Indigenous Peoples' Solidarity Movement Ottawa (IPSMO)

Transcription

1 Indigenous Peoples' Solidarity Movement Ottawa (IPSMO) Newsletter March 14, 2010 IPSMO is a grassroots organization that directly supports indigenous peoples in diverse struggles for justice. We also work within communities to challenge the lies and half-truths about indigenous peoples and colonization that dominate Canadian society. IPSMO is open to both indigenous and non-indigenous peoples, and focuses on local and regional campaigns. Learn more at The Indigenous Peoples Solidarity Movement Ottawa acknowledges that the city of Ottawa exists on unceded Omàmìwinini (Algonquin) territory. CONTENTS 1) IPSMO Updates Next IPSMO meetings: March 5, April 3, April 19 Help pack the courtroom March 18 and 31! 2) Action Alerts Stand up for Residential School Survivors Protect Teztan Biny / Fish Lake Family Needs Your Assistance Ask Royal Bank of Canada to Stop Financing Dirty Tar Sands Oil 3) Events Mar 19: A Windigo Tale screening Mar 20: IPSMO Decolonial Study Group Mar 23: Conference on mining in Mexico and El Salvador Mar 23: Book launch: The Global Fight for Climate Justice Mar 24: Film launch: Staking The Claim: Dreams, Democracy and Canadian Inuit 4) Articles No decision made on whether Ont. will hand over Caledonia disputed land: Bentley Turning the Page on Colonial Oppression: Defenders of the Land Meets in Vancouver Indigenous voices challenge Royal Bank tar sands policies, supported by hundreds at shareholder meeting Feds hide proof: chief - Documents could show Ottawa knew dam harmful to band Colonial courts attack Barriere Lake's sovereignty Dalton McGuinty bets big on mining, critics fear eco-disaster Rates of TB skyrocket among Inuit, First Nations Leech Lake and Fond du Lac sign on for Enbridge Pipelin

2 IPSMO UPDATES Next IPSMO meetings: March 5, April 3, April 19 The next meetings for Indigenous Peoples Solidarity Movement Ottawa will be held: Mon March 15, 7:00pm Sat April 3, 1:00pm Mon April 19, 7:00pm All meetings will be held in room 301 of the Jock Turcot University Centre, University of Ottawa. Help pack the courtroom March 18 and 31! Two important court dates loom for a member of the Algonquin community of Barriere Lake and solidarity activists from Ottawa who were arrested during a series of peaceful highway blockades mounted in late 2008 by the Algonquins of Barriere Lake. Your presence in the courtroom is needed to show support for Ottawa defendants. By supporting these solidarity activists, you will also stand with the Algonquins of Barriere Lake as they address greater injustice. These issues include the provincial and federal governments' failures to uphold the Trilateral Agreement of 1991, and to recognize the sovereign nation's customary governance system (their constitutional right). Through the peaceful blockades, the community and solidarity activists attempted to renew negotiations with the federal and provincial governments to address these issues. Please come help pack the courtroom on March 18 and March 31 at 9am both days. The Maniwaki courtroom is located at 266 rue Notre-Dame, Maniwaki (Québec), about 130 km north of Ottawa. Rides are being arranged from Ottawa. If you need a ride, or have a vehicle and can offer to drive, please contact Francois at fleclerc33@gmail.com or On Facebook, the events are listed at: Mar Mar For further background on Barriere Lake First Nation and the grievances that led to the highway blockades in 2008, please see ACTION ALERTS Stand up for Residential School Survivors

3 (Message forwarded from Barbara Low) Saturday, March 13, 2010, 2:50 PM I am writing to you today to draw your attention to the plight of the Aboriginal Healing Foundation. The Foundation administers programs for Residential School Survivors, all across "Canada". The programs are designed for and by Indigenous peoples, and thus are culturally sensitive. Many Survivors have benefited from these initiatives. If anything, these programs need to be expanded. However, Stephen Harper and his Conservatives have struck again. In the recent budget, they announced that all funding to the Aboriginal Healing Foundation would be discontinued as of March 31, The programs will stop immediately as they rely on those funds. We need to act fast here. Please write to your MP and your local media. Please write PM Harper at pm@pm.gc.ca and demand that he reconsider. Only two weeks and the fiscal year is over and unless something changes so will the AHF. I am writing now - join me. Also, please join this Facebook group and share the information with your friends: "We Need to Lobby for Continued Aboriginal Healing Foundation Funding" Your concern, followed by action, is greatly appreciated. Protect Teztan Biny / Fish Lake Teztan Biny is part of the Tsilhqot in homeland and the Taseko River / Fraser River watershed. At Teztan, Nabas, and Jididzay, Tsilhqot in families have hunted, trapped and fished, and gathered medicines in their traditional way of life for decades, just like their ancestors, the Esghaydam, did before them. Today, Teztan is still a beautiful and powerful place where they go to practice their culture and preserve their way of life. Since settlers came into their land, they have worked hard to protect their culture and their way of life from the settlers destructive ways. Now Taseko Mines Ltd. wants to build a huge mine there. They want to cut the trees, tear up the land, and make a lake of poisoned waters there, forever destroying this lake. We do not want to see Teztan Biny/Fish Lake and the lands and waters poisoned and destroyed for short-term gain. We want to see it preserved for our lives, for our children, and for our grandchildren after them. We all say No to this mine and the destruction of the land and our clean water resource. Sign the petition: Watch the video at

4 Family Needs Your Assistance Beverley Sunday and her husband, Joseph Sayer were in a serious car accident in Hull on Friday, February 19, Currently, both are in ICU at the Hull campus Hospital (116 Boulevard Lionel-Emond, Gatineau). They are heavily sedated with a collapsed lung each, broken bones and serious head injuries. [Latest update: Beverley has been moved out of the ICU to the neurology ward, while Joseph is still in ICU with a fever.] Joe is self-employed, and Beverley is building an Aboriginalinspired health and wellness fitness studio in Ottawa that will empower generations of all ethnicities to take back their health and create stronger families and communities. Its grand opening is scheduled to occur this spring. Bev, Joe and their three children need your support at this time. We are currently encouraging prayers for their recovery and the wellbeing of their children, who are currently being cared for by extended family. A Facebook group, the Sunday-Sayer homepage has been created to keep people up-to-date on their progress: In addition, donations can be made to the Sunday-Sayer Family Fund trust account at TD Canada Trust. Donations can be made electronically or at any TD branch: The Sunday-Sayer Family Fund, Transit No , Inst. No. 004, Account No Supporters are encouraged to act as part of the 10 for 10,000 idea, aiming to have 1000 people each donate $10 (or more) by March 27 for a total of $10,000 which would cover household expenses for a few months while they are recovering. For further information, please contact Dawn Maracle at dmaracle@rocketmail.com Please pass this information along to all your contacts. Ask Royal Bank of Canada to Stop Financing Dirty Tar Sands Oil Are you tired of corporations trying to greenwash their environmental blunders? So are we. This week, Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) gets the greenwash-of-the-week award for spending $105 million (USD) to become a lead sponsor of the 2010 Winter Olympics, while simultaneously bankrolling billions of dollars in investments in the dirtiest oil project on Earth - the Alberta tar sands. RBC's efforts to advertise themselves as Canada's most caring corporate citizen through their Olympic sponsorship is incompatible with financing Canada's most polluting industry. The tar sands oil extraction project is systematically turning vast stretches of the breathtaking Canadian boreal forest into a

5 wasteland the size of Florida, eradicating wildlife habitat and jeopardizing the health of First Nations communities across Alberta. Let's do something about it. RBC's CEO Gordon Nixon and ask him to stop financing dirty tar sands oil and start funding a clean energy future, at EVENTS Mar 19: A Windigo Tale screening at Carleton Univ. A Special Carleton Screening of A Windigo Tale March 19, :30 pm to 5:30 pm 435 St. Patrick's Building, Carleton University *Screening to be followed by a question and answer with the director, Professor Armand Ruffo. According to the Anishinaabe, the Windigo is a malevolent, supernatural spirit that can possess and transform people into greedy, cannibalistic creatures. The Windigo is also part of the inspiration behind Armand Garnet Ruffo s first feature film. Ruffo, a professor in the Department of English, has spent the last six years producing, writing and directing A Windigo Tale. The film depicts a road trip in which a Native grandfather, Harold, who is desperate to save his troubled grandson Curtis from a life on the street, shares the dark secrets of their family and community. Focusing on the intergenerational impact of the residential school experience, the story Harold tells involves as estranged mother and daughter who must reunite to exorcise the dreaded Windigo spirit that is tied to their family s painful past of abuse. The movie was shot in two parts, the first on Six Nations Reserve, and the second two years later in Ottawa and the Renfrew area. For more information about A Windigo Tale, please visit the film s official website by clicking here. Department of English Language and Literature, Carleton University Mar 20: IPSMO Decolonial Study Group Saturday, Mar. 20 at 2pm Exile Infoshop, 256 Bank St. (2nd Floor) Sorry this location is not wheelchair accessible The topic will be "The Royal Proclamation of 1763". Fred Isaac will give a presentation on this topic and then there will be discussion.

6 Core reading: The Decolonial Study Group is a project of the IPSM Ottawa. We will be deepening and broadening our understanding and analysis of indigenous struggles for decolonization, social justice and revolution. We will be doing this through readings, workshops, oral presentations, movies and so on. Everyone is welcome! ipsmo@riseup.net ~ Mar 23: Conference on mining in Mexico and El Salvador Free Trade Agreements: The New "El Dorado" of Canadian Mining Companies? / Accords de libre échange: le noveau "El Dorado" des compagnies minières canadiennes? March 23 / 23 mars, 19:00h Desmarais Building, Ottawa University NE corner of Laurier Avenue East - Transitway / Coin nord-est de l'avenue Laurier Est - Transitway Campus map (Desmarais Building) / Carte du campus (Pavillon Desmarais): Mar 23: Book launch: The Global Fight for Climate Justice Octopus Books is proud to host ecosocialist activist Ian Angus at the launch of *The Global Fight for Climate Justice*, on Tuesday, March 23. The launch takes place at the store, 116 Third Ave, at 7 pm. No admission fee. The book is a collection of 46 essays, written by anticapitalist activists from five continents. Ian Angus, the editor of the essay collection, is also the editor of the online journal *Climate and Capitalism*. As capitalism continues with business as usual, climate change is fast expanding the gap between rich and poor between and within nations, and imposing unparalleled suffering on those least able to protect themselves. The topics of the essays range from the food crisis to carbon trading to perspectives from indigenous peoples, and they make a compelling case that saving the world from climate catastrophe will require much more than tinkering with technology or taxes. Only radical social change can prevent irreversible damage to the earth and civilization. For more information: Octopus Books , events@octopusbooks.ca

7 Mar 24: Film launch: Staking The Claim: Dreams, Democracy and Canadian Inuit *Special Invitation * EnTheos Films and Nunavut Sivuniksavut would be honoured by your presence at the first national launch of: "Staking The Claim: Dreams, Democracy and Canadian Inuit" A documentary based educational curriculum resource for Canada Staking The Claim is the story of the people and events that led Inuit on a 30 year quest for self-determination. Their purpose was simple: to discuss the need for certainty and control for Inuit. Their actions changed the course of Canada. Wednesday March 24, 2010 Minto CASE Building Bell Theatre, Carleton University Directions: *Screening: 7 pm *Reception: 8:30 pm For more information and to RSVP contact: kathclarida@entheosfilms.com ARTICLES No decision made on whether Ont. will hand over Caledonia disputed land: Bentley Tuesday, 23 February :00 By Maria Babbage, The First Perspective TORONTO _ Aboriginal Affairs Minister Chris Bentley isn't ruling out the handover of disputed land that's been the site of a long-running aboriginal occupation in Caledonia, Ont., to the Six Nations. ``No decisions have been made with respect to the land,'' Bentley told the legislature Monday. ``We continue to work very, very hard as a province, trying to bring everybody to the table and look forward to an ever more energetic federal government to help resolve a 200-year-old land claim.''

8 Turning the Page on Colonial Oppression Defenders of the Land Meets in Vancouver March 1, 2010 Canadian Dimension Peter Kulchyski Early this fall, an event largely ignored by the mass media in Canada, took place in northwestern Ontario. A floatplane filled with equipment and staff from the Platinex mining company attempted to land on Big Trout Lake, known as Kitchenuhmaykoosib to the local Inninuwug. The chief and other members of the community got in their boats and played a game of chicken with the plane, maneuvering their boats in front of its landing trajectory to keep it from being able settle onto the lake. After making several attempts, the pilot turned around and returned south. A few months later the community heard the news that the Ontario government had bought out Platinex s interest in the disputed territory (part of Treaty 9) and announced that the platinum mining development in the region would not proceed. Indigenous voices challenge Royal Bank tar sands policies, supported by hundreds at shareholder meeting March 4, 2010 rabble.ca On March 2, more than 170 people rallied outside of the Royal Bank of Canada's (RBC's) Annual General Shareholder meeting (AGM) in Toronto after a series of creative non-violent actions all morning. Inside, First Nations Chiefs and community representatives from four different Nations demanded RBC phase out of its Tar Sands financing and to recognize the right to Free, Prior and Informed Consent for Indigenous communities. Afterward, Indigenous leaders lead the crowd in a march to rally outside both RBC Headquarters buildings. Other cities across Canada supported the First Nations voices inside the AGM as well with solidarity actions from (click on a city for pictures) London, Calgary, Vancouver, Edmonton, Victoria and more. Check out photos from those and our events in Toronto. And see some preliminary media coverage from the Wall Street Journal, Yahoo, the Edmonton Journal and the Dominion. Feds hide proof: chief Documents could show Ottawa knew dam harmful to band March 4, 2010 Winnipeg Free Press By: Mary Agnes Welch

9 Buried in government filing cabinets and secret court dossiers are 259 documents that could prove the federal government knew for years it had failed to protect three northern First Nations from hydro-dam flooding and might owe millions in compensation. A key hearing in the case that's dragged on for nearly 20 years in obscurity is set to begin Monday. That hearing, too, could be shrouded in secrecy. The Canadian government has asked a Federal Court judge to hold the hearing entirely behind closed doors, beyond the prying eyes of journalists and even some First Nations leaders who might want to get a glimpse of the secret documents html Colonial courts attack Barriere Lake's sovereignty March 4, 2010 Linchpin.ca By Krishna E. Bera, Lori Waller, and Greg Macdougall In Feb. 2010, the Mitchikanibikok Inik or Algonquins of Barriere Lake (ABL), a small First Nation community located 130km north of Maniwaki, Quebec, presented arguments in the Supreme Court of Canada defending their latest leadership selection. A few weeks later, the court decided the selection was not held according to ABL's customary governance code. The judge misinterpreted the customary governance code with inconsistent logic in his arguments, which might play a role in paving the way for Indian and Northern Affairs Canada to impose section 74 of the Indian Act. This would abolish the customary method the ABL use to select their leaders. This follows a notice Indian Affairs Minister Chuck Strahl sent to the ABL in October that he would not recognize their legitimate leadership. Instead, he said he will impose elections on the community in April Dalton McGuinty bets big on mining, critics fear ecodisaster Tue Mar Toronto Star By Tanya Talaga, Queen's Park Bureau, Premier Dalton McGuinty hopes a massive northern ore deposit will be the motherlode for Ontario's economy but critics are warning of an environmental disaster akin to the Alberta tar sands.

10 At stake is the development of one of the world's largest untapped deposits of chromite, used to make stainless steel. With aboriginal leaders demanding a greater say in any such project in a vast area west of James Bay, McGuinty is gambling he will be able to appease critics. The scheme is a key pillar in the premier's five-year plan, known as Open Ontario, to boost the lagging economy. Rates of TB skyrocket among Inuit, First Nations By BRYN WEESE, Parliamentary Bureau, Canoe.ca March 10, 2010 OTTAWA - Rates of tuberculosis have skyrocketed among Inuit and First Nations communities in Canada, and they want the federal government to act. The rate of tuberculosis among Inuit is 185 times higher than Canadian-born non-aboriginals, having doubled in the past four years. The rate of tuberculosis among First Nations is 31 times higher than non-aboriginal Canadians. Leech Lake and Fond du Lac sign on for Enbridge Pipeline By Winona LaDuke, The Circle March 11, 2010 The Leech Lake Ojibwe and Fond du Lac Ojibwe tribal governments have each accepted payment from Enbridge Pipeline for the right of way through their reservations. Recent negotiations taking place with Fond du Lac have settled for a rumored $17 million, while Leech Lake signed for $l0 million. We all know that tribal funds are low, so taking money is not a surprise. The question now might be if the Fond Du Lac Tribal allottees have any rights to their lands, which will be crossed by the pipeline. Across Indian Country allottees have slowed down or stopped projects (coal strip mining at Northern Cheyenne, toxic waste dumps in Rosebud, S.D.) and at times, have done the exact opposite - proposed environmentally destructive projects.

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