Working to protect Seal River Watershed in northern MB
Four First Nations communities are collaborating with the federal and provincial governments to explore the possibility of developing an Indigenous protected land area in northern…
indigenous affairs
The ‘pilgrimage of penance’ is not enough
The reconciliation agenda awaiting Pope Francis is broad and might not live up to the standards of Indigenous communities, but the neglect that Indigenous people continue to face from the political establishment is not promising either.
Church must tear up papal bulls, return stolen material
The church supposedly feels remorse for its actions, yet it continues to act and uphold colonial institutions and practices. Unlike the Pope’s apology makes it seem, it was not simply a few misguided Christians that contributed to residential schools — it was and continues to be an institutional effort that began with two racist papal bulls. The continuity of this institutional colonialism lives on in the Vatican’s private collection of cultural material. If the church truly wants to take its first steps toward reconciliation, it should return what was stolen and tear up the papal bulls that made this theft possible.
Nuchatlaht could change land claims for good
The Nuchatlaht First Nation are refusing to recognize Canadian sovereignty over their hereditary land that encompasses about 200 square kilometres of Nootka Island. Centuries of western contestation, deliberation and dispossession have come full circle and the Nuchatlaht are making their case for their land back in the Supreme Court of British Columbia.
Stop development projects at the Forks
If the City of Winnipeg and the provincial government truly have any concern for reconciliation, development programs at the Forks must come to a halt and the revenues dedicated to them should be redistributed to help combat the genocide of Indigenous people in Canada. Although shrouded in self-congratulatory arrogance, there is nothing to be proud about when it comes to the developments and archeology taking place at the Forks.
Niki Ashton echoes First Nations’ calls for military aid
Niki Ashton, NDP MP for Churchill-Keewatinook Aski, echoed some Manitoba First Nations’ calls for military support on reserves overwhelmed by rising COVID-19 cases.
Canada’s settlement does not reconcile lost childhoods
Although the $40 billion could potentially prevent future abuses, no amount of money can reconcile stolen childhoods. The government is responsible for these abuses and, like Blackstock noted, Canadians cannot surrender this critical fact in light of this large settlement. It is far from time to exhale in relief. Rather, it is imperative that the federal government does not capture the settlement’s narrative and skew it as a fortune of the Liberal party’s goodwill.