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Idle No More – indigenous movement spreads beyond Canada

 Why Idle No More matters, Montreal Gazette, The aboriginal protest
movement fits into a pattern that suggests we are entering a new era
of collective action
 By Celine Cooper, Special to The Gazette December 30, 2012 MONTREAL —
In a teepee on Victoria Island in the Ottawa River just a stone’s
throw from Parliament Hill, Attawapiskat First Nations Chief Theresa
Spence is engaging in a hunger strike. Her actions have come to
represent the growing social movement known as Idle No More.

Set into motion and founded by four women from Saskatchewan — Sheelah
McLean, Nina Wilson, Sylvia McAdam and Jessica Gordon — Idle No More
(#idlenomore on Twitter) has gained momentum as an indigenous-led
protest against the mammoth omnibus Bill C-45 tabled by the federal
Conservative government this month. Critics of the bill have taken
particular issue with its amendments to the Indian Act and the
Navigable Waters Act, arguing that it disrespects treaty rights and
aboriginal sovereignty and erodes protection of the environment. Since
Dec. 11, Chief Spence has chosen to subsist on lemon water, fish broth
and medicinal teas, and she vows to continue to do so until Prime
Minister Stephen Harper and Governor General David Johnston agree to
meet with her and discuss treaty rights and respect for aboriginal
peoples.

Whether or not political leaders heed the calls from Theresa Spence,
the general public should pay attention to Idle No More. At any rate,
it may be difficult to ignore. Under the aegis of the movement, there
have been blockades of highways and railways in various parts of the
country. There have also been flash mob protests of traditional round
dancing in shopping malls in Montreal, Calgary, Edmonton, Saskatoon,
Regina, Winnipeg, Toronto and Yellowknife, and they have started to
spread to the U.S., Australia and other parts of the world. As I
scanned YouTube for examples of these flash mob demonstrations, I came
across one held at the mall in the town where I grew up, Brantford,
Ont., near the Six Nations of the Grand River First Nation.

The fact that aboriginal protesters and their allies have chosen
commercial shopping malls — powerful symbols of our Western consumer
culture and capitalism — as the spaces in which to engage in
traditional drumming circles makes a tremendous statement.

There are many reasons why Canadians should be paying attention to the
Idle No More movement. Here are just a few of them:
From a global perspective, Idle No More fits into a pattern of recent
movements, such as Occupy and the Quebec-led “carré rouge” student
protest. Together, they suggest that we are stepping into a new era of
social uprising and collective action that transcends state borders
and national territories like never before…..
At a national level, Idle No More is important because it forces us to
acknowledge the uncomfortable legacy of Canada’s complex colonial
history. ……
the territorial boundaries of the Canadian nation-state, or of Quebec
for that matter, are not innate but reflect the geography of colonial
mapping that resulted in dispossession for many population groups.

http://www.montrealgazette.com/news/Celine+Cooper+Idle+More+matters/7753852/story.html#ixzz2GeTuFSrL

December 31, 2012 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | Canada, indigenous issues