John Ridsdale aka Hereditary Chief Na’Moks – Delgamuukw – Fabricated Identity?

Last Updated on: August 2, 2025

John Ridsdale has been globe trotting all over the planet funded by various organizations that all seem to lead back to American funding. Most recently he led a delegation of known aboriginal anarchists better known for their attacks on a legitimate LNG pipeline. “Complaints were submitted this morning by Wet’suwet’en Hereditary Chief Na’Moks and Deputy Chief of the Hagwilget Village Council Gwii Lok’im Gibuu (Jesse Stoeppler).” Quote from an American Environmentalist organization called  Oil Change International

We need to introduce the others here, Jesse Stoeppler  is not a hereditary leader, he only holds a hereditary name as do all member of the Gitxsan Nation. He is not a leader of the Gitxsan, he was a former Hagwilget Village Councillor and is Co-Executive Director of the Skeena Watershed Conservation Coalition, paid position.

Gaylene Morris, let’s begin by saying that she never defended Wet’suwet’en land, ever, what she did do was make an appearances at the illegal outpost set up by Million Dollar Molly Wickham on the Morice Logging Road, where she made a number of unsubstantiated claims against the employees of Coastal Gaslink. She is a member of the Wet’suwet’en nation but that is where it ends, she is just a member by birthright, she has no official capacity, either elected or non elected to speak for the Wet’suwet’en nation. This is another case of a self entitled radical trying to make a name for themselves, and suppied by eco radical whites to do thier dirty work. The only part they got right is she is a member of the Likhsamasyu Clan with no traditional right to speak on their behalf. She was never authorized by her clan in the traditional feast hall.

Last in the lineup is the claim, “Dogwood Northern B.C.coordinator” Kai Nagata. A brand new creation by the non aboriginal Nagata family living in Kispiox where they made protesting the primary occupation that pays big dividends. This is the first we ever hear of the Dogwood Northern B.C. prior to today it was always Dogwood BC As a master of word manipulation this comes as no surprise to the people who have watched him over the last few years, he does not fit the bill of a journalist, but does fit the bill of PR Agent for professional protesters.

On July 25, 2025   Canada’s National Observer further reported: “Wet’suwet’en hereditary Chief Na’Moks filed a complaint last week with the Japan Bank for International Cooperation’s (JBIC) independently appointed environmental examiners — tasked with investigating alleged environmental wrongdoing — detailing environmental harms and human rights abuses from the construction of the Coastal Gaslink project that transports fracked gas from the Montney region in [northeast British Columbia] to LNG Canada’s export terminal [in Kitimat, British Columbia]. The bank loaned US $850 million to the project in 2021.”

So who is John Ridsdale aka Chief Na’Moks?
Is he a legitimate Hereditary Chief?

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John Ridsdale 68 years old, is the centrepiece of every environmentalist organization funded by Americans to shut down all resource industry in British Columbia.  Born in 1957 was the son of the late John (Bub) & Katherine Ridsdale. John claims he got is name (Chief Na’Moks) in 2008. (source National Observer 07-2020)

According to an interview with the National Obersver on July 27th John Ridsdale claimed ““When my grandmother passed, it was to go to my mother. She decided her brother was better prepared, so she requested he carry it until his death. He was to train me in his lifetime, which he did,” explained Na’Moks. Editors Note: This is a complete contradiction to the testimony given by Emma Michell.

More quotes from John Ridsdale in the same article “In traditional Wet’suwet’en governance, chief names are given or inherited through the matriarchal line. Holding a name also requires a sacred obligation to uphold the laws of the Wet’suwet’en and protect the land.”      “When the individual is trained or groomed a decision is made inside the feast hall, which in western world terms may be understood as similar to a parliamentary system, to appoint them to step into their name. A ceremony is held and from then on, a Hereditary leader becomes the name, the values, the responsibilities, the knowledge, the territory assigned to oversee.”

 

Then this whopper, we did talk to people who worked in those mills in 1979,  Houston Forest Products and Canfor, none of the people (including other aboriginal men) recall John Ridsdale ever working there,  there is no record of him ever being a foreman at at a sawmill in Houston. My bet is there are no police files or hospital records that can collaborate his story. And somehow you expect everyone to take your word for it, that you are the rightful title holder the the chiefs name “Namoks”.

 

Na’Moks knows about resilience. When he was 19, he worked at a sawmill in Houston, about an hour’s drive from Smithers, B.C. His work ethic got him promoted to foreman, which “for an Indian” at that time was a big deal.  Some other workers there didn’t like it, he said.  They were white.  One day after work, they “knocked him out,” tied him up to the back of a pickup with a rope and dragged him along the hard, frozen ground. It broke almost every bone in his body.  They left him there to die.  Crawling naked, because his clothes had been ripped off during the dragging, he made his way under a barbed wire fence and into a ditch.  A woman driving who lived nearby came driving along and saw steam rising from the ground. She pulled over and took her shotgun out because she thought it was an animal needing to be “put out of its misery.   She aimed and took a closer look — it was John.  She was white, she was a friend, he said.   She got him to the hospital.   Na’Moks says he was paralyzed for two years from that incident and had to learn how to walk again.   When he was well, Na’Moks used his savings to buy a fishing boat and moved to Prince Rupert, where he became a fisherman like his father before him. Now he’s retired and dedicates all his time to his purpose: “To protect and stand for the territory.”

 

So how did the name Chief Na’Moks come into existence? Before we go on “every” member of the aboriginal clans get a “aboriginal name” every name is a name someone in the past, inside the clan, in this case of Tsa K’en Yex (Rafters on Beaver House) or also known as Tsayu. Thus every aboriginal name is “hereditary”, it does not make you head of your clan.

 

To find the truth we chose to read the words of the elders recorded into history at the Delgamuukw v The Queen, Delgamuukw-Gisday’wa in the Supreme Court of Canada.

 

We were able to confirm that there is indeed reference to a Chief Namox see screenshot attachment.   This document was taken from Volume II Emma Michell, Commission Evidence – INDEX

 

 

Now we need to look at what Emma Michell said in her testimony.

 

Now move forward to February 23, 2020, where we read the words of Troy Young, of Kyah Resources. John Ridsdale aka Hereditary Chief Na’Moks claims to be the highest ranking Hereditary Chief of the Tsayu Clan.

 

“I am Witsuwit’en, matrilineally descended from Na’Moks Lucy Holland in the Tsayu clan, with my father clan being Laksilyu. As a young teen I had the chance to sit at our kitchen table with my great-grandmother Lucy and my mother, listening as they discussed the business in our territory and what it could mean.”

“We have seen three female chiefs being stripped of their name because they don’t agree with the “Hereditary Chiefs” within the society that is the Office of the Wet’suwet’en. This stripping was not done following our law. We have seen individuals be given Chief’s names that then flout our Law on many fronts. A newly named chief can’t speak for a year, yet these new chiefs have been vocal in the media. We have seen a chief break our Law by claiming a name from another house. We have seen a chief name be given to some whose parents sit together in the feast hall. We have seen adoptions across clans take place without merit or proper transfer.”

Was he referring to Frank Alec, negotiating Wet’suwet’en land claims in the first moth of his stealing that title?

Our Law states that guests have no say in “our business,” meaning the things that are taking place on our territories. This continues to be observed by many, but some guests, whether born in Wet’suwet’en territory or adopted into a house, forget that they are guests and can observe but not speak. Guests are permitted to live in the territory and take advantage of the resources provided by the territory, but they have no say on what happens within the territory.”

Was he referring to Molly Wickham?

“Growing up, I don’t recall seeing my great-grandmother Lucy wear her regalia outside the Feast Hall. It was never seen in Fort Nelson or Vancouver at a protest. Regalia was certainly never given to a non-chief to parade down the street in protest. It was sacred, and was treated in a proper manner, not as a costume to make a dramatic impact. 

Was he referring to John Ridsdale?

“The decisions seem to be taking place in Smithers at the Office of the Wet’suwet’en, a registered society created to negotiate treaty following the SCC victory. Our laws dictate that the feast hall is where decisions are made. This has not been followed, with the OW acting like a government, which they are not. Our chiefs are to meet with their house groups and do as the house group decides; they are not the decision makers. In the past the Tsayu clan representative has set up Tsayu clan meetings on a near monthly basis, and our chief has only ever showed up to the first meeting, never to meet with his clan again. How does he speak on behalf of a house group he doesn’t have time to meet with? Then the clan representative was changed, and the meetings became exclusive, with very limited notice to times and dates.” Was he referring to John Ridsdale?

“Last week, I see my house chief proclaiming in the media that an All Clans Meeting was called for the next day, and only certain people could speak. This is not our Law, our house chiefs are not our dictators. Each house chief is supposed to do what the house members agree upon and tell him through our matriarchs, elders, and wing chiefs, not tell us what we are going to do. Some chiefs have not been holding house meetings open to all, so the decision made in these meetings do not hold weight. Our chiefs don’t get to hand pick who they invite to house meeting. Each chief holds equal power in the hall, and this has been forgotten. Being the clan spokesperson doesn’t give more power over the other chiefs, and this has been forgotten.” Again was he referring to john Ridsdale?

“I question Na’Moks John Ridsdale’s sincerity when he says there are “better ways to get a paycheque that will look after the environment, that will look after the water, the salmon, our culture.” This seems unrealistic because we have hundreds to employ and there are not many well-paying jobs in water monitoring or fishing.”

“The Office of the Wet’suwet’en was started with 19 seats, thirteen for our house chiefs and six for the elected chiefs. Delgamuukw-Gisday’wa was successful in court because all our chiefs sat at the table and agreed on the necessary actions. To ensure unity for looking after our people the house chiefs and elected agreed they must act in unison to provide for the people. This has been forgotten with some house chiefs trying to extinguish the relationship with the elected chiefs.”

“In Delgamuukw versus British Columbia, the Supreme Court ruled the territory was unceded, governance was never established, and that the land was held for the Witsuwit’en people for when governance was established, and title and rights could be negotiated. The people are the owners, not the chiefs, whether house chiefs or elected council chiefs. Our ancestors, elders, and matriarchs fought the case to gain access to the resources so that our people could make a living of the resources from their territory.”

“One chief complaint of some house chiefs has been that industry and government won’t talk to the OW. Now that they have been offered the opportunity, they have not taken advantage of the offer. The elected councils of Witset, Nee Tahi Buhn, Wet’suwet’en First Nation (Broman Lake), Skin Tyee, and Ts’il Kaz Koh (Burns Lake Band) all signed agreements with industry and government to provide a step to further discussions with government. The Office of the Wet’suwet’en also entered negotiation with industry and government over pipelines, but were removed by Witset because of internal disagreements over how the negotiations took place, and who was to benefit from any agreement reached. Even when Witset took over negotiations, Witset council invited the house chiefs to attend all negotiations to provide advice and counsel. The OW has prevented the chiefs from attending the negotiations under threat of removal from their paid positions.”

“I speak outside the Feast Hall now because some of our house chiefs have decided that only their voice matters and they are expressing it in the public. I call on all Witsuwit’en to talk to their elders, matriarchs, wing chiefs, and house chiefs to remind our house chiefs of their duties to uphold our Law, and for our house chiefs to listen. They must understand that they are chiefs so that they can carry our voice and do our bidding, they are not our dictators. They need to be reminded that they carry the name of someone who was remembered, and if they tarnish this memory, it will not be forgotten.”

 

More Research

What we did find was that in 1995  a photo that belongs to Smithers Meseum, we have it here for educational and research purposes as evidence that Dan Michell was head of the Tsa Kïn Yikh (Beaver House), Tsayu (Beaver Clan). Signing the document is Dinï Ze’ Wigimshol, Dan Michell, President of the Office of the Wet’suwet’en.

 

 

 

Quotes from museum archives.

In 1994, the Gitxsan-Wet’suwet’en Tribal Council, which had represented the two Nations during Delgamuukw vs. British Columbia, split into two separate bodies, one for each Nation. Therefore, separate framework agreements were signed between the Province and each First Nation in the following years. These set guidelines for discussion on issues such as self-government, land, resources, and monetary settlements. See Interior News, July 19th 1995 for more information.

So in a nutshell the rightful heir to the title if Chief Namox was to be passed on to Dan Michell, I will link a reference to that story “The Tale of Two Tsayu, Beaver Clan Chiefs” but we still do not know how John Ridsdale took that title back in 2008. It looks like Lucy Holland’s held the name Namox in the testimony provided.  The testimony appears to all be from 1997, it would confirm that at that date Lucy Holland was very much alive and indicated that her choice of succession of the name “Namox” was to be passed on to Dan Michell ad it also explains why he was the person signing on behalf of the Gitxsan-Wet’suwet’en Tribal Council in 1994.

Here is where there are some serious discrepancies. John Ridsdale claims took that title back in 2008. Let me repeat an earlier quote from John, “the National Obersver on July 27th John Ridsdale claimed ““When my grandmother passed, it was to go to my mother. She decided her brother was better prepared, so she requested he carry it until his death. He was to train me in his lifetime, which he did,” explained Na’Moks.”

John Ridsdale is the son of John (Bub) & Katherine Ridsdale, Nee Holland, the daughter of Lucy Holland.

So if the son of Lucy Holland died before 2008,and his mother died sometime after Aug 26th 1986 where it was noted she was alive but sick. That leaves a period of 20 years difference, meaning both Lucy Holland and her son (the uncle John Ridsdale passed away in that time frame. To this pint we admit it does hold as possible, however this is where I have an issue regarding this transition, names are passed on in a feast hall, mostly at the headstone feast. This is always accompanied by a large local attendance to witness the passing on of title. After talking to a number of Wet’suwet’en not one could ever recall the passing of title of the name “Namoks” and the first time we ever saw the new spelling of that name was from John Ridsdale, who now spells it Na’Moks.

 

Unless someone can come forward with the dates and attendance of those who witnessed the transfer of “title” from Lucy Holland to her son as per John’s claim, we are going to call his claim to that name as debunked. Likewise if John Ridsdale is unable to come forward with the dates and attendance of those who witnessed the transfer of “title” from his unnamed uncle, we will also call this claim debunked.

“Why is it nobody we talk to can recall the passing of the title of “Namoks” was the ceremony done in secret?”

 

The ball is now in your court John Ridsdale, show the public you are legitimate or it will be fair to suggest you gave yourself that title. All existing evidence shows the name should have gone to one of the Delgamuukw litigants, but its reasonable to assume that when she died, her choice for successor was never respected. If we are wrong John, prove it and we will post a public retraction. Let’s be clear here, this was 2008, there were all kinds of digital cameras to record such an event, why are there no pictures of such important events? Seriously John, why have you never posted a photo of your most important day, the day when you were bestowed the title of Chief Na’Moks?

Let’s renumber John’s own words “John Ridsdale said “In traditional Wet’suwet’en governance, chief names are given or inherited through the matriarchal line. Holding a name also requires a sacred obligation to uphold the laws of the Wet’suwet’en and protect the land.”      “When the individual is trained or groomed a decision is made inside the feast hall, which in western world terms may be understood as similar to a parliamentary system, to appoint them to step into their name. A ceremony is held and from then on, a Hereditary leader becomes the name, the values, the responsibilities, the knowledge, the territory assigned to oversee.”

When and where was the ceremony held, and where are the photos to prove it John? We are calling you out,  prove your claim or admit you are a fraud.