Encroachment on Aboriginal land

Frequently I’ve tried to tell people like Gary McHale, and Bob Kismet that most aboriginal folk realise that 30million white folk aren’t about to up and take off back to Europe and give back all the land. From what I’ve learned through speaking to certain people… my personal opinion is that it’s not unreasonable for Aboriginal folk to want at the very least these few things:

1. Honour the original treaties;
2. Stop outside encroachment inside reserve lines;
3. Stop building upon sacred sites;
4. Stop encroachment upon traditional land use areas outside reserve lines.

The problem is that it goes on all the time. The picture above is a privately owned recreation resort called Anicinabe Park in Kenora. I drive past it every day to take my babies to daycare on Wauzhusk Onigum First Nation. It’s a glaring reminder of the continual injustice of what makes up most of Canada. Anicinabe Park has from time immemorial been part of those Nish’s traditional land use area. CLEARLY!

This picture above is a satellite shot of Wauzhusk Onigum First Nation. In the lower right corner, indicated in red is the label that clearly says ‘Kenora Indian Reserve 38B’.  In the top left indicated in red is Anicinabe Park.  The reserve is all the land in between mostly.  It is plainly easy to see by it’s approximate location to the reserve, and without any other evidence that it was part of Rat Portage’s TLUA.

There was a siege in 1974 which included some members of the American Indian Movement coming up from down south to help.

Race relations in Canada would start to get somewhat better of the Federal Government pulled its thumb out of its ass and stopped the three things I listed above.  The question is ‘Will it?’.  I doubt it – Canada has too much to lose.

Kenora vs. London

I took this picture of the Winnipeg River about two years ago when I was out on Ochiichagwe’Babigo’Ining Ojibway Nation. This is the kind of scenery and much in abundance all over Northwestern Ontario and around Kenora.

Many times, and to numerous people I have spent a long time telling people what I hate about Kenora. From the racism in the judiciary, police and general society… to what I perceive as a general lack from the population to go forth and see what else exists in the world beside this small town.

Some things will never change and I doubt race relations will ever improve to the same level as a city like London, but I’ve definitely started to try and look at the greater sides of life in Kenora.

I took this image as I was driving my rental car across the Thames. Seeing it live was far better than this picture does it justice… but it was breathtaking for me. Even though I’d grown up seeing it all the time, being away from it I came to appreciate sights like this that many Londoners take for granted every day.

But the point is… both of these images draw me into them equally. Each image is breathtakingly beautiful in completely different ways. Maybe it’s come to pass that I’ll forever be a British Canadian… instead of a British bloke living in Canada.