CPTnet
4 May 2012
SIX NATIONS-CALEDONIA, ONTARIO: Indigenous and non-indigenous people join in
March for Peace, Friendship and Respect
by Julián Gutiérrez Castaño
On 28 April 2012, Julián
Gutiérrez Castaño from the Aboriginal Justice Team of Christian Peacemaker
Teams joined the March for Peace, Friendship, and Respect at Caledonia,
Ontario.
More than five hundred people gathered at the grounds of Edinburgh
Square and Heritage Cultural Centre in the early afternoon to participate in
the
March for Peace, Friendship and Respect organized by the April 28th
Coalition. Haudenosaunee from the
Six Nations of the Grand River and non-Indigenous people who live in nearby
Caledonia met up with others who came for the march on buses from Toronto, St.
Catherine’s, London, Hamilton, Guelph, Kitchener-Waterloo, Dunnville, and Brantford.
The march proceeded without
any serious interruption, despite the provocations of a few members of CANACE
(Canadian Advocates for Charter Equality). CPT team member Gutiérrez Castaño spotted four people in a
truck harassing participants before the walk started at Edinburgh Square;
another group of three tried to stop the march at the intersection of Argyle
St. and Caithness St., and five more were at the south side of Argyle’s bridge
over the Grand River. Approximately
thirty other people demonstrated their discomfort with the march by standing at
the side of the road holding Canadian flags and even baseball bats.
The small group that opposed
the March for Peace, Friendship, and Respect did not represent the sentiments
of most Caledonians. Nancy Fuller,
a Caledonian business owner, spoke in support of the Haudenosaunee people:
“[Canadians have] not treated these people properly for 200 years […] They
deserve more respect.”[1]
The March ended with a
festival at Kanonhstaton, also known as the Reclamation Site or Douglas Creek
Estates, the place where Haudenosaunee warriors stopped a private development
project on Six Nations land six years ago. People gathered at Kanonhstaton to enjoy food and listen to music
and speeches in support of indigenous rights, and good relations between
indigenous and non-indigenous peoples.
Click here to see the pictures of this event.
[1] Caledonia reacts to peace walk. Daniel Pearce and Matt
Day, QMI Agency. April 29, 2012. https://www.dunnvillechronicle.com/2012/04/29/caledonia-reacts-to-peace-walk
