#igov382

An excellent piece connecting Indigenous and Black struggles by (y)our favourite, Leanne Simpson. Read and share. 

Red Works: Indigenous Photography by Nadya Kwandibens

Project 562: A Photo Project by Matika Wilbur documenting Native America

The highly anticipated untold story about America begins. Watch Rebel Music: Native America.

Nisga'a member Will Klatte passed through security at the legislature building in Victoria to disrupt an illegitimate signing of pipeline and other energy agreements with the BC government. The Nisga'a, the true Peoples of the Land, have never signed treaty or ceded their territories, nor do they consent to signing approvals for these pipeline projects.

Link to IGOV382 group presentation today on Land Based Resurgence.

#BurnabyMountain, on unceded Coast Salish Territory, is facing destruction by corporation Kinder Morgan. Many people have gone there to support the protection of the mountain and the self-determination and sovereignty of the local Indigenous nations, only to face mass arrests and racist police violence. Shame! There is widespread destruction of Indigenous lands all over Turtle Island, from Spaet (Bear) Mountain in the territories of the Lekwungen people to Grace Islet and Penelakut territories all the way to Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh territories and beyond. It's time for it to stop! Come to the "inner harbor" (a place that was a Songhees village site, now desecrated for tourism in so-called "Victoria BC") and bring signs and noise-makers, to show some love for all the land defenders! Also, please come to learn more about local land struggles, including the desecration of burial sites in Lekwungen lands and more. If you have a canoe or a kayak, come join from the water! Speakers: Cheryl Bryce, Lekwungen and Songhees member More speakers TBA More information: For more on what's currently happening at #BurnabyMountain, check outBurnaby Mountain Updates. The Tsleil-Waututh Nation has been opposing Kinder Morgan's expansion project since 2012 and earlier this year launched a lawsuit in opposition to its' pipeline and tankers project. You can read more in the Tsleil-Waututh Nation's recent statement on events on Burnaby Mountain here:https://www.facebook.com/tsleilwaututhnation/photos/a.737820096292031.1073741825.241303082610404/737820086292032/?type=1&theater  and on their website at http://twnsacredtrust.ca/ The Union of BC Indian Chiefs recently made a statement in support of the people arrested at Burnaby Mountain: ""The Union of BC Indian Chiefs stands in solidarity with those that have been arrested and we will continue to stand in support with those on the Mountain to uphold and defend Indigenous rights, land rights and human rights," stated Grand Chief Stewart Phillip, President of the Union of BC Indian Chiefs." (http://www.ubcic.bc.ca/News_Releases/UBCICNews11201401.html#axzz3JgDNMIUS) More information from "Seattle solidarity rally with the Burnaby Mountain Caretakers" (https://www.facebook.com/events/1506085126332784/1507675256173771/?notif_t=plan_mall_activity): "The City of Burnaby and its residents have been vocal for several years against Kinder Morgan's $5.4 billion Trans Mountain pipeline and terminal expansion proposal that would transport even more diluted bitumen and bring even more tankers to the Burrard Inlet and the Salish Sea Burnaby Mountain is public land (on unceded Indigenous territories) that is used frequently as a recreational area and is a designated Conservation Area. Over 70% of Burnaby residents are opposed to Kinder Morgan’s expansion. (Source: http://is.gd/j79aOJ) Residents have been educating themselves through town halls, teach-ins and personal research and have determined that the risks to public safety and environmental degradation from Kinder Morgan’s proposal are too high. Many residents are no strangers to the harmful health impacts of tar sands crude given that the city was home to a terrible oil spill in 2007. The Tsleil-Waututh Nation has also launched a legal challenge of Kinder Morgan's pipeline and tankers project. This is the first legal challenge by a First Nation against the new pipeline and tanker proposal, citing the federal government's failure to first consult Tsleil-Waututh on key decisions about the environmental assessment and regulatory review of the project. The pipeline facilitates Tar Sands expansion on Indigenous territories along the pipeline route and at the source. This would violate numerous Aboriginal Treaty Rights and the overall well-being of these communities, many of whom have already emphatically said no to Kinder Morgan's expansion. As the Supreme Court of Canada has consistently upheld, it is the federal government’s duty to respect these treaties, as well as the inherent rights of Indigenous peoples living on unceded lands along the pipeline route. Therefore it should come as no surprise that community members are on Burnaby Mountain. These caretakers and residents should not be facing an injunction or a multimillion-dollar lawsuit by a corporate energy giant. Given the federal government's failure to respond to residents, to Indigenous communities at the source of Tar Sands destruction and along the proposed pipeline route, and to municipal concerns, we laud these protectors for their bravery in taking a stand against Kinder Morgan."

Lindsay Delaronde, an Iroquois, Mohawk woman, born and raised on the Kahnawake reservation, has been a professional practicing artist for the past 5 years. She began her journey to become an artist travelling to the West Coast of British Columbia. Obtaining her B.F.A at the Emily Carr Institute of Art & Design, followed by a M.F.A from the University of Victoria, Delaronde continues her art career creating artworks directly related to being an Indigenous woman in contemporary mainstream society. Delaronde is a multi-disciplinary visual artist whom has executed artworks in print-making (silk-screen printing and photos transfers), painting, drawing and video all with the motivation to expand the evolution of Indigenous peoples and their histories. She intends to construct Indigenous perspectives within Western society to bring forth truth and reconciliation through the act of creation and visual understanding. The intentions of her work is to manifest the relationships between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginals and also the inter-cultural respects among allies, nation-to-nation. Utilizing contemporary techniques of making art, Delaronde utilizes Native and non-Native imagery to intrude new understandings of contemporary Native life, also embracing the beauty and respect she has for her culture. Her art has the power to respond to the past while creating new images for the future.