RESPECT AND ACKNOWLEDGE THE INNU AS SECTION 35 RIGHTS-HOLDERS IN LABRADOR
Call on the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador to support reconciliation and respect Innu history.
Innu Nation recently cancelled the opening of Innu Pakassiun, a cultural exhibit that was scheduled to open on National Indigenous Peoples Day.
The exhibit was cancelled after The Rooms insisted that the Innu adopt a fringe theory about their own history that suggests they arrived in Labrador only 300 years ago. This theory is promoted by the Provincial Archaeology Office, a branch of the provincial government.
The majority of archaeologists, anthropologists and historians support the view that the Innu have been in Labrador for thousands of years. The Province's support for a discredited
theory causes harm to the Innu. It denies Innu oral history, ignores the academic consensus, and promotes racism.
This issue is about more than archaeology. Government institutions should not be promoting fringe theories that undermine the identity, history, and rights of Indigenous peoples.
WHAT YOU CAN DO
Please support Innu Nation by sending a message to the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador.
Ask the Province to:
- Follow the federal government’s public confirmation that the Innu have Section 35 rights in Labrador.
- Direct the Provincial Archaeology Office and other provincial institutions to stop promoting the claim that the Innu are recent arrivals to Labrador.
Thank you for supporting reconciliation and respect for Indigenous peoples.
