Redhead, you missed the point.  Most media campaigns and programs are about timing and involve lobbyists, even the solid grass roots campaigns have been strategized by marketting aware folks.

many programs have gone up against Harper's political engine, and the conservative population of canada.....and haven't been successful.    We liberals & Ndp's seem as of late to be really good at the stuff that makes lots of noise, but no change.

This one is too important to fit into that category....which is why it is depressing to me...shitty timing for support,  wondering how far it will escalate.

Pinga: Timing? Come on… i do not think the sorts of strategic thinking you are describing come into this: a hunger strike is not a photo-op or a press conference — it's a deperate sacrificial  act: it's triggered by a crisis that should not exist … there was no going on in other ways. Harper is right in asmuch as he has talked with native leaders; he shows very clearly, however, that he has HEARD nothing. And HE is the one with spin doctors, strategies and legal teams. These are rare resources on a Reserve.

I have just heard Amanda Todd's suicide being discussed carefully, sensitively and with real concern on Boxing day afternoon on CBC.  I have never heard the same sort of discussion taking place about the epidemic of child suicides in indigenous communities, partucularlty in the north. Native women and children in Canada are horrendously victimised and vulnerable. 

Where would you decide to be as a community leader? How would you act? Imagine that you are watching misery deepen all around you as another winter bites, watching more of your friends and relations drifting deeper and deeper into self-destructive ways, hopelessness,  despair and depression… at the same time knowing that the agreements (treaties) that promised compensation for the usurpation of your lands and livelihoods are being ignored, equivocated and fudged while those lands are broken open to enrich others and sustain a far wealthier population in the south? Wouldn't you be angry? Might you not be driven to do whatever you could to attract the attention of the one person who has the power to make a difference… something that will get your people's plight talked about and perhaps addressed? Even if it cost you your life?

Theresa Spence is clutcing at a straw, not a strategy. And even that straw is proving itself despicably unworthy.

That the deprivation and privations of indenous peoples are NOT being talked about with any compassion, far less urgency, embarassment or outrage, by the mainstream media, by the people in that wealthier southern region, by our polticians and by our communities is an indictment of us ALL… all of us who are responding weakly or not at all.

EWe are ALL Canadians in this, we are ALL "Treaty People"… there is no way to justify "us" and "them attitudes here. No way at all!

I'm just looking for answers and hope. I know I'm not very well qualified but I think the situation is horrendous no matter who is at the center or what's involved.....hunger strikes are serious.

mike, but why doesn't it come into it.  Why is ther eno sense of using some of the skills that are out there for real change.  Just admitting that I see so much of this as futile against the machines of the right, especially given that it isn't a popular conversation or a feel good.  Gun control, sure, that is a good one in the states  with lots of public pressure flying in, including the rich & famous.  Raising money for the other such as Haiti or Thailand after a natural disaster, yup, that will get people together.  true change . or recognizing treaty rights - 

I am just sitting here pondering, i guess...

Hold on to your hats....I'm going on a WATER RANT......a first....because this is a big concern of First Nations re bill C45. There's differing opinions with one being that the provincial gov't or some other legislation will cover the unprotected rivers and lakes. I don't know, its a bit complicated. Elizabeth May who surely knows says this is a federal issue and may be contested in court. I'm posting lots for anyone interested.

Here goes:

Mike, I agree with your comments. I think this act is a last ditch effort to make changes. It seems that Chief Spence has tried regular ways to effect change to no avail. She and others like her have been blamed for their situation. Her community is not able to use the resources around them. They cannot go out into the woods and collect their own wood to build houses. They are at the mercy of the government. The same government that blames them. Further, there is a mine, or something, in that area that benefits from the resources in the area. Why are they not helping the community of Attawapiskat.

I live in an area where there is oil and gas. At least two of the FN communities in our area do receive moneys and jobs from the companies that work in this area. Still they have other problems that continue, and for which there are many causes.

I am glad that Chief Spence has taken this action when she has. It has triggered much discussion in this country, not all good of course, but people are talking. Hopefully Harper will come to his senses and listen to her......if he has any senses that is.....

Thanks Stardust: this is indeed one very big issue… there are scores of such big issues from coast to coast, and they all can be approached and addressed by addressing the underlying basic flaw in the whole system… which is the failure to address indigenous rights and realtionships… not in the past, not in relation to this issue or that issue, of the Metic  of the Inuit or the First Nations all as small separate little entities, but in the foundations of Canadian polity — they are crumbling because the constitutional issues that establish just ways of balancing prior rights and interests — ways that do not do the wreak the kinds of damage that are so evident today — have NEVER been addressed, not at Confederation, not by provinces, not by ANY Federal Government…  and the injustices and the damage they do (NOW, day by day) are reaching a position of intractability.

The denial and racism MUST end. We are living in a fragmented country. The fragmentation is a blight on ALL of our systems: education, health, defence, justice, housing, the economy… naked piecemeal opportunism is not "government": we are all losers the way things are.

Who knows, maybe Northwind, with enough voices raised, something will shift.

I am worried that her health will be signficiantly impacted or others, as SG indicated, who are also doing hunger strikes, not prepared, not cared for properly, or of poor health to begin with...

The house is not back until Jan 28th.  Chief Theresa Spence has been on a hunger strike since Dec 11th.  That is 48 days.

I read this...not sure if it is factual.

********************************************************

One of the most well known cases of voluntary starvation, is the hunger strike of Mahatma Ganhdi. During his protest, Gandhi ate absolutely no food and only took sips of water for 21 days, and survived. What extraordinary about this case is the fact that Gandhi was very lean when he started his hunger-strike, thus not having much energy reserve from the outset. Also, it must be noted that during his life, Gandhi is reported to have performed a total of 14 hunger strikes.

In a 1997 editorial in the British Medical Journal, Peel briefly reviewed the available literature regarding human starvation. Generally, it appears as though humans can survive without any food for 30-40 days, as long as they are properly hydrated. Severe symptoms of starvation begin around 35-40 days, and as highlighted by the hunger strikers of the Maze Prison in Belfast in the 1980s, death can occur at around  45­ to 61 days.

**********

sorry for the reposts, can't get format right.

News Dec. 26/12

Sorry if I'm boring but I  just want to share what I'm learning as I've been reading up on the problems.

I was looking for an update on Chief Spence. I don't have a date for the CBC one on this link.

All Canadians are Treaty People: respecting the treaties, respecting indigenous Canadians and ensuring their cultural, social and material livelihood is a fundamental justice issue.

Prime Minister Harper does not have to submit to "blackmail" as some have called it — he simply has to show some responsibility, compassion and a concern for justice. That's a fair call on a Prime Minister.

Read:

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/story/2012/12/30/can-theresa-spence-politicians-solidarity-protests.html

Today is DAY 21 of Theresa Spence's hunger strike.

Joe Clark gets it!:

Canada, First Nations headed in ‘dangerous direction’ as Idle No More hunger strike continues: Former PM Joe Clark

Canadian Press | Dec 30, 2012 7:11 PM ET
More from Canadian Press

Fred Chartrand / The Canadian PressSpokeperson Danny Metatawabib, right, delivers a statement on behalf of Attawapiskat First Nations Chief Theresa Spence, centre, as she meets with the media prior to meeting members of parliament in Ottawa on Sunday.

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A visibly weak Chief Theresa Spence made a brief appearance on Sunday — in Day 20 of her fast — as a parade of politicians and protesters turned up the volume to demand action from the Harper government on treaty issues.

Through a spokesperson, the chief of the Attawapiskat First Nation said she was “deeply humbled” by the support she’s received from aboriginals and non-aboriginals in her appeal for a face-to-face meeting with Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Governor-General David Johnston.

A demonstration in support of her hunger fast took place at Toronto’s Eaton Centre, where protesters crowded a section of the mall in a loud, but peaceful gathering.

Robin Rowland / The Canadian PressMembers of the Haisla First Nation march in Kitimat, B.C. as part of a rally in support of the Idle No More movement on Sunday.

A smaller crowd backing Spence assembled in Calgary outside of Harper’s constituency office. The chief acknowledged the outpouring from members of the Idle No More movement, but called for other First Nations leaders to also step up.

“This is a call to arms and a call to action in the most peaceful and respective way that reflects our natural laws as Indigenous nations,” she said in the statement.

“First Nations leadership need to take charge and control of the situation on behalf of the grassroots movement. We need to re-ignite that nation-to-nation relationship based on our inherent and constitutionally protected rights as a sovereign nation. We are demanding our rightful place back, here in our homelands, that we all call Canada.”

Related

• Health minister, B.C. chief urge Theresa Spence to end hunger strike as Idle No More protests continue
• Christie Blatchford: Inevitable puffery and horse manure surrounds hunger strike while real Aboriginal problems forgotten
• How the Idle No More movement started and where it might go from here
• Pressure mounts on PM as chief’s hunger strike enters third week
• Justin Trudeau meets with hunger striking chief Theresa Spence

Spence invited MPs and senators to visit over a two hour period Sunday at her teepee, situated on an island in the frozen Ottawa River looking up at Parliament Hill.

Former prime minister Joe Clark, the highest profile visitor, made an appearance Saturday, meeting with Spence and issuing a statement that said honest conversation can often lead to common ground.

Clark, who was a Tory prime minister from 1979 to 1980, says friends of his in the First Nations community had suggested he meet with Spence, chief of a remote reserve in Northern Ontario.

Dean Bicknell / Postmedia NewsFormer prime minister Joe Clark is the highest profile guest to visit Theresa Spence. He said honest conversation can often lead to common ground.

Clark says he found Spence to have a “humble and achievable” vision and adds that those no longer in active political life may still have a role to play in helping discussions resume.

Clark says says he’s concerned Canada and its First Nations are “headed in a dangerous direction.”

“My experience has been that direct and honest dialogue is always useful and sometimes essential, particularly in dealing with issues as complex and multi-faceted as the relations between First Nations and Canada,” his statement read.

“Chief Spence expressed a humble and achievable vision — one which I believe all Canadians can embrace.”

Other current politicians, both opposition NDP and Liberals, issued similar cautions, but also expressed concern for Spence’s health.

Fred Chartrand / The Canadian PressAttawapiskat First Nations Chief Theresa Spence, centre, prepares to meet reporters prior to meeting members of parliament in Ottawa on Sunday.

“She’s a very determined woman and she’s heard the message from others that she’s done what people think she needed to do, but she noted that the prime minister has not talked to anyone, or put out a message that he is willing to meet with leaders, and that’s all she’s asking for,” said New Democrat MP Paul Dewar, who was among 16 of the party’s politicians to be invited inside.

Both Dewar and fellow New Democrat Craig Scott said they were worried about her condition.

“She’s very peaceful in her demeanour, but that goes along with being quite weak now,” said Scott. “She talks about sleeping more than she had earlier, in the first two weeks. I think it’s very clear it’s starting to take a physical toll.”

Concern is strong enough that some have urged to give up and let Opposition politicians take up the fight — something Craig said tried to convey to to her.

“I spoke directly to her and said: ‘You know, you’ve done more anybody could expect one person to do, and there’s no reason you and you alone should have to carry this burden.’ And she said: ‘It’s my burden to carry.’ “

Spence stopped eating solid food on Dec. 11.

I find this so depressing, as I don't think Harper will do anything unless pressured by external governments who will be hesitant to reign in  -  past-President of the US, Jimmy Carter might have been able to.

For our friend and sister Chief Theresa Spence:

May the stars carry your sadness away,
May the flowers fill your heart with beauty,
May hope forever wipe away your tears,
And, above all, may silence make you strong.
- Chief Dan George

This is… 

------------

"Aamjiwnaang citizens and Sarnia Chief of Police charged with contempt of court

Where: Sarnia Court House, 700 Christina St.

When: Wednesday, Jan 2nd, 11 am

Aamjiwnaang citizens and the Sarnia Chief of Police have been served with contempt of court charges, stemming from a failure to remove the ongoing blockade of CN Rail. An injunction was served to Aamjiwnaang on Dec. 21, though both the Mayor of Sarnia and Chief of Police has not enforced the injunction, as the blockade has remained peaceful.

Contact:

Ron Plain

(226) 932-1516

ronplain@activist.com

-------

… revealing.

Hi All,

The following is the text I just e-mailed to my MP Phil McColeman (Con)

Here's an article from Michael Harris on the topic: http://www.ipolitics.ca/2012/12/30/harpers-gamble-with-first-nations-rage/

But there is also the possibility that the PM’s calculation will prove to be the biggest mistake of his political life, and one of the national tragedies of Canadian public affairs. And all because Harper has turned what should have been an exercise in emotional intelligence into just another game of political hardball.

 

Here's hoping he comes to his senses, such that they are, and if he doesn't that this does prove to be his undoing.

This showed up this morning on my FB page.  I wonder if any other denominations have spoken up?

http://news.anglican.ca/news/stories/2552

In the past couple weeks we were witnesses to the horror in Newtown. The gunman took his own life and we all felt cheated by that. We were denied the opportunity to intervene, prevent and later to realize what happened because the one person that could have provided us with so much insight was denied us. He was silent and only gave out minor clues to the horror he was capable of. We all wish we could have prevented the death of so many adults and children. Why didn't he just turn the gun on himself?

Now here we are facing a woman that is clearly disturbed by the refusal of Politicians and the people of Canada to notice that her community is dying. She is turning the "gun on herself" so to speak to draw attention to the sickness that has overtaken the situation that she finds herself in. Do we notice? Will we act? There is nothing hidden, it is on the table. What will we do with a clear of message that says HELP?

If I lived closer I would be honored to form part of a Silent Vigil nearby. 

IMO Our apathy needs to end.

I also believe our excuses need to end. The woulda, shouldas, couldas... the "I would do something BUT...." needs to stop.

Candlelight vigils are being held, or are simply organized. People are gathering for 24 hour fasts or one is easy to begin. Church members are taking pictures of themselves with signs of support and posting them online (They might be better served if they were all on one site to be seen together as volume matters)

One person can carry a sign and walk along a highway.

 A whole bunch of people can gather in front of an MP's office....

Local media can be contacted and informed but the best thing is the media is no  longer necessary (good when the media is in a pocket or reads people as being not interested, etc)  It can be posted on YouTube. Look at what people and social media did last summer.

Flash mobs, etc....

Am I practicing what I preach? Yes.  

Where's the news coverage today?

I read " If Haper doesn't visit Chief Spence in her tipi How can he attend her funeral?"

Come on Harper!

I read that too Tabitha. If there is a funeral, the anger that we are currently seeing will intensify.....

Tabitha - I doubt Harper has plans to visit with Chief Spence or to go to her funeral.  Like the underpriviliged children who sniff gas and the poorly educated teens who kill themselves she will just be another unimportant dead Indian.  

Kristy Kirkup - December 31st, 2012

(Quote from the link)

I understand that the chief is drawing attention to concerns.

I agree that something is wrong with a system that spends billions and yet people live in poverty. How and where the money is spent and how and why people are still struggling is a concern for tax payers too. I would love to see the same type of accounting as a city must show to account for how they spend tax payers money

But I do not agree that one citizen can demand a meeting with the Prime Minister and the G G. The precident would be set for any and all.

She has made her point. She has political leaders and really, she should allow her elected leadership to meet, as they do regularly.

Hi lastpointe,

I've had easier access to the financial records of Attiwapiskat than I do my own city.

Not that it would be difficult to see the financials of Brantford as a citizen.  It is just that they haven't been hyperlinked in National Newspapers for all to see.

I am also aware that in A Provincial Court of Law, about five years ago a Provincial Judge requested that the financials for all sales of land pursuant to the Haldimand Tract be made available for audit.  There is a discrepancy about whether or not all of the moneys from those sales has been kept securely in trust for the use of the Six Nations Band they belonged to.

The Feds have yet to comply with that order and have not shown any willingness to do so.  The claim at present is that the records no longer exist so tough noogies for the Six Nations.

How is that for transparent financials?

I disagree with you here.  I think that any citizen should be able to demand a meeting with any politician in the country.  Having the politician consent to meet would be at the discretion of the politician.  Either politicians do work for us or they don't.  How well they work for us is an evaluation we make every time we go to the polls.  That so many currently don't is indicative of something.

It would be precident setting.  There is a question of what the actual precident would be.  I mean, if she gets the meeting does that mean that any Leafs fan wanting the torment of another season can go on a hunger strike to force the PM and the GG to give the NHL a wake-up call?  Yes, actually, it does.  Now leafs fans have been starving for glory almost as long as I have been walking the planet so they would be used to that kind of hunger.

The request for a meeting is not a promise for a specific outcome (other than having a meeting).

I rather think that she hasn't yet made her point.  Any points we think we have gotten out of her actions to date are not likely the points that she is trying to make.  At present I think the point is, "who has to die for things to change?"  Nobody really knows the answer, most are hopeful that it isn't Chief Spence.

That is, at the very least, a sticking point in the whole history of these discussions.  Quite frankly it was one of the reasons that both the Feds and the Province dragged their butts in Caledonia.

Political leadership among our First Nations brothers and sisters does not currently operate as it did when these nations were actually sovereign.  So on many reservations there is a traditional council which is comprised the same way it has always been comprised and is often not recognized by the Feds or the Province or even neighbouring municipalities and then there is the elected council which is in compliance with the Indian Act and does have the ear of other governements even if it is not recognized by many on the reserve.

I believe that the Feds have not addressed this reality simply because the current unrest it leads to takes a great deal of heat and accountability off of their shoulders.

First Nations governance is, for the most part, a mess of conflicting ideas, opinions and actors.  None of it really any less polarizing than what we Europeans get up to with our partisan politics.

So the crux of any Amendments to the Indian Act is the strong opinion among many of our First Nations brothers and sisters that it is, more often than not, unilateral action and not a matter of negotiation between treaty partners.  Treaty adds a wrinkle to the politics that I generally don't have access to when any level of government amends existing legislation.

I have looked at the Omnibus Bill, particularly where it impacts upon the Indian Act and to be honest I'm not sure what the fuss is.  There are some things which make me scratch my head such as why "Absolute surrender" is used in the Act but not actually defined in the glossary of the Act.  The removal of designated lands from some clauses or sections.

And to be honest, the concern of waterways being made public saleable property while real has always existed.  The Indian Act does not exempt reserve lands from being seized by any government who wants them (I find that not only upsetting but a serious breach of treaty obligations).  The Indian Act permits the expropriation of reserve lands by the Federal, Provincial or even adjacent municipal governments in much the same way those Governments may expropriate private property for public use.

Grace and peace to you.

John

CAN YOU join this walk at all? Can you help?

--------------------------------

To All My Friends, I have been asked to send this email out to you with a request for support.

Mark Anderson & 7 other Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug (Big Trout Lake) members will be walking from Toronto to Ottawa beginning tomorrow (3 January) in support & solidarity for Chief Theresa Spence and the 'Idle No More' Movement

http://www.mediacoop.ca/index.php?q=newsrelease%2F15383

I understand their route is taking them from Ajax to Brooklyn and Myrtle Station to Port Perry and along Hwy 7a to Hwy 115 then into Peterborough.  Then along Hwy 7 through Norwood, Havelock, Marmora, Madoc, Sharbot Lake, Perth, Carlton Place and then on to Ottawa.

If you are on or anywhere near their route, they are looking for accommodations, food, and walkers to walk with them to support them.

They also need reflective vest (XL), marking tape (Orange), socks and help in making banners for their walk.

If you would like to help or get updates on their route, please contact:

Walkers Contact: Cecilia Begg elenorbegg@gmail.com     

807-737-0874

Media Contact: John Cutfeet, Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug

807-738-0935

For Idle No More updates on events please go to the following Facebook Groups:

Idle Nore More: http://www.facebook.com/IdleNoMoreCommunity  

Idle No More Kingston: Idle No More - Kingston, ON/Traditional Haudenosaunee & Anishinaabe Lands: http://www.facebook.com/IdleNoMoreKingstonON

Miigwech, Nia:wen , Thank you

Baamaapii, Will Meet Again

Akina Nindinawe,  Akwe Nia’Tetewa: neren, All My Relations

I wonder if there are churches on the route that would open their doors?

I would be willing to send money to help pay for food or drinks.

I know of a number of United Churches along that walk route;

Myrtle, Port Perry, Blackstock, Janetville, Bethany, Norwood, Havelock, Madoc, and Tweed.

I posted it in te United Church of Canada facebook page.

DKS, do you have a way to reach out to them via any email lists?

Also, has anyone any idea when they will hit which city or how long such a walk will take?

*** editted as used DKS's real first name in error

Pinga: information is in my post, above, including:  

Walkers Contact: Cecilia Begg elenorbegg@gmail.com     

807-737-0874

Media Contact: John Cutfeet, Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug

807-738-0935

For Idle No More updates on events please go to the following Facebook Groups:

Idle Nore More: http://www.facebook.com/IdleNoMoreCommunity.

Sorry, no. You are crossing three conferences and six presbyteries in the names I listed.

hmm....dang, and for it to go out would be too slow...(historically, i've not seen fast distribution through those channels of information..though it could be just my experience).

thoughts?

I went to the site, Mike, but, there wasn't much info.  I remember there were men that walked from Toronto to Ottawa a few years ago.  Not sure how long it took - was hoping people might remember.

Try calling Cecilia Begg at 1- 807 - 737 0874, Ping. Tell her you're UCC and keen to take part. Maybe post a timetable for us all?

Pinga - here is the contact info from the churches named by DKS - gleaned from the web - a good number of them do not seem to show websites .  Great idea to have them open their doors -

……………………..

…………………..

………………………..

Janetville United Church

http://acountrychurchforyou.com/

……………………………

United Church Bethany And Pontypool: ‎

Relocated from Relocated to Not true? Show all edits Not true?

……………………

Norwood United Church

705-639-5216
4264 Highway 7
Norwood, Ontario
K0L 2V0

…………….

Havelock United Church

Ontario, Havelock, ON K0L 1Z0

705-778-3141

…………………….

Madoc Trinity United Church

http://www.wondercafe.ca/churches/madoc-trinity-united-church

…………………

St John's United Church

26 Spring E, Tweed, ON K0K 3J0

613-478-3348

………………….

Perhaps contacting one or two churches would start the river of info flowing down the walking route - from church neighbour to church neighbour ...

Carolla, that is what I was thinking.  trying to see the map of wehre they are walking now.

k, here is a link to a map of the route, if I did it right.

 http://goo.gl/maps/6gQG1

Redhead has gathered some information, and I have dropped an email to the organizers email.  I will post results.

Those are great church links, thanks, Carolla.

ps.  the email address given for the walkers is invalid. I think I have deciphered the right one, but, Mike if you could check the source of your email, to see if it should be eleanor rather than elenor, that would be good

Hi Pinga:

Yes sorry it is:

eleanorbegg@gmail.com

Cheers! Mike

I posted on the United Church Facebook page. Plenty of ministers know each other  LOL

Someone could post on individual church pages if they exist.

Excellent,  I added the churches below it.  Now it doesn't look like I am talking to myself!

All but Port Perry are small, rural congregations. Web presence isn't a high priority.