Standing Up to Betrayal

(Graphic: Brian Covert / Photo: National Post)

A handwritten placard held up by a First Nations protester in Canada warns: Get Ready 4 Indian Spring, referring to the “Arab Spring” citizen uprisings that have literally redrawn the political maps in several Middle Eastern countries in recent years. Something strong indeed seems to be stirring in indigenous communities in Canada and elsewhere, yet for the most part the story is still underreported (and unreported) by the big news companies of the world.

That may change in this coming spring season. In recent months the “Idle No More” social movement based in Canada has reignited sparks of Native pride, mass action and solidarity, both within and beyond Canadian borders, like few others have in recent times.

Idle No More began as a small public protest back in November 2012 among local activists in Canada protesting the weakening of environmental laws, especially concerning the protection of waterways such as rivers, lakes and canals — many of which run through Native lands. That led to calls for various First Nations communities across Canada to join together and reassert their treaty rights to the government as sovereign nations rather than as divided, powerless “tribes”. Theresa Spence, chief of the Attawapiskat First Nation, lent her support to the action in a hunger strike, which is continuing.

Support for Idle No More is now rising in the U.S., Europe and elsewhere. Social media and the Internet have played a key role in bringing people together under the Idle No More banner and its mission of rising up to “repair these violations, live the spirit and intent of the treaty relationship, work towards justice in action, and protect Mother Earth”.

In very simple terms, Idle No More is a movement of people standing up to betrayal. People are tired of being betrayed by the lies of governments and corporations, and having their sincere concerns about the environment, about Native sacred lands and about treaty rights either ignored or trampled upon completely.

Idle No More says, in effect, to the betrayers: “Enough! We no longer believe your lies and broken promises. No more sitting around and waiting for change — now we move and take matters into our own hands.”

The antidote to this kind of bitter betrayal is family. Strengthening ties of trust and love with immediate family members linked by blood is a start, but it also extends far beyond that to other communities, tribes, clans, nations — indeed all of humanity and the Earth itself as the common mother of us all. Betrayal leaves deep wounds in people’s lives, but family heals them. This, it seems to me, is the powerful heartbeat behind the growing Idle No More movement.

Will Idle No More have the same impact as the Arab Spring revolts of recent years? The coming months will tell. In the meantime, you can find out what the big news media companies are missing about the Idle No More movement by checking out the Web links provided above in this article. Keep your eyes and ears open this spring, and your finger to the wind.

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