On Thursday, indigenous groups in Toronto held a demonstration to protest the G8 and G20 meetings. Franklin López and Dawn Paley of the Vancouver Media Co-op file a report from the streets.
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Native collaborators
While this march showed support/solidarity with indigenous struggles, it was also a case of close collaboration between organizers (inc. defenders of the land, native council fire, red power united, and the union of ontario indian chiefs) and police. They agreed to have undercover cops in the march, to liason closely with the integrated security unit (including helping with security to 'protect the elders'), handing over meeting notes to police, and identifying Native warriors to police who were helping organize the event. They had their own security to marshall the protest--who were power-tripping as much as the pigs, ordering protesters around and telling people they couldn't wear masks.
While the organizers decried colonialism and criminalization of natives, they participated in perpetuating these oppressive conditions under the guise of being a 'grassroots' Native rally.
Totally disgusting. The principal of opportunism is: it has no principles. These groups will sell you out and stab you in the back for funding and publicity.
Indigenous Activists
Believe it or not, All Aborginal people do not agree on any subject. Just like non aborginal people we have different thoughts and differing ideas on many topics.
At any gathering we see Elder's participation and attendance as a priority and so would it be to protect their saftey.
It may well be that you do not like the position that some of our people have taken but one can assume that some component of our community is supportive of such actions.
I would suggest that you allow us the dignity of settling our own affairs and issues within our communities and our governance structures
Indigenous Activists Protest G8/G20 Meetings in Toronto
This article smacks of incomplete and inaccurate facts.
Canadian Indigenous are not mistreated. Many tribes in fact run quite lucrative businesses.
What is deplorable is that some of these tribes wallow in misery and suck up Canadian dollars (to the tune of billions) and fail to achieve anything with it and, while their top echelons get handsome salaries, the average aboriginal is left with substandard housing etc; in many cases, by choice from the participants; who want nothing else than go hunt and fish (very passé in this age) and let "The Great White Father take care of them, as it did in the 1880s.
You also have to make the difference between "urban aboriginals" and those in remote areas. Urban aboriginals have lots of support systems in place to help them but most of them like to just do absolutely nothing to help themselves.
Remote aboriginals need help but, in many cases also, any Canadian Government help to give then running water and decent housing falls through the cracks and the money is mostly wasted in inflated salaries for their chiefs, who live in hotel penthouses while their people wallow in misery.
Except that aboriginals like to turn to the drink (which they cannot handle), any self-respecting clean aboriginal is treated fairly well by the general populace.
There is "no "visible" struggle in the general Canadian population, except as above "for show", when the time comes.