The Oka crisis was a clash between a group of Mohawks mainly from the Kanesatake reserve, and the Quebec police over a disputed land that contained a Mohawk burial ground. The Mayor of Oka declared that the land would be used for a golf course expansion, and as a result barricades were erected by protesters in an attempt to halt construction (1). The conflict illustrated Canada’s inequality toward aboriginal people, proved that aboriginals would resort to aggression, and played a key role in creating the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples. The Oka crisis is significant to Canadian history because it showed Canada still had prejudice against its Aboriginal people, showed that natives were willing to use violence to defend their rights, and …show more content…
The first example of how the Oka crisis showed that natives were willing to use violence to defend their rights is natives from across the country uniting to defend the barricades not only to support the protesters, but to bring light to the general issue of aboriginal rights (5). Another example of how the crisis proved that Natives were willing to use violence to defend their rights is, short gunfights between protesters and police men taking place and Corporal Marcel Lemay being killed as a result (6). This is significant to Canadian history because it proved that First Nations would take extreme measures to ensure that their demands were met. Barney McLeod, a native involved in the crisis stated in an interview "It made me feel better to be native. I felt stronger" (7). In conclusion, the Oka Crisis showed that Natives were willing to use violence to defend their rights by Mohawks from across the country gathering to join the protest, and gunfights breaking out between protesters and police, which all contributed to the government finally focusing its efforts to aid aboriginal …show more content…
It proved Canada was still unjust to its natives because the aboriginals of Oka had their land claim rejected both in 1961 and 1989. Also, at one point of the Oka crisis, about 75 cars containing native women, children, and elderly were stoned while they tried to leave the reserve. The Oka crisis proved that that natives would resort to violence to make sure their demands were met in terms of natives from across Canada uniting to help the protesters and at the same time bring the governments attention to the overall issue of aboriginal rights. Also, brief gunfights occurred, resulting in the death of corporal Marcel Lemay. The Oka crisis brought the governments attention to aboriginal in terms of the Mulroney government creating the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples in response to the Oka crisis. The Commissions report suggested that the government spend $30 billion in self government initiatives and compensation
Personally I have plenty of thoughts and opinions regarding what happened in July 11th, 1990 in the village of Oka, Quebec regarding Oka Crisis. The people of Oka, also known as Mohawks, were confronted with a plan to extend a golf course onto their native land. This specific piece of land was very sacred to the Mohawks as it has been burial grounds for their families. The people of Oka then made a barricade in attempts to protect these grounds. On July 11th the police intervened and attempted to destroy this barricade meanwhile, shots were fired, people were injured and the whole place was a mess.
The problem of Colorado was that they needed land for the new settlers which meant that they needed the natives to move out of the Colorado territory. The result of the attack was that three hundred people were killed, two thirds of which were women and children. The massacre was
“Kanehsatake : 270 Years of Resistance” deals with the Oka crisis, a confrontation between Mohawk Indians living on area near Oka and the Canadian military. The interest of a local land development leads to government approval to expand a private 9-hole golf course and to build a luxury housing, both to be located on a burial ground and sacred pine grove belonging to the Mohawk nation. These serve as a momentum of a 270 year battle to officially regain their territory. A crowd of Mohawk Indians bloked incoming contruction equipment, and then the invaders called SQ(Quebec’s provincial police) in.
The conflicts between Canadian government and aboriginal groups have existed since the first British and French settlers came to Canada; however, some problems still appear today. The Oka Crisis is one of the major chaos caused by these left-over problems. In 1990, in order to stop the government from taking over their claimed lands, some Mohawks on the Kanesatake reserve blocked the roads near the Quebec village of Oka. Police forces were called to action; however, the aboriginal protesters killed a policeman and the police failed to take over the blocked. As the crisis upgraded, more and more protesters from all areas started to do the same thing.
Japanese Canadians have been a part of Canada since the early years of Canada’s development in the 1870s. After the bombing occurred in Pearl Harbour, “the fear of a Japanese invasion quickly spread throughout the west of Canada” (The Canadian Encyclopedia), and this resulted to the internment of Japanese Canadians. The callous mindset of the government lead to Japanese Canadians being forced out of their homes, sent into internment camps where they were kept in livestock barns while all their possessions have been either auctioned off or kept by the RCMP, and some were laboured into working in a farm with no pay to “prove their loyalty” (King, 75). Thomas King’s “Coyote and the Enemy Aliens”, looks into this aspect of the dark past in Canadian history and how the government reacted towards the
Throughout the history of the United States, there generally have been dozens of particularly social movements, which is fairly significant. From the African American Civil Rights Movement in 1954 to the feminism movement in 1920, protests for all intents and purposes have helped these groups basically earn rights and fight injustice in a really major way. Some injustices that these groups face range from lack of voting rights to police brutality, or so they essentially thought. The indigenous people of North America aren’t actually immune to these injustices, basically contrary to popular belief. Back in the 1968, the American Indian Movement generally was formed to for all intents and purposes give natives security and peace of mind in a
World War 1 was a historic event which began in 1914 and ended in 1918. This bloody conflict took the lives of more than 17 million people who were fighting for their countries. Being a British colony at the time, Canada was dragged into the war that did not impact the country in any way, yet thousands of Canadians volunteered to devote their lives for their nation. The first World War had the greatest impact on Canadian history during the 20th century, as this event helped Canada gain more independence from Britain, it helped introduce women in the workforce, and also introduced non-white Canadians in the army. For the longest time, Canada had been under British control, however, this changed a bit after World War 1 took place.
Film #1 - “The People of the Kattawapiskak River” Introduction In the documentary “The people of the Kattawapiskak River”, the housing crisis and lack of assistance promised in Northern Ontario is represented. The Documentary closely follows the chief of the Attawapiskat tribe and portrays the difficult living conditions endured by local residents. These problematic conditions include the lack of clean water, electricity and basic housing especially during the intolerable cold Canadian winter. Moreover, when a colony around the world is suffering it is our duty as human beings to help them through their difficult times.
Institutional and historical analysis often portray the motives of governments, especially in the cases of Quebec separatism and Aboriginal mistreatment. History describes attempts at compromise to rectify the problems by altering political institutions to provide more autonomy to the provinces, witness in various accords and the methods described previously. However, in regards to Aboriginals a historical relationship of exploitation and eradication sheds on the systemic issues that Aboriginals cope with and the institutions that caused them. As scholars of Canadian politics, it is important to consider historical and institutional analyses when looking at any issue, as it reveals the underlying motives of actors in regards to the cleavages that comprise a state.
It was a fire that sparked the War Measures Act and a crisis that halted Quèbec independence, and the city of Africville was a great injustice directed towards Black Nova Scotians. Negative or positive, all of the events that involve Canada has helped it to mature into the country we know
The rate Missing and Murdered Indigenous Woman in disproportionality high in Canada in comparison to other missing and murdered woman in Canada. Currently there has been “1017 aboriginal female homicide victims between 1980-2012. Of all these cases 225 of them have gone unsolved”(Missing and Murdered Aboriginal Women: A National Overview,2014). There are various factors in which play some type of contribution to The rate Missing and Murdered Indigenous Woman extreme high rates in Canada.
For a long time the debates had been going about how was the better prime minister of Canada. On the the top of most lists of best prime ministers are Mackenzie King and Sir John A. Macdonald. For example, according to the Expert Survey that was made in 2013 “Laurier came first, Macdonald second, and King third, but the difference in their overall scores was negligible”. Both prime ministers had a strong vision of the country that helped shaped Canada to become the country it is today(in 2015). Thesis: Sir John A.Macdonald was one of the founding fathers, but William Lyon Mackenzie King had to lead the country through the part of Depression and WWII, and they both have made different positive contributions to Canada and are highly respected
When Prime Minister Wilfrid Laurier stated, “As the 19th century was that of the United States, so I think the 20th century shall be filled by Canada”, the decades that followed provided his statement to be true as Canada became an independent and strong nation. The battlefields in World War One were a defining moment for Canada as their forces fought as one nation for the first time, instead of under British Command. Also, at the end of the war, Canada was recognized at the Peace Conference and signed the Treaty of Versailles as an independent country. In addition, Canada joined the League of Nations, playing a major role in world politics. These events in the early 20th century allowed the beginning of a strong nation with a growing national
Critical Summary #3: First Nations Perspectives In Chapter eight of Byron Williston’s Environmental Ethics for Canadians First Nation’s perspectives are explored. The case study titled “Language, Land and the Residential Schools” begins by speaking of a public apology from former Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper. He apologizes for the treatment of “Indians” in “Indian Residential Schools”. He highlights the initial agenda of these schools as he says that the “school system [was] to remove and isolate [Aboriginal] children from the influence of their homes, families, traditions and cultures, and to assimilate them[…]” (Williston 244).
The indigenous people have a long and proud history, including the rich cultural and spiritual traditions. However, many of these traditions have been changed or even disappeared after the arrival of the European settlers. Forced introduction of European culture and values, Aboriginal community, indigenous land being deprived, and the imposition of a period of governance outside the pattern of the beginning of a cycle of social, physical and spiritual destruction. You can see the effects of today. Some of the effects include poverty, poor health, and drug abuse.