First Nations block highway

by Jim Moodie

ESPANOLA-Just before noon on Friday, a group of protestors who had been participating in the peaceful demonstration at the swing bridge decided to drive up to Highway 17 at Espanola to make more of a statement.

"The idea was to inconvenience people enough to make them think about our issues," explained Forry Hare, who, along with brother Tom, spearheaded a blockade of the Trans-Canada Highway that lasted from noon until about 3 pm.

Originally there were just nine protestors, said Mr. Hare, but the group later swelled to count three times that number, as others who had been participating in the bridge demonstration, including chiefs Joe Hare and Pat Madahbee, joined the cause. Mr. Hare noted that a pair of Sagamok band members also participated, as did a "couple of non-Natives who were driving through from out west and wanted to support us."

Traffic was held up altogether for the first half-hour, but after discussions with members of the OPP, who had a number of cruisers present to maintain order, it was decided to allow vehicles to detour around the blockade, via the gas station and Tim Hortons on the north side of the highway, and the turning and merging lanes on the south.

Some of the larger trucks heading east couldn't navigate the detour, however, so "as time went on we'd open one lane for 20 minutes or so to let the trucks through," said Mr. Hare.

Asked what the response was from inconvenienced motorists, Mr. Hare said that "the majority of people actually honked and gave us the thumbs-up," while a small minority expressed frustration. "Maybe 10 percent were unhappy," the activist reckoned. "We got a few fingers and some comments here and there."

Lana Dunlop (nee Vanzant) of Mount Brydges, in southwestern Ontario, was one motorist who was extremely frustrated when she encountered the traffic jam, not because she begrudges First Nations people the right to demonstrate, but because the holdup meant she missed a memorial service at the Centennial Manor for her mother, who died in May.

"I had got up that morning at 5:30 am and left with my five-year-old (Caleb) because I wanted to make sure I got to the service on time," she said. "I had made it to just east of McKerrow, at around 12:30, when the traffic stopped."

Ms. Dunlop phoned the Manor on her cell phone and spoke with Nina Coates, just to let the staff know she was temporarily waylaid. "I said I'll keep you posted," Ms. Dunlop recalled, "thinking it would maybe be a half-hour delay."

Instead she was stuck for close to two hours. "I was frustrated, but I felt really bad for the lady behind me, who had a four-month-old and two-year-old in a car with no air conditioning," she said. "It was a bit of frustration all the way down the line."

The worst part for Ms. Dunlop, though, was that the longer she waited, the more obvious it became that she wouldn't reach Little Current in time for the memorial service, held to bring closure for residents of the Manor. "My two older brothers weren't able to make it," said Ms. Dunlop. "Here I'd made it all the way to McKerrow, and there I sat. I went from being upset to being angry. Why am I missing something this important?"

Ms. Dunlop said she "can understand people exercising their rights, but I think 15 minutes would have been ample."

The point wasn't to annoy people, however, so much as to draw attention to the concerns of First Nations people. "Some people may be grumbling for a while but at least they'll think about the issues," said Mr. Hare.

He and his brother had initially contemplated halting cars at the swing bridge, he admitted, but decided to focus their attention on the highway instead, in part because the United Chiefs and Councils of Manitoulin (UCCM) had recommended a non-confrontational action at the bridge, but primarily because more of an impact would be made at the heavily-trafficked Highway 17 location.

Mr. Hare feels the action was successful, as cars were stalled long enough to be made aware of the protestors' concerns, but not inconvenienced so much as to spark an incident. The police were also "really reasonable," remarked Mr. Hare, "and helpful in facilitating what we were doing. They were just there to make sure it was safe."

While the blockade lasted only until mid-afternoon and traffic wasn't completely stalled, it still had a significant effect, with cars backed up beyond Nairn Centre in the east and Webbwood in the west.

After the protestors called off action, a few, including Chief Joe Hare and wife Susan, decided to drive to another blockade scheduled for the Serpent River area at 4 pm, noted Mr. Hare.

Little Current docks completed

by Lindsay Kelly

LITTLE CURRENT-The new docks at the Little Current waterfront were officially declared open to the public on June 30, and the new amenity is promising to be an important addition to the town's future success in economic development.

The docks themselves have been largely ready for the last few weeks, with some finishing being done in the days before the opening, and a few final touches to go before they are fully complete. But the weekend's grand opening is a signal to residents, visitors and investors alike that the Port of Little Current is open for business.

The celebration was also an opportunity for politicians to check out the facility in which their governments have invested so much.

Providing close to $1.5 million, the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation (NOHFC) has been an essential contributor to the project. Algoma-Manitoulin MPP Mike Brown spoke of the significance of the revamped waterfront to the economy of the town.

"It is extraordinarily important to the local economy to have a facility that is world class," he said.

The infusion of money into waterfront facilities is all part of a renewal project in which the government has been investing since the 1960s, he noted. Nearby communities that have enjoyed, or will enjoy, a renewal include Hilton Beach on St. Joseph's Island, Spanish and Gore Bay.

The new waterfront will appeal to boaters and cruise ships, as well as residents of the Northeast Town and neighbouring communities, he said, adding that the waterfront is "part of the community's economy and culture-something we have to celebrate."

Algoma-Manitoulin-Kapuskasing MP Brent St. Denis also spoke of the changes to waterfronts that have taken place over the last 30 to 40 years, and emphasized the transfer of Small Craft Harbours marinas to the municipalities as a key factor in that change.

"Here, we have a fine example of a transfer being very, very successful," Mr. St. Denis said.

He joked that the mayors and councils past and present have "done a very good job of spending our money," adding with a more serious note that it takes wise planning and foresight to turn funding dollars into a tangible reality.

"You're leading the way here in Little Current, with the beautiful vistas you see behind me," Mr. St. Denis said. "There is no other place that treats visitors to such an eyeful of such wonderful views showing what a beautiful place it is to live, and maybe a place they'll want to come visit."

Representing FedNor, Arik Theijsmeijer spoke of how proud FedNor was to be a financial contributor to the waterfront project. Over the last year, the funding agency has given the town $500,000 towards the docks, with $350,000 previously going towards the finger docks built last summer.

While the new docks will offer great economic development potential to the town, they will also offer a solid opportunity for job creation in the town, Mr. Theijsmeijer noted, adding that the docks should be seen "a point of pride" for the town.

As the final speaker to offer his thoughts, Mayor Jim Stringer noted that the waterfront redevelopment project has actually been 10 years in the planning stages, since the smaller towns amalgamated to become the Town of Northeastern Manitoulin and the Islands. The result, he noted, will be positive for the town.

"This project re-establishes the Port of Little Current as a destination of the North Channel," he said, adding that the project will have "greatly improved the town's prosperity in the future."

The project was truly a collaborative effort, he noted. From the initial planning stages of the project to the construction of the docks, a host of people were involved in the collaboration, including Northland Engineering, Trow, Castellan, James and Partners Architects, Inc., Todhunter Associates, Belanger Construction, Taylor and Son Construction, Lafarge, Parkinson Electric and Pat Noble Lumber.

In addition, town staff completed the decking, and CAO Dave Williamson and facilities manager Greg Wright were essential in the planning stage.

Mayor Stringer also thanked the funders, for which, he said, the project could not have been completed.

"This is a huge investment in our town and its future," he said. "We are very grateful. This is the first step on the path of a very bright future for our town."

Yellow ribbons tied to support troops

by Lindsay Kelly

LITTLE CURRENT-Allie Cosby may only be in Grade 3, but the significance of the role Canadians are playing in Afghanistan is very real for her.

Her brother, Peter, is currently serving a tour in the war-torn country, and on Friday, June 29, she joined the chorus of voices proclaiming their support for Canadian soldiers engaged in combat around the world.

Wearing a bright red T-shirt and an army baseball cap, and clutching a Canadian flag in her right hand, Ms. Cosby addressed a crowd of dozens gathered at the Little Current cenotaph for a ceremony intended to honour Canadian soldiers.

Her brother Peter is "working very hard" in Afghanistan, helping to build schools and hospitals, but it's also scary because people there are at war, she said.

The idea of war looms especially large for the young girl, as her other brother, Jeremy, is also in the armed forces, and is currently stationed in Esquimalt, BC. "I hope he never has to go to war," she said.

Mark Olacke also knows the significance of war, as his children-Becky, who is in Vancouver, and Tommy, who is in Petawawa-are also part of the Canadian forces. Wearing red on Fridays is a wonderful way to show the troops that Canada cares, he noted.

"As a parent of two armed forces personnel...I really appreciate this show of support for the troops," he said.

Since Canada deployed troops to Afghanistan, more than 63 Canadian soldiers have been killed in that country, a fact that makes the war "very real" to everyone here at home, Mr. Olacke noted.

In fact, since allied forces became involved in the war in Afghanistan, more than 600 soldiers have been killed, noted Legion Branch 177 president Roy Eaton. In addition to the Canadians who lost their lives, 403 were US soldiers, 61 British soldiers have died, and casualties from 14 other countries number 86.

While it may seem a small contribution, wearing red on Fridays is significant for those who are fighting for the freedom of others around the world.

"It is a simple gesture to wear something red on Fridays, but I can assure you that the impact to yourself is very profound," Mr. Eaton said. "The sight of red on Fridays demonstrates that we care for those we have lost, we care for those who have been hurt and we care for all those in harm's way."

While the Canadian mission to Afghanistan has divided people politically, the intent behind the June 29 ceremony was simply to let soldiers from the Island and from Canada know that Canadians care about them and want them to come home safely, Mr. Eaton said.

"Today's ceremony is not about the politics, the morality of the rightness or wrongness of these wars," he emphasized. "It is about each of us here today, by our presence, sending a message of support and hope to our troops. Hope that these young men and women will return home safely, with whole bodies and whole minds."

Those gathered held a moment of silence, followed by the laying of two wreaths commemorating the soldiers who have died in conflict. And then, a touch of colour was added to the downtown, as relatives of loved ones serving in the armed forces tied yellow ribbons to the lampposts lining the main street.

As a permanent reminder of those serving in foreign countries, the yellow ribbons went up in time for Canada Day, and will remain in view until Remembrance Day on November 11.

It's yet another way to pay tribute to those who gave their lives for the freedom of others, and those who continue to serve their country with honour.

And it's a sentiment shared by those gathered last Friday, and reiterated in this simple statement by Ms. Cosby: "I love my brothers and I'm very proud of them," she said, adding that she hopes to see them come home safely.

EDITORIAL

North Channel marine improvements welcomed

The official opening of the renovated Little Current docks last Saturday was the culmination of several years planning and discussion on the topic, a substantial contribution by the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund and by FedNor, a special dispensation that allowed winter construction at the water's edge and a frenetic eight months of construction.

But now it's done and the old docks, last renovated in 1955, have been replaced, eccentric doglegs, nooks and crannies and all.

This new look is already paying off for Little Current as the Great Lakes Cruising Club (GLCC) announced in the current issue of the club magazine, "Around the Buoy" that Little Current has been chosen as the site for the 2008 annual club Rendezvous. The last time the GLCC Rendezvous took place in Little Current was in 1984, the year the Spider Bay Marina was opened.

The new dock project is the second phase of a planned renewal of the historic waterfront. Phase one was the installation of three large sets of finger docks a year ago and further phases will see the construction of a new front street dockside shower house and washrooms, more finger docks and, hopefully, the renovation of the post office building.

Historically Little Current was accessed by water and not by road. That is why the downtown business block is so proximate to the waterfront and the renewed docks reestablish and accentuate this historic fact.

This was a project that spanned many years and several political administrations to get it to the point of Saturday's official opening.

It was good to hear Mayor Jim Stringer in his remarks that day, acknowledge the work of previous councils and of the municipal staff.

So often, for political reasons and especially at the provincial and federal levels, no credit for anything useful or positive is ever given to preceding administrations, especially if they are of a rival political hue.

Little Current's grand opening of its new docks will be followed in the not-too-distant future by Gore Bay's as Manitoulin's district town is already well into the process of adding a good deal more dockage space and it has already finished enlarging its dockside building with much more new space for stores, administration and offices.

Meldrum Bay has a project on the books and Kagawong will soon begin an expansion of its docks.

What we're seeing here is the next generation in the improvement of the North Channel facilities catering to the boaters who come to these waters to enjoy one of the world's finest cruising areas.

Nearly 25 years ago, as previously stated, the Spider Bay Marina was added to the Little Current waterfront with public berthing for 120 craft. At about the same time, the Red Roof Pavilion was added, courtesy primarily of the Ministry of Northern Development and Mines, as a focus for Gore Bay's waterfront. Under largely federal funding, new marinas were also built at Thessalon, Blind River and Spanish with upgrades to existing facilities in other communities.

These new marinas built in the 1980s and 1990s were primarily federally funded because the federal government, until fairly recently, was seen as the agency responsible for improvements to shoreline facilities along navigable waterways.

Thankfully that has changed and Saturday's opening ceremonies in Little Current reflected this new reality with both provincial and federal funders stepping up to the plate in recognition of the dollars flowing into Northern communities such as ours on Manitoulin and the North Shore directly as a result of these marine improvements.

These are all good projects and substantially increase the ability of our small Northern communities to remain competitive.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Case of missing pup, presumed killed, should be wakeup call

These acts have no place on our Island

To the Expositor:

On May 29, our beloved eight-month-old puppy named Moose disappeared, and we suspect he was taken by someone and shot. You may, by now, have seen or heard of the announcements in the newspaper or on the radio detailing reward information in assisting police with their investigation. We are confident that someone with courage and character will step forward, anonymously call the police, and provide missing details in this case.

Some might ask: So what? Who cares? But the story of Moose is more than just an isolated incident. The story of Moose is a wakeup call for a region with an agriculture history and strong dependency on promoting a tourism-based economy.

Our community must begin to care and consider how we will react to cases like this for many reasons. Research shows, time and again, that individuals who perpetrate acts of animal cruelty-usually starting with maiming or killing birds, cats, and then dogs-almost always graduate to crimes of child abuse and eventually, domestic violence. The thrill of violence against a "smaller and weaker" creature, in an abnormal mind, is rarely satisfied by killing animals and is a common personality trait of murderers.

We should care that our region has grown from a strong agricultural history where neighbouring farms demonstrated a code of ethics, not just because they were neighbours, but also because it could mean survival from one year to the next. This meant that if the animal of one farmer-sheep, cow or dog-wandered onto a neighbouring property, it would be rightfully returned and not slaughtered. The Criminal Code of Canada maintains that animals will not be injured or slaughtered, and cattle will not poisoned. Within the current Criminal Code, animals are property and should no more be stolen than other chattel. Bill S-213, an amendment to the Criminal Code, has passed second reading and will bar those found guilty of animal cruelty from owing or working with animals for up to two years. This amendment would make it impossible for most farmers to financially survive if found guilty of such transgressions.

We should all deeply care that the financial sustainability of Manitoulin Island is based on tourism dollars. We are known as a peaceful and pristine nature land with none of the ills and distractions of big city life. Our seasonal dollars depend on visitors who choose Manitoulin over Muskoka, the Kawarthas, or Killarney. If we stand by and allow the sort of gun-loving, redneck, vigilante justice sensibilities that an instance of puppy-shooting represents, our tourism dollars are at risk. If we cannot maintain the structure of a civilized society, with law and order and public safety, I doubt that we will rank so high on the list of Ontario vacation hot spots. Rural communities always need to work hard to remind visitors that they are educated, cultured, peaceable and law-abiding people. We are not the Ozarks of the North.

Finally, if Manitoulin Island and our region are to step forward and prosper we must be willing to find the voice to make our community safe, humane and respectful. We need to speak up against everyday actions that are easy to walk away from but are difficult to forget. We need to remind the bullies of this world that we know who they are, we know where they live, and to shower them with shame whenever we have the chance. We need to protect a place of beauty by guarding against the sort of acts that we know have no place on this Island, in our community. We must respect appropriate, registered gun ownership and call on the police to act against individuals who kill small animals and shoot off guns to satisfy a need for self-esteem.

We are encouraged by the outrage of those who hear Moose's story and hope that one person who has knowledge of this apparent crime will make a difference by speaking out.

Shelagh Saul

Spring Bay

Majority cannot unilaterally end minority's rights

We have a referendum this Oct. on voting day

To the Expositor:

On Wednesday, June 27, my attention was caught by the report that the provincial Liberal party has responded to the issue of public funding of Catholic schools by arguing that any change would be "(too) disruptive."

Besides being a trite observation, I am disappointed that a Liberal spokesperson did not reference their party's decision through any principles of liberal democracy. For me, the functioning of our political culture, which is largely devoid of violence, rests upon the acceptance by nearly all citizens that individual and collective rights will not be arbitrarily changed or diminished by a majority 'vote' at any moment. Ontario's original constitutional framework includes a guarantee to Catholics that they can have a Catholic education; consequently, this could only be diminished if the Catholic community requested or agreed to end public funding. In other words, the majority cannot unilaterally end a minority's rights. A parallel is to imagine if the majority decided to 'end' First Nation treaty rights.

This October the majority of Ontario voters do have an opportunity to radically change our political process. We have a referendum about how the provincial legislature reflects public opinion on voting day. As all voters are equal and would be equally affected by this change about how much the legislature reflects 'public opinion,' a large majority (but not unanimity) can make this change to our system of representation. My hope is that the political effort going into the public funding of Catholic schools is not a red herring to divert the voting public from a current, established referendum upon the fundamental  way in which we establish 'representation' in our legislature. The October referendum deserves more than to be dismissed by inattention and a public saying on election day: "I never heard about this referendum

business!"

Ken L. Mackenzie

Kagawong

Canada found in violation of human rights repeatedly

When has the Liberal Party addressed

these violations?

To the Expositor:

An open letter to MPP Mike A. Brown:

Canada has been found in violation of its international human rights obligations by the United Nations Human Rights Committee in 1999 and again in 2005 and still in 2007 by virtue of the discrimination in the funding of religious schools in ONTARIO.

Can you advise when you on our behalf, have your party address this violation of Human Rights?

Larry B. Killens

trustee, Rainbow District School Board

Trevor Phillips  Jake's Home Centre,

Mindemoya

I'm your neighbour

Trevor Phillips has been a fixture of the Mindemoya mercantile scene for over 20 years, greeting customers in his reserved yet helpful way at a variety of stores, most recently Jake's Home Centre.

"I've been full-time here for four years, but have helped out since Jake opened (in June, 1997)," he explains. "Before that I was with Wilson's Corner Store for eight years, and before that Caryl's Grocery, since I was out of high school."

The job at Jake's is "fun," he says, because "you get to see different people every day, and everyone gets to know you." The owner's famous wisecracks can lighten the mood, too, although you get the sense that Mr. Phillips puts up with them as often as he chuckles along.

"He's mad at me today," notes Jake, a.k.a. Kevin Mackan. Mr. Phillips shrugs, eyes twinkling as if to say, 'what else is knew?'

Escape from the boss's one-liners exists in the form of furniture deliveries, which Mr. Phillips performs along with coworker Al Lanktree. "I'm not really in the store very much," he notes.

Such trips take him "from one end of the Island to the other, and even to Espanola and Sudbury," he notes, and represent an aspect of the job that's appealing for its variety and chance to meet new people in far-flung locales.

While not working, Mr. Phillips enjoys playing sports-particularly baseball, but also hockey and curling-as well as watching televised athletics at the Island Pub, where he can often be found after a shift at Jake's.

The self-deprecating but endearing Mindemoyan has lived in the community since moving here as a boy, and figures he won't be moving elsewhere any day soon.

"It's quiet, and you can walk to work," he reasons. "And it's pretty easy to get along with people. I don't think too many people hate me."

Shopping at local businesses like Jake's Home Centre provides lasting employment for people like Trevor Phillips.