Solidarity with Wet’suwet’en

Update: There’s a rally in support of the Wet’suwet’en on Parliament Hill on Monday, Feb. 24, 2020 at 9 a.m. See the event page for details.

Something significant is happening in Ottawa and across the country, and how we respond to it will have profound consequences for environmental and social justice and our collective future.

Indigenous groups and supporters are standing in solidarity with the Wet’suwet’en people, whose Hereditary Chiefs have rejected the construction of a Coastal GasLink fracked gas pipeline through their territory. The RCMP have forcibly removed people who were peacefully residing on their land.

Although the Wet’suwet’en’s rejection of the pipeline through their territory includes environmental considerations, the situation is about much more than a pipeline. The Wet’suwet’en have never given up their lands, or laws. The Canadian Supreme Court has acknowledged this. The B.C. government has recognized the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) in law.

There’s no other way to see it: Canadian governments and police are illegally and violently supporting corporate interests, at the expense of Indigenous peoples, and the environment. The response of Indigenous peoples and allies across the country has helped expose the colonial and destructive nature of the relationship between Canada and Indigenous peoples that has existed for generations and continues today.

Here on unceded Algonquin territory—Ottawa—Indigenous youth gathered at the Justice building and took to the streets last week in support of the Wet’suwet’en.

On Monday, Feb. 17, 2020, there will be a rally at Confederation Park, starting at 2 p.m. It’s an opportunity for everyone to show support for the Wet’suwet’en nation, and insist on dialogue to create a new relationship. See the event page for details.

Check out this resource for other ways to support the Wet’suwet’en people.