12- "Kanehsatake: 270 Years of Resistance" and "Le Peuple Invisible"

by Bianca, Joëlle and Olivier

       We have all learned about freedom. We have learned what it means to be free in different ways. We learned
 about what it means to “speak out loud” and what it means to have your own opinion. Freedom is when you have the right to think, speak or act. In the documentary Kanehsatake: 270 Years of Resistance, we learn what freedom of action and expressing ourselves is. The Mohawks were getting their territory removed from them. The documentary shows us the ‘behind the scenes’ of what actually happened on the Mohawk territory and how they fought back to get what they deserve and to get back what is theirs. In Le Peuple Invisible, shows the lives of the Algonquin’s and the struggles they went through. Richard Desjardin shows his side of how the issues between the government and the Algonquin’s have been over the centuries. 

       Kanehsatake: 270 Years of Resistance directed by Alanis Obomsawin was a very strong and dominant film. The Native issues in the village of Oka was disrupted by the government of Québec, or the Whites,  buy taking over their private territory. The film shows how the Mohawks come together to help each other keep what they deserve. The Natives land is a very important part of their culture, history and to their community. The Native tradition is known for keeping its tradition and passing it on to each generation. The elders are known for teaching the children about the nature, the rituals and also story telling. 

      The Whites wanted to build a golf course on top of the cemetery on the Natives land without asking permission of the Mohawks. The police and the army treated the Natives in a very disrespectful way. They treated them as if they had no rights for their land and for themselves as well. The women are very strong and demanding, therefore, they are the power for the land. The women’s role is to stand up to the Whites and protect their land. The men’s role is to protect the community and defend the people. Everyone in the community has a role and responsibility. Promises were often made and broken by the police. 

      This documentary shows the side of our country that we like to ignore which would be racism and colonialism, and it also shows how Canada should keep to its word on how we are a free country.  The government is making people forget their cultures. The Mohawks had set up a blockade on the main highway, not letting anybody through their territory, except for Natives. The Natives were arrested and beaten up for standing up for their rights. Watching this film shows how people can stand up to their rights and do what they can to save their land and not give up. That is one thing the Natives kept saying throughout the film. “We’re not giving up”. They didn’t want to give up and give the police and army the satisfaction of winning, because they didn’t. The Natives were standing up for what they deserve, and what they deserve is freedom. They were not giving freedom by the police and army. They were treated as if they were criminals, when all they did and were aloud to do was stand up and stand out. The weekly topic that we had discussed in class was racism and colonialism. Colonialism is when you deny someone’s culture, and erasing and assimilating it. Racism is the hatred of people because of their race and culture. The government, police and army were trying to get rid of the Natives culture. They we assimilating it. The army and police were making sure they would do every little thing they could do just to make sure that the Natives don’t win and that they got taken over. Québecers were being racist towards the Natives because they didn’t look like them and that they don’t do things the same way as the Québecers. They didn’t like how they looked because it wasn’t how normal people who lives in Québec are supposed to look like. Therefore, freedom does mean that you have to power or right to act, speak or think. The Natives were acting and speaking for their rights and that is not wrong of them to do so. 

   In 2007, the film "Le Peuple Invisible" by Richard Desjardin and Robert Monderie  is a very powerful film that explains the struggle of the Algonquin's from the unacceptable conditions that they live in Canada.  They have been faced through the past five centuries over their territory and rights. In the documentary film, Richard Desjardin has given his point of view of how the Algonquin's have had issues with the government since the 15th century. Throughout the beginning of exploration in Canadian history, the "White People" had taken their land and being forced to move on and find a new home. Unfortunately, all their land was taken and they were compelled to live in reserves with horrible living conditions. The government forced the Algonquin children to go to residential school to learn French in which they were abused sexually and physically by the priest. One of the most disturbing part of that film is at the age of 7 they were forced to go to school for 10 months a year until they are a teenager without seeing their parents. As a matter of fact, the new generation would loose their first language. Hence, is why the converting them was the key for them to loose their heritage. For centuries, the Canadian government has been taking their land that  the treaties offered the Algonquin's very minimal compensation such as 4 dollars per year. Thus, in the 21st century, the Algonquin living conditions has still remain horrible. Their somewhat reserves has been circumscribed to such little area with not a lot of resources such as food for a big population. They live in homes that are inhabitable and do not have all the human needs such as running the water or heat. As a matter of fact, in the documentary a mother was explaining that the electricity can sometimes overheat and burn some houses in which innocent people lost their lives. The mother has lost her own child from this terrible tragedy.  Since the poor economy in the reserves, the Algonquin's are unable to construct new homes. Their homes are not safe. Today, the education for the Algonquin has less importance. Only half of the First Nation youth complete high school but when First Nations youth complete high school, they are twice to be employed. in the film, many First Nations youth has a high rate of suicide from not seeing a point to live when you can go further as education wise.  In the documentary, it shows how the government ( White People) has destroyed the Algonquin's way of life. It has lead a loss of traditions, loss of languages from their ancestors, and a high rate of suicides where mostly are children.

      The main discussion of this impressive documentary in "Le Peuple Invisible" is according to what the government has been taking the land away from the First Nations without respecting their rights. This documentary has shown their turbulent history that dates back over 5,000 years.  Desjardins didn't know who are they. Therefore, he went himself to see the community and interviewed the First Natives. We have seen cousins getting married to each other, their homes, their school and how lost.  However, Le Peuple Invisible is not the only film that which they are explaining the inequality and loss of culture. It can be related to what we watched in class Kaneshsatake: 270 Years of Resistance by Alanis Obomsawin. This film explains why barricades were set up in Oka. There is a convenant to protect their land. It explains everything about the Oka Crisis that happened in Montreal in 1990, when the government wanted to destroy the Native burial ground to make room for the expansion of the Golf course. There are other documentaries in which its related to the film. It explains the struggle of the people of the First Nations being place into reserves that are not the proper place to live in those conditions. Some of the homes have no running water and theres alot of deaths due to the extreme cold weather because their habitat is not safe. Those documentaries are all related with all the same issue because the government has ignored all the rights of the First Nation people. The government has given more freedom to the immigrants than them. Le Peuple Invisible is linked through the discussion of the First Nation for not being given their rights.  The interconnection for them is knowledge, culture and environment. The Natives has a world view on the land and the people. They say that it's a big importance to be one with land. Their rituals of blessings is all connected with the land. However, no alot of people are aware that we are destroying their culture by taking away their land. The title Le Peuple Invisible explains alot on how the government is making their community to be invisible and somewhat can be disappeared forever.    

Le Peuple Invisible trailer :

https://www.nfb.ca/film/invisible_nation/trailer/invisible-nation-trailer

      After watching these two great films on Native communities and their struggles with government conflicts, you realize how us non-native citizens are “put in the dark” on this subject. Being  born in 1995 it amazes me how I or other people my age  weren’t informed much about the Oka Crisis or the conflict the with the clans of up north near Abitibi-Témiscamingue. In both cases, both these communities are forced to give up their land without being given a choice. A life lesson that these events teach you is that you need to fight for what you want, or in this case fight for what is yours. You should never give up even if the going gets tough because that’s when you hit that “breakthrough”. A great example would be the Kanehsatake people; they fought and protested without stopping which resulted with them being victorious. Even when they were close to defeat they continued to fight, which in my opinion made the government realize that they weren’t going to give up so easily. I find that the film makers communicated their ideas very successfully, they enlightened us on facts and events that not many people my age are aware of. The way they used film in this documentary to show us these events was very important because even  with the people being interviewed they gave us all the video proof to see with our own eyes what was happening. Without the camera crews infiltrating the closed reserve not much of this footage could have been used to show us what was happening inside the reserve during the Oka Crisis. Such as the beatings of certain native individuals and the neglect of the incoming weekly food source which was delayed very often.  In my opinion these documentaries don’t really challenge the way we see the world but make us realize as to how much the media and government is trying to avoid bringing up these past events. I believe they do this because they are embarrassed of the actions the committed in the past, and they should be because what they did was wrong. Realizing that what they did was wrong the feel that they should hide it from us, even though these were very important events in our Canadian history. An experience in our society that can relate to these events would have to be Richard Desjardin, he is known for being a separatist. So he made this documentary to tell us and show us that the culture of the natives in these events was taken away from them. So as citizens of Quebec, he wants us to realize and not let our French language die down. He is stating that we shouldn’t make the same mistake as these native people, we shouldn’t just let it happen but we should fight for our culture, we should embrace it and accept it as a multi-cultural society. 

  

    In conclusion, Kanehsatake: 270 Years of Resistance and Le Peuple Invisible both have colonialism in relation to be a Native. The two documentaries show how they both want to stand up for the rights they were given. Le Peuple Invisible and Kanehsatake: 270 Years of Resistance were both dealing with their land taking away from them. They show what standing up for your freedom and rights is and why you’re supposed to be standing up for yourself. There are good reason and bad reason for standing up for your freedom.