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A Novel Idea Rooted in Tradition

By. Barb Nahwegahbow



Shawn Atleo’s resignation on May 2nd as National Chief of the Assembly of First Nations was not the first sign that there’s something rotten in the state of the AFN. 

Former National Chief Shawn Atleo in Toronto, April 2013]

There were things happening at the AFN before Atleo came into power that the inner circle of Regional Chiefs, and indeed all of our First Nations Chiefs must have been aware of. 
And if they were aware, why didn’t they do something about it? 
Saskatchewan Regional Chief Perry Bellegarde expressed his surprise at Atleo’s resignation when he was part of a CBC panel on Friday, the day of the resignation. What? Surely, some of the Chiefs he represents had been vocal about their discontent with the education legislation supported by Atleo. In fact, then National Chief Atleo stood side by side with the Prime Minister for the big announcement. 
Anyone with access to social media would have been aware of the growing fury and frustration. This   anger was not only born out of the belief that Bill C-33 falls short of what’s needed to keep the control of First Nations education out of the hands of the colonial oppressors. Many Chiefs also felt that Atleo had more than overstepped his mandate. He had, in fact, acted contrary to the wishes expressed by many First Nations Chiefs.
Grand Chief Pat Madahbee of the Anishinabek Nation of which my own First Nation, Whitefish River is a member, wrote to National Chief Atleo on March 5, 2014. This 4-page letter in its entirety is posted on the Union of Ontario Indians website (www.anishinabek.ca)
Grand Chief Madahbee outlined a host of concerns about the AFN leadership, saying, “…I’m writing because the recent decisions by the AFN Executive and yourself is beyond your mandate and outside of standard protocols.” Grand Chief Madahbee said he was not informed of the First Nations Control of First Nations Education Act until a day or two prior to the joint government/AFN announcement. Ontario Regional Chief Stan Beardy who sits on the AFN Executive was not privy to the announcement either!      

Anishinabek Nation Grand Chief Pat Madahbee (second from the right) confers with Chief Sayers of Batchewana in preparation for the Toronto march against the proposed First Nations education legislation December 4, 2013]


 Is there an inner circle within the inner circle?
Further concerns outlined by the Grand Chief include the January 2013 meeting with the Prime Minister during Chief Theresa Spence’s fast. A meeting that surprised many First Nations Chiefs who thought there was a consensus to boycott the meeting.
But there were problems at the AFN long before that and long before even the first meeting with the PM that Atleo coordinated in January 2012 where, according to Grand Chief Madahbee, “…the AFN staff attempted to stand in the way of the Anishinabek Nation following protocol by presenting a ceremonial Wampum Belt…”
There was the AFN collusion with the RCMP and Quebec and Ontario police forces under Phil Fontaine’s leadership in 2007. 
The Toronto Star broke the story about this in February 2013. Written by Tim Groves and Martin Lukacs, the story was based on documents obtained through access to freedom requests. 
According to the Star, in the summer of 2007, then national chief Fontaine met with the heads of the RCMP and Quebec and Ontario police to jointly strategize how to manage Aboriginal people in the lead-up to, and during, the planned National Day of Action June 29, 2007. Together, the AFN and the Mounties re-branded the day of protest as a “day of building bridges – not blockades.” On the day of action, a Mountie was working at the AFN offices!

Former National Chief Phil Fontaine speaking at Toronto’s City Hall in November 2013]


I have never seen any indication that Fontaine ever denied this story, and the Star writers said he did not return their requests for an interview about his cooperation with the police.
And I have to give my head a shake here because I still cannot believe what I read/am reading. No matter which way you look at it, this is so wrong! But, even more surprising to me was the lack of outrage on the part of First Nations leadership across the country when the story broke last year. The story just seemed to die a quiet death.
You frequently hear our First Nations leadership talk about the government’s ‘Duty to Consult’. But, do not our own leaders have a duty to consult? I say, yes, they do. They have a moral and sacred duty to consult and this trumps any legal duty.
Maybe, instead of going to the default position and scrambling to elect a new National Chief, or to appoint an interim one, all of the First Nations Chiefs across this land should fulfill their duty to consult with their members by consulting with them about: 

1) the need for a national representative First Nations organization, and, 

2) if there is a need, what should that organization look like?

Do we really need a multi-million dollar corporation whose first priority is to please the oppressor colonial government?

Personally, I’d like to see a small secretariat with a CEO and a few policy staff. I can already feel the pats on the head and the patronizing remarks that I “don’t really understand”, I “don’t really get the complexity of issues that an organization like the AFN has to deal with”. I have worked in the community for forty years as a social and cultural activist, as a front-line worker and Executive Director, and excuse me, but yes, I am quite aware of, and conversant with, the issues in all their complexity.

Atleo’s resignation gives First Nations people the opportunity to re-think, re-vision, re-imagine. It gives our leaders the opportunity to be real leaders. Not ones who think they know better than the people they represent. But leaders who engage with, and take direction from, the people they represent. This seemingly novel idea is rooted in our traditions. 


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