Fierce light
by David Ball
SCM General Secretary
Tomorrow, I am traveling on SCM’s behalf to Grassy Narrows First Nation (Asubpeeschoseewagong), with a delegation of Christian Peacemaker Teams (CPT).
As you may know, CPT asks the challenging, radical question, “What would happen if Christians devoted the same discipline and self-sacrifice to nonviolent peacemaking that armies devote to war?”
And they form human rights monitoring delegations to such places as Iraq, Palestine, Philippines, and anywhere there is oppression – power exerted by a dominant group over a marginalized one. And that includes here in Canada.
Grassy Narrows is, in fact, a community I already feel close to, having visited quite a few times. Devastated by mercury dumped in its traditional fishing waters decades ago, and again by clearcut logging, Grassy fought back nonviolently through Canada’s longest standing blockade, intense negotiations, corporate boycotts, education tours, travel to Europe and the U.S. and more. Today, they face racism in their neighbouring communities and continue to block the logging of their ancestral Anishnabe territories.
This is my first delegation, and though I have dreamed of participating in a CPT delegation (and tried in the Middle East, but was averted by the Israeli invasion of Lebanon in 2006) I finally have been able to be part of this amazing group at the request of the SCM Board and Council, which has expressed a priority of addressing Indigenous solidarity and relationships with radical faith and justice groups like Christian Peacemaker Teams.
As CPT writes: “The delegation will spend time on traditional Asubpeeschoseewagong territory, document the effects of clear-cutting and learn about Anishinaabe struggles for justice. In Kenora, the delegation will meet with aboriginal and non-aboriginal community leaders who are working to improve relations between non-aboriginal and aboriginal residents. Delegation members will develop an analysis of colonialism, participate in undoing racism training, and plan a public witness/direct action focused on Aboriginal sovereignty issues.”
What will this delegation be like? What will I learn? How can SCM learn from my experiences there?
I don’t have all the answers, though over the next two weeks I hope to update this blog and let you know what I’m hearing and seeing, what’s outraging and inspiring, and where I might see SCM fitting into the much-needed Indigenous solidarity movement as allies in the struggle. Watch this space, as well as the Spring edition of All Things New magazine for my report-backs.
Today it snowed, I’m only slightly anxious about the cold up there!
In other news, SCM just finished our Fall Board meeting, our first meeting since Council in May. We had a very intentional time of discernment, strategic planning (thanks to our Regional Secretary from New York, Luciano Kovacs), and visioning for SCM’s staff situation into the future – we dream of expanding our staff base slightly to enable us to more effectively fundraise for our work which seems more and more vital in today’s context.
And for our worship one day, we watched part of the film Fierce Light: Where Spirit Meets Action, an incredible glimpse of the world of spiritual activism which SCM is a part of. From the School of the Americas protests in Fort Benning, Georgia (destination of SCM’s Pilgrimage of Resistance November 18-23) to Buddhist, Muslim, Pagan and many other activists who use spirituality to inspire actions for a better world.
One such spiritual activist, part of SCM’s heritage and an inspiration to the SCMers who knew her, was Muriel Duckworth, who passed away in Halifax late August. Agitator for peace, radical and supporter of today’s SCM movement, you can read about this incredible woman on the Canadian Lefty in Occupied Land blog. Rest in Peace, Muriel. Thanks for guiding the way.
And in case you haven’t seen in, we were profiled in last month’s United Church Obsever magazine – check it out.
