By Terrance Nelson
First Nation Roseau River Anishinabe
Dr. Eddie Moore Jr:
I would like to thank you for the
opportunity to be keynote speaker at the White Privilege Conference in
Seattle Washington on Friday April 12th 2013. To present to over a
thousand people in the Assembly was especially meaningful to me because,
the people present were activists from all over the United States,
people who stand up for human rights.
To be truthful, I was wondering if there
would be 2,000 people registered in the conference. To see how well
organized you were and how much the people who attended were determined
to make a difference is indeed unique. I congratulate you Dr. Moore on
your impressive achievements.
To get a standing ovation was a great
feeling. Speaking to Americans about the oil issue and how indigenous
peoples in Canada suffer from the lack of payment for their natural
resource base is important. Americans are the ones who buy the exports
from Canada. It is Americans who finance the human rights violations in
Canada and it is Americans who will put the pressure on Canada to change
the way the First Peoples of Canada are treated. Dr. Moore thank you
for taking a chance on me to make that presentation.
Your organization is extremely well
disciplined. You have many environmental organizations with you and many
human rights groups that have impact upon American policy.
In the closing of my speech, I asked, what are the next steps.
I now ask for your help in three areas. One
is for Lubicon Lake Cree Nation. Another is for the Dakota and the other
is the Murdered and Missing Indigenous Women of Canada.
The three internet addresses can help
Americans begin the process of investigating the three areas I speak of.
While there are many human rights violations and areas of concern,
reality is that we should move on those that can be addressed and
resolved. One hundred percent of the oil that Canada exports goes to the
United States. The impact we can have if Americans start asking the
question of where their money goes when they pay for gasoline at the
pump is huge. I hope my information was helpful.
There is genuine anger amongst the average
Americans who are being held economic hostage to "big oil", paying four
dollars a gallon for gasoline and having to make decisions on what to
cut in order to buy gasoline for their cars.
As a result of the presentation to WPC, I am being asked to speak to other conferences. Thank you once again.
I would ask that in your communications,
that you encourage the WPC attendees to email and write to Prime
Minister Harper. The Prime Minister's contact information is contained
in the draft letter I circulated with some of the people at WPC.
Prime Minister
Steven Harper
Office of the Prime Minister
80 Wellington Street
Ottawa, ON K1A 0A2
80 Wellington Street
Ottawa, ON K1A 0A2
Email address
Dear Prime Minister Harper
Re: Oil From Canada
I listened to a presentation by Terrance Nelson in Seattle Washington on April 12th, 2013 regarding oil from Canada. As an American, I am concerned with the environment and with human rights.
I
would like to know if Canada pays the indigenous people for the oil
that Canada sends to the United States. What percentage or royalty is
provided as payment to the indigenous people who own the oil that Canada
sends to us.
I
ask for this information from Canada as I intend to organize a boycott
of Canadian products in my area if you as the government of Canada do
not respect the property rights of the indigenous people. The human
right to property must be respected and we as Americans expect that
Canada enforces human rights when dealing with resource extraction.
Respectfully,
----------------
Steven
Harper's Government is cutting the funding that First Nation get
drastically and it will further impoverish First Nations. Only Americans
can stop the Harper Government if Americans refuse to participate
in financing the human rights violations in Canada.
If the
United States were to put aside a percentage of the price they pay for
Canadian oil and have that percentage available for Canadian indigenous
peoples, that might force the Harper Government to finally recognize the
property rights of the indigenous peoples. The sixty different metals
and minerals mined by Canada are not paid for. They simply take it
without any royalty or payment to the rightful owners.
We
don't need charity if we can get a rightful share of our own property.
The immigrants who occupy Canada can stop all funding to First Nations
if we as the original people get a share of our own natural resource
wealth.
Americans
pay $20 less per barrel of oil from Canada because of NAFTA. So why are
American paying four dollars a gallon for gasoline? I am contracted
with Lubicon Lake to help them settle with Canada. They have 95 square
miles of land set aside for their eventual settlement and hundreds of
millions of dollars owed to them. The Lubicons have fought for their
rights for decades and decades but the government has split them. First
the Woodland Cree were created out of Lubicon and now another group is
preparing to negotiate a settlement with Canada likely for a lot less
than they deserve. The Lubicon has "sweet light crude" in their area and
it is not the heavy tar sands type of oil so Canada and Alberta want
access. They are currently taking the oil but the Lubicons aren't
receiving any compensation for their oil.
I
face the same situation. I was not allowed to run in the recent Roseau
River Election for Chief and Council. Three other people were not
allowed to run. Unlike other people, I can fight back and I will take
this issue outside of Canada. The Government supported my opposition,
giving them lawyers and all the help they could to oust me. The fact
that Canada will recognize the election fraud is a reality that they
fear what I do. I take the issues outside of Canada.
I
hope that other First Nations people begin to engage
Americans regarding the issues in Canada. One of the targets for
boycotts has to be the oil companies currently taking oil from the
Lubicon area without the permission of the rightful owners.
I
look forward to other speaking opportunities in the future. Again thank
you Dr. Moore and thanks to Thomas Pearce, from the Sierra Club, for
asking you to put me as a Keynote.
Terrance Nelson
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