How local Indigenous longshoremen founded Vancouver's first workers union

William Nahanee (centre) poses with a group of longshoremen on the dock of Moodyville Sawmill in 1889. (City of Vancouver Archives)

Its existence might have been short-lived, but what the Indigenous longshoremen union Bows and Arrows lacked in longevity it made up for in impact.

For most, Labour Day means nothing more than barbecues and a sleep in, but there is room to be found between the burgers and time in bed for celebrating the contributions and remembering the sacrifices of workers.

Groups like the Bows and Arrows, the first ever longshoremen union to be formed on Vancouver’s waterfront, would prove to be crucial for the reshaping of workers rights and racial solidarity on the docks for decades to come.

Founded in 1906, the union began as a localized iteration of the wider Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), an international labour union that prioritized class, not race. In time, Local 526 would become known as the Bows and Arrows, a moniker that reflected their dedication to multiracial support and unity.

“They were the very first form of organized labour, and the first example of a formalized version of Indigenous solidarity,” said Georgia Twiss, archives attendant at MONOVA: Museum of North Vancouver. “They’re pretty significant.”

Organized by Indigenous workers and comprising around 60 members, the group was primarily made up of Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish Nation) and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh Nation) longshoremen. Meetings were held in North Vancouver, on Squamish reserve land.

Folded among those Squamish Nation and Tsleil-Waututh members, said Twiss, were longshoremen of Hawaiian, Chilean or Black heritage.

William Nahanee, for example, the son of a Hawaiian father and Indigenous mother who was raised on a Hawaiian settlement in Coal Harbour, was a prominent leader of the movement. He would go on to make his own history, being the first-ever person in B.C. to go on strike.

“He walked off the job after a boss at Moodyville wanted him to operate a winch, but not be paid the same amount a white man would be paid for the work,” said Twiss.

Numerous Indigenous leaders worked as longshoremen over the years, including the Tsleil-Waututh Nation’s Chief Dan George, Squamish leader and activist Andy Paull, and Chief Simon Baker and Chief Joe Capilano of the Squamish Nation.

Capilano would go on to plow the money earned on the waterfront into a trip to London, England, where he would meet with King Edward VII to ask for justice for Indigenous peoples and discuss Indigenous land title rights.

“You can see the early stirrings of that political activism that became really important for them later on,” said Twiss. “For Capilano especially, it was his work as a longshoreman that helped pay for a trip that would bring about so much change.”

The original Bows and Arrows didn’t last long, but the concept would continue, with iterations of the group reemerging over time until all longshoremen joined the International Longshore and Warehouse Union after the Second World War.

The strength of the longshoremen can still be seen today, said Twiss. A notable example being the strike the International Longshore & Warehouse Union Local 514 carried out earlier this year.

It serves as a reminder of the work still being carried out, and the work that has come before, to uphold workers rights, said Twiss. While it can be easy to take Labour Day for granted as the final holiday before the school year starts, it’s important to reflect on the holiday’s history, she added.

“The labour movement was happening globally, and we have this small example of it here on the North Shore,” she said. “We take our eight-hour work days for granted, probably our weekends too, and so it’s important to reflect on the people who actually helped us get to that stage.”