#IdleNoMore is a unified movement of Canada’s First Nations to address a long history of failures by the Canadian government to deal with indigenous peoples honestly or fairly. It centers around a group of Bills (including Bill C-45) designed to further undermine the collective rights of First Nations.

Video via Aaron Peters on YouTube

From the IdleNoMore.ca website:

Idle No More calls on all people to join in a revolution which honors and fulfills Indigenous sovereignty which protects the land and water. Colonization continues through attacks to Indigenous rights and damage to the land and water. We must repair these violations, live the spirit and intent of the treaty relationship, work towards justice in action, and protect Mother Earth.

The movement was sparked by the hunger strike (still ongoing) of Chief Theresa Spence to draw attention to the abysmal housing situation at Attawapiskat First Nation.

From the Toronto Star:

It’s a short limo drive, maybe five minutes, from Parliament Hill to Victoria Island in the middle of the Ottawa River. Heck, you could walk it in 10. So would it kill Stephen Harper to get out of his office and go meet the chief of the Attawapiskat First Nation who is staging a hunger strike on the island to get attention for her community’s plight?

Remember Attawapiskat? It was all over the front pages a year ago when the Red Cross flew into the northern Ontario reserve to rescue people living in flimsy tents and shacks without running water as the coldest part of the year approached. The nation was shocked; politicians wrung their hands; ministers promised action.

Twelve months later, Chief Theresa Spence is in a cabin on Victoria Island, saying she won’t eat until Harper meets with her. She says the pain of watching her people suffer from lack of housing and inadequate water supplies is unbearable. “I am willing to die for my people,” she says, “because the pain is too much and it’s time for the government to realize what it’s doing to us.”

From Intercontinental Cry:

Since the #Idlenomore movement began just a few short weeks ago, tens of thousands of Indigenous Peoples and allies in Canada and around the world have stepped forward to inform the Canadian government that it can no longer treat First Nations as zero class citizens who’s only right is to obey the government–and if you don’t like it, then too bad for you.

If you don’t realize it yet, this is exactly what Canada is saying through its attempt to legislate a suite of Bills that will fundamentally change First Nations lives without First Nations consent.

But #idlenomore isn’t just a protest movement or some silly social media trend as the government calls it. It’s an awakening of consciousness, a resurgence, a platform that is bringing all of us together against a common foe. And it’s not just the “usual suspects” leading the charge, it’s everyone, including those of us who have never taken a real interest in politics.

Canada’s indigenous movement has arrived.

More Reading

• Stephen Harper should meet Attawapiskat chief on hunger strike
• Why ‘Idle No More’ is gaining strength, and why all Canadians should care
• Idle Know More: Films to Strengthen the Idle No More Movement in Canada
• Harper Launches Major First Nations Termination Plan: As Negotiating Tables Legitimize Canada’s Colonialism