Disaster Coastal Gaslink Protests in Canada - Well, that escalated quickly

A number of people calling themselves "in Solidarity with the Wet'suwet'en Hereditary Chiefs" have blockaded bridges, highways, roads, train tracks, and even the steps of the BC Legislature buildings in Canada:

Protesters opposing B.C. pipeline block rail line in Toronto | Globalnews.ca

The protesters say they're in support of Wet’suwet’en Nation, whose members oppose the building of a natural gas line in B.C.

globalnews.ca

Protesters opposing the building of a pipeline in British Columbia blocked a rail line in Toronto on Saturday, causing freight and passenger train delays.

The protesters, demonstrating near Bartlett Avenue and Dupont Street, said they were in support of Wet’suwet’en Nation, which has opposed the building of a natural gas line in B.C.

“This is a protest against anybody that would invade Indigenous lands on unceded territories,” protester Maya Menezes said.
“We’re here in solidarity with all the calls to action that the Wet’suwet’en have put out across the country for people to stand in solidarity with Indigenous self-determination.”

Tensions have been rising in B.C. between the Wet’suwet’en Nation and police since officers began to enforce an expanded injunction that was granted to Coastal GasLink by the B.C. Supreme Court.
Opponents have tried to block construction of the project while police have worked to enforce the injunction since early Thursday, leading to some arrests.

Wet’suwet’en Nation is an unceded territory not covered by treaty.

Saturday’s protest in Toronto began during the morning hours and occurred alongside another protest being held in solidarity with Wet’suwet’en near Belleville, Ont. that has caused the suspension of Via Rail service on a key southern Ontario route two days in a row.

In Toronto, a Canadian Pacific (CP) train was stalled a short distance away from protesters when they began blocking the tracks around 11:30 a.m.

In an email to Global News Saturday afternoon, a CP spokesperson said they were monitoring the situation.

Shortly before 6 p.m., Toronto police said protesters were leaving the tracks.

GO Transit also said service on their Barrie line between Union and Downsview was impacted as a result of the protest, although only temporarily.

Anti-pipeline demonstrations expected to disrupt speech from the throne - BC | Globalnews.ca

Protesters opposed to the Coastal GasLink pipeline project shut down two key bridges in Victoria on Monday evening.

globalnews.ca

Protesters opposed to the Coastal GasLink pipeline project shut down two key bridges in Victoria on Monday evening.

The action is one of many across B.C. and Canada Monday in support of Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs and their supporters, as RCMP enforced an injunction clearing blockades on the pipeline’s route near Houston, B.C.

Victoria police said demonstrators had shut down both the Johnson Street and Bay Street bridges to vehicle traffic.

Police said they were “working to resolve this situation peacefully.”

The bridge blockades come as a group of demonstrators remain camped out on the front steps of the B.C. legislature.
That could cause problems on Tuesday, when B.C.’s NDP government is set to unveil its speech from the throne at the legislative building.

Demonstrators were observed making note of the building’s entrances and exits, though it remains unclear if they plan to try and block legislators from entering the building on Tuesday.

Sources tell Global News that security at the building is preparing to seek a court injunction removing the protest camp, however it is unlikely that would be achieved prior to the throne speech.

Now, to CHEK News' credit, who also covered these stories, they asked Victoria Police why they weren't dealing with the bridge situation. So far the Police have not commented and refused to. As of right now (around 6:43 PM) the Bay street bridge reopened as the protesters left of their own volition to join their fellows still blocking the Johnson Street Bridge. CHEK News offered to interview the bridge protesters live on TV tonight and they declined.

Some of the protesters in Vancouver were chanting "Wetsuweten stand up, RCMP stand down".
At around 6:56, the protesters left the Johnson street bridge and walked back to the Legislature.

They tried blocking the Ports and were immediately arrested. Apparently you can block bridges roads and train tracks, but NOT ports.

Metro Vancouver port blockade prompts injunction, 57 arrested Monday

The port blockades are in solidarity with Wet'suwet'en land defenders and hereditary chiefs, who are fighting to stop construction of the Coastal GasLink pipeline project in northwest B.C.

vancouversun.com

Metro Vancouver port blockade prompts injunction, 57 arrested Monday


The port blockades are in solidarity with Wet'suwet'en land defenders and hereditary chiefs, who are fighting to stop construction of the Coastal GasLink pipeline project in northwest B.C.

David Carrigg
Updated: February 10, 2020


Anti-pipeline protesters say they will be out in force in Metro Vancouver on Tuesday, despite 57 of their group getting arrested on Monday.

Natalie Knight, spokesperson for the “solidarity actions happening in Vancouver with the Wet’suwet’en Nation,” told Postmedia News she expected about 200 protesters to show up for Tuesday’s action at an “undisclosed location.”

Knight was speaking on Monday afternoon from a rail line blockade on Venables Street, just east of Glen Drive, that began at 3 p.m. and ended two hours later.

The port blockades were in solidarity with Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs who are fighting to stop construction of the Coastal GasLink pipeline project in northwest B.C.

The arrests came earlier in the day after an injunction was issued Sunday against protesters who had been periodically blocking road access to partsbof the Metro Vancouver port since Friday. The Vancouver Fraser Port Authority asked for the injunction so port operations could resume in Vancouver and Delta.

A Vancouver police spokesperson, Sgt. Aaron Roed, confirmed 43 people who defied the injunction and police orders to clear the area at Hastings and Clark streets were arrested on Monday morning.

“The injunction was granted to the Port on Sunday afternoon by a B.C. Supreme Court justice and protesters were made aware of it by the port on Sunday evening,” read a police statement issued by Roed. “A number of protesters refused to abide by the court order … Protesters received several requests from police to clear the intersection and then warnings prior to being detained.”

The VPD said all 43 people were released with conditions to abide by the injunction. Videos and photos from the scene show officers calmly moving handcuffed protesters one-by-one into police vehicles.

Delta police said 14 people were arrested on the Deltaport Way causeway. A statement from Delta police said they had been in communication with demonstrators since Saturday evening, when the blockade in Delta was first established.

“Police provided the protesters with a number of opportunities to leave without being arrested,” said Delta police spokeswoman Cris Leykauf. “Those who did not wish to be arrested were asked to stand to the side, where they could also witness the arrests if they chose to do so. Everyone involved was treated respectfully and with dignity.”

Knight said the blockade of the rail line on Monday afternoon did not breach the injunction because it states protesters must not block access to the port lands “by way of the Vancouver Fraser Port authority road access points.”

“It does not fall under the injunction,” she said.

“It’s been a long day. We wanted to gather people (following the arrests) and express our solidarity and indicate we are not going to stand down and wont be bullied or intimidated by the court,” she said. “At the same time we want to give people the chance to take a breath and gather again tomorrow at an undisclosed location.”

Knight said the protest group included members of climate and justice groups, anti-poverty groups, anti-capitalist groups, low-income housing groups and unions.

“There’s a pretty good cross section. It’s a pretty diverse crowd,” she said.

Demonstrators also gathered on the B.C. legislature steps in Victoria and blocked the Johnson Street and Bay Street bridges in the capital during the Monday evening rush hour

Coastal GasLink has said it has signed agreements with all 20 elected First Nations bands along the pipeline route from northeastern B.C. to LNG Canada’s $40-billion export facility on the coast in Kitimat — including Wet’suwet’en bands. But the hereditary chiefs it is they who have jurisdiction over the wider traditional lands, not the elected council that runs the smaller reserves.

The OG protest at the actual coastal gaslink site in Northern BC:

Wet’suwet’en vow to keep fighting after RCMP make arrests at pipeline blockade camp | Globalnews.ca

The protesters say those arrested are now on their way back to the camp to keep fighting the court order and protect their ancestral lands.

globalnews.ca

Wet’suwet’en vow to keep fighting after RCMP make arrests at pipeline blockade camp

By Sean Boynton Global News

Posted February 6, 2020 11:57 pm


Opponents of a natural gas pipeline in northern B.C. are vowing to keep blocking construction of the project after RCMP arrested six protesters near a key worksite early Thursday morning.

Police moved into the Wet’suwet’en members’ checkpoint camp at the 39-kilometre mark on the Morice Forest Service Road to enforce a court injunction approved for Coastal GasLink, which plans to resume construction in the area.

But the opponents say those arrested are now on their way back to the camp to keep fighting the court order and protect their ancestral lands.
“They’re on their way back, and it’s a testament to the fact that we’re not going anywhere,” said Molly Wickham, a spokesperson for the Gidimt’en clan that is part of the Wet’suwet’en Nation.

“You can arrest us, you can try to remove us from the territory, you can remove us from the territory violently, and we will always come back.”
Wickham said none of those arrested have been charged and were released without conditions after being processed at the Houston RCMP detachment.

RCMP said Thursday they had made the arrests with “a minimal amount of force.” They confirmed an officer smashed the window of a vehicle to remove a woman who had locked herself inside, but the protester was not injured.

Police had said Wednesday that the opponents would have the choice to leave peacefully or to be arrested without handcuffs before any kind of force was used.
But Wickham says the officers who moved in, who the opponents say came with firearms and dogs, did not follow their promise.

“They didn’t give anyone the opportunity to have a peaceful arrest,” she said. “They came in, overwhelmed everybody that were inside tents, sleeping at three, four, five in the morning, and arrested everybody.”


Wet’suwet’en pipeline opponents and their supporters, who describe themselves as land defenders, said police set up a new checkpoint at the four-kilometre mark and were excluding all access, including media.

Media members were later allowed back into the camp at the 29-kilometre camp later Thursday, along with other Wet’suwet’en members.

But the exclusion zone is still being enforced, with RCMP screening anyone looking to access the area. The checkpoint is the subject of multiple legal challenges by the BC Civil Liberties Association.

Wickham says she anticipates more arrests in the coming days as construction resumes in the area, which includes the Unistot’en healing centre at the 44-kilometre mark.

But she says those remaining in the exclusion zone are ready for what comes next.

“People are not afraid of what’s coming, because they can’t get rid of us, ever,” she said. “There’s nothing to be afraid of other than going to jail.”

Coastal GasLink has confirmed work is starting to clear the service road of any obstructions, including a number of trees that opponents allegedly felled across the road to impede access to the area.

Heavy machinery was brought into the territory behind the RCMP units enforcing the injunction, which was issued by B.C. Supreme Court on Dec. 31.

Enforcement of the injunction was held to allow dialogue between the Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs, Coastal GasLink, RCMP and the B.C. government in hopes of dissolving the dispute.

A planned week of talks between the province and the chiefs broke off Tuesday after two days of discussions, with the Wet’suwet’en saying no deal could be reached unless the province pulled its permits for the project.

The $6.6-billion, 670-kilometre pipeline is intended to carry gas from northeastern B.C. to a massive LNG export plant being built near Kitimat, and would traverse unceded Wet’suwet’en traditional territory.
The company has signed agreements with all 20 elected Indigenous councils along the route.
But opponents argue that those councils only have authority over on-reserve matters, as artifacts of the colonial system under the Indian Act.

The Supreme Court of Canada has affirmed Indigenous rights and title over unceded land, territory that Wet’suwet’en opponents say only hereditary chiefs have authority over.

On Thursday, the Office of the Wet’suwet’en Nation also announced plans to challenge the Coastal GasLink project’s environmental assessment certificate in court, arguing the company was in violation of its conditions and had failed to incorporate the findings of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls.

—With files from Sarah MacDonald

Blockaders vs Anti-Blockaders: Guess who gets arrested:

1 arrested as residents tear down anti-pipeline blockade on Vancouver Island | Globalnews.ca

At one point, someone drove a pickup truck through plywood barriers blocking Highway 19.

globalnews.ca

Spoiler: No, really, guess.

At least one person was arrested as pipeline opponents and angry citizens met in a chaotic scene on a Vancouver Island highway, Monday.

Demonstrators opposed to the Coastal GasLink pipeline erected barriers at Exit 117 of Highway 19 near Courtenay in solidarity with Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs around 12:30 a.m.
But the group was met by another group of residents, several wearing masks, who repeatedly pulled the barricades down as police attempted to keep the groups apart.

At one point, someone drove a pickup truck through plywood barriers blocking the road.

Police eventually arrested one of the masked residents for obstruction after he attempted to pull down a barricade that anti-pipeline protesters had erected.
“He’s removing garbage!” yelled one of the man’s supporters as he tried to pull blockade materials from the highway off-ramp.

“He’s removing garbage!” yelled one of the man’s supporters as he tried to pull blockade materials from the highway off-ramp.
“My sacred items are not garbage, my sacred items are special,” one of the protesters yelled back.
Police have yet to comment on the blockade, but an officer at the scene told the group of residents RCMP couldn’t clear the protesters’ blockade without direction from their supervisors.

“We pay taxes to use these highways, that’s our right,” one woman responded to police.

“If we came out and blocked the highway you’d arrest us,” added another member of the group. “They’re going to be allowed to just start blocking everything up right across this friggin’ country?”
Deraek Menard, one of the anti-pipeline protesters, told Global News the blockade was meant to send a message of support to Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs and their supporters, who were facing possible arrest as the RCMP enforced a B.C. Supreme Court injunction near Houston, B.C.

“They are peaceful land defenders exerting their rights to have their sovereign territory and not be invaded by another nation,” he said.

“And when we see the RCMP using force from our nation to violate their rights like that, it’s pretty clear that people can get upset about this.”
The action appeared to have the opposite effect on at least one motorist who said he generally supported the protesters’ message.

“I can’t see how this protest is helping [fight] the pipeline, it’s inconvenienced me, I’m headed to Nanaimo, I’ve been driving 45 minutes through the backcountry trying to find the freeway,” said Ray Martin.
“They should be protesting the company or something, not inconveniencing the public.”

There are links to other stories about blockades across Canada in the stories themselves.

 

[Super-Chevy454]

Sorry if someone already mentionned it, but I founded that image showing a list of these fake commies activists who preach communism but not in their backyard. As I mentionned in an earlier post, it might smell the Soros.

 

[Koby_Fish]

Sorry if someone already mentionned it, but I founded that image showing a list of these fake commies activists who preach communism but not in their backyard. As I mentionned in an earlier post, it might smell the Soros.

Not surprising in the least. I heard somewhere on the news (probably CTV, I wasn't paying that much attention as it was on in the background) someone said that there's more than 5 Hereditary chiefs, but only 5 of the Hereditary Chiefs oppose the pipeline. There's WAY MORE hereditary chiefs that SUPPORT the pipeline going in, and so then one has to ask why 5 out of more than 5 get an absolute veto over the whole damn thing.

 

[Antipathy]

I'd rather have the money for this infrastructure diverted towards nuclear pursuits, but I honestly do not give a shit about this pipeline. Build it if you want, I guess, most numbers say it's too late to really impact climate change.


It's going to be great, in fifty years when we can write all the books blaming Boomers for literally everything. From SJWs to energy crises to whatever clusterfuck the Middle East will be then.

 

[Koby_Fish]

Exceptional Rebellion err I mean Extinction Rebellion gets exceptional in all this:

CityNews

www.citynews1130.com

Activists attempt to arrest B.C. Premier ahead of budget release

by Kathryn Tindale

Posted Feb 18, 2020 8:55 am PST

Last Updated Feb 18, 2020 at 11:03 am PST
VICTORIA (NEWS 1130) — Activists tried to arrest Premier John Horgan outside his house in Langford as the provincial budget is about to be revealed.
The premier wasn’t there when the protesters first showed up, but he came home shortly after and was verbally blasted by the demonstrators from Extinction Rebellion. A small group attempted to detain Horgan under what they are calling a citizen’s arrest to prevent him from getting to the legislature for the budget.

RCMP moved in allowing the premier to get to the legislature. At least one person was arrested in the process.
NEWS 1130 legal analyst Michael Shapray says there are restrictions for conducting a citizen’s arrest and there are certain criteria to meet.
“It’s not just people walking around or deciding that something is wrong and they are going to start arresting people,” he explains.
Shapray says the idea of citizen’s arrest is “not to have a citizen’s criminal justice system,” describing the power as limited. If someone does make a citizen’s arrest, they must immediately hand the detained person over to the police.
“We don’t have vigilante justice systems set out through the citizen’s arrest laws and people have to comply with those requirements of calling the police,” he explains.
The primary purpose of a citizen’s arrest is if somebody who is not a peace officer finds another person committing a crime, sees a person escaping or being pursued by police, then a citizen can follow the criteria to make an arrest, according to Shapray. He adds there are some special circumstances related to offences on the property either at the time or within a reasonable amount of the offence.
Opposition Leader Andrew Wilkinson quickly condemned the actions of the protesters in a tweet.
“No one in B.C. should ever feel unsafe in their homes or at their workplace. This is not how democracy works and this is now how we treat each other here,” he says.
RELATED: Forestry, Indigenous rights protests set for B.C. legislature during budget announcement
Extinction Rebellion had threatened to make citizen’s arrests and is planning a protest at the B.C. legislature in opposition to the provincial budget, claiming it harms the Wet’suwet’en. In a separate demonstration, forestry workers will also be protesting the budget demanding the NDP government do more to help the struggling industry. A convoy of 40 to 50 logging trucks will be driving to the legislature in the afternoon.
With files from Ash Kelly and Martin MacMahon

Related Stories
Forestry, Indigenous rights protests set for B.C. legislature during budget announcement

On CBC 24hr News Channel, they interviewed BC Liberal MLA (Provincial not Federal) Ellis Ross, who is a member of and former chief councillor of the Haisla First Nation. I can't find the video online yet but he was saying that all the protests were caused by outsiders in the environmental movement who are funded by foreign lobby groups. He said this is an issue for the Wet'suwet'en to solve amongst themselves as to their "Leadership issues" but he supports the Coastal Gaslink Pipeline. He also said that he people that were complaining that the gas pipeline wouldn't benefit first nations don't know what they're talking about. "We've seen the benefits already. This is a way for us to be self-sufficient and for the first time there's a clear way for us to be out from under the Indian Act and not have to depend on Government money. We have funds for programs for our people, jobs, etc. These protesters are no better than the Indian Act." This segment is being replayed regularly throughout the day.

Protip: The Indian Act is a very paternalistic racist piece of legislation that forbids Indians from doing such things as having a Last Will and Testament, for instance.

EDIT: Found an opinion piece by Ellis Ross that says pretty much the same thing he said on TV:

Ellis Ross: The question of authority shouldn’t divide First Nations

Opinion: Professional protesters and NGOs have seized on the opportunity to divide our communities and, ultimately, will leave us penniless when they suddenly…

vancouversun.com

Ellis Ross: The question of authority shouldn’t divide First Nations
Opinion: Professional protesters and NGOs have seized on the opportunity to divide our communities and, ultimately, will leave us penniless when they suddenly leave.

Ellis Ross

Updated: January 26, 2020

The heated debate over who holds authority over the territory of First Nations — be it hereditary chiefs or elected band leaders — may serve the interests of those seeking to disrupt construction of the Coastal GasLink pipeline, but it does absolutely nothing for the well-being of an average Aboriginal living on reserve.
As an elected councillor for the Haisla First Nation, and later chief councillor, I grew up experiencing dismal employment prospects, children being raised in poverty, tragic suicides, and horrific rates of Aboriginal youth ending up in the prison system.
We’ve always had to cope with outsiders and so-called experts telling us who best represents First Nations, or what we should do within our own territory. Yet none of these people have ever lived on reserve or spent any significant time with the people who actually live there.
Think about it. It would be the same as me telling the people of British Columbia to denounce the federal or provincial government because the Queen of England has the final say in all matters. Sorry, democracy doesn’t work that way.
The only people who have a right to decide who represents them are the band members themselves.
The fact is all 20 First Nations whose territory runs along the pathway of the Coastal GasLink pipeline — including the Wet’suwet’en — have each signed agreements with the company. Professional protesters and well-funded NGOs have merely seized the opportunity to divide our communities for their own gains, and ultimately will leave us penniless when they suddenly leave.
All 203 First Nations bands in B.C. have unique and different forms of governance and, for the most part, they are satisfied with their systems.
My fellow First Nation leaders, both elected and non-elected, spent years investigating everything we could about LNG through environmental assessments, reviewing permits, government-to-government negotiations, and all the while trying to keep our members apprised of our progress.
It is therefore truly ignorant for non-Aboriginals to declare that elected Aboriginal leaders are only responsible for “on reserve issues” or are a “construct of the Indian Act meant to annihilate the Indian.”
I was an elected Aboriginal leader for 14 years and I never intended to annihilate anyone.
My goal was to do everything I could to make sure my kids and grandkids didn’t grow up knowing the myriad social issues that accompany poverty. I’m pretty sure all chiefs — elected and non-elected — feel the same way.
When a remote First Nation like the Wet’suwet’en is thrown into the media spotlight, and the question of authority is raised, it can divide an entire community right down to family and friends.
It’s up to our communities to answer the representation question without intimidation and the interference of “allies” who only seek to control the narrative.
Simplistic solutions to complex problems have always been a problem for band councils trying to make life better for their own.
Allowing outsiders to undermine and dismiss years of careful consideration and consultation with elected chiefs who want nothing more than to secure a brighter future for their membership, is quite unacceptable and I will continue to speak out against it.
Ellis Ross is the B.C. Liberal MLA for Skeena and was chief councillor for the Haisla First Nation from 2013 to 2017.

 

[Super-Chevy454]

I wonder if we could know more about these "hereditary chiefs"? I think they might be more closer to Nathan Phillips than a real chief.

 

[Zbk3VmLfujjzjxBd43tL]

I wonder if we could know more about these "hereditary chiefs"? I think they might be more closer to Nathan Phillips than a real chief.

The Wet'suwet'en are a real Indian tribe, but given how corrupt the average Canadian First Nation group is it isn't surprising that a "hereditary chief" could be bought. Sure, his ancestors were chiefs too, but it isn't like he himself is rich outside of being allowed to deal with the government and having some authority over his reservation.

There's so many natural resources on Indian reservations in Canada and the US that the question should be why these communities are so impoverished despite that and how to fix that.

 

[Glad I couldn't help]

Trudeau held a press conference, says the barricades need come down but he would send in the army. So I doubt anything going to happen.

 

[HOMO FOR LIFE]

Canadian economy literally in jitters. High tax, low productivity, and now this?

Lmao who would invest in this garbage dump.

 

[Koby_Fish]

The Wet'suwet'en are a real Indian tribe, but given how corrupt the average Canadian First Nation group is it isn't surprising that a "hereditary chief" could be bought. Sure, his ancestors were chiefs too, but it isn't like he himself is rich outside of being allowed to deal with the government and having some authority over his reservation.

There's so many natural resources on Indian reservations in Canada and the US that the question should be why these communities are so impoverished despite that and how to fix that.

Not only that, but the news has reported that there are 13 hereditary chiefs in total. Only five oppose the project. The other eight support it.

Why do these five chiefs think they overrule the other eight, the elected chiefs and the people who elected them and their wishes notwithstanding?

I think half the problem is the romanticised idea of "living off the land", as Indians have the right to do, and some of them well, pretty much have to, to supplement what they get from the government. They've been told by environmentalists that resource development will scare off all the game, wreck all the berry bushes and trees, kill all the salmon, and turn their land into a super moonscape from which it will never, ever recover. That's why the environmentalists associated with this are calling themselves "Land defenders" and "water protectors". So then these people get it in their heads that their "traditional way of life" is threatened, when that's not even remotely the case.

I remember back in the day, the 1990s if I recall correctly, the government of the day (I THINK it was Mulroney's conservatives but it might have been during Chretien's Liberals, it's a little fuzzy) floated the idea of abolishing the Indian Act. The majority of the indian chiefs in the entire country was opposed to abolishing it (I can't remember which specific organization it was, but it was supposed to be one where all the chiefs all over Canada got together). Considering the level of corruption back then, as now, and they didn't want to unhitch from the gravy train, I wonder if we'd get a similar result if that was floated today.

 

[Glad I couldn't help]

I remember back in the day, the 1990s if I recall correctly, the government of the day (I THINK it was Mulroney's conservatives but it might have been during Chretien's Liberals, it's a little fuzzy) floated the idea of abolishing the Indian Act. The majority of the indian chiefs in the entire country was opposed to abolishing it (I can't remember which specific organization it was, but it was supposed to be one where all the chiefs all over Canada got together). Considering the level of corruption back then, as now, and they didn't want to unhitch from the gravy train, I wonder if we'd get a similar result if that was floated today.

Were you thinking of the 1969 White Paper?

 

[Underestimated Nutria]

The people who dreamed up UBI are intelligent, inquisitive people who probably would work without economic incentive. They are however deeply out of touch with ordinary workers, who, if offered UBI, would react more or less in line with what would be expected of homo economicus.

 

[Super-Chevy454]

Why do these five chiefs think they overrule the other eight, the elected chiefs and the people who elected them and their wishes notwithstanding?

Which could bring us another question: who benefit the most of the stubborn attitude of these five chiefs? Also, I wonder if the only thing to change the mind of these five chiefs is someone who check their closets to see if they have some hidden skeletons?

 

[Turnip_Head]

I guarantee that if the federal government started cracking down on the absurd amount of corporate and foreign donations these hippie and chug groups get to stonewall oil refining and development we'd see these protests go extinct in a second. Maybe then we wouldn't have to spend a whole month of every year stretching our police forces thinner than a wafer.

From a macro perspective, this could actually be a benefit if the foriegn investment out-weights the costs incurred from such protests.
Most money absorbed by the protestors, will eventually be spent back into the economy. Organizer snacks would be bought from local stores, protest signs would be bought from local arts & craft stores. And any surplus would probably be pocketed.
I would assume that these protests don't cause any big operational costs, so in probably is a net gain for the local economy.
However it is a certainly a net-loss in the ethics department, shitting up the roads, accepting foreign and corporate money.
It also creates a political hazard as these types of organizations tend to escalate in order to pull in more funding.
In that escalation the protests could suddenly actually cause some substantial operational costs. Either through legislation or more radical protesting.

 

[WonderWino]

Speaking of authority and the rule of law....

Rule of law is apparently a white only thing and an example of white supremacy. Oh and the rule of law is all about killing anybody that isn't white. Totally not racist delusions and a persecution complex at all

This dumbshit is a native woman on my fb who is batshit mental when it comes to anything native related and clearly has a problem with white people. Naturally while claiming she doesn't. But holy shit some of the comments posts like that have led to have been hilarious. Like trying to claim alternately that white people are always slavers and oppressors and have never/can never be enslaved because they are oppressors (cause no culture ever practiced slavery except white people right and only against non white people. Must have been a shit ton of black people in gaul , germania and central europe during roman times then), then dialed that back when called on it and when someone brought up the whole irish indentured servitude thing that went on for hundreds of years she claimed that wasn't slavery, citing a fucking new york times opinion article that had no idea what it was talking about, backed up by the splc claiming its a 'myth' that irish people were forced into indentured service that literally had a hyperink with the words 'social justice' directly in the link and itself cited a wikipedia article that ranted about conspiracies and claimed it was a nazi talking point, while ranting about stormfront, alex jones and a bunch of other shit. It all read like an onion article. The best part about that tirade? The fact that the UN itself calls indentured servitude a form of slavery

These idiots never fail to provide endless cow like behavior when shit like these protests happen

That said, either the situation is going to fizzle out in a few weeks or one of these protester groups is going to end up doing something stupid and trying to beat the shit out of someone for trying to unblock the rail lines or get them to leave and its not going to end well for them. Naturally, that'll totally not be their fault at all according to the media and the same people pushing for these protests will use it as proof of how the government is oppressing natives and try to squeeze more money out of it somehow, like they always do

 

[Freedom Fries]

Some are doing it because they think Canada can't fight climate change and have/use natural gas at the same time.

too late to really impact climate change

LMAO. The switch from coal to natgas is responsible for basically all of the CO2 production reductions in North America, which have been fairly significant.

 

[Koby_Fish]

Were you thinking of the 1969 White Paper?

No, no, that's too early. There was a specific idea in the 1990s to abolish the Indian Act. I don't think there was anything officially printed up, just floating the idea of abolishing it, and the majority of chiefs that had any pull with Ottawa said absolutely NOT, so the whole thing was abandoned.

@WonderWino What's hilarious about the stuff from the person you posted about is that Indians all over North America had practiced slavery. The Haida used to go down the coast and raid villages and steal all the strong young men and pretty girls and take them up on back to the Queen Charlotte Islands (Haida Gwaii). Other Indian bands had slavery too; there was an account of two white men who were enslaved by some coastal tribe back in the 1800s that went into a book. That wasn't fucking indentured servitude either, it was out-and-out "catch and enslave" slavery, more akin to what happened in Roots. In the United States, some indian tribes owned black slaves. Has anyone ever informed this woman of these simple facts; that the Indians were quite down with the slaving as long as they were the ones doing the slaving?

 

[WonderWino]

No, no, that's too early. There was a specific idea in the 1990s to abolish the Indian Act. I don't think there was anything officially printed up, just floating the idea of abolishing it, and the majority of chiefs that had any pull with Ottawa said absolutely NOT, so the whole thing was abandoned.

@WonderWino What's hilarious about the stuff from the person you posted about is that Indians all over North America had practiced slavery. The Haida used to go down the coast and raid villages and steal all the strong young men and pretty girls and take them up on back to the Queen Charlotte Islands (Haida Gwaii). Other Indian bands had slavery too; there was an account of two white men who were enslaved by some coastal tribe back in the 1800s that went into a book. That wasn't fucking indentured servitude either, it was out-and-out "catch and enslave" slavery, more akin to what happened in Roots. In the United States, some indian tribes owned black slaves. Has anyone ever informed this woman of these simple facts; that the Indians were quite down with the slaving as long as they were the ones doing the slaving?

Indeed, well said. Shes not the type to listen to anything like that, which isn't surprising considering what she posted. It isn't the first time posting such racist rantings either, that was one of the milder ones. But the other hilarious thing is she didn't even respond to a reply I made pointing out the indentured servitude thing with the irish and linking the part of the UN charter that flat out says its a form of slavery. What did she do instead? Quietly unfriended me and set the post to friends only. I find that hilarious, seeing as having that kind of reaction to a valid response when she was the one spouting flat out racist ranting about white people publicly, says alot about what kind of person she is. Clearly one who, as you rightfully pointed out has no clue about native history regarding slavery (or what they did frequently to settlers themselves in regards to kidnapping, torturing and forced assimilation of their children....but thats not PC to ever bring up right). I'm not saying european settlers didn't do their share of unacceptable things, but they were hardly the only ones guilty of such things. Especially when it comes to slavery. and that isn't even getting into the whole aztec side of things. Nobody likes talking about the whole human sacrifice side of things

Frankly this whole situation is just another symptom of a bigger problem, and that problem is lack of responsibility on the part of the native tribes themselves. The keep demanding recognition, autonomy and huge amounts of money. and when they get it they squander it, leading to reservations that are horrific places to live. They then blame everyone else for their problems and pull shit like these 'protests' when they don't get their way. In the end it'll be their undoing as a separate group because sooner or later one of these groups is going to get pissed off enough to go full terrorist on somebody and either shoot a bunch of people, blow something up or take a bunch of hostages somewhere and when that happens its not going to end well for any native group whether they had a part in it or not

These people need to learn to pick their battles and be reasonable, and stop blaming everyone else for things they are directly responsible for

 

[Zbk3VmLfujjzjxBd43tL]

Especially when it comes to slavery. and that isn't even getting into the whole aztec side of things. Nobody likes talking about the whole human sacrifice side of things

But it's a fascinating topic. Someone brought up the Haida, they also practiced human sacrifice like a bunch of other BC Indians did. They'd beat the victims to death with stone clubs or bury them alive depending on the occasion.

 

[Super-Chevy454]

Well, looks like these hereditary chiefs have some skeletons in their closets.
https://www.jlsreport.com/2020/02/16/wolves-in-fancy-blankets/ ( http://archive.ph/JKzz8 )

Posted verbatim with permission.

I see all these posts supporting a few OW Hereditary Chiefs but what I don’t see is the Wetsuweten people speaking up about how this office operates. I get it though, I live on Westbank First Nation, I see exactly how opportunities are disbursed based on whether you are “one of them” or “one of us”. Luckily, I also lived up in Houston BC and know first hand about the motives of some of the OW Hereditary Chiefs.

My husband is the late Larry Tiljoe, a member of the Witset Band, Gilseyhu Clan and Unistoten “family” line. The Tiljoe family have lived and worked, off reserve, in the Houston area their entire lives. Larry’s father is Russell Tiljoe, Russell’s father was Alex Tiljoe, the late Chief Namox. Larry’s mother Elsie, is the granddaughter of Christine Holland, the late Chief Knedebeas. Elsie and Larry both hold trapline rights along the pipeline within Knedebeas territory and the family has a long standing and significant connection to the land in and around Houston and the Knedebeas territories.

In 1993, we started a silviculture business, Nadina Mountain Contracting, located within the Morice Forest District. Our goal was to become a sustainable First Nation contractor who harvested, replanted and rejuvenated the areas we harvested. We managed our contracts and ensured their successful completion and established solid working relationships with local forestry industry key players. We were employing people from Moricetown to Burns Lake, both Native and non-Native. We were employed full time managing the land in forest health, building our business. Then the Office of the Wetsuweten of the Hereditary Chiefs came along.



The OW, situated an hour east of Houston, took over ALL the forest related activities earmarked as First Nations. We were forced us to work under the OW for contracts within our own forests; the OW took a portion of the contract value for the “service”. The OW’s lack of knowledge in forest health and neglect in their financial responsibilities continually caused our business to suffer hardship which rippled to our banker, our employees, and our suppliers. Logging has been acceptable to the OW within their territory and during our time under the OW we noticed the work was cornered by individual OW hereditary chiefs like Chief Kloun Khun – Alphose Gagnon, Chief Knedebeas – Warner William, and Chief ? Adam Gagnon. They established their own companies and or employed down their own family lines. The OW chiefs negotiated contracts including the values and awarded contracts to themselves. The OW wanted ALL the work for the OW. We were forced out of our own forest district to the forest district an hour east of Houston.

In the end the OW took their own member’s livelihood, pushed him out of his own territory, blocked access to his trapline and forced him into bankruptcy. His final words to them warned that their greed would become cancerous.

I personally question the integrity of some of the chiefs, especially the 3 are mentioned above. I wonder if it’s the same case with CGL; that the OW wants to control ALL the negotiations, ALL the monies, ALL the contracts and ALL benefits and administer it back to the Bands in the territory? As it stands the individual bands will receive the monies and benefits and not the OW. If they can’t have it ALL then NO one will have anything.

Except the Province of BC in 2019 gave the OW over $1.1 million, 2019 GoFundMe organized by Jennifer Wickham raised $239,507 for beneficiary, Cody Thomas Merriman and 2020 GoFundMe organized by France Maybe has raised $171,279 YTD for beneficiary, Molly Wickham. The Unistoten GoFundMe Legal fund to benefit Tse Wedi Eltlh raised $385,000 and on and on. The OW protest family has plenty of economic benefit, it’s a multi million dollar business. The Wetsuweten are still left with nothing.

The cause is honourable, we need to protect the planet and I respect people’s right protest but when I see and hear millions of dollars raised to individuals under fake names, images showing “protesters” in $800.00 jackets driving brand new trucks, vans, snowmobiles with top of the line cell phones for live video broadcast, “protesters” with unlimited funds to forage for food at the local restuarants and stores, access to dry heated shelter and $500.00 honorariums paid to Chiefs to show up and protest, I can’t help but question what is really going on.

I’m curious does the OW have a plan to replace the economic loss to ALL the communites affected, if NO? or Is GoFundMe going to become the new way of living off the land for them as well?

Thank you for providing a place to share this and for what you do for the Wetsuweten, ALL the Wetsuweten.

 

[Jarolleon]

The Wet'suwet'en are a real Indian tribe, but given how corrupt the average Canadian First Nation group is it isn't surprising that a "hereditary chief" could be bought. Sure, his ancestors were chiefs too, but it isn't like he himself is rich outside of being allowed to deal with the government and having some authority over his reservation.

There's so many natural resources on Indian reservations in Canada and the US that the question should be why these communities are so impoverished despite that and how to fix that.

Maybe they gain more from maintaining the mythology of "nature-loving noble savages" than they would from extracting natural resources (or taxing someone else for doing it like the Saudis).

Well, looks like these hereditary chiefs have some skeletons in their closets.
https://www.jlsreport.com/2020/02/16/wolves-in-fancy-blankets/ ( http://archive.ph/JKzz8 )

Inb4 "Astroturfed". Though if it was they created it at least 1 year ago judging by a tweet from March 2019 referencing it. It's odd how successful this scam is, everyone in Canada has bought into it besides a handful of far-right spergs (I put myself in this category) , angry boomers and people with a vested interest in the project. People who bash the protesters in news comments sections get dogpiled like they posted pro-Trump stuff in r/politics, mostly with the "Ackshually they're a fully sovereign nation so this is like, invasion" talking points.