UPDATED Saturday May 11: Naagdawendig – 10 years after Site 41 protest camp

As the Site 41 protest camp gets underway. -Kate Harries photo

UPDATE: AGENDA

Naagdawendig – Taking Care of Each Other – Site 41 10 Year Anniversary Discussions

LAND – WATER – HUMAN RIGHTS
Akiing – Nibi – Mnaadendmowin

Saturday, May 11, 2019 – Springwater Provincial Park

Naagdawendig Poster

In honor of the 10-year anniversary of the start of the Protest Camp at Site 41, members of Beausoleil First Nation bring to you some informative, educational discussions on key issues facing our society today in terms of Land, Water and Human Rights (specifically Indigenous & LGBTQ2S).

It was 10 years ago, through cold temperatures, rain and sleet that Anishinaabe women, their families, children and youth braved the cold weather and set up a Protest Camp adjacent to then proposed Site 41 Landfill on Concession 2 in Tiny Township.

The historic movement was the first of its kind in the area where Indigenous and Non-Indigenous people worked together for a common cause and won. In the 10 years since the Site 41 win, Land, Water and Human Rights issues have expanded exponentially. This event seeks to build partnerships and discuss solutions to key issues moving forward together.

-Opening Prayer & Water Ceremony – Elder Rosanne Monague
-Opening Address – Chief Guy Monague, Beausoleil First Nation
-Sara Monague – Traditional Perspectives of Women & Water
-Gillian Von Langsdorff & Tanisha La, Khoisan Liberation Walks & Site 41 Indigenous Connection
-Dr. William Shotyk -The Artesian Springs of the Wye River Watershed: How Mother Nature Creates, Maintains and Provides the Cleanest Water on Earth
-Vicki Monague & Erin Archer – Site 41 and the Teedon Pit Quarry Expansion
SPECIAL GIFT PRESENTATION
-Dr. Hayden King, Crown-Indigenous Relations, Rights: The Struggle for Rights and Recognition
-Brandon Amyot, Jesse Sharma, and Keegan James – The Challenges and Solutions in the Indigenous LGBTQ2S Movement
-Beze Gray Chemical Valley & Amjiwnaang First Nation: An Understanding of Environmental Racism
Shelley Essance Traditional Perspectives on Climate Change
-Brandon Stiles and Vicky Wolske -Protecting Lake Simcoe for Future Generations (Tentative)
-Dr. Hayden King, Kerry Taylor, B. Jeff Monague and Vicki Monague, Creating the Path Forward on Truth and Reconciliation

WHO SHOULD ATTEND:
Educators (elementary, secondary and post-secondary institutions), Elected officials (municipalities, cities, provincial and federal), Party riding associations, Health professionals and administrators, Front line public service workers who work with Indigenous clients, Police and emergency service personnel, grassroots citizens, and non-governmental organizations, First Nations citizens and organizations.

VENDORS:
Vendors are welcome free of charge. Spacing priority will be granted to Indigenous Artisans, and local area First Nations Organizations to promote their programs and services.

DONATIONS:
This is a grassroots event. If you wish to sponsor to donate to event expenses, you may contact Vicki to do so. Any excess donations will go towards a one-time bursary for Social Justice Activism to a high school or post-secondary school student that is a member of Beausoleil First Nation, and will be administered by the Beausoleil Education Authority (the hosts will be exempt). Non-perishable food items will also be accepted and will go to the Taaswin Food Bank on Christian Island.

VOLUNTEERS:
If you wish to volunteer, please sign up at mzhakdokwe (at) gmail.com

SINGLE USE PLASTICS, INCLUDING WATER BOTTLES, ARE NOT PERMITTED. Light refreshments will be served, bring your own utensils, plates and bowls.

FOR MORE INFORMATION:
Email – mzhakdokwe (at) gmail.com or phone 705-427-0512

Dr. Hayden King is Anishinaabe from Beausoleil First Nation on Gchi’mnissing in Huronia, Ontario. The Executive Director of Yellowhead Institute and Advisor to the Dean of Arts on Indigenous Education at Ryerson University, Dr. King is also an adjunct professor at Carleton University and senior fellow at Massey College. Previously he has taught at McMaster University and was Chair of First Nations Technical Institute Politics program. He is among the noted Indigenous public intellectuals in Canada with his analysis on the Canadian-Indigenous relationship published widely. Dr. King is also the co-founder of the Ogimaa Mikana Project and co-host of the Red Road podcast. Dr. King will speak on contemporary Crown-Indigenous Relations and Indigenous Sovereignty, he will also join the panel on “Charting the Path Forward on Truth and Reconciliation.”

Dr. William Shotyk is a Professor at the University of Alberta, and Babcock Chair for Agriculture and the Environment, founder of the Elmvale Foundation. B.Sc Agriculture from the University of Guelph and a Ph.D. from the University of Western Ontario in Geochemistry. After postdoctoral research at the University of California, Riverside (1987) and at the University of Western Ontario (1988-1989), he joined the Geological Institute at the University of Berne, Switzerland, as Oberassistent. and completed his Habilitation (Geochemistry) at the University of Berne in 1995. In October of 2000, he joined the University of Heidelberg as Professor, becoming Director of the Institute of Environmental Geochemistry. He is also a participant in Land Reclamation International Graduate School (LRIGS) program sponsored by NSERC CREATE. Dr. Shotyk’s research was a critical element to the success of the 2009 Site 41 movement. He will present on “The Artesian Springs of the Wye River Watershed: How Mother Nature Creates, Maintains and Provides the Cleanest Water on Earth.”

Kerry Taylor, J.D. received an Honours Bachelor of Environmental Studies degree from York University in 1995. She then attended Osgoode Hall Law School, where she obtained her LLB (Bachelor of Laws) in 1998. Kerry also completed her graduate work at Osgoode Hall Law School and obtained her doctorate in 2007 (Doctor of Jurisprudence). Her doctoral thesis related to the cultural paradoxes arising from legal regulation of the body. Her research and work experience focussed on genetic and reproductive technologies, disability, employment equity, and the regulation of sickness/disease. In addition to teaching at the Centre, Kerry also enjoys teaching, “Order & Disorder: Human Rights and Sociolegal Perspectives” in the Academic Bridging Program at Woodsworth College. Kerry has ongoing interests in using socio-legal methods and theories to study and teach in the areas of abolition-focussed penology, bioethics, human rights and reconciliation, social/environmental justice, and food security. She is committed to expanding her practice of facilitating experiential learning and multiple ways of knowing. Kerry will join the panel on “Charting the Path Forward on Truth and Reconciliation.”

B. Jeff Monague is a veteran of the Canadian Armed Forces, as well as former Chief of Beausoleil First Nation. Jeff made history being the youngest Chief ever elected for the BFN community. Jeff went on to promote the Ojibwe language, teaching in various schools and has been directly involved with Indigenous curriculum design. Jeff served as a Treaty Researcher and is an expert in local area history. He is a role model to youth and continues to advocate for youth engagement and youth empowerment across the many spectrums of society. As an active and engaged First Nations citizen, he has been involved with Indigenous Grassroots communities, supporting the Idle No More movement and other various movements across Canada. Jeff was responsible for negotiating a historic agreement on behalf of Beausoleil First Nations and the Ministry of Natural Resources for Springwater Provincial Park, saving the park from closure.

Jesse Michael Sharma is one of the lead organizers of the first ever Niizh Manidook Pow Wow that was held at Springwater Provincial Park in 2018.
Jesse nintishinikaaz. Saakiin nintoonji. Shiihshiipehns anishinaabe noozowin. Mahkwa nintootem.
Anishinaabe indaaw miinwaa kanien’keha indaaw.
Niizh manitook indaaw.
Aanj bineshiinh ikwe indaaw miinwaa akinamaago ikwe indaaw. Nimaamaa saakiin oonji. Nookmis saakiin oonji.
Nintaataa Trinidad and Tobago oonji.
Minidoogaming miinwaa Gihcinameminising nintishitaa.
Mino wiisini gitigaan nintashiyanohkii.
My name is Jesse Sharma. I am from Saugeen First Nation. Little Duck is my Ansihinaabe name. I am from the bear clan. I come from the Anishinaabe and Mohawk nations. I belong to the two-spirits nation. I come from changing bird woman and woman who leaves tracks on earth. My mother is from Saugeen Ojibwe Nation. My grandmother is from Saugeen Ojibway Nation. My father is from Trinidad and Tobago. Georgian Bay and Big Sturgeon Island is where I live currently. Sacred seeds collective is where I work.

Beze Gray is a two-spirit Anishnaabe, Delaware, and Oneida from Aamjiwnaang First Nation, treaty #29 territory. They are an organizer of grassroots events based on culture and environment through the group Aamjiwnaang and Sarnia against Pipelines. Events like Toxic Tour and Aamjiwnaang Water Gathering. They focus on telling their experience of living in Canada’s Chemical Valley. Beze is currently attending Georgian College in the Anishnaabemowin & Program Development

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