Oct 12-18, 2020

By Bruce McIvor and Cody O'Neil

This week's edition includes #AllEyesOnMikmaki, COVID-19, consultation, the colonizers' rule of law, land defence, systemic racism, settler terrorism and more.

 

IN THE NEWS


Settler terrorism continues in Mi’kma’ki. Get informed with this explainer and open letter on Mi’kmaq fishing rights

 

 

Meanwhile, RCMP arrested land defenders in Secwepemc territory

 

 

Land defence also continues in Wet’suwet’en territory and at 1492 Land Back Lane

 

 

Indigenous protected areas and land use planning returned to BC headlines

 

 

First Nations in Ontario continue to raise concerns about consultation during the pandemic. For more on this topic, check out our series on Indigenous rights and COVID-19

 

 

Overincarceration, MMIWG2S and the suicide crisis were front and centre in Saskatchewan

 

 

COVID-19 topped Manitoba headlines

 

 

Systemic racism in healthcare and policing was back in the national spotlight

 

 

QUOTE OF THE WEEK


“These despicable and racist acts by an unruly mob against a First Nation have impacted and affected Sipekne’katik in a disturbing and unsettling manner as members of my community, including myself, have been physically assaulted, harassed, intimidated, and are victims of racism and violence by a mob of vigilantes that have actively sought to prevent the Rule of Law from operating as we exercise our Constitutionally enshrined Treaty right.”

- Chief Michael Sack, Sipekne’katik First Nation

 

OFF THE BOOKSHELF


“In the colonies it is the policeman and the soldier who are the official, instituted go-betweens, the spokesmen of the settler and his rule of oppression.”

- Frantz Fanon, The Wretched of the Earth (1961)

First Peoples Law is a law firm dedicated to defending and advancing the rights of Indigenous Peoples in Canada. We work closely with First Nations to defend their Aboriginal title, rights and Treaty rights, uphold their Indigenous laws and governance and ensure economic prosperity for their members.
On October 21, I'll be presenting a webinar on "Environmental Justice, Racism and Northern Ontario" with Councillor Mary Laronde, Teme-Augama Anishinabai.
On October 28th, I'll be presenting on the duty to consult and UNDRIP at the PBLI's conference on recent developments in Aboriginal and Indigenous law.
Check out our latest podcast episode "Reclaiming the Law: Indigenous Law Students in Conversation."
In case you missed it, meet the recipient of our 2020 Indigenous Law Student Scholarship.
Looking to learn more about Indigenous rights in Canada?
Your weekly news update from First Peoples Law.
Bruce McIvor, lawyer and historian, is principal of First Peoples Law Corporation. He is also an Adjunct Professor at the University of British Columbia’s Allard School of Law where he teaches the constitutional law of Aboriginal and Treaty rights. Bruce is a proud Métis from the Red River in Manitoba. He holds a Ph.D. in Aboriginal and environmental history and is a Fulbright Scholar. A member of the bar in British Columbia and Ontario, Bruce is recognized nationally and internationally as a leading practitioner of Aboriginal law in Canada.