Meet the new boss, same as the old boss?

We’ll see, as Canada elected another Liberal government, albeit a minority, and there was plenty to unpack from it.

Any momentum from the f*ck Trudeau camp dissipated so hard and quickly once Justin Trudeau gave way to Mark Carney, even Pierre Poilievre, the man whose apple-chewing BS of a commercial made him even more unlikable than previously thought imaginable, lost his seat and might have to get a real job.

He must also find a new residence because he’s no longer allowed to live at Stornaway as the leader of the official opposition. Now that’s funny.

We laugh at it because it’s a circus (although not one as ridiculous as the one to the south of this country), but we also cringe because we know, ultimately, that our concerns as Indigenous Peoples are not important to any party, to the point of irrelevancy.

So now we have four more years of the Liberals, which in some instances is good (social programs and financial aid for small businesses like ours), and in others really bad (when will land claims ever be settled in our favour, if at all?).

And another thing that came out of this whole election hype was just how much Poilievre is hated in our communities – although his Conservative ideology not so much.

He lost his seat, is no longer an MP, and there were individuals who stepped forward in Kanesatake to vote in the Canadian election as Onkwehón:we.

Here’s why they did, and why we feel that although it’s a personal choice, it’s also a slippery slope:

First, the ones who voted, including someone who holds a prominent position in Kanesatake, felt there was no choice. They had to act. They had to stop what many have called “mini-Trump” or “Trump-lite” policies and retain at least basic order and common sense in a country we all still live in.

Fair enough. We get it and we fully understand and respect the logic. It’s good that we don’t all think the same and follow along as sheep, so kudos for that.

However, the larger issue comes from the actual practice, for whatever the reason, of voting in Canadian elections.

Much has been said about voting in a foreign election where no matter who you choose, it’s the lesser (or greater) of two evils. Until the NDP can mount a countrywide campaign and get elected, we will leave them out of the real race runner convo.

Whichever party is elected will either ignore us and fail to recognize and respect our ancestral rights and freedoms, or they will attack them.

That’s the range. Some collaborations can happen, sure, and there will be a bit more prosperity under a Liberal government than a Conservative one, but our concerns are still left as an afterthought, our economies under attack, our future concerns ignored, and our very real sovereignty played with like a deck of cards.

Voting for either part is being given the choice to walk a dog that will assuredly bite you, or one that will attack right away.

It’s not much of a choice.

So, our opinion is why partake in a system that doesn’t even respect the paper you potentially vote on?

Carney caters to people who are more like Poilievre than anyone in our communities. In other words, even at opposite ends of a narrow two-party political spectrum, it’s a system that takes care of itself.

Where do we fit in there?

Short answer: we don’t.

Whether you follow the Longhouse ways of our people or you’re outside of that traditional system, it isn’t your place to vote in an election that has basically two outcomes – none of which really help us and our goals as Onkwehón:we.

The Liberals throw us crumbs to shut us up and the Tories tell us to shut up, sans hors d’oeuvres. Different tactics, same message.

Until we live in a country that respects our sovereignty and starts a true partnership by giving our land back, then casting a ballot can be classified as faint hope.

Don’t be surprised when you’re still fighting the same fight no matter who is in power, because mere ballots aren’t the way to change the system we live under.

Steve Bonspiel

The Eastern Door