Museum Cousins. Her forthcoming dissertation will show how the Haida reconcile and work with museums.