Canada 150 — Our Home on Native Land

Indigenous People Establish
Gathering Place on Parliament Hill

The Communist Party of Canada (Marxist-Leninist) hails the Indigenous youth from Sault Ste Marie including the Bawating Water Protectors who, despite being assaulted by police who tried to block them, succeeded in erecting their teepee on the east side of Parliament Hill at 2:00 am on June 29.

The youth were joined by members of other nations as well as Canadians and Quebeckers who steadfastly defended their action to establish a gathering place on Parliament Hill. The action started with a rally at the Human Rights Monument and a march. The people finally succeeded in established a beachhead inside the gates to Parliament Hill despite police attack, nine arrests and an hours-long standoff. All those arrested were released later in the night once the RCMP and Parliament Hill police backed off from their confrontation.

The establishment of the gathering place marks the beginning of four days of ceremony and fasting led by the youth affirming their sovereignty and rights. They are also rejecting the glorification of the Canadian state and its colonial relations with Indigenous peoples embodied in the $500 million Canada 150 commemorations. CPC(M-L) calls on all those who to go to Parliament to visit the teepee, pay respects to the just cause of Canada’s Indigenous peoples, and ensure the success of the gathering place.