Aboriginal People Occupy Church, Issue Eviction Notice
From KisikewNews
Aboriginal People Occupy Catholic Church in Vancouver, Issue Eviction Notice
VANCOUVER Today
Breaking News: March 16, 2008
Aboriginal People Occupy Catholic Church in Vancouver, Issue Eviction Notice
Squamish Territory ("Vancouver, Canada")
2:30 pm PST, 16 March, 2008
Led by Hereditary Squamish Chief Kiapilano, fifty people occupied Holy Rosary Catholic Church in downtown Vancouver this morning in the midst of a high mass, and issued an Eviction Notice to the Roman Catholic Church. (See Public Declaration, below)
Triggered by the refusal of the Catholic Church leaders to reply to a Letter of Demand asking that they identify the buried location of children who died in their Indian Residential Schools, the occupation surprised the church-goers, who sat silently as the procession of residential school survivors, elders, and their supporters walked quietly to the front of the church sanctuary and stood facing them with a banner that read "All the Children Need a Proper Burial."
Despite physical intimidation by one of the officiating priests, the group stood its ground, and distributed copies of the Eviction Order to the congregants. Acting under the authority of Chief Kiapilano, Kevin Annett Eagle Strong Voice handed an original copy of the Eviction Order to presiding priest Glen Dion. The group then began drumming, and, led by the elders and Chief Kiapilano, slowly proceeded out of the sanctuary as the congregegants stood up.
Outside the church, the group gathered again, where Chief Kiapilano and others spoke.
"I'm Chief Kiapilano. I'm one of the survivors of the Catholic schools. They used every method to shut me up, but I'm still here. We've got to stand up and put these people out."
The crowd roared.
"They now have 72 hours to get off Squamish territory" said Kevin Annett to the crowd. "I hope you'll all come back next Sunday to help enforce this eviction order. That's Easter Sunday, when they celebrate the resurrection of Jesus. Well, we'll be here to witness the resurrection of the Squamish Nation."
William Combes, a survivor of the Catholic residential schools in Mission and Kamloops, B.C., spoke to the crowd.
"In the residential school I witnessed murders, burials, you name it. But the truth's going to prevail over their lies"
Chief Red Jacket of the Seneca Nation said,
"it's long overdue, that this land be given back to Chief Kiapilano, its rightful owner. If I was caught with stolen goods, I'd be taken to jail. Why isn't this happening here?".
"I would like to reaffirm Chief Kiapilano's hereditary title" said an aboriginal man who came from Vancouver Island to be pasrt of the occupation. "It's the first time I've seen someone serve an eviction notice on a church. I'm really proud to be here. I will pass this on to my children and grandchildren". The crowd roared once more.
Led by the elders, the group then proceeded to Christ Church Anglican Cathedral and St. Andrew's Wesley United Church, where the same Eviction Order was posted on their front doors.
Despite the noticeable absence of aboriginal media, the event was covered by local and national television and radio stations.
A similar occupation occurred at two churches in downtown Toronto the same morning, and was reported in the Toronto Star and Sun newspapers. At one of the occupied churches, St. James Anglican, the protestors were physically accosted by parishioners and their banner was torn.
Chief Kiapilano's group is disseminating the Eviction Order to the nearly 300 Catholic, Anglican and United churches on his territory, throughout Vancouver. They plan to return next Sunday to open up Holy Rosary church and others to the hungry and homeless, and to release more evidence of mass murders in Indian Residential Schools.
"I'm only doing what should have been done long ago" declared Chief Kiapilano.
For more information:
www.jointhefederation.com
www.hiddenfromhistory.org
And some video and a few words from the Toronto group, who had a much less courteous welcome:
TORONTO Today
"Everyone's okay but I thought for a moment there that the Anglicans had become pentecostals...there was a lot of laying on of hands....
My videos on YouTube:"
Anglican church
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4e_kmEQfcrA
Catholic church
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MYSsWVrXmP8
Revision: 714 17/3/2008 (d/M/Y)
Posted by: SimonRaven 19:09, 17 March 2008 (UTC)
