“And it burns, burns, burns, the ring of fire, the ring of fire!”
No, this entry is not about the song made famous by the “Man in Black” about the pain of being in love but the very mention of the Ring of Fire has the potential to ignite a heightened degree of passion from mining exploration companies and the First Peoples who live in the region.
The Ring of Fire situated approximately 500 kilometers northeast of Thunder Bay in the swampy muskeg, chromite-rich traditional territories of Marten Falls
Uneasy because already there was an incident which has the potential to unravel any goodwill that existed between the community of Marten Falls and the company KWG Resources Inc. Chief Eli Moonias of Marten Falls recently came upon a situation on his trapline where he felt violated. He found an area which had been clear-cut with orange and red markings and fibre-glass rods with silver tags stuck into burial sites. This comes at a time when the relationship between Marten Falls
KWG spokesperson Frank Smeenk has apologized on behalf of the contractor for the “archeological burial ground that was unwittingly disturbed.” Although the company didn’t claim responsibility, Mr. Smeenk had this to say: “The Ring of Fire development is of historic and international significance” and “I think the interests of the other 11 or 12 million Ontario
In the March 2010 budget, Ontario Ontario Ontario
By all appearances, there seems to continue to be a gap between how “getting it right” rolls out in practice and how it is experienced on the ground. While all the details have yet to emerge on this latest incident, the mad rush to stake and explore appears to have over-looked the archeological and burial sites of Marten Falls which could have been easily identified in a land-use planning process, had it occurred according to the Premier’s vision that there be no new mines without a land use plan.
While the mine may be 5-7 years away, the claims that are being staked in the Ring of Fire will not be subject to a land-use plan and the claims will continue to be honoured, leaving communities like Marten Falls
Although there is a full commitment from Ontario Ontario
While the project may be perceived as an exciting opportunity for Ontario
The Ring of Fire Coordinator, once appointed, will have his\her hands full trying to find the right balance between development and conservation, including the interests of the communities on whose traditional lands this activity is occurring.
As one person’s reworking of the lyrics to the ring of fire shows, there is much division and misunderstanding out there. The reworked lyrics carried to the tune of the Ring of Fire go like this:
Politics is a dirty thing,
Toronto-based decisions sting.
Bound by wild desire,
The North has a Ring of Fire.
The North it burns to work its Ring of Fire.
But way down, down, south,
The hippies don’t admire,
The North’s right to work.
The Ring of Fire, The Ring of Fire.
While the music plays, the flames lick and lap the ground in the Ring of Fire that it will take one blow to fan the flame that can scorch the earth as we head into a long, dry and hot summer in Noopemig.
Thanks for this post. I have been trying to understand what exactly is going on with this catchy phrase "Ring of Fire" that I hear coming out of all sorts of media these days.
ReplyDeleteYou're right to link it to the lyrics of a pop song, as it sounds like a chant. A chant to call up money .... for some. And destruction for others, who've already had plenty of burning to try to manage over the years. But either way, continuation of the same ruination of Mother Earth and all her beings.
I can imagine the shock and wounding that Chief Eli Moonias felt coming upon the violation of his people's traditional lands. From KWG spokesperson Frank Smeenk's comments it seems that he, and the corporation he represents, sees the Anishnawbek as living in the past. As some remnants. Now, where have I heard that way of thinking before?
Are the burial grounds only "archaeological sites" and not grave sites of one's family / community members to him?! I wonder how he would feel if someone walked through his family's graveplots and stuck some poles through the earth to claim the area.
Maybe there could be some sort of collaborative non-violent action where concerned people go and stake and map the places that have been taken over so many years ago (I'm thinking of cities like Thunder Bay, too). Sort of a re-claiming. I've always wondered what are some of the Anishnawbek meanings and stories that lie on the land as I walk the streets of Thunder Bay and the shorelines of its creeks, rivers and lakes.
Smeenk does not speak for me as an Ontarion. The more I hear about the Ring of Fire the more it gets to sound an awful lot like the colonialism of the 1800s all over again. The other day I was listening to a radio program about northern Ontario cities all vying for a piece of the action, and I wondered, is this how it was when colonial "forefathers" first painted dollar signs in the trees of the boreal forests and in the stones and minerals that they called mining prospects? When they too released news that helped line their pockets, contribute to the idea of "progress," and support the fledging government of Canada to bring in white Christian settlers?
This story has had staying power. It's one reason why my family came to Canada in the 1950s. That dream of getting jobs and making money from the boundless natural resources of Canada. But it wasn't until I was an adult that I began to learn that our dreams had depended on the denial and suppression of other people's dreams -- the Anishnawbek. It was quite some time, much into my adulthood that I slowly began to unlearn the story of "the Indians" that had been taught to me.