Members of the Jesuit Forum joined thousands in downtown Toronto in a march to Queen's Park to demand long needed action to address the mercury poisoning the drinking water of Grassy Narrows First Nation.
Community members and leaders travelled over 1700 km from Grassy Narrows, near Ontario's border with Manitoba border, to Toronto to demand 3 things:
- Compensation - that community members of Grassy Narrows be fairly compensated for the generations long poisoning of their waters with mercury.
- Respect - that Grassy Narrows territory and surroundings be protected from future mining and logging operations that lack free prior and informed consent… that their partnership be genuinely sought.
- Support - that the Grassy Narrows community can count on Ontario and the rest of Canada to help in the restoration of their community and way of life from the damage that mercury poisoning has done to them.
Grassy Narrows First Nation is located 90 km from Kenora, Ontario. The community has been subject to mercury poisoning for at least 50 years, when a paper mill first dumped tons of mercury on the local river system. Recent studies show that 90% of residents have been impacted by the contamination (through water and fish) and that this is still ongoing.
The Provincial government is supposed to be working on remediation and the Federal government has been talking about a mercury care home, but this hasn’t been built yet. People from the community complain that progress is too slow.
"I feel angry," said Chrissy Isaacs to the CBC the day of the River Run. "This is an issue that's been ongoing for over 50 years. I've been one of the people that have been voicing this since I was a teenager, and I'm a grandmother now.” Poisoning by mercury "is a progressive disease, so as you get older, you get more and more symptoms," Isaacs said. "I'm starting to have a hard time walking and I have a hard time opening water bottles sometimes — or sometimes I just get tremors out of nowhere." (quoted from a CBC article on the event)
Grassy Narrows has recently filed lawsuits against all levels of governments on the problem of mercury contamination. They have also instituted legal proceedings on the issues of lack of adequate consultation for mining projects and nuclear waste storage in their territories.
Jesuit Forum Director, Trevor Scott, sj, and I gathered at Grange Park in Toronto behind the Art Gallery of Ontario for the River Run on the afternoon of Wednesday September 18th. Grassy Narrows Chief Rudy Turtle addressed thousands of supporters and allies before the start of the march, demanding the Ontario and Canadian governments be held accountable. Ontario and Canada failed to live up to the terms of Treaty 3 to protect the English-Wabigoon River System, as well as failing to offer remedies for all the resulting damages to their water resources that most Canadians take for granted. It was so shocking and saddening to learn about all the issues that this community has been going through: the symptoms of mercury poisoning (headaches, insomnia, memory loss, neuromuscular effects, among others) generation after generation, and the frustration of not getting proper assistance. I felt a sense of immense injustice when Chief Turtle said: “If this had been happening in Toronto, wouldn't all levels of government have acted much quicker?" I have three children, and I would be so furious if their lives were similarly threatened. I overheard someone in the crowd share that they weren’t sure they would remain peaceful if this were happening to their kids. I felt the same way.
Yet, it was also invigorating to see thousands of other allies, individuals and organizations - Development and Peace, Kairos, Seniors for Climate Action Now, among many others – showing support in a peaceful way. Chief Turtle listed all the harm done to his community over the years, but then he commented: “We are still here, and we are not going away!” I think we all felt proud of this community, and ready to support them for as long as needed. After all, this is not one minor fight in a remote place; it is one among many, and it is a symptom of a broken system that has undermined Indigenous communities and nature for too long. It is threatening us all everywhere, especially our children.
The march paused on Bay Street for all the Indigenous peoples present to gather for a powerful circle dance accompanied by drumming and chanting, with the full support of Indigenous allies. There were so many people and the sense of communion was very inspiring. The weather was beautiful, it was festive, I felt a renewed sense of curiosity for Indigenous culture and wisdom. A lawyer passing by asked me what this gathering was all about. She left saying that she would want to involve more Indigenous peoples in the early planning of the mining projects she is working on…
Written by Stan Leveau-Vallier, Assistant Director and Programming Manager
Sources and suggested reading:
CBC - September 18, 2024 - Thousands rally at Queen's Park to demand action on mercury poisoning in Grassy Narrows First Nation
free Grassy Narrows (website) - June 28, 2024 - https://freegrassy.net/grassy-narrows-sues-ontario-and-canada-over-mercury-poisoning-nightmare/
APTN News - July 12, 2024 - Grassy Narrows launches legal battle against Ontario’s Mining Act" https://www.aptnnews.ca/
Questions for reflection:
- What do you think of the reactions of Provincial and Federal governments described in the articles? Do you think that the situation would be handled differently if this happened to a non-Indigenous community, or in a big city like Toronto?
- Are you surprised to find out that such situations exist in Canada? Do you feel drawn to show support to communities going through such challenges?
- Have you ever participated in a rally, march or peaceful demonstration? What else could you think of doing to try and have an impact when seeing such injustice?