Keeping First Nations issues in the forefront: Canadian election edition
August 5, 2015 12:36 AM Subscribe
Assembly of First Nations National Chief Perry Bellegarde is working hard to put First Nations front and centre in Canada's 42nd federal election. Polls suggest the election is a three way race, with the NDP, for the first time ever, contending to form (a minority) government. Indigenous voters could tip the balance, resulting in an end to Stephen Harper's Conservative government. Both the NDP and the Liberals made their case to the Assembly of First Nations, and NDP leader Thomas Mulcair underscored the importance of First Nations issues in a campaign rally in Montreal today.
Bellegarde gave a compelling speech on the change that is needed in Canada, and the potential offered by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. "The great potential that comes with removing stereotypes that indigenous people are drunk, lazy, on welfare... Remove the misconceptions, and allow new things to come in.... A Canada that rights these wrongs, and sets us on a path to the future that our ancestors envisioned, is a stronger, more prosperous, more vibrant Canada." [video of full talk].
Individuals and groups have picked up on this call.
Musicians Young Medicine have issued a similar call in song and video. They have issued a new version of Buffalo Springfield's classic For What It's Worth, calling for action on Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women [MMIW] and mobilizing First Nations voters.
Two Saskatoon women, Glenda Abbott and Melody Wood, have formed non-partisan groups to encourage First Nations voting, and others are working to oppose recent election rule changes that could hinder First Nations voters.
Even Rex Murphy says reconcilation "should not be an election issue, but the election issue".
lots of previously: MMIW, more MMIW, Truth and Reconciliation Commission,ex-pat voters, man in a blue suit,
Bellegarde gave a compelling speech on the change that is needed in Canada, and the potential offered by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. "The great potential that comes with removing stereotypes that indigenous people are drunk, lazy, on welfare... Remove the misconceptions, and allow new things to come in.... A Canada that rights these wrongs, and sets us on a path to the future that our ancestors envisioned, is a stronger, more prosperous, more vibrant Canada." [video of full talk].
Individuals and groups have picked up on this call.
Musicians Young Medicine have issued a similar call in song and video. They have issued a new version of Buffalo Springfield's classic For What It's Worth, calling for action on Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women [MMIW] and mobilizing First Nations voters.
Two Saskatoon women, Glenda Abbott and Melody Wood, have formed non-partisan groups to encourage First Nations voting, and others are working to oppose recent election rule changes that could hinder First Nations voters.
Even Rex Murphy says reconcilation "should not be an election issue, but the election issue".
lots of previously: MMIW, more MMIW, Truth and Reconciliation Commission,ex-pat voters, man in a blue suit,
Too bad that the #ManInBlueSuit made it harder than ever for First Nations (and others) to Vote. Because we need as high a voter participation rate as we can get.
posted by Sintram at 12:59 AM on August 5, 2015 [3 favorites]
posted by Sintram at 12:59 AM on August 5, 2015 [3 favorites]
Please tip the balance, First Nations voters. I need a liberal Canada I can look up to (Not a geography pun, but now I'm going to make it one!). Harper ruins everything.
(Also, omg, this is a crazy long election season, I am not used to sustaining interest in Canadian campaigns over this long a period and I cannot cope with listening to Harper campaign from now until October. BE LESS AMERICAN. Nobody likes our campaign cycle. Do not imitate.)
posted by Eyebrows McGee at 2:42 AM on August 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
(Also, omg, this is a crazy long election season, I am not used to sustaining interest in Canadian campaigns over this long a period and I cannot cope with listening to Harper campaign from now until October. BE LESS AMERICAN. Nobody likes our campaign cycle. Do not imitate.)
posted by Eyebrows McGee at 2:42 AM on August 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
Hmmm I don't see an NDP minority government, and I'm an NDP supporter. A huge part of their success last election was due to Jack Layton, AND Quebec wanting to punish the Bloc. Thomas Mulcair doesn't have Jack Layton's charisma, and I'm not confident that the NDP will win Quebec again. The Liberals will probably go the "Vote Liberal if you don't want a Conservative government" route and scare people re: vote splitting. Sucks to have 3 liberal parties and 1 conservative.
posted by Hazelsmrf at 2:57 AM on August 5, 2015
posted by Hazelsmrf at 2:57 AM on August 5, 2015
I guess even Rex Murphy can get it right ONCE.
posted by Kitteh at 3:21 AM on August 5, 2015 [3 favorites]
posted by Kitteh at 3:21 AM on August 5, 2015 [3 favorites]
In the Alberta election thread, clawsoon did some great working examining how the aboriginal vote affected the overall result.
posted by Lemurrhea at 4:52 AM on August 5, 2015 [3 favorites]
posted by Lemurrhea at 4:52 AM on August 5, 2015 [3 favorites]
My prediction (and I do hope to be proven wrong); through a combination of their reliable base turnout (who will vote Conservative no matter what they do), vote splitting on the left, voter suppression and a little strategic election day chicanery here and there as needed (like last time), the Cons will eke out another minority. The Liberals will refuse to form a coalition with the NDP and will prop up the Cons in the hope of winning the next election, or maybe the one after that. And very little will change.
Don't forget that this is Canada, where most people don't give a shit about anything other than what their house is worth.
posted by The Card Cheat at 6:27 AM on August 5, 2015 [3 favorites]
Don't forget that this is Canada, where most people don't give a shit about anything other than what their house is worth.
posted by The Card Cheat at 6:27 AM on August 5, 2015 [3 favorites]
Don't forget that this is Canada, where most people don't give a shit about anything other than what their house is worth.
Now, now. That's not the only issue people are preoccupied with. Lots of people spend an equal amount of time bitching about the price of gas.
posted by mandolin conspiracy at 7:23 AM on August 5, 2015 [6 favorites]
Now, now. That's not the only issue people are preoccupied with. Lots of people spend an equal amount of time bitching about the price of gas.
posted by mandolin conspiracy at 7:23 AM on August 5, 2015 [6 favorites]
The Liberals will refuse to form a coalition with the NDP
This. This is what will doom Canada. If the NDP gets even one more seat than the Liberals do, but N+L > C, the NDP will ask the GG to form a minority coalition govt with L--and Trudeau's Ego will say "NO MY DADDY WANTS ME IN THE PMO." Flip it, with Liberals getting more seats, and the NDP will say yes to a coalition (Mulcair has already said he's down), and Trudeau might because it still gets his ass in the big chair.
posted by feckless fecal fear mongering at 8:00 AM on August 5, 2015 [3 favorites]
This. This is what will doom Canada. If the NDP gets even one more seat than the Liberals do, but N+L > C, the NDP will ask the GG to form a minority coalition govt with L--and Trudeau's Ego will say "NO MY DADDY WANTS ME IN THE PMO." Flip it, with Liberals getting more seats, and the NDP will say yes to a coalition (Mulcair has already said he's down), and Trudeau might because it still gets his ass in the big chair.
posted by feckless fecal fear mongering at 8:00 AM on August 5, 2015 [3 favorites]
Now, now. That's not the only issue people are preoccupied with. Lots of people spend an equal amount of time bitching about the price of gas.
Don't forget the national pastimes of ignorance and spite.
During the lead-up to the last election, I discovered that my older sister - then in early thirties - had never voted. At the time, I was a couple of years out of grad school and making just over minimum wage as an administrative assistant and she was making about three times as much as an assembly line worker. She cited being too busy to educate herself about the parties as her reason for not voting, so I offered to do the research for her.
The brief I put together was as objective as I could make it: here's your local candidate for this party, here's a summary of their platform from their website, here's the party leader, etc., and here's how to spoil your vote if you don't like any of the options. I gave it to her, she thanked me, and after Election Day she called me to excitedly report that she had cast her first ballot.
"That's great!" I said. "So the information I put together helped?"
"Well, kind of. On paper, I really liked what the Green Party had to say. But when I got to the school, I saw a bunch of scuzzy looking people there, and I just get so mad that people like that live better on welfare than you do working full-time, so I voted for the Conservatives."
posted by northernish at 8:51 AM on August 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
Don't forget the national pastimes of ignorance and spite.
During the lead-up to the last election, I discovered that my older sister - then in early thirties - had never voted. At the time, I was a couple of years out of grad school and making just over minimum wage as an administrative assistant and she was making about three times as much as an assembly line worker. She cited being too busy to educate herself about the parties as her reason for not voting, so I offered to do the research for her.
The brief I put together was as objective as I could make it: here's your local candidate for this party, here's a summary of their platform from their website, here's the party leader, etc., and here's how to spoil your vote if you don't like any of the options. I gave it to her, she thanked me, and after Election Day she called me to excitedly report that she had cast her first ballot.
"That's great!" I said. "So the information I put together helped?"
"Well, kind of. On paper, I really liked what the Green Party had to say. But when I got to the school, I saw a bunch of scuzzy looking people there, and I just get so mad that people like that live better on welfare than you do working full-time, so I voted for the Conservatives."
posted by northernish at 8:51 AM on August 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
An NDP government is an existential threat to the Liberal Party.
First-past-the-post systems almost automatically doom "centrist" parties to a distant third. The Liberals need to be a viable full center-left party to thrive, and right now their only argument for that is that voting NDP is "throwing your vote away." An NDP PM nullifies that, and leaves the Liberals going the way the (UK) Liberals went in the 1920s when Labour first reached the premiership.
posted by MattD at 8:53 AM on August 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
First-past-the-post systems almost automatically doom "centrist" parties to a distant third. The Liberals need to be a viable full center-left party to thrive, and right now their only argument for that is that voting NDP is "throwing your vote away." An NDP PM nullifies that, and leaves the Liberals going the way the (UK) Liberals went in the 1920s when Labour first reached the premiership.
posted by MattD at 8:53 AM on August 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
I am really pissed off at Trudeau for going after the NDP. This guy could be trying to claw back the centrist votes from the Conservatives instead of trying to knock down a party that could and should be an ally in kicking Harper's ass to the curb.
First-past-the-post systems almost automatically doom "centrist" parties to a distant third. The Liberals need to be a viable full center-left party to thrive, and right now their only argument for that is that voting NDP is "throwing your vote away."
The Chretien years were marked by a fairly centrist government and that was an unqualified success for the Liberal party. I think the bigger issue for them is that they've been in disarray since Martin, pretty much an entire decade of being irrelevant. I have no idea why a party that showed so miserably in the last election and is still third of three in the polls is telling anyone that voting for someone else is "throwing your vote away", but a good number of Liberals apparently want to pretend the last decade never happened I guess.
posted by Hoopo at 10:26 AM on August 5, 2015 [3 favorites]
First-past-the-post systems almost automatically doom "centrist" parties to a distant third. The Liberals need to be a viable full center-left party to thrive, and right now their only argument for that is that voting NDP is "throwing your vote away."
The Chretien years were marked by a fairly centrist government and that was an unqualified success for the Liberal party. I think the bigger issue for them is that they've been in disarray since Martin, pretty much an entire decade of being irrelevant. I have no idea why a party that showed so miserably in the last election and is still third of three in the polls is telling anyone that voting for someone else is "throwing your vote away", but a good number of Liberals apparently want to pretend the last decade never happened I guess.
posted by Hoopo at 10:26 AM on August 5, 2015 [3 favorites]
I'm fully of the opinion this year voting Liberal is throwing your vote away, and helping the conservative stay in power and helping them continue to screw this country, they'll be the ones splitting left of centers votes this time. This is typical Liberal "we're the natural ruling party of this country" behavior.
That party needs to die a swift death, and I so hope Trudeau will be the one to bring it to them. That would be just too good (don't like him, but I DESPISE his father and lets face it he's leader because of his name).
I'm also mad at both the NDP and the Libs for not having joined forces to ensure we kick the Conservatives out, this is more important than whatever difference of opinion they have how the country should be governed.
About the T&R commission report and that it "should not be an election issue, but the election issue"... I disagree. Not that the T&R commission report isn't an important issue, but I strongly disagree that electing governments should be about just one issue.
posted by coust at 10:29 AM on August 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
That party needs to die a swift death, and I so hope Trudeau will be the one to bring it to them. That would be just too good (don't like him, but I DESPISE his father and lets face it he's leader because of his name).
I'm also mad at both the NDP and the Libs for not having joined forces to ensure we kick the Conservatives out, this is more important than whatever difference of opinion they have how the country should be governed.
About the T&R commission report and that it "should not be an election issue, but the election issue"... I disagree. Not that the T&R commission report isn't an important issue, but I strongly disagree that electing governments should be about just one issue.
posted by coust at 10:29 AM on August 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
You know, I've yet to actually see any Liberal say anything about throwing a vote away. Yes, it's been a tired refrain in elections past, and seemingly the only policy position they've put forth before ("we have no ideas, but look at the ideas they've got..." is not a winning election slogan), but I've yet to hear it once this time. Trudeau's openly talked about working with the NDP, and had almost endorsed the position himself, but ultimately rejected a merger because he saw a different vision for the country. (He's also been extremely vocal on the First Nations issues at the heart of this post, too.)
If Mulcair comes in first-but-short (and that is the current most-likely result), I expect Trudeau will hand him the keys to 24 Sussex in exchange for certain policy positions. It would be a beautifully fitting resolution, considering the support of the NDP enabled his father to hold power while keeping his feet to the fire on certain issues. That's not something he'd ever be able to say during the campaign, but he can get more accomplished supporting the NDP than the CPC. And he could just as easily pull the plug on the NDP as the CPC.
posted by GhostintheMachine at 11:07 AM on August 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
If Mulcair comes in first-but-short (and that is the current most-likely result), I expect Trudeau will hand him the keys to 24 Sussex in exchange for certain policy positions. It would be a beautifully fitting resolution, considering the support of the NDP enabled his father to hold power while keeping his feet to the fire on certain issues. That's not something he'd ever be able to say during the campaign, but he can get more accomplished supporting the NDP than the CPC. And he could just as easily pull the plug on the NDP as the CPC.
posted by GhostintheMachine at 11:07 AM on August 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
Trudeau's openly talked about working with the NDP, and had almost endorsed the position himself
I feel like I saw him just recently going on the attack against the NDP when asked about whether he would form a coalition...my wife was watching some clip on her phone so I suppose it oculd have been older.
I've yet to actually see any Liberal say anything about throwing a vote away.
I hadn't seen it either until that comment in this thread...it was a bit surprising to read
posted by Hoopo at 11:12 AM on August 5, 2015
I feel like I saw him just recently going on the attack against the NDP when asked about whether he would form a coalition...my wife was watching some clip on her phone so I suppose it oculd have been older.
I've yet to actually see any Liberal say anything about throwing a vote away.
I hadn't seen it either until that comment in this thread...it was a bit surprising to read
posted by Hoopo at 11:12 AM on August 5, 2015
Hoopo, I recall a recent comment by him as well that pooh-poohed the idea of a coalition. In short, Trudeau believes he has got the clout to oust Harper, but I have started to believe his party simply cannot do that on their own.
posted by Kitteh at 11:38 AM on August 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by Kitteh at 11:38 AM on August 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
So I've been pretty pessimistic about the TRC leading to meaningful changes. Harper, for sure, will work as hard on the TRC recommendations as he did on the Kelowna Accord. I'm becoming a little more optimistic that Mulcair and Trudeau would implement reforms, to some extent. I'm glad to see them continue to address these issues at the start of the campaign, to Indigenous audiences — even if I'm still furious at Trudeau's stance on the Indigenous Speech Suppression Act (i.e., C-51).
Of course what really matters is holding Trudeau and Mulcair accountable when (hopefully) one of them is PM. That will be a lot easier if Indigenous people can tell them "look how many MPs you have because of our votes." Easier still if non-Indigenous people hold them accountable, too.
posted by Banknote of the year at 11:46 AM on August 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
Of course what really matters is holding Trudeau and Mulcair accountable when (hopefully) one of them is PM. That will be a lot easier if Indigenous people can tell them "look how many MPs you have because of our votes." Easier still if non-Indigenous people hold them accountable, too.
posted by Banknote of the year at 11:46 AM on August 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
Back in April Turdeau said he was open to a coalition with the NDP ... but not with Mulcair as leader.
posted by chapps at 11:47 AM on August 5, 2015
posted by chapps at 11:47 AM on August 5, 2015
I was most heartened to see supporting C-51 seemingly tank Trudeau in the polls. The absolute rage this has cause among folks I know who were going to advocate strategic voting has warmed my heart.
I was at an NDP rally with Mulcair just after the first poll numbers started to show that trend, and the thing that brought down the (jam packed) house was Mulcair's clear statement that he would repeal C-51. [Admittedly this was in Victoria, so lots of NDP support was unsurprising, but the feeling in the room was electric at that moment, people here are very, very angry about C-51].
For me, citizen job 1, win a minority NDP government. Job 2, hold the NDP to the fire on this and many other issues.
posted by chapps at 11:50 AM on August 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
I was at an NDP rally with Mulcair just after the first poll numbers started to show that trend, and the thing that brought down the (jam packed) house was Mulcair's clear statement that he would repeal C-51. [Admittedly this was in Victoria, so lots of NDP support was unsurprising, but the feeling in the room was electric at that moment, people here are very, very angry about C-51].
For me, citizen job 1, win a minority NDP government. Job 2, hold the NDP to the fire on this and many other issues.
posted by chapps at 11:50 AM on August 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
I'm pissed that Mulcair is all-in on the TPP. That agreement will destroy Canada Post, CBC, BC Hydro, ICBC, and health care, among others.
WTF happen to supporting publicly-owned, publicly-regulated corporations? How can people not understand that privatization is not in their best interest?
posted by five fresh fish at 12:02 PM on August 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
WTF happen to supporting publicly-owned, publicly-regulated corporations? How can people not understand that privatization is not in their best interest?
posted by five fresh fish at 12:02 PM on August 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
Trade agreements like the TPP are designed to ensure that it doesn't really matter who wins any given election, at least when it comes to economic matters.
posted by The Card Cheat at 12:14 PM on August 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by The Card Cheat at 12:14 PM on August 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
An NDP government is an existential threat to the Liberal Party.
First-past-the-post systems almost automatically doom "centrist" parties to a distant third.
The interesting quirk here is that the NDP has promised that if they win they'll introduce mixed-member proportional representation in Parliament. The NDP obviously does this because MMP means that even if Canadian business sectors openly collude to hurt the NDP while they're in charge, that they'll still maintain a solid power base in the next Parliament and the Tories won't be able to get their Forty Percent Is As Good As A Majority government ever again. MMP also means that the Liberals remain viable in the long run.
posted by mightygodking at 12:48 PM on August 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
First-past-the-post systems almost automatically doom "centrist" parties to a distant third.
The interesting quirk here is that the NDP has promised that if they win they'll introduce mixed-member proportional representation in Parliament. The NDP obviously does this because MMP means that even if Canadian business sectors openly collude to hurt the NDP while they're in charge, that they'll still maintain a solid power base in the next Parliament and the Tories won't be able to get their Forty Percent Is As Good As A Majority government ever again. MMP also means that the Liberals remain viable in the long run.
posted by mightygodking at 12:48 PM on August 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
ICBC sets rates based on essentially one factor: your accident history. It does not penalize young drivers, male drivers, sports car owners, etc. The longer you drive safely, the less you pay. Be safe long enough and they'll even forgive the first accident. You don't get any of that from other insurers.
ICBC works with city traffic planners to improve intersection safety, even paying for upgrades. You don't get that from other insurers.
When my wife was run over, ICBC paid without quibble for every bit of therapy, with their mandate being to make her life as whole as possible again. Anything she or her doctors and therapists thought would help, they happily supported. You don't get that from other insurers.
ICBC is the best thing to happen for BC drivers. I look at naysayers with contempt. The only problem with ICBC is that the provincial government has looted it for general revenue, yet another demonstration that this province is run by unabashed crooks.
posted by five fresh fish at 2:46 PM on August 5, 2015 [6 favorites]
ICBC works with city traffic planners to improve intersection safety, even paying for upgrades. You don't get that from other insurers.
When my wife was run over, ICBC paid without quibble for every bit of therapy, with their mandate being to make her life as whole as possible again. Anything she or her doctors and therapists thought would help, they happily supported. You don't get that from other insurers.
ICBC is the best thing to happen for BC drivers. I look at naysayers with contempt. The only problem with ICBC is that the provincial government has looted it for general revenue, yet another demonstration that this province is run by unabashed crooks.
posted by five fresh fish at 2:46 PM on August 5, 2015 [6 favorites]
Worth noting that the Chief of the Chiefs of Manitoba (Assembled Chiefs?) came out today and told FN people, especially youth, to vote NDP or Liberal, whoever has the best chance of defeating the Tory in whatever riding.
posted by feckless fecal fear mongering at 4:10 PM on August 5, 2015
posted by feckless fecal fear mongering at 4:10 PM on August 5, 2015
When my wife was run over, ICBC paid without quibble for every bit of therapy
My sister in law is currently being pressured by them to settle after she was rear-ended, and they told her if she doesn't agree to the amount they offered (they haven't spoken to her doctor) they will just send her a cheque and be done with it. I don't know if they have some kind of regulation allowing them to do that, but it's certainly not something any other auto insurer is allowed to do. It sounds like the adjuster is just making shit up.
I have had plenty of experience with them and sent you a bit of an outline via mefimail I unfortunately can't put here. Long story short they are not very different from any other insurer I have dealt with in a professional capacity.
posted by Hoopo at 7:48 PM on August 5, 2015
My sister in law is currently being pressured by them to settle after she was rear-ended, and they told her if she doesn't agree to the amount they offered (they haven't spoken to her doctor) they will just send her a cheque and be done with it. I don't know if they have some kind of regulation allowing them to do that, but it's certainly not something any other auto insurer is allowed to do. It sounds like the adjuster is just making shit up.
I have had plenty of experience with them and sent you a bit of an outline via mefimail I unfortunately can't put here. Long story short they are not very different from any other insurer I have dealt with in a professional capacity.
posted by Hoopo at 7:48 PM on August 5, 2015
When it came time to settle, ICBC pulled a Jekyll & Hyde and became right bastards to deal with. Which is just like other insurers.
The "accident" was a decade ago. The BC government has very likely FUBARed the corporation. Mostly because neo-Liberal governments have a white-hot magma hatred of state-owned corporations.
Except Petrobas. We can't give those slave owners our petro resources fast enough.
posted by five fresh fish at 11:53 PM on August 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
The "accident" was a decade ago. The BC government has very likely FUBARed the corporation. Mostly because neo-Liberal governments have a white-hot magma hatred of state-owned corporations.
Except Petrobas. We can't give those slave owners our petro resources fast enough.
posted by five fresh fish at 11:53 PM on August 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
ICBC in my experience is just as painful to work with when making a claim as any other insurance company. But at least they aren't painful to work with when you are actually buying insurance. And no fears of being cancelled for making a claim.
posted by Mitheral at 5:25 PM on August 9, 2015
posted by Mitheral at 5:25 PM on August 9, 2015
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posted by chapps at 12:43 AM on August 5, 2015