Ontario Premier’s Comments on Basket Weaving Criticized

A third-generation Indigenous basket maker is clarifying his craft – it’s a key part of his culture, it holds value, and artists can actually earn a living from it.

On Tuesday, Premier Doug Ford defended his government’s changes to the Ontario Student Assistance Program, which reduced the maximum grant amount students can receive for tuition from 85 percent to 25 percent.

Ford commented that students are “picking basket weaving courses, and there’s not too many baskets being sold out there.” He suggested they should focus on their futures and pursue jobs that are in demand.

“He doesn’t know what he’s talking about,” said Spencer Lunham Jr. of the Chippewas of Kettle and Stony Point First Nation, located northwest of London, who has over thirty years of experience in basket making.

“It’s actually disrespectful to the people that live it every day.”

Spencer Lunham Jr. makes both utility baskets and traditional fancy baskets, he said, the latter featuring intricate colourful designs. (Submitted by Spencer Lunham Jr.)

The lengthy traditional process of cutting black ash trees, splinting them, pounding them down before finally weaving them into baskets is his full-time work, he mentioned. While mostly self-taught, Lunham comes from a family of basket makers; his grandmother was one as well as his aunt and uncle.

His Aunt Faye taught him how to make his first basket, and that was all it took.

“I got hooked, and I just took it upon myself to get better and that’s what I did,” he shared.

Lunham creates both utility-style baskets and traditional fancy ones; he explained that the latter involves colourful intricate designs requiring thoughtful planning before weaving begins.

Using traditional methods to gather and prepare black ash wood for weaving is a day-long process, Spencer Lunham Jr. said. (Spencer Lunham Jr./Facebook)

He also mentioned that he earns a good income from this craft by selling several hundred baskets each year for prices ranging from $150 to $3,000 each.

“It’s a beautiful art and it’s also a part of our culture,” he stated. “I think as Native people we’ve lost enough.”

Basket weaving is an essential craft for him; it’s just one aspect of a larger movement happening within Indigenous communities: reviving their own cultural practices and languages.

Spencer Lunham Jr.’s baskets can sell for up to $3,000; he stated this allows him to maintain a full-time career through his craft. (Submitted by Spencer Lunham Jr.)

The majority of his customers are Indigenous individuals who recognize the true worth of traditional baskets along with the effort involved in creating them; however, non-Indigenous buyers also purchase his work.

‘What Ford said was wrong’

Lunham also offers workshops at universities and colleges as well as within Indigenous communities across Ontario.

He noted that these workshops always fill up quickly; he’s taught “hundreds and hundreds” how to create baskets over time.

One of the most recent baskets that Spencer Lunham Jr. completed. (Submitted by Spencer Lunham Jr.)

Despite how physically demanding this craft can be in terms of time investment, he said none of his students complain – they often feel deeply connected throughout the process which he described as “healing” every step along the way.

If post-secondary students in Ontario were genuinely enrolling in basket-weaving classes at school , it would represent valuable education according to him-one that could lead toward successful careers once skills have been mastered properly.

“I’ve done it , I’m still doing it , and I’m doing well financially,”he emphasized.”What Ford said was wrong.”

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