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Dopey question. <br /> <br />Do we have any Canadian First Nations contributors? <br /> <br />It would be difficult to have this extremely valuable discussion in their absence. <br /> <br />Good thread, gaulois.

   

[QUOTE BY= Calumny] It would be difficult to have this extremely valuable discussion in their absence. <br /> [/QUOTE] <br />Janet S. is certainly a good start. We also had Ivy Ross publishing earlier on. There are many Anons and perhaps some ready to sign in if they feel more welcome. Numerous articles have been written so far on this topic. <br /> <br />Getting improved Vive interest in this area is a chicken and egg thing. Same with the francophonie to some extent. I have noticed BTW a number of franco names signing in recently. I look forward to seeing some colourful First Nations aliases. <br /> <br />And should not this topic be as much of a concern to waspy Canadians, pure-laine Québécois, FHQs, and other friends south of the border? I often feel that even at Vive, we have this "aboriginal reservation" attitude about other groups that would explain well the mess that we often find ourselves in. Reminds me of Harper's yesterday faux-pas.

   

You're right. <br /> <br />Just don't want to find ourselves coming up with neat ideas about First Nations stuff that doesn't include First Nations input. <br /> <br />Wonder where Ivy is?

   

[QUOTE BY= Calumny] Just don't want to find ourselves coming up with neat ideas about First Nations stuff that doesn't include First Nations input. <br />[/QUOTE] <br /> <br />Perhaps we need neat ideas about how to make them feel more welcome? Don't you think some of our First Nations people such as their activists would have great ideas about our critical problem areas: lack of accountability of our public officials, Direct Democracy, the environment, legal reform, foreign trade, foreign aid, Canadian sovereignty, Quebec sovereignty, etc...

   

I agree completely. Guess would should start 'spamming' forums with Vive invitations. Or, should we just set up a new site focussed on a few key issues/discussions, 'bridge-building' and organizing (for elections, etc.)?

   

I only know of two aboriginal posters out of all the places I visit. That reasons for that aren't clear but the fact raises a lot of questions in itself. <br /> <br />Some things 've heard that I think could help natives? <br /> <br />1. Acknowledge that aboriginal people are no more a cohesive block than Europe is. While they share many issues, they are also separate populations with differences. <br /> <br />2. Urban reserves. We need to allow natives to join in the prosperity that comes from cities. Urban reserves are a way of achieving that. <br /> <br />3. Make National Aboriginal Day into a statuatory holiday. It's about time that we recognised the contribution first nations people have made to this country and it's time that the rest of us learned some more about their cultures. Having a day to celebrate would give us all an opportunity to learn. <br /> <br />There are lots of others, of course, but those are the three I rarely hear mentioned.

   

[QUOTE BY= Reverend Blair] <br />2. Urban reserves. We need to allow natives to join in the prosperity that comes from cities. Urban reserves are a way of achieving that. <br />[/QUOTE] <br />Urban ghettos like Vancouver Downtown Eastside looks highly sensitive if done without better economic development opportunities. It certainly would be useful to have some First Nations feedback on urban solutions to improving their sovereingty. <br /> <br />My own perspective on "reserve" as an FHQ is that it is good to have a reference community centre and some levels of common infrastructures, but many may elect to live outside the "reserve" and make some trade-offs. The danger of the reserve is that it segragates the ones that are in from the ones out and creates huge internal division. Kinda like parking people onto icefloes... <br /> <br /> <br />

   

The plan isn't to build another slum, Gaulois. We've already done that. The plan is to get native groups into areas where they can run their own businesses, including leasing space to non-native businesses. The creation of opportunities is a powerful thing.

   

I agree that there's potential for great things to be done in cities. As long as a logical plan is set out ahead of time. <br /> <br />One example is the neighborhood being planned in the old industrial sites at False Creek in Vancouver. It looks really good!! Same with the proposed Woodwards developments in Vancouver. <br /> <br />Now if something like that was put into the hands of the Natives whose traditional land I'm living on right now, I'm sure they'd appreciate it!!

   

We could start by making the First Nations equal partners in Confederation with guarunteed seats in the House of Commons and the Senate.

   

[QUOTE BY= lesouris] We could start by making the First Nations equal partners in Confederation with guarunteed seats in the House of Commons and the Senate.[/QUOTE] <br /> <br /> <br />I don't mean to be depressing, but I'm not sure there is a solution. I mean, you could give them seats, but they'd still be living in a European-designed society....and if they went back to the stone ages, they'd still resent not having the comforts of western society. <br /> <br />Perhaps the solution is the same as the solution to the Quebec soveriegnty issue--treat everyone as well as you can, but keep the federal government strong. <br /> <br />YOu could give them "self-government," but after years of European domination, they have come to want the same creature comforts, and to get them, they would have to participate in western society--in a manner contrary to their original culture.

   

Perturbed: I am glad you care on this. I thought for a moment you were into ethnic cleansing as the best solution to streamlining our democracies <img align=absmiddle src='images/smilies/wink.gif' alt='Wink'> I think it would be most useful to go through the exercize of having them define their own sovereingty and see what comes out of this: remember this hangup of mine "government for the people by the people". <br /> <br />I would hope that they would not define it in the same terms as the white man and show "real" sovereingty. I think we might actually learn something if we quit telling them our ways. Something that was a real eye opener was this Canada Heritage grant (don't puke yet!) that asked First Nations how could we use the best of their Laws in our Laws. Our Laws being such a convoluted mess could highly benefit from some fresh air fro these people. <br /> <br />I hope you appreciated the quote from Crazy Horse in my latest multiculturalism correctness story. Solving the First Nations problem is not an easy one, but I think we could do a whole lot better than the current federal governance of this.

   

[QUOTE BY= Reverend Blair]Some things 've heard that I think could help natives? <br /> <br />1. Acknowledge that aboriginal people are no more a cohesive block than Europe is. While they share many issues, they are also separate populations with differences. <br /> <br />2. Urban reserves. We need to allow natives to join in the prosperity that comes from cities. Urban reserves are a way of achieving that. <br /> <br />3. Make National Aboriginal Day into a statuatory holiday. It's about time that we recognised the contribution first nations people have made to this country and it's time that the rest of us learned some more about their cultures. Having a day to celebrate would give us all an opportunity to learn. <br />[/QUOTE] <br />1. They sure are. They are also a people with a tremendous natural gift for the arts and sports. <br /> <br />2. Good point. Ten years ago Québec started encouraging natives to take part in First Nation Urban Developments while preserving their heritage and so far it has had great success. It is not uncommon to see teepees (michuap) in their back yards and to see non native kids flock to their colorful neighbourhoods. <br /> <br />3. In addition to this, Native heritage should be focused on in schools complete with excusions and hands on projects.

   

One mistaken statement is that natives want all those 'western creature comforts'. What natives want is access to their own land so that they are not starving to death. Go to the library and sign out "Is the Crown at War with Us?" It will really open your eyes. <br /> A chief from northern ontario gave a talk in Toronto addressing this very issue. He said that they could not understand why white people spend so much time indoors in such a beautiful country. He said that there is such a fixation in the white press on their delapidated houses. While he said that was an issue, he said that they spend far more of their time outdoors than in. <br /> To me, there is no issue greater than that of natives. How can we argue about keeping together a country with such resources while the indiginous population lives in squalor? We are conquerers, no different than americans in Iraq or the Soviet Union was in Czechoslovakia. While it was our ancestors (or others) who did the dispossessing it is our government (reprentative of the people) that continues to oppress them. How we treat them is how we define ourselves as a nation. A hard fact to accept I know. <br /> What can we do? Practical things. Stop buying newspapers and wood products, especially from Abitibi-Consolodated. This is the company which is poisoning the water and stealing the lumber from Grassy Narrows. <br /> Write to your MP, and PM, make sure they know this is an issue for voters. Believe me, if you're a voter then the government listens. The federal government goes out of it's way to make life difficult for native bands, like cutting off their funding if they try to gain self sufficience. <br /> Most governments, in case you haven't noticed, primarily serve business interests. Make sure you support native co-ops, and co-ops in general in your purchases. Natives do not want our form of government (neither do I), they want a government such as they used to have, which were true democracies, even in their trade practises. Our government, as Dewey said, "is the shadow cast by business over society". <br /> If you really want to improve native life, email the bands, ask them what their needs are. Remember, if Canada was currently populated with natives living as they are, it would be a third world country.

   

I agree with Perturbed. We should treat everyone to the best of our abilities. We can't have a strong nation until the governmnet starts dealing with issues like treaties, residential schools,suicide and poverty, <br /> <br />I'm with voting for the NDP so that there can actually be a start with solving the issues.. They are the only party that would actually care to put native affairs on the front burner not the back burner.

   

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