June 20th 2021
LAND BACK: Canada and the ongoing struggle with indigenous relations

During this present summer of 2021, I was lucky enough(1) to find stable employment at the City of Waterloo working in Waterloo park, an area that would easily fit a few football fields, and in a
location that happens to be less than 6 miles (or 10km) from the Grand River. The job description is diverse; on any given day, there could be 15 unique jobs needed to be done to keep the park orderly. Last week my boss told me in an empathetic tone that we were cleaning up what he called, “a transient site”, which in plain English, means a place where a homeless person lives, or lived, in our case, as private security came to remove him from the park. When we were there my boss could read my mind; he sensed my disdain and regret for carrying out the task at hand. And he was right. If I was to act virtuously, which is an ongoing goal, following principles of virtue ethics, then I would have stood by my inward moral reaction which tells me I have no right to remove someone from their place of living on this earth, and in fact, I should even help them to improve their impoverished condition. I could have asked not to participate in this work that I deem vile, or even try to stop it in its tracks, but this is not what happened. The cleanup job was finished within 15 minutes.

My boss, going on a small rant about the unfortunate ways of life(2), told us that the man who had lived in this spot was native in origin, an indigenous person of Canada. After a second of silence and mutual introspection, he walked away, and left me to finish the job. Throughout the time I spent cleaning and removing trash, thoughts raced in my head about the action I was taking and the broader context that it exists in. What authority does the city (or I) have to remove someone from a public area; to tell them where they can and can’t live? I thought about the homeless problem that exists in the area, especially in Kitchener, but also existing in Waterloo. Then I thought of the man himself. A homeless man, an indigenous Canadian; I wondered if he understood and was compliant when the city removed his shelter. Or was he hostile, sensing injustice and a lack of empathy for his state of being?

What that day at work has done especially, is force me to think deeply about indigenous Canadians, and their history; their way of life, compared to “western culture”; Rights of land and life, and who has authority over what, in this country that has an almost 400 year history of land disputes between indigenous people and settlers. This article will focus on the present state of indigenous peoples in the Waterloo region, as well as in Canada more broadly, and briefly delve into what can be done in the future to resolve the long standing troubles.

The grand river, a wide flowing body of water stretching 280km in southern Ontario, is the subject of much discussion and debate over history and land rights in and around the area it covers. Although, too often the topic is made simplistic, as we hear every time there is a quick “territorial acknowledgement” that simply states the obvious fact that these are the traditional lands of certain indigenous peoples(3). To come to a mutually agreed upon path towards reconciliation, it will take history that acknowledges the nuance and complexity of what took place.

In the late 18th century, America gained its independence from Britain. This sent shock waves across the continent (and the world), including others who were not directly involved. The British and their colonies were not fighting alone in the Americas. Scattered around the continent were countless different indigenous tribes that were all affected in some way or another by the revolution. Among them, the Iroquois peoples (also known as the Haudenosaunee), who had lived in what is today up-state New York for generations. When the revolution started, Britain needed alleys; the colonies knew this land better than the crown, so even if their military was stronger, the Americans still had a fighting chance. Who then better than the Iroquois, inhabiting the land for as
long as they could remember, to ask assistance from? So, the Iroquois formed an alliance with the
British crown during the years of the revolutionary war, and when finally it came to an end, the
British defeated, the Iroqouis were left without a homeland. Up north, the Brits still controlled vast
quantities of land. Sir Fredrick Haldiman, the Governor of Quebec(4) during this time, signed a treaty with the Iroquois, promising them an area along the Grand River stretching 10km (6 miles) on either side, in compensation for the alliance. This was called “The Haldimand Treaty”.

With that, the Iroquois people immigrated up into modern day Canada, along the Grand River, to a place that they thought would be their new permanent home. However, as we live within the
boundaries of the treaty today, this is clearly not how things unfolded. Immediately after signing the contract, both sides disagreed as to exactly what it meant(5). The British, being the colonial empire they were, thought of the Iroquois not so much as an independent entity, but as their subjects, who they had authority over. This being so, the crown was under the impression that the tribes could, and would, only sell land designated in the Haldimand treaty back to them; but this is where interpretations of the treaty differed. The Chieftains, for many reasons, were open to selling parts of the newly acquired land to European settlers, many of whom not British, and in the case of Waterloo region in particular, German Mennonites settling from Pennsylvania. One obvious reason why the Iroquois felt the need to do this was, due to the fact that they were new to these lands, the environment was foreign and unfamiliar. As a consequence, many were continually hampered by non sustainable hunting. This is understandable; it takes generations to develop knowledge of the land needed for successful hunting. But with the treaty granting new, hitherto unseen land, they were expected to settle and survive immediately. So the tribes began selling parts of the land, both to the crown, and others, out of practicality and need. Today the township of Dumfries, Waterloo, Woolwich, among others, come from these initial sales.

However, not all, in some cases not even the majority, of indigenous peoples agreed to these land
sales. In many cases, pioneers and other such settlers gained land in ways that were hostilely fought against by the tribes. In 1841 there was an especially tense disagreement, where the crown believed they had permanently bought land off of the Six Nations, whereas they had only supposedly agreed to lease it. It is with this type of (maybe intentional?) miscommunication where much of the problems stem. When the Haldimand treaty was signed, the land promised was 950,000 acres in size; now, it is all but 48,000. In the 21st century, this history is slowly becoming a part of popular conscious. There is now a widespread feeling of injustice many Canadians feel for what has gone on over the last few centuries, with ‘reconciliation’ becoming a common topic of discussion and thought. It is clear to me that this issue is not going away timidly, into the darkness and forgotten, without what many consider to be justice. The feeling of injustice, and the calls for reconciliation, have become stronger partly due to recent events over the last several years.

Kamloops, British Columbia was home, like several other Canadian towns, to a ‘residential school’,
designed supposedly to assimilate indigenous people into “Canadian culture”. This is the polite way of describing the institution. The schools, being designed to make students “more Canadian”,
attempted to do just that, and in the process, stripped kids of their language, culture, and traditional belief system. Recently, our mental picture of residential schools became more grim. In Kamloops BC last month, the remains of 215 dead children(6) were found buried underneath one such school, causing mass outrage and grief, and surely, renewed trauma. Activists are now calling for the unburying of more sites, in fear that this may not have been a one-off event.

The history of residential schools is another example of the cultural clash that took place between
the indigenous peoples of America and Europeans. I write this article today to point out the
observable fact that clashes are still playing out today(7), due in part to the radical difference of
philosophy and preferred way of life. 2020 was an eventful year for this. Just before the pandemic,
there was a political crisis that had the country talking. Protesting a planned pipeline to British
Columbia, resulting in more oil production and eventual greenhouse gas emissions, several
indigenous groups set up blockades around pipeline construction sites, making the work impossible without violence or arrests. So, several activists were arrested, but this hardly stopped the movement, as it sprang up in many different parts of the country in the month of February(8). For context, 28% of the land the pipeline would pass through belonged to the Wet'suwet'en peoples. In the Waterloo region, protests and demonstrations also flared up. Last summer activists camped out at Victoria park in Kitchener, staying there for weeks until ‘land back’ demands were met. The goal is reconciliation, and one of the most important parts of that must be land.

“We are exercising our treaty rights by being here. Having to pay for space on our own land is
insulting. We want our land back. We want a ceremonial space here.”
- Amy Smoke, a local Indigenous activist and part of the Haudenosaunee nation. Quoting from the Waterloo Record.

Announced last week by Kitchener's director of Parks and Cemeteries, the city is trying to make progress in meeting these demands. A “permanent indigenous space” that is “safe and welcoming” will be created in Victoria Park. The details of this, we do not yet know, as the planning is in its early stages.

In Waterloo Park, too, there were outcries for change. Along with Victoria, Waterloo Park last summer hosted an encampment that was set up and maintained on the west side for a substantial period of time. The organizers were a group called the ‘O:se Kenhionhata:tie Land Back Camp’, gathering to “advance reconciliation actions”.





















{Views from where the ‘Land Back’ group had set up in Waterloo Park last summer. This remains to this day}

‘Land back’ is an important phrase; important because of its deep historical meaning and how it
relates to the general topic. To these activists (and I'm sure many more), regaining the land
alongside the Grand River and reconciliation are one in the same, unable to be separated. Everyone knows there is controversy between indigenous activists, in trying to regain their previously held land and culture, and the political establishment in Canada. But how many know the details surrounding the claims of the ‘Land back’ movement? Details that make or break any moral or legal argument on the matter. Land is an expensive commodity(9), and consequently it is clear that the Canadian government and large owners of private property are not going to let it go or return any without strong push back. So where do we go as a country; what is this leading towards?

The question of where Canada goes from here, or, the future of Canada, interests me a great deal. As is known intuitively by most people, but also written about in depth by Yuval Noah Harari in his world famous book ‘Sapiens’, nations are founded on collective myths; myths that keep us united and together, in times of glory and pain. A nation's history is usually wrapped up in these types of myths. Oftentimes nations will tell enlightened stories of their histories: that the country or empire was founded in a heroic effort, or by heroic people, or in a heroic cause. History is selectively remembered to suit the needs of the nation at any given time, for the sake of unity and meaning. The legend of Romulus and Remus and their founding of the Roman empire is an example of such a myth. This is important in our case, because Canada is also founded on cultural and historical myths(10), myths that have existed for generations, and that have maintained a certain image of Canada. If these myths were to be challenged, the country may be forced to change, permanently. What is profound, both in effect and with the thought it provokes, is that indigenous activists and the Land Back movement I believe challenge them in a substantial way. The very founding of Canada, and its first prime minister, John A MacDonald, is being re-looked upon, this time, maybe not as someone glorious and brave, but as oppressive, and genocidal. Last week, a statue of John A MacDonald in Kingston was peacefully removed, after the city council voted 12-1 in favour of the motion. This had been demanded for years, by people who did not think of the man so much as a hero, but a colonizer. Additionally, the idea of a national holiday to celebrate independence has been challenged, citing the same feelings of oppression and genocide. The city of Victoria BC has gone so far as to “cancel Canada Day”, by halting regular (though online) planned events in favour of “exploring what it means to be Canadian, in light of recent events”(11). Exploring what it means to be Canadian is exactly what will challenge the long standing myths, something which may end up turning Canada into a nation quite different from today, at least in how we perceive it. The effects of this will go beyond indigenous issues, though will have a great impact there to be sure.

Lastly, in a discussion surrounding “the indigenous people of Canada”, when real decisions will be made stemming from these discussions, it is important to remember that there is no one indigenous peoples, or tribe. Instead there are different nations, chieftains, and communities stretching all across Canada, each with different customs, culture, and history. Here is a list of all known indigenous reserves in Canada, both large and small(12). Therefore, it is imperative that solutions be focused on a local level, involving the specific group of people, so each idiosyncrasy can be accounted for. This does not mean the federal government should not be involved; Ottawa has many resources that can be provided for assistance. What I mean is that a plan for action should be discussed and carried out primarily on a local level between all parties involved(13). In Waterloo region, this could mean bringing together several groups that claim specifically that 6 miles along the grand river belongs legally and morally to the Six Nations.


Notes

1. Lucky, after the recession we have faced over the last 15 months
2. I really respect my boss. In no way do I think he is a bad person for doing this, as it is not
even his policy. He started saying to us how he deeply understands people who are down on
their luck, and that he has no ill regard for the homeless. “There is no good solution” he said,
asking us rhetorically what could happen if a teenage girl walks through the forest while a
homeless man sits.
3. These remarks are spoken almost any time there is a public talk of some kind in Waterloo,
and especially at the Universities. I can understand, because of a lack of time, that the
remarks must be kept short, but I do believe that sometimes it can create a simplistic image
in peoples heads, which is something that seems bad for reconciliation, considering one of
the founding principles in the Canadian case has been “truth”.
4. Remember, Quebec had just become an english colony after the seven years war.
5. This is partly because, like so many other treaties, the Haldimand treaty is very vague and
missing many important details.
6. If they look under other schools, how many more will they find?
7. Though clearly these clashes manifest themselves in different ways now than back then. In
the 1500’s were sometimes hostile and violent, ending in genocide in some cases. Now, you
could say it is more “polite”.
8. Like almost all groups, there is significant divide within the Wet’suwet’en peoples on this
issue. To even start this project, Coastal GasLink, the company producing the pipeline, had to
(and did) get approval from Indigenous chiefs, some which were Wet’suwet’en.
9. Crazy, in a country as large as Canada
10. However, Canada has always been looked at in the shadow of America and Britain before
that, so the myths of this country have been forgotten by many people, who are more
interested in the dominant American culture.
11. Events over the last few weeks have been so traumatic for many people, that this is the
natural reaction that I would expect.
12. In 2011, 45.5% of people who identified as indigenous said they lived on a reserve.
13. When treaties come into play, the federal or provincial governments will also need to be
involved too, since they are likely the governments that made the deals in the first place.