MEMBERS FIGHT BACK!

First Nation peoples in Alberta and Saskatchewan are all talking among themselves about an historic offer to settle their claim.  Earlier in 2017 some twenty Treaty No. 8 first nations received an offer from the Federal Government of Canada on an outstanding 1899 Treaty 8 specific obligation. It is unprecedented, but it took 118 years to get there!!! That is what I call patience.  The offer stems from a clause under the treaty addressing the agricultural benefits or, as it is known by the beneficiaries, “Cows and Ploughs”. 

It has been a long, protracted and expensive process to say the least. Most of the Treaty No. 8 First Nations submitted their specific claims to Indigenous and Northern Affairs, Specific Claims Branch for outstanding agricultural benefits in the early 1990s.  Around 2010, Canada took the position that all Treaty 8 First Nations with an outstanding agricultural benefits claim had to collectively negotiate their claim, which is when things began to move forward.  Albeit slowly.   It would still take an additional 6 years before a settlement offer that was worth taking back to their members was presented to the First Nations.

The Chiefs say they want members to vote to keep the bulk of the settlement in a trust for the use and benefit of future generations.  Members, on the other hand, see that Treaty obligation differently. For one, they believe they are the future generations of a Treaty that was signed 118 years ago. Moreover, they take this position from the Treaty document itself. This specific claim is different from other claims that are tied to land rights. In claims for lost land, the compensation replaces a capital asset, namely reserve land, which is held collectively as a whole for all members.

However, the agricultural benefit Treaty right benefits both the First Nation as whole and individual families. Most of the implements offered in the treaty, like a hoe, shovel, cow, seeds, etc. were to be given to individual families to start a small family farm. Therefore to follow that logic, a reasonable person would naturally accept that the majority of the settlement funds should be distributed to individual members to pursue economic opportunities.

A debate has ensued on whether the agricultural benefits Treaty right is a collective or an individual right.  Although it was not much of a debate at least one Chief and Council flat out refused to hear any other thoughts on the matter.  It is both a collective and individual right.  

While almost all the members believes that Canada’s offer is a fair and equitable offer they are unable to accept the offer because their First Nation is providing only a single ballot question.  Members must accept both the settlement offer and the trust agreement that sets out how the compensation will be distributed, invested and spent.   The ballot could have been set up to permit members to accept separately the settlement and the terms of the trust agreement, but Chief and Council decided not to.

The strong-handed position from Chief and Council is reflected in the voting packages that were mailed out last week, in which the majority of the settlement funds will remain in the hands of Chief and Council.  Members feel their Council never really seriously considered their input and they predetermined what would be in the trust created to accept the settlement.  Indeed, members are furious and upset. That said, at the end of the day, it would be the members who will decide whether to reject or accept the offer by a vote later in June.
 

A ratification process is underway and it is therefore too late to stop this process.  Those members I have talked to said that when they vote no, a negative vote will not represent a rejection of Canada’s offer but a rejection of Chief and Councils’ forcefully putting forth what they want, regardless of what the members want.

This also begs the questions, why would a Chief and Council who are presumably in power to act on their members’ behalf, refuse to consider their views?  The answer is simple.  The Chief and Council believe that their members are incapable of managing a large sum, even in 2017.     They also believe they know better the needs of their members and how to take care of them.  Sound familiar?

Stay tuned...

•         Will there be enough “No” votes to reject the settlement?
•      If so, will Canada allow another ratification vote, knowing that this is not a vote against the offer?
•       Will the Council work through the internal matters to resolve the terms of the trust to the satisfaction of its members?

UPDATE: Although many members were dissatisfied with the offer from Chief and Council. ACFN MEMBERS VOTED to accept the offer. The truth is many didn't understand or read the package!  

Freeing the EGO

Letting go of control does not have to be difficult. I will occasionally, when I am faced with a decision, stop what I am doing, quiet my mind and concentrate on my breath. I want to make decisions based on a clear mind. The question becomes do I continue control or let it go?

Not all the time, but sometimes I will make an assessment of the situation. What can I do about it? What is the worst thing that would happen if I do nothing? Too often it is our emotions that prevent us from seeing clearly what could be the right action to take. I guess some would call it egotistical, and if I were honest with myself, they would be correct in describing me as such. Most of the time the thought I have is if not me, then who? That is exactly EGO.  My critics will complain that I love control and maybe that is true.  But I also accept a helping hand and like to share in the responsibility. I will work with anyone. I enjoy collaborations.

From the outside looking in, I may appear bossy or always in control. That is a perception some people have of me, and that may or not be true of me.  Okay, I admit I have a healthy ego. I make an effort to control things around me, I like to be in action rather than be passive and let life happens around me. I like affecting change and often don't wait for anyone.  The change I am looking for is always positive change, something to better people's life.  I have the type of personality that when I see that something needs to be done, and I don’t see anyone doing it, I will do take it on.   I want to help.  My advocacy is always to do good on others behalf. If I can make a positive difference, I will do something.   Doing nothing is never an option for me. 

That is my personality failing, which is why I meditate. I want to be less controlling, less judgemental, and more compassionate and loving. I enjoy volunteering, not for any recognition or validate but to get things done.  I am not afraid of putting time into something I feel is important and could perhaps make a difference. 

Like for example, I have undertaken a quest to research and maintain my family tree. This is a good example of taking control of a project. It is a work of passion and on-going, which I began in 2008. If I didn’t do it would it have ever been done, I wonder. I had ten brothers and have five sisters.  That is just the immediate family. I was able to document 152 families and 373 people thus far. I was able to put into the database almost 1,000 family pictures. This has been tremendous amount of work and initially took up many hours of my free time.  However, it has been so satisfying as well. To add to that, I also created a facebook family page, to support the genealogy research I was doing.  I posted the birthdays, births, weddings, graduations, and deaths. This is to ensure my database is correct.  If I made a mistake, someone will tell me, and will I correct the database. Almost everyone in my family knows I am doing this, but no one has offered to help me. That said, to the degree that it is done, I feel a great sense of accomplishment.  

On the other hand, the down side of having created the family facebook group, which allows me to post and manage the page, has opened me to accusations of being too controlling. Recently a family member so “eloquently” said in an emailed to me… “I love how u control what it posted and not posted in this group too.... power and control...”    So I decided to add four other family members to the facebook group as administrators.  Doing this gave me a huge relief; I don’t know why it didn't occur to me sooner.  Thank you for pushing me to do that.

We always have a choice of letting go of things. Not taking things too personally. Letting go of always being in control or being right. Because when I think about it , the worst that could have happened if I have never started the family tree and family facebook group, would be nothing.  Yes, nothing, it would not have made any difference to anyone. Maybe another family member would have done it, or maybe not. Either way, it does not matter. Letting go.  Knowing when to let go is liberating.  Knowing I don’t always have to be in control is a freeing. At the end of the day, was it all about my ego?  

I am taking the next step, I have let go completely and remove myself as administrator on the facebook family group page.  Who knows it might just go beyond anything I could have achieved on my own. I look forward to seeing it evolve and thrive by the people I added as admin before I removed myself.  It feels great!    

Dene Poem

Drum Dance

2009

Roger Deranger - Denesuline Artist

Hidden within the Dene forest home

spirits dream enthusiastically to roam

they dwell honorably during mystic time

when the heaven and earth vastly rhyme

upon a painted sunset, a silence broke

it was an ancient flame that spoke

and the drums mysteriously, exhilarate

altering each soul into a radiant state

chants and pulse, conjured, impulsively

blessing everyone into a circular flee

round and around they sacredly dance

drowning themselves into a joyous trance

poured with euphoria, the beings paced

leaving each step then majestically traced

within its midst, the fire proudly sing

drawing the ritual into a universal ring

the stars above also harmonized along

ensuring the divine hoop is kept strong

for every life is absorbed into solidarity

a movement of strength and reassuringly

the dance, song and heartbeat, all is real

giving the entire cycle a seed to heal

from dusk to dark, the spirits fly

until our dance has reached the sky

A Tough Conversation

This is a difficult but necessary conversation.  If a conversation is difficult, then it should be engaged in with as many people as possible. And you know what, it seems like it is never the perfect time the for a difficult conversation.

I am talking about alcoholism, which is not a sexy subject and no one wants to talk about it.

Harold R. Johnson wrote this about it in his book, Firewater - How Alchohol is killing My People (and Yours)…

I must speak because so few are speaking.  Our political leaders, our chiefs and councillors, the AFN, the Indian federations, the tribal council – all seem so silent.  

Its impact on lives, particularly in First Nation communities, is well known. I am convinced that there is no other place in Canada that feels the influence of addictions more fully than in a First Nation community.  These communities are tight. Their hearts beat as one.  The saying “all my relations” is not lost here because one quickly realizes how closely related everyone is.  When misfortune befalls one person in the community, everyone feels the pain.   More importantly, they will show up to support one another.  That is one advantage I will always treasure being from one of these communities, my home community.  There really is a true sense of belonging, to being one of the tribe.  Inclusion.

Sadly though, there is no escape from the cruel reality of addictions, it is everywhere.  It breds hopelessness. It permeates the social fabric and, it is unfortunately, intergenerational.

To be sure, it is not for a lack of knowledge that abusive drinking happens. There is already so much information about alcoholism in our communities. For example, that alcohol has both a seductive and destructive nature. It is sneaky like that. The belief is that drinking is started to forget pain and trauma, which works for a short period, but then it quickly becomes the problem. And then health will begin to decline and relationships break down.  Knowing this, why would anyone want to get started?

Instead it is viewed as fun, as “partying.” It enables people to “let off steam” and to “take the edge off.” It is seen as the activitity that brings people together. People even brag about it and post their alcohol-fuelled escapades on social media. Even knowing the harmful nature of alcohol, some think nothing of inviting others to join in this tragic cycle of self-abuse.  The hard truth is that others are taken down too. Like the saying goes “misery loves company.” Especially if they have the means to supply more alcohol, all the while knowing it is wrong but powerless against the allure of booze.

When tragedy strikes due to excess drinking, which it unfortunately and eventually will, its impact reverberates throughout a community like shockwaves.  Mixed emotions stir under the dark blanket of grief.  The shock leaves everyone unable to comprehend the incident.  On some level there is a nagging sense that whatever tragedy happened was preventable. That fact makes any tragedy that much more incomprehensible.  Understandably, the moment right after a tragedy never seems to be time to have a conversation on it, because that would dishonour the victims and bring an inappropriate sense of being judgmental.  Emotions are raw as minds wrestle to comprehend a senseless tragedy. Hearts are broken, dreams  shattered, never to come to pass. 

Because of the overwhelming grief that envelops everyone, there will always be some people who will then turn to drinking to dull the pain, because that is how they deal with pain.  They may even raise a glass or bottle to the victim, not seeing how ironic and empty the gesture is. The vicious cycle continues as people turn to drink to mask their feelings. 

Still, wouldn’t this be an ideal time, the perfect time, to have that very conversation? If only because the incident illustrates so intensely the destructive choices made under the influence of alcohol while it is fresh and before it is swept out of sight, because responding to tragedy must always be sobering, at least at the initial moment of reaction.  Moreover, in small communities, when a tragedy has been caused by alcohol, people know what happened and they know why it happened. To be sure, everyone is thinking about it and talking about it behind closed doors in whispers, in hushed voices barely holding back assigning blame.  Asking the question to themselves and those closest to them, why people are not talking about this together as a community? If there was ever a time to get together as a community, to perhaps reveal some hard truths, could this be the time?

That said, the reasons for all alcohol-related tragedies must be discussed openly and honestly in our communities, not with a sense of judgment or blame, but to ask the simple question: why?  Why does it keep happening, even when we all know the dangers and the illusions that we create for ourselves, like the illusion that drinking to excess is partying, like the illusion that alcohol can help us with pain, like the illusion that the inevitable tragedy will happen to someone else. 

Our people need to talk about these things. To do this is to honour those who lost their battle with addiction, not to blame them; to take something positive and good from their loss, not to condemn them.  It sends a message to everyone in our communities that this issue is serious and it is a problem we all share. 

So, what is stopping our communities from having an honest community dialogue on addictions? Education and awareness can lead to community solutions and healing.  But this alone won’t stop it. What else needs to be done? Who in your community will see this as a call to action?  Who is willing to show up for those who can’t?  Don’t wait for someone else to do it because if not you, who then?  If not now, when?

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