We have to show up! August 21, 2013 Share Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Reddit Share on LinkedIn Email Kevin Seesequasis, Vice-President (Communications) – I had a look at an online poll from Angus Reid Forum that indicated 38% of Canadians will vote for Stephen Harper in the next federal election. WHAT?!? SHUT THE FRONT DOOR! Yup, it’s true. 38% of Canadians feel that Stephen Harper is re-electable; worthy of another mandate; a good leader with sound judgement. If you’re Indigenous, you may be curiously (or violently) scratching your head wondering how that is possible, especially when you consider the following: The Harper Government refuses to call a national public inquiry into the issue of Missing & Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls; despite pressure from the provinces, national Aboriginal organizations, and the United Nations. If we want safety for our mothers, sisters, aunts, cousins, kohkums, we have to show up. Education funding for on-reserve First Nation students continues to lag far behind their provincial counterparts. If we expect promises to be kept for our children, we have to show up. The Conservative Government believes that putting our men and women in prison is an effective housing strategy. If we want to prevent crime discourage and healthy homes, we have to show up. The federal government continues to spend millions of dollars denying that Aboriginal children are discriminated against. If we want to break the cycle, we have to show up. Stephen Harper’s Conservatives continue to ignore calls for respectful dialogue—instead, referring to Indigenous peoples and communities as ‘adversaries’ and ‘socially dysfunctional’. If we want respect, we have to show up. The federal government will not extend the mandate of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission to uncover the whole truth of the Indian Residential Schools legacy. If we want the truth for all Canadians, Indigenous and non-Indigenous alike, we have to show up. The Conservative Government will not issue an apology for the atrocities we’ve learned about regarding experiments on Indigenous children in Residential Schools. If we want justice, we have to show up. There are countless more reasons to show up. If #IdleNoMore has taught us anything, it’s that we cannot wait, nor can we kick up our feet and relax. Something needs to be done. With 2 years left in Stephen Harper’s ‘strong, stable, national majority Conservative government’, let this be my rallying call. It’s time for all of us – it’s time for you – to get up and show up! If we don’t, at 38%, Harper wins again. *Note 1: The views expressed in this blog are those of the author and may not necessarily reflect the views of and/or official policy of the Aboriginal Peoples’ Commission and/or the Liberal Party of Canada* *Note 2: The blog was published in the language it was received*