Land acknowledgement

Dear Editor:

There is no excuse for the lack of land acknowledgement in this day and time of Truth and Reconciliation.

Speaking directly and respectfully in circle with the six Indigenous staff tasked with drawing this up, is the first step for Centre Wellington councillors.

Of course, Mayor  Kelly Linton does not see the problem in being without a land acknowledgement. For this council, the land acknowledgment either does not matter (“we’ll only end up saying it by rote”, projects the warden, revealing more of himself than anyone else) or it matters too much!

Once it is acknowledged that Elora Fergus and the surrounding townships are in the Haldimand Tract, their failure to present any development plans to HDI (Haudenosaunee Development Council) becomes a hot political issue. Once they acknowledge being under One Dish and One Spoon Wampum area within broader treaties, the developer’s greed, refusal of community access, clear-cutting of old trees, pollution of Grand River waters, disregard of local biosphere, Indigenous, Black and other settler heritage will be seen in all its lack of reciprocity.

Do you know any other Ontario council in 2021 that still sounds like that and looks like this?

And is consistently split 4-3 in terms of responses to the community they are supposed to represent?

Time for more diversity and more councillors.

Eimear O’Neill, Fergus