New Brunswick fracking protests are the frontline of a democratic fight. THIS ISNT JUST A NATIVE ISSUE, THIS AFFECTS ALL OF US bit.ly/174vwlb –The Guardian It is our responsibility to protect Mother Earth, to protect the land for non-natives too, says Susan Levi-Peters, the former Chief of Elsipogtog. New Brunswick Fracking Protests are the Frontline of a Democratic Fight: Images of burning cars and narratives about Canadian natives breaking the law obscure the real story about the Mikmaq peoples opposition to shale gas exploration. My people are speaking up for everyone. Others have heard. Since the beginning of the summer, Levi-Peters has seen indigenous Maliseet, Acadians and anglophone New Brunswickers drawn to this new epicentre of resistance on her communitys traditional lands. People care about the water. People care about the environment. This isnt just a native issue. But lets be clear about one way this is a native issue: The rush underway for dirtier and more extreme fossil fuels and minerals, in New Brunswick and across Canada, is just the latest stage of colonial pillage. Its a badly-kept secret that Canadas oil, gas and mineral wealth, the key to Prime Minister Stephen Harpers reckless resource obsession, are mostly on Indigenous lands. And if industry is to have them, the countrys national myths must be summoned. In last weeks Speech from the Throne, Harper praised the courage and audacity of the countrys pioneers, who forged an independent country where none would have otherwise existed. A day later, the raid on Elsipogtog was effectively a footnote. The often-ignored facts about Elsipogtog First Nation, The majority of Canadians have been woefully under-informed about what is really going in Elsipogtog and the battle for protection of water and the ongoing protests against fracking. >bit.ly/1gOJxbP -Toronto Star ...many people remain unaware of it. In 1999, the Supreme Court passed down another judgement confirming that the Peace and Friendship Treaties of 1760-1761 did not cede land or resources. This cannot be emphasized strongly enough: the Mi’kmaq never gave up legal rights to their land or resources. Canada does not own the land that the people of Elsipogtog are defending. So here you have a group of people who never gave up ownership of their land or resources, opposing widely contested shale gas exploration, which was approved by a government that does not own the land or resources, acting with the support of their non-native neighbours and being reported on by mainstream media outlets that often fail to address the substantive issues. Art Courtesy Of: Wolf Bidzil Eagle , shared via Generation Crazy Horse Protect the Sacred - Warrior Tribe -D
Posted on: Fri, 15 Nov 2013 20:38:08 +0000
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