SocialistWorker www.socialist.ca $2 no. 576 September 2015 Indigenous sovereignty Page 2-3 Valerie Lannon remem- bers Gustafsen Lake, Eric STOP HARPER Lescarbeau reports on Unist’ot’en resistance, and Janahan Ravikuman writes about Hawaiian *NO TAR SANDS sovereignty Greece Page 4 *NO PIPELINES Panos Garganas reports from Athens about resist- ance to Syriza’s austerity measures *RESPECT FIRST NATIONS Bernie Sanders Page 4 Paolo Bassi examines the hopes and contradictions *CLIMATE of the anti-establishment candidate Haiti JOBS NOW Page 5 Jose Hiriat interviews Haitian socialist David Oxygene about the long struggle against imperialism Stop Harper Page 6-7 Jesse McLaren surveys the Orange Wave and the movements the NDP needs to reflect in order to stop Harper’s agenda Decolonization Page 8 Bradley Hughes inter- views Salish activist Scott Clark about his anticol- onial work Women’s liberation Page 8 Chantal Sundaram discusses the “Bare With Us” movement Black Lives Matter Page 10 Valerie Lannon reports on resistance to anti-Black racism in Toronto Canadian Dis- Facts & figures abilities Act 85 by MELISSA GRAHAM Percentage of tar sands that have to stay in the ground to This election, it’s time for avoid catastrophic climate an Canadian Disabilities change, according to the Act. scientific journalNature From coast-to-coast across Canada, disabled people 18,000 and organization have been Additional jobs created if breaking down barriers. the $1.3 billion the federal Without the support of our government invests in oil federal government, the and gas were instead in- individualized “solutions” vested in renewable energy miss the mark; access to and energy efficiency society and quality of life is not created through tax 135,000 breaks and savings plans. Number of workers who Now is a time to call would see a wage increase if for change. It’s time for $15/hr minimum wage were bold policy that benefits all granted to federal workers disabled people living in Canada. It’s time to call on 400,000 Pipeline resistance & decolonization our MPs and perspective Number of manufacturing MPs for a Barrier-Free job lost under Harper’s by ERIC LESCARBEAU Canada. watch The following is taken With Chevron attempting The LNG industry Resources Department Colonization and from a letter written by $250 million to build the Pacific Trails has not been as high on Manager for the Office of resistance the Barrier Free Canada Amount Mulcair wants to Pipeline, Unist’ot’en chiefs people’s radar as tar sands the Hereditary Chiefs of After Chevron opened an Committee: waste training 2,500 new are asserting title to their pipelines like Enbridge’s the Wet’suwet’en (OW), office 40km from the camp, Canada is one of the cops rather than investing in traditional territory and Northern Gateway or Kinder explains the significance the RCMP began harassing few developed countries jobs and services the right to free, prior and Morgan’s Transmountain, of this in the video “Your camp supporters entering that does not have a informed consent to any- but it should be. LNG in BC Voice, Our Future”: “We and leaving the camp. comprehensive nationally $34 billion one, including work crews, poses almost as big a threat have a word for our territory In an effort to undermine legislated Disabilities Act. Subsidies for Canadian entering their territory. to the climate as the Alberta and it’s ‘Yin Tah.’ But it’s First Nations’ opposition It is imperative to have the energy companies in 2014, Citing supreme court Tar Sands. not just a word. It’s almost to the PTP and sow div- rights of disabled people according to the IMF rulings including the 1997 The tradeoff is sup- a philosophy and it not only isions, Chevron and the legitimized, recognized, and Delgamuukw decision, posed to be the Liberal refers to the territory but the BC Ministry of Aboriginal protected and we believe $36 billion of which the Office of government’s ridiculous territory is comprised of the Relations and Reconciliation that an initiative such as ours Amount the Harper gov- Wet’suwet’en hereditary claims of 100,000 jobs trees, the soil, the insects, (MARR) set up the First can make this a reality. ernment is cutting from chiefs were co-complain- but this has recently been the birds, the fish, the water Nations Limited Partnership healthcare ants, as well as last year’s soundly debunked by the and also human beings; and (FNLP)—spearheaded What’s in it for me? Tsilhqot’in decisions they Canadian Centre for Policy each action affects another by former Ontario NDP Disabled people who are not state: “The Unist’ot’en Alternatives. The report component. Something that premier, Bob Rae, and using currently covered, or who settlement and camp is a “LNG and Employment In happens in the water will af- Indigenous workers to clear- are insufficiently covered by In their own peaceful expression of our BC” shows that “BC’s LNG fect the bugs. The bugs feed cut for the companies. their province or territory; connection to Unist’ot’en sector could be expected to the fish and there is a chain The FNLP’s strategy people who care for their words territory. It is also an expres- support only 2,000 to 3,000 reaction. I think that’s what has been to strong-arm disabled family members; sion of the continuing and construction jobs per plant the ecosystem, the food web local band councils into people who are forced into “It will probably be one of unbroken chain of use and over three years and 200 is. So the health and well signing benefit deals while poverty because their dis- the biggest solar instala- occupation of our territory to 300 permanent workers being of a territory reflects simultaneously shutting out ability has prevented them tions in northern Alberta, by our clan. Flowing from once operational.” the health and well-being of traditional governance bod- from being employed; aging especially in the tar sands. this continuous use and a people.” ies and hereditary chiefs. Canadians, Veterans, and the It’s right in the community, occupation, our traditional Unist’ot’en Heals For three summers since *Make a donation or find extended family and loved so young people can see structures of governance In response to the LNG it was established, hundreds out how to register to join ones of all of the above can that we don’t just have retain complete jurisdiction threat, the Unist’ot’en of supporters from across the camp at: http://unisto- be benefited by a national to generate power and in our territory and further, Camp focuses on restoring the region and beyond have tencamp.com/?p=1149 act. electricity from fossil fuels, dictate the proper use and traditional relationships to travelled to the camp to sup- *To learn more about how Even the individual who is that we can power it from access to our lands and the land, decolonization and port the blockade, receive you can support the camp not affected by disability dir- the sun.” waters.” respect for aboriginal title decolonization training and visit, http://unistotencamp. ectly or indirectly can enjoy —Melina Laboucan- and rights. Standing under assist in building the settle- com knowing that as a caring Massimo, member of the LNG threat the banner “Unist’ot’en ment. The Unist’ot’en have *A “Frontlines Beat country, we are advocating Lubicon Cree First Nation The camp has come under Heals” they enforce a camp inspired and built solidarity Pipelines” fundraiser will for all our people. increasing pressure as the protocol which requires the with thousands of climate be held in Vancouver on “What is desperately BC Liberal government free, prior and informed activists across the region Thursday, September 10 at What is the end goal? lacking in this election desperately tries to seal consent of the Unist’ot’en and the world, and we need the Wise Hall, 1882 Adanac A streamlined law that de- campaign is a global Final Investment Decisions people to enter the yinta or to increase this support to Street from 7:00 to 11:00pm. fines civil and human rights vision, a desirable, viable (FIDs) on LNG plants and territory. stop the Liberal’s LNG Visit their FB page to get for all disabled Canadians. and realizable solution pipelines. David DeWit, Natural plans. tickets. We need all the support that will replace the that we can gather and your relentless exploitation of participation is crucial in hydrocarbons.” Remembering Gustafsen Lake this regard. Our initiative —Amir Khadir, Member by VALERIE LANNON has already obtained the of Quebec’s National endorsements of such Assembly for Quebec Twenty years ago, has been going on for 139 the camp. non-indigenous sources, a organizations as the CNIB, solidiare Indigenous Sundancers years,” the RCMP cut off Two Sundancers hit a situation that was not helped March of Dimes, the MS resisted the RCMP’s communications to the camp land mine on September 11, by the NDP government’s Society of Canada, the “At what point do we as largest operation in and set up their own media when they tried to drive out negative characterization Canadian Hearing Society, a society say, OK, that’s Canada’s history, under centre. of the camp to get water. of the situation. This was and Accessible Media Inc. enough, let’s leave stuff in an NDP government. This The RCMP shot at and the same government that Please take a moment to the ground, and we won’t took place at Ts’Peten, The state and the NDP wounded them while they established treaty tables in visit us at http://barrierfree- be bullied by peoplewho or Gustafsen Lake, in Thus began a classic smear attempted to flee, thought 1991, but only enabled a canada.org/contact-us/.