The *Globe and Mail*, Canada's most "respected" newspaper, ran a front page
story today on the Yanomami massacre under the banner headline "Was there a
massacre in the Amazon?"
Isabel Vincent, the *Globe* South American Bureau Chief, visited the site of
the massacre in Brazil before filing her feature story, the most extensive
coverage to date by the newspaper. The story, basically a series of
interviews with "experts" and people close to the situation, focuses on the
failure to date of investigators to find the bodies of the victims. There
is little analysis, only passing mention of the long history of violent
crimes perpetrated against the Yanomami, and long quotes by people hostile
to FUNAI, the National Indian Foundation.
Indigenous peoples are given almost no room to express themselves in the
article. Yanomami leader Davi Yanomami is allowed two sentences in the last
paragraph. By contrast, government officials, police officers, miners and
people representing business interests are quoted at length. Among the
passages hostile to indigenous interests are the following:
"'Politically, it would be very, very convenient for FUNAI to have a
massacre here right now,' says John Boyle, a former miner who came to the
Amazon from Scotland eight years ago to seek his fortune. 'The terrible
thing about FUNAI is that they're more interested in Yanomami lands than the
Yanomami welfare.'"
"'Demarcation is going to kill this city,' says Jose, a former garimpeiro
from the poverty-stricken state of Maranhao. "It's too much land for too few
Indians and it's going to make us all poor.'"
To any critical thinker who reads the *Globe and Mail* on a regular basis,
it comes as no surprise that the newspaper would chose to run this feature
article in its large- circulation Saturday edition. The *Globe*, an
aggressively pro-business publication, is consistently dismissive of demands
for indigenous rights in Canada. For example, last month at the Assembly of
First Nations general assembly, after National Chief Ovide Mercredi's
rallying call for First Nations self-government, the *Globe* ran an
editorial characterizing Mr. Mercredi's comments as "boring."
I am writing this item because I believe it's important to keep reminding
ourselves that the most "respected" newspaper in Canada has an agenda to
dismiss and trivialize indigenous rights. In *Globe* articles on indigenous
issues, Indigenous people are rarely given the opportunity to express
themselves at length, especially if they hold political views contrary to
established business interests. Non-indigenous "experts" are asked to
comment on behalf of Indigenous peoples. Non-indigenous politicians and
business leaders are given plenty of room for their "analysis" and end up
looking like the authorities on indigenous issues. And increasingly,
non-indigenous workers in the resource sectors are given just enough space
to make reactionary and racist comments, with predictable results.
Despite this nonsense, I'm going to have a nice day. Hope you do too. If
you are interested in contacting the *Globe and Mail*, the editor-in-chief,
William Thorsell, can be reached in Toronto at:
Phone: (416) 585-5000
Fax: (416) 585-5085
Susan