Many times, these situations have long histories that the public may
not be aware of as big events start to break. Then, we see a lot of
reactions like those that have been on this newsgroup coming from
people responding to news-bytes. Once the background is known, many
realize there was far more to it than they realized when they first
spoke.
I have a great reference on a book that explains the Lubicon situation
in detail. It's called "Last Stand of the Lubicon Cree" written by a
Canadian journalist, John Goddard. ISBN 0-88894-716-X
The mailing address for the Lubicons is:
Lubicon Lake Indian Nation
3536 - 106 Street
Edmonton, Alberta T6J 1A4
It's hard to capsulize a situation like this, but this is from the
book jacket:
"The Lubicon Cree of northern Alberta attracted international
attention in 1988 with their call to boycott the Olympic Games at
Calgary and their six-day takeover of a gian oil field. Their simple
goal has been to secure the reserve they were promised in 1940 and to
build an alternative to a once-trhiving bush economy destroyed in the
rush for oil and gas. But despite widespread support of the Lubicon
cause, first the provincial government of Peter Lougheed and now the
federal government of Brian Mulroney have put one obstacle after
another in the way of a negotiated settlement.
"Last Stand of the Lubicon Cree shows what can happen in Canada when
native people try to assert land rights in an area rich in natural
resources. If the story were not so well documented, it would be hard
to believe. The book demonstrates that many people in Canada care
deeply about the well-being of native peoples; but it also reveals to
what extremes government authorities are prepared to go to crush
aboriginal rights."
I admire greatly these people for their determination for justice and
pray for them. They are going through what my great-great-grandfathers
adn grandmothers experienced - the place changes, the people change,
but the story, unfortunately, remains very nearly the same.
Miigwech
Dave