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Why the 'Idle No More' Movement Is Our Best Chance for Clean Land and Water

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As Attawapiskat Chief Theresa Spence enters her fourth week of a hunger strike outside the Canadian parliament building, thousands of protesters voice their support in Los Angeles, London, Minneapolis, and New York City. Spence and the protesters of the Idle No More movement are drawing attention to deplorable conditions in native communities and the recent passage of Bill C-45, which sidesteps most Canadian environmental laws.

Put it this way: Before the passage of Bill C-45, 2.6 million rivers, lakes, and a good portion of Canada's three ocean shorelines were protected under the Navigable Waters Act. Now, only eighty-seven are protected. That's just the beginning of the problem, which seems not to have drawn much attention from the general public.

"Flash mob" protests with traditional dancing and drumming have erupted in dozens of shopping malls across North America, marches and highway blockades by aboriginal groups and supporters have emerged across Canada and as far away as New Zealand and the Middle East. This weekend, hundreds of native people and their supporters held a flash mob round dance, with hand drums and singing, at the Mall of America in Minneapolis, again as a part of the Idle No More protest movement. This quickly emerging wave of native activism on environmental and human rights issues has spread like a wildfire across the continent.


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