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The Ipperwash crisis occurred in 1995

along the shores of lake Huron in southern Ontario

and involved some members of the Stoney Point band

who in 1936 had a portion of their reserve expropriated

by the federal government for use as a provincial park

and that became Ipperwash Provincial Park.

During WWII the federal government expropriated

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

They forcibly relocated members of the Stoney Point

Band to the nearby reserve, which was Kettle Point.

They promised that the land would be returned

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

Stoney Point Band members were basically

living as second class citizens on the Kettle Point

reserve where they suffered discrimination.

They had poor housing, etc.

So the descendants of those people always

remembered that they were supposed to get their

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

In 1980, the federal government paid just over

2 million dollars to the Kettle and Stoney Point Band

as partial compensation and again

promised that the land would be returned.

In 1992, a government committee called

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

At that time, the members of the Stoney Point Band

served an eviction notice to the Department

of National Defence.

In May 1993, about 30 members of the Stoney Point

Band moved into a portion of the army base

where they set up a camp, with trailers,

and tents and whatnot.

Over the next couple years, they maintained

that reoccupation camp.

There were some minor incidents with the military.

But the military was beginning to close down the base

and began withdrawing equipment and personnel

In the summer of 1995, Stoney Point Band members

entered the provincial park because it was

being closed down for the season.

They wanted to reclaim that as well because

that was not only a portion of their original reserve

but it also contained a burial ground

that the federal government was aware of

back in the 1930s when they expropriated it.

As they began the occupation of the provincial

park, the Ontario provincial government sent in

the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP)

and wanted the people evicted.

So the OPP began a major police operation.

they had brought in a couple hundred police officers,

they got military assistance including

two armoured personnel carriers.

On September 6th, they sent in a riot squad

to attempt to forcibly evict the people

from the provincial park.

But they fought back and forced the riot police

to withdraw.

But they came back later that evening.

Not only the riot police but a heavily armed

tactical response unit.

When the police entered the provincial park,

there was a band councillor from Kettle Point

who tried to intervene to stop the police.

But he was badly beaten by the police officers.

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

drove a school bus into the police lines

in an attempt to stop the assault.

At that time the police opened fire,

and they fired between 1000 to 2000 rounds.

They shot the sixteen year old youth in the back.

They killed the dog that was also on the bus.

And at that time, acting sergeant Kenneth Deane

shot and killed Dudley George.

Even though the police had launched this major

operation, they had no medical assistance

on hand so Dudleyâs brother Pierre George

actually drove him to a nearby hospital

but he was pronounced dead at around midnight.

Kenneth Deane was eventually charged

with criminal negligence causing death.

During his trial, the judge found him to be

untruthful because Deane claimed that he saw

Dudley George carrying a rifle

and thatâs why he opened fire.

But even though the judge found him to be untruthful,

he only got two years community service.

In 2003 the Ontario government called a inquiry

into the crisis.

All these different documents came out and

it was found that Mike Harris who was the

premier at the time of the crisis had intervened

and called for the police to forcibly evict

the Natives from the park.

In 2016, the federal government paid 90 million dollars

to the Kettle and Stoney Point Band as compensation.

To this day, the members of the Stoney Point Band

continue to live on the former army base

which was their reserve lands.

They basically won their struggle,

even though there was a lot of sacrifice.

Dudley George was shot and killed.