A large percentage of the population seems to love reality television.
Survivor, The Amazing Race, Big Brother, The Apprentice - you name it and it’s
got an audience somewhere. If I were to
ask 100 random Metro residents what the name of last season’s American Idol
winner was, I venture a large portion of them would be able to tell me.
Now,
if I were to ask them about an idle of another type, the Canadian ‘Idle No
More’ movement – I’m not sure how many folks would be able to respond
appropriately.
There’s a phenomenon sweeping the nation
that has been punctuated by flash mobs in malls, obstructions of transportation
lines, marches on Parliament Hill, and peaceful protests in our own fair city.
In a society so fascinated by reality television, it’s baffling that so many
are missing a slice of true reality TV playing out every night on Canadian news
broadcasts. The stakes, however, are
much higher than the winner walking away with a new Escalade, a trip to the
Riviera, or some cold hard cash. The entire future of our country and the way our
government and our Aboriginal citizens interact with one another could change
forever.
In one corner, we have the Federal government led by Stephen Harper; one of the most polarizing figures in Canadian political history. At the center of the Idle No More groundswell is Bill C-45 (now passed into law and known as the Jobs and Growth Act) which Aboriginal people assert erodes treaty rights, destroys environmental protections, and compromises Canada’s democratic process due to the way it was forced through the legislature.
In the opposing corner of this unfolding drama is Canada’s First Nations Leaders. They are trying to communicate a unified message about the Idle No More movement with the unfortunate problem of not having all their membership on the same page. Many leaders had petitioned for a meeting with the Prime Minister to discuss concerns, only to have select leaders boycott the engagement at the eleventh hour unless the Governor General was present at the meeting as well. First Nations National Chief Shawn Atleo was left scrambling to save face on what should have been the organization’s finest day. The meeting occurred without much accomplished, by most accounts.
Another key participant of note is Chief Theresa Spence of the Attawapiskat Reserve in Northern Ontario. Chief Spence is, as of this writing, engaged in a hunger strike to force the Prime Minister and Governor General to meet with Aboriginal leaders about Native treaty rights. She is also working to bring attention to environmental dangers she is concerned the current government will be bringing about with their passage of the C-45 bill. While Spence works to bring attention to these issues, many media outlets are bringing attention to the millions of dollars she has, allegedly, mishandled while many residents on her reserve live in squalor. While being held as a beacon of inspiration for many across the country, Aboriginal and Non-Aboriginal alike, her motives are being viewed by many as a smoke screen to draw attention away from her reserve’s finances.
Finally, we have the rest of the Canadian people – who seem to be divided into three separate groups on the subject.
In one corner, we have the Federal government led by Stephen Harper; one of the most polarizing figures in Canadian political history. At the center of the Idle No More groundswell is Bill C-45 (now passed into law and known as the Jobs and Growth Act) which Aboriginal people assert erodes treaty rights, destroys environmental protections, and compromises Canada’s democratic process due to the way it was forced through the legislature.
In the opposing corner of this unfolding drama is Canada’s First Nations Leaders. They are trying to communicate a unified message about the Idle No More movement with the unfortunate problem of not having all their membership on the same page. Many leaders had petitioned for a meeting with the Prime Minister to discuss concerns, only to have select leaders boycott the engagement at the eleventh hour unless the Governor General was present at the meeting as well. First Nations National Chief Shawn Atleo was left scrambling to save face on what should have been the organization’s finest day. The meeting occurred without much accomplished, by most accounts.
Another key participant of note is Chief Theresa Spence of the Attawapiskat Reserve in Northern Ontario. Chief Spence is, as of this writing, engaged in a hunger strike to force the Prime Minister and Governor General to meet with Aboriginal leaders about Native treaty rights. She is also working to bring attention to environmental dangers she is concerned the current government will be bringing about with their passage of the C-45 bill. While Spence works to bring attention to these issues, many media outlets are bringing attention to the millions of dollars she has, allegedly, mishandled while many residents on her reserve live in squalor. While being held as a beacon of inspiration for many across the country, Aboriginal and Non-Aboriginal alike, her motives are being viewed by many as a smoke screen to draw attention away from her reserve’s finances.
Finally, we have the rest of the Canadian people – who seem to be divided into three separate groups on the subject.
The first group is fully in support of Idle
No More and the causes that it is representing itself as fighting for. They are
standing in solidarity with our Aboriginal brothers and sisters and want what
they want – fairness for our Native community, our environment, and all
Canadians.
The second group is the folks who are tired of
the demonstrations, tired of the rabble rousing, and feel as though the First
Nations community has their hand out once again and is focusing their
aggression in the wrong direction. They see the Idle No More movement as the
Native community trying to wring even more privilege from our government when
they should be focusing their ire on the reservation Chiefs who are mishandling
the reserve coffers. They want the Native community to stop looking for what
they see as handouts and to start getting their houses in order without any
more government assistance. The third group, the people I hope this piece will affect, are the ones who don’t know about Idle No More and really don’t care. It’s a politically pivotal time in Canada and Idle No More is something that promises not to go away any time soon. Even though the movement was originally launched in protest of Bill C-45, it vows to continue even after the passing of the bill into law. January 28th has been earmarked as an ‘International Idle No More Day of Action’ with large scale protests planned, at the very minimum.
With Idle No More being a grassroots movement with no clearly identifiable leadership, the central message may or may not be getting lost. You don’t need to agree with what Idle No More professes to represent, but you should at least educate yourself on the basics of what’s happening around you. The internet can be used for more than looking for pictures of Grumpy Cat (as much as I do love him).
It’s like my Granddad used to say, “When it hits the fan, you’ll only get half the splatter if you’re standing firmly in one place.” Pick a spot, Metro.
By the way, for those interested, last year’s American Idol was Phillip Phillips. His debut album is excellent.
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