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From Charlie Wolf Smoke: PLEASE POST WIDELY
Our Home on Native land Weekend of workshops, panels
and discussion groups The McGill Indigenous Peoples' Solidarity Movement (IPSM) came together recently in Montreal as a group committed to raising awareness of the history of human injustices against Indigenous Peoples. We are aware of the history of imperialism against Indigenous Peoples worldwide--- injustices that continue to haunt Indigenous Peoples of the world to this day. We are therefore dedicated to social justice as achieved by range of actions which support struggles and resistance movements advocating oppressed peoples rights and dignity. As such, aware of the need to think globally and act locally and, thus, to begin the struggle for social justice internationally in our own domestic contexts we are hosting a weekend of workshops, panels and discussion groups in Montreal. We desire an event with a strong representation of the various native nations and issues that affect them. As a non-native solidarity group, the organizers don't pretend to know how best to make this work. We are seeking the guidance and support of native nations and others who have been working on indigenous rights to help us put together the workshops. The themes of the event are broad and general to encompass the range and severity of issues faced: from health care, to militarization, to cultural appropriation and racism. We are hoping to build a stronger movement for indigenous rights where non-native allies can help offer support and solidarity in anyway needed, such as the recent defeat of the proposed Hydro Quebec Great Whale project and our own group's trip to Oneida Nation territory in upstate New York to show support for Danielle Schenandoah, a traditional Oneida woman whose house was set for demolition. The event is primarily based on workshops. Each workshop will have one or several presenters on an issue. Just as important, the workshop will also provide time for participants to strategize on how to work on the given issue. We would like people who are attending to be prepared to help each other reach a goal of the workshop; whether it be to exchange phone numbers for the next action, to organize a letter writing campaign, to plan a delegation to camp out- prepared to block destruction of native territory, what is important is that people leave the conference ready to continue supporting native communities. We strongly encourage the participation of all non-native ally and solidarity groups. We feel that there is often a silence surrounding indigenous issues in much of the organising in the anti-war, anti-globalisation movement. The fight against imperialism starts at home by supporting native communities and their struggles for self-determination. This is our chance to bring these issues to the forefront and to make stronger links between immigrant and refugee communities, Third World struggles, and native communities---all resisting global capitalism and imperialism. This event will present a rare opportunity to build relationships between native and non-native nations. There are significant issues that demand our collaboration. To list only a few: reservations and broken treaties in North America; hunting and trapping losses; land expropriation and police brutality against Mohawks; attacking Mic-Mac [CHANGE: Mic-Mac TO Mi'kmaq] lobster trappers; NATO bombing ranges on Innu land; Hydro Quebec theft of Cree sovereignty; theft and poisoning of Lubicon land; etc.. And overall - our governments' commitment to a culture bent on the eradication or assimilation of indigenous people - which we must resist by extending our solidarity. There are several ways to get involved in this event: as an endorser, participant, speaker. Please get in touch with us at mipsm500@yahoo.ca. In solidarity,
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