http://www.tennessean.com/article/20130131/OPINION03/301310043/Idle No More protest movement strengthensIdle No More is a Native protest movement that arose in Canada and is engulfing that country and the U.S.
It has been taken up locally by the Middle Tennessee American Indian community. The most recent action was an INM round dance held at War Memorial Plaza on Jan. 22.
Before that, on Jan. 6 and 13, massive INM Indian flash mobs erupted at CoolSprings Galleria and Opry Mills, respectively. Hundreds performed traditional round dances, to the beat of drumming, singing and chanting. All these activities have taken place without incident.
This is in contrast to other parts of the country, most infamously
Colorado and Minnesota, where Native people have been barred from malls and even arrested for just looking Native American. This is an unspeakable outrage.
Police were quoted as telling mall security “If they look Native American, tell them to leave.” This is 1960s Mississippi-style racist police action directed against American Indian people for simply trying to assemble and exercise free speech.The INM movement, started by four indigenous women and now sweeping the Western Hemisphere at warp speed, was in response to the Canadian government’s Omnibus Bill C-45 that would further strip reservations of more lands and also environmental protections. This infamous legislation was passed on Dec. 14, after Assembly of First Nations representatives were barred from government meetings on the heinous bill.
In the meantime, the movement has sparked countless demonstrations and direct actions, including blockades of railways, roads and border crossings in Canada and rallies and flash mobs from coast to coast in the U.S. Suffice it to say that INM has morphed into the most massive Native American Indian movement in history. The movement is not new, but it is the latest manifestation of centuries-old Native resistance to the exploitation, marginalization and continuous daily discrimination experienced by Indian citizens.
On Jan. 16, INM held a national “Day of Action” that brought Canadian roads, railways and border crossings to a standstill with blockades. The blockades, though predominantly indigenous, were often supported by non-Native participation. The movement, which started with Indian sovereignty and environmental protection, is addressing a panoply of Native issues including poverty, suicides rates, joblessness, health and the protection of women. Media from around the world are covering INM.
But where, we may ask, is U.S. mainstream media coverage of this gigantic political movement? The “Buckskin Curtain” has struck again in an attempt to hide this immense social upheaval. Social media technology has circumvented the U.S. news machine (locally, only Channel 5 has covered any INM activities, that being the Jan. 22 round dance). Indeed, INM support groups have arisen across the globe.
In the latter 20th century, the American Indian Movement and other freedom-seeking organizations ushered in a tremendous upsurge of Native activism resulting in the Mayflower takeover, the Trail of Broken Treaties, the Wounded Knee Occupation and other defiant actions. Similarly the INM movement may well bring about an even greater upheaval in the struggle for global justice for all oppressed peoples. This is not just an Indian issue. The movement is reaching out to all, non-Indians as well, to participate in INM because the issues that are being fought for affect all the people of this earth.
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