mohawk standoff at oka: the mohawk defense of kanasetake

8/9/2019 Mohawk Standoff at Oka: The Mohawk Defense Of Kanasetake

1/17

The Oka Crisis

The Mohawk Defense Of Kanasetake

July 11, 1990. The SQ arrives at the Pines and demands that the MohawkIndian natives who have put up barricades around their burial ground andoccupied a large tract of land leave immediately. After hours of verbalconfrontation, the Sret du Qubec lobs volleys of canisters of tear gas andconcussion grenades into the Pines and moves in. The Mohawks resist. Theensuing exchange of gunfire is inevitable. The first victim of what is later tobe known as the "Oka crisis" is thirty-one-year-old Quebec policemanCorporal Marcel Lemay.

It is not clear who fired first. There has been some debate about how he wasactually shot. Some say that he fell off a tree and accidentally shot himself.

Others say he was shot by the Mohawk warriors, and others still say he was hitby a stray bullet, perhaps from friendly fire. If the two sides had decided toshoot to kill, Corporal Lemay would not have been the only victim of theexchange.

The other victims of the Crisis were an elderly Mohawk woman and an elderlyman. The woman died of heart failure in early September; a few days before shewas attacked, together with other Native elderly people and children fleeing fromKahnawake, by a stone-throwing mob. The man was poisoned by the tear gasthat wafted down from the Pines on July 11. He never fully recovered and diedseveral months later.

More Than Nine More Holes

The Canadian summer of 1990 was indeed a hot, vulnerable summer. The Okacrisis was sparked off by the decision taken by the Municipality of Oka and LeClub de golf dOka Inc. to extend a nine hole golf course originally built in 1959on land that the Mohawks claim is, and has always been, theirs. The 39 hectaresof land in question include a Native cemetery and parts of a pine forest known as"the Pines".

Various investigations, like those made by archaeologists in 1970 and NationalGeographic in 1974, confirm the validity of the Mohawk claims. However, as ithad already done in 1959, the Municipality of Oka ignored the peaceful protestsof the First Nations (as Native Indians are known in Canada) and went on withthe proposed project. This lead the Mohawks, on March 10, 1990, to occupyparts of the wooded area to protect their burial ground and trees. The pines hadbeen planted by the Mohawks and Algonquins in the nineteenth century, under


2/17

the guidance of the Sulpician fathers.

The Mohawks' occupation of parts of their land lasted more than six months.After the initial shoot out, the police backed down and four days later werereplaced by the Canadian Armed Forces. By August 14, there were more than2500 soldiers positioned outside Kahnawake and the town of Oka. Inside thebesieged area that had been vastly narrowed down by the army, there were

about a hundred people, including warriors, women and children. In his bookNative Peoples in Canada, published with Lilianne Ersnestine Krosenbrink-Gelissen in 1993, James S. Frideres writes about how "the armed forces began toengage in extensive psychological warfare such as sending jets at low altitudeover the reserve, stationing tanks around the area and displaying a range ofheavy weapons; e.g., howitzers, tanks, bulldozers." The Mohawks were armedwith small weapons; some of them had AK-47s.

The Mohawks' decision to use weapons to defend their land caused a great dealof internal strife. Some of the Natives saw an armed occupation of the disputedland as the only way to protect themselves. Others in the community felt that it

was not right or even wise to resort to weapons. However, according to Frideres,after the experience of the police raid of July 11, "the Native community wassuddenly galvanized into a state of unity by the traumatizing effect of an outsidethreat.

For the duration of the armed stand-off, the community appeared to be unitedon central issues of land rights, sovereignity and relations with non-Nativesociety. The continued negative experience with the police and the armed forcesseemed only to reinforce the reaction. Allegations of human rights violationsagainst the police and the army have been widespread and persistent." Thearmed stand-off at Oka sparked Native blockades on railways, highways andbridges primarily in Ontario, Quebec and British Columbia.

The Mohawk Nation

The Mohawks claim that they are a sovereign people and that their land does notfall under the jurisdiction of the Canadian government. In their book, TheWarriors and Legacy of Oka, journalists York and Pindera who spend weeks withthe besieged Mohawks, state that "by international standards, the Mohawks can

make a strong argument for sovereignity: they were never conquered by militaryforce; they have never agreed to give up their sovereignity; they signed treatieswith European countries on a nation-to-nation basis; and they served as equalpartners with Britain in military alliances."

Besides the aggression they have to put up with from the outside, the Mohawkshave their own brand of internal problems. In One Nation Under the Gun: Inside


3/17

the Mohawk Civil War, Rick Hornung writes about the many conflicts that haveplagued them, both before and after the Oka crisis. His book sheds light on thedifficulties that the Natives faced at the time in trying to present a united front.Hornung seems to dispute the validity of at least part of Frideres's claim that theCrisis united the Mohawks, for it certainly highlighted the major differenceswithin the nation. Hornung claims that the two main factions, the pro-gamblingand anti-gambling groups, have been fighting a fierce war that has done the

Mohawks a great deal of harm. The conflict has cut right through the communitybecause it is related to central issues like Mohawk identity, sovereignity and self-government. On August 8, 1989, the Mohawks voted nine to one in favour ofcasino gambling, but as the summer of 1990 and subsequent events show, thevote did not settle the issue within the community conclusively.

In the Oka crisis, the authorities throve on these internal differences and usedthem to discourage and discredit the militant Mohawks and their representativesand ultimately force them "peacefully" out of the Pines. The authorities' strategyof "divide and rule", the great psychological pressure they subjected thebesieged Natives to, and the inability of the Mohawk community to stick together

from start to finish, lead to what York and Pindera have called the "dnouement"(final resolution), or what Hornung has described as the "dismal end to thestand-off": on Wednesday, September 26, Mohawk Warriors, women andchildren left the Treatment Centre, ending the 78-day stand-off.

At the height of the Oka crisis, the federal government, through its Departmentof Indian Affairs and Northern Development, went back on its initial decision notto interfere in Quebec's internal affairs: it purchased the disputed land for $5.2million and drew up plans to turn it over to the Mohawks. Ottawa alsocompensated the municipality of Oka financially for loss of income from thepurchased land. In this sense, the government has "attempted", at least in part,"to address one of the root causes of the Mohawk land dispute."

Despite the relatively peaceful resolution to the crisis and the five years thathave since elapsed, many important issues have still to be addressed, foremostof all the rights, role and standing of the First Nations in Canada today.Moreover, a number of questions about the government's tactics during thestand-off itself still remain unanswered. Canada's credibility as a free anddemocratic nation was seriously undermined by the way it treated one of itsfounding nations.

Broken Promises and Condemnation

During the crisis, the Canadian authorities confronting the Mohawks brokepromises and clamped down heavily on the press. Frideres notes that "a numberof well-respected international agencies launched their own inquiries into theOka affair ... In the autumn of 1990, a lawyer from Amnesty International cameto Quebec to interview Mohawks who said they had been tortured with burning


4/17

cigarettes by the Quebec police after they were arrested."

On September 9, 1990 three or perhaps four soldiers attacked one of thebesieged Natives, forty year old Randy "Spudwrench" Horne, and beat him up sobadly that they almost killed him. The Mohawks requested permission to havehim taken to hospital. Despite the promises of Major Alain Tremblay thatSpudwrench would be allowed to rejoin his companions once he recovered, "he

was not permitted to return to the Treatment Centre. On the morning ofSeptember 12, he was arrested by the provincial police on five charges, includingpossession of a dangerous weapon and rioting."

Relations between the authorities and the press were particularly bad. OnThursday August 2, the police seized all footage of the July 11th confrontationfrom television stations. Further restrictions on the media, especially thoseimposed on journalists encamped with the besieged warriors (who wereprohibited from sending film back to their newsrooms and receiving personalsupplies from their employers), compelled human rights groups in the UnitedStates and Britain to send letters of protest to the Canadian authorities. The

Canadian Association of Journalists later described the military censorship as"one of the worst attacks ever on the Canadian publics right to know."

Despite the army's restrictions, the news of human rights violations was stillgetting out, and this prompted the European Parliament to pass a series ofresolutions condemning Canada and Quebec for violating an agreement signedon August 12 by the warring parties concerning international observers andhuman rights. The vice-president of the Parliament, Wilfried Telkamper, wrote aletter to Brian Mulroney on September 14 to protest the violations of humanrights. 'The cut-off of the telephone lines is an unjustified attempt to turn awayinternational attendance and to resolve this conflict without any witnesses,' hewrote.

In their book York and Pindera write about how the police beat up some of theMohawks after they walked out of the Pines, how "three journalists who hadwitnessed the walkout were handcuffed and questioned for hours by the policethat same night", and how one of them was kicked and punched. They alsodescribe how lawyers for the Mohawks were denied the right to assist theirclients during interrogations.

Canadian Responsibilities

Five warm summers, each with its fair share of protests and stand-offs betweenthe First Nations and the authorities, have passed, and yet the serious issuesthat provoked the Oka crisis have not been resolved. "The psychological victoryachieved by the federal government ... has prevented Native people from furtherexpressing their concern and frustration over land claims." The federalauthorities claim that "Canadians are recognizing that Native people must


5/17

assume more responsibilities for their own affairs, setting their own priorities anddetermining their own programs." And yet, the hot summer of 1990, wedgedbetween the long and bitterly cold Canadian winters, gives what Frideres calls"ample proof" that Canada is "not yet ready to act" in favour of its foundingnations.

(unpublished)

Oka CrisisFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article does not cite any references or sources.Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. (help, getinvolved!)Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed.

Pte. Patrick Cloutier, a 'Van Doo' perimeter sentry, and Mohawk Warrior Brad"Freddy Krueger" Larocque, a University of Saskatchewan economics student,face off

The Oka Crisis was a land dispute between the Mohawk nation and the town ofOka, Quebec which began on July 11, 1990, and lasted until September 26,1990. It resulted in three deaths, and would be the first of a number of well-
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citing_sourceshttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Oka_Crisis&action=edithttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Reliable_sourceshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:Contentshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:Contentshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:WikiProject_Fact_and_Reference_Checkhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:WikiProject_Fact_and_Reference_Checkhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Verifiabilityhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_22e_R%C3%A9gimenthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Saskatchewanhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mohawk_nationhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka%2C_Quebechttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/July_11http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1990http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/September_26http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1990http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1990http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/September_26http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1990http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/July_11http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka%2C_Quebechttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mohawk_nationhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Saskatchewanhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_22e_R%C3%A9gimenthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Oka_stare_down.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Oka_stare_down.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Verifiabilityhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:WikiProject_Fact_and_Reference_Checkhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:WikiProject_Fact_and_Reference_Checkhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:Contentshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Reliable_sourceshttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Oka_Crisis&action=edithttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citing_sources


6/17

publicized violent conflicts between Indigenous people and the Canadiangovernment in the late 20th century.

Contents

1 Historical background 2 Immediate causes

3 Crisis 4 Resolution 5 Repercussions 6 Legacy 7 Counter-insurgency manual 8 See also 9 References 10 External links

Historical background

The neutrality of this section is disputed.

Please see the discussion on the talk page.

The crisis developed from a dispute between the town of Oka and the Mohawkcommunity ofKanesatake. The Mohawk nation had been pursuing a land claimwhich included a burial ground and a sacred grove of pine trees nearKanesatake. This brought them into conflict with the town of Oka, which wasdeveloping plans to expand a golf course onto the land.

In 1717, the governor ofNew France granted the lands encompassing thecemetery and the pines to a Catholic seminary permission to hold the land intrust for the Mohawk nation. The Church expanded this agreement to grantthemselves sole ownership of the land, and proceeded to sell off the land andtimber. In 1868, one year after Confederation, the chief of the Oka Mohawkpeople, Joseph Onasakenrat, wrote a letter to the Church condemning them forillegally holding their land and demanding its return. The petition was ignored. In1869, Onasakenrat returned with a small armed force of Mohawks and gave themissionaries eight days to return the land. The missionaries called in the police,who imprisoned the Mohawks. In 1936, the seminary sold the remaining territory

and vacated the area. These sales were also protested vociferously by theMohawks, but the protests produced no results.[1]

In 1961, a nine-hole golf course, le Club de golf d'Oka, was built on land, TheMohawk launched a legal protest against construction. By the time the case washeard, much of the land had already been cleared and construction had begunon a parking lot and golf greens adjacent to the Mohawk cemetery.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Nationshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Politics_of_Canadahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Politics_of_Canadahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Neutral_point_of_viewhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:NPOV_disputehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mohawk_nationhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kanesatake%2C_Quebechttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aboriginal_land_claimshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golf_coursehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1717http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Francehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_Catholic_Churchhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1868http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canadian_Confederationhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Onasakenrathttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1869http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1936http://www.perc.ca/PEN/1990-09/tekastiaks.htmlhttp://www.perc.ca/PEN/1990-09/tekastiaks.htmlhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1961http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1961http://www.perc.ca/PEN/1990-09/tekastiaks.htmlhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1936http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1869http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Onasakenrathttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canadian_Confederationhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1868http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_Catholic_Churchhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Francehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1717http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golf_coursehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aboriginal_land_claimshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kanesatake%2C_Quebechttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mohawk_nationhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Unbalanced_scales.svghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:NPOV_disputehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Neutral_point_of_viewhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Politics_of_Canadahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Politics_of_Canadahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Nations


7/17

In 1977, the band filed an official land claim with the federal Office of NativeClaims regarding the land. The claim was accepted for filing, and funds wereprovided for additional research of the claim. Nine years later, the claim wasfinally rejected for failing to meet key criteria.[2]

Immediate causes

The mayor of Oka, Jean Ouellette, announced in 1989 that the remainder of thepines would be cleared to expand the members-only golf club's course toeighteen holes. Sixty luxury condominiums were also planned to be built in asection of the pines. However, none of these plans were made in consultationwith the Mohawks.

As a protest against a court decision which allowed the golf course constructionto proceed, some members of the Mohawk community erected a barricadeblocking access to the area in question. Mayor Ouellette demanded compliancewith the court order, but the protestors refused. Quebec's Minister for Native

Affairs John Ciaccia wrote a letter of support for the natives, stating that "these

people have seen their lands disappear without having been consulted orcompensated, and that, in my opinion, is unfair and unjust, especially over a golfcourse."[citation needed]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1977http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Office_of_Native_Claims&action=edithttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Office_of_Native_Claims&action=edithttp://www.kanesatake.com/heritage/crisis/events.htmlhttp://www.kanesatake.com/heritage/crisis/events.htmlhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jean_Ouellette&action=edithttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1989http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Condominiumhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citing_sourceshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citing_sourceshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citing_sourceshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Condominiumhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1989http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jean_Ouellette&action=edithttp://www.kanesatake.com/heritage/crisis/events.htmlhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Office_of_Native_Claims&action=edithttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Office_of_Native_Claims&action=edithttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1977


8/17

Mohawk warrior stands atop an overturned Sret du Qubec car as part of thebarricade

On July 11, the mayor asked the Sret du Qubec (SQ) to intervene, citingMohawk criminal activity around the barricade. The Mohawk people, inaccordance with the Constitution of the Iroquois Confederacy, asked the women,the caretakers of the land and "progenitors of the nation", whether or not thearsenal they had amassed should remain. The women decreed that the weaponsshould be used only if the Sret du Qubec opened fire first.

A police SWAT team swiftly attacked the barricade deploying tear gas canistersand flash bang grenades in an attempt to create confusion in the Mohawk ranks.It is unclear whether the police or Mohawks opened fire with gunshots first, butafter a fifteen-minute bullet exchange, the police fell back, abandoning sixcruisers and a bulldozer. The police's own tear gas blew back at them. Duringthe gun battle, 31-year-old Corporal Marcel Lemay of the SQ was shot in themouth and died a short while later.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S%C3%BBret%C3%A9_du_Qu%C3%A9bechttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SWAThttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tear_gashttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tear_gashttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SWAThttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S%C3%BBret%C3%A9_du_Qu%C3%A9bechttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Oka_barricade.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Oka_barricade.jpg


9/17

Native Indians from the Seton Lake Indian Band blockade the BC Rail line insupport of Oka, while an RCMP officer looks on.

The situation escalated as the local Mohawks were joined by natives from acrossCanada and the United States. The natives refused to dismantle their barricadeand the Sret du Qubec established their own blockades to restrict access toOka and Kanesatake. Other Mohawks at Kahnawake, in solidarity with theKanesatake Mohawks, blockaded the Mercier Bridge between the Island of

Montreal and the South Shore suburbs at the point where it passed through theirterritory. At the peak of the crisis, the Mercier Bridge and Routes 132, 138 and207 were all blocked. Enormous traffic jams and frayed tempers resulted as thecrisis dragged on. This led a group of Chteauguay residents to start building,without authorization, an unplanned 4-lane highway around the Kahnawakereserve. After the crisis, the Quebec government finished the highway, and it isnow part ofAutoroute 30.

The Canadian federal government agreed to spend $5.3 million to purchase thesection of the pines where the expansion was to take place, to prevent any

further development. This exchange left the Mohawks outraged as the problemsthat led to the situation had not been addressed - ownership of the land hadsimply moved from one level of government to another.

Racial hatred occasionally broke through the surface of the crisis as trafficfrustration at the blockades grew into anger. The flames were fanned by radiohost Gilles Proulx who repeatedly reminded his listeners that the Mohawks"couldn't even speak French" and the federal Member of Parliament for
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kahnawakehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercier_Bridgehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Island_of_Montrealhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Island_of_Montrealhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quebec_Route_132http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quebec_Route_138http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quebec_Route_207http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Traffic_jamhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Autoroute_30http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Politics_of_Canadahttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Gilles_Proulx&action=edithttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Member_of_Parliamenthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Member_of_Parliamenthttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Gilles_Proulx&action=edithttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Politics_of_Canadahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Autoroute_30http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Traffic_jamhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quebec_Route_207http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quebec_Route_138http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quebec_Route_132http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Island_of_Montrealhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Island_of_Montrealhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercier_Bridgehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kahnawakehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Seton_blockade.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Seton_blockade.jpg


10/17

Chateauguay said that all the natives in Quebec should be shipped off toLabrador "if they wanted their own country so much".[citation needed]

Mohawk warrior Ronald "Lasagne" Cross confronts 'Van Doo' perimeter sentrywhile surrounded by media

When it was apparent that the Sret du Qubec had lost control of thesituation, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) were brought in but weresoon overwhelmed by the Mohawks and mobs created by the blocked traffic. Tenconstables were hospitalized and on 14 August Quebec premier Robert Bourassarequisitioned the assistance of the Canadian Forces in "aid to the civil power" byinvoking the Emergencies Act.

Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney was reluctant, but had no choice as itwas Bourassa's right under the Act to employ the military when required tomaintain law and order, the same as Bourassa had done two decades earlier withPrime Minister Pierre Trudeau in the October Crisis in 1970. The Chief of theDefence Staff, General John de Chastelain accordingly placed Quebec-basedtroops in support of the provincial authorities. Some 2,500 regular and reservetroops from the 34th and 35th Canadian Brigade Groups and the 5th CanadianMechanized Brigade Group were put on notice and, on the morning of20 August,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chateauguayhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Labradorhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citing_sourceshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citing_sourceshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_22e_Regimenthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Canadian_Mounted_Policehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/August_14http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Premier_of_Quebechttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Bourassahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canadian_Forceshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_Aid_to_the_Civil_Powerhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emergencies_Acthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brian_Mulroneyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pierre_Trudeauhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/October_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_de_Chastelainhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brigadehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/August_20http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/August_20http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brigadehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_de_Chastelainhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/October_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pierre_Trudeauhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brian_Mulroneyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emergencies_Acthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_Aid_to_the_Civil_Powerhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canadian_Forceshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Bourassahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Premier_of_Quebechttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/August_14http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Canadian_Mounted_Policehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_22e_Regimenthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Oka_lasagna_stare_down.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Oka_lasagna_stare_down.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citing_sourceshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Labradorhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chateauguay


11/17

33 troops of the Quebec-based Royal 22e Regiment, the 'Van Doos', led by MajorAlain Tremblay took three barricades and arrived at the final blockade leading tothe disputed area. The Sret du Qubec had established a no man's land of oneand a half kilometres between themselves and the barricade at the Pines, but thearmy pushed this to within five metres. Additional troops and mechanizedequipment mobilized at staging areas around Montreal while CF-116 FreedomFighter reconnaissance aircraft staged air photo missions over Mohawk territoryto gather intelligence. Despite high tensions between military and native forces,no shots were exchanged.

Resolution

OnAugust 29, at the Mercier Bridge blockade, the Mohawks negotiated an endto their protest with Lieutenant Colonel Robin Gagnon, 'Van Doo' commanderresponsible for monitoring the blockades along the south shore of the St.Lawrence River west of Montreal. This resulted in the siege of the Kahnawakereserve being resolved. The Mohawks at Oka felt betrayed at the loss of theirmost effective bargaining chip, for once traffic was flowing again on the Mercier

Bridge, the Quebec government rejected all further negotiations.

On September 25, the final engagement of the crisis took place when a Mohawkwarrior walked around the perimeter with a long stick, setting off the flares thearmy had set up to warn them of any escapes from the area. The army turned ahose on the man, but the hose lacked enough pressure to disperse a crowd. TheMohawks taunted the soldiers and then started throwing water balloons at them.

By September 26, the Mohawks dismantled their guns and threw them in a fire,ceremonially burned tobacco and then walked out of the pines and back to thereservation. Many were detained by the Canadian Forces and arrested by the SQ.

The Oka Crisis lasted seventy-eight days and resulted in the death of SQCorporal Marcel Lemay. Two other deaths have also been indirectly attributed tothe crisis: Joe Armstrong, a seventy-one-year-old World War II veteran who haddied of a stress-induced heart attack after a confrontation with a group of non-native protestors; and an elderly non-native man who died after being exposedto tear gas on July 11.[citation needed]

The golf-course expansion, which had originally triggered the situation, wascancelled. The Oka Crisis eventually precipitated the development of Canada's

First Nations Policing Policy.

Repercussions

Mayor of Oka, Jean Ouellette was reelected in a landslide victory in 1991 andsaid of the crisis, "If I had to do it all again, I would," citing his responsibilities asmayor.[citation needed]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_22e_Regimenthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_22e_Regimenthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Majorhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No_man%27s_landhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CF-116_Freedom_Fighterhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CF-116_Freedom_Fighterhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/August_29http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_22e_Regimenthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/September_25http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/September_26http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_IIhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/July_11http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citing_sourceshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citing_sourceshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citing_sourceshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aboriginal_Police_in_Canadahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1991http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citing_sourceshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citing_sourceshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citing_sourceshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1991http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aboriginal_Police_in_Canadahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citing_sourceshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/July_11http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_IIhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/September_26http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/September_25http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_22e_Regimenthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/August_29http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CF-116_Freedom_Fighterhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CF-116_Freedom_Fighterhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No_man%27s_landhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Majorhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_22e_Regimenthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_22e_Regiment


12/17

A few years after the crisis, the Mohawks ofKahnawake established theKahnawake Gaming Commission and started issuing "licences" to gamblingoperators who host their Internet gaming websites on their reserve. Both theCanadian and Quebec governments dispute the legality of this operation, buthave not risked taking further action. The websites hosted by the KahnawakeGaming Commission are the only gambling sites that have operated in North

America without legal action being taken against them.

Legacy

Canadian filmmakerAlanis Obomsawin has made several documentaries aboutthe Oka Crisis, including Kanehsatake: 270 Years of Resistance (1993) and Rocksat Whiskey Trench (2000). In 1994, Christine Welsh directed a film, Keepers ofthe Fire, which documented the role of Mohawk women during the crisis.

Another documentary by Alex MacLeod, calledActs of Defiance, also came out in1993. All of these documentaries were produced by Canada's National FilmBoard.

Micheal Baxendale and Craig MacLaine have written a book on the crisis, ThisLand Is Our Land: The Mohawk Revolt at Oka. Geoffrey York and LoreenPindera's People of the Pines: The people and the Legacy of Oka (1991) isconsidered the definitive text on the subject. Gerald R. Alfred, a KahnawakeMohawk who was part of the band council during the crisis, and who later wenton to become a professor ofPolitical Science, wrote Heeding the Voices of our

Ancestors: Kahnawake Mohawk Politics and the Rise of Native Nationalism

(1995), based on his dissertation.

John Ciaccia, the Minister of Native Affairs for Quebec at the time, wrote a bookabout the events that took place before, during and after in his book entitled TheOka Crisis, A Mirror of the Soul in (2000)

Robin Philpot has also written a book about the way the crisis was used as apolitical tool for English Canada, following the failed Meech Lake Accord: Oka:dernier alibi du Canada anglais (1991)

Canadian punk band Propagandhi recorded a song about the Oka Crisis for their1998 release Where Quantity Is Job #1. The song was entitled "I Would VeryMuch Like to See What Happened in Oka in 1990 Happen Everywhere", and, asthe title would indicate, praised the actions of the Mohawk people.

Montreal Gazettejournalist,Albert Nerenberg, switched careers after smugglinga video camera behind the barricades to make his first documentary, Okanada.

Counter-insurgency manual

A 2005 draft of the Canadian Forces' counter-insurgency manual identified theMohawk Warrior Society as an example of a domestic group that could use terror
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kahnawakehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kahnawake_Gaming_Commissionhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Online_gamblinghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Americahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Americahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alanis_Obomsawinhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1993http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1993http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2000http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2000http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1993http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Film_Boardhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Film_Boardhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1991http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1991http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Gerald_R._Alfred&action=edithttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_Sciencehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1995http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2000http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2000http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robin_Philpothttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meech_Lake_Accordhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1991http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1991http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Propagandhihttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1998http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Where_Quantity_Is_Job_Number_1http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Montreal_Gazettehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albert_Nerenberghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albert_Nerenberghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Montreal_Gazettehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Where_Quantity_Is_Job_Number_1http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1998http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Propagandhihttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1991http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meech_Lake_Accordhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robin_Philpothttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2000http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1995http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_Sciencehttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Gerald_R._Alfred&action=edithttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1991http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Film_Boardhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Film_Boardhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1993http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2000http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1993http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alanis_Obomsawinhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Americahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Americahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Online_gamblinghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kahnawake_Gaming_Commissionhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kahnawake


13/17

tactics to further its cause, largely because of its involvement in the Oka Crisis.Stewart Phillip, Grand Chief of the Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs,denounced the inclusion of the group in the manual as an attack on natives' rightto protest.[1] In response the Minister of National Defence, the HonourableGordon O'Connor, announced that the group would not be included as anexample in the final manual.[2]

See also

Timeline of Quebec history First Nations Ipperwash Crisis Caledonia Land Dispute Seton Portage incident

References

1. ^

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20070331.TERROR31/TPStory/National2. ^

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20070401.wterrornew0401/BNStory/National/home

Gerald R. Alfred (1995). Heeding the Voices of Our Ancestors: KahnawakeMohawk Politics and the Rise of Native Nationalism. Oxford UniversityPress. ISBN 0-19-541138-2.

Hornung, Rick (1992). One Nation Under the Gun: Inside the Mohawk CivilWar. Pantheon. ISBN 0-679-41265-4.

o 11 Reviews and news articles of the temporarily banned book Craig MacLaine, Michael S. Boxendale (1991). This Land Is Our Land: The

Mohawk Revolt at Oka. Optimum Publishing International Inc.. ISBN 0-88890-229-8.

Alec G. MacLeod (1992).Acts of Defiance. National Film Board of Canada.IMDb

Alanis Obomsawin (1993). Kanehsatake: 270 Years of Resistance. NationalFilm Board of Canada. IMDb

Alanis Obomsawin (2000). Rocks at Whiskey Trench. National Film Boardof Canada. IMDb

Geoffrey York (1991). People of the pines: The warriors and the legacy ofOka. Little, Brown. ISBN 0-316-96916-8.

External links

The Mohawk Defense of Kanesetake CBC Digital Archives - The Oka Crisis Historica - The Oka Crisis
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stewart_Philliphttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gordon_O%27Connorhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_Quebec_historyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_Quebec_historyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Nationshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Nationshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ipperwash_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ipperwash_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caledonia_Land_Disputehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caledonia_Land_Disputehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seton_Portage%2C_British_Columbiahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seton_Portage%2C_British_Columbiahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20070331.TERROR31/TPStory/Nationalhttp://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20070331.TERROR31/TPStory/Nationalhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20070401.wterrornew0401/BNStory/National/homehttp://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20070401.wterrornew0401/BNStory/National/homehttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Special:Booksources&isbn=0195411382http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Special:Booksources&isbn=0679412654http://bailey83221.livejournal.com/93624.htmlhttp://bailey83221.livejournal.com/93624.htmlhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Special:Booksources&isbn=0888902298http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Special:Booksources&isbn=0888902298http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Film_Board_of_Canadahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Film_Board_of_Canadahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Film_Board_of_Canadahttp://www.imdb.com/title/tt0103618/combinedhttp://www.nfb.ca/enclasse/doclens/visau/index.php?mode=view&filmId=29368&language=english&sort=titlehttp://www.nfb.ca/enclasse/doclens/visau/index.php?mode=view&filmId=29368&language=english&sort=titlehttp://www.imdb.com/title/tt0107305/combinedhttp://www.imdb.com/title/tt0276458/combinedhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Special:Booksources&isbn=0316969168http://www.hartford-hwp.com/archives/41/350.htmlhttp://www.hartford-hwp.com/archives/41/350.htmlhttp://archives.cbc.ca/IDD-1-71-99/conflict_war/oka/http://archives.cbc.ca/IDD-1-71-99/conflict_war/oka/http://www.histori.ca/peace/page.do?pageID=343http://www.histori.ca/peace/page.do?pageID=343http://www.histori.ca/peace/page.do?pageID=343http://archives.cbc.ca/IDD-1-71-99/conflict_war/oka/http://www.hartford-hwp.com/archives/41/350.htmlhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Special:Booksources&isbn=0316969168http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0276458/combinedhttp://www.imdb.com/title/tt0107305/combinedhttp://www.nfb.ca/enclasse/doclens/visau/index.php?mode=view&filmId=29368&language=english&sort=titlehttp://www.imdb.com/title/tt0103618/combinedhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Film_Board_of_Canadahttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Special:Booksources&isbn=0888902298http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Special:Booksources&isbn=0888902298http://bailey83221.livejournal.com/93624.htmlhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Special:Booksources&isbn=0679412654http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Special:Booksources&isbn=0195411382http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20070401.wterrornew0401/BNStory/National/homehttp://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20070401.wterrornew0401/BNStory/National/homehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20070331.TERROR31/TPStory/Nationalhttp://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20070331.TERROR31/TPStory/Nationalhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seton_Portage%2C_British_Columbiahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caledonia_Land_Disputehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ipperwash_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Nationshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_Quebec_historyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gordon_O%27Connorhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stewart_Phillip


14/17

Official Mohawk Council of Kanesatake web site First Nations Drum: Oka Crisis Inspired Many Native People Canada, A People's History: Standoff at Oka

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisis"

Categories:Articles lacking sources |All articles lacking sources | NPOV disputes|All articles with unsourced statements |Articles with unsourced statementssince September 2007 |Articles with unsourced statements since February 2007| History of Quebec | 1990 in Canada |Aboriginal conflicts in Canada | Mohawktribe

The Mohawk Defense Of Kanasetake

(aka Oka, Quebec, Canada)From the Lubicon News Station, Edmonton, Alberta Canada (n.d.)Appended is an editorial from The Edmonton Journal, 6 May 1991

INTRODUCTION

The period between March 11 and September 26, 1990 was marked by theconfrontation between Mohawk Indians, the Quebec Provincial Police, and theCanadian Armed Forces near Oka. The first barricades were in place in March,and the last torn down in September, with considerable cost and damage to bothsides, in what has generally become referred to as a standoff.

The problem started when the courts allowed a controversial and publicallychallenged Oka Town Council plan to develop a nine-hole golf course into aneighteen-hole golf course, insensitively located on one of the last small parcels ofsacred grounds, including Mohawk a meeting place and a centuries old cemetary.

Despite being outnumbered by the massive fire power of thousands of army

troops, the Mohawks emerged triumphant though trodden, and the land wasprotected. Even the barbaric aftermath of police brutality and sweeping arrests,the fundamental story which continues to cause tremors amongst Canada'smilitary establishment is that a small band of angry natives held off the army.
http://www.kanesatake.com/heritage/crisis/index.htmlhttp://www.kanesatake.com/heritage/crisis/index.htmlhttp://www.firstnationsdrum.com/fall2000/hist_oka.htmhttp://www.firstnationsdrum.com/fall2000/hist_oka.htmhttp://history.cbc.ca/history/webdriver?MIval=EpisContent&series_id=1&episode_id=17&chapter_id=2&page_id=2&lang=Ehttp://history.cbc.ca/history/webdriver?MIval=EpisContent&series_id=1&episode_id=17&chapter_id=2&page_id=2&lang=Ehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Categorieshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Articles_lacking_sourceshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:All_articles_lacking_sourceshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:NPOV_disputeshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:All_articles_with_unsourced_statementshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Articles_with_unsourced_statements_since_September_2007http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Articles_with_unsourced_statements_since_September_2007http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Articles_with_unsourced_statements_since_February_2007http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:History_of_Quebechttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:1990_in_Canadahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Aboriginal_conflicts_in_Canadahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Mohawk_tribehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Mohawk_tribehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Mohawk_tribehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Mohawk_tribehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Aboriginal_conflicts_in_Canadahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:1990_in_Canadahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:History_of_Quebechttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Articles_with_unsourced_statements_since_February_2007http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Articles_with_unsourced_statements_since_September_2007http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Articles_with_unsourced_statements_since_September_2007http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:All_articles_with_unsourced_statementshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:NPOV_disputeshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:All_articles_lacking_sourceshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Articles_lacking_sourceshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Categorieshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisishttp://history.cbc.ca/history/webdriver?MIval=EpisContent&series_id=1&episode_id=17&chapter_id=2&page_id=2&lang=Ehttp://www.firstnationsdrum.com/fall2000/hist_oka.htmhttp://www.kanesatake.com/heritage/crisis/index.html


15/17

Gayaneshakgowa And The Wampum Belt Of The Iroquois Confederacy

Another success of the Mohawks was described by Michael Baxendale, authorand journalist, who wrote For a better understanding of the Six Nation IroquoisConfederacy of which the Mohawk people are a part we have published theGreat Law Of Peace in its entirety, perhaps for the first time in a non-nativepublication. (1) The Great Law Of Peace is subtitled The Constitution Of TheIroquois Confederacy, and is known in Mohawk as Gayaneshakgowa. It includes

several sections primarily regarding the use of Wampum Strings and Belts(Sections 17, 23, 28, 55, 56, and 91), with Section 60 describing in particulardetail the Wampum Belt Of The Iroquois Confederacy:

A broad belt of wampum of thirty-eight rows, having a white heart in the center,on either side of which are two white squares all connected with the heart bywhite rows of beads shall be the emblem of unity of the Five Nations.

The first of the squares on the left represents the Mohawk Nation and itsterritory, the second square on the left and near the heart represents the OneidaNation and its territory, and the white heart in the middle represents theOnondaga Nation and its territory. It also means that the heart of the Five

Nations is single in its loyalty to the Great Peace, and that the Great Peace islodged in the heart (meaning with Onondaga League Chiefs) and that the Councilfire is to burn there for the Five Nations. Further it means that the authority isgiven to advance the cause of peace whereby hostile nations out of the Leagueshall cease warfare. The white square to the right of the heart is the CayugaNation and its territory and the fourth and last square represents the SenecaNation and its territory.

White here symbolizes that no evil nor jealous thoughts shall creep into theminds of the chiefs while in the Council under the Great Peace. White, theemblem of peace, love, charity, and equality surrounds and guards the Five

Nations.NOTE: The above Wampum Belt was made by Ayonwatha (Hiawatha to thewhite man) to commemorate the making of the Great Law. (1)

History shows the Mohawk as an undefeated nation. Although there has neverbeen colonial recognition of the Great Peace or the Wampum Belt Of TheIroquois Confederacy, the most recent attempt to invade Iroquois territoryprevious to the Oka incidents was by Frontenac in 1697, with the Mohawksemerging as victors following a successful ambush which freed 280 Mohawkprisoners.

The costs have always been high for the colonial suppression of the Iroquois,who killed almost half the population of New France in two months in 1689. Astandoff between the French and the Iroquois occurred over the issue of therelease of Mohawk slaves (serfs), and ended in 1697 with the soldiers fleeing. Noamount of money, religious brainwashing, or torture could defeat the natives.Costs for the Oka incident are also alarming.


16/17

The final analysis of the price of the incidents at Oka were tallied by the variousgovernmental forces to exceed $200 million, not including the $50,000 per daystill being spent by the Quebec police to patrol around the Kahnawake and

Akwesasne reserves. The $200 million-plus costs are basically sub-divided intoprovincial and federal expenses, with over half borne by the Quebecgovernment. Major expenses were the army and overtime wages for Quebecpolice, with about 10% ($20 million) going compensation for residents who liveswere disrupted.

The land in dispute at Oka was worth only a small fraction of the money spent tosquash the revolt of the Mohawk Warriors. It was nearly ten times the amountbudgeted annually by the Canadian government for land claims settlements. AsTerry Kelly wrote in a 1991 editorial in the Edmonton Journal, It is more thanhalf the $355 million that Prime Minister Mulroney grandly promised recently tospend over five years to speed up the land claims settlements. Clearly the issuesbehind the Oka incidents were deeper than money or property. Power, authority,and justice were fought for, and the Mohawk victory was and is a victory for all.

REFERENCE:

1.) Maclaine, Craig and Baxendale, Michael, This Land Is Our Land - The MohawkRevolt At Oka, Optimum Publishing International Inc., Montreal, Quebec,Canada, 1990. (photography by Robert Galbraith)

The High Cost of OkaEditorial from The Edmonton Journal, Monday 6 May 1991

posted by Terri Kelly ([email protected])

The price-tag for the confrontation last summer at Oka is finally being toted upand it runs into the hundreds of millions of dollars. It should make apparent, onfinancial as well as human grounds, the failure of policies and attitudes towardsnatives that are based on neglect and conflict.

Public Security Minister Claude Ryan told the Quebec legislature recently thestandoff at Oka between police and Mohawk Indians cost the province's

taxpayers more than $112 million. Most of this, about $71 million, was inovertime costs for police who set up round-the-clock surveillance during the 77-day confrontation. About $20 million more was paid in compensation to nearbyresidents whose lives were disrupted.

These costs are separate from the $83 million spent by the Canadian ArmedForces after Quebec Premier Robert Bourassa requested that the army come inand deal with the blockade by armed Mohawks. The costs also don't include the


17/17

estimated $50,000 a day the Quebec police say it costs to patrol around theKahnawake and Akwesasne reserves even now. Far from resolving the crisis, thepolice and army action merely created a lasting animosity. The police patrols goon.

These figures total more than $200 million and are rising. To put the cost of thecrisis in some sort of context, it is about 10 times what the federal governmentbudgets for land claims settlements each year. It is more than half the $355

million that Prime Minister Mulroney grandly promised recently to spend over fiveyears to speed up the land claims settlements. It is, needless to say, far morethan the land claimed by the Mohawks (and sought by the town of Oka for a golfcourse) is worth on the market.

The daily, demoralizing stupidity of the standoff at Oka was apparent from thebeginning. It represented, for the entire world to see, the failure of politicalsolutions in Canada. It also cost hundreds of millions of dollars, we now learn,which puts a sort of price-tag on that failure.

* Origin: Lubicon News Station: Edmonton, Alberta Canada (89:682/432)Source: www.peacetree.com/akwesasne/wamoac3b.htm
http://www.peacetree.com/akwesasne/wamoac3b.htmhttp://www.peacetree.com/akwesasne/wamoac3b.htm

mohawk standoff at oka: the mohawk defense of kanasetake

Documents