Wednesday, July 15, 2015

Does Mother Canada Monument Run Afoul Of Aboriginal Title?

A stub of a story here:

A report by a Mi’kmaq scholar denounces the controversial Mother Canada statue.
The statue is part of a war memorial proposed for a national part in Cape Breton, N.S.
Critics say the statue will pave over a pristine part of the Cape Breton Highlands.
The Mi’kmaq say it will also pave over Aboriginal rights and title.

The full study here.  From it:

 If the proposed Mother Canada development were to proceed, any future use of the area and any future exercise of any Aboriginal and Treaty Rights by the L’nu would be extinguished. This would have a tremendous impact on the aboriginal and treaty right of the L’nu to hunting, fishing, gathering of medicines and practicing their culture in a place that is clearly significant both culturally and spiritually for the L’nuk.

And my favorite bit:

• If the project is to proceed, a starting point in accommodating the concerns of the L’nuk people would be to change the design of the Mother Canada statue. Most L’nuk would see the current design as an image of an oversize, dominant Catholic nun. Given the recent release of the Truth & Reconciliation report, the design needs to be reexamined so as not to remind L’nu’s of the cultural genocide and rampant abuse practiced at the Shubenacadie Residential School.

I find Ms. Young's level of expertise hard to assess, but if there really are legal issues with local FNs to be settled before this thing can proceed, I would think that its future is not bright.

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