John Tory plays anti-Aboriginal racist card
Sun, 2007-09-23 11:08
#1
John Tory plays anti-Aboriginal racist card
Sun, 2007-09-23 11:08
#2
[url=http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20070923.wtory0923/BN... says he'll crack down on illegal occupations[/url]
quote:
If elected Oct. 10, Mr. Tory says he would change provincial laws to broaden the definition of trespassing and double existing fines for those who defy the order.Individuals would face a maximum fine of $2,000 for each day they occupy land illegally and organizations would face a maximum daily fine of $25,000.
Mr. Tory made the remarks after holding a roundtable discussion with residents of Caledonia, south of Hamilton, where Six Nations protesters have occupied a housing development since February 2006. [...]
Mr. Tory says provincial statutes would also be changed to include any group that directs or finances an illegal occupation and to make it easier for those who suffer economic losses to make compensation claims.
I always enjoy hearing babblers talk about how John Tory is fundamentally a decent sort of guy, not like Mike Harris at all really - how the funding of religion and the crackdown on crime are just, who knows, anomalies... Welcome to the latest "anomaly".
Sun, 2007-09-23 11:42
#3
Le T
Yup this is just another assurance that Tory is just as much an [i]indian[/i]-hating cowboy as Harris. It's so hard to pillage the natural resources of the land when you have pesky people in the way.
It's always funny how the provincial governments will insist that Aboriginal relations is a Federal responsibility while at the same time selling mining, forestry, hunting, water, land, and anything else that can be comodified to the lowest bidder. Then they want to get all "tough" on those bad Indians when they get told to fuck off and mind there own business.
I heard Robert Lovelace and Paula Sherman of the Ardoch Nation speak about the illegal uranium exploration that the government is trying to push on the them. They said that the OPP had treated them well and that it was clear that they had learned something from the Ipperwash murder. They also mentioned that if something does happen to their occupation site it will most likely be a politician or a judge that forces the police to act.
Sun, 2007-09-23 12:34
#4
Le T
Apologies for the double post...
I just wanted to note how most of the threads started on Indigenous issues in the coming Ontario election quickly disappear while topics like funding of religious schools get multiple threads.
This is really scary, on a "progressivish" board people don't want to engage (for whatever reason) with "square one" of social justice in Canada - the relationship between Indigenous peoples and settlers.
Sun, 2007-09-23 12:52
#5
There is at least one reason for this that is not scary (the scary one being we don't care).
Any comment beyond "how terrible" by the majority on this board will be coming from a position of ignorance. Not something I want to do.
Are you asking for expressed support for these issues? That is something we should do, but posting messages in these threads isn't that great a solution.
Sun, 2007-09-23 13:32
#6
Perhaps if we comment on the thread topic we can get a good discussion going, rather than worrying about how hard it is to get a good discussion going.
Sun, 2007-09-23 13:50
#7
Le T
quote:
Any comment beyond "how terrible" by the majority on this board will be coming from a position of ignorance. Not something I want to do.
This is exactly what I am talking about. Most people who are working for change in Ontario have little knowledge about the history of Canada or even the treaty that allows them to live where they do (if any).
How can this be changed?
I am of the opinion that social justice can not be realized in this country without addressing the pressing concern that we live under a colonial government.
It's the 1930's and we are living in Germany. Tory has substantial media and popular support in Ontario for his hard-line stance. Neo-Nazi's regularly parade in Caledonia with the tacit support of a lot of Caledonians. Harper just voted against the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. A group of Navajo families traveling to Tyendinaga to show support for the action against the gravel pit/dump site were arrested and detained by the RCMP under terrorist laws. And fake land claims negotiations continue to drain millions of useful dollars from communities that need the money.
How do we, as activist and progressives, make this a central issue in our communities?
Sun, 2007-09-23 18:12
#8
[url=http://canadianpress.google.com/article/ALeqM5hAUzGD0xWxQKTIaQJ5AR1g6f0y... fines, broader trespassing laws...[/url]
quote:
Anyone directing, participating in or financially supporting an illegal land occupation in Ontario would face harsher penalties under a Progressive Conservative government, leader John Tory said Sunday as he paid a visit to one of the province's current cauldrons of aboriginal unrest.[...]
Liberal critics denounced the visit as a "desperate" tactic that threatened to foment more violence as Tory staged a roundtable discussion with local residents who are fed up with the protest, which is nearing the end of its second full year.
When it was over, Tory pledged to broaden the definition of trespassing, if elected, to hold more people to account for breaking the law.
"The Caledonia occupation - as we've heard this morning - is about more than a disputed property or about more than how a single community has been torn apart, and it's about far more than the many legitimate longstanding grievances of our First Nations peoples," Tory said after [b]the discussion, which didn't include any aboriginal representatives[/b].
[emphasis added]
Mr. Hampton?
Mon, 2007-09-24 05:30
#9
Although Hampton should be asked, (what, by the way?). I think that John Tory should be asked why it is that he doesn't meet with the Aboriginal protestors? Is he afraid to learn something? Have they refused to meet with him?
When will the provincial government uphold Canadian law?
Mon, 2007-09-24 05:42
#10
I get the feeling unionist is saying that Hampton should be commenting on the part unionist bolded.
Mon, 2007-09-24 06:05
#11
Sorry for being laconic.
Tory attacks the Indigenous people's struggle. The MSM quotes the Liberals attacking Tory. I just thought the NDP should be responding as well and not leaving the field open to the Liberals.
And yes, Tory should be confronted - is he running to be premier of all Ontarians, or only those who feel threatened by this country's original population?
Mon, 2007-09-24 09:03
#12
quote:
Tory says he'll crack down on illegal occupations
I think that this is a cheap ploy by Tory to win support among First Nations voters, who'll expect Tory to crack down on the occupiers of their land.
Mon, 2007-09-24 09:27
#13
saga
quote:
Originally posted by zazzo:
[b]Although Hampton should be asked, (what, by the way?). I think that John Tory should be asked why it is that he doesn't meet with the Aboriginal protestors? Is he afraid to learn something? Have they refused to meet with him?
When will the provincial government uphold Canadian law?[/b]
Tory 'dropped in' to the reclamation site last year, and expected to speak to representatives of the Confederacy Council. He was told to make an appointment in advance. I don't believe he has bothered.
Mon, 2007-09-24 19:48
#14
quote:
Originally posted by Albireo:
[b] I think that this is a cheap ploy by Tory to win support among First Nations voters, who'll expect Tory to crack down on the occupiers of their land.[/b]
[img]biggrin.gif" border="0[/img] [img]biggrin.gif" border="0[/img] [img]biggrin.gif" border="0[/img]
Tue, 2007-09-25 06:50
#15
Tory's attack is a desperate attempt to find some kind of footing in the election. I hope Native spokespersons point this out, and the rather racist attempt to use Native people to whip up reactionary support. I'd also point out how much money developers have shoved in the pockets of the Ontario Progressive Conservative Party. And call it what it is-- a bribe.
It's funny. I am astounded by how bad Tory misreads the public. The religious funding issue has sunk his campaign before it really got underway, and I think he misreads the public here, too. For or against the occupation at Caledonia, it's my guess that the majority of non Native Ontarians have no desire for confrontation.
Tue, 2007-09-25 07:43
#16
Maybe you hit the nail on the head, Tommy. John Tory is first and foremost a strategist. His miscue wrt the religious schools issue means that he has to make up support in some other way, so he turns to the traditional conservative tactic of simplifying a complex issue and coming up with a law-and-order solution (and the bashing of oppressed people is a bonus).
Tue, 2007-09-25 08:01
#17
Beg to differ. This "crack down on Natives" is unrelated to his flop on school funding. He has been talking about it, and has made it official Conservative policy, since long before the election campaign. [url=http://www.ontariopc.com/news.asp?id=645]Example[/url] from last May 4:
quote:
...[N]o one should be above the law, whether it is regarding a political protest, a labour dispute or any other issue. “The Premier of Ontario must be prepared to vigorously pursue new tools and new measures to ensure all parties comply with the rule of law. Simply standing by and allowing [b]land occupations and railway blockades[/b] or other disruptive demonstrations that defy court injunctions just cannot be an option.”
And from Tory's House leader Bob Runciman, in [url=http://www.bobruncimanmpp.com/newsreleases/2006/nr_10_24_06.htm]October 2006[/url]:
quote:
The McGuinty government’s attempt to get the federal government to pay for their mismanagement of an illegal occupation in Caledonia is a “sick joke”, according to P.C. House Leader Bob Runciman (MPP Leeds-Grenville). [...]Runciman concluded his statement citing Caledonia as an on-going example of the Liberal government’s failure to uphold the rule of law, generating increased lack of respect for the application of laws and damaging the reputation of the Ontario Provincial Police.
This is anti-Aboriginal racism, and calls for suppression of their struggle, coming from the economic and political elite of the society. I think it's a mistake to see it as just a fleeting act of electoral desperation.
Tue, 2007-09-25 08:31
#18
Well, true, Unionist, Tory floated this during the non-campaign part of the election campaign, connected to the closure of the CN rail line back in June.
But he's been quiet on the subject until yesterday. The same day the the Civil Liberties Union publicly decried his religious education idea, and when one Tory incumbent candidate from the Bruce actually came out publicly against it.
Tue, 2007-09-25 08:59
#19
saga
Tory is obviously desperate since his main platform bombed and lost him support within his own party and elsewhere.
Now he is desperately looking to wring some hard-line support out of his Caledonia conquest.
AND ... now he has some up with another zinger ... beer and wine in convenience stores.
Tue, 2007-09-25 10:05
#20
Tory is quite comical, but a dangerous comic.
"Rule of Law"? He'll be pitting economics against civil liberties. I don't think he's thought that through. The rules, such as they are, are fine.
Off-track:
Hey... how does one spell nincomepoop? I've been wondering that for a while.
Tue, 2007-09-25 14:30
#21
Le T
This issue is also tied to Tory's nuclear energy policy. He wants tonnes of nukes, fast. So fast that he doesn't want to let EAs or public hearings get in the way.
Guess who happens to be responsible for a large potential uranium mine site and doesn't want it mined?
Guess where spent uranium goes to pollute the environment for the next few million years?
Wed, 2007-09-26 00:57
#22
saga
quote:
Originally posted by Tommy_Paine:
[b]Well, true, Unionist, Tory floated this during the non-campaign part of the election campaign, connected to the closure of the CN rail line back in June.But he's been quiet on the subject until yesterday. The same day the the Civil Liberties Union publicly decried his religious education idea, and when one Tory incumbent candidate from the Bruce actually came out publicly against it.[/b]
The last quote I read, Tory said "If they can be sued, we will sue them." Somebody must have finally pointed out to him that under the 'Indian' Act, since they are under the protection of the Crown, Band Councils cannot be sued, in my understanding. He hasn't been crowing about it as much.
It just boggles my mind that someone we might have elected as Premier would not have the intelligence to do the homework on his policies.