Monday, June 29, 2009
The "Whites vs. Indians" vigilante violence solution rearing it's ugly head
Disclaimer: The following letter to the editor suggests vigilante action with no police involvement. This is a very dangerous suggestion and this blog condemns the inferrence or incitement vehemently. It should also be noted that the author lumped all non-natives as being "white". This is not true in Canada as we have a diverse population represented by many races and cultures. It is also not fundamentally true that the OPP disrupted any meeting whatsoever. The Elk's Lodge in Picton cancelled the booking for their own reasons as they have stated publically and the police simply arranged for an alternative location in an open area and didn't interfere as long as no violence broke out. Neither side of the debate had their rights infringed upon.
This blog is also not in any way linking the letter writer to Gary McHale, his associates in CANACE or their message/beliefs or their publicly posted accusations of the OPP about that meeting.
Thanks
OPP interference in public meeting amazing
I would like to express my anger and amazement at the article that appeared in the paper concerning the OPP interfering in citizens' right to protest via public meeting. Lawfully I might add.
The OPP do not seem capable of stopping the Mohawk terrorists in their illegal blockades but seem quite capable of interfering with non-native protests. It is now time that the OPP, who seem helpless in the face of the brave Indians, back off and let the majority of non-natives express their anger at the disruption of their right by a few so called activists.
Maybe the OPP should go on holidays and let justice (non-native inspired) take its course. Maybe, just maybe, us white folks need to express our anger against the Indians and let them experience some white anger.
William Mairs
Belleville
http://www.intelligencer.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1630412
Friday, June 26, 2009
McHale shouted down at Picton Meeting
Shouting yields to common ground
Posted By Luke Hendry The Intelligencer
PICTON — What began as a shouting match led to some meaningful talks here Thursday evening as the area’s Mohawk protesters and non-native residents tried to resolve tensions.
The meeting was organized by non-native Deseronto couple Cindy and Dale Welsh.
“What I’m promoting here is free speech,” Cindy Welsh said.
Most of the roughly 50 people present appeared to be allied either with Tyendinaga protesters or with Tenant Action Group, a Belleville-based social justice organization.
Welsh began by recalling her failed attempts to book public venues in Deseronto and Picton. After only a few remarks, she invited Gary McHale of the Canadian Advocates of Charter Equality (CANACE) to speak.
Based in southwestern Ontario, CANACE exists to “restore and preserve” legal equality for all citizens regardless of race, religion or nationality, according to the group’s website. The group grew out of the native land claim dispute in Caledonia, Ont. and Welsh said she invited CANACE to talk about citizens’ rights under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
Many of those gathered, however, were determined to keep CANACE out of the meeting. Members of TAG shouted at CANACE’s McHale and, after Tyendinaga Mohawks joined in the shouting, succeeded in eventually drowning out McHale’s speech.
“They don’t want everyone to have the right to speak,” said McHale as he stood before a CANACE video camera and another member of the contingent took photos.
“I want him here so shut up,” Welsh yelled at the crowd. She later said her anger was a mistake.
Soon allegations of racism flew between both Mohawks and McHale.
Dan Doreen, a prominent Tyendinaga activist now on trial in connection with protests in Deseronto last year, urged all gathered to call for resolution to native issues. He blamed federal politicians for failing to resolve those matters.
“We should all get together and fight the federal government because it’s their inaction (that’s to blame),” he said.
“We would love to hear from the people who came here from Deseronto,” Nikki Storms, who has protested with both the Mohawks and TAG, said as she jabbed a finger at McHale. “You can go home.”
Cindy Welsh addressed the Mohawks, saying they “have a voice” but that “our livelihood’s affected too” when blockades are formed.
“Do you people even give a damn that we were put out?” Welsh said, provoking a bellow from Tyendinaga’s Jerome Barnhart.
“We’ve been put out for 300 years,” he shouted. “Are you insane?”
The mood calmed as McHale stepped aside, pledging, “We’ll be back.” Talks progressed even after Welsh began to cancel the “unproductive” meeting.
“Is there a way we can work together to get our points across?” asked Andy Leversedge, who had earlier told The Intelligencer he moved his family from their home near the Mohawk-occupied quarry in Deseronto because he felt threatened.
“What I’m trying to find out is how everybody can get what they want,” he said.
R. Donald Maracle, chief of the Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte, watched the duration of the meeting from a sport utility vehicle on the edge of the park. He did not participate in the group discussion, though he spoke with various people, including Doreen.
The crowd split into smaller mingling groups discussing and at times arguing issues both related and unrelated to Deseronto.
“We have to deal with the violence that’s going on because that puts you people in a bad light,” Welsh told Doreen.
Doreen said protesters had agreed to hold a 9 a.m. community meeting to discuss the latest bridge blockade on the same day police arrived at 6 a.m. and began making arrests.
“Imagine if we shut down the (Highway) 401 together and said (to the federal government), ‘Come to the table,’” Doreen told Welsh. She responded by saying blockades weren’t to her taste.
“At least because of that bridge the government’s talking,” Doreen said.
The pair agreed more talks between native and non-native residents should occur, though no dates or arrangements were set. Doreen said he was willing to help find a venue on the reserve.
Though tension remained in the park throughout the meeting, there were smiles and handshakes as people on both sides agreed to talk further.
The meeting had been planned to occur on Elks Street, not far from the courthouse, but was moved to nearby Delhi Park. Ontario Provincial Police arrived around 6:30 p.m., telling those gathered that the Picton Elks club had a function inside the Elks Lodge.
People arriving for the meeting complied with the officers’ advice to use the park.
Welsh denounced the move but said it helped unify the meeting’s factions.
“It brought us closer together.”
lhendry@intelligencer.ca
http://www.intelligencer.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1630318
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Editorial: Anti-Native Activists like McHale are nothing new says writer
Understanding the Colonial Roots of Anti Native Activism
by Nancy April
The actions and words of Gary McHale are deeply rooted in colonial and racist understandings of Native peoples and Canadian history. Caledonia Wake Up Call materials, actions, and rhetoric clearly criminalise Aboriginal assertions of sovereignty. This criminalization trivializes and de-historicizes the very reasons Aboriginal nations across the country are pushed to make these assertions as they confront the continued theft of their land. McHale consciously uses the language of civil and human rights, and his reliance on ‘peaceful activism’ serves to distinguish between those who are civilized and those who are not. So while McHale and followers define the CWUC movement as rooted in peaceful activism, they cast the Six Nations reclamation as terrorist in nature. This is a racist tactic and a very old colonial justification for violence against Aboriginal people.
In fact Caledonia Wake Up Call, the Caledonia Militia and CANACE are only the newest groups in a long history of anti-Native/anti-sovereignty organizing in Canada. Anti-sovereignty/Anti-Native groups are those groups defined solely or in part by their opposition to Aboriginal sovereignty and treaty rights. These types of groups have existed since the arrival of Europeans on this land. Today these types of groups and organizations often passionately employ language based in civil rights movements, calling for ‘equal rights for all Canadians’ and using the popular slogan ‘one law for all.’ The names of anti-sovereignty organizations also usually “combine patriotic symbols to evoke notions of political fairness and equality.”1 Tracing the history of anti-sovereignty and white supremacist movements Kim Goldberg writes that:
Like other anti-democratic movements before it, the anti-Indian movement cloaks itself in the populist rhetoric of “equality,” “democracy” and “civil rights,” thereby concealing its true agenda and netting a much wider following than it could otherwise obtain. Language becomes so distorted that anti-democratic proponents not only seek to deflect the damning but accurate labels applied to them, they shoot them back at their critics. So it isn’t the opponents of aboriginal self-government who are racist but rather the very concept of self-government along with those who advocate it.2
A report on anti-sovereignty organizing in Canada, entitled “Friends, F.I.R.E., and Aboriginal Rights”, contends the use of the populist slogan “one law for all” by these groups “is an attempt to deny the existence of aboriginal rights, and to undermine federal and provincial governments’ efforts at negotiating modern treaties with First Nations.”3
McHale styles himself as something of a civil rights leader, and categorically denies that he is a racist or white supremacist insisting that his mission promotes non-violent struggle. Alongside their professed commitments to liberal ideologies Caledonia Wake Up Call relies on and elicits highly racist ideas and actions. While the slogan “One Law for All” began to be used by anti-Native groups in Canada in the early 1990s, it was previously popularized by the KKK in the early 1970s. Though Gary McHale denounces any connections with overtly white supremacist groups and says he cannot control who shows up at his events, “dozens of open neo-Nazis have participated in events organized by McHale.”4 For example Paul Fromm, active white supremacist leader linked with Heritage Front and well known for his support of Canadian holocaust denier Ernest Zundel, attended one of McHale’s events and actively advertises McHale’s events on neo-nazi web pages. In fact you can find many active threads positively endorsing McHale led events on explicit white nationalist websites. Although anti-Native movements and organizations may seem extreme, representing a fringe group of society, in both the past and present these groups have held prominent links to the political parties and economic interests that govern Canada. In fact many of these groups are off shoots of Canadian provincial and federal parties. McHale and the groups he leads are linked with the Ontario Progressive Conservative Party and have the support of several Conservative MPPs. When both openly white nationalist/neo-Nazi groups and Canadian political leaders begin supporting the same groups/cause, its time we take a closer look at what is happening.
Describing Native reclamations as terrorist in nature and describing Natives as having an absolute willingness to commit crimes, the Caledonia Wake Up Call movement casts Natives as inherently violent and as ultimately savage. In fact this is what some scholars and historians have called the “new improved language of colonialism:”
…in a political climate where the worst accusation is one of anti-democracy, where terrorism lurks around every corner. The implication is that treaty rights are somehow undemocratic. It is the new nomenclature for what old-style colonialism called uncivilized and savage. 5
Caledonia Wake Up Call and its counterparts readily use distinctions between the civilized and the savage. These groups insist that the human rights of innocent Caledonia residents are being systematically violated by what Gary McHale calls“ the absolute willingness on the part of Native People to commit crimes,”6 and the government’s willingness to allow it. The movement also claims that the government and the police are aiding and abetting terrorism against the very people they were sworn to protect (i.e.:(white) settlers, not Natives). Not only does the movement evoke the ‘war on terror,’ but with references to Armageddon and ‘evil doers,’ they evoke the ultimate battle between good and evil, between the Christian God and Satan. The movement plainly describes the reclamation and assertions of sovereignty as ‘evil.’ Alongside the calls to stop the ‘terrorists,’ ‘extortionists and ‘criminals,’ are calls to stop the ‘evildoers.’ Describing Native people as inherently violent or as having an absolute willingness to commit violence or an inclination towards evil, is a very old phenomenon in Canada. It stems from the racist belief that prior to European arrival on this land Natives lived in a state of savagery. The idea of savagery is understood an inferior state of being, characterized as being without laws or organization, a being without civilization. This belief is a very common one in Canada, and is part of a story most Canadians are told over and over again—Europeans brought civilization to the “savages” that “roamed” this land. Gary McHale equates Native reclamations with a descent into lawlessness and as landclaim terrorism, and for him recognizing Aboriginal sovereignty means to welcome savagery as the order of the day. This is a racist idea that at its roots understands the sovereignty of Aboriginal nations as something inferior to Canadian sovereignty. This understanding is rooted in the idea that Aboriginal people are inferior, and their governments do not have the same integrity as Canadian democracy.
Unfortunately Gary McHale’s ideas are not uncommon. Canada has long advocated these kinds of racist ideas and policies of genocide that created the rational for residential schools (the last of which closed less than two decades ago). Those who created, ran and supported residential schools probably did not think themselves racist either, though their actions and the ideas that guided their actions were undeniably racist. Residential schools were created under the premise that Canada wanted to “civilize” Natives in order that they might participate fully in Canadian/civilized life. Today much of the same logic is still rampant and is readily used by groups like Caledonia Wake Up Call and CANACE. Instead of assimilation policies oriented around the mandate to “civilize”, today assimilation proponents use words such as “democracy” and “equality” claiming we should all be equal under one rule of law. A report on Anti-Native movements produced by the Montana Human Rights Network indicates that:
the anti-Indian movement….in America is as old as the arrival of the first Europeans. For long periods of time, the anti-Indian movement successfully advanced a policy of genocide which was embraced by virtually all social and political institutions in the country. The modern anti-Indian movement advocates the continued elimination not by the murder of individuals, but by the termination of their structures of self-governance, the taking of their resources, and by defining them as part of the “rest of the country” through forced assimilation.7
Genocide, described as forced assimilation, is a key mandate of anti-sovereignty movements and has long defined Canadian policies toward Aboriginal peoples.
Though Gary McHale and those who support his cause claim they are fighting for equality and democracy, trying to protect innocent Canadians and the rule of law, there is a fundamental flaw in the logic of their cause—we do not all belong to the same nation. In fact the very foundation of the Canadian state and its laws come from recognition of Aboriginal sovereignty, as evidenced in the Treaties. Treaties are the foundation of Canadian law, and so to uphold the rule of law we must as Canadians uphold these treaties. Treaties and other agreements, like the Two Row Wampum, have been systematically violated by the Canadian government and its citizens. And this is part of what Six Nations are resisting. Six Nations are protesting the continued violation of both their own rule of law and Canada’s very first rule of law.
If as Canadians we want to protect the rule of law, then we must honour our agreements and obligations. Therefore, if McHale and others are so concerned about the rule of law, they might begin by recognizing Six Nations sovereignty. If these individuals are so concerned about democracy and freedom, they might try to learn something from the diplomacy of the oldest living League of Nations and democracies on earth. If they are so concerned about the protection of human rights, they might look to United Nations reports that have consistently admonished Canada’s treatment of Aboriginal peoples, the continued expropriation of Native land and the violation of basic human rights. As Canadians we have decisions to make. Will we continue to support and allow vigilantism, theft and genocide in our names? Or, will we honour and reclaim the first laws of Canada, laws that respect the land and sovereignty of Native nations?
(Endnotes)
1 Kallen M. Martin. “Under His Authority: Slade Gorton and the New Terminators in Congress.” Native Americas 13.3 (1996): 22-9.
2 Kim Goldberg.“Anti-indian movement on the rise in BC (Delgamuukw decision and Nisga’a treaty).” Canadian Dimension. Winnipeg: Sep 1998. Vol. 32, Iss. 5; pg. 6
3 “Friends, F.I.R.E., and Aboriginal Rights.” Quaker Aboriginal Affairs Committee. (2004):1-7. <>.
4 Tom Keefer. “The Politics of Solidarity: Six Nations, Leadership, and the Settler Left.” Upping the Anti.4 (2007): 107-123., p,115.
5 Neu, Dean and Therrien. Accounting for Genocide: Canada’s Bureaucratic Assault on Aboriginal People. London :Zed Books,2003 p177
6 Gary McHale. “Who are we?” Caledonia Wake Up Call. 14 June 2007.
7 “Drumming Up Resentment: The Anti-Indian Movement in Montana.” The Montana Human Rights Network. (2000):1-48. <>. p.5
http://6nsolidarity.wordpress.com/2009/06/25/understanding-the-colonial-roots-of-anti-native-activism/
by Nancy April
The actions and words of Gary McHale are deeply rooted in colonial and racist understandings of Native peoples and Canadian history. Caledonia Wake Up Call materials, actions, and rhetoric clearly criminalise Aboriginal assertions of sovereignty. This criminalization trivializes and de-historicizes the very reasons Aboriginal nations across the country are pushed to make these assertions as they confront the continued theft of their land. McHale consciously uses the language of civil and human rights, and his reliance on ‘peaceful activism’ serves to distinguish between those who are civilized and those who are not. So while McHale and followers define the CWUC movement as rooted in peaceful activism, they cast the Six Nations reclamation as terrorist in nature. This is a racist tactic and a very old colonial justification for violence against Aboriginal people.
In fact Caledonia Wake Up Call, the Caledonia Militia and CANACE are only the newest groups in a long history of anti-Native/anti-sovereignty organizing in Canada. Anti-sovereignty/Anti-Native groups are those groups defined solely or in part by their opposition to Aboriginal sovereignty and treaty rights. These types of groups have existed since the arrival of Europeans on this land. Today these types of groups and organizations often passionately employ language based in civil rights movements, calling for ‘equal rights for all Canadians’ and using the popular slogan ‘one law for all.’ The names of anti-sovereignty organizations also usually “combine patriotic symbols to evoke notions of political fairness and equality.”1 Tracing the history of anti-sovereignty and white supremacist movements Kim Goldberg writes that:
Like other anti-democratic movements before it, the anti-Indian movement cloaks itself in the populist rhetoric of “equality,” “democracy” and “civil rights,” thereby concealing its true agenda and netting a much wider following than it could otherwise obtain. Language becomes so distorted that anti-democratic proponents not only seek to deflect the damning but accurate labels applied to them, they shoot them back at their critics. So it isn’t the opponents of aboriginal self-government who are racist but rather the very concept of self-government along with those who advocate it.2
A report on anti-sovereignty organizing in Canada, entitled “Friends, F.I.R.E., and Aboriginal Rights”, contends the use of the populist slogan “one law for all” by these groups “is an attempt to deny the existence of aboriginal rights, and to undermine federal and provincial governments’ efforts at negotiating modern treaties with First Nations.”3
McHale styles himself as something of a civil rights leader, and categorically denies that he is a racist or white supremacist insisting that his mission promotes non-violent struggle. Alongside their professed commitments to liberal ideologies Caledonia Wake Up Call relies on and elicits highly racist ideas and actions. While the slogan “One Law for All” began to be used by anti-Native groups in Canada in the early 1990s, it was previously popularized by the KKK in the early 1970s. Though Gary McHale denounces any connections with overtly white supremacist groups and says he cannot control who shows up at his events, “dozens of open neo-Nazis have participated in events organized by McHale.”4 For example Paul Fromm, active white supremacist leader linked with Heritage Front and well known for his support of Canadian holocaust denier Ernest Zundel, attended one of McHale’s events and actively advertises McHale’s events on neo-nazi web pages. In fact you can find many active threads positively endorsing McHale led events on explicit white nationalist websites. Although anti-Native movements and organizations may seem extreme, representing a fringe group of society, in both the past and present these groups have held prominent links to the political parties and economic interests that govern Canada. In fact many of these groups are off shoots of Canadian provincial and federal parties. McHale and the groups he leads are linked with the Ontario Progressive Conservative Party and have the support of several Conservative MPPs. When both openly white nationalist/neo-Nazi groups and Canadian political leaders begin supporting the same groups/cause, its time we take a closer look at what is happening.
Describing Native reclamations as terrorist in nature and describing Natives as having an absolute willingness to commit crimes, the Caledonia Wake Up Call movement casts Natives as inherently violent and as ultimately savage. In fact this is what some scholars and historians have called the “new improved language of colonialism:”
…in a political climate where the worst accusation is one of anti-democracy, where terrorism lurks around every corner. The implication is that treaty rights are somehow undemocratic. It is the new nomenclature for what old-style colonialism called uncivilized and savage. 5
Caledonia Wake Up Call and its counterparts readily use distinctions between the civilized and the savage. These groups insist that the human rights of innocent Caledonia residents are being systematically violated by what Gary McHale calls“ the absolute willingness on the part of Native People to commit crimes,”6 and the government’s willingness to allow it. The movement also claims that the government and the police are aiding and abetting terrorism against the very people they were sworn to protect (i.e.:(white) settlers, not Natives). Not only does the movement evoke the ‘war on terror,’ but with references to Armageddon and ‘evil doers,’ they evoke the ultimate battle between good and evil, between the Christian God and Satan. The movement plainly describes the reclamation and assertions of sovereignty as ‘evil.’ Alongside the calls to stop the ‘terrorists,’ ‘extortionists and ‘criminals,’ are calls to stop the ‘evildoers.’ Describing Native people as inherently violent or as having an absolute willingness to commit violence or an inclination towards evil, is a very old phenomenon in Canada. It stems from the racist belief that prior to European arrival on this land Natives lived in a state of savagery. The idea of savagery is understood an inferior state of being, characterized as being without laws or organization, a being without civilization. This belief is a very common one in Canada, and is part of a story most Canadians are told over and over again—Europeans brought civilization to the “savages” that “roamed” this land. Gary McHale equates Native reclamations with a descent into lawlessness and as landclaim terrorism, and for him recognizing Aboriginal sovereignty means to welcome savagery as the order of the day. This is a racist idea that at its roots understands the sovereignty of Aboriginal nations as something inferior to Canadian sovereignty. This understanding is rooted in the idea that Aboriginal people are inferior, and their governments do not have the same integrity as Canadian democracy.
Unfortunately Gary McHale’s ideas are not uncommon. Canada has long advocated these kinds of racist ideas and policies of genocide that created the rational for residential schools (the last of which closed less than two decades ago). Those who created, ran and supported residential schools probably did not think themselves racist either, though their actions and the ideas that guided their actions were undeniably racist. Residential schools were created under the premise that Canada wanted to “civilize” Natives in order that they might participate fully in Canadian/civilized life. Today much of the same logic is still rampant and is readily used by groups like Caledonia Wake Up Call and CANACE. Instead of assimilation policies oriented around the mandate to “civilize”, today assimilation proponents use words such as “democracy” and “equality” claiming we should all be equal under one rule of law. A report on Anti-Native movements produced by the Montana Human Rights Network indicates that:
the anti-Indian movement….in America is as old as the arrival of the first Europeans. For long periods of time, the anti-Indian movement successfully advanced a policy of genocide which was embraced by virtually all social and political institutions in the country. The modern anti-Indian movement advocates the continued elimination not by the murder of individuals, but by the termination of their structures of self-governance, the taking of their resources, and by defining them as part of the “rest of the country” through forced assimilation.7
Genocide, described as forced assimilation, is a key mandate of anti-sovereignty movements and has long defined Canadian policies toward Aboriginal peoples.
Though Gary McHale and those who support his cause claim they are fighting for equality and democracy, trying to protect innocent Canadians and the rule of law, there is a fundamental flaw in the logic of their cause—we do not all belong to the same nation. In fact the very foundation of the Canadian state and its laws come from recognition of Aboriginal sovereignty, as evidenced in the Treaties. Treaties are the foundation of Canadian law, and so to uphold the rule of law we must as Canadians uphold these treaties. Treaties and other agreements, like the Two Row Wampum, have been systematically violated by the Canadian government and its citizens. And this is part of what Six Nations are resisting. Six Nations are protesting the continued violation of both their own rule of law and Canada’s very first rule of law.
If as Canadians we want to protect the rule of law, then we must honour our agreements and obligations. Therefore, if McHale and others are so concerned about the rule of law, they might begin by recognizing Six Nations sovereignty. If these individuals are so concerned about democracy and freedom, they might try to learn something from the diplomacy of the oldest living League of Nations and democracies on earth. If they are so concerned about the protection of human rights, they might look to United Nations reports that have consistently admonished Canada’s treatment of Aboriginal peoples, the continued expropriation of Native land and the violation of basic human rights. As Canadians we have decisions to make. Will we continue to support and allow vigilantism, theft and genocide in our names? Or, will we honour and reclaim the first laws of Canada, laws that respect the land and sovereignty of Native nations?
(Endnotes)
1 Kallen M. Martin. “Under His Authority: Slade Gorton and the New Terminators in Congress.” Native Americas 13.3 (1996): 22-9.
2 Kim Goldberg.“Anti-indian movement on the rise in BC (Delgamuukw decision and Nisga’a treaty).” Canadian Dimension. Winnipeg: Sep 1998. Vol. 32, Iss. 5; pg. 6
3 “Friends, F.I.R.E., and Aboriginal Rights.” Quaker Aboriginal Affairs Committee. (2004):1-7. <>.
4 Tom Keefer. “The Politics of Solidarity: Six Nations, Leadership, and the Settler Left.” Upping the Anti.4 (2007): 107-123., p,115.
5 Neu, Dean and Therrien. Accounting for Genocide: Canada’s Bureaucratic Assault on Aboriginal People. London :Zed Books,2003 p177
6 Gary McHale. “Who are we?” Caledonia Wake Up Call. 14 June 2007
7 “Drumming Up Resentment: The Anti-Indian Movement in Montana.” The Montana Human Rights Network. (2000):1-48. <>. p.5
http://6nsolidarity.wordpress.com/2009/06/25/understanding-the-colonial-roots-of-anti-native-activism/
Editorial from Six Nations Newspaper re: White Supremecist Organizations
There is no on-line link to this article.
To obtain a copy of this article, either purchase it in Caledonia, Hagersville, Oshweken or contact the Tekawennake newspaper on the Six Nations Reserve.
http://www.tekanews.com/
(transcribed verbatum)
KKKan’t happen here? Don’t count on it
By Jim Windle
TEKA
CAYUGA/CALEDONIA
It is not an over reaction to be concerned over Saturday’s ragtag militia march past Kanonhstaton by a little more than a dozen hard core disgruntled Caledonians who say they have been abandoned by the OPP and the government.Neo-nazis come in a variety of disguises according to the Simon Weisenthal Centre, an international anti-racism organization centered in Los Angeles, California.Especially now in post 9/11 America, ultraconservatives have used the fear created by the incident and which is being sustained in the mainstream media on both sides of the US and Canadian border, to move their “white only” agendas ahead.Neo-nazi organizations don’t necessarily consist of skinheads wearing brown shirts and a swastika arm band or shrouded in white capes and hoods anymore. They have become much more sophisticated in recent years, but no less dangerous.A sampling of some of these supremacist organizations includes; “The Order” which Oklahoma City bmber Timothy McVeigh followed; the “national Alliance”, known as the most powerful active organization today; “WAR” (White Aryan Resistance); “White Revolution”, organized in 2002 by former high school teacher Billy Roper; the “World Church of the Creator (WCOTC)” created by David Duke, aka “Straight Edge” or “SESH”, created under the disguise of promoting moral teachings for young people; ‘www.strormfront.com’, a website created by Don Black which once proudly advertised and promoted Gary McHale’s Caledonia wake up call website and helped promote his “marches”; the “National Vanguard”, under the leadership of webmaster, Kevin Alfred Strom; “SHARP’S (skinheads against racial prejudice)”; “TRADS”, and the “Canadian Association of Free Expression” led by Paul Fromm, who has been photographed at some of McHale’s Caledonia rallies, only to name a few.Add to that Ku Klux Klan spin-offs such as the “American Invisible Empire Knights”; the “Aryan Nations Knights”; and its “Church f the Sons of Yahweh”; “Cleveland Knights”; “Confederate Knights of the KKK”, “Keystone Knights of the KKK”, “National Knights of the KKK”, and others.These are only a few in a disturbingly vibrant subculture, some of which carry benign reputations as organizations of average citizen’s devoted to preserving and protecting their communities.Ultra-patriot based militia organizations, which generally hide their racist agenda behind an American or Canadian flag, are even more prolific, according to Wiesenthal Centre researchers. “Citizen’s militias attract patriotic Americans (and an increasing number of Canadian patriots), who would normally have shown very little or no interest in extremist group,” the Wiesenthal Centre determined.They include organizations like MOM (Militia of Montana). Although its founder John Trochmann, denies an affiliation with supremacist groups, he was a keynote speaker at the 1990 Aryan Congress of the USA.Even a few ultraconservative Christian groups have bought into supremacist ideals. Once such group is known as the “The Christian Identity”. Its founding ideals come from a school of thought made popular by Rev. John Wilson in the 1870’s which preached that Anglo-Saxons were the descendants of the “Ten Lost Tribes of Israel” and therefore, “God’s chosen people”. In 1946, former KKK firearms instructor, Wesley Swift, started “The Anglo-Saxon Christian Congregation” aka “the Church of Jesus Christ Christian”. This bent theology preaches that hatred of blacks, jews, and other “mud races” as he called them, including North American Indians, is mandated by the Bible and, therefore, “the will of God”. Others include the “Christian Defense League (CDL)” of Louisiana, Richard Kelly Hoskins’ “Phineas Priesthood”, and the “Army of God”.This list of intricately interwoven website networks set against blacks, jews, gays, onkwehon:weh people, and immigrant minority groups, is staggering and is growing longer every day.That is the reality. And that is why seemingly insignificant things like Fleming and McHale’s Caledonia Militia are of significance to Six Nations, and to any right thinking Canadian. That is also the reason why hundreds of non-Native allies to Six Nations assembled at Cayuga’s Lions Club Hall, Tuesday night where the Caledonia Militia were setting up a recruiting station.
To obtain a copy of this article, either purchase it in Caledonia, Hagersville, Oshweken or contact the Tekawennake newspaper on the Six Nations Reserve.
http://www.tekanews.com/
(transcribed verbatum)
KKKan’t happen here? Don’t count on it
By Jim Windle
TEKA
CAYUGA/CALEDONIA
It is not an over reaction to be concerned over Saturday’s ragtag militia march past Kanonhstaton by a little more than a dozen hard core disgruntled Caledonians who say they have been abandoned by the OPP and the government.Neo-nazis come in a variety of disguises according to the Simon Weisenthal Centre, an international anti-racism organization centered in Los Angeles, California.Especially now in post 9/11 America, ultraconservatives have used the fear created by the incident and which is being sustained in the mainstream media on both sides of the US and Canadian border, to move their “white only” agendas ahead.Neo-nazi organizations don’t necessarily consist of skinheads wearing brown shirts and a swastika arm band or shrouded in white capes and hoods anymore. They have become much more sophisticated in recent years, but no less dangerous.A sampling of some of these supremacist organizations includes; “The Order” which Oklahoma City bmber Timothy McVeigh followed; the “national Alliance”, known as the most powerful active organization today; “WAR” (White Aryan Resistance); “White Revolution”, organized in 2002 by former high school teacher Billy Roper; the “World Church of the Creator (WCOTC)” created by David Duke, aka “Straight Edge” or “SESH”, created under the disguise of promoting moral teachings for young people; ‘www.strormfront.com’, a website created by Don Black which once proudly advertised and promoted Gary McHale’s Caledonia wake up call website and helped promote his “marches”; the “National Vanguard”, under the leadership of webmaster, Kevin Alfred Strom; “SHARP’S (skinheads against racial prejudice)”; “TRADS”, and the “Canadian Association of Free Expression” led by Paul Fromm, who has been photographed at some of McHale’s Caledonia rallies, only to name a few.Add to that Ku Klux Klan spin-offs such as the “American Invisible Empire Knights”; the “Aryan Nations Knights”; and its “Church f the Sons of Yahweh”; “Cleveland Knights”; “Confederate Knights of the KKK”, “Keystone Knights of the KKK”, “National Knights of the KKK”, and others.These are only a few in a disturbingly vibrant subculture, some of which carry benign reputations as organizations of average citizen’s devoted to preserving and protecting their communities.Ultra-patriot based militia organizations, which generally hide their racist agenda behind an American or Canadian flag, are even more prolific, according to Wiesenthal Centre researchers. “Citizen’s militias attract patriotic Americans (and an increasing number of Canadian patriots), who would normally have shown very little or no interest in extremist group,” the Wiesenthal Centre determined.They include organizations like MOM (Militia of Montana). Although its founder John Trochmann, denies an affiliation with supremacist groups, he was a keynote speaker at the 1990 Aryan Congress of the USA.Even a few ultraconservative Christian groups have bought into supremacist ideals. Once such group is known as the “The Christian Identity”. Its founding ideals come from a school of thought made popular by Rev. John Wilson in the 1870’s which preached that Anglo-Saxons were the descendants of the “Ten Lost Tribes of Israel” and therefore, “God’s chosen people”. In 1946, former KKK firearms instructor, Wesley Swift, started “The Anglo-Saxon Christian Congregation” aka “the Church of Jesus Christ Christian”. This bent theology preaches that hatred of blacks, jews, and other “mud races” as he called them, including North American Indians, is mandated by the Bible and, therefore, “the will of God”. Others include the “Christian Defense League (CDL)” of Louisiana, Richard Kelly Hoskins’ “Phineas Priesthood”, and the “Army of God”.This list of intricately interwoven website networks set against blacks, jews, gays, onkwehon:weh people, and immigrant minority groups, is staggering and is growing longer every day.That is the reality. And that is why seemingly insignificant things like Fleming and McHale’s Caledonia Militia are of significance to Six Nations, and to any right thinking Canadian. That is also the reason why hundreds of non-Native allies to Six Nations assembled at Cayuga’s Lions Club Hall, Tuesday night where the Caledonia Militia were setting up a recruiting station.
O.P.P Commissioner Fantino Warns Caledonia Militia
'Days of vigilantism long gone,' OPP warns Caledonia group
Lee Greenberg
Canwest News Service
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Brent Foster, National Post Staff Files
A native occupation in Caledonia has lasted nearly 3½ years, frustrating many in the area.
A group of Caledonia residents attempting to form a militia should be prepared to go to court, Ontario Provincial Police Commissioner Julian Fantino says.
"The days of vigilantism are long gone in this country," Commissioner Fantino said yesterday. "That group had better seek good and adequate legal counsel because, if they exercise what they think is their right and their authority, they better be prepared to defend themselves, as we always have, and justify what they do."
A native occupation in Caledonia, a small town southwest of Toronto, has lasted nearly 3½ years, leaving many residents frustrated by what they see as a lack of government and police action.
Earlier this week, two men -- Doug Fleming and Gary McHale -- held a recruitment meeting to gauge interest in forming a citizen's group to patrol sections of Caledonia. Mr. Fleming, a self-employed lifelong Caledonia resident, said the militia would be unarmed, save for video cameras.
The group would focus its efforts on the Douglas Creek Estates, a subdivision still occupied by Mohawk protesters, which Mr. Fleming said has become a safe zone for native criminals because police refuse to patrol there. He believes OPP officers are failing citizens by not enforcing the law.
The militia's ultimate goal is to provoke a confrontation, thereby forcing the police to step in, he said.
"I'm not talking about a bunch of civilians marching out to look for a fight," Mr. Fleming said. Rather, he hopes militia members will catch a burglar stealing from one of the bordering properties, then issue a citizen's arrest.
"If [police] were to stand back and allow a group of unarmed civilians to basically go intervene in a crime scene, that would look very bad on them," he said. "And I think, from a legal standpoint, there would be repercussions for the OPP."
Craig Grice, who represents Caledonia on county council, disagrees with the idea of a militia, but said he understands the frustration and anger behind it.
"If anyone didn't see this coming, they're blind," he said. "The frustration and stress level is huge."
Mr. Grice said many believe the police could do more to enforce the law in Caledonia. He said hundreds of illegal cigarette shacks on the nearby Six Nations reserve go unnoticed by police.
"People are frustrated because if the rules are in place, then why aren't they being enforced?" he said.
http://www.nationalpost.com/news/canada/story.html?id=1731269
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
McHale & Parkinson threaten Tom Keefer (CUPE9303) and others with criminal slander/defamation
Note: We have a policy not to post blog/message board/chat room posts from other sites as they are generally just opinions of others and we like to stick to published reports from credible sources such as mainstream media........but as an exception, we will post this because it's from McHale himself on his own message board and therefore is a first hand report and not heresay.
Thanks,
gmchale
Administrator
MemberPosts: 1243
Today at 03:07:00 PM
Considering last night - the nutbars who stages an event to spread false information that we are KKK members should consider.
Punishment of libel known to be false 300.
Every one who publishes a defamatory libel that he knows is false is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years.R.S., c. C-34, s. 264.
Punishment for defamatory libel 301.
Every one who publishes a defamatory libel is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years.R.S., c. C-34, s. 265.
ace
Posts: 2
Today at 04:44:42 PM »
Are you referring to the Hamilton Spectator article?
Jeff Parkinson
Administrator
Posts: 362
Today at 04:58:48 PM »
He's referring to Tom Keefer and anyone else who made false public statements in an attempt to smear us last night.
Thread link at Gary McHale's Message Board he posts in and is the Administrator of:
http://www.marchforfreedom.com/smf/index.php?PHPSESSID=8a6ba770bea08018246bca9b7b91c7ad&topic=476.0
Thanks,
The Administration of the "McHale Defense Project"
gmchale
Administrator
MemberPosts: 1243
Today at 03:07:00 PM
Considering last night - the nutbars who stages an event to spread false information that we are KKK members should consider.
Punishment of libel known to be false 300.
Every one who publishes a defamatory libel that he knows is false is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years.R.S., c. C-34, s. 264.
Punishment for defamatory libel 301.
Every one who publishes a defamatory libel is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years.R.S., c. C-34, s. 265.
ace
Posts: 2
Today at 04:44:42 PM »
Are you referring to the Hamilton Spectator article?
Jeff Parkinson
Administrator
Posts: 362
Today at 04:58:48 PM »
He's referring to Tom Keefer and anyone else who made false public statements in an attempt to smear us last night.
Thread link at Gary McHale's Message Board he posts in and is the Administrator of:
http://www.marchforfreedom.com/smf/index.php?PHPSESSID=8a6ba770bea08018246bca9b7b91c7ad&topic=476.0
Premier McGuinty denounces McHale/Fleming Militia
Caledonia militia 'not helpful' to police: Premier
Wed Jun. 24 2009
The Canadian Press
TORONTO — Premier Dalton McGuinty says it's "not helpful at all" to have a militia in Caledonia where aboriginal protesters have occupied disputed land for more than three years.
He suggests the militia could cause problems for provincial police in the southwestern Ontario town, which has seen violent clashes between homeowners and protesters.
McGuinty says it's the OPP's responsibility to uphold the law and an overwhelming majority of Ontario residents think it's important to support them.
His comments come after two activists held a meeting Tuesday night to form a group called the "Caledonia Peacekeepers."
Doug Fleming and Gary McHale say the group would protect homeowners from trespassers and use reasonable force if necessary.
The meeting drew about 30 local residents and sparked a protest by about 70 demonstrators.
Fleming and McHale say they want the group to put pressure on police to enforce problems in the area occupied by aboriginal protesters.
http://toronto.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/CTVNews/20090624/caledonia_militia_090624/20090624/?hub=TorontoNewHome
Wed Jun. 24 2009
The Canadian Press
TORONTO — Premier Dalton McGuinty says it's "not helpful at all" to have a militia in Caledonia where aboriginal protesters have occupied disputed land for more than three years.
He suggests the militia could cause problems for provincial police in the southwestern Ontario town, which has seen violent clashes between homeowners and protesters.
McGuinty says it's the OPP's responsibility to uphold the law and an overwhelming majority of Ontario residents think it's important to support them.
His comments come after two activists held a meeting Tuesday night to form a group called the "Caledonia Peacekeepers."
Doug Fleming and Gary McHale say the group would protect homeowners from trespassers and use reasonable force if necessary.
The meeting drew about 30 local residents and sparked a protest by about 70 demonstrators.
Fleming and McHale say they want the group to put pressure on police to enforce problems in the area occupied by aboriginal protesters.
http://toronto.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/CTVNews/20090624/caledonia_militia_090624/20090624/?hub=TorontoNewHome
Fleming/Militia told to "stay out of it" says Caledonia landowner
Citizen militia will protect Caledonia landowners: organizers
Last Updated: Wednesday, June 24, 2009 8:38 AM ET
CBC News
Non-aboriginal activists met near Caledonia Tuesday to discuss forming a citizen militia to protect property owners in what has become a long-running land claims dispute with Six Nations protesters. (Nathan Denette/Canadian Press)As many as 50 people gathered in a small southwestern Ontario community late Tuesday to discuss setting up a citizens' militia to deal with illegal occupations in the Caledonia claims dispute.
Organizers of the group, which calls itself the Caledonia Peacekeepers, are upset with how the Ontario Provincial Police have handled the three-year-old occupation of a Caledonia housing development by First Nations protesters, who say the land belongs to them.
Doug Fleming, who came up with the idea of forming the unarmed militia, says they'll use force and citizen arrests to deal with illegal occupations in Caledonia, southwest of Hamilton.
"This group is not for hotheads. This group is not for someone who will lose their temper and want to hurt someone," said Fleming, who held the meeting in the nearby village of Cayuga.
About 70 people arrived on buses from Toronto and Kitchener to protest the meeting, shouting, "Go away, KKK," said a report in the Hamilton Spectator.
Six Nations members occupied the contested 40-hectare tract of land in February 2006. Talks between Ottawa and First Nations officials to resolve the land claim dispute are ongoing.
Fleming said the militia is being formed to make sure the law is enforced and to protect local property owners from trespassers.
He says he came up with the idea earlier this month when a Mohawk man occupied a corner of a farm field on the edge of town and set up a shack to sell duty-free cigarettes to protest the state of land claim talks.
Fleming, who became upset when the OPP said they wouldn't move in to evict the protestor, says he hopes the threat of citizens making citizens' arrests will embarrass the police force into action.
"We will intervene in situations like that, if the OPP knows that we're serious, I believe they will do it rather than risk the consequences of having civilians do it. But we have to be prepared to do it," he said.
However, the farmer who owns the land where the smoke shack has been set up, says the federal government, not local vigilantes, should solve the Caledonia land claim.
"Outsiders, they stick their nose into it … because this is my problem," said Ernie Palmer. "Mr. Fleming, you are a publicity seeker and you should have stayed out of it as I told you."
OPP Deputy Commissioner Chris Lewis says Palmer hasn't asked for police assistance.
"He has not asked us to do anything there, in fact, is not concerned about it is my understanding," said Lewis. "For anyone to start a group which is ultimately going to try and take matters into their own hands is ridiculous and a real dangerous precedent to set."
Earlier this month, Ontario Aboriginal Affairs Minister Brad Duguid called the plan a "dumb idea."
The aboriginals were given the land in 1784 by the British Crown, but Ottawa says the vast majority was surrendered or sold by 1850. The Six Nations claim the land was never surrendered.
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2009/06/24/caledonia-militia-meeting-cayuga024.html#socialcomments
Last Updated: Wednesday, June 24, 2009 8:38 AM ET
CBC News
Non-aboriginal activists met near Caledonia Tuesday to discuss forming a citizen militia to protect property owners in what has become a long-running land claims dispute with Six Nations protesters. (Nathan Denette/Canadian Press)As many as 50 people gathered in a small southwestern Ontario community late Tuesday to discuss setting up a citizens' militia to deal with illegal occupations in the Caledonia claims dispute.
Organizers of the group, which calls itself the Caledonia Peacekeepers, are upset with how the Ontario Provincial Police have handled the three-year-old occupation of a Caledonia housing development by First Nations protesters, who say the land belongs to them.
Doug Fleming, who came up with the idea of forming the unarmed militia, says they'll use force and citizen arrests to deal with illegal occupations in Caledonia, southwest of Hamilton.
"This group is not for hotheads. This group is not for someone who will lose their temper and want to hurt someone," said Fleming, who held the meeting in the nearby village of Cayuga.
About 70 people arrived on buses from Toronto and Kitchener to protest the meeting, shouting, "Go away, KKK," said a report in the Hamilton Spectator.
Six Nations members occupied the contested 40-hectare tract of land in February 2006. Talks between Ottawa and First Nations officials to resolve the land claim dispute are ongoing.
Fleming said the militia is being formed to make sure the law is enforced and to protect local property owners from trespassers.
He says he came up with the idea earlier this month when a Mohawk man occupied a corner of a farm field on the edge of town and set up a shack to sell duty-free cigarettes to protest the state of land claim talks.
Fleming, who became upset when the OPP said they wouldn't move in to evict the protestor, says he hopes the threat of citizens making citizens' arrests will embarrass the police force into action.
"We will intervene in situations like that, if the OPP knows that we're serious, I believe they will do it rather than risk the consequences of having civilians do it. But we have to be prepared to do it," he said.
However, the farmer who owns the land where the smoke shack has been set up, says the federal government, not local vigilantes, should solve the Caledonia land claim.
"Outsiders, they stick their nose into it … because this is my problem," said Ernie Palmer. "Mr. Fleming, you are a publicity seeker and you should have stayed out of it as I told you."
OPP Deputy Commissioner Chris Lewis says Palmer hasn't asked for police assistance.
"He has not asked us to do anything there, in fact, is not concerned about it is my understanding," said Lewis. "For anyone to start a group which is ultimately going to try and take matters into their own hands is ridiculous and a real dangerous precedent to set."
Earlier this month, Ontario Aboriginal Affairs Minister Brad Duguid called the plan a "dumb idea."
The aboriginals were given the land in 1784 by the British Crown, but Ottawa says the vast majority was surrendered or sold by 1850. The Six Nations claim the land was never surrendered.
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2009/06/24/caledonia-militia-meeting-cayuga024.html#socialcomments
McHale manipulates Media for attention
http://www.canada.com/Group+used+militia+moniker+attention+grab/1727797/story.html
Group used `militia' moniker as attention grab
Canwest News Service June 24, 2009
CALEDONIA, Ont. - A citizens group from a southern Ontario town who originally called themselves an unarmed ``militia'' now say they only used the term to get media attention.
The so-called ``Caledonia Peacekeepers'' held an information meeting Tuesday night, with about 45 residents in attendance, as well as a number of protesters.
The group has said it will enforce laws they say the Ontario Provincial Police have failed to uphold since their community - about 75 kilometres southwest of Toronto - turned into ground zero of a land-claim battle between an Iroquois community and the provincial government.
``The goal is to pressure the OPP into doing their jobs,'' said Gary McHale, one of the group's organizers. At the meeting, it was said members plan on making citizens' arrests, using force if necessary.
The debate spawns from a 200-year-old Six Nations' land claim on Douglas Creek Estates, a Caledonia residential development, which burst to national attention in 2006 with images of burning tires and blockades. The provincial government eventually bought out the land's developer, and negotiations continue to this day, while tensions remain.
A crowd of protesters, many native, grew throughout Tuesday evening, arriving by the busload from the Kitchener-Waterloo area. There was no violence.
"Vigilante justice is not the way to solve issues. The Canadian government needs to solve the land claims. Peacefully, swiftly and justly,'' said one protester.
The group is planning more meetings, but said it will be several weeks before the Caledonia Peacekeepers are ready to uphold the law.
CHCH News
© Copyright (c) Canwest News Service
Group used `militia' moniker as attention grab
Canwest News Service June 24, 2009
CALEDONIA, Ont. - A citizens group from a southern Ontario town who originally called themselves an unarmed ``militia'' now say they only used the term to get media attention.
The so-called ``Caledonia Peacekeepers'' held an information meeting Tuesday night, with about 45 residents in attendance, as well as a number of protesters.
The group has said it will enforce laws they say the Ontario Provincial Police have failed to uphold since their community - about 75 kilometres southwest of Toronto - turned into ground zero of a land-claim battle between an Iroquois community and the provincial government.
``The goal is to pressure the OPP into doing their jobs,'' said Gary McHale, one of the group's organizers. At the meeting, it was said members plan on making citizens' arrests, using force if necessary.
The debate spawns from a 200-year-old Six Nations' land claim on Douglas Creek Estates, a Caledonia residential development, which burst to national attention in 2006 with images of burning tires and blockades. The provincial government eventually bought out the land's developer, and negotiations continue to this day, while tensions remain.
A crowd of protesters, many native, grew throughout Tuesday evening, arriving by the busload from the Kitchener-Waterloo area. There was no violence.
"Vigilante justice is not the way to solve issues. The Canadian government needs to solve the land claims. Peacefully, swiftly and justly,'' said one protester.
The group is planning more meetings, but said it will be several weeks before the Caledonia Peacekeepers are ready to uphold the law.
CHCH News
© Copyright (c) Canwest News Service
Haldimand Council members condemn McHale/Fleming "Militia"
http://www.dunnvillechronicle.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1626672
Council delays dealing with 'militia' issue
Posted By DONNA PITCHER , CHRONICLE STAFF WRITER
A debate heated up at Council on Monday night after Councillor Craig Grice voiced his concerns regarding the recent events in Caledonia and the forming of a militia group. Grice went on to say, "This is not 2006 or even 2007, it is 2009. If it were 2006 or 2007, I would be saying something different."
Grice is not in favour of a militia group being formed in Caledonia. He spoke of the meeting Tuesday night in Cayuga: "We now have a protest protesting the protest. This does not move us forward. Don't get sucked into the antics of others, Caledonia is a collection of issues; we need positives, period. We are suffering through our corporate image."
He asked, "What is the Municipal stand on the demonstrations, on the militia, and other events like the flag raisings?"
"It is time that we took a stand on this. This has gone on long enough, and it's not just Caledonia," said Councillor Lorne Boyko. According to Boyko the recent coverage of the militia is sending a negative message about our community that will affect shopping habits and tourism. "This is negative towards Caledonia and for Haldimand County."
Councillor Buck Sloat agreed with Boyko. "We need to take a stand on the issues and have the courage to stand behind it". According to Sloat council needs a resolution the Mayor can promote. "We need to have a stand from you, Madam Mayor; you are a pillar of the community."
"The media goes to you first as Mayor. What is your position on this, are you in favour or not?" asked Grice.
Trainer did not respond to the question. "This council speaks through resolution," said
Councillor Don Ricker.
Council agreed to deal with the issue after their summer break as no resolution had been formulated before last night's meeting.
But Ricker voiced his concerns regarding Trainer speaking on behalf of council for the next month or so, as council is now in recess for five weeks.
Defending the decision to deal with the issue after recess Boyko argued, "I think we have a direction. We didn't come here tonight prepared to deal with this."
Council delays dealing with 'militia' issue
Posted By DONNA PITCHER , CHRONICLE STAFF WRITER
A debate heated up at Council on Monday night after Councillor Craig Grice voiced his concerns regarding the recent events in Caledonia and the forming of a militia group. Grice went on to say, "This is not 2006 or even 2007, it is 2009. If it were 2006 or 2007, I would be saying something different."
Grice is not in favour of a militia group being formed in Caledonia. He spoke of the meeting Tuesday night in Cayuga: "We now have a protest protesting the protest. This does not move us forward. Don't get sucked into the antics of others, Caledonia is a collection of issues; we need positives, period. We are suffering through our corporate image."
He asked, "What is the Municipal stand on the demonstrations, on the militia, and other events like the flag raisings?"
"It is time that we took a stand on this. This has gone on long enough, and it's not just Caledonia," said Councillor Lorne Boyko. According to Boyko the recent coverage of the militia is sending a negative message about our community that will affect shopping habits and tourism. "This is negative towards Caledonia and for Haldimand County."
Councillor Buck Sloat agreed with Boyko. "We need to take a stand on the issues and have the courage to stand behind it". According to Sloat council needs a resolution the Mayor can promote. "We need to have a stand from you, Madam Mayor; you are a pillar of the community."
"The media goes to you first as Mayor. What is your position on this, are you in favour or not?" asked Grice.
Trainer did not respond to the question. "This council speaks through resolution," said
Councillor Don Ricker.
Council agreed to deal with the issue after their summer break as no resolution had been formulated before last night's meeting.
But Ricker voiced his concerns regarding Trainer speaking on behalf of council for the next month or so, as council is now in recess for five weeks.
Defending the decision to deal with the issue after recess Boyko argued, "I think we have a direction. We didn't come here tonight prepared to deal with this."
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Protestors shout "Go away KKK" to McHale,CANACE, Fleming et al
Note: The Administrators of this blog urge that nobody ever attempt to detain and or confine anyone in the manner in which is described by this Caledonia group now called The Caledonia Peacekeepers (formerly "Militia"). The police are the only people trained and qualified to do this. The very idea of an untrained group patrolling the streets looking for people to arrest and detain by force and with such implements as plastic "zip ties" is an extremely dangerous thing to do. We strongly advise everyone to not attempt to do this. All crimes in progress anywhere in any community should be handled with a call to the police. DO NOT TAKE THE LAW INTO YOUR OWN HANDS AT ANY TIME.
Having said that, this article below is re-printed here for news purposes only and not an endorsement in any way.
http://www.thespec.com/News/BreakingNews/article/588329
Not militia, just Peacekeepers
June 23, 2009
Paul Morse
The Hamilton Spectator
CAYUGA - A call to form a “Caledonia militia” was a publicity stunt to draw attention to the OPP’s “refusal to enforce the rule of law” in native disputes in this town along the Grand River, organizers say.
But local activists Doug Fleming and Gary McHale said they want to organize a citizens’ group called Caledonia Peacekeepers which would be willing to use reasonable force to protect private property from trespassers.
“But the fact is that there have been armed militia in Haldimand County for the past three years ... who mask themselves and carry weapons,” said McHale, a well-known anti-native occupation protestor who has drawn the OPP’s ire over his activities. He was referring to native groups involved in occupying or blocking development on land they claim as their own.
At a meeting tonight at the Cayuga Lion's Club attended by 25 to 30 local residents, McHale said the group’s real purpose was to tell the OPP that “we are not going to allow someone to occupy our land. Either you arrest them or I will. You have five minutes.”
While vague on details, Fleming, a local entrepreneur, said the Peacekeepers would respond to owners’ requests to patrol their property and ask any trespassers to move.
“You ask the person to leave ... and if they refuse, all you have to say ‘You are under arrest,’” Fleming said. If they refuse, citizens have the legal right to escalate “reasonable force” to the point of restraining the person, and to even use plastic handcuff-style ties, he said.
At the same time as the meeting, about 70 vocal protesters arrived on buses from Toronto and Kitchener to rally against Fleming’s Caledonia Peacekeepers with shouts of “Go away, KKK.”
“These people have been attracting the support of neo-Nazis and white supremacists,” said Hamilton’s Niki Thorne, an organizer from CUPE Local 3903’s First Nations Support Working Group.
McHale and Fleming said the citizens’ group will create neighbourhood watches and report criminal activity to police.
They will also patrol certain “high crime areas” just like the Guardian Angels, to discourage crime and, in extreme cases, to carry out a citizen’s arrest “which is done hundreds of times each day in Canada,” McHale said.
“This group has to focus the law on the OPP to get them to understand residents will not give up.”
pmorse@thespec.com
905-526-3434
Having said that, this article below is re-printed here for news purposes only and not an endorsement in any way.
http://www.thespec.com/News/BreakingNews/article/588329
Not militia, just Peacekeepers
June 23, 2009
Paul Morse
The Hamilton Spectator
CAYUGA - A call to form a “Caledonia militia” was a publicity stunt to draw attention to the OPP’s “refusal to enforce the rule of law” in native disputes in this town along the Grand River, organizers say.
But local activists Doug Fleming and Gary McHale said they want to organize a citizens’ group called Caledonia Peacekeepers which would be willing to use reasonable force to protect private property from trespassers.
“But the fact is that there have been armed militia in Haldimand County for the past three years ... who mask themselves and carry weapons,” said McHale, a well-known anti-native occupation protestor who has drawn the OPP’s ire over his activities. He was referring to native groups involved in occupying or blocking development on land they claim as their own.
At a meeting tonight at the Cayuga Lion's Club attended by 25 to 30 local residents, McHale said the group’s real purpose was to tell the OPP that “we are not going to allow someone to occupy our land. Either you arrest them or I will. You have five minutes.”
While vague on details, Fleming, a local entrepreneur, said the Peacekeepers would respond to owners’ requests to patrol their property and ask any trespassers to move.
“You ask the person to leave ... and if they refuse, all you have to say ‘You are under arrest,’” Fleming said. If they refuse, citizens have the legal right to escalate “reasonable force” to the point of restraining the person, and to even use plastic handcuff-style ties, he said.
At the same time as the meeting, about 70 vocal protesters arrived on buses from Toronto and Kitchener to rally against Fleming’s Caledonia Peacekeepers with shouts of “Go away, KKK.”
“These people have been attracting the support of neo-Nazis and white supremacists,” said Hamilton’s Niki Thorne, an organizer from CUPE Local 3903’s First Nations Support Working Group.
McHale and Fleming said the citizens’ group will create neighbourhood watches and report criminal activity to police.
They will also patrol certain “high crime areas” just like the Guardian Angels, to discourage crime and, in extreme cases, to carry out a citizen’s arrest “which is done hundreds of times each day in Canada,” McHale said.
“This group has to focus the law on the OPP to get them to understand residents will not give up.”
pmorse@thespec.com
905-526-3434
Jeff Parkinson of McHale's "CANACE" threatens legal action against CUPE 9303
Quote:
"Worth noting is that CUPE 9303 has made an attempt to link me to racist, supremacist garbage and I will be looking at potential legal action against them in the near future, but more importantly the meeting tonight for the Caledonia Peacekeepers will proceed as planned and any attempt at interference by the Men’s Fire, CUPE 9303, Tom Keefer, or anyone else will be thoroughly documented and exposed to the public."
Go to this link to read the rest:
http://caledoniawakeupcall.wordpress.com/2009/06/23/cupe-3903-supports-organized-crime/#more-1518
"Worth noting is that CUPE 9303 has made an attempt to link me to racist, supremacist garbage and I will be looking at potential legal action against them in the near future, but more importantly the meeting tonight for the Caledonia Peacekeepers will proceed as planned and any attempt at interference by the Men’s Fire, CUPE 9303, Tom Keefer, or anyone else will be thoroughly documented and exposed to the public."
Go to this link to read the rest:
http://caledoniawakeupcall.wordpress.com/2009/06/23/cupe-3903-supports-organized-crime/#more-1518
McHale and Canace shut out of Picton Elks Lodge
In line with he Lions Clubs in Caledonia, Brantford and Deseronto as well as The Royal Canadian Legion in Deseronto, (see previous blog entries) the Elks Lodge in Picton has decided to cancel the booking that had Gary McHale's "CANACE" showing up.
http://www.intelligencer.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1626201
Meeting on blockades will go ahead despite new challenges
Organizer says OPP meddling in matters they shouldn't be
By W. Brice McVicar, The Intelligencer
A politically charged meeting is scheduled to go ahead in Picton tomorrow night despite, the organizer alleges, meddling by the Ontario Provincial Police.
Cindy Welsh, a Deseronto resident hoping to meet with other concerned area citizens, had booked the Elk’s Hall in Picton for Thursday night at 6:30 to discuss issues surrounding native blockades and protests. The agenda is to include comments and presentations from residents of Caledonia. Welsh was forced to book the hall in Picton after officials from other venues in Deseronto turned her down once they learned the details of her planned gathering.
Last week, Welsh — who insists the meeting is not being held to incite any confrontations — managed to book the Elk’s Hall in Picton and began planning for the meeting which, she said, was being well received by local residents.
However, those plans appeared to come to a screeching halt Monday afternoon when she was contacted by a member of the Picton Elks stating she could not have use of the hall, adding a representative of the OPP had contacted the Elks’ board of directors advising them of Welsh’s problems getting a hall in Deseronto.
“I got a call and was told I couldn’t have the hall because, apparently, the OPP got in touch with the board at the Elks,” Welsh told The Intelligencer. “I phoned the OPP and was just huffing. What gives them the right to do this?”
Staff Sgt. Bernie Gaw, detachment commander for Prince Edward OPP, confirmed he made a phone call to the Elks but said he did not advise against renting the hall to Welsh. Instead, Gaw said, he wanted to make sure all of the information was out there for the hall owners.
“We spoke with the executive of the Elk’s Lodge, wanting them to be informed of the issues that originated in Deseronto ... We did provide them with that information,” he said “It’s certainly their hall and we wanted them to make an informed decision.”
The Elks, he added, are a service group well known for their work in the community.
Asked if there was another way to deal with the situation, such as ensuring officers were on hand for the scheduled meeting, Gaw said, “I’m not in the business of speculation.”
Floyd Snider, secretary for the Picton Elks, said Welsh’s reservation for the hall was not canceled due to any OPP involvement. The cancellation stemmed, instead, from financial issues, he said.
“She didn’t pay her 50 per cent down,” Snider said. “When you rent the hall you have to put in your 50 per cent and she hasn’t done that and she hasn’t signed her lease.”
Snider said he had no knowledge of the OPP contacting the Elks. The meeting, he said flatly, was “canceled so there’s no need talking about it.”
The meeting, however, will still be held, Welsh said. She said because she has already contacted people and has handed out pamphlets outlining when and where it will be held she intends to be outside the Elk’s Hall on Thursday at 6:30 p.m.
“I don’t care if we have to hold it in the parking lot or out on the street, we’re going ahead with it,” she said. “Mr. Gaw has over-stepped his boundaries as far as I’m concerned.”
Welsh said it is her understanding representatives from Canadian Advocates for Charter Equality — a group based in Caledonia, Ont. whose web site describes them as “opposing lawlessness and race-based policing during aboriginal land claims with the goal of preventing violence and violations of the rights of both native and non-native citizens” — will be attending the meeting. Welsh stressed CANACE is not a group of vigilantes.
“All we’re trying to do is get the communities to come together,” she said. “It’s kind of a strength in numbers sort of thing. We have rights as citizens and non-natives and we need to speak up.”
bmcvicar@intelligencer.ca
http://www.intelligencer.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1626201
Meeting on blockades will go ahead despite new challenges
Organizer says OPP meddling in matters they shouldn't be
By W. Brice McVicar, The Intelligencer
A politically charged meeting is scheduled to go ahead in Picton tomorrow night despite, the organizer alleges, meddling by the Ontario Provincial Police.
Cindy Welsh, a Deseronto resident hoping to meet with other concerned area citizens, had booked the Elk’s Hall in Picton for Thursday night at 6:30 to discuss issues surrounding native blockades and protests. The agenda is to include comments and presentations from residents of Caledonia. Welsh was forced to book the hall in Picton after officials from other venues in Deseronto turned her down once they learned the details of her planned gathering.
Last week, Welsh — who insists the meeting is not being held to incite any confrontations — managed to book the Elk’s Hall in Picton and began planning for the meeting which, she said, was being well received by local residents.
However, those plans appeared to come to a screeching halt Monday afternoon when she was contacted by a member of the Picton Elks stating she could not have use of the hall, adding a representative of the OPP had contacted the Elks’ board of directors advising them of Welsh’s problems getting a hall in Deseronto.
“I got a call and was told I couldn’t have the hall because, apparently, the OPP got in touch with the board at the Elks,” Welsh told The Intelligencer. “I phoned the OPP and was just huffing. What gives them the right to do this?”
Staff Sgt. Bernie Gaw, detachment commander for Prince Edward OPP, confirmed he made a phone call to the Elks but said he did not advise against renting the hall to Welsh. Instead, Gaw said, he wanted to make sure all of the information was out there for the hall owners.
“We spoke with the executive of the Elk’s Lodge, wanting them to be informed of the issues that originated in Deseronto ... We did provide them with that information,” he said “It’s certainly their hall and we wanted them to make an informed decision.”
The Elks, he added, are a service group well known for their work in the community.
Asked if there was another way to deal with the situation, such as ensuring officers were on hand for the scheduled meeting, Gaw said, “I’m not in the business of speculation.”
Floyd Snider, secretary for the Picton Elks, said Welsh’s reservation for the hall was not canceled due to any OPP involvement. The cancellation stemmed, instead, from financial issues, he said.
“She didn’t pay her 50 per cent down,” Snider said. “When you rent the hall you have to put in your 50 per cent and she hasn’t done that and she hasn’t signed her lease.”
Snider said he had no knowledge of the OPP contacting the Elks. The meeting, he said flatly, was “canceled so there’s no need talking about it.”
The meeting, however, will still be held, Welsh said. She said because she has already contacted people and has handed out pamphlets outlining when and where it will be held she intends to be outside the Elk’s Hall on Thursday at 6:30 p.m.
“I don’t care if we have to hold it in the parking lot or out on the street, we’re going ahead with it,” she said. “Mr. Gaw has over-stepped his boundaries as far as I’m concerned.”
Welsh said it is her understanding representatives from Canadian Advocates for Charter Equality — a group based in Caledonia, Ont. whose web site describes them as “opposing lawlessness and race-based policing during aboriginal land claims with the goal of preventing violence and violations of the rights of both native and non-native citizens” — will be attending the meeting. Welsh stressed CANACE is not a group of vigilantes.
“All we’re trying to do is get the communities to come together,” she said. “It’s kind of a strength in numbers sort of thing. We have rights as citizens and non-natives and we need to speak up.”
bmcvicar@intelligencer.ca
McHale's new mass e-mail over Militia meeting fiasco
PRESS RELEASE June 23, 2009
Re: Caledonia Peacekeepers.
At no time was Doug Fleming's new group going to be called Caledonia Militia. It should be apparent to everyone that the word 'militia' was used to get media attention. It is unfortunate in Canada that media will not cover a story unless you use such a word, but the fact that Doug Fleming called it an unarmed militia meant that is wasn't a militia.
The name of the group has been a closely guarded secret to ensure max. media coverage. The name of the new group is the Caledonia Peacekeepers. The reason for the name and the function of the group will be clearly defined at the Town Hall Meeting in Cayuga at the Lion's Hall at 7pm tonight.
Re: Bussing in protesters by CUPE 3903 lead by Tom Keefer
Mr. Keefer has been invited to sit in our meeting tonight to hear what we have to say. He has refused claiming he doesn't need to hear what our message is.
Mr. Keefer has told us that he supports the Men's Fire group from Six Nations. The Men's Fire is an armed Native Militia that the courts have already ruled is involved in extortion, intimidation and other criminal acts. They even attempted to threaten the judge in the case. Attached is the Voortman Injunction ruling which is highlighted so you can see how the courts view the Men's Fire. This is a group that has no authority to exist but enforces their will through extortion and intimidation. This armed native militia has the support of Tom Keefer.
Re: Men's Fire has the support of the OPP
Because the Men's Fire uses violence or the threat of violence to extort money and intimidate people the OPP appeasement policies causes the OPP to support the Men's Fire instead of arresting them.
In court evidence, via Commissioner Fantino's emails and his testimony on the stand in April 2009, it has been demonstrated that a key leader within the Men's Fire (Clyde Powless) was to be charged with assaulting a police officer. After a complete investigation Mr. Fantino sent out an email - entered as evidence in court - ordering the removal of the charge.
Furthermore, Commissioner Fantino sent an email a year later to Mr. Powless' lawyer which was to be used in court as a character reference for Mr. Powless on another assault charge. On March 25, 2009 the Crown in Cayuga informed the court they were consenting to 4 criminal charges against Mr. Powless - assaulting a police officer, being a member of a riot, obstructing the police and assault causing bodily harm.
This support by the OPP towards the Men's Fire and Clyde Powless caused residents to form a petition denouncing the Commissioner's actions. This petition has been signed by 7000 people including the local MP Diane Finlay, local MPP Toby Barrett and local councilor Craig Grice.
Closing Statements:
Serious questions need to be asked of CUPE3903 for their support of an armed native militia which the courts have denounced for their repeated criminal behaviour. Serious questions need to be asked of the OPP and in particular Commissioner Fantino for their support of a criminal organization.
Faced with such clear examples of how justice and the Rule of Law no longer apply in Haldimand, does it surprise any Canadian that residents have done what many groups have done in big cities when crime is out of control, and that is to unite into a community group.
Gary McHale - Media Relations for the Caledonia Peacekeepers - 905-692-6420 garymchale@yahoo.ca
All statements supported by court documents - will send documents upon request.
Re: Caledonia Peacekeepers.
At no time was Doug Fleming's new group going to be called Caledonia Militia. It should be apparent to everyone that the word 'militia' was used to get media attention. It is unfortunate in Canada that media will not cover a story unless you use such a word, but the fact that Doug Fleming called it an unarmed militia meant that is wasn't a militia.
The name of the group has been a closely guarded secret to ensure max. media coverage. The name of the new group is the Caledonia Peacekeepers. The reason for the name and the function of the group will be clearly defined at the Town Hall Meeting in Cayuga at the Lion's Hall at 7pm tonight.
Re: Bussing in protesters by CUPE 3903 lead by Tom Keefer
Mr. Keefer has been invited to sit in our meeting tonight to hear what we have to say. He has refused claiming he doesn't need to hear what our message is.
Mr. Keefer has told us that he supports the Men's Fire group from Six Nations. The Men's Fire is an armed Native Militia that the courts have already ruled is involved in extortion, intimidation and other criminal acts. They even attempted to threaten the judge in the case. Attached is the Voortman Injunction ruling which is highlighted so you can see how the courts view the Men's Fire. This is a group that has no authority to exist but enforces their will through extortion and intimidation. This armed native militia has the support of Tom Keefer.
Re: Men's Fire has the support of the OPP
Because the Men's Fire uses violence or the threat of violence to extort money and intimidate people the OPP appeasement policies causes the OPP to support the Men's Fire instead of arresting them.
In court evidence, via Commissioner Fantino's emails and his testimony on the stand in April 2009, it has been demonstrated that a key leader within the Men's Fire (Clyde Powless) was to be charged with assaulting a police officer. After a complete investigation Mr. Fantino sent out an email - entered as evidence in court - ordering the removal of the charge.
Furthermore, Commissioner Fantino sent an email a year later to Mr. Powless' lawyer which was to be used in court as a character reference for Mr. Powless on another assault charge. On March 25, 2009 the Crown in Cayuga informed the court they were consenting to 4 criminal charges against Mr. Powless - assaulting a police officer, being a member of a riot, obstructing the police and assault causing bodily harm.
This support by the OPP towards the Men's Fire and Clyde Powless caused residents to form a petition denouncing the Commissioner's actions. This petition has been signed by 7000 people including the local MP Diane Finlay, local MPP Toby Barrett and local councilor Craig Grice.
Closing Statements:
Serious questions need to be asked of CUPE3903 for their support of an armed native militia which the courts have denounced for their repeated criminal behaviour. Serious questions need to be asked of the OPP and in particular Commissioner Fantino for their support of a criminal organization.
Faced with such clear examples of how justice and the Rule of Law no longer apply in Haldimand, does it surprise any Canadian that residents have done what many groups have done in big cities when crime is out of control, and that is to unite into a community group.
Gary McHale - Media Relations for the Caledonia Peacekeepers - 905-692-6420 garymchale@yahoo.ca
All statements supported by court documents - will send documents upon request.
Monday, June 22, 2009
Cabinet Ministers denounce Caledonia Militia ideas as dangerous and dumb
Caledonia militia a 'dumb idea,' minister says
Activist's plan to enforce law at site of aboriginal dispute 'shameful attempt' to divide residents, Duguid says
Jun 17, 2009 08:26 PM
Maria Babbage
THE CANADIAN PRESS
Forming a local militia to protect residents at the scene of a long-running aboriginal land claims dispute in Caledonia, Ont., is a "dumb idea," Community Safety Minister Rick Bartolucci said Wednesday.
Doug Fleming, a local activist, said he's planning to form a unarmed militia because provincial police aren't doing enough to enforce the law and protect property owners from trespassers.
"I don't want to do this. You think I want to form a militia? Are you kidding?" he said.
"This is something that, unfortunately, I feel needs to be done. Not because I want to, but because it's a last resort."
Homeowners and aboriginal protesters occupying a 40-hectare tract of land on the outskirts of the southwestern Ontario town have clashed violently in the past, and there are fears a militia could cause tensions to erupt once more.
Premier Dalton McGuinty called the idea "unhelpful" and urged that "cooler heads find a way to prevail."
But two of his ministers, Bartolucci and Aboriginal Affairs Minister Brad Duguid, were far more blunt and warned that a militia could tear the town apart.
"Allow policing issues to be handled by people who understand the complexities of the issue," Bartolucci said.
"I would suggest that the formation of a militia is a dumb idea."
Most Caledonia residents want to move forward and a militia is ``not helpful at all," Duguid said.
"We're trying to do everything we can as a government to help bring people together," he added.
"Efforts such as that – forming a militia – it's a shameful attempt to divide, and that's exactly what people should not be engaging in."
The word "militia" may conjure images of rifle-toting men, but the Caledonia group would not break the law and would operate more along the lines of the Guardian Angels, a citizen crime patrol organization based in New York, Fleming said.
He said he doesn't anticipate that the group would carry firearms.
Just talk of a militia has created discord in Caledonia, Bartolucci suggested.
He noted it's already threatened an agreement reached by Ernie Palmer, a Caledonia farmer, and an aboriginal group to remove a trailer from his property, which is near the disputed land.
"What was good in that discussion reverted to what was wrong," he said.
"The formation of a militia isn't supported by the police, it's not supported by the general public at large. And why? Because it's not effective. It's that simple."
There's "no truth" to claims that police aren't enforcing the law in Caledonia, said OPP spokesman Insp. Dave Ross.
Police have been investigated criminal wrongdoing stemming from the three-year aboriginal occupation and have laid about 148 charges against 61 people, he said.
Ross said police have spoken to Palmer about the trailer on his property, but weren't asked to do anything about it.
"I think there is some misinformation out there with regard to that particularly trailer on the property," he said.
"I don't know whether that's fuelled the idea for a militia, but certainly, we don't believe a militia is the answer."
Talk of a militia is resurfacing because residents are fed up with aboriginal groups setting up smoke shacks in Caledonia, said Marie Trainer, mayor of Haldimand County.
"I don't think these people are dangerous, but if it was a militia in the States, they'd come in with guns a-blazing. It would be rather violent," she said.
"We have to be concerned with everything. But remember, this is over three years long. All of Haldimand County has suffered."
Six Nations members started occupying the Douglas Creek Estates housing development in February 2006, claiming it belongs to them.
The province, which now owns the land in trust, has said protesters can remain there while all sides negotiate a resolution to the 200-year-old land claim.
Some residents have been pushing for a public inquiry into the actions of OPP Commissioner Julian Fantino in Caledonia, complaining that police have mishandled the aboriginal occupation that's gone on for three years, with no end in sight.
Local residents drafted a petition in January that sharply criticized police, accusing Fantino of being biased in favour of protesters and using his position to support them in court against charges filed by his own police force.
The provincial police force has faced similar complaints that it's not doing enough to protect local residents.
In 2007, Sam Gualtieri suffered serious brain damage after he was attacked while attempting to clear native protesters from a home he was building for his daughter in Caledonia.
Three arrests were made, but Gualtieri launched a lawsuit against the Ontario government, claiming police were in the area and did nothing to prevent the assault.
Duguid said he shares the frustration of residents who say negotiations aimed at resolving the land claim dispute have dragged on far too long.
The negotiations – involving both levels of government and sparked by the Caledonia occupation – touch on dozens of claims in Haldimand County.
But the province is pushing Ottawa to speed up talks and find a way to resolve the dispute, he added.
"We've called on them to bring forward some form of a mediator or facilitator to try to invigorate the discussions, and they've agreed that they're looking at doing things like that," Duguid said.
Activist's plan to enforce law at site of aboriginal dispute 'shameful attempt' to divide residents, Duguid says
Jun 17, 2009 08:26 PM
Maria Babbage
THE CANADIAN PRESS
Forming a local militia to protect residents at the scene of a long-running aboriginal land claims dispute in Caledonia, Ont., is a "dumb idea," Community Safety Minister Rick Bartolucci said Wednesday.
Doug Fleming, a local activist, said he's planning to form a unarmed militia because provincial police aren't doing enough to enforce the law and protect property owners from trespassers.
"I don't want to do this. You think I want to form a militia? Are you kidding?" he said.
"This is something that, unfortunately, I feel needs to be done. Not because I want to, but because it's a last resort."
Homeowners and aboriginal protesters occupying a 40-hectare tract of land on the outskirts of the southwestern Ontario town have clashed violently in the past, and there are fears a militia could cause tensions to erupt once more.
Premier Dalton McGuinty called the idea "unhelpful" and urged that "cooler heads find a way to prevail."
But two of his ministers, Bartolucci and Aboriginal Affairs Minister Brad Duguid, were far more blunt and warned that a militia could tear the town apart.
"Allow policing issues to be handled by people who understand the complexities of the issue," Bartolucci said.
"I would suggest that the formation of a militia is a dumb idea."
Most Caledonia residents want to move forward and a militia is ``not helpful at all," Duguid said.
"We're trying to do everything we can as a government to help bring people together," he added.
"Efforts such as that – forming a militia – it's a shameful attempt to divide, and that's exactly what people should not be engaging in."
The word "militia" may conjure images of rifle-toting men, but the Caledonia group would not break the law and would operate more along the lines of the Guardian Angels, a citizen crime patrol organization based in New York, Fleming said.
He said he doesn't anticipate that the group would carry firearms.
Just talk of a militia has created discord in Caledonia, Bartolucci suggested.
He noted it's already threatened an agreement reached by Ernie Palmer, a Caledonia farmer, and an aboriginal group to remove a trailer from his property, which is near the disputed land.
"What was good in that discussion reverted to what was wrong," he said.
"The formation of a militia isn't supported by the police, it's not supported by the general public at large. And why? Because it's not effective. It's that simple."
There's "no truth" to claims that police aren't enforcing the law in Caledonia, said OPP spokesman Insp. Dave Ross.
Police have been investigated criminal wrongdoing stemming from the three-year aboriginal occupation and have laid about 148 charges against 61 people, he said.
Ross said police have spoken to Palmer about the trailer on his property, but weren't asked to do anything about it.
"I think there is some misinformation out there with regard to that particularly trailer on the property," he said.
"I don't know whether that's fuelled the idea for a militia, but certainly, we don't believe a militia is the answer."
Talk of a militia is resurfacing because residents are fed up with aboriginal groups setting up smoke shacks in Caledonia, said Marie Trainer, mayor of Haldimand County.
"I don't think these people are dangerous, but if it was a militia in the States, they'd come in with guns a-blazing. It would be rather violent," she said.
"We have to be concerned with everything. But remember, this is over three years long. All of Haldimand County has suffered."
Six Nations members started occupying the Douglas Creek Estates housing development in February 2006, claiming it belongs to them.
The province, which now owns the land in trust, has said protesters can remain there while all sides negotiate a resolution to the 200-year-old land claim.
Some residents have been pushing for a public inquiry into the actions of OPP Commissioner Julian Fantino in Caledonia, complaining that police have mishandled the aboriginal occupation that's gone on for three years, with no end in sight.
Local residents drafted a petition in January that sharply criticized police, accusing Fantino of being biased in favour of protesters and using his position to support them in court against charges filed by his own police force.
The provincial police force has faced similar complaints that it's not doing enough to protect local residents.
In 2007, Sam Gualtieri suffered serious brain damage after he was attacked while attempting to clear native protesters from a home he was building for his daughter in Caledonia.
Three arrests were made, but Gualtieri launched a lawsuit against the Ontario government, claiming police were in the area and did nothing to prevent the assault.
Duguid said he shares the frustration of residents who say negotiations aimed at resolving the land claim dispute have dragged on far too long.
The negotiations – involving both levels of government and sparked by the Caledonia occupation – touch on dozens of claims in Haldimand County.
But the province is pushing Ottawa to speed up talks and find a way to resolve the dispute, he added.
"We've called on them to bring forward some form of a mediator or facilitator to try to invigorate the discussions, and they've agreed that they're looking at doing things like that," Duguid said.
Cheryl MacDonald (Opinion Letter to Hamilton Spectator opposing Militia)
http://www.thespec.com/Opinions/article/587156
Don't call them militia
June 22, 2009
Cheryl Macdonald
The Hamilton Spectator
(Jun 22, 2009)
Caledonia-area resident Doug Fleming recently suggested the formation of a Caledonia "militia" to "ensure the Criminal Code is upheld in Haldimand county." A meeting on the idea is scheduled for tomorrow.
The idea is an insult to anyone who ever served with the militia, as well as to their spiritual descendants, those serving with military reserves.
Fleming has admitted that militia was probably not the best choice of words, but continues to use the term.
So do journalists and politicians responding to it, even though Community Safety Minister Rick Bartolucci called it a "dumb idea" and Premier Dalton McGuinty termed it "unhelpful."
No one seems to be challenging the use of the word militia, which a reporter wrote "may conjure images of rifle-toting men."
Fleming describes the proposed group as something like the Guardian Angels, a "citizen crime patrol organization" that started in New York in 1979. He also says members will be unarmed and work within the law.
Evoking the Guardian Angels certainly weakens that assertion. They have been controversial from the beginning. Unlike other citizens groups concerned with crime prevention, they train their members to make citizen's arrests and tend not to work closely in contact with law enforcement agencies. Some have compared them to legalized gangs. Others use a stronger word -- vigilantes.
Now that's a word that conjures up images of rifle-toting men, riding hard in the American West. Or in the South, where they're likely to be wearing white robes and burning crosses. And don't think for a moment that this can never happen here. The Ku Klux Klan has been active in Canada in the past, as recently as the 1980s. In 1925, there were more than 1,000 members in Ontario alone. In February 1930, a group of 75 Klansmen swarmed into Oakville, paraded through the streets, set a cross ablaze then took a white girl out of a house occupied by a black family and warned them if their son and the girl were ever seen together the Klan would deal with the man.
While burning crosses are not likely to make an appearance in Caledonia in the near future, it is vital to keep in mind that the town's troubles are partly fuelled by racism. It is also important to realize that among the Klansmen who visited Oakville in 1930 were several businessmen and a clergyman. Presumably they were respected in their communities. But they were also committed to taking the law into their own hands to enforce what they believed to be right.
That's the essence of vigilantism, and it has absolutely nothing to do with militia, its traditions, and its long history in Canada.
When Upper Canada came into being, legislation was enacted that allowed for the defence of the province. Every able-bodied man between 16 and 60 was obliged to report for training once a year, and was also likely to be called upon to defend the province in times of danger. Occasionally, at the request of appropriate authorities, they also carried out policing duties.
Haldimand militiamen answered the call to arms in the War of 1812, during the Fenian Invasion of 1866, during the South African or Boer War, and on other occasions. Militia from Caledonia were among those who served at the Battle of Ridgeway in June 1866. And, when the First World War broke out in 1914, militia members were among the first to volunteer.
Some of them died, and applying the term militia to this proposed group dishonours their sacrifice.
In the past, militia membership was as much about socializing as it was about defence. A couple of years back, when I edited The Civilian Soldier, Bob Blakeley's history of the Norfolk Militia, it became clear that many community leaders spent at least a few years in the militia.
They weren't always angels. Like military men throughout history, they always had time for drinking, storytelling and silly pranks. But they also absorbed a great deal of military culture, including discipline, respect for authority, and the ability to work within a chain of command that extended all the way to Ottawa. They might not always have been happy with red tape and bureaucratic delays, but most were dedicated to supporting the existing system.
Fleming's proposed organization bears no resemblance whatever to our historic militia and should not be dignified with its name any more than a street gang should be described as soldiers.
Consider this. The most dramatic image connected to native protests comes from the 1990 Oka standoff, where a young soldier, Patrick Cloutier, is nose to nose with a masked warrior. Neither was prepared to back down -- but Cloutier's military training most certainly kept a dangerous situation from escalating.
What if something similar happens in Caledonia? What if some member of the proposed "militia," lacking training, discipline and appreciation of military tradition, comes face to face with an angry protester from Six Nations? Would the outcome be the same?
I think not.
Cheryl MacDonald is a Nanticoke author who has written extensively on the history of Haldimand.
www.heronwoodent.ca
Don't call them militia
June 22, 2009
Cheryl Macdonald
The Hamilton Spectator
(Jun 22, 2009)
Caledonia-area resident Doug Fleming recently suggested the formation of a Caledonia "militia" to "ensure the Criminal Code is upheld in Haldimand county." A meeting on the idea is scheduled for tomorrow.
The idea is an insult to anyone who ever served with the militia, as well as to their spiritual descendants, those serving with military reserves.
Fleming has admitted that militia was probably not the best choice of words, but continues to use the term.
So do journalists and politicians responding to it, even though Community Safety Minister Rick Bartolucci called it a "dumb idea" and Premier Dalton McGuinty termed it "unhelpful."
No one seems to be challenging the use of the word militia, which a reporter wrote "may conjure images of rifle-toting men."
Fleming describes the proposed group as something like the Guardian Angels, a "citizen crime patrol organization" that started in New York in 1979. He also says members will be unarmed and work within the law.
Evoking the Guardian Angels certainly weakens that assertion. They have been controversial from the beginning. Unlike other citizens groups concerned with crime prevention, they train their members to make citizen's arrests and tend not to work closely in contact with law enforcement agencies. Some have compared them to legalized gangs. Others use a stronger word -- vigilantes.
Now that's a word that conjures up images of rifle-toting men, riding hard in the American West. Or in the South, where they're likely to be wearing white robes and burning crosses. And don't think for a moment that this can never happen here. The Ku Klux Klan has been active in Canada in the past, as recently as the 1980s. In 1925, there were more than 1,000 members in Ontario alone. In February 1930, a group of 75 Klansmen swarmed into Oakville, paraded through the streets, set a cross ablaze then took a white girl out of a house occupied by a black family and warned them if their son and the girl were ever seen together the Klan would deal with the man.
While burning crosses are not likely to make an appearance in Caledonia in the near future, it is vital to keep in mind that the town's troubles are partly fuelled by racism. It is also important to realize that among the Klansmen who visited Oakville in 1930 were several businessmen and a clergyman. Presumably they were respected in their communities. But they were also committed to taking the law into their own hands to enforce what they believed to be right.
That's the essence of vigilantism, and it has absolutely nothing to do with militia, its traditions, and its long history in Canada.
When Upper Canada came into being, legislation was enacted that allowed for the defence of the province. Every able-bodied man between 16 and 60 was obliged to report for training once a year, and was also likely to be called upon to defend the province in times of danger. Occasionally, at the request of appropriate authorities, they also carried out policing duties.
Haldimand militiamen answered the call to arms in the War of 1812, during the Fenian Invasion of 1866, during the South African or Boer War, and on other occasions. Militia from Caledonia were among those who served at the Battle of Ridgeway in June 1866. And, when the First World War broke out in 1914, militia members were among the first to volunteer.
Some of them died, and applying the term militia to this proposed group dishonours their sacrifice.
In the past, militia membership was as much about socializing as it was about defence. A couple of years back, when I edited The Civilian Soldier, Bob Blakeley's history of the Norfolk Militia, it became clear that many community leaders spent at least a few years in the militia.
They weren't always angels. Like military men throughout history, they always had time for drinking, storytelling and silly pranks. But they also absorbed a great deal of military culture, including discipline, respect for authority, and the ability to work within a chain of command that extended all the way to Ottawa. They might not always have been happy with red tape and bureaucratic delays, but most were dedicated to supporting the existing system.
Fleming's proposed organization bears no resemblance whatever to our historic militia and should not be dignified with its name any more than a street gang should be described as soldiers.
Consider this. The most dramatic image connected to native protests comes from the 1990 Oka standoff, where a young soldier, Patrick Cloutier, is nose to nose with a masked warrior. Neither was prepared to back down -- but Cloutier's military training most certainly kept a dangerous situation from escalating.
What if something similar happens in Caledonia? What if some member of the proposed "militia," lacking training, discipline and appreciation of military tradition, comes face to face with an angry protester from Six Nations? Would the outcome be the same?
I think not.
Cheryl MacDonald is a Nanticoke author who has written extensively on the history of Haldimand.
www.heronwoodent.ca
Non-Natives rally against Caledonia Militia
http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/June2009/22/c9022.html
Non-Natives Rally Against the Formation of "Caledonia Militia"
TORONTO, June 22 /CNW/ - On Tuesday, June 23rd at 6pm hundreds of
non-natives who support the people of Six Nations will be holding a peaceful
rally outside of the Lion's Club in Cayuga, Ontario to protest the founding
meeting of the "Caledonia Militia" - a vigilante group aimed at carrying out
citizen's arrests of protesting Aboriginals. Buses will be transporting over
100 activists from Toronto, Hamilton, Kitchener-Waterloo and Guelph, and other
supporters from around the Brantford area and across Haldimand-Norfolk will be
arriving to the rally by car.
According to Tom Keefer, an organizer of the protest, "we are coming to
stand in solidarity with the people of Six Nations, to oppose the escalation
represented in the formation of this 'militia' and to expose the presence of
far-right neo-nazi groups in supporting anti-native actions in Caledonia."
The protest has been initiated by the Canadian Union of Public Employees
Local 3903 First Nations Solidarity Working Group.
For further information: Please contact 3903fnswg@gmail.com or call Tom
at (416) 526-4255 for more information, to endorse the protest, or to reserve
a space on the buses
Non-Natives Rally Against the Formation of "Caledonia Militia"
TORONTO, June 22 /CNW/ - On Tuesday, June 23rd at 6pm hundreds of
non-natives who support the people of Six Nations will be holding a peaceful
rally outside of the Lion's Club in Cayuga, Ontario to protest the founding
meeting of the "Caledonia Militia" - a vigilante group aimed at carrying out
citizen's arrests of protesting Aboriginals. Buses will be transporting over
100 activists from Toronto, Hamilton, Kitchener-Waterloo and Guelph, and other
supporters from around the Brantford area and across Haldimand-Norfolk will be
arriving to the rally by car.
According to Tom Keefer, an organizer of the protest, "we are coming to
stand in solidarity with the people of Six Nations, to oppose the escalation
represented in the formation of this 'militia' and to expose the presence of
far-right neo-nazi groups in supporting anti-native actions in Caledonia."
The protest has been initiated by the Canadian Union of Public Employees
Local 3903 First Nations Solidarity Working Group.
For further information: Please contact 3903fnswg@gmail.com or call Tom
at (416) 526-4255 for more information, to endorse the protest, or to reserve
a space on the buses
Another Caledonia Flag Flap
http://www.brantfordexpositor.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1622935
Citizens arrest prompts Caledonia protest
Posted By Michael-Allan Marion
CALEDONIA - Haldimand County OPP were in the unusual position on the weekend of having to keep the peace between native activists occupying a former housing development and a new non-native law and order group marching past it.
What was unusual was that the march was in protest to the arrest by police of one of their group.
About two-dozen people, who began calling themselves the Caledonia militia but are looking for another name, gathered early Saturday afternoon outside Lions Hall a few blocks up the street from the former Douglas Creek Estates housing subdivision.
That's the site that Haudenosaunee activists took over three years ago as a "reclamation," and have since named it Kanonhstaton, a Mohawk term meaning protected place.
The new group's mission was to march past the subdivision carrying plenty of Canadian flags and placards, some bearing the words "Excessive Force," others saying "OPP Racist Policies Enforced."
They had large photographs depicting the arrest by OPP officers of citizen Randy Fleming, who was apprehended while walking down the road with a Canadian flag the week before.
Officers arranged the terms of the march with the leaders: they could drive together in a few vans and assemble south of the site on Highway 6 on the outskirts of Caledonia, then march north past it quietly on the other side of the road. No stopping and no shouting was permitted.
After that, they were to gather at the Tim Hortons restaurant, then head to an OPP detachment office to demonstrate again.
Leaders Mark Vandermaas and Merlyn Kinrade stood in front of the grumbling gathering, wearing blue berets from their days as United Nations peacekeepers. They kept reminding their comrades that the intent was to have a peaceful, quiet march, and to obey the terms negotiated.
"You mean we have to get permission to carry a Canadian flag?" one protested.
"Let's have none of that," one organizer responded.
"Remember, Canada is watching," Vandermaas warned the gathering just before the march began.
"If anyone at that place yells anything as we go by, just pretend they're not there. Don't shout anything back. We're doing nothing to provoke the occupiers. We are going to be peaceful and respectful."
Minutes later, the entourage filed past the site. Haudenosaunee activists were standing in force at the entrance, with Six Nations flags, vehicles and one large sign with a message with a reference to the "KKK."
No one said a word on either side.
A few natives waved to the marchers across the road, while others nodded and waved back.
"I guess they're just doing their thing," Floyd Montour, a Haudenosaunee activist, said as he leaned back against a car and watched the march.
"It seems to be against the OPP, but the bottom line is they're angry at us. They always have been. But we've got cool heads. We don't intend to say anything, just watch them do their thing."
Later at the Tim Hortons, Kinrade acknowledged that he was one of Canada's first peacekeepers, dispatched during the Suez Crisis in 1956. He said the arrest of Fleming, brother of leader Doug Fleming, angered him enough to join.
"When you get a resident being arrested for walking down Argyle Street with a Canadian flag, it's unacceptable, so I got involved to do something about the madness we have in this town. You can't have the lawlessness associated with these land claims protests. That can't be tolerated."
Kinrade said the organization would have to decide on a different name, after the word "militia" raised too many eyebrows. It might not even be legal to call a group of citizens a militia, he said.
"It certainly tweaked a lot of interest, though, particularly in the media," he smiled, then excused he himself to join his colleagues.
"They should call themselves 'fools,'" activist Ruby Montour scoffed later.
"Using a name like that, if they think that Six Nations is going to run, they're mistaken. We were running for 200 years and we're not running anymore."
Citizens arrest prompts Caledonia protest
Posted By Michael-Allan Marion
CALEDONIA - Haldimand County OPP were in the unusual position on the weekend of having to keep the peace between native activists occupying a former housing development and a new non-native law and order group marching past it.
What was unusual was that the march was in protest to the arrest by police of one of their group.
About two-dozen people, who began calling themselves the Caledonia militia but are looking for another name, gathered early Saturday afternoon outside Lions Hall a few blocks up the street from the former Douglas Creek Estates housing subdivision.
That's the site that Haudenosaunee activists took over three years ago as a "reclamation," and have since named it Kanonhstaton, a Mohawk term meaning protected place.
The new group's mission was to march past the subdivision carrying plenty of Canadian flags and placards, some bearing the words "Excessive Force," others saying "OPP Racist Policies Enforced."
They had large photographs depicting the arrest by OPP officers of citizen Randy Fleming, who was apprehended while walking down the road with a Canadian flag the week before.
Officers arranged the terms of the march with the leaders: they could drive together in a few vans and assemble south of the site on Highway 6 on the outskirts of Caledonia, then march north past it quietly on the other side of the road. No stopping and no shouting was permitted.
After that, they were to gather at the Tim Hortons restaurant, then head to an OPP detachment office to demonstrate again.
Leaders Mark Vandermaas and Merlyn Kinrade stood in front of the grumbling gathering, wearing blue berets from their days as United Nations peacekeepers. They kept reminding their comrades that the intent was to have a peaceful, quiet march, and to obey the terms negotiated.
"You mean we have to get permission to carry a Canadian flag?" one protested.
"Let's have none of that," one organizer responded.
"Remember, Canada is watching," Vandermaas warned the gathering just before the march began.
"If anyone at that place yells anything as we go by, just pretend they're not there. Don't shout anything back. We're doing nothing to provoke the occupiers. We are going to be peaceful and respectful."
Minutes later, the entourage filed past the site. Haudenosaunee activists were standing in force at the entrance, with Six Nations flags, vehicles and one large sign with a message with a reference to the "KKK."
No one said a word on either side.
A few natives waved to the marchers across the road, while others nodded and waved back.
"I guess they're just doing their thing," Floyd Montour, a Haudenosaunee activist, said as he leaned back against a car and watched the march.
"It seems to be against the OPP, but the bottom line is they're angry at us. They always have been. But we've got cool heads. We don't intend to say anything, just watch them do their thing."
Later at the Tim Hortons, Kinrade acknowledged that he was one of Canada's first peacekeepers, dispatched during the Suez Crisis in 1956. He said the arrest of Fleming, brother of leader Doug Fleming, angered him enough to join.
"When you get a resident being arrested for walking down Argyle Street with a Canadian flag, it's unacceptable, so I got involved to do something about the madness we have in this town. You can't have the lawlessness associated with these land claims protests. That can't be tolerated."
Kinrade said the organization would have to decide on a different name, after the word "militia" raised too many eyebrows. It might not even be legal to call a group of citizens a militia, he said.
"It certainly tweaked a lot of interest, though, particularly in the media," he smiled, then excused he himself to join his colleagues.
"They should call themselves 'fools,'" activist Ruby Montour scoffed later.
"Using a name like that, if they think that Six Nations is going to run, they're mistaken. We were running for 200 years and we're not running anymore."
Caledonia Militia Being Formed (June / 09)
http://www.dunnvillechronicle.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1615957
Caledonia Militia being formed
Posted By DONNA PITCHER, FOR THE CHRONICLE
Posted 5 days ago
A citizens group called the Caledonia Militia is being formed by Caledonia resident Doug Fleming.
Fleming said in a recent release the group is being formed due to the ongoing reality that the OPP refuses to enforce the Criminal Code with regards to people's property rights.
Fleming has the backing and support of Gary McHale, of Caledonia Wake Up Call and President of Canadian Advocates for Charter Equality (CANACE).
The idea has been rolling around for about three years said Fleming in an interview with The Chronicle Tuesday morning.
"I wish that we didn't have the need to do this, we are not here to add to the trouble, we are here to help."
Fleming realizes that the name Militia will conjure up images of guys toting guns. This couldn't be farther from the truth, we are following in the spirit of the Guardian Angels, a group of unarmed citizens that will have cool heads, adhere to the law and exercise restraint.
A recent incident in Caledonia triggered Fleming to officially kick things off.
"This has nothing to do with land claims, this is to do with law enforcement and is a reflection of the shortcomings of the OPP", said Fleming.
Next Tuesday, an information session will be held at the Cayuga Lion's Hall starting at 7 p. m. No "hotheads"
are allowed. Interested parties will be screened said Fleming with the intentbe a law abiding group not a goon squad.
McHale will do a presentation on Sections 38-42 of the Criminal Code. This section of the code relates to the rights of a citizen to place an individual under arrest when law enforcement fails to do so.
"CANACE will support this group" if the group adheres strictly to the law, McHale said in an interview Monday evening.
"Serious self-control will be required, this is not to have boxing matches between people."
If someone is on private property and breaking the law, the members of the militia will use reasonable force and arrest the individual breaking the law and transport them into the custody of the OPP.
"This is all Caledonia needs" according to Haldimand County OPP Inspector Dave McLean. "This group will serve no good."
This is just another attempt of a few individuals to aggravate the situation without all the proper information. This group is just trying to discredit the OPP said McLean.
Caledonia Militia being formed
Posted By DONNA PITCHER, FOR THE CHRONICLE
Posted 5 days ago
A citizens group called the Caledonia Militia is being formed by Caledonia resident Doug Fleming.
Fleming said in a recent release the group is being formed due to the ongoing reality that the OPP refuses to enforce the Criminal Code with regards to people's property rights.
Fleming has the backing and support of Gary McHale, of Caledonia Wake Up Call and President of Canadian Advocates for Charter Equality (CANACE).
The idea has been rolling around for about three years said Fleming in an interview with The Chronicle Tuesday morning.
"I wish that we didn't have the need to do this, we are not here to add to the trouble, we are here to help."
Fleming realizes that the name Militia will conjure up images of guys toting guns. This couldn't be farther from the truth, we are following in the spirit of the Guardian Angels, a group of unarmed citizens that will have cool heads, adhere to the law and exercise restraint.
A recent incident in Caledonia triggered Fleming to officially kick things off.
"This has nothing to do with land claims, this is to do with law enforcement and is a reflection of the shortcomings of the OPP", said Fleming.
Next Tuesday, an information session will be held at the Cayuga Lion's Hall starting at 7 p. m. No "hotheads"
are allowed. Interested parties will be screened said Fleming with the intentbe a law abiding group not a goon squad.
McHale will do a presentation on Sections 38-42 of the Criminal Code. This section of the code relates to the rights of a citizen to place an individual under arrest when law enforcement fails to do so.
"CANACE will support this group" if the group adheres strictly to the law, McHale said in an interview Monday evening.
"Serious self-control will be required, this is not to have boxing matches between people."
If someone is on private property and breaking the law, the members of the militia will use reasonable force and arrest the individual breaking the law and transport them into the custody of the OPP.
"This is all Caledonia needs" according to Haldimand County OPP Inspector Dave McLean. "This group will serve no good."
This is just another attempt of a few individuals to aggravate the situation without all the proper information. This group is just trying to discredit the OPP said McLean.
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