Kahnawake 'repulsed' by Quebec's response to Montreal Canadiens' land acknowledgement
An Indigenous land acknowledgement from the Montreal Canadiens last week sent shockwaves through Quebec, with bipartisan backlash from politicians who called the Habs' statement false.
On Thursday, the Mohawk Council of Kahnawake wrote, in a scathing public statement, it was "repulsed by Quebec’s attempt to politicize a genuine reconciliatory action."
The story began last Saturday, when the Canadiens performed their first territorial acknowledgement before puck drop.
For those who don't know, a land acknowledgement is a statement, usually spoken or displayed before a public event, which identifies which Indigenous nation was present on the land before Europeans arrived.
As of last Saturday, the Montreal Canadiens will perform the acknowledgement before each home game, which states Quebec was founded on unceded territory. "Unceded" means the Indigenous people who were here before Europeans arrived never signed the land away.
"The Montreal Canadiens wish to acknowledge the Kanien'kehá:ka, also known as the Mohawk Nation, for their hospitality on this traditional and unceded territory where we are gathered today," reads the statement, first delivered by announcer Michel Lacroix last week.
Quebec's Indigenous Affaires Minister Ian Lafrenière called the acknowledgement a "mistake" during a press scrum on Wednesday, adding it's unclear which Indigenous community was first to live in the area now known as Montreal.
"It's important to recognize that the First Nations were here before us and that we live together, but now we're getting into a debate between historians who don't agree, so maybe it was a mistake."
Parti Québécois leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon said "if it is historically wrong to say that this is unceded Mohawk territory, I am sorry, but the truth is important. Rigour, facts matter."
The Mohawk Council of Kahnawake (MCK) supported the acknowledgement, calling it "an example of true reconciliation between Canadians and Indigenous Peoples" in a statement issued Thursday.
However, it said, "the media commentary from Quebec insist that it may be a mistake to refer to specific nations when acknowledging the people to which the unceded territory belongs."
The council invited politicians to speak with Kahnawake leaders to better understand their relationship to the land beneath Montreal.
“When we talk about land, it is an essential part of who we are as Kanien’kehá:ka,” said Ohén:ton Í:iente ne Ratitsénhaienhs (grand chief) Kahsennenhawe Sky-Deer.
"Opinionated commentary that challenge and discredit our presence are not only insulting, they are taken as displaced attacks on our existence,” she said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'They needed people inside Air Canada:' Police announce arrests in Pearson gold heist
Police say one former and one current employee of Air Canada are among the nine suspects that are facing charges in connection with the gold heist at Pearson International Airport last year.
Why drivers in Eastern Canada could see big gas price spikes, and other Canadians won't
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
BREAKING Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter banned from NBA
Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter has been handed a lifetime ban from The National Basketball Association (NBA) following an investigation which found he disclosed confidential information to sports bettors, the league says.
WATCH LIVE As GC Strategies partner is admonished by MPs, RCMP confirms search warrant executed
The RCMP confirmed Wednesday it had executed a search warrant at an address registered to GC Strategies. This development comes as MPs are enacting an extraordinary, rarely used parliamentary power, summoning one of its contractors to appear before the House of Commons to be admonished publicly for failing to answer questions related to the ArriveCan app.
Disappointment widespread over budget's proposed $200-month disability benefit funding
Advocacy groups across Canada are expressing widespread disappointment about the amount of funding earmarked in the 2024 federal budget for the long-awaited Canada Disability Benefit.
Earthquake jolts southern Japan
An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.4 hit southern Japan late on Wednesday, said the Japan Meteorological Agency, without issuing a tsunami warning.
opinion Don Martin: Gusher of Liberal spending won't put out the fire in this dumpster
A Hail Mary rehash of the greatest hits from the Trudeau government’s three-week travelling pony-show, the 2024 federal budget takes aim at reversing the party’s popularity plunge in the under-40 set, writes political columnist Don Martin. But will it work before the next election?
Ancient skeletons unearthed in France reveal Mafia-style killings
More than 5,500 years ago, two women were tied up and probably buried alive in a ritual sacrifice, using a form of torture associated today with the Italian Mafia, according to an analysis of skeletons discovered at an archeological site in southwest France.
Paul McCartney and John Lennon’s sons have released a single together
A new Lennon and McCartney collaboration is the last thing anybody expected.