Indigenous lands are under attack in the Americas

The great rainforests of the world are under attack and it is the Indigenous people who are losing territory. Nowhere is that being felt more than in the Amazon rainforest.

The president of Brazil, Jair Bolsonaro, wants to open up the jungle to agriculture and mineral development and he is doing it at all costs. He campaigned on a plan to sell off major portions of the rainforest to agribusiness and mining companies.

He openly stated that “minorities have to adapt to the majority or simply disappear.” Currently, 13 per cent of Brazil’s land is reserved for Indigenous people and the majority of that is located within the Amazon rainforest. Under Bolsanaro’s plan all that land will be sold.

In Brazil, Indigenous lands are “demarcated” and protected under the constitution; however, Bolsanaro is ignoring his country’s constitution and pressing ahead with his racist plans.

In fact, a state of open warfare has developed between the Indigenous people and the ranchers, settlers and loggers all lusting over Indigenous lands with little resistance from the Brazilian authorities.

Bolsanaro, at a recent meeting of regional governors, stated that Indians don’t have a political lobby and don’t even speak the language and yet they hold 13 per cent of Brazil’s land.

The Indigenous people now fear a genocide is taking place as their land is destroyed and they are forced off their traditional territories.

Bolsanaro has been called the “Trump of the tropics” and this was clear after the recent meeting of the G7 in France. The group pledged $20 million to fight the fires in Brazil, but Bolsanaro rejected it, stating it was an act of colonialism and interference in Brazil’s internal affairs.

Of course, Trump — being who he is — weighed in on Twitter stating, “He (Bolsanaro) is working very hard on the Amazon fires and in all respects doing a great job for the people of Brazil — Not easy. He and his country have the full and complete support of the USA!”

The Indigenous people of the Americas, including the Amazon, developed agriculture and sustainable land management that is still in use today.

The people of the Amazon plant cassava and other root crops. They don’t spend too many years in the same area, assuring the regeneration of the forest.

The events in Brazil are only a sample of the issues facing our people. Indigenous people, along with their traditional territories, are under attack across the Americas. From the rainforests of Brazil to the Ring of Fire in northern Ontario, Indigenous people are watching their country disappear.

Our people in Central America are fleeing gangs and violence from dictatorial regimes only to be demonized and treated like criminals when they reach the American border seeking asylum.

Last week, the Ontario government tore up an agreement with the nine First Nations in northern Ontario in the so-called “Ring of Fire” mineral area. Previously, the provincial Liberal government had signed a framework agreement with the First Nations to develop the minerals in the area.

The region is one of the world’s richest deposits of chromite as well as nickel, copper and platinum. The total deposit is valued at anywhere from $30 billion to $60 billion.

The Ontario government now will practise the time-honoured colonial practice of divide and conquer, cutting individual deals to get its way. The reason, according to a government spokesperson, is to develop at “speed of business.”

This is the same approach taken by the Bolsanaro government in Brazil couched in more diplomatic language rather than the ham-handed approach in Brazil.

The attacks against our people extend across the Americas. Our traditional territories, our way of life and our culture are at risk as the relentless march of business continues to push us aside.

We can’t lose sight of the big picture. The Indigenous people of the Americas are all related.

We came from common stock and we developed advanced cultures and civilizations while Europe was still in the Dark Ages. Today we are exiles in our own land, victims of colonial greed.