[Indigsol] IPSMO newsletter March 14, 2010

Sun Mar 14 16:54:32 PDT 2010

Indigenous Peoples' Solidarity Movement Ottawa (IPSMO)

Newsletter March 14, 2010
~~ For better formatting, please see the attached PDF version ~~

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 www.ipsmo.org.

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

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 at gmail.com or 613-866-5555.

On Facebook, the events are listed at:
Mar 18 - http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=361143241836
Mar 31 - http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=350784278934

 For further background on Barriere Lake First Nation and the grievances
that led to the highway blockades in 2008, please see
http://ipsmo.wordpress.com/2010/03/05/local-activists-barriere-lake/

ACTION ALERTS

Stand up for Residential School Survivors

(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, 2010. 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 at 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"
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=358670696313&ref=mf

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: http://www.protectfishlake.ca/petition.php
Watch the video at http://www.protectfishlake.ca/video-bluegold.php

Family Needs Your Assistance

Beverley Sunday and her husband, Joseph Sayer were in a serious car
accident in Hull on Friday, February 19, 2010. 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 Aboriginal-inspired
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:
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=319707199818&ref=nf

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. 02496, Inst. No. 004,
Account No. 78666361567.

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 at 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 wasteland the
size of Florida, eradicating wildlife habitat and jeopardizing the health
of First Nations
communities across Alberta. Let's do something about it.

Email RBC's CEO Gordon Nixon and ask him to stop financing dirty tar sands
oil and start funding a clean energy future, at
http://ga3.org/campaign/RBC_Letter_Gordon_Nixon?rk=xpbKfhFaRJwiE

EVENTS

Mar 19: “A Windigo Tale” screening at Carleton Univ.

A Special Carleton Screening of “A Windigo Tale”
March 19, 2010
2:30 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
http://www2.carleton.ca/english/news/a-special-carleton-screening-of-a-windigo-tale/

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.

Core reading:
http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Royal_Proclamation_of_1763

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 at riseup.net ~ www.ipsmo.org

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):
http://www.uottawa.ca/maps/

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 - 613-233-2589, events at octopusbooks.ca

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: http://www2.carleton.ca/campus

*Screening: 7 pm
*Reception: 8:30 pm

For more information and to RSVP contact:
kathclarida at entheosfilms.com

ARTICLES

No decision made on whether Ont. will hand over Caledonia disputed land:
Bentley

Tuesday, 23 February 2010 12:00

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.''

http://www.firstperspective.ca/index.php/news/80-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

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.

http://canadiandimension.com/articles/2815/

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.

http://rabble.ca/blogs/bloggers/joshua-kahn-russell/2010/03/indigenous-voices-challenge-royal-bank-tar-sands-policies

Feds hide proof: chief
Documents could show Ottawa knew dam harmful to band

March 4, 2010 | Winnipeg Free Press
By: Mary Agnes Welch

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.

http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/breakingnews/feds-hide-proof-chief-86318152.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 2010.

http://linchpin.ca/content/Imperialism-colonialism/Colonial-courts-attack-Barriere-Lake039s-sovereignty

Dalton McGuinty bets big on mining, critics fear eco-disaster

Tue Mar 09 2010 | 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.

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.

http://www.thestar.com/news/ontario/article/777028--dalton-mcguinty-bets-big-on-mining-critics-fear-eco-disaster

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.

http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/Politics/2010/03/10/13181186-qmi.html

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.

http://www.tcdailyplanet.net/news/2010/03/11/leech-lake-and-fond-du-lac-sign-enbridge-pipeline

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