July 17, 2008

     The fight is now being taken all the way to the United Nations! Check out the article below and another from the Sarnia Observer SarnaObserverJuly17UN.pdf.

SCHOOL ISSUE OFF TO THE UN

Attawapiskat students taking their battle to the next level

Timmins Daily Press

July 17, 2008

    A group of children from Attawapiskat are taking the fight for a school to the United Nations.

     The youth have sent notice to the federal government, letting them know they intend to send a report to the UN detailing Indian and Northern Affairs' failure to build a school. It will be addressed in the upcoming review of Canada's obligations under the Conventions on the Rights of the Child.

    "We want what every other kid takes for granted, we want a new school," said Shannen Koostachin, 14.

    "The education authority is putting together a report to show we've been denied rights," she said, during a conference call with The Daily Press.

    The community was promised a new school several times since 2000, when parents pulled their children out of the classrooms because contaminated ground was making students and teachers sick.

    The illnesses stemmed from a diesel spill, which occurred in 1979.

    "We're putting together a team to create a document showing how we're being discriminated against," said Chris Kataquapit, 13.

    "We'll use it to prove we've been denied our basic rights," added Jonah Sutherland, also 13.

    "There isn't a non-Native community that would be denied a school the way we've been denied one," said Serena Koostachin, 16.

    "We've had students who have dropped out in Grade 5 because they've lost hope. We are tired of being denied these rights."

    The group would like to invite the UN to visit Attawapiskat and "walk a mile in our moccasins" to see what students are forced to live with every day -- a request Indian and Northern Affairs Canada Minister Chuck Strahl denied when students visited Ottawa.

    MP Charlie Angus (NDP -- Timmins-James Bay) feels this will force the federal government to admit the disparity between education provided to people from First Nation communities and everyone else.

    "I think the issue will come down to Canada's international credibility," Angus said. "The fight has been the symbol of the intentional and systemic treatment of First Nation communities.

    "This is a very coherent group of young people and their argument is iron clad. I think Canada will be very hard pressed to say we're meeting our international obligations in the face of this."

    In 2007, Strahl said priorities lay elsewhere and a school would not be built.

    Angus said, according to the Rights of the Child, the youth may be able to make a case they've been denied their basic rights.

    A paragraph in Article 18 says the government must "ensure the development of institutions, facilities and services for the care of children."

    Since 2000, the students have been forced to learn in makeshift portables where the fire doors are jammed shut in the winter, due to shifting ground, while the windows are stuck open.

    During the cold seasons the children, living in the sub-Arctic on the James Bay coast, have been forced to wear their winter coats to keep warm.

    A paragraph in Article 3 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child states the government "shall ensure that the institutions, services and facilities responsible for the care or protection of children shall conform with the standards established by competent authorities, particularly in the areas of safety (and) health ..."

    The government "routinely denied adequate funding to our students who had special needs, despite the fact that non-Native children are guaranteed by law adequate support resources," the students wrote in a letter to the Human Rights Program with Canadian Heritage.

    Article 23 makes it clear children who are mentally or physically disabled should enjoy a full and decent life.

    "Conditions which ensure dignity, promote self-reliance and facilitate the child's active participation in the community" should be met.

    Since students and teachers spent several hours each day for 21 years working and playing on a contaminated school yard, Article 24 would also be broken, which says the dangers and risks of environmental pollution must be protected against, they said.

    Article 28 discusses every child's right to education, "with a view to achieving this progressively and on the basis of equal opportunity."

    One of the paragraphs in this section talks about the need to take steps to encourage regular attendance and reduce dropout rates.

    "We grew up without knowing what it was like to have a real library, a proper gym, adequate computer labs or a common area so we could develop a proper school community," the youth wrote to the Department of Canadian Heritage.

    "We will document the hopelessness that creeps into our children, causing them to begin dropping out of school in Grade 5," they wrote.

    The group is submitting its application before Aug. 1 and will forward the full report, put together by experts in education, architecture and other fields, by February or March 2009.

June 1, 2008

1. *Lots of news here! On Wednesday, the children of Attawapiskat held a press conference in Ottawa (see the speech below) calling the government to honour their promises. On Thursday, Shannen Koostachin, Chris Kataquapit and Jonah Sutherland, three students from Attawapiskat, met with Indian Affairs Minister Chuck Strahl. Mr Strahl once again told the students they would not be receiving a school. Following the meeting, the students led the march to Parliament Hill on the National Day of Action. They spoke at the rally, saying they did not believe Mr Strahl when he told them they had no money to build a school. The fight still continues, however, so keep sending in those letters.
   

2. *We’ve updated the Articles section with several new ones on the National Day of Action.
   

3. *Also, we have footage of MPs Jean Crowder (NDP, Aboriginal Affairs Critic) and Charlie Angus (NDP, Timmins-James Bay) in the house on the children meeting with the minister. Check it out on the video page here!
   

See the footage of the press conference here!

Press Conference for Attawapiskat School Fight

Parliament Buildings, Ottawa

May 28, 2008

Students: Chris Kataaquapit, Shannon Koostachin, Solomon Rae

Wacheeyeh

    My name is Chris Kataquapit. We are grade 8 students from JR Nakogee School in Attawapiskat, Ontario. I am a member of the Cree Attawapiskat First Nation.

     We would like to thank everyone for joining us here today. We thank you for your on-going support of our community, and of our fight for a new school.

    We have been called the Forgotten Children of Attawapiskat. But we are forgotten no longer. Thanks to the efforts of thousands of students across Canada, the children have a voice.

        We would like to thank each student, teacher, school and organization that took the time to write a letter, or to pass our message on to others. We would also like to thank all of the people who will come to Ottawa to support us here at the Day of Action tomorrow.

    We, the Grade 8 students, are the generation of students who have never seen a real school. That is why we made the decision to come to Ottawa. We have been planning our Graduation Trip since September, and have been fundraising all year.

    In March, we decided to cancel our trip to Niagara Falls, and instead, come to Ottawa. We felt it was important to speak with Chuck Strahl and to express why we think that our community deserves a school. We sent a letter to Chuck Strahl, asking him to meet with us.

    Our message to Mr. Strahl is that we have waited long enough. We want what every other student in Canada has – a good school.

SHANNEN

Three years ago, my sister, Serena Koostachin, here on this spot, pleaded for a new school for our community. She sat in on a meeting where Andy Scott, Minister of INAC, promised us a school. But I ask, why do I have to come back and do the same thing once again?

    As young people, we have been told to stand up for our promises. But our own government cannot keep a promise that they have made 3 times. Chuck Strahl needs to keep his word.

    How can he tell us that we don’t have the right to a new school? All students in Canada deserve a learning environment that they are proud to attend, and that gives them hope. We want the same hope as every other Canadian student.

SOLOMON

    I am here on behalf of my younger sisters and brothers who don’t know what a real school looks like

    I am here on behalf of the Kindergarten students who have to walk 10 minutes just to go to gym class in –40 weather.

    I am here on behalf of our disabled students who have to wheel their wheelchairs through snow and ice

    I am here on behalf of the students who have already lost hoped and dropped out because they have no hope, even before grade 5.

    I am here on behalf of a community who has been let down one too many times

    Our message is simple. We want what every other kid in Canada takes for granted – we want a school. A safe school. A clean school. A school that will give our young people hope.

Mr. Strahl, you have the power to give us a school.  We thank you for listening to us today.

Megweetch

May 26, 2008

1. *We’ve got pictures up now from the rally held in Sault Ste. Marie. See them here. Also, the Soo Times covered the article which can be read here.
   

2. *The grade eight class from JR Nagokee School (Attawapiskat) will be outside Parliament tomorrow to call the government to build them a new school.
   

3. *Are you into digital issues? p2p News has taken up our campaign!
   

May 19, 2008

1. *We’ve got a new poster out now; it’s been put up all over Ottawa and is currently being sent out to schools across the province. Check it out here: posterattawapiskat.pdf! The Toronto District School Board has ordered 2000 posters to be distributed to every school. If you want posters for your school, email us.
   

2. *Our French site is now up and running. To coincide with the launch of the French site, we also have create a French youtube video similar to the original one, to provide information to French schools. This will be up shortly.
   

3. *We’ve got nearly 70 known schools writing letters; Clarke Road Secondary School in London has recently brought several other schools in the area on the board and the Alliston Learning Centre is also working on their fellow schools.
   

4. *We also have created a new video of the Sacred Fire rally in Fort Albany. Check it out.
   

May 4, 2008

*Ontario Public School Boards’ Association passed a motion calling for the government to build a school in Attawapiskat.

*A member of Chuck Strahl’s riding wrote a letter to the Chilliwack Times urging him to give Attawapiskat a school. We encourage you to write a letter to the Chilliwack Times letting them know what you think! Check out the contact info here.

April 22, 2008:

*Ontario Secondary School Teachers Federation has come out to wholeheartedly support our campaign. Check out their newsletter here: osstf-update.pdf.

*Also, stay tuned for the French site to go up soon. We’re working on translating the site right now so more stuff will be added over the next few weeks.

* Goodwood United Church in Uxbridge has collected over 600 pounds of teaching supplies to the teachers of Attawapiskat.

*We picked up a bunch of new schools and supporters so check out who’s involved. The Student School in Toronto has been visiting neighboring schools to get them aboard- they recently got Ursula Franklin Academy, Western Tech and Contact Alternative School.

Students from Clarke Road Secondary School has been visiting other schools as well.