Front Burner - 30 years later a Mohawk filmmaker reflects on the Oka crisis

Episode Date: July 20, 2020

It’s been 30 years since an explosion of violence and the death of a Quebec provincial police officer on an early July morning marked the beginning of the Oka Crisis. That summer, thousands of Canadian soldiers surrounded two Mohawk communities, just outside Montreal, who were trying to protect a forest and burial ground from the expansion of a golf course. Today on Front Burner, we speak to Mohawk filmmaker Tracey Deer who grew up in Kahnawake, Quebec. She shares what it was like living through a standoff that came to be a defining conflict in Canadian history.

In the Dragon's Den, a simple pitch can lead to a life-changing connection. Watch new episodes of Dragon's Den free on CBC Gem. Brought to you in part by National Angel Capital Organization, empowering Canada's entrepreneurs through angel investment and industry connections. This is a CBC Podcast. I don't know if you can hear any of that. Yes, sounds like shots. They launched, oh, I don't know, about half a dozen or a dozen canisters of tear gas.

Ivan, from as much as you can see, are the warriors pulling back now? Oh, everybody was. I mean, we're moving cars, we're moving camps, we're moving people, reporters. Are those shots, Ivan? Hello? That gunfire from 30 years ago this summer marked the beginning of a 78-day standoff that gripped the country and came to be called the Oka Crisis. A gun battle between Mohawks and Quebec Provincial Police

early this morning near the town of Oka has taken the life of a QPF officer. Corporal Marcel Lemay died after being shot in the face during a furious exchange of gunfire. The standoff pitted the Mohawks of Ganasatage and Ganawage, two communities near Montreal, against Quebec Provincial Police and then the Canadian military. Army helicopters going by have machine guns.

We have a thousand SQ officers waiting to come in, but we will not surrender. Members of the Mohawk community were protesting the expansion of a golf course onto disputed land, which included a cemetery. That summer, images of Mohawk activists facing down Canadian troops in this tense standoff were broadcast around the world. And while the siege eventually ended, the dispute over the land continues to this day. So do the underlying issues of land rights, racism, and the policing of Indigenous communities. Tracy Deer is a Mohawk filmmaker from the community of Kahnawake. She was 12 years old during the crisis, and that summer changed her life forever.

I'm Josh Bloch. This is FrontBurner. Hi Tracy, welcome. Thank you. Hi Josh. Nice to be here. So it's been 30 years since the standoff, and you were 12 years old that summer. You were living in Kahnawake, Quebec, which is about a 20-minute drive from Montreal. Before we talk about the standoff, I wonder if you could tell me a little bit about the community that you grew up in. Sure. It was definitely then my whole world. And I think it was a very cool world. I have a very big family. We're a very close,

tight-knit community. Our families are very big. So in the area I grew up on, every corner, I had an auntie, I had cousins. The street I grew up on, you know, we don't have street names in Kahnawake. So you really have to know the place to know where to go and how to get around. But my street had a nickname as Sesame Street, because there were so many children and so many dogs just wandering around. So and it's still to this day is called that. So it was, it was idyllic. It was, it was a wonderful, exciting, adventurous childhood to grow up in this place, just surrounded by, by love and family and fun, really. And then, you know, in 1990, you're 12 years old, and that's when this 78-day standoff begins.

It's triggered by a plan to expand a local golf course onto contested land. The Mohawk community of Ganesatage set up a blockade to stop the development. And then the neighboring community where you lived, Ganawage, also set up blockades. At the bottom of this hill, Quebec police have their own blockade. They lean on their patrol cars. Through binoculars, they gaze up the hill at the roadblock set up by the Mohawks. A roadblock erected with heavy equipment and cruisers captured from the police. And by the end of August, 4,000 Canadian soldiers,

as well as tanks and helicopters and heavy artillery, were brought in. I'm not sure if it's weapons or if it's... Yes, it is. They're firing at us. Trying to get behind a tree, actually, and the tear gas is starting to come. But as you can hear, there's semi-automatic weapon fire. It looks like a war zone. How would you describe what you were seeing at that time?

Well, I would say that first, in the beginning, it was really exciting for a little kid. For me as a little kid, me and my sister, I have a 10-year-old sister. You know, the whole community was surrounded and shut off from the outside world. So we couldn't leave and nothing could come in. So very quickly, we ran out of gas, We ran out of food. We did have food smuggled in through the woods from our allies. So we had a food bank that was set up. And it was really exciting for me and my sister to go to the food bank and pick up our brown

paper bag of goodies and look inside and wonder, what did we get this time? We used to go everywhere on our bikes and the big highways. We're completely shut down and so we're biking on highways. I mean, it just felt like something out of a movie. And for a long time I was very disconnected, I guess, from the very adult reality and the threat of violence that was happening every day. I'm asking you a question. Where are you going from here then?

I will stop there. To our houses and kill us? Can you please stop there? I'm not going to kill anybody, ma'am. Well, it stands. Pull back. This is how you call peaceful negotiation? Okay. Okay.

Another aspect to what was going on and the tension that was going on, it was the Quebecers who opposed the blockades. And in fact, as you know, thousands took to the streets. There were effigies of Mohawk warriors that were burned on several nights in a row. Tell me about that response from the surrounding communities. I'm still, 30 years later, very disappointed, very heartbroken that that was the response of our neighbors. And it has taken a very long time to repair those relationships, I'll say. You know, the Oka crisis ended after a 78-day standoff, but the ramifications lasted four years.

You know, when our neighboring town put up signs to say Indians not welcome, and of course had these race riots, I mean, you just never knew where it was safe to go. There was still a lot of anger, a lot of hurt on, I guess, on all sides. And yeah, the Oka crisis ended that summer and most of Canada kind of went back to quote unquote normal and other news stories filled the screens. But our life in Kahnawake and in the surrounding communities, that was affected for a very long time. By the end of August, there were fears that the army was going to invade your community. By the end of August, there were fears that the army was going to invade your community. And you were part of an evacuation of many women and children and elders. And you had to cross the Mercier Bridge back to Montreal.

Can you tell me about that day that you were evacuated? So the evacuation happened once the army had been called in. And as you said, all those 4,000 soldiers, I mean, some were in our community and some were in the neighboring Gunasadage community. The rumor started circulating that the army was going to attack and try to forcibly remove the barricades. And we knew that that was not going to happen without a fight back. And so how ugly could it get was a question. Provincial police in riot gear stormed the barricades

the Mohawks had set up. There were clouds of tear gas, a hail of bullets. Mainly women and a few men here armed with baseball bats at the site itself. But in the bush here, in the trees, there are probably 100 Mohawk armed as well. They have automatic weapons or semi-automatic weapons. And it was decided that women, children and the elderly would leave the community

and seek safety on the island of Montreal. So we were a caravan. Our car, it was my mother driving, I was in the front seat, and I had my sister and my two cousins in the back seat as well. We got stopped on the Mercier Bridge by the army who needed to search all of our cars for weapons. Because of course, for weapons. Because of course, you know, we, all of us were labeled as terrorists. And I guess they were afraid we were bringing in weapons, and we were going to take over suburbia, something crazy like that. So we ended up being stranded on the Mercy Bridge for hours that day. And it was very hot. We had no water, we had no food. And finally, we got word that every single car had been cleared and we were allowed to leave. Now, while we were up there waiting, there were a number of French radio stations that were very anti-Mohawk at the time. And they were letting their listeners know what was going on,

and they were encouraging their listeners to go down to the Mercy Bridge to give us a piece of their mind. So by the time we were leaving the bridge, a massive crowd had formed at the off-ramp. And they found a way to tell us how they felt about us. As we were approaching it, we were in the middle of the caravan, I would say. And as we were approaching the end, we could see a big dust cloud, which didn't make a ton of sense.

And we could hear this noise, this pinging noise that also I had no reference for. Before I could figure it out, my mom started yelling for us to get down. And we didn't understand why, but you also listen to your mother when she's got that tone of voice. I watched my mother as her face shifted from confusion to fear and then to terror, really. And we entered this dust cloud and the rocks started hailing down on our car. The rocks started hailing down in our car. And my mom was crying. And I've never, ever seen my mom cry. I've never seen her that afraid.

And my sister in the backseat started crying. And these rocks were just thundering. The whole car, I mean, it's all you could hear. But I also heard yelling. I heard cheering, I heard laughing. So I, I peeked up and I could see this crowd throwing these rocks at us and just enjoying it so much. and in that moment you know this i i've shared this story before i mean this is the moment where i learned how to how to hate really um it's hard not to catch it. You know, I do think that it is contagious. Anger and hatred is quite contagious. And so it was being thrown at us.

And I did catch it. And I really, really hated those people out there. And then a few moments later, we were out. Our back window had shattered. My sister and my cousins were covered in glass. Even though there was about a hundred police officers there. And that sends a message. All of that sends a message, especially to a young girl about where her worth sits in this country.

And it happened 30 years ago, but I really, I can go right back there. And it's hard. I remember it so, so clearly. It really is something that is etched into my memory. And in terms of, you know, the aftermath of it, it had a profound effect. You know, I started that day as just a very happy, secure, content child. And all of that was shattered that day. And I do look at that day as like the moment I realized that I was different

and that being different was a bad thing. Of course, I'd always known I was Mohawk and I knew my culture and I knew my language. But I was living all of that within the safety of my community and didn't realize that the outside world had a problem with that or that it could be a problem.

So that day alerted me to the fact that the world was unsafe and dangerous. I went to school off the reserve for high school and And I mean, every day I was ready for some kind of trouble. Every day I was looking over my back, never being sure, you know, who was a friend and who was a foe and what might happen. And to live, it was normal for me. And to live, it was normal for me. But when I think back to that, and there are so many people that do live every day like that, it is such a stressful existence. And it's already hard enough to be a teenager and be figuring out who you are in the world and you've got the hormones going.

you know, who you are in the world and you've got the hormones going and, but to not feel safe, it's terrible. I also, I also had just a terrible, terrible sense of self-worth, you know, if, if Canadians were allowed to throw rocks at us, that told me that I didn't matter. So I did suffer from depression and I was suicidal when I was about 14 years old because I just didn't see the point. What was the point of my existence if nowhere was safe and I didn't see the point. What was the point of my existence? If nowhere was safe and I didn't matter. So that is sort of the immediate impact it had on my life as an adolescent. And it was just a very, very dark time, a very angry time. I didn't know how to unpack the feelings I had. And so I was quite self-destructive. And I'm just super grateful that I did find my way out of that. And I was able to harness that anger super grateful that I did find my way out of that. And I was able to harness that anger away from hurting myself and away from hurting others, actually, and really harness that anger

to motivate me to prove people wrong, you know, to prove to people that I did matter and that I do have a voice and that I can do great things. And they're wrong. They're wrong. You know, I, you're, it's not okay to throw rocks at me. It's not okay. So, so I just, I used it to just fuel, like I had just the most gigantic dream to be a filmmaker and not just to be any filmmaker, but to be the best filmmaker out there. And I won't say that I've achieved that at all. I'm not going to say that. But I have I am now living my dream. And I do have a voice and I am sharing the stories of my life and of my people. And, and I just, I have tremendous pride and, and gratitude to be where I am now. And the work that I do is all about building bridges and building compassion and building understanding so that Canadians never want to throw rocks at us again. And if anyone

does, they will be properly punished for it. They will be arrested for it because that is a crime. In the Dragon's Den, a simple pitch can lead to a life-changing connection. Watch new episodes of Dragon's Den free on CBC Gem. Brought to you in part by National Angel Capital Organization. Empowering Canada's entrepreneurs through angel investment and industry connections. Hi, it's Ramit Sethi here. You may have seen my money show on Netflix.

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To listen to this podcast, just search for Money for Couples. Well, you're actually in the midst of completing a feature film about this very topic called Beans, and it's about a 12-year-old girl living through the events of the summer of 1990. What does it mean for you to tell this story today? I mean, how do you see the story

of this standoff through the lens of everything that's happened over the last 30 years, including the kind of conflicts and the ongoing conflicts we're seeing now? A year ago, when we were prepping this film, it was a historical coming of age story. And it was looking at a very ugly time in Canadian history. Whenever I'm telling a story, it's always about how do I create a safety for the audience that they will be open to it. You know, you want them to come see it. You want them to not change the channel when it's on TV. So there has to be a sense of safety. And, and I thought, you know what, 30 years,

that is a big gap between then and now. And I, I think people will be open to seeing it because they're not so individually tied to it anymore. I mean, that was a long time ago, right? Well, that was a year ago. And then we had some new Indigenous standoffs that had to occur in regards to the pipeline. And it was happening all over again. Good evening and thanks for joining us. Disagreement over a natural gas pipeline in northern BC isC. is again disrupting trade and travel. Stay calm. My name is Staff Sergeant Charlie. I'm the current RCMP reinforcing the B.C. Supreme Court injunction issued December 31st, 2019. This air is now part of the police

exclusion zone. Please gather your effects. You are not welcome here. You are not allies to people. I just could not believe that we have not learned from history and that we are still having to resort to that kind of action to be heard. And then we have this social justice wave that is now happening and focus on police brutality, which has also always been there, but finally everybody is seeing it. And my film has all of that going on as well from police and from the army. And it's been really strange to watch the film go from a historical piece, a historical contemplative piece, to something that is actually incredibly current to what is happening right now. And I wish it weren't so. I wish we were further along 30 years later.

The standoff itself ended after 78 days, or it came to an end, that aspect of it. The plans to expand the golf course into the pines were cancelled. But that land claim remains unresolved to this day. Can you tell me about the feelings in the aftermath of that standoff of that summer in your community? It was one of the first instances where we won. And that's massive. That is massive when you look at hundreds of years of being pushed aside and trampled. So, you know, we set out to protect a piece of forest and a burial ground. And that summer ended with those golf, that golf course plans being cancelled. And that burial ground and that forest still stands today.

real ground and that forest still stands today. If this is what we need to do to protect our culture, our community, what we value, then I guess we're going to have to do it. And I think that that's what the Oka Crisis taught us. Tracy, thank you so much for sticking with me today. Thank you for having me. Before I let you go today, some news about Black Lives Matter demonstrations this weekend. Police have charged three protesters after pink paint was splattered on Toronto's statues. Those figures include former Prime Minister John A. Macdonald and Ryerson University namesake Egerton Ryerson. Both men were involved in the creation of Canada's residential school system. Black Lives Matter co-founder Rodney DeVerlis called the action a, quote, necessary intervention.

And we believe that these monuments of violence, from the statue to the police station, all of them need to be taken down. All of them need to be toppled. All of them need to be dismantled. DeVerlis said police held the protesters for 17 hours. Three divisions full of police officers during COVID-19 working on alert for pink paint. We have seen less action when we die.

They face charges of mischief and conspiracy to commit a summary offense. That's all for today. I'm Josh Bloch. Thanks for listening to FrontBurner.