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| LPP_ STATEMENT

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‘National

equality

TORONTO—“The recent disgraceful RCMP attack on
the Six Nations Indians is a sharp reminder of the need for
action by democratic Canadians to redress-the ancient and
persisting wrongs suffered by the Native Indian people,” says
a statement issued by the national executive committee of the
Labor-Progrecsive Party this week.

The statement continues:

“The Indians — and like-
wise the Innuit or Eskimo —
are an oppressed people in
Canada. They are the victims
of a system of economical,
social, legal and political dis-
crimination, and of racist pre-
judice based on the myth of
“shite superiority”—the cult
of the “white man” that is im-
plicit in the history taught in
our schools, and is embodied
in law in the odious provi-
sions of the yIndian Act, —
which legalizes discrimination
against the Indian people.
In the face of this assault
upon their identity as people,
the Indians have stubbornly
maintained elements of their
tribal organization and democ-
racy, common ownership on
reserves, their religious and
ancient customs. Despite great
limitations placed upon them,
they have made significant
contributions to industry, ag-
riculture and culture.

The treaties entered into

with the Indians by the Brit-

ish Crown implied recognition
of their identity as people
and pledged observance of
their right to possession of
territory sufficient to enable

‘ them to continue their exist-

ence as people. These treaties
have been violated shame-
lessly.

Encroachments by land-
speculators and government
agencies have whittled down
the Indians’ lands to the point
where their aggregate area
is now less than. the timber
lands under the control of
U.S. corporations.

The system of education
(still a considerable extent in
the hands of church missions)
takes no account whatever of
the right of the Indians to
their own language and cul-
ture. What all this means is,
in effect, the ~disfranchise-
ment of the Indian commun-
ity as such.

At one time the  gov-
ernment’s Indian policy was
based on the expectation that
the Indians would die out.
Since this has not happened,
the policy is one aimed at the
step-by-step extinguishment
of their identity as a people.
The most -revolting expres-
sion of this is the requirement
that an Indian acquiring

Canadian citizenship and vot-
ing-rights must legally aban-

‘don his identity as an Indian,

| for Native Indians’

surrender (for himself and
his descendants) all claim to
treaty-rights “and leave the
Indian community on the “re-
serve, never to return to it.

Outside the reserve, on the
capitalist labor market, the
insecurity and exploitation of

monopoly-capitalist society are ~

compounded, for the Indians,
by an insulting and all-sided
discrimination — in employ-
ment, health, housing, educa-
tion, opportunities for devel-
opment.

The LPP calls on the labor
movement and all democratic
Canadians to join hands with
the Indian people and support
their struggle for equal rights
—as a people and as individu-
als. Discussions between. the
labor movement and _ the. In-
dian? people would bring
about greater cooperation and
would enable the Indian peo-
ple themselves to put forward
their own proposals to ach-
ieve national equality. The
LPP feels that such measures
would need to include:

@ Recognition by Statute
of the identity of the Indians
as a people with the full right
of self-government on their
lands, including control of
property and civil rights, fi-
nances, welfare services, edu-
cation and cultural develop-
ment; in short — of their
fundamental right to deter-
mine their own way of life,
including their association as
Indians. This right to self-gov-
ernment includes the right of
the Indian people to volun-
tarily associate with other
Canadians in the federal state
structure of Canada, should
they so desire.

® Repeal of the Indian Act
and abolition of the present
system of arbitrary executive
rule by a government agency.

® Compensation by Canada
for lands lost to the Indian
communities through fraud
and legalized plunder; grant-
ing of large-scale credits for
economic and social develop-
ment, for cooperative use and
under the control of the In-
dian communities.

@ Outlaw racist discrimi-
nation in all its forms and
guarantee equality of rights
and opportunities — includ-
ing full citizenship rights
without forfeiture of treaty
rights.

[MAY DAYS OF THE PAST |

*

1951: Tom McEwen, editor of the Pacific Tribune, takes the microphone.

3

May Day march Sunday, May 3
to feature colorful floats

Numerous floats and color-
ful banners are expected to
make this year’s May Day par-
ade here one of the best in
some time. The traditional

march, abandoned for two
years, is being revived, and
large contingents of marchers
—including a section of un-
employed workers—are expec-

ted to gather at Powell Street
Grounds .on Sunday, May 3.

The parade will move off at
1 p.m. and proceed via Hast-
ings Street to Exhibition Park,
where a rally will: be held at
the Outdoor Theatre at 2 p.m.

Prominent trade union and
political leaders will address
the rally.

Other B.C. centres are also

planning May Day celebrations.

In Nanaimo a meeting will
be held in the CCF Hall on
Friday evening, May 1. Key-
note speaker will be Homer
Stevens, secretary of ‘the
United Fishermen and Allied
Workers Union.

In Michel the United Mine
Workers of America local is
sponsoring a May Day rally.

April 24, 1959 —- PACIFIC TRIBUNE—PAGE 3