Canada 150 — Our Home on Native Land
Gathering Place Moved to North West Corner of Lawn on Parliament Hill
The gathering place and teepee established by Indigenous women and youth on Parliament Hill has now been moved onto a main area west of the big stage. It was relocated on the evening of June 29 following all-day negotiations with the RCMP and will remain there through July 1.
The teepee was originally placed just inside the gates to Parliament Hill on the night of June 28. It was established thanks to the determination of Indigenous women and youth and supporters to establish the Indigenous presence on the Hill. They prevailed despite being assaulted by police and nine arrests that night.
This gathering place stands as a testament to the determination to affirm the right to be of Indigenous peoples in the face of the perpetuation of colonial relations and the negation of hereditary rights by the federal government. In the name of reconciliation and righting historical wrongs, the ruling circles are intent on bringing the past into the present so as to achieve the same genocidal results.
On the occasion of Canada 150 celebrations, events across the country are rejecting the glorification of the dispossession of the Indigenous peoples. The government is spending $500 million on celebrations and many frivolous projects. But the Indigenous peoples across the country are organizing initiatives in defence of their rights. They are joined by Canadians and Quebeckers from all walks of life who are also fighting for a modern Canada which upholds peace and the dignity of labour.
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.
