Aboriginal protests gone wild

[Iced Tea]

Quebec highway blocked by aboriginal group

GRAND-REMOUS, Que. (CP) - A group of armed aboriginals blockaded a Quebec highway Monday, stopping traffic to protest forest management by the province.

Quebec provincial police said between 25 and 50 people set up the blockade around 5:30 a.m. on Highway 117, north of Ottawa. The protesters say the Quebec government reneged on a verbal agreement that ended earlier protests by granting local aboriginals living outside reserves the right to harvest trees.

"The protest is about the government of Quebec, the Liberals, lying to us," said Guillaume Carle, chief of the recently formed Confederation of Aboriginal People of Canada.

"As soon as we lifted the barricades (last time) they turned on us," Carle said in an interview.

Two vans, a pair of teepees, heavy equipment, barrels and logs have been set up across the highway, the only route between the Laurentian and Abitibi-Temiscamingue regions of Quebec.

Police set up a secure perimeter about 200 metres from the blockade after some protesters were spotted with hunting rifles at the blockade site, located within Verendrye provincial park.

"Some firearms have been seen at the road block," said provincial police spokeswoman Melanie Larouche.

"We won't let anybody pass that line."

Carle said Quebec has allowed rampant clear-cut logging in the region but left aboriginals out of the planning and the economic benefit from forestry activity.

"We're being robbed," he said as he drove to the site of the protest Monday.

Calls to newsprint giant Abitibi-Consolidated (TSX:A) weren't immediately returned on Monday.

Carle said protesters are also upset about living conditions for aboriginals across Canada who live outside reserves.

"No electricity, no heat, no water," said Carle, who said his group has about 6,000 members across Canada.

"The conditions are unacceptable."

Last month, the protesters picketed the office of the Quebec minister of natural resources.

Carle said the group wants rights to log in the region as well as a say in overall forestry planning.

He said the barrier will remain on the highway until the province sends someone to negotiate a proper agreement.

Lise Guerin, spokeswoman for the Quebec Department of Natural Resources, said the department is following the situation.

"The Surete du Quebec (provincial police) is in place and they're in contact with the protesters," she said.

Police said they want to re-establish the flow of traffic as soon as possible but had no immediate plans to dismantle the blockade by force.

"Above all, it has to be determined whether intervention would actually complicate things," Larouche said.

She said police remained on-site but were not negotiating with the protesters. That is up to the province.

"It's not our job to do that," Larouche said.

"We're there to ensure the safety of everyone." http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/Canada/2007/03/12/3737096-cp.html

First of all, if any other group blocked a highway, the cops would move in and bust some heads.

Secondly, why does every disagreement with the government make aboriginal groups put up blockades?

Thirdly, why should the government cave into a group that blockades? Also why should a group expect the government to bargain in good faith when the group wants start out the negotiations after committing an illegal act.

As for the highlighted section above; why don't aboriginals outside of reserves get jobs like every non aboriginal has to do to survive because the federal government isn't giving us monthly cheques because our ancestors were wronged and we can't milk the government for lots of money and sit around and complain when we aren't getting a precentage of every dollar made off of every inch of Canadian soil because possibly one time an ancestor took a pee over by a bush which is now a tree being clear cut on what will become a Walmart parking lot.

[granny]

http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/Canada/2007/03/12/3737096-cp.html

First of all, if any other group blocked a highway, the cops would move in and bust some heads.

Secondly, why does every disagreement with the government make aboriginal groups put up blockades?

Thirdly, why should the government cave into a group that blockades? Also why should a group expect the government to bargain in good faith when the group wants start out the negotiations after committing an illegal act.

As for the highlighted section above; why don't aboriginals outside of reserves get jobs like every non aboriginal has to do to survive because the federal government isn't giving us monthly cheques because our ancestors were wronged and we can't milk the government for lots of money and sit around and complain when we aren't getting a precentage of every dollar made off of every inch of Canadian soil because possibly one time an ancestor took a pee over by a bush which is now a tree being clear cut on what will become a Walmart parking lot.


May seems odd to us ... but ... our governments have never been truthful to us about Canada's legal situation.

Fact is ... all the land of Canada legally belongs to aboriginal people because they lived here for thousands of years before any Europeans arrived. Historically, our governments made peace treaties with them, which allowed us to legally live in designated areas on their land as allies and friends.

However, we did not honour these treaties but instead grew and sprawled far outside the areas designated for us. We forced, tricked or bribed them into signing illegal 'surrenders' of land. We oppressed and abused them and tried to get rid of them as 'peoples' so they would not have the strength to demand that we abide by the treaties. (That is called genocide.)
We log, mine and strip all of the resources out of their land, desecrate their land for our profit.

Now they are saying enough is enough: No more broken treaties, broken promises, broken lives. We want it back. They have that right. Canada is legally wrong, and in fact it is somewhat questionable whether Canada even exists.

All things considered ... all this group is asking for is some deadfall off their land. Seems pretty reasonable to me. I am sure they wonder ... why didn't someone just say yes, and avoid all this? OH ... that's right! Someone did say yes ... then someone else said no ... and then maybe someone else will say yes ... and when they go ahead to do it, someone will attack them with a tree cutter ... and so it goes for them ... for hundreds of years.

And it is their land by aboriginal right under international law, and by the laws of Canada ... and Canada is playing ever more desperate games trying to avoid the legal truth.

Enough is enough. Time for Canada to tell the truth, so we have a chance to negotiate treaties that we can keep.
Then we need to keep to our agreements with them in the future.

SO ... next time you see a blockade, stop and ask them "What did our government do wrong this time?" Then go home and call your MP and tell him/her to get the government busy negotiating an agreement ... in good faith ... on your behalf.

Because they are not wrong.
We are.

[charlio lemieux]

You know I have gotten into this on a POLITICAL website which is where this belongs. I have argued with militant Natives who came right out and said they would starve me off my land if that is what it took.

Word to the wise. Close this down quick MEL, before all hell breaks loose.

[Canadian26]

I dunno, about this getting job business. My soc classes are all on this. I dunno, they have they're troubles. Comming from such broken homes, I think its really gunna take natives a long time to get on the level of the rest of Canadians. Alot of the devlopments in social policies for natives are fairly recent devlopments. They're much like the suppresion of the black ppl in the states, even with all the social programs in place its gunna take a while for Natives and Blacks as whole to move up in the ecomic standing to above the poverity line.

[Amoroq]

There are radicals on both sides of this issue, but I think natives have a right to be pissed off at the Government. They have been cheated and lied to, but where I draw the line is when they start blaming your everyday average white guy. There are more white people that are below the poverty line, just because the sheer number of the population. However, an underprivileged white guy still has more of an advantage then one that is native.

I think the Governments should live up to their promises, but more important then that is all underprivileged, no matter the race needs to stand up and be heard.

[Max Power]

I dunno, about this getting job business. My soc classes are all on this. I dunno, they have they're troubles. Comming from such broken homes, I think its really gunna take natives a long time to get on the level of the rest of Canadians. Alot of the devlopments in social policies for natives are fairly recent devlopments. They're much like the suppresion of the black ppl in the states, even with all the social programs in place its gunna take a while for Natives and Blacks as whole to move up in the ecomic standing to above the poverity line.


There is no comparison to today’s Canadian Natives and American Blacks. I realize governments in the past and present have screwed the Native population but our government has screwed us all at some point but you don't see me acting like a nut job militant. The fact is the modern Native American has more opportunity then any other ethnic group in Canada including whites. They can live tax free and education at all levels is free. If I could live tax free I’d be driving a BMW and living in a half a million dollar house.
What’s sad here is the thousands of aboriginals who grow up with this mindset rather then realizing and taking advantage of all the opportunities they have.

[Canadian26]

There is no comparison to today’s Canadian Natives and American Blacks. I realize governments in the past and present have screwed the Native population but our government has screwed us all at some point but you don't see me acting like a nut job militant. The fact is the modern Native American has more opportunity then any other ethnic group in Canada including whites. They can live tax free and education at all levels is free. If I could live tax free I’d be driving a BMW and living in a half a million dollar house.
What’s sad here is the thousands of aboriginals who grow up with this mindset rather then realizing and taking advantage of all the opportunities they have.

Yah there are a lot that do take those oppourtines to better themselves. But there are many others that dont, more than half the native population has moved into urban centers in the last decade or so without anywhere to go. There is a definate racism present in todays society agaisnt aborginals, which is a huge set back for them which many other races do not see. For example, Indian boy turning 16 has 70% chance of at least one stay in prison by the age of 25, for . Aborginals as a whole regardless of where they live are considered to be poor, in 2003 50% of native childern where considered to be poor. Sure they have alot of oppurinties avliable to them, but how many of these indviduals is it realistic to even take some of the services offered to them? There are many accomplished native indviduals in our society, but they are the exception not the rule. Being able to accesses stuff like scholarships go to school etc etc you have to have the foundation of a stabel home/job etc which many indviduals dont. Living in poverty greatly increases the chances of being invloved in crime, which is a downward spirl. Ive heard stories about reserve conditions, and the problems with drugs and unexpected pregencies and what not. Never witnessed it myself, 2nd hand stories arent that reliable but even if their's a fragment of truth in them its pretty sad.

Now im not saying that blocking the streets and what not is the best way to go. But I wouldnt be naive enough to say that aborginals have more opporintuty than the rest of us Canadians. I wouldn't trade my posistion anyday for any of the opportunites the government provides for natives.

[Max Power]

Yah there are a lot that do take those oppourtines to better themselves. But there are many others that dont, more than half the native population has moved into urban centers in the last decade or so without anywhere to go. There is a definate racism present in todays society agaisnt aborginals, which is a huge set back for them which many other races do not see. For example, Indian boy turning 16 has 70% chance of at least one stay in prison by the age of 25, for . Aborginals as a whole regardless of where they live are considered to be poor, in 2003 50% of native childern where considered to be poor. Sure they have alot of oppurinties avliable to them, but how many of these indviduals is it realistic to even take some of the services offered to them? There are many accomplished native indviduals in our society, but they are the exception not the rule. Being able to accesses stuff like scholarships go to school etc etc you have to have the foundation of a stabel home/job etc which many indviduals dont. Living in poverty greatly increases the chances of being invloved in crime, which is a downward spirl. Ive heard stories about reserve conditions, and the problems with drugs and unexpected pregencies and what not. Never witnessed it myself, 2nd hand stories arent that reliable but even if their's a fragment of truth in them its pretty sad.

Now im not saying that blocking the streets and what not is the best way to go. But I wouldnt be naive enough to say that aborginals have more opporintuty than the rest of us Canadians. I wouldn't trade my posistion anyday for any of the opportunites the government provides for natives.

I agree
I've read stories of three drinking buddies who used to spend their entire check on booze. One friend died accidentally so the others put his body in the truck of their car so they could cash his check each month for booze. I think this was in Saskatchewan.
What you’re saying is part of my point though. Aboriginal leaders at some point have to take some blame for not helping guide young native people into a better future. The opportunities are there but the frame of mind is twisted.

[granny]

The opportunities are not there for many of them.

However, if Canada resolves the land disputes in good faith, then their communities will have the resources to do their own economic development.

I think a lot of people recognize that the solutions for them are related to taking control of their own communities and governments. Canada imposed its form of government on them against their wishes (1924), and it certainly seems to me to be a complete failure.

I think for every dead body in the trunk of a car, there is likely one in a snowbank too.

I see lots of support for them here. That's nice to see!

I like your emo-icons too!:thumb: :jacks: :boogie:

[granny]

You know I have gotten into this on a POLITICAL website which is where this belongs. I have argued with militant Natives who came right out and said they would starve me off my land if that is what it took.

Word to the wise. Close this down quick MEL, before all hell breaks loose.

I think they probably meant IF the government does not negotiate land disputes in good faith ... and Canada has a looong history of bad faith negotiations with them.

There is no question that the youth are militant, though. Not gonna tolerate more of the same anymore.

[charlio lemieux]

I think they probably meant IF the government does not negotiate land disputes in good faith ... and Canada has a looong history of bad faith negotiations with them.

There is no question that the youth are militant, though. Not gonna tolerate more of the same anymore.

Don't kid yourself. They feel that every square inch of North America belongs to them through divine right, and they are prepared to eventually kill for it.

[Amoroq]

I'm not sure if I'd feel much different if I was forced into assimilation, and told I can't practice my faith.

[Madferret]

You want to talk about the Natives taking advantage?
You don't think the last blockade that went up and then got paid off to take down has nothing to do with this?
Show me the money.

[granny]

Don't kid yourself. They feel that every square inch of North America belongs to them through divine right, and they are prepared to eventually kill for it.

They are prepared to defend themselves against whatever Canada throws at them.

The best thing Canadians can do to preserve peace in our country is to go and stand with them at their blockades, to send a strong message to our governments to negotiate in good faith and within the law.

Especially June 29 when they have a one day national protest ... go stand with them.

[granny]

You want to talk about the Natives taking advantage?
You don't think the last blockade that went up and then got paid off to take down has nothing to do with this?
Show me the money.

It is all about holding our governments to their word, and our laws.
Blockades are their way of getting the government's attention when it has once again defrauded them of something they were entitled to.

If you are not them, you don't see these things.
There is no honour in our governments when it comes to dealing with Indigenous people, and there never has been.

They have had enough, and they are now holding our governments to account.

[granny]

I'm not sure if I'd feel much different if I was forced into assimilation, and told I can't practice my faith.

It is nice to see that you 'get it'.

That is exactly what happened in 1924.
For over 100 years in Canada, children were tortured for speaking their own language. Adults were killed for even less.
Canada's shameful history won't be hidden much longer.

There are many of us Canadians who are trying to convince our governments to right the wrongs, as much as it is ever possible to to that.
However, our governments are still trying to deny the theft of land, and they do not negotiate land claims in good faith. This is what is currently going on in Caledonia.

We are determined to make our governments change their way of dealing with legitimate aboriginal rights.

[henry rollins]

and im determined to get my bike from the indian that stole it

[Amoroq]

and im determined to get my bike from the indian that stole itNice, real nice.

[Newfie John]

:violin: :band: This land is my land, this land is your land