[van-announce] Nov 15-16: West Coast Tour to Support Tyendinaga

[Harsha]

- pls forward -

WEST COAST SPEAKING TOUR TO SUPPORT THE TYENDINAGA MOHAWKS!
DROP THE CHARGES AGAINST SHAWN BRANT!

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THURS NOV 15 @ 6:30 PM
ROOM 1700, SFU HARBOUR CENTRE
515 WEST HASTINGS
Suggested Donation $5-20
All proceeds go to Tyendinaga Support Committee
With Sue Collis, Khaled Barakat, Dustin Rivers, Lindsay Bomberry, and
Angela Sterritt.
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FRI NOV 16 from 12:30-2:30 pm
UBC, Student Union Building Room 205
Organized by Students for a Democratic Society
Supported by UBC Law Students of Colour United
Information: email sds.ubc at gmail.com or call 778.868.1907
With Sue Collis, Lindsay Bomberry, and others TBC
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* SUE COLLIS a non-native resident of Tyendinaga Mohawk Territories (TMT).
She is the wife of Shawn Brant and mother of two children and is currently
on a speaking tour to build awareness on the struggles at Tyendinaga. She
has also been an anti-poverty organizer with OCAP in Toronto.

* LINDSAY BOMBERRY is Onondaga Nation, Eel clan of the Haudenosaune
Confederacy League of Peace.  She is a youth activist, performer, artist
and writer and has been involved with indigenous and community politics
for most of her life.  She is currently training to be a traditional
clanmother and maintains a strong voice and presence within the
grassroots.  She is just returning to Vancouver from the frontlines of the
Six Nations Reclamation on Grand River Territory in Ontario.

* KHALED BARAKAT is a Palestinian community activist who was born in
Rammallah. He is the editor of  the Al-Shorouq Arabic newspaper and also a
member of Al-Awda-Palestine Right to Return Coalition.

* DUSTIN RIVERS is a Skwxwú7mesh youth. Fueled by generations of injustice
and a legacy to decolonize, he searches for an authentic Indigenous way to
create lasting change for his people. He is currently working at Redwire
Native Youth Media.

* ANGELA STERRITT is a Gitxsan, Irish woman who lives and works on Coast
Salish Territory. She is a grassroots indigenous organizer, an advocate
for indigenous women and girls, as well as an artist and writer.



!!! When Justice Fails, the Tyendinaga Mohawks Block the Rails!!!

The Culbertson Tract was stolen from the Mohawks in 1832 and in 2003, the
federal government acknowledged that the Culberston Tract was never
surrendered and is Mohawk Land. Although negotiations for the land began,
the land itself continued to be exploited by corporate developers and the
government issued licenses to gravel quarry operator Thurlow Aggregates to
remove over 100,000 tonnes of gravel per year.

In November 2006, the Mohawk community of Tyendinaga reclaimed and
occupied the quarry and shut down corporate operations at the quarry. This
served as a basis to launch a broader struggle to raise awareness on
issues of theft of indigenous land, polluted drinking water, and
overwhelming poverty and suicides in all indigenous communities. On June
29th, the Mohawks of Tyendinaga blockaded rail lines running through
stolen land for upwards of 30 hours. Dozens of trains were stopped,
business as usual in Ontario was ground to a halt, and the Canadian public
was forced to consider the reality and struggle of indigenous communities.

As a result of these actions, criminal charges have been laid against
Mohawk spokesperson Shawn Brant. Shawn was released on bail in September
after having spent more than a month in custody at the Quinte provincial
detention centre in Napanee, Ontario. He now faces a total of 9 charges
and a minimum of 12 years of jail time if convicted, while living under
bail conditions including a curfew.

It is clear that the severity of the prison time openly being sought by
the Crown indicates the punishment the Canadian state is prepared to
inflict on all indigenous people who take courageous stands against
ongoing colonial exploitation and corporate devastation in order to defend
and protect their land and their communities for future generations.

FURTHER INFORMATION:

* Interviews with Shawn Brant
http://www.radio4all.net/proginfo.php?id=22399
http://www.radio4all.net/proginfo.php?id=24483

* More than a mine, a metaphor by Naomi Klein, Globe and Mail, May 4 2007
Reprint at: http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2007/05/04/978/

* Shawn Brant:  Another case of Canada's political persecution of
indigenous people
http://www.zmag.org/content/showarticle.cfm?SectionID=30&ItemID=13830

* For more information contact the Tyendinaga Support Committee:
http://www.ocap.ca/supporttmt.html
support.tmt at gmail.com

* Sign the Petition in Support of Shawn Brant:
http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/supporttmt/