The chief of an isolated First Nation, in northern Ontario, has single-handedly staved off Platinex, a company attempting to explore for platinum on land claimed by the Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug (KI).
The fly-in community has been utilizing civil disobedience tactics for a number of years after Platinex neglected to consult the KI regarding its intent to explore on a number of disputed mineral claims. Despite court rulings against the company and strong local resistance, Platinex continues to attempt to exploit its mineral claims.
From the September 1 Canadian Globe and Mail:
Donny Morris, Chief of the Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug First Nation; Photo courtesy Wikimedia Commons
In purely physical terms, it was a duel between a Beaver floatplane and a small aluminum skiff.
But the symbolic heft of the brief standoff on Nemeigusabins Lake last Wednesday was far greater.
In the boat sat a lone man, Donny Morris, chief of the Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug First Nation, a fly-in community 600 kilometres north of Thunder Bay that has vowed to stop a mining company drilling for platinum on their traditional lands.
Aboard the plane, representatives from the company, Toronto-based Platinex, were trying to land on a lake that abuts 221 mining claims it has in the area.
The plane swooped down several times, but the man steering the boat blocked their passage, and the plane finally buzzed off toward the horizon.
LSMN
Eve Divine
doncorvette
Hello
I’ve recently uploaded two rare interviews with the Wobblie, anarchist, and activist Dorothy Day.
Day had begun her service to the poor in New York City during the Depression with Peter Maurin, and it continued until her death in 1980. Their dedication to administering to the homeless, elderly, and disenfranchised continues in many parts of the world.
Please post or announce the availability of these videos for those who may be interested in hearing this remarkable humanist.
They may be located here:
http://www.youtube.com/user/4854derrida
Thank you
Dean Taylor