Self-determination in the Yukon: Marilyn's story
A storyteller with a lively sense of humour, Marilyn Yadułtin Jensen has a gift for putting people instantly at ease. She's eager to share her community's stories and history, often punctuating them with jokes and anecdotes that reveal her warm spirit. Her eyes truly sparkle when she speaks of her passions: the land that grounds her, the people from her community, and the traditions at the very heart of her Tagish and Tlingit identity.
While Marilyn now lives in Whitehorse, her roots are from the Carcross/Tagish First Nation, where she spent a lot of time as a child with her extended family, "running around with cousins, swimming at the beach in Tagish, picking berries, fishing, just really enjoying this beautiful territory that we live in."
Transcript for Self-determination in the Yukon
[A woman's voice sings in Tlingit accompanied by steady drumbeats.]
[The camera focuses on a dancer wearing a crow mask, shifts to another dancer wearing a wolf mask, and then centres on a drum decorated with Indigenous designs. The performance takes place outdoors, in front of a lake and snow-capped mountains.]
Marilyn Jensen: I always feel my mom with us.
[The scene transitions to Marilyn sitting in a high-ceilinged room, speaking directly to the camera. Behind her, there is a long wooden canoe and a bright Tlingit painting.]
Marilyn: She said, "I want you kids to remember, we were not allowed to sing our songs, and now you are."
[The scene returns to the outdoor dance performance. Marilyn sings and drums, while a child and their mother, both in regalia, dance alongside the performers dressed as a crow and a wolf.]
Marilyn: "Understand it's your birthright to be able to sing our clan songs." Here we are, singing our songs as loud as we can and as proud as we can.
[Back inside, Marilyn speaks to the camera.]
Marilyn: That is an expression of self-determination.
[The woman's singing and the drumbeat gradually fade away, and an instrumental melody begins to play.]
[The camera pans over the mountains in a sweeping drone shot.]
[Text on screen: Sharing the Journey, Marilyn Jensen]
[Marilyn walks through the woods near the Yukon River. She pauses, gazing into the distance with a thoughtful expression.]
Marilyn: [Speaks Tlingit.]
[Text on screen: Marilyn Jensen, Cultural Educator and Dancer]
[Marilyn speaks to the camera inside the cultural centre.]
Marilyn: So my English name is Marilyn. My Tlingit name is Yadułtin, and I am a killer whale crest, Daḵłʼaweidí Clan, here in the Carcross/Tagish First Nation in the southern Yukon Territory.
[Aerial shots show Carcross, and the nearby waterways and mountains.]
[Text on screen: Carcross, Yukon]
Marilyn: Long ago, the caribou crossed where the water was narrow. Carcross is shortened from "caribou crossing." In Tlingit, it's Naataase Heen, which means "narrow water."
[A steam train chugs along the river, releasing puffs of white smoke into the air.]
Marilyn: It became a place of commerce and supplies.
[On the river shore, weathered wooden shacks suggest abandonment.]
Marilyn: The Indigenous People in Carcross were all over here on this side of the river. It was known as "the village."
[Marilyn walks in front of the wooden shacks and steps inside one of them.]
[Text on screen: Marilyn's grandparents' cabin]
Marilyn: I remember people living in shacks with no running water, struggling, a lot of poverty, especially some of those young people who were just coming out of the residential schools in the 60s and 70s, prior to self-government. It was like displacement, after displacement, after displacement.
[Inside, the cabin is aged and worn. Marilyn moves slowly, taking in her surroundings.]
Marilyn: Here in the Yukon, we were not a part of the treaty process that happened throughout Canada.
[Marilyn leans against a window frame and gazes outside, her expression thoughtful.]
Marilyn: I remember stories from my grandparents and their generation. People were saying, "If we don't do something, we're going to go extinct!"
[Archival footage shows a meeting room where Indigenous leaders are gathered.]
[Text on screen: Ottawa, Ontario, 1973]
Marilyn: So they organized, and it resulted in 1973, all the chiefs from the Yukon went to Ottawa, and they basically said, "You do not have a treaty with us."
[Archival footage shows a hand signing a document already filled with other signatures.]
Marilyn: So Canada signed some agreements and treaties.
[Text on screen: Whitehorse, Yukon, 1993]
[Archival footage shows a man smiling while holding a feather. The scene then shifts to an outdoor gathering, where a triumphant woman stands on a stage raising a document in front of a crowd.]
Marilyn: Every Canadian needs to know the story. If you live in Canada, then you are a treaty person.
[Marilyn addresses the camera inside the cultural centre.]
Marilyn: It's an integral part of our history and who we are. When we're so focused on reconciliation, that's a part of it.
[Text on screen: Haa Shagóon Hídi, "Our Ancestors' House", Carcross/Tagish Cultural Centre]
[The scene depicts the facade of a building adorned with Tlingit symbols and flanked by totem poles.]
Marilyn: Our community was envisioning something that reflected our own traditional style of governance, which we call the clan system.
[The scene shows a group of small, brightly painted commercial buildings alongside totem poles.]
Marilyn: The whole concept is that we have the ability to structure our own governance and government in a way that makes sense to us and is relevant to us, rather than an imposed system by the Indian Act.
[The camera transitions from sweeping aerial views of Carcross to the outdoor dance performance. It then shifts to Marilyn inside the cultural centre, then her near the river sitting on a rock.]
Marilyn: I'd like to see us where we have our culture, our land, and our ability to be at peace with everything around us and with our own hearts. Just calm that inner beast of trauma. I know that's not going to happen overnight because the trauma is so immense, but I want us to be happy again…
[Marilyn looks at the camera with an hopeful smile.]
Marilyn: …to be realizing self-determination, to be speaking our language, to be dancing and singing and just doing well.
[Text on screen: Join the reconciliation journey at canada.ca/sharing-reconciliation-journey]
[The Canada wordmark appears.]
The power of dance
Starting at just 2 years old thanks to her mother, dance quickly became for Marilyn a powerful way to stay connected to her culture. She stresses that dance is much more than a performance: it's a ceremony, a way to connect with each other and to honor the Ancestors, but also an act of self-determination. "We weren't allowed to practise our culture. We still did, but it had to be underground," she clarifies. "It had to be quiet, because it was illegal." Marilyn refers to the period when traditional ceremonies like potlatches and sun dances were banned as part of broader efforts to assimilate Indigenous Peoples across Canada.
Self-determination
As Marilyn points out, achieving self-determination took time and perseverance. In 1973, the Yukon Native Brotherhood led by Chief Elijah Smith travelled to Ottawa to present a proposal to Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau. Called Together Today for our Children Tomorrow, the document laid the foundation for the negotiation of land claims and self-government for Yukon First Nations. Over the next 20 years, negotiations continued between Yukon First Nations, the Government of Canada, and later the Government of Yukon, culminating in the signing of the Umbrella Final Agreement in 1993 . This agreement became the cornerstone for the individual final and self-government agreements that followed.
Today, the Carcross/Tagish First Nation is one of the 11 self-governing modern treaty nations in the Yukon. As Marilyn explains, "The whole concept is that we have the ability to structure our own governance and government in a way that makes sense to us and is relevant to us, rather than an imposed system by the Indian Act.
A shared journey
Marilyn encourages all Canadians to learn about these treaties, reminding us, "If you live in Canada, then you are a treaty person." She calls on people to understand colonial history, grasp the true meaning of reconciliation, and support Indigenous communities beyond symbolic gestures: "Learn our history. Learn the treaties. Don't just wear the shirt on Orange Shirt Day… show up after that! We're not asking for pity. We're asking for partnership."
Photo gallery
Marilyn is from the Carcross/Tagish First Nation, located in the southern Yukon. Its population is made up of descendants of the Tagish and the Inland Tlingit.
The Tagish and Tlingit people have a long tradition of carving poles that showcase ancestral stories and clan identities. Typically crafted from cedar and often painted in vibrant colors, these poles serve as visual records and spiritual expression. The pole in this photo features the killer whale, the crest of the Daḵl’aweidí clan, Marilyn’s family.
Haa Shagóon Hídi ("Our Ancestors House") is Carcross/Tagish cultural and learning center. The architecture design pays homage to Pacific Northwest Coast artistic traditions, incorporating clan and story poles and formline painting on wood.
In front of Haa Shagóon Hídi, poles honor the six clans of the Carcross/Tagish First Nation. Traditional clan structures are deeply woven into the nation’s self-governance system, which included representatives from each clan. This integration ensures that ancestral traditions continue to guide leadership and decision-making.
"The Indigenous People in Carcross where all over here on the side of the river, it was known as the village. Small cabins lined all the way up the river on the side. And the non-Indigenous people, the settlers, were all across the river where the beaches and where the sun really warmed everything."
"I remember stories from my grandparents and their generation, they don’t talk about feeling poor, but they were. Compared to how other people were living in the town of Carcross, they didn’t have all of the benefits of settlers coming in. […] But the stories that were shared were ones where people were happy, despite all of the challenges going on. And I think my mom’s memories were definitely connected to the time when there was a lot of happiness, before things got a little worse."
Marilyn founded the Dakhká Khwáan dancing group in 2007. The name means "People of the Inland" in the Tlingit language. The group has performed in Ottawa, and overseas in Israel, New Zealand and Taiwan.
During performances, Dakhká Khwáan dancers wear handmade regalia and vibrant masks representing key figures from traditional stories, including the raven shown in this photo. As one of the main clans of the Carcross/Tagish people and a central figure in Tagish creation stories, the raven holds deep cultural and spiritual significance.
In Tagish and Tlingit cultures, drums are central to ceremonies, connecting individuals to their Ancestors, the spiritual realm, and the natural world.
In the Carcross/Tagish First Nation, families follow a matrilineal system, meaning children inherit their clan and family group from their mother. Women, especially matriarchs and clan mothers, play a central role by passing down traditions, guiding ceremonies, caring for the land, and helping shape community values. They are key leaders who keep the culture strong and ensure that stories and teachings are preserved for future generations.