When the Pine Needles Fall: Indigenous Acts of Resistance

by Katsi'tsakwas Ellen Gabriel, Audra Simpson (afterword), Sean Carleton (primary_contributor)

There have been many things written about Canada’s violent siege of Kanehsatà:ke and Kahnawà:ke in the summer of 1990, but When the Pine Needles Indigenous Acts of Resistance is the first book from the perspective of Katsi’tsakwas Ellen Gabriel, who was the Kanien’kehá:ka (Mohawk) spokesperson during the siege. When the Pine Needles Fall, written in a conversational style by Gabriel with historian Sean Carleton, offers an intimate look at Gabriel’s life leading up to the 1990 siege, her experiences as spokesperson for her community, and her work since then as an Indigenous land defender, human rights activist, and feminist leader. 

More than just the memoir of an extraordinary individual, When the Pine Needles Fall offers insight into Indigenous language, history, and philosophy, reflections on our relationship with the land, and calls to action against both colonialism and capitalism as we face the climate crisis. Gabriel’s hopes for a decolonial future make clear why protecting Indigenous homelands is vital not only for the survival of Indigenous peoples, but for all who live on this planet.

Genres: Indigenous, Nonfiction, History, Indigenous History, Politics, Memoir, Canada

280 pages, Paperback

Published September 24, 2024

Reviews

[Darren · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think like most I came into this book wanting to know even more about the person who was for the most part the spokesperson of the Kanehsatà:ke Resistance a person who is and will always be a hero to every(I’m sure some apple will say otherwise) NDN person on turtle island and beyond but quickly pivoted to recontextualizing what that meant for the people involved. Of course nothing will change how she and everyone else who inspired a new generation of NDN resistance (at least in the mainstream) but it’s important to think about the lasting impacts on them as people. The trauma inflicted, how the issue while seen as a win wasn’t truly actually that in the long run. How there really can’t be a win for NDN folx under the thumb of capitalism. How much effort and work she has done now for women done wrong by the mysoginistic culture we live in because of capitalism. How life existed before and well after the spotlight was placed on her and her community.

[Rachel Ashera Rosen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sean Carleton interviews the absolutely incredible Katsi’tsakwas Ellen Gabriel, spokesperson for the Kanien’kehá:ka during the Siege of Kanehsatà:ke and Kahnawà:ke. She has gone on to do many other important things as an artist and activist. I read it for the firsthand account of one of Canada's most shameful and egregious acts of violent colonialism, but there's so much else here that is a must-read. The book speaks to the power of community and resistance in a way that's accessible and compelling.

[Dana]

There are many educational books mentioned.

I liked the pictures - it was so nice to put faces to names

The author's love of art really shined through on the pages

Favourite Quote:
Society is out of rhythm, and we need to find our way back.

If you're looking for a clear picture into the rights (or sadly, lack thereof) of Indigenous people, this book is a great resource!

My thanks to ZG Reads for this gifted copy

[Justine]

I was really excited to be able to request this book for review from Between the Lines Books. I’m really trying to learn more about Canadas history as it does affect us all and we can’t just hide the bad times under the rug like Canada seems to always try to do. I had never heard of the siege of Kanehsatà:ke and Kahnawà:ke before picking up this book. That is sad to me because it’s a big part in Canadian history. It could have been due to me being born in 1990, but that’s not an excuse to not continue to teach it in schools.
I had picked this book up in September and just finished it now because it is a heavy topic and I wanted to give my full attention when reading it. I did love the way the story was told as an interview and then first hand accounts. I like seeing all of the photographs incorporated in the story. I think that this would make a really powerful audiobook as well if it was narrated by both Katsi’tsakwas Ellen Gabriel and Sean Carleton.
I would absolutely recommend this read to all Canadians and also others who are curious about history and how poorly indigenous people have been treated.

And just a final thank you to Between the Lines Books for allowing me to read this powerful book.

[O Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very important book about much more than just the ‘Oka Crisis’ as it is frequently described as. It covers a wide range of topics regarding that surround the everyday lives of indigenous peoples, present and past.

The books is a compiled from a series of Conversations between Katsi’tsakwas Ellen Gabriel and Sean Carleton, which created a very interesting read that worked a lot better than many of the other books I’ve read that were written in such a manner.

Overall a fantastic book I highly recommend that everyone should read particularly those who live in Canada.

[Lolz · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love that the first chapter was the Ohén:ton Karihwatéhkwen, bringing hearts and minds together. I also loved the Mohawk words throughout. This is an important story and although it was informative I didnt find the writing particularly riveting, or activating.
I liked these quotes:
“We don't just see them as trees, to be cut down and sold for profit. Instead, they are sacred, …It's not only a special place of beauty but one of protection for our people.”
“Peacekeeping nations and defenders of human rights don't use their army domestically, right? Especially not to support the expansion of a golf course and luxury condos.”
Canada Reads 2025

[Hailey Boehner · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must-read for Canadians and environmentalists. Accessible but with a depth of knowledge and expertise

[Sarah Shulist · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a transformatively powerful book. I was almost compulsively highlighting it; immediately realizing that my library e-book copy was going to be insufficient and I would need to buy myself a copy.

Gabriel’s story is powerful, but her voice is much more so. She has a deep humility about her work, a strong sense of her interconnectedness (in past and in future), and an uncompromising understanding of colonialism. Her discussion is in many ways very simply worded, and I appreciate that. She lays out the core issue of land theft, illustrates how the Canadian state has repeatedly played games, knowing that they are in the wrong but also that they have the power to be wrong, and always brings the story back to these issues. There are other events, other components, but at the heart is land theft. Sometimes as academics we are inclined to think of everything as complicated, but colonialism, while multipronged, powerful, and wide-reaching, is ultimately very simple. There is no need to get overly wordy about this discussion. It is land theft.

Gabriel (and Carleton in his well developed questions) builds in elements that are new to me in the history of Kanienke’ha resistance, including the degree to which the colonial state was almost baffled by women leaders, continuing to ask to speak to the men. The images that came to define the “Oka crisis” showed soldier like men, and Gabriel contextualizes their presence with all the things that went in to them being on the front lines like that.

This is a story that neither dwells in nor shies away from trauma. Gabriel is a woman who has gone through years of healing from these events, and has come to have a deep understanding of how, as she puts it, her life both before and after is in many ways centered around 1990. Something about the way she phrased that just captured layers of the story. It is difficult to capture all the ways I appreciated this - easy 5 star read.

[Laney Sanchez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Equal parts informative, heartfelt, and inspiring, this history-memoir blend is a true gift and must-read for people across cultures, generations, and nations.

With the story of what really happened during the Mohawk Crisis of 1990 as the anchoring narrative, Ellen Gabriel and Sean Carleton candidly and thoroughly discuss the realities that Indigenous peoples face today, and have faced for hundreds of years, under the thumb of settlers and colonization. Gabriel graciously walks us through decades of injustice, conflicts, and falsely-recorded history in order to open our eyes to what is really happening around us. Documented in a conversational style, reading this almost felt like listening to two good friends chat over a cup of coffee. Gabriel and Carleton both pull the wool from over our eyes, invite us to take action with them, and somehow also offer hope and a persevering belief that change for the better is truly still possible.

As an American, I was shocked to pick up this book and learn, for the first time, about an incredibly significant and recent historical event. How is it possible that something like this is never covered in our history classes? It makes me wonder what other unknown holes there are in my own knowledge of the history of modern society, and if I would even find the truth if I looked for it.

This definitely reads more like an oral history than a true memoir, and while it covered an incredible breadth of topics and recent historical events, I kept looking for more personal, emotional depth in Gabriel's words. If I had gone in with more accurate expectations, I think I would have enjoyed reading a little bit more. But regardless, I'm so glad I got to read this book and I can't wait to purchase a physical copy once it releases.

4.5/5 stars rounded up

[YourLadyFriendBonnie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hearing from one of the frontline land defenders during the 1990 Siege of Kanehsatà:ke and Kahnawà:ke (also known as the colonial name "Oka Crisis") and how she saw and felt about everything that was happening was powerful. Having the privilege of knowing Ellen Gabriel, I could hear her voice in all her responses and her calm fierceness. She really goes into the history and cultural significance of this stand off, how it impacted her community and sister communities, and why it was such an explosive moment in Canada and its impact on the public's (lack of) understanding of Indigenous peoples. While the main focus was the Siege, we do get to know a big more about Ellen's passion for art and her passion for human rights and justices. I thought it was an interesting format, that would suit a documentary very well (I haven't yet watched the doc that Ellen made by the same name), however I did find that Sean Carleton's questions were too researched and academic sounding (even for a historian professor), so they didn't quite match Ellen's tone and he felt a little stiff. I did notice a few spelling mistakes and grammatical errors, and some areas felt a bit repetitive. While I liked the fact that there was a glossary and brief definitions of terms they left me wanting further explanation, but I guess that's why there's a blank glossary page for the reader to fill out. I would say this is not a book for people who have no knowledge of the 1990 Siege of Kanehsatà:ke and Kahnawà:ke, but an advanced knowledge with a more academically inclined reading palate. Ultimately, it’s a compelling testament to the strength and resilience of Indigenous women and communities. 4/5

[Meghan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was Katsi’tskwas Ellen Gabriel’s story on her activism on Indigenous Peoples, respecting their lands, their cultures, and finding a true way of creating reconciliation between the Indigenous communities and Canadians. This dove deep specifically on the 1990 Oka Crisis, also known as Kanesatake Resistance, which was a 3 month standoff between the Kanyen’kehà:ka, Mohawk, community and the Canadian government. There was a proposition to extend a golf course on the Kanesatake land; land that held a burial site, so the Kanyen’kehà:ka people took a stand, creating a barricade to stop the expansion. This had some really good points that the reader thought everyone should know about, especially people who weren’t alive when this happened. It was an interesting and insightful read, but some of the points Gabriel was trying to make got lost in the shuffle, as this got to be very repetitive after a while. The same words and phrases got over used and points she had talked about in one chapter were brought up again in another. This reader gets that repetition can be key in remembering and getting a point across, but this felt like we were being hit over the head with it. This felt like it could have been edited down a bit more to make it tighter and more concise; the reader thinks that would have made for a more impactful read. This did have some really good writing, despite the reiteration of the facts, it was easy to read and follow along. The interview style way this was told was good, too because it left this feeling conversational and open. In the end, this was about an event that this reader had never heard of before and they found this informative regarding the conflict and the future of respecting Indigenous Peoples and their lands.

[Alanna · Rating 4 out of 5]

While I am a bit too young to remember the Mohawk Crisis (I was only 4 at the time), I did learn about it briefly in school, but from the side of the colonizers and not in a way that makes it particularly stand out in my mind other than it happened. I was therefore pleased to be able to read this book and read more from the other side and learn more about what actually happened. I appreciate Gabriel being willing to share her thoughts and remembrances from this difficult time in her and Canada's history and how we can use the results of this event to support us in dealing with similar events happening now. I would recommend this to anyone who is interested in Indigenous history in Canada, and think it would support teachers with their coverage of the Mohawk Crisis in school.

I did find the book difficult to read at time because the conversational tone didn't always translate to the written format well. I do think this book would make a great audiobook with the authors each reading their own parts which would allow the conversation to flow better.

I received an advanced copy of this book from Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

[Enid Wray · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another important story for our historical record. I remember this event like it was yesterday. It was one of those seminal moments in my own life. A moment (months) where my understanding of our history and our relationship with our Indigenous peoples really crystallised for me.

I wish the format had been a little different. The basically unedited transcripts did have a tendency to get repetitive. And I would have appreciated a deeper dive into a real historical excavation - a laying out of the systemic history of land theft that led up to the crisis… really paint the picture for those who still don’t get it.

Still, a necessary and recommended read.

3.5 rounded up to 4

[Brianna King · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. Through conversation between Indigenous scholar, activist, and artist Ellen Gabriel & scholar and historian Sean Carleton, we gain a deeper understanding of the events that took place during the “Oka Crisis” of 1990s. While this book provides a historical recount of this through Gabriel’s first hand experience, it also goes beyond this and touches on so many important themes - solidarity, narrative, women, environmentalism, and more. It also addresses the harm that propaganda has had on influencing the minds of Canadians concerning how they might view the siege in 1990. I really enjoyed this book.

[Ingrid · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fascinating read! I had never heard of the events of 1990 before. I hadn't been born yet and it was never covered in school.
The format of the book was interesting- it was basically a transcript of a series of interviews between Katsi'tsakwas Ellen and Sean Carleton. Many times I thought that actually being able to watch or listen to the interview would have made it easier to truly get the depth of what Ellen had to say. She mentions a documentary she made with the same name though, so I'd like to look into it!

[Lauren Wallace · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Some people in our community sadly just accept this dysfunctional state of affairs because of the impacts of colonization and genocide." (180)

I though this book had great information and I earned a lot. I thought it was a bit repetitive at times. I liked the interview style of this writing.

This book was a quick read; as I read it in about 2 days!

I would recommend this book to any Canadian!

[halia · Rating 3 out of 5]

ellen gabriel is an excellent speaker. at this point i’ve heard her speak in solidarity at quite a few protests. however, i don’t think her speech translates well to a book format; though her words and knowledge are incredibly valuable and interesting to digest, the interview format lends itself a bit too much to redundancy.

as a book, this is okay. as insight into indigenous resistance and what settlers can do to help the land back movement, this is great.

[Lisa Fedele · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an important voice. I loved reading about the events that I, too, was affected by during the seige in 1990, as I lived close.

Canadians, in fact, the world, need a different relationship with the Indigenous People's. We need to recognize the Indigenous laws and their leaders, not the colonial 'councils' developed under the Indian Act.

[Lee Huscroft · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the Canadian history we never even touched on in school. Talk about mis-information and whitewashing. So sad and frustrating as a second generation Canadian to learn about the continued wrongdoings of our “Canadian colonizing governments”. Shame, is how I feel.

[Mar · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read because it made Canada Reads 2025 longlist. It gives background on the 1990 Oka Crisis and the ongoing struggle between Indigenous people and colonising settlers in Canada. Each chapter is told in a question and answer format. The afterword repeated much of the content in the book.

[Clivemichael · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well articulated, disturbing indictment of the colonial system and its inherent injustice. many references

[Maryam · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars because the narrative style wasn't my favourite but I like how it didn't discuss 1990 in a vacuum, there was a lot of focus on everything that got us there and what has happened since.

[Nadia · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great read. There were a few points where I felt the interviewer did a bit too much to try and steer the conversation and could have let her get there herself but YMMV.

[Johanne]

Too many repetitions, questions seem to show interviewer knowledge more than advance dialogue. Not a fan of the interview format.

[Jenn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very good conversation. I learned!

[aleena]

this would be 10000% better as an audiobook/podcast. learned lots of new things about the struggles of indigenous people, esp. in canada. not my niche of study, so i didn't find it that interesting.

[Laura - Book In Still Life · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was only a young child when the Kanesatake Resistance, also known as the Oka Crisis or the Mohawk Resistance, occurred, and yet I can recall seeing it on TV and hearing adults talking about it. I have no sense of whether these memories stem from the summer of 1990, when the 78-day standoff between Kanyen’kehà:ka (Mohawk) protesters, Quebec police, the RCMP and the Canadian Army happened, or whether I became aware of it after its conclusion - my memories are fuzzy. Regardless, this conflict between Indigenous peoples and Canadian law enforcement has stuck with me all these years.

So I was thrilled when I heard of this account of the events as told by Katsi’tsakwas Ellen Gabriel, who was the Indigenous spokesperson during the siege. This book presents her story in conversational style, as she speaks about the siege with Indigenous ally and historian Sean Carleton. Reading it feels like being a fly on the wall as Sean, a settler like myself, seeks to listen and understand Gabriel’s perspective. It is so very important to listen to Indigenous voices if we are to truly journey towards reconciliation and healing, and reading a book like this is a beautiful way of doing so.