Voices

Indigenous Women on the Front Lines Speak

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Rebelling is not like a cool thing you do
and then you go to college and then get a fucking job and then be a fucking
capitalist for the rest of your life.

-Queen Sacheen

It’s a colonial lie that we cannot support
each other in a diversity of tactics.  

-Queen Sacheen

Xhopakelxhit, Sacheen Seitcham, is a Snuneymuxw, Nuu Chah Nulth,
Coast Salish and Cree Grandmother, Medicine Maker, Water Protector and
Strategist.  Co-Founder of the Coast Salish Native Youth Movement, The West Coast
Women Warrior Society Media Cooperative, Yaakswiis Warriors, Imperial No More and Ancestral Pride Sacheen’s life is
dedicated to the futures of the children.  In August of 2016
Sacheen and 3 others were arrested for attempting to block the restocking of a
fish farm in Ahousaht waters and in the autumn Sacheen and her family were
throwing down with Red Warrior at Standing Rock and providing crucial on the
ground media coverage.

Sacheen’s work relies on the support of people like you dedicated to
Indigenous Sovereignty and Protection of Water, Land and Life.  With
court dates coming up on both sides of the colonial border, family to
support and Imperial Metals, the Kinder Morgan Pipeline and Cermaq to fuck up
your donations are crucial.

Please support Warriors.

E- transfers can be made to: mamazonscreations@gmail.com

Sign up to make a monthly
donation

Donate Sacheen’s work
with Imperial No More

or Donate
directly to support Sacheen

https://www.voicesfrontlines.com/rebelling-is-not-like-a-cool-thing-you-do-and-then/

Look into your babies eyes and tell me,
tell me you are not going to do everything in your power to make sure they have
a future that doesn’t involve living in fucking consumer barracks, living in
the capitalist trenches of the cities fucking being mindless zombies living in
fucking boxes and buying fucking boxes and throwing fucking boxes away and then
ending up in a box and it all meant nothing and that’s the legacy.  To me the legacy is freedom.  The legacy is liberation.  And maybe there will be blood shed, more than
already has been, and maybe that blood will be mine, but if there’s a future
worth having then it is worth it to me.

-Queen Sacheen

Xhopakelxhit, Sacheen Seitcham, is a Snuneymuxw, Nuu Chah Nulth,
Coast Salish and Cree Grandmother, Medicine Maker, Water Protector and
Strategist.  Co-Founder of the Coast Salish Native Youth Movement, The West Coast
Women Warrior Society Media Cooperative, Yaakswiis Warriors, Imperial No More and Ancestral Pride Sacheen’s life is
dedicated to the futures of the children.  In August of 2016
Sacheen and 3 others were arrested for attempting to block the restocking of a
fish farm in Ahousaht waters and in the autumn Sacheen and her family were
throwing down with Red Warrior at Standing Rock and providing crucial on the
ground media coverage.

Sacheen’s work relies on the support of people like you dedicated to
Indigenous Sovereignty and Protection of Water, Land and Life.  With
court dates coming up on both sides of the colonial border, family to
support and Imperial Metals, the Kinder Morgan Pipeline and Cermaq to fuck up
your donations are crucial.

Please support Warriors.

E- transfers can be made to: mamazonscreations@gmail.com

Sign up to make a monthly
donation

Donate Sacheen’s work
with Imperial No More

or Donate
directly to support Sacheen

https://www.voicesfrontlines.com/look-into-your-babies-eyes-and-tell-me-tell-me/

Urgent Legal Defense Funds

Several
 Indigenous Activists from the West were arrested. At this point Crow, Sacheen and Kanahus have been released.  However West Coast warriors are still in need of legal funds.

Please e-transfer to hwalia8@gmail.com [as requested by family
 members and legal counsel]. We need to raise 2000 USD = 3000$ CDN
 immediately.

More
 information and updates below

LEGAL FUNDS NEEDED ASAP! SUPPORT WEST COAST WARRIORS!

*
 Read update from Kanahus below *

Today
 eighty water protectors were violently arrested near Dakota Pipeline construction
 sites. As written by Red Warrior Camp “You are trespassing on Native
 Land. You are protecting the destruction of our sacred sites. Put down your
 guns, turn in your badges. Understand the indestructible spirit of indigenous
 people walking with prayers and sacrifice of our ancestors for sacred
 water.”

Four
 of those arrested are well known West Coast land defenders and members of the
 Secwepemc Women’s Warrior Society, Ancestral Pride and West Coast Women
 Warriors Media Cooperative: Kanahus Manuel, Queen Sacheen, James Joe Crow and
 Rose Stiffarm.

***
 IMMEDIATE LEGAL FUNDS ARE NEEDED! ***

Please
 e-transfer to hwalia8@gmail.com
 [as requested by family members and legal counsel]. We need to raise 2000 USD
 = 3000$ CDN immediately.

Legal
 is needed ongoing for all water protectors: https://www.generosity.com/…/red-warrior-camp-legal-fund-no… andhttps://fundrazr.com/campaigns/d19fAf

ALSO
 SUPPORT BY CALLING AND DEMANDING RELEASE:
 The Morton County Sheriff’s dep’t: (701)
 667-3330 or (701)667-3405
 Jail: 1-701-667-3318
 or 701-328-9921

WORDS
 FROM KANAHUS:

“Things
 are very disorganized at the jail, because they arrested 80+ people today.
 Earlier in the day they did not even have a list of all the people they had
 in custody. In a cell with 30 women and there are others in other cells. Sacheen Seitcham
 and Joe James Crow are also among those arrested as is cinematographer Rose
 Stiffarm. we were doing a peaceful prayer march through fields. Construction
 has been happening in important areas and some people chained themselves to machinery.
 The riot police put paper/cloth bags over the heads of those defenders. The
 people in the prayer march were away from the construction zone and just in a
 field when the riot police swarmed the field, they pepper sprayed people,
 threw underage girls on the ground and swept and arrested all the people on
 the field. Again, that was not supposed to happen, we were all in a peaceful
 prayer march away from construction. It was local, state and federal police
 that descended on them and arrested.”

The supervisor said they will all be charged with “criminal
 trespass” and “inciting a riot”.”

On August 25th we drove out of Lekwungen Territory to go visit our friend Sacheen, a Grandmother, medicine maker, traditional midwife, writer and unwavering land defender. 

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Sacheen and her husband Crow, of Ancestral Pride and the Yaakswiis warriors  live in the village of Ahousaht on so-called Flores Island with three of their children.  The village is a short boat ride from the yuppie surfer tourist bon-iver listening culturally appropriative hell of Tofino.  Surrounded by the ocean and one of the last standing temperate rain forests still intact Ahousaht is watched over by Chitapii Mountain from across the waves.

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We arrived a few days after Sacheen, Crow, their niece Havannah and friend Lenny, all Ahousaht members, were arrested for attempting to stop the restocking of a Cermaq fish farm.  This fish farm was the site where over a million fish were culled when it was shut down in 2012 due to risk of disease spreading to wild fish.  Fish farms are responsible for devastating Wild Salmon runs particularly in the Fraser River.  This has had terrible impacts on dozens of communities not just along the coast, but the whole length of the river.  The corporations responsible are heavily subsidized and protected by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) and the ‘federal government’ of so-called canada.

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After spending the night catching up and preparing for the next day we all threw down with a demo at the DFO in solidarity with those arrested for defending their land.  The DFO was shut down for the day due to the presence of Land Defenders and their supporters.  Those arrested were present and affirmed that although RCMP had forced them to sign conditions they would not back down in the defense of Wild Salmon.

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Upon returning home to Ahousaht we arrived to a dozen wild salmon gifted to Sacheen and Crow for their protection of land, waters and life.  We spent the next dozen hours together processing and canning these life giving fish.  Salmon are a crucial species for the ecosystems of which they are apart.  They are also a primary food for many people all over Turtle Island.  The destruction of our relationships to the animals and plants that are our foods is a form of colonialism and genocide that goes back to the very beginnings of the occupation of turtle island.  It escapes none of us that the destruction of wild salmon is similar to the slaughter of the buffalo. 

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The rains came as we visited and most of our days were spent playing with Chevayo, Sacheen and Crows youngest, making big meals for the dozen of us in the house while sharing stories and planning for continued resistance to both Fish Farms and Imperial Metals a company with mineral rights to Chitapii mountain.  The rain did let up enough so that we were able to explore the beaches and forests and harvest black berries, huckleberries, blueberries and cranberries.

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Sacheen and her family live resistance each and every day.  It is not a job or something that can ever be put down and returned too.  It is always such a gift to spend time with this family who are so dear to our hearts and to join in resistance to the corporations, whether industry or the so-called government of canada that threaten their lives and home. 

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If you too are interested in supporting Sacheen and her families work we suggest signing up for a monthly donation through their website.  We all know the monthly hustle to pay to live is real especially when we have people dependent on us and our contributions to relieve Sacheen and Crow of this monthly hustle is a huge strength to our collective movement towards liberation.

Make a monthly donation.

You can also support the campaign Imperial No More.

…and learn more about Ancestral Pride’s work on their website.

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Lastly if you live nearby we’re planning a big bus ride with some pals to head up to Tofino for Sacheen, Crow, Lenny and Havannah’s court date on November 7th.  If you interested shoot us an email as we would love to have you join us.

xo beyon and Wulfgang.

https://www.voicesfrontlines.com/on-august-25th-we-drove-out-of-lekwungen-territory/

These are our friends who we have been throwing down with for the past couple weeks. last night we collaborated together to create this gofundme in order to get the resources that these warriors need to fight off these billion dollar companies. please consider donating <3

Today the Secwepemc Women’s Warrior Society and Ancestral Pride launch the Imperial No More Campaign. We are launching this campaign to stop Imperial Metals before they cause any more violence and devastation to the lands, waters and our lives. We are seeking support to protect our unceded territories and to ensure the children of all people can eat the salmon and breathe the air, we cannot do it without your support.

“We the people are the Protectors and Land Defenders and with our allies supporting this indigenous-led resistance, we will make a stand to stop Imperial Metals from violating our rights. Not one more mountain will be mined, not one more water way destroyed in the name of profit, not one more tree logged to create roads for these mines.” –Kanahus

Kanahus Manuel of the Secwepemc Women’s Warriors Society, mother and artist and Sacheen Seitcham of Ancestral Pride, Grandmother, medicine maker and traditional midwife have been organizing resistance to the illegal mining operations of Imperial Metals on their territories since before the devastating tailings pond breach in 2014. We stand to protect Yuct Ne Senxiymetkwe and Chitaapi Mountain from Imperial Metals.

Despite their efforts Imperial Metal’s Mount Polley mine continues to operate and in November 2015 the province issued a permit for the company to discharge their toxic tailings into Hazeltine Creek, the same waterways affected by the 2014 breach.

“The Time is Now, We Cannot Wait Anymore”

The creeks, rivers, lakes and ocean are all connected. The poisons being discharged into Hazeltine Creek flow through the connected waterways. The salmon which return to the rivers form the oceans must pass through the toxins never cleaned up by Imperial Metals. This is not just an Indigenous issue, we all live downstream. The destruction of the land by mining is violence and enough is enough.

Two full years after the catastrophic breach of Mount Polley’s Tailings Pond, Imperial Metals continues to operate illegally destroying the land and endangering the lives of all the surrounding people.

Over the last week the Secwepemc Women’s Warrior Society and Ancestral Pride have been taking direct action with the support of allies to show Imperial Metals that we will escalate resistance until they cease and desist all mining operations on our Indigenous territories.

On August 4th we marked the 2-year anniversary of the devastating Tailings Pond breach with a gathering of Indigenous land defenders, allies and supporters to shut down the mine and to assert sovereignty over our unceded territories. There were workshops, feasting, training, ceremony and information sharing.

After skilling up together we completely blocked all workers from returning to work and stopped mining activity.

On August 9th the Secwepemc Women’s Warrior Society and Ancestral Pride successfully occupied the Imperial Metal’s Vancouver Office. Imperial Metals ordered thirty police offers to violently assault Indigenous women and supporters, with four arrests and many bruised bodies. Spirits remain high and we know the world is watching, we have support from around the world.

“Colonial violence is real! The mining companies in central and south amerikkka are already killing indigenous people for protecting their land and their ways of life. We are quick approaching that time here in kkkanada and we need to know where everyone stands? Will you put your bodies on the line to fight for the future?” -Sacheen

It is time to gather the resources to SHUT IMPERIAL METALS DOWN!

What the funds will be used for:

All funds raised will be used to develop and maintain the campaign to Stop Imperial Metals. Up to this point Sacheen, Kanahus and their supporters have been operating on their own funds and small contributions from their networks.

Here is where the funds will be used:

• For the materials and equipment necessary to hold events, direct actions and provide documentation for media releases.

• To repair our vehicle and cover the travel costs for members of the Secwepemc Women’s Warrior Society, Ancestral Pride and their supporters to be where they need to in order to continue pressure on Imperial Metals and their shareholders.

This also means we will be able to connect with the grassroots community, indigenous and non-indigenous most affected by Imperial Metals mines.

• To ensure we have the necessary funds for any legal fees that arise when the RCMP come down on our supporters and us.

• For awareness spreading materials and activities.

• To provide capacity building featuring Guerilla Media training, grant writing opportunities for other indigenous land defenders and our supporters.

• To build homes at Tska7 (Ruddock Creek) and Chitaapi (Catface Mountain) to assert our rights and title over our territories by living on them. This is most important as occupation is key to stopping resource extraction!

• We plan to host a large gathering that can bring together members of effected communities and our supporters to strategize and build a stronger movement to resist Imperial Metals on all affected territories.

“Colonial violence is real! The mining companies in central and south amerikkka are already killing indigenous people for protecting their land and their ways of life. We are quick approaching that time here in kkkanada and we need to know where everyone stands? Will you put your bodies on the line to fight for the future?”

For more information:

Imperial Metals is engaging in mining practices and operations that are in direct oppostion to the protocols and inherent rights and title of the Secwepemc, Ahousaht, Tla-o-qui-aht, Wet’suwet’en, and Tahltan First Nations.

www.imperialnomore.com

www.ancestralpride.org

www.facebook.com/yuctnesenxiymetkwecamp/

https://www.youtube.com/embed/WvahN7pdXek

https://vimeo.com/107615821

https://vimeo.com/113344620

(Source: https://player.vimeo.com/)

https://www.voicesfrontlines.com/these-are-our-friends-who-we-have-been-throwing/

Imperial Metals AGM

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On May 27th the Corporate Scum behind the Mount Polley disaster, where a four kilometer tailings pond emptied into Polley Lake, Hazeltine Creek and Quesnel Lake, met on unceded Musqueam territory for their annual shareholders meeting.

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Secwepemc Warrior, Kanahus Manuel, and supporters were there to greet them and remind the decisions makers of the company that they do not have permission to be on unceded Neskonlith Secwepemc territory and in fact have been told to leave.

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Although Kanahus had the legal documentation to enter the AGM as a Proxy Voting member dozens of the Colonial Corporation of Canada’s hired guns blocked her way.

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Imperial Metals is responsible for one of the most horrific acts of terror in this region since agents of the Hudson Bay company committed acts of violence through biological warfare, known as smallpox.  The destruction of the land upon which the Secwepemc people live and contamination of their food sources is part of a legacy of colonial violence and genocide committed by the Corporation of Canada and the Corporations they partner with.

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Sovereign Indigenous communities living on their unceded territories, who are not a part of the so called Canadian State, all over the region are resisting the invasive and destructive actions of Imperial Metals.  The Tahltan people have been fighting hard against Imperial Metal’s Red Chris Mine, which has recently been given the ‘permits’ to operate at full capacity despite the opposition of the people responsible for the lands.

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Members of Ancestral Pride, an Indigenous resistance organization from the village of Ahousaht on Nuu-chah-nulth territory have been organizing against Imperial Metal’s plans to open pit mine the sacred Chitaapii Mountain located directly across from the village.

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On unceded Wet’suwe’ten territories Imperial Metals has been illegally operating an open pit copper mine without permission of the hereditary peoples responsible for protection of the lands there.  Although the mine is currently not in operations due to low copper costs, it must not be permitted to open again.

We support the Talhtan, Secwepemc, Nuu-chah-nulth, Wet’suwe’ten and all sovereign Indigenous peoples and their protection of the lands we all rely on to live. 

We’re also looking forward to visiting with Kanahus and Sacheen of Ancestral Pride in August and to be including them in Voices.

If you want to know more about how you can support these rad women led movements get at us and shoot us an email!

xox

Hello Dear Ones,

Sacheen is an incredible land defender, life
giver, traditional midwife and indigenous sovereigntist.  Wulf’s been
honoured to have know her for many years and we are excited to share her
voice and work with you in our book.

Right now we are sharing this fundraiser for Sacheen and her partner Crow to take time to heal and train.  

Please share this opportunity to support and hold up two powerful protectors of the land and contribute if you can.

 <3 Wulfgang and Beyon

click here to support

Also check their webpage for more info: ancestralpride

https://www.voicesfrontlines.com/hello-dear-ones-sacheen-is-an-incredible-land/