"Compiled by Greg Patterson with the help of Murray Watson, Barbara MacQuarrie, Mark Priest and Drew Whittaker." -- p. [iii]
"Edited by Greg Patterson". -- p. [iii].
"March 1992". -- p. [iii].
Includes bibliographical references, p. 130-131.
"We've almost reached the Columbian Quincentary, October 12, 1992, 500 years later. .... This kit is not about Columbus. The Quincentary merely provides a focus for Native people, and non-Native people, to reflect on 500 years of colonialism, and to address issues of fundamental human rights, land rights, self-determination and the environment. .... This Resource Kit provides ecnouraging examples of ways in which certain sectors of society have taken initiatives to work in solidarity with First Nations people. It also provides practical suggestions for further actions that can be taken to support Indigenous people in Canada and the Third World. Our challenge for 1992, and beyond, is to acknowledge the historic reality of the past 500 years, to evaluate the present, and to work for a common future, based on new and meaningful relationships of mutual respect, trust and cooperation". -- Foreword.
"This kit is a modest attempt to facilitate the work that activists and educators are engaged in to support Indigenous peoples. It provides perspectives on 500 years of colonialism from Indigenous writers in Canada, the United States and the South. It includes their thoughts and strategies about how to organize and rebuild their communities, and their nations, as well as their personal reflections on the meaning of 1992". -- Intro.
Contents: Acknowledgements -- Table of Contents -- Foreword / Bob Antone -- Introduction -- 1992 and Beyond -- 1492-1992 -- Modern Day Colonialism -- Indigenous Women -- Solidarity -- Resources.
Each section contains several short articles by a variety of authors from many sources including Canadian church bodies.
That Aboriginal People and Anglicans and others involved in non-violent direct action in defence of unsurrendered Aboriginal ancestral lands and their environment be supported. CARRIED Act 62
That this Council of General Synod join with the Aboriginal Rights Coalition and the Canadian Ecumenical Jubilee Initiative in calling on the federal government "to act immediately to establish a truly independent commission with the mandate to implement Aboriginal land, treaty and inherent rights." CARRIED #05-11-00
1. recognize aboriginal peoples as distinct societies with the inherent right to self-determination; and
2. call upon the Governments of Canada and the provinces and territories to do the same by explicitly entrenching these rights in the Canadian Constitution now.
Following considerable discussion, it was -
Moved by: Rev. Canon J. Irvine
Seconded by: Rt. Rev. B. Curtis
That the question be put. CARRIED Act 43
The motion was then put and CARRIED Act 44.
Notes
The following members of Synod abstained: the Reverend Canon Andrew Gates, Mr. Justice Ronald Stevenson, Mr. Michael Wolff and Mr. Justice David Wright.
Toronto - Warning of the potential for serious conflict, a Canadian church group has called for the government of Canada to enter into negotiations with the Lubicon Indian Band, using the services of Davie Fulton, the former Minister of Justice, as Mediator. The Lubicon Band has been involved in a dispute about land claims for most of this century, with no resolution.
The Program Committee of the Anglican Church of Canada, meeting here today, has endorsed a resolution of the House of Commons standing committee on aboriginal affairs and northern development, which proposed the mediation. The Reverend Peter Hamel, the Anglican Church's staff person related to national affairs, participated in the Standing Committee's meeting.
"Unless there is a dramatic intervention by the Canadian government to reach a just and equitable settlement within the next three to four weeks, there is a real danger that a serious confrontation will take place at Little Buffalo Lake," Hamel warns. "The frustration is so high now because of the stonewalling that has gone on for so long."
In a letter to the Prime Minister, the church says it has "consistently supported the struggle of the Lubicon people to achieve a just settlement of their aboriginal claim. In March of 1984, for example, the former Primate, Archbishop Ted Scott, participated with the Right Reverend Gary Woolsey, Bishop of Athabasca, in an ecumenical fact-finding mission to the Lubicon community."
"On February 9, the Hon. E. Davie Fulton, testifying before the Standing Committee on Aboriginal Affairs, stated that the conflicts between the Band and the Federal Government could be resolved within six months. We believe that the appointment of Mr. Fulton could be a key factor in resolving this longstanding human rights issue."
In other actions, the group moved to support the efforts of the National Association of Japanese Canadians in their efforts to seek compensation for the seizure of their property during the Second World War.
The NAJC has launched a national coalition redress campaign to focus renewed public attention on its demands, after talks with the government broke down in July.
In considering the request for support, the church's program committee reviewed its history of concern. A resolution adopted in 1947 urged the government to restore all rights to (Japanese) Canadian citizens or legal residents, "and in particular urges the government to take all steps possible to see that full compensation be made to those who, by reason of earlier governmental action, had their properties appropriated and sold, or who have otherwise suffered crippling financial loss by their removal and resettlement."
Earlier resolutions, during and immediately after the War, consistently supported the Japanese Canadians and deplored the removal of their civil rights. Today, 40 years later, the church reaffirms its stand.
TORONTO (Dec. 12) -- The Anglican Church welcomes the Supreme Court of Canada's ruling recognizing the rights of native peoples to the ownership of ancestral lands that have not specifically been signed away through treaties.
The ruling overturned a previous British Columbia ruling dealing with land claims by the Gitxsan and Wet'suwet'en people. The Supreme Court ruled that the trial judge erred in not recognizing the validity of native peoples' oral history and ordered a new trial.
Donna Bomberry, the Anglican Church's Coordinator of Indigenous Ministries, said she hopes the decision will open up a new era in the way governments deal with native land claims.
She added that because of the level at which the ruling was made, it is likely to have repercussions on many other land claims throughout the country.
"I feel elated," Ms. Bomberry said. "It is a real breakthrough in the way land rights issues should be handled."
Catherine Morrison, the Anglican Church's Coordinator of Indigenous Justice, said that with this ruling, Canada recognizes the value of the history and culture of native people. The decision, she added refutes the trial judge's statement that "aboriginal life in the territory was at best nasty, brutish and short."
"With this ruling, we are seeing a level of respect for aboriginal peoples that has not existed since the first settlers were welcomed to this country," Ms. Morrison said.
Last spring, the Anglican Council of General Synod passed a resolution expressing its support for the Gitxsan and Wet'suwet'en people in its battle through the courts. The church has also supported them through the Anglican Council of Indigenous Peoples, its EcoJustice Committee and the Primate's World Relief and Development Fund.
- 30 -
For more information, contact Donna Bomberry at (416) 924-9199 ext. 626; email dbomberry@national.anglican.ca; or Catherine Morrison, (416) 924-9199 ext. 239; email cmorrison@national.anglican.ca
Contact: Doug Tindal, Director of Information Resources: 416-924-9199 ext. 286; 905-335-8349 (residence) or Sam Carriere, Editor, Print Resources: 416-924-9199 ext. 256