WEBVTT

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The Ipperwash crisis occurred in 1995

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along the shores of lake Huron in southern Ontario

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and involved some members of the Stoney Point band

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who in 1936 had a portion of their reserve expropriated

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by the federal government for use as a provincial park

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and that became Ipperwash Provincial Park.

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During WWII the federal government expropriated

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the rest of the reserve for use as an army training camp.

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They forcibly relocated members of the Stoney Point

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Band to the nearby reserve, which was Kettle Point.

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They promised that the land would be returned

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after the war. But of course the land was never returned.

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Stoney Point Band members were basically

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living as second class citizens on the Kettle Point

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reserve where they suffered discrimination.

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They had poor housing, etc.

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So the descendants of those people always

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remembered that they were supposed to get their

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land back, but of course the land was never returned.

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In 1980, the federal government paid just over

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2 million dollars to the Kettle and Stoney Point Band

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as partial compensation and again

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promised that the land would be returned.

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In 1992, a government committee called

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for the land to be returned to the Stoney Point Band.

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At that time, the members of the Stoney Point Band

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served an eviction notice to the Department

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of National Defence.

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In May 1993, about 30 members of the Stoney Point

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Band moved into a portion of the army base

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where they set up a camp, with trailers,

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and tents and whatnot.

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Over the next couple years, they maintained

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that reoccupation camp.

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There were some minor incidents with the military.

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But the military was beginning to close down the base

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and began withdrawing equipment and personnel

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In the summer of 1995, Stoney Point Band members

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entered the provincial park because it was

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being closed down for the season.

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They wanted to reclaim that as well because

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that was not only a portion of their original reserve

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but it also contained a burial ground

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that the federal government was aware of

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back in the 1930s when they expropriated it.

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As they began the occupation of the provincial

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park, the Ontario provincial government sent in

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the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP)

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and wanted the people evicted.

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So the OPP began a major police operation.

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they had brought in a couple hundred police officers,

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they got military assistance including

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two armoured personnel carriers.

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On September 6th, they sent in a riot squad

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to attempt to forcibly evict the people

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from the provincial park.

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But they fought back and forced the riot police

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to withdraw.

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But they came back later that evening.

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Not only the riot police but a heavily armed

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tactical response unit.

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When the police entered the provincial park,

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there was a band councillor from Kettle Point

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who tried to intervene to stop the police.

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But he was badly beaten by the police officers.

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At that point, a sixteen year old youth, Nicholas Cotrelle,

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drove a school bus into the police lines

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in an attempt to stop the assault.

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At that time the police opened fire,

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and they fired between 1000 to 2000 rounds.

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They shot the sixteen year old youth in the back.

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They killed the dog that was also on the bus.

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And at that time, acting sergeant Kenneth Deane

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shot and killed Dudley George.

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Even though the police had launched this major

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operation, they had no medical assistance

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on hand so Dudleyâs brother Pierre George

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actually drove him to a nearby hospital

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but he was pronounced dead at around midnight.

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Kenneth Deane was eventually charged

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with criminal negligence causing death.

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During his trial, the judge found him to be

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untruthful because Deane claimed that he saw

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Dudley George carrying a rifle

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and thatâs why he opened fire.

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But even though the judge found him to be untruthful,

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he only got two years community service.

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In 2003 the Ontario government called a inquiry

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into the crisis.

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All these different documents came out and

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it was found that Mike Harris who was the

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premier at the time of the crisis had intervened

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and called for the police to forcibly evict

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the Natives from the park.

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In 2016, the federal government paid 90 million dollars

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to the Kettle and Stoney Point Band as compensation.

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To this day, the members of the Stoney Point Band

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continue to live on the former army base

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which was their reserve lands.

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They basically won their struggle,

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even though there was a lot of sacrifice.

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Dudley George was shot and killed.