Coyotes and Indians

On Mother's Day, 2005 Lorna Blood died of a Listerine overdose. Lorna was the mother of Jim Hillyer's three adopted siblings from the Blood Indian Reserve. After attending her funeral in a run down old church on the reserve and watching her being buried with three garbage bags of clothes - all her earthly possessions - in an unkempt cemetery, Hillyer felt compelled as a political philosopher and as a brother to produce a documentary film about the plight of the Kainai First Nation (the Bloods).

It is commonly held that we in the Western world stand for truth, justice, freedom, equality, democracy, independence and prosperity. We cannot bask in our understanding of constitutions and the principles of justice and freedom and look back on the North American heritage of liberty and prosperity and be justified to ignore the continuing plight of those who live in cramped third world countries on our doorsteps, whose residents still only receive the guaranteed $5/year promised in 1877. The film and this book attempt to examine this issue.

This is not a book of despair but of hope. It does not attempt to place blame but to share responsibility. In this compelling personal journey, Hillyer gains insight not only into the disparity on the Blood reserve, but finds that their tragic history and recent achievements provide warnings against the pitfalls that will lead individuals, families, communities and nations into poverty and despair and provide lessons for everyone who wishes to help make all of society more happy, prosperous and free.

Join Jim Hillyer as he explores the conditions on the Blood Reserve in Southern Alberta. Enjoy this book as a supplement to Jim Hillyer's film, Coyotes and Indians.