Latest news with #IndigenousCanadians
Calgary Herald
2 days ago
- Politics
- Calgary Herald
Chris Selley: Earth to Liberals — First Nations are not an anti-development monolith
Article content Sean Fraser — the federal Liberals' supposed master communicator who did a bad job as immigration minister, and then a bad job as housing minister, and then said he wasn't running again to spend time with his family, and then opportunistically changed his mind and was rewarded with the justice and attorney general portfolio — laid his first dog's egg of the Mark Carney era this week. Article content Article content Fraser said Indigenous groups don't have a 'complete veto' over natural-resource projects or any other government decisions — but that wasn't the turd in question, because it was absolutely true. Article content Article content The turd came later, apparently after getting his ears boxed by Assembly of First Nations National Chief Cindy Woodhouse: Fraser disavowed his entirely truthful statement. Article content 'I think even accepting the premise of the question that was put to me (about a 'veto') really made people feel like there may be an attempt by the government to work unilaterally, not in partnership (with First Nations),' Fraser told reporters in a public apology. Article content 'Despite innocent intentions, I think my comments actually caused hurt and potentially eroded a very precarious trust that has been built up over many years to respect the rights of Indigenous people in this country,' he said. Article content Article content Coming up on 500 years since Jacques Cartier first set foot here and named it Canada, and 150-plus years after the Crown concluded the first treaties with First Nations, and with President Donald Trump suddenly bringing our crippling dependence on the United States into very sharp focus, if we can't even speak the plain truth to each other in plain language, we might be in even bigger trouble than we realized. Article content Article content But I think we can speak the plain truth to each other in plain language, so long as we rightly marginalize fringe and unreasonable voices. While apologizing for speaking the truth, Fraser also accurately pointed to 'a frankly dangerous trope that paints a false picture of Indigenous peoples as being anti-development.' Article content The 2021 Census recorded 1.8 million Indigenous Canadians — five per cent of the Canadian population, give or take. No one would ascribe monolithic opinions like 'supports/doesn't support resource development' to any other ethnic five per cent of the Canadian population. Yet most Canadian media reliably frame these issues as 'First Nations versus the colonialist menace.'
Calgary Herald
5 days ago
- Politics
- Calgary Herald
In Quebec, opposition mounts against a pipeline project that doesn't exist
Article content OTTAWA — At Quebec's National Assembly and on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, pipelines have dominated the debates. The only issue? No projects involving the province are on the agenda. Article content 'I think there is a fixation on pipelines on (Prime Minister Mark) Carney's part at the moment, not on the part of Quebecers,' said Bloc Québécois MP and former Greenpeace activist Patrick Bonin. Article content Article content Article content Article content According to Bonin, the prime minister is 'rolling out the red carpet for the oil companies' by meeting with some 20 CEOs in Calgary the day before his meeting with the premiers in Saskatoon and by hoping to speed up environmental assessments. Article content Since the election, Carney has spoken cautiously about 'conventional energy' infrastructure and has repeatedly stated that no decisions have been made at this stage regarding the major projects he wants to see come to fruition. Article content But he did take a step further on Wednesday, feeding Bonin's worst fears. Article content 'The consensus that's required includes a consensus with the Indigenous people. We will stand with Indigenous Canadians, we will build pipelines and energy infrastructure in this great country,' Carney said on the floor of the House of Commons. Article content Article content In Quebec, many politicians remain on the edge of their seats. Article content Article content 'Any pipeline project, any kind, is bad for the environment, bad for the economy, bad for Quebec,' said Ruba Ghazal, the Quebec solidaire House leader at the National Assembly. Article content 'If the premier doesn't want to completely shut the door on a pipeline project, can he at least ensure that environmental sovereignty is defended?' she asked. Article content Quebec Premier François Legault seemed baffled by the question the day after Alberta Premier Danielle Smith appeared resigned about the prospect of a pipeline through Quebec, saying she would have more success with a corridor between Hudson Bay and Prince Rupert. Article content 'The leader of Québec solidaire is getting excited about something that doesn't exist,' replied Legault. 'There is currently no project that is taking place in Quebec.'
Vancouver Sun
5 days ago
- Politics
- Vancouver Sun
In Quebec, opposition mounts against a pipeline project that doesn't exist
OTTAWA — At Quebec's National Assembly and on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, pipelines have dominated the debates. The only issue? No projects involving the province are on the agenda. 'I think there is a fixation on pipelines on (Prime Minister Mark) Carney's part at the moment, not on the part of Quebecers,' said Bloc Québécois MP and former Greenpeace activist Patrick Bonin. Since taking office in May, Bonin has mentioned the pipeline issue more than 20 times in his speeches on the floor of the House of Commons. Start your day with a roundup of B.C.-focused news and opinion. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Sunrise will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. 'We will not allow the government to build a pipeline through Quebec,' he said on Monday. According to Bonin, the prime minister is 'rolling out the red carpet for the oil companies' by meeting with some 20 CEOs in Calgary the day before his meeting with the premiers in Saskatoon and by hoping to speed up environmental assessments. Since the election, Carney has spoken cautiously about 'conventional energy' infrastructure and has repeatedly stated that no decisions have been made at this stage regarding the major projects he wants to see come to fruition. But he did take a step further on Wednesday, feeding Bonin's worst fears. 'The consensus that's required includes a consensus with the Indigenous people. We will stand with Indigenous Canadians, we will build pipelines and energy infrastructure in this great country,' Carney said on the floor of the House of Commons. In Quebec, many politicians remain on the edge of their seats. 'Any pipeline project, any kind, is bad for the environment, bad for the economy, bad for Quebec,' said Ruba Ghazal, the Quebec solidaire House leader at the National Assembly. 'If the premier doesn't want to completely shut the door on a pipeline project, can he at least ensure that environmental sovereignty is defended?' she asked. Quebec Premier François Legault seemed baffled by the question the day after Alberta Premier Danielle Smith appeared resigned about the prospect of a pipeline through Quebec, saying she would have more success with a corridor between Hudson Bay and Prince Rupert. 'The leader of Québec solidaire is getting excited about something that doesn't exist,' replied Legault. 'There is currently no project that is taking place in Quebec.' But what worries many Quebec MPs, particularly from the Bloc Québécois, is that the prime minister is using pipeline expansion as a solution to U.S. President Donald Trump's attacks on Canada. 'For us, it's worrying because the government is currently focusing on the idea of developing more oil and gas, putting in pipelines when it should be focusing on making the energy transition and that's the priority,' said Bonin in an interview. Heritage Minister Steven Guilbeault, who is also Carney's Quebec lieutenant, said his boss insisted that for such a project to go ahead, 'there would have to be social acceptability.' Just like Guilbeault, Quebec Liberal MPs are also cautious about pipelines in their province. 'I can't wait to see the appendix, the list of all the (major infrastructure) projects. I'm excited because we really need to build a strong economy', said Pontiac MP Sophie Chatel. Does it take a pipeline? 'We'll see,' she told National Post while her Gatineau colleague and government House leader Steven MacKinnon said the country 'must seize the moment.' 'We have major national projects, people are impatient for there to be a clear process to begin this work and see it through to completion, and so I am very, very confident that it will garner quite substantial support from Canadians,' he said, without pointing out specifically to pipelines. MacKinnon said he would like to see the government's bill to speed up construction of major national projects passed by the end of June. Meanwhile, Conservative MPs are openly advocating for a pipeline crossing the province. Quebec City MP Gérard Deltell pointed out in the House of Commons that a growing number of Quebecers support pipeline construction. 'We have had pipelines in Quebec since 1942. In 2012, a pipeline was built between Lévis and Montreal that crosses 26 waterways, including the St. Lawrence River. It is so good and works so well that no one knows about it, and no one talks about it,' he said. National Post atrepanier@ Get more deep-dive National Post political coverage and analysis in your inbox with the Political Hack newsletter, where Ottawa bureau chief Stuart Thomson and political analyst Tasha Kheiriddin get at what's really going on behind the scenes on Parliament Hill every Wednesday and Friday, exclusively for subscribers Sign up here. Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark and sign up for our newsletters here .
Ottawa Citizen
5 days ago
- Politics
- Ottawa Citizen
In Quebec, opposition mounts against a pipeline project that doesn't exist
OTTAWA — At Quebec's National Assembly and on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, pipelines have dominated the debates. The only issue? No projects involving the province are on the agenda. Article content 'I think there is a fixation on pipelines on (Prime Minister Mark) Carney's part at the moment, not on the part of Quebecers,' said Bloc Québécois MP and former Greenpeace activist Patrick Bonin. Article content Article content Article content Since taking office in May, Bonin has mentioned the pipeline issue more than 20 times in his speeches on the floor of the House of Commons. Article content Article content 'We will not allow the government to build a pipeline through Quebec,' he said on Monday. Article content According to Bonin, the prime minister is 'rolling out the red carpet for the oil companies' by meeting with some 20 CEOs in Calgary the day before his meeting with the premiers in Saskatoon and by hoping to speed up environmental assessments. Article content Since the election, Carney has spoken cautiously about 'conventional energy' infrastructure and has repeatedly stated that no decisions have been made at this stage regarding the major projects he wants to see come to fruition. Article content But he did take a step further on Wednesday, feeding Bonin's worst fears. Article content 'The consensus that's required includes a consensus with the Indigenous people. We will stand with Indigenous Canadians, we will build pipelines and energy infrastructure in this great country,' Carney said on the floor of the House of Commons. Article content Article content In Quebec, many politicians remain on the edge of their seats. Article content Article content 'Any pipeline project, any kind, is bad for the environment, bad for the economy, bad for Quebec,' said Ruba Ghazal, the Quebec solidaire House leader at the National Assembly. Article content 'If the premier doesn't want to completely shut the door on a pipeline project, can he at least ensure that environmental sovereignty is defended?' she asked. Article content Quebec Premier François Legault seemed baffled by the question the day after Alberta Premier Danielle Smith appeared resigned about the prospect of a pipeline through Quebec, saying she would have more success with a corridor between Hudson Bay and Prince Rupert. Article content 'The leader of Québec solidaire is getting excited about something that doesn't exist,' replied Legault. 'There is currently no project that is taking place in Quebec.'
National Post
6 days ago
- General
- National Post
Greg Piasetzki: John A. Macdonald's return to Queen's Park an opportunity for historical literacy
This summer, the Ontario government will remove the box that has, for several years, concealed the statue of Sir John A. Macdonald at Queen's Park. It was in 2020 — after several statues across Canada had been painted, toppled and even beheaded — that Macdonald's likeness in Ontario's capital was boarded up. Article content Uncovering the statue is a welcome move. But if that's all we do, we are likely to find ourselves back here again before long. Until Canadians are willing to revisit the actual historical facts — and in particular Macdonald's relationship with Indigenous-Canadians — the cycle of erasure and outrage will continue. Article content Article content Article content The most widespread and damaging misunderstanding is the idea that every Indigenous child was forced by law to attend a residential school, was taken far from home, kept for years and subjected to routine abuse. This narrative has become almost universally accepted in Canada. Article content Article content However, the reality is that, in many years, the majority of Indigenous children who attended school went to day schools and most of the students dropped out after Grade 1, whether at day or residential schools. These facts were well known at the time. They were discussed in Parliament and reported in mainstream newspapers. Article content For example, in 1946, decades after the first residential schools were built, the Globe and Mail reported that, 'Of the 128,000 Indians in this country, only 16,000 last year received formal schooling. Of this number, few stayed more than a year and only 71 … reached Grade 9.' Article content A populist movement towards compulsory education had begun in the 1870s in Canada; by the 1940s, most Canadian children were required to attend school till at least age 15. However, the government in Macdonald's day, and through many subsequent prime ministers, respected the wishes of Indigenous families, who were not forced to keep their children in school beyond the early grades. Article content Article content Clearly, neither Macdonald's government, nor any succeeding one, was engaged in genocide, cultural or otherwise. There were also a number of initiatives of Macdonald's governments that likely saved tens of thousands of Indigenous lives and are equally inconsistent with the notion that he had any interest in genocide. Article content Article content Smallpox killed thousands of Indigenous people in Canada in some pre-Confederation years and Macdonald's governments, in the colonial era, and later when he was prime minister, ran programs to ensure that every Indigenous person in Canada, no matter how remote their location, was vaccinated against it, thus ending the threat. Article content Similarly, when the buffalo population collapsed, Macdonald immediately initiated what was certainly the largest famine relief operation in Canadian history. Moving supplies across the county when no railway existed was an enormous undertaking, and it had the usual missteps associated with a hastily organized program of this scale. However, the program likely saved thousands of lives and avoided a human catastrophe across western Canada.
