First Nations Issues

[ScrappyPeg]

I'm still not sure I'm convinced that any of the mistreatment could be considered intentional or malicious in intent. I can't speak to individual cases where some Aboriginal person was stupid enough to give away their little piece of solitude to some slick talking English dude - but that should remain history and roads should not get blocked. If your ancestor owned a gold watch - and some slick talking Aboriginal dude swindled him out of it in a card game, should the Aboriginal dude's ancestors feel guilty?

At the time residential schools were implemented, I believe the intention was to help Aboriginal people flourish in the new European influenced society that was becoming Canada. A misguided intention maybe, but not malicious. Of course time goes by and now we see the social problems that resulted and millions of tax dollars later - we are no further ahead to seeing improvements to, as you say, the identifiable group who on average suffer the most. Now before you jump on my argument - what I'm saying here is that so far, throwing money at a problem has proven unsuccessful, for whatever reason.

Giving special status to Aboriginal people occurred a long time ago and it's pretty obvious how that has improved the situation of the Aboriginal people - see: Reserves. We all know how successful reserves are Giving special status has done nothing but keep all Aboriginal people seperate from the rest of Canada - sounds like a healthy thing to me

Lastly - as a Canadian I do benefit from a wonderful free health care system, an 'ok' education system etc., and so do all Aboriginal people (since, last I heard, they are also Canadian).

[rrskylar]

Cree Nation storm brewing

By: Mary Agnes Welch

Updated: May 22 at 06:51 AM CDT

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Former Cree Nation child welfare workers say they complained about serious mismanagement there for years but no one listened, and at least one northern chief says he's so troubled by recent allegations that he wants the agency's director fired.

New details trickled out Wednesday about the latest scandal to plague the province's aboriginal child welfare system -- allegations of nepotism, luxury staff and board retreats and questionable pay hikes and bonuses at the Cree Nation Child and Family Caring Agency.

Family Services Minister Gord Mackintosh, who has weathered daily questions about the agency, said a co-manager has been appointed to work alongside Cree Nation executive director Linda Constant.

And Mackintosh said it's possible a civil suit could be filed to recoup some of the misspent money. That action won't be contemplated until a review of the agency is completed in the coming weeks. The investigation was launched last summer after several former Cree Nation staffers wrote to the province outlining a litany of complaints. They highlighted $70,000 spent on staff retreats, conferences and out-of-province board meetings to locales like Kelowna, Niagara Falls and Prince Albert, Sask. Since the review began, the travel has continued to destinations like Minneapolis and Alberta, said the former workers.

In 2006, two dozen senior staff also received a three per cent wage hike retroactive 10 months, and a $30,000 van was purchased for Constant in lieu of a raise. Many of Constant's family members work at the agency, though some predate her.

One social worker said she complained to band chiefs, Cree Nation board members and the Northern Authority long before the review was finally launched.

"I'm not submitting anything else to the Northern Authority or the province because it never goes anywhere," said the former social worker. "Staff after staff after staff contacted the board to say 'why is this going on? Why are you letting this happen?' and nothing was ever done."

In fact, Constant issued a gag order on staff at Cree Nation mandating they could not speak directly to board members.

Tory Leader Hugh McFadyen also revealed Wednesday the retreat to Niagara Falls in 2006 included free massages, free tours of the falls and many other perks. Nearly the entire board and senior management team went on the week-long retreat.

"Almost an entire agency can take off, leaving children at risk, and no one in (Mackintosh's) department noticed," charged McFadyen.

Two former social workers said most board and staff travel was done by car -- not air -- and mileage was paid at 55 cents per kilometre. For a trip to Niagara Falls, one driver could claim well over $3,000 for the return trip.

Chemawawin Cree Nation Chief Clarence Easter, whose band is one of seven around The Pas served by Cree Nation child welfare services, said it may be time for Constant to resign, along with some board members.

"I think we need new management, for sure," said Easter.

Easter said he heard complaints from band members and Cree Nation staff and tried to question Constant and the Northern Authority about hiring practices, excessive travel and the process of apprehending kids long before the review was launched last summer. But Easter said he got few answers. He said the band chiefs may need to take over the board.

Family Services and Housing Minister Gord Mackintosh said he has not lost confidence in devolution or in the Northern Authority's ability to rout out wrongdoing.

"What we're seeing is a new era of accountability, of reckoning, of authorities taking on their newfound responsibilities under the devolution legislation," said Mackintosh. "All eyes are on the authorities that are conducting these reviews as to the strength of the finding and recommendations and the action plans."

maryagnes.welch@freepress.mb.ca

[harls]

AFN leader rejects calls to restrict school payouts in wake of deaths

Last Updated: Wednesday, May 21, 2008 | 8:14 PM ET

CBC News

The national chief of the Assembly of First Nations is rejecting calls from First Nations leaders in the Yukon to put restrictions on what residential school survivors do with their compensation payments.

As many as two dozen funerals have been held in the Yukon for former students who had recently received thousands of dollars in compensation from the federal government.

More than $27 million in compensation cheques has flowed into the Yukon since September. To qualify for the money, former students have had to retell their experiences — experiences that included physical, emotional and sexual abuse.

National Chief Phil Fontaine said he does not believe the deaths can be linked directly to the compensation payouts, but instead are part of the much larger tragedy of high suicide and addiction rates among aboriginal Canadians.

Nyla Klugie of the Kwawnlin Dun First Nation Health Centre says the process of applying for compensation brings back painful memories for some. (CBC)
But leaders including Diane Strand, chief of Champagne and Aishihik First Nations, disagree.

Not everyone should receive the payments directly, Strand said, because some survivors have been so emotionally traumatized by what they experienced as children that they turn to drugs or alcohol.

"Some of these people just don't have the capability [to handle a large sum of money], and I really feel that sometimes the money is just basically, how do I say it, putting the last nail in the coffin," Strand said.

Nyla Klugie of the Kwawnlin Dun First Nation Health Centre agrees. Some survivors are not ready for the money and have difficulties handling it, she said.

"It's the memories," Klugie said. "It brings you right back to day one when you were abused. Some of them can accept it, and some of them think it's not a good thing — poison money, I guess you could call it."

For a few, she said, the process of applying for the money reopens old wounds.

"There are some people for whom it is blood money. It takes away their life, sucks the life out of them, then next thing you know, they're dead," Klugie said.

Yukon MLA John Edzerza also believes deaths can be linked to the payouts.

"I know when historical trauma is brought to life again, the first thing the person wants to do is drown in alcohol and get rid of it somehow," he said.

Jesse Dawson and her brother Howard both spent time at a residential school in Whitehorse in the 1970s. Last fall, she and her brother received compensation payments of about $20,000 each.

Old demons unleashed
Jesse used her money to bring members of her extended family home to Whitehorse for Christmas. But for her brother, she said, the payment unleashed old demons.

"It was just too much for Howard to deal with, and he started drinking," she told the CBC's Lynda Calvert. "After four years of not drinking, he fell hard. He drank and drank until he died."

Fontaine said the money belongs to the individual survivors and what they do with it is their business. He points out there is a 1-800 number that survivors can call for help, and counselling is available.

But Dawson said her brother never would have called the number. Few survivors trust federal institutions, she said, and Howard wouldn't even ask his family for help.

Last month, First Nations communities across the Yukon held a special day of prayer to acknowledge the recent deaths they believe are connected with the compensation for former students of Indian residential schools.

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2008/...l-payouts.html

[rrskylar]

Peguis nears $126-M settlement

By: Alexandra Paul

Updated: May 23 at 09:26 AM CDT

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PEGUIS First Nation will announce details today of a $126-million federal settlement it's receiving for an historic land fraud.

The settlement is compensation for being illegally uprooted a century ago, the band's chief advisor explained Thursday.

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"This is for a specific claim dealing with the illegal surrender of our reserve at St. Peter's that was done in 1907," Peguis advisor Lloyd Stevenson said Thursday. "The surrender wasn't done properly, and, as a result, we're getting damages."

In 1907, descendents of an Ojibwa band led by Chief Peguis were removed from their fertile farm land in Petersfield, near Selkirk. The entire population was relocated to a parcel of rocky swamp on Lake Winnipeg.

The First Nation, which now numbers 8,400 Cree and Ojibwa people, is still at the location, 220 kilometres north of Winnipeg. For decades the band insisted to Ottawa that its ancestors had been swindled out of their original farmlands -- but they were denied every time they filed a claim.

It wasn't until 1998 that the federal Indian Claims Commission agreed with the band, and Ottawa gave in, said Stevenson. Since then, the band has been negotiating with federal Indian Affairs officials for damages.

The details of the deal will be released today at a press conference called by the band's governing council.

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Chief Peguis

The deal is also loosely related to Ottawa's determination to whittle down a backlog of land claims now reported to number more than 800 across the country.

The settlement with Peguis may be the largest so far in Canada -- even more than the $120 million given to an Alberta First Nation, Stevenson said.

Stories of the Peguis land fraud are part of the band's annals.

"Tricked is one word to describe it. Swindled is another. We also call it our Trail of Tears," Stevenson said.

The Trail of Tears is a reference to the forced relocation of the Cherokee nation from their Georgia home to Oklahoma in the 1830s. Hundreds died on the trek to the American Midwest.

There are no records of people dying on the journey overland to Peguis a century ago. But historians agree conditions were harsh.

"When our people were forced to relocate, it was extremely hard on them. There were no roads and they were leaving a settled community. They had to start all over again," Stevenson said.

The St. Peter's Reserve near Selkirk was lush, settled farmland by 1900. One historical document the band used in its negotiations described St. Peter's as a thriving community with rich soil close to bustling markets, the rival of any pioneer town.

The band's founding chief, Peguis, is the aboriginal leader best known for saving the Selkirk settlers in 1812 from slaughter by North West Company fur traders. He brought his people to Manitoba from Sault Ste. Marie in the 1790s.

The settlement is separate from a $64-million deal endorsed by Peguis voters last fall in another historic land package, called a treaty land entitlement package.

"In our information that we're giving out, " said Stevenson, "we do speak about the two claims. Each one is distinct but they both have common threads based on the old St. Peter's reserve."

The $64 million claim is to settle a land entitlement at Peguis's present location. After the community was uprooted, it was promised hundreds of thousands of acres it didn't get which they're still owed under their treaty. "That's the $64-million one," Stevenson said. The bulk of that money -- $51.4 million -- would be placed in a trust fund to buy 166,000 acres of land the band should have received under the terms of its treaty.

alexandra.paul@freepress.mb.ca

[rrskylar]

Other groups usually hold these type of things on weekend's.....



Aboriginal rally in Old Market Square today

By: Alexandra Paul

Updated: May 29 at 09:48 AM CDT

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Old Market Square in Winnipeg will host four hours of speeches and entertainment today as part of a National Day of Action organized by First Nations.

The gathering in Winnipeg, organized by the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs, runs from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and will celebrate aboriginal culture and traditions. The public is invited for the speeches, the food, prayers and to see aboriginal talent from hip hop and powwow dancing to rap and country music.

Similar rallies are taking part across the country. The biggest will be in Ottawa where the Assembly of First Nations is bringing in hundreds of Cree schoolchildren from the remote northern Ontario reserve of Attawapiskat to draw public attention to poor education on First Nations.

Also today, seven First Nations in Manitoba are to test the waters for a possible Caledonia-style standoff over the profits of a proposed oil pipeline in southern Manitoba.

Roseau River First Nation Chief Terry Nelson said he'll use the day to gather support with other Treaty One First Nations to go after a share of profits from oil sales to the United States.

"The main point of the rally is to get our people together and hear what has to happen if we physically have to stop the pipeline," Nelson said Wednesday. "We are going to have to gear up to do a Caledonian-type intervention on this and the reality is if we don't get people together, it's just me and (Peguis) Chief (Glenn) Hudson getting arrested."

In Caledonia, Ont., near Hamilton, protesters from Haudenosaunee Six Nations have occupied a construction site for more than two years.

Out here, Treaty One First Nations expect as many as 500 people today at the Manitoba border near Haskett, south of Winkler, where a proposed Trans-Canada pipeline will cross into the U.S. carrying oil.

The Treaty One group, which includes Roseau River, Brokenhead, Swan Lake, Long Plain, Peguis, Sagkeeng and Sandy Bay, has already filed a court motion in a legal attempt to stop the pipeline running through treaty lands.

Supporters are gathering at 9 a.m. at Memorial Park in Winnipeg to drive to the Tim Hortons in Winkler for 11 a.m. and then on to Haskett.

alexandra.paul@freepress.mb.ca

[Greco Roman]

Originally Posted by rrskylar

Other groups usually hold these type of things on weekend's.....



Aboriginal rally in Old Market Square today

By: Alexandra Paul

Updated: May 29 at 09:48 AM CDT

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Old Market Square in Winnipeg will host four hours of speeches and entertainment today as part of a National Day of Action organized by First Nations.

The gathering in Winnipeg, organized by the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs, runs from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and will celebrate aboriginal culture and traditions. The public is invited for the speeches, the food, prayers and to see aboriginal talent from hip hop and powwow dancing to rap and country music.

Similar rallies are taking part across the country. The biggest will be in Ottawa where the Assembly of First Nations is bringing in hundreds of Cree schoolchildren from the remote northern Ontario reserve of Attawapiskat to draw public attention to poor education on First Nations.

Also today, seven First Nations in Manitoba are to test the waters for a possible Caledonia-style standoff over the profits of a proposed oil pipeline in southern Manitoba.

Roseau River First Nation Chief Terry Nelson said he'll use the day to gather support with other Treaty One First Nations to go after a share of profits from oil sales to the United States.

"The main point of the rally is to get our people together and hear what has to happen if we physically have to stop the pipeline," Nelson said Wednesday. "We are going to have to gear up to do a Caledonian-type intervention on this and the reality is if we don't get people together, it's just me and (Peguis) Chief (Glenn) Hudson getting arrested."

In Caledonia, Ont., near Hamilton, protesters from Haudenosaunee Six Nations have occupied a construction site for more than two years.

Out here, Treaty One First Nations expect as many as 500 people today at the Manitoba border near Haskett, south of Winkler, where a proposed Trans-Canada pipeline will cross into the U.S. carrying oil.

The Treaty One group, which includes Roseau River, Brokenhead, Swan Lake, Long Plain, Peguis, Sagkeeng and Sandy Bay, has already filed a court motion in a legal attempt to stop the pipeline running through treaty lands.

Supporters are gathering at 9 a.m. at Memorial Park in Winnipeg to drive to the Tim Hortons in Winkler for 11 a.m. and then on to Haskett.

alexandra.paul@freepress.mb.ca

This moron never quits, does he?

[socialisthorde]

^^Who, rrskylar? Just kiddin. I've had my say and don't wish to rock the boat any further but you just made that too darned easy.

[rrskylar]

^My comment on top of that article was premeditated, with hopes of an
elevated response!

[Greco Roman]

Originally Posted by socialisthorde

^^Who, rrskylar?

No.

Nelson is the biggest blowhards around.

He's about as useless and washed up as Britney Spears, and sounds like her too:

"Gimmie gimmie more gimmie more gimmie gimmie more.
Gimmie gimmie more gimmie more gimmie gimmie more."

He is accomplishing nothing but more segregation between aboriginals and non-aboriginals, making things worse.

[rrskylar]

There is good First Nations leadership and bad, their are good chiefs and bad chiefs, criticizing bad First Nations leadership somehow elicits a response that we (people on the right) want to keep First Nations people down or that we are racist, from those on the left, many of whom have probably never set foot on a reserve nor ever would!

[socialisthorde]

Originally Posted by socialisthorde

Just kiddin.

Really, I was.

[Markus41]

Originally Posted by Greco Roman

No.

Nelson is the biggest blowhard indian around.

He's about as useless and washed up as Britney Spears, and sounds like her too:

"Gimmie gimmie more gimmie more gimmie gimmie more.
Gimmie gimmie more gimmie more gimmie gimmie more."

That was pretty funny. And from what I've read about Nelson, your description sounds very accurate.

[rrskylar]

An outsider's view of residential schools

Don Sandberg

Updated: June 11 at 12:55 AM CDT

From the Winnipeg Free Press

The residential school years were, without doubt, a terrible experience for some native students. One can only imagine the torment of being unable to escape one's abusers. Today many still suffer the effects of being molested by those who preached right and wrong. But not all students suffered; some gained much by being able to attend these institutions.

The government of the day believed that warehousing people in educational institutions was best for the native people. The policy, thought to be in the best interests of all, was very misguided, but then one must remember this was the early nineteen-hundreds.

Still, there is no excuse for trying to remove a people's culture so that they might be integrated into the society of the day. Did it work? No, of course not! These students went home on holidays and, once they graduated, returned to their reserves where their cultures remained intact. On the positive side, many living on isolated reserves say they would not have received this level of education without the residential schools, and many have judged it a positive experience. As a direct result of their education, some that I know went on to become school teachers, principals, and church leaders while others worked in a multitude of professions.

Tragically, others came away with the scars of sexual abuse at the hands of those entrusted with their well-being. The news stories, however, make it appear that most residential school students suffered sexual abuse. This was definitely not the case. Abusers appear in many similar institutions including military academies and Christian schools. The media has reported these cases over the years, with Mount Cashel probably the most recognized. A movie was made about this orphanage, also known as "Newfoundland's House of Horrors."

The aboriginal network has played the residential school card at every opportunity, and the sad thing is that even those who did not actually attend residential schools blame all of their social ills on the aboriginal residential school era. I am an alcoholic, I am a drug user, I can't work, I am a lousy parent, or I commit crimes -- all this because of what the government did by sending me or my parents to residential school.

Growing up in the northern community of Gillam, Manitoba in the 1950s and '60s, I recall how sad it was each fall to see many of my friends boarding the train to return to residential school. The summers were fun-filled times and now we would not see them again until Christmas. Those of us who stayed behind because we were not treaty Indians at the time noticed a huge difference when these friends returned. Most importantly, they could now skate circles around us at hockey games. The secret? They had excellent coaches; we had none. Their grasp of the English language also greatly improved as they used words far beyond our level at the time. I visited a residential school in 1974 and, as some students played a game of hockey against the teachers on the outdoor rink, I marvelled at their sports storage room filled with brand-new skates and other hockey equipment. Many of the teachers and staff were First Nations people from many reserves. We must never forget the excellent staff, both aboriginal and others, who were there for all the right reasons and who have now been tarnished by all the negative stories.

I also recall the opening stages of the lawsuit against the Federal Government for compensation to former residential school students. I was working and living on my reserve and witnessed the chief arrive from Winnipeg with a group of lawyers and their staff; we knew something big was in the air.

These lawyers went house to house seeking former residential school students, encouraging them to sign up for the class action suit. By now everyone was starting to smell the money -- and it was promising to be huge. The lawyers stood to earn thousands of dollars for each student signed up. The government announced that the legal fees could top $1 billion. CBC news reported, on Feb. 23, 2004, that the government had spent more on lawyers than on former residential school students who suffered physical and sexual abuse. The government reported they had already spent $200-million, mostly to lawyers, while only a fraction of that -- $38-million -- had gone to former students.

By some accounts we have not yet squeezed the last dollar out of the government, so expect the propaganda machine to keep on rolling -- but be very careful about recognizing who may be guiding this propaganda machine to their own ends.

Don Sandberg is a band member of the Norway House Cree First Nation and the aboriginal policy fellow at the Frontier Centre for Public Policy. www.fcpp.org.

[socialisthorde]

United Church Social Policy Positions
1998 Apology to First Nations (1998)
To Former Students of United Church Indian Residential Schools, and to Their Families and Communities

From the deepest reaches of your memories, you have shared with us your stories of suffering from our church's involvement in the operation of Indian Residential Schools. You have shared the personal and historic pain that you still bear, and you have been vulnerable yet again. You have also shared with us your strength and wisdom born of the life-giving dignity of your communities and traditions and your stories of survival.

In response to our church's commitment to repentance, I spoke these words of apology on behalf of the General Council Executive on Tuesday, October 27, 1998:

"As Moderator of The United Church of Canada, I wish to speak the words that many people have wanted to hear for a very long time. On behalf of The United Church of Canada, I apologize for the pain and suffering that our church's involvement in the Indian Residential School system has caused. We are aware of some of the damage that this cruel and ill-conceived system of assimilation has perpetrated on Canada's First Nations peoples. For this we are truly and most humbly sorry.

"To those individuals who were physically, sexually, and mentally abused as students of the Indian Residential Schools in which The United Church of Canada was involved, I offer you our most sincere apology. You did nothing wrong. You were and are the victims of evil acts that cannot under any circumstances be justified or excused.

"We know that many within our church will still not understand why each of us must bear the scar, the blame for this horrendous period in Canadian history. But the truth is, we are the bearers of many blessings from our ancestors, and therefore, we must also bear their burdens."

Our burdens include dishonouring the depths of the struggles of First Nations peoples and the richness of your gifts. We seek God's forgiveness and healing grace as we take steps toward building respectful, compassionate, and loving relationships with First Nations peoples.

We are in the midst of a long and painful journey as we reflect on the cries that we did not or would not hear, and how we have behaved as a church. As we travel this difficult road of repentance, reconciliation, and healing, we commit ourselves to work toward ensuring that we will never again use our power as a church to hurt others with attitudes of racial and spiritual superiority.

"We pray that you will hear the sincerity of our words today and that you will witness the living out of our apology in our actions in the future."

The Right Rev. Bill Phipps
Moderator of The United Church of Canada

http://www.united-church.ca/beliefs/policies/1998/a623

General Council Executive, October 1998

More to come...

[socialisthorde]

Residential school apology worth more than money
JENNIFER TAPLIN, METRO HALIFAX
June 10, 2008 05:00

A few words of apology could mean more than money to survivors of residential schools.


Prime Minister Stephen Harper is set to formally apologize tomorrow to the thousands of abused victims of residential schools, many of whom have received cash compensation.


“I think the public act of apologizing is more important than any money given,” said Violet Paul, who is helping to organize a ‘letting go’ ceremony and march tomorrow at the Shubenacadie Residential School site.


“It’s admitting they did something wrong.”


It will be an emotional day, she said, and Harper’s apology is what victims need to heal.


Vincent Toney, 70, said it’s not Harper from whom he wants an apology.


Toney was only six-years-old when police took him and his younger sister to the school.


“One nun grabbed her and took her away and slapped her for hollering because she was scared. I said, ‘stop hitting my sister.’ And she slapped me too,” he said.


“If I can’t see the person who did this to me … if I can’t face them and have them say they’re sorry, then nobody can tell me that.”


But he’s going to Ottawa to hear it in person, even though he never expected to receive such a historic apology in his lifetime.


There are dark memories in his past, some Toney can’t even talk about, but there’s some pride too.

Many, like himself, joined the Armed Forces afterwards.


“Even in the abusive situation we were in, we came out of it and they never broke my spirit. They couldn’t break our spirit.”


-jennifer.taplin@metronews.ca


http://www.metronews.ca/halifax/local/article/66713

[socialisthorde]

Most Canadians agree with residential school apology
Juliet O'Neill, Canwest News Service
Published: Monday, June 09, 2008
OTTAWA -- Three days before Prime Minister Stephen Harper issues a solemn apology to the survivors of Canada's Indian residential school system, a new poll says most Canadians agree with the practice of current apologies for historic wrongdoings.

The Ipsos-Reid poll of 1,000 adults for Canwest News Service and Global Television says two in three Canadians agree that "it's about time that the government and Canadians come to terms with its past actions, and so issuing apologies for past transgressions and mistakes is appropriate."
One in three disagree with the practice, endorsing the view that today's government and society "shouldn't be held accountable" for yesterday's wrongdoing, so no apologies are necessary.


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Font:****Harper is scheduled on Wednesday to issue a formal apology in the House of Commons to thousands of men and women who suffered mistreatment as young residents of a state-funded Christian school system aimed at stripping them of their aboriginal culture and connections.

The apology comes soon after the establishment of a five-year Indian Residential Schools Truth and Reconciliation Commission, part of a $2-billion settlement reached in 2006 among the government, churches and about 90,000 former students.

John Wright, Ipsos Reid senior vice president, public affairs, said while the poll shows a high level of support for recognizing injustice through apology, it does not mean that apologies, in and of themselves, are enough.

"If it helps heal a wound or heal an injustice or a past circumstance then it's appropriate," he said in an interview. "But an apology in and of itself in some circumstances, like the residential school system issue, is simply not enough for the group or the offended party, nor is it, I think, for the nation. It was a horrific chapter."

Wright said an apology can "kick start" a process that, in the case of the residential school abuses, will involve the work of the truth and reconciliation commission.

The survey question cited apologies for past transgressions, ranging from the internment of Japanese-Canadians during the Second World War to the former head tax on Chinese Canadians and the abuses of students in the residential school system.

http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/n...8-2a208e42de8a

[socialisthorde]

Originally Posted by rrskylar

... so expect the propaganda machine to keep on rolling -- but be very careful about recognizing who may be guiding this propaganda machine to their own ends.
Don Sandberg is a band member of the Norway House Cree First Nation and the aboriginal policy fellow at the Frontier Centre for Public Policy. www.fcpp.org.

^The Frontier Centre? Of course they have no agenda.

[vid]

Yes but we musten't underestimate the lobbies of Big Indian.

I have mixed feelings toward the apology. It's a nice gesture, but really doesn't do much to help the actual victims. In addition to that, the money hasn't been exactly helpful to many of the recipients. The whole programme should have been thought over better.

[socialisthorde]

Originally Posted by vid

Yes but we musten't underestimate the lobbies of Big Indian.

I have mixed feelings toward the apology. It's a nice gesture, but really doesn't do much to help the actual victims. In addition to that, the money hasn't been exactly helpful to many of the recipients. The whole programme should have been thought over better.

I agree that the money and the way it has been distributed has not been very helpful, but I disagree with you on the value (or lack thereof) in the apology. I think the apology and hopefully the T&R process will go some way in restoring lost dignity for those First Nations people who have some shred left. I recognize that many have absolutely no dignity or self respect left, and a simple apology is not going to help them a great deal (neither did the money). There are also many who have managed to overcome difficult odds and have reclaimed their own dignity and maybe a few who had it easy all along. They maybe don't really need the apology. However, there are a large number in the middle, who an apology may help. I'm just hoping that Mr. Harper has the charisma and warmth to come across as genuine, but I have my doubts after seeing the photo of him shaking hands with his 9 year old son

[Major Fiasco]

Glad to see that the federal government has finally apologized (http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servl.../BNStory/Front) for the terrible events surrounding the residential schools. However, comments from members of the governing party, like this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ws2Jc5692TY , honestly make me question the reasons and authenticity of this apology. The comments ring of continued assimilation via the old protestant values of our current government. I hope this is just one MP, and the we can all actual move on from here and start dealing with the issues that separate us all, and avoid the blame game.


PS- I have read this forum for sometime and have avoided getting involved in the discussion. The events of today changed that, as I felt it necessary to provide some positive posts in this thread.