A good read for those interested in indigenous land rights...

Angelique Eaglewoman sent me this U.N. Report by Special Rapporteur Erica-Irene Daes. It is on the relationship Indigenous People have to land.

It goes far beyond what many non-Indigenous people understand -- or think we understand -- this relationship to be. The difference in our cultures' connection to land is profound.

I hope you take the time to read through the following comments that I've pulled from the document. I will cover one chapter per day. I am also trying to find a link to the original that I can post here. In the meantime, here is a link to the UNITED NATIONS DECLARATION ON THE RIGHTS OF INDIGENOUS PEOPLES.

All highlighting below is mine.
_________________________

PREVENTION OF DISCRIMINATION AND PROTECTION OF INDIGENOUS
PEOPLES AND MINORITIES (E/CN.4/Sub.2/2001/21 11 June 2001)

"Reports and statements by indigenous peoples from all parts of the world delivered
during sessions of the Working Group on Indigenous Populations and information received in
the preparation of the working paper have made it clear that land and resource issues,
particularly the dispossession of indigenous peoples from their lands, are issues of the most
urgent and fundamental nature. At the same time, there has been great concern on the part of
certain States, academic institutions, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and individuals
that the recognition of the human rights of indigenous peoples would supposedly require that all
the lands and resources ever taken from indigenous peoples be returned...

"There are an enormous number of problems and issues relating to indigenous land rights,
so many that no study or paper could give them all full consideration within the time-frame
allowed for this initiative. Any attempt to deal with all of the land and resource issues would
necessarily be superficial and lengthy. The better course, adopted here, is to sort and organize
the multitude of issues into an analytical framework and to attempt to identify those issues or
problems which are the most fundamental or most severe and, of these, the most deserving of
attention in the search for means of alleviating the suffering and injustices endured by
indigenous peoples.

"What core values should guide our judgement in this work? First, the great human rights
principles embodied in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International
Covenants on Human Rights, particularly the principles of equality and self-determination and
the prohibition of discrimination. In addition, we must be guided by the fundamental values and
interests that form the foundation of the draft United Nations declaration on the rights of
indigenous peoples: among others, the preservation and well-being of indigenous cultures and
communities, the elimination of poverty and deprivation among indigenous peoples, and the
great goals of equality before the law and justice for indigenous peoples and all peoples....


I. RELATIONSHIP OF INDIGENOUS PEOPLES TO THEIR LANDS, TERRITORIES AND RESOURCES

"In order to understand the profound relationship that indigenous peoples have with their
lands, territories and resources, there is a need for recognition of the cultural differences that
exist between them and non-indigenous people, particularly in the countries in which they live...
"The relationship with the land and all living things is at the core of indigenous societies. For example, the land tenure system, known as Kipat, of the Limbu indigenous people of Nepal provides a means of belonging to a place and to a distinctive community - the one not separable from the other...

"Professor James Sakej Henderson attempts to illustrate this distinct relationship and
conceptual framework by stating that 'the Aboriginal vision of property was ecological space
that creates our consciousness, not an ideological construct or fungible resource ... Their vision
is of different realms enfolded into a sacred space ... It is fundamental to their identity,
personality and humanity ... [the] notion of self does not end with their flesh, but continues with
the reach of their senses into the land'. Such a relationship manifests itself in the elements of
indigenous peoples’ cultures, such as language. For example, an Inuit elder tried to articulate
this relationship by stating that 'our language contains an intricate knowledge of the Arctic that
we have seen no others demonstrate.'”

"Mr. Martínez Cobo [author of the Study of the Problem of Discrimination against Indigenous Populations] states:

'It is essential to know and understand the deeply spiritual special relationship between indigenous peoples and their land as basic to their existence as such and to all their beliefs, customs, traditions and culture.

'For such peoples, the land is not merely a possession and a means of production. The entire relationship between the spiritual life of indigenous peoples and Mother Earth, and their land, has a great many deep-seated implications. Their land is not a commodity which can be acquired, but a material element to be enjoyed freely.'

"In summary, each of these examples underscores a number of elements that are unique to
indigenous peoples:

(i) a profound relationship exists between indigenous peoples and
their lands, territories and resources;

(ii) this relationship has various social, cultural, spiritual,
economic and political dimensions and responsibilities;

(iii) the collective dimension of this relationship is significant; and

(iv) the intergenerational aspect of such a relationship is also
crucial to indigenous peoples’ identity, survival and cultural viability.

"There may be additional elements relating to indigenous peoples and their relationship to their lands, territories and resources which have not been captured by these examples."

It really makes you think about the impacts of taking land, doesn't it?

I'll highlight the second section next: HISTORY AND BACKGROUND: IMPACT OF THE DOCTRINES OF DISPOSSESSION.

Colleen

Conspiracy Theories and 9/11

There is a great series running at Mother Jones on 9/11 and what we've learned since then.

"NEWS: Six years after 9/11 and three years after the 9/11 Commission, Congress has just started to do what's necessary to protect us from the next terror attack. But have they done enough? And is time running out?"

You can read it here.

Colleen

Guest Blog: U.N. Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples

On Sept. 13th, 2007, the United Nations General Assembly approved the U.N. Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. It has taken over twenty years for the passage of a declaration outlining the minimum floor of human rights for indigenous peoples around the globe. Four nation-states opposed adoption of the Declaration - the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. It is no surprise to Tribal Nations in the United States that the supposed advocate for human rights around the world continues to oppose basic protections for those Native to this land and other lands. Even with this opposition, the overwhelming majority of U.N. members (143) voted in favor of these basic protections to provide guidance around the globe.

Art. 31 of the Declaration states that indigenous peoples have the right to control and protect their cultural traditions and expressions including in sports. As an alum of the University of North Dakota School of Law, I am still deeply offended by the continued exploitation of my People, the Sisseton-Wahpeton Dakota Oyate, commonly referred to as the 'Sioux' by non-Natives. Not only is this offense a continuing educational barrier that should be removed to serve the educational needs of Native peoples in the area, but now it is a violation of the basic human rights principles of indigenous peoples recognized around the world.

May 2008 will mark the tenth year since my graduation from UND and in 2008 we will see the 60th anniversary for the Universal Declaration on Human Rights. With the addition of the Sept. 13th, 2007 passage of the UN Declaration on Rights of Indigenous Peoples, isn't it about time that the major public university in the state of North Dakota stop violating Native human rights with the use of the offensive 'Sioux' mascot and start joining in the worldwide movement to accord Native peoples with the basic dignities of life that all other populations are entitled to?

For more information on the Declaration: http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/unpfii/en/declaration.html

Angelique EagleWoman
(Wambdi A. WasteWin)
UND Law Class of 1998

Wasase Movement and Anarcha-indigenism

Thanks to a friend, I have recently come across the Wasase Movement.

From the Wasase website: "Wasáse is an intellectual and political movement whose ideology is rooted in sacred wisdom. It is motivated and guided by indigenous spiritual and ethical teachings, and dedicated to the transformation of indigenous people in the midst of the severe decline of our nations and the crises threatening our existence. It exists to enable indigenous people to live authentic, free and healthy lives in our homelands.

"Wasáse promotes the learning and respecting of every aspect of our indigenous heritage, working together to govern ourselves using indigenous knowledge, and unifying to fight for our freedom and the return of our lands. It seeks to liberate indigenous people from euroamerican thoughts, laws and systems."

If you're interested in finding out more about Wasase, you can visit the website here.

You may also be interested in an article that ran recently in the Globe and Mail on anarcha-indigenism written by Daniel Morley Johnson, a PhD student in comparative literature at the University of Alberta.

Link to Daniel Johnson's article here.

Some food for thought, yes?

Colleen

Canada's first Indigenous Lieutenant Governor

I must apologize for neglecting this blog as I have done over the past month. Deadlines of many sorts are upon me and I've had to let a few things slide. It will be a few weeks until things get any better.

That said, there is some news that bears mentioning...

Steven Point -- one of only a handful of Indigenous judges in Canada, is the Chief Commissioner of the B.C. Treaty Commission, and is an elected chief of the Skowkale First Nation -- has just been named Canada's first Indigenous Lieutenant Governor. Check out Shelagh Roger's interview with the Honourable Steven Point here.

Imagine that! Someone from a First Nations' community representing the Queen. There's a certain irony in that, don't you think?

Also, Shelagh will be focusing on the lives of Native individuals in a segment called Our Home and Native Land. Here's a link to info from the first show last week on Dan Christmas, Calvin Helin and Ellen Gabriel. Sadly, the links aren't the most informative, but lead to links where you can find information related to these individuals or the work they do. However, I think the program is worth watching for. I believe it will be on weekly.

All the best,
Colleen

Racism alive and well

While searching for something else, I happened across this 2004 news item from The Turtle Island Native Network. (For those who may not be aware, Turtle Island is the original name of North America.)

"Discrimination against Native people is widespread according to Three City Anti-Racism Initiative. Anti-racism educators in Northeastern Ontario have known for years there is a serious issue that must be addressed, but they have never had the data to prove it. Until now."

A nine-month study of racism in Sault Ste. Marie, North Bay and Timmins has concluded the "discrimination against Native people is widespread."

"Don Curry, the project director read all the questionnaires and listened to all the taped interviews from each city, and said he noted racist comments made by people who claimed not to be racist."

If you ever want to hear how racist a supposed non-racist is, just let him talk. Here are a couple of fine examples from white, male respondents in North Bay.

“I don’t think what I’m discussing with you is racism. I don’t believe I’m a racist. There is racism, with the Ku Klux Klanfor example. We can tolerate all the different ethnic nationalities but we single out different groups. If that’s racism, then we have it. I’ve never seen a racial incident and I’ve lived here all my life. I hear people make fun of natives,and of black people, and of Chinese people. I suppose that’s a form of racism. Native people get treated differently in North Bay because they’re special. They have special status. Everyone has special status except we, the white, middle class, working taxpayer. The only reason governments give this special treatment to everybody is to buy votes. Everyone should be equal. Period. There’s more and more hatred. I can see it. When you sit down and have a beer that’s when you hear most of this stuff. If you want to find out just go sit in the hotel for a while and talk to people. It comes up time after time after time. Especially if you talk about hunting or fishing.”

“There is not enough racism in North Bay for it to be an issue. If anything, it has gone too far the other way. Natural born, working Canadians pay for everybody else. Aboriginal people get too many handouts. Racism would disappear if government favouritism would stop.”

Now, to be fair, there were also many comments from white males and others against the racist comments they hear. I cite the examples above as I believe that we too-often pretend that racism is a thing of the past when it is not.

"He [Don Curry] said he also read comments from Native people who have heard and seen enough and don't even react to racism anymore. But then there are the fighters -- the Native people who speak out when they are being discriminated against and contact the store manager, the school board director, the hospital CEO and demand an apology..."

"Maurice Switzer, director of communications for the Union of Ontario Indians and a project leader said, 'Virtually every Aboriginal person I know has had issues in stores related to the status card. This study documents what all of us have known for years. The general public is not very knowledgeable about treaty rights. Racism is an issue and we must work together as a community to create solutions.'

"Aboriginal comments... [in the survey include:] 'The Sault has two faces and hides one very well. . .' 'Discrimination against native people in North Bay is widespread. In finding an apartment, going shopping, eating out, playing sports. . .' 'It happens once a week or every two weeks. I'd be walking with my girlfriend and people driving by or stopped at a light would bang the side of their car and say something. I get that a lot. It doesn't surprise me because I hear it so often.'

"The nine-month project, named Debwewin, the Ojibwe word for [to speak from the heart or] truth, involved the dissemination of questionnaires to the public, printing the questionnaire in local newspapers, follow-up interviews, cross-cultural training sessions in each community, media relations training for anti-racism practitioners, creation of a new web site at http://www.debwewin.ca/ full of resources, and a print media monitoring project."

You can find the full studies at the above link, but before I sign off, I'd like to share some scientific info on the notion of race as taken from the final report.

"Scientists and social scientists have shown consistently that race is a false concept. Conferences convened by the United Nations since the late 1940s have established that there is no genuine basis to differentiate any human attributes as functions of skin colour, eye shape, forehead slope or other physical characteristics collectively associated as characteristics of “race” (Celious and Oyserman, 2001; Henry et. Al. 1995; Johnson, Rush and Feagin, 2000; Twine and Warren, 2000.) Blackburn (2000) explains how the differences in DNA between humans are less than 0.6%. The widest variation is between ethnic groups of Africans; the variation between so-called “Caucasians” and either Africans or Asians is less."

So much hatred and derision over such an insignificant difference.

If you'd like to check out the Turtle Island Native Network for late breaking news, click here.

Colleen

Millbrook Powwow 2007

I had the pleasure of attending a Powwow last Saturday. Although I wasn't familiar with the customs of such an event, Cathy Martin, an independent filmmaker and member of the Millbrook community, was on hand to provide visitors with an orientation -- the do's and don'ts, and some background on various elements.

(Orientations are arranged through the Tatamagouche Centre -- tata.ca -- for all Powows in NS and NB.)

Helpful tips included not asking to use someone's drum -- it'd be like asking to borrow someone's toothbrush. We were also warned away from picking up any feathers that we might see on the ground although it'd be a good idea to point it out to someone who could do something about it. Because eagle feathers are sacred -- the eagle soars high and is, therefore, closer to the Creator -- a ceremony must be performed before an eagle feather can be lifted from the ground. Everyone tries to never allow their feathers touch the ground. It was also pointed out to us that no one with alcohol or drugs in their system is allowed to dance or approach the sacred fire.

The atmosphere was extremely welcoming. There were people in attendance from around the world, literally. Young people from the YMCA's multi-cultural society were there as was a group from Africa organized through St. FX University.

The Powwow took place in an open field. Vendors set up their displays along the perimeter. The sacred fire was off to one side. A circular roped off area provided an area for Powwow dancers and in the centre was the arbor -- a round, outdoor room that housed the drummers. There were four groups of drummers, the host drummers who kicked things off and drummers from other communities. This last area was off-limits to visitors as it is sacred and one would need to be somehow prepared to be there -- cleansed, perhaps? I'm not sure. However, drumming is extremely important and represents the heartbeat of Mother Earth.

The MC was terrific. He announced the dances and let us know when photos were allowed or not allowed. He cracked a lot of jokes too which added to the friendly atmosphere.

The ceremony began with the grass dancers. Long before the invention of lawnmowers, these energetic, young men would be responsible to stomp down the long grass to prepare for the Powwow dancers. Traditionally, this would have happened the day before the Powwow, but today it is ceremonial rather than practical in nature.

The host drummers provided the drumming and singing that accompanied the parade of elders and veterans carrying flags, and dancers as they entered the dance circle. Visitors were also allowed to participate in this ceremony. Flags represented various nations and groups including Mi' mkaq, Mohawk, American Indian Movement, Native Veterans, and so on. These flags were placed around the arbour.

After prayer, dancing begins. There are shawl dancers, fancy dancers, bell dancers, among others. It was great to see younger ones participating either as babes-in-arms or as junior dancers. Periodically, an inter-tribal dance is announced at which time everyone is invited into the circle to hold hands and dance. Given the number of nationalities represented there, it was pretty cool to watch.

Asides from being a social gathering, a Powwow is a place for contemplation and healing. Dancing is considered to be prayer in motion. Dancers can pray/think/focus on themselves or others. Singing is the same. The sacred fire is another opportunity for prayer. Anyone may approach the fire to pray and offer tobacco to the flames. (If you are a woman, you should wear a skirt if you want to approach the sacred fire.)

I should comment on the use of tobacco since, if you are like me, you may be wondering why it is considered to be so important. Tobacco is one of four sacred plants. Sweetgrass, cedar and sage are the others. Tobacco was the first plant given by the Creator and is used to communicate with the spirit world. An offer of tobacco opens the door to prayer and communicating feelings. If you want to approach an elder to ask something, offer tobacco. Your request will be considered appropriate. Pouch tobacco is preferred.

To round out our understanding of the other sacred plants, sage is used to prepare people for ceremonies and teachings. It is also used for cleansing homes and sacred items and has medicinal properties. Sweetgrass is the hair of Mother Earth. Its sweet scent reminds people of her kind ways and gentleness. Cedar is used to purify the home and for curative purposes.

But tobacco is key and used for all things including activating the spirits of other plants.

Here are some photos of the Powwow. If you have the opportunity, I encourage you to attend a one this summer.


Arbour with drummers

Thanks to the Cathy Martin for her time in sharing a bit of her culture with us.

Colleen