Above Photo: From Unistoten.camp
Indigenous youth occupying the BC Legislature last night with supporters outside
Powerful actions have continued through the week demanding that RCMP and CGL stand down.
Last night five Indigenous youth leaders we’re arrested inside the BC Legislature for occupying Scott Fraser’s office after he refused to meet any demands regarding the removal of the RCMP and CGL from Wet’suwet’en Territory.
This morning during a press conference at the legislature Indigenous youth took the court injunction off the building and burned it in a ceremonial fire on the lawn.
Across Canada yesterday thousands of students walked out of class and held demonstrations in solidarity with the Wet’suwet’en with rallies at over 30 universities.
In Tyendinaga Mohawk territory the construction of a village at the site of the earlier rail blockade continues, and a new blockade has gone up in Akwesasne Mohawk Territory.
And on Wednesday people delivered over 30,000 petitions to the export development bank of Canada demanding that no public money be given to the Coastal Gas Link Pipeline. The Export Development Bank of Canada is responsible for public financing of the Trans Mountain Pipeline and is considering a major loan to CGL! A public loan could keep a project alive that may otherwise be dropped by investors as public pressure increases and the LNG market collapses.
While getting CGL and the RCMP off of Wet’suwet’en territory is a difficult struggle, this movement is powerful and is expanding every day! Let’s keep the pressure on!
COME TO CAMP
People on the ground at the Unist’ot’en Camp are still calling for supporters who can stay at camp for at least two weeks. If you can do this in the near future please fill out a registration form here.
Words by @siiamhamilton
“At 6:30 PM on March 4, seven Indigenous youth were invited by Scott Fraser, Minister of Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation to discuss the Wet’suwet’en Struggle. After a number of hours, discussions broke down, and the Indigenous youth and Scott Fraser could not come to an agreement that the RCMP (Royal Canadian Mounted Police) and CGL (Coastal Gas Link) remove themselves from Wet’suwet’en land. Despite the continued affirmations that the British Columbia Legislative Assembly youth occupation is a peaceful and a ceremonial vigil in solidarity with our Wet’suwet’en relatives in the north, 5 of the 7 Indigenous youth who were invited into the office for a meeting were violently arrested after hours of detainment inside the parliament.
These arrests happened behind closed doors. The Victoria Police Department refused to allow legal observers and lawyers access to the youth as they were being arrested and detained. Despite their legal councils’ request that letters of representation be given to the youth, the police refused to allow them access to this information. While each youth was carried out, allies and supporters repeated messages of love and protection. The police refused to disclose where they were being taken or what they were being charged with.
We are asking Canada and all of its citizens to remove for the vail of silence when Indigenous bodies are being forcibly removed from unceded lands by the state. Reconciliation can’t only apply when we are saying yes. Consent cannot exist if NO is not an option.
Reconciliation is dead.
The revolution is alive.
The whole damn system is guilty as hell.
Canada is racist.
Indigenous youth burning injunction on BC legislature grounds this morning
Student rally in Halifax
Rally at University of Victoria
March in Kahnawake
March in Winnipeg
Petition Delivery in Montreal
Unist’ot’en Solidarity Brigade