c̓əsnaʔəm: The city before the city is the title of both a film by Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers and a trio of exhibitions co-organized by the Musqueam First Nation, the Museum of Anthropology at UBC and the Museum of Vancouver.
Released in 2017, Tailfeathers’ film centres the relationship between Musqueam First Nation and the territory colonially known as metro Vancouver. It casts a lens on colonial disruptions to this relationship, such as a 2011 condo development in c̓əsnaʔəm, an ancient village site and burial grounds, which was scheduled without consulting the nation. Ancestral remains were unearthed during an archeological investigation connected with the development. In protest, Musqueam community members held a vigil at the site for over 200 days, halting construction and drawing public attention toward the injustice.
The three exhibitions spanned 2015–2016, together exploring the 5,000-year history of c̓əsnaʔəm and its continued significance. The Musqueam Cultural Centre Gallery celebrated Musqueam culture, drawing connections between pre-contact knowledge-holders and contemporary practice. The Museum of Anthropology showcased Musqueam worldviews and oral histories, with a focus on efforts to protect c̓əsnaʔəm. The Museum of Vancouver re-examined the colonial practice of removing ancestral remains and cultural objects from c̓əsnaʔəm for display at museums.
