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3/11/2015 8 Comments

Long Live the “Algonquin frauds”

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Photo credit Nik Gehl
Regarding the recent (March 11, 2015) APTN article on the Algonquins of Ontario’s massive land claims process, while I cannot speak to the contentious matter of the windfarm development discussed, I can speak to the very contentious statements about who is and who is not Algonquin, as well as speak to the issue of the Algonquin communities in Ontario.

First, I do not agree with Eagle Village Chief Madeleine Paul and Wolf Lake First Nation Chief Harry St. Denis that non-status Algonquin are not really Algonquin.  Not all Indigenous Bands gained First Nation/Indian Act recognition by the federal government and as such it is not true that non-status Algonquin are not Algonquin.  They are.

Second, it is well known and long established that one of the main goals of the Indian Act has been, and continues to be, to unmake status Indians as a way to eliminate federal treaty responsibilities.  As a result, there are more non-status Algonquin Indians than status Algonquin Indians.  Clearly Indian status registration is not, and cannot be, the sole criterion of who is Algonquin.  Most know this to be true.

Third, due to the colonial agenda of erasing Indigenous people, as a mechanism of survival many Algonquin grew up not explicitly discussing and claiming who they were as Algonquin people.  While many Algonquin did this, as an effort to better assure they were able to gain land and/or employment, this does not mean they, and their descendants, were not and are not Algonquin. They are.

Fourth, the contribution that Indigenous knowledge brings to the arena is valuing that knowledge is not just in one’s mind and consciousness.  Indigenous knowledge, and as such being Algonquin, is also located in our hearts and the practices we do.  To suggest being Algonquin is only what is conscious and explicitly discussed is in fact a colonial understanding of what is knowledge.  We were and are Algonquin and you cannot take that away from us.

Fifth, while the 9 Algonquin communities in Ontario may not have been solidified and structured as the First Nations bands that are recognized by Aboriginal Affairs have become, this in itself does not mean these Algonquin people did not have some semblance of community life, albeit different due to different colonial pressures.  The fact is these Algonquin people were there at the community level doing what they did as Algonquin people.  While for some Algonquin this may have been a conscious and explicit experience and way of life, for other Algonquin it may not have been a conscious experience and way of life, and still further some Algonquin may have actually existed in a state of conscious denial.  Regardless of these varied Algonquin experiences they were all there being Algonquin, and they remain Algonquin whatever their experience was.

Sixth, while I do not agree with Chiefs Paul and St. Denis on these 5 matters, I do agree that the Algonquin of Ontario communities have been formalized and structured through the colonial process known as the Algonquins of Ontario.  Sadly, and most unfortunate, the Algonquins of Ontario are operating under colonial policies which terminate Algonquin land rights, and in this way these communities and their so called leaders / Chiefs have been co-opted by the Canadian state.  In this way, Chiefs Paul and St. Denis are correct when they call these communities “policy fictions”.

In summary, like Chiefs Paul and St. Denis I am not happy about the non-sense of the Algonquins of Ontario’s land claims process, but I must defend who I am as a non-status Algonquin brought on by the long-time sex discrimination in the Indian Act.  I also need to speak to the reality that even though many Algonquin Bands were never federally recognized, regardless, like me, these people are indeed Algonquin.

The real issue here is Canada’s termination process, not who is and who is not Algonquin.  Contradictorily, if what Pikwakanagan First Nation Chief Kirby Whiteduck argues is true, that there are many questionable Algonquin, potentially resulting in a no vote because his community members are not happy about this, long live the “Algonquin frauds” is something to consider.  Clearly I want a no vote as 1.3 % of my traditional territory and a one-time $300 million buyout does not a treaty make.

Additional podcasts and readings on Indian status and the Algonquins of Ontario land claims process:
http://rabble.ca/podcasts/shows/talking-radical-radio/2015/01/%EF%BB%BFlynn-gehl-centring-indigenous-knowledge
http://rabble.ca/news/2013/04/indian-act-legislative-silence-and-ongoing-sex-discrimination-canada
https://ricochet.media/en/318/first-nations-finance-their-own-demise-through-land-claims-process
http://rabble.ca/news/2013/03/heart-break-algonquin-genocide
http://www.lynngehl.com/2-truth-that-wampum-tells.html

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Lynn Gehl, Ph.D. is an Algonquin Anishinaabe-kwe from the Ottawa River Valley.  She has a section 15 Charter challenge regarding the continued sex discrimination in The Indian Act, and is an outspoken critic of the Ontario Algonquin land claims and self-government process.  She has three books: Anishinaabeg Stories: Featuring Petroglyphs, Petrographs, and Wampum Belts, The Truth that Wampum Tells: My Debwewin of the Algonquin Land Claims Process, and Mkadengwe: Sharing Canada's Colonial Process through Black Face Methodology. You can reach her at lynngehl@gmail.com and see more of her work at www.lynngehl.com.

8 Comments
Liz Brown-Commanda
3/12/2015 04:11:45 am

Chi Miigwetch to you for all that you do to raise awareness of our situation. I wish more people understood what you are saying. The situation is unspeakable. If I had status, a vote, or any kind of say in the matter at all, I'd want you to be our leader, or one of our many strong female leaders. You are so articulate, passionate, and have such incredible insight into the historical and ongoing genocide.

I love that your vision is so inclusive, that we are all Anishinabe, and that INAC status is only designed to divide and conquer. We are what we are. We all belong in the circle. I pray that someday we will realize that fully, and stand strong together with no more lateral violence in our communities, and say together that the Anishinabe will determine their own membership rather than having it dictated to them by a colonial and outdated structure.

I put tobacco down today and pray for unity and an end to all forms of lateral violence. Your work inspires me to believe that we will someday get there.

Reply
Lynn Gehl
2/16/2016 07:09:45 pm

Thank you Liz.

Please read and share this. What the Chiefs in Quebec are saying about the non-status is really problematic. While I understand they are not happy with the land claims process in Ontario they need to focus on the land claims policy and stay away from identity politics.

http://www.lynngehl.com/black-face-blogging/on-the-algonquin-vote

Reply
eleanor
3/12/2015 09:20:26 pm

I agree wholeheartedly with the above article, with the exception of the comment, " Kirby Whiteduck " and voting members. There are hundreds of Non-Native individuals that are enrolled members of the Algonquin Land Claim, and created specifically to swell the numbers and land base. Do you believe that Kirby is not aware of this. Kirby's comment is one that should be considered very carefully as a ploy to diffuse and cloud the real issues. I put tobacco down as well and ask my grandmother's for guidance in this troubled times. I also feel very strongly that the divide and conquer strategy that has so long been practiced by the oppressive groups, could not continue if the Non-status ,Status ,Inuit ,and Metis amaligimate. Really no one Indigenous person is any better that the other just because the Government gives them a name title.

Reply
Lynn
3/13/2015 04:04:42 am

Kwey Elenor, I am not sure what you do not agree with? I think you are saying that Kirby is correct there are many non-Algonquin (versus non-status) people enrolled in the Algonquin land claims process. If this is what you mean, please know that I agree that this may be the case and it has to be addressed. But we need to be careful and not assume that because someone is a non-status Algonquin and their identity was denied to them - that this does not mean they are not Algonquin which is what the APTN article and the Algonquin Chiefs in Quebec are suggesting. My goal in this blog is to assure that this argument and position about non-status Algonquin is challenged and tossed. Thank you.

Reply
Joe Viscount
2/11/2016 09:30:51 am

At the time of original European colonization, here as in many parts of the world many colonists "took" first nations wives. I use the word took deliberately because this is what colonists did. No different than colonists in other parts of the world. Many had views in their country of origin and did so with less than honourable, others with honourable intent. Nonetheless it was an attempt to convert the heathen and advance the goals of colonization. Many first nations accepted colonists as well for many reasons. The question I raise is that if the definition of first nation or not is going to be determined by an ancestry test in Canada, does that standard hold for establishing rights for example to Scottish, French, Spanish or English ancestry. Cultural expression, language and demonstrated history typically define a person. Blood is an unreliable method as it can be used against when convenient and to support when convenient. We are all apparently descendants of "Lucy". How far back until we are all Africans. I don't know but I does seem that the goals of colonization have been regrettably achieved if these people who have no current connection to a heritage are allowed to vote. As well when residential schools and introduced diseases are factored in it gets even harder. Was a family line interrupted forever? It seems to me that INAC itself is a construct designed to do this. It should be up to historic first nations people through their hereditary chiefs to decide who is or is not acceptable using the traditions and oral history in my opinion. This whole situation introduces an argument that can be used on both sides of a divide unfortunately and maybe is something that should be consider wisely before a vote is allowed to proceed. Stop the vote until the broader first nations people can consider the implications is what I would suggest if I were to be affected. Those who are really first nations will understand an accept this I hope. INAC or Hereditary chiefs? Hereditary is where I would put my weight as I watch what is happening in my province over pipelines and access being granted on traditional lands. Just thoughts and opinion.

Lynn Gehl
2/16/2016 07:11:13 pm

Thank you Eleanor.

Please read and share this. What the Chiefs in Quebec are saying about the non-status is really problematic. While I understand they are not happy with the land claims process in Ontario they need to focus on the land claims policy and stay away from identity politics.

http://www.lynngehl.com/black-face-blogging/on-the-algonquin-vote

Reply
Denise Soucy link
3/20/2015 09:15:33 am

TY for sharing . Knowledge is power .... i do wish us all peace..... Blessings and love. <3 Dont stop ever.

Reply
Lynn Gehl
2/16/2016 07:11:53 pm

Thank you Denise.

Please read and share this. What the Chiefs in Quebec are saying about the non-status is really problematic. While I understand they are not happy with the land claims process in Ontario they need to focus on the land claims policy and stay away from identity politics.

http://www.lynngehl.com/black-face-blogging/on-the-algonquin-vote

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