c'est moi, this would be my response to your comments:
My views on prohibition have been voiced many times and are parallel with yours; if it was my community then I would speak out against that approach.
The situation in Natuashish is something for the Innu to work out.
I will say that the situation of a ban arose because bootlegging and drug dealing was not dealt with adequately. There was a public meeting called by the band chief, a public vote took place, yes for ban one side no for ban other side. This approach was criticized by some members of the band, but it carried anyway. So it is a good first step IMO, it was people motivated.
I should have mentioned too that a large portion of the community is out on the land at moment. Innu families go out every spring and spend time hunting etc. Land based activity gets strong support within the Innu society; individual addiction counseling also takes place in land based camps at times.
Inuit in Labrador talk about community land based camps but very little is done about it. The odd language camp, one maybe two healing camps that I can think of. Powers that be don’t like those things for some reason ;-]
Innu society is more bottom up decision making, Inuit is more top down, at least that is my observation.
I’m not sure if this top down is actually an Inuit custom or was introduced over the last couple of decades. What ever, it is a great way for controlling the populace.
Since starting this muse I not1ced another anonymous comment on the subject. Those comments are welcome and valid. All I would say is that there is always some ones rights violated, in this case the right to have a drink with family or friends in your own home. It is true others rights have been violated for years with the bootlegging, drugs, the inability for society to come to grips with settling land claims in a timely and equitable manner.
To c'est moi again: Booze is very much controlled by the NL government. Beer is sold in corner stores; we have a beer outlet here, runs out about February, re stocks when boats start again.
All other booze has to be purchased through the NLCB stores. The store in Happy Valley serves the entire coast. A credit card and fax machine is all you need to place an order. Airlines pick it up and deliver to their agents in each community; it’s a good source of revenue for all involved.
Bootleggers use any means available, plane, boat [large and small], ski doo, who knows what other means.
To any ol one: Whoever wins the presidency of the NG on Tuesday will have a very large job ahead.
All candidates have made many promises. No one person no matter the position can make meaningful change without help and support, it will take a concerted effort. Attitudes both within government and especially from the people have to change.
Those entrenched parochial attitudes both within the bureaucracy and elected members will not change unless pressure is bought from the electorate.
Do not be afraid to voice your opinions, it is your right. Do not be frightened by words like “collective”, “activism”, “people power”.
The entrenched will make out those words create division, are not the Inuit way, yadda yadda yadda.
The truth is that the entrenched ways have created the division, taking the power away from the people. Lack of openness in government, lack of accountability, lack of communication with and to the people have all to be corrected firstly before anything else IMO.
The fog did not lift until around noon yesterday, when it did what a great day. Many flights were playing catch up then, choppers taking off, town emptying out of visitors.
She be fogged in again this morning, the airlines say all is on shed., must know something.... or not.
4 comments:
The "Top Down" decision making was introduced the minute the first settler arrived...
Inuit used different kinds of decision-making depending on the task at hand. Some of it was "top-down" and some of it was communal. The Settlers were independent-spirited people who preferred to live in the bays and resisted pressures to move to the modern settlements. Both Inuit and Settler culture had a high respect for individual autonomy.
The kind of top-down decision making you're referring to evolved between 1956 and the mid-1970s when various provincial-government mandated "Councils" displaced the Community Hall as the focus for public culture in Nain, and the Elders with state-sponsored local governments.
problems with alcohol are not uncommon in any small community in NL. even a small community such as the one i live in have them. a decade or so back i noticed drugs started being the main problem and it seemed any break in,large or small was for the purpose of stealing to buy drugs. i do find if anything happens here it usually does not make the evening news all the time but the same situation from a northern community certainly will. i do think the problems in labrador on the same matter are far greater then here but we seldom see anything reported positive and i think that's the fault of the media.
Nice to read the TWO thought provoking and heartfelt comments.
I did have the privilege of attending some of the LAST community meetings held in the old Martin Martin Hall back in the late 1970’s early 80’s.
Many unanswered questions were put by the community elders to the NEW WAY representatives. The Elders were upset and confused but polite and respectful, too respectful in retrospect.
I also attended an election for the Head Elder at the Community hall. I had only been here a short time but I was encouraged and surprisingly allowed to partake in the vote.
The community elders were slowerly pushed aside by the NEW WAY, but I would think even more hurtful for them was the fact that they were pushed aside by one of their own, the new president of LIA of the time, one William Andersen 111. That was the start of the decline of Inuit influence in local and regional politics.
Wayne has hit the nail on the head. I have seen drunk but harmless Indigenous people being rudely barred from certain establishments, and then I have seen rowdy drunk noisy non Indigenous sports teams being given cart blanch by the same establishments, what’s up with that?
As to the media coverage, well what can one say?
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