Gitga’at Rally to protest the Enbridge Northern Gateway Pipeline.

ByKeri Coles

It was so moving being up at the rally in Prince Rupert and seeing community come together with such solidarity against the Enbridge pipeline. Many remote and coastal communities depend directly on the lands and waters for their food, livelihood, and cultural practices. If there was a spill in the area, it would not just be an inconvenience, it would completely desecrate the way of life for thousands of people, not to mention sealife and wildlife. In opposing the pipeline, these communities are fighting for their lives.

One of the reasons I feel so strongly about getting personally involved as a photographer in this issue is the inequality in financial capacities of the opposing sides. On the “for” side we have oil and gas and the majority government. They’ve got a few dollars to throw around. They can pay for primetime ads. They’ve got their voice covered. It is the other side that I worry is being underrepresented.  The other side doesn’t have a media budget. They just have a lot of passionate people that are willing to fight for what they believe is right. So it will take tenacity, ingenuity, strength, intelligence, communication, sharing, and lots of other good stuff for us to get to a point of open educated debate on these issues.

Most major media didn’t go up to Prince Rupert for the rally. Too remote? Too expensive to go? Not newsworthy? I can only speculate. What I do know is that it was the most powerful display of civil society I have seen in a long while. I personally believe that needs to be seen, to be shared, and to be considered during the pipeline decision.

If you would like more information on the pipeline and its implications here are some great links:

Dogwood Initiative

Pembina Institute

Ecojustice

Humans are incredibly intelligent, innovative creatures. We have options. The pipeline is not the only option that could provide jobs and economic growth.

If you think this side of the debate needs more air time, please share.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I took a video of the drumming and dancing on my iphone (that doesn’t do it justice at all!) that you can check out here.

,

Similar Posts

  • Beloved Japan. Part II- Action.

    ByKeri Coles

    I am only one, but I am one. I cannot do everything, but I can do something. And I will not let what I cannot do interfere with what I can do. ~Edward Everett Hale This quote really struck a chord with me. The recent events in Japan have been so tragic and overwhelming. I had trouble carrying on as usual because so many people were no longer able. I reached a point though when I realized that my empathy was resulting in personal immobility and not useful action. As you can imagine, that wasn’t helping anyone. So I brainstormed…

  • The inner ear and a big timeout.

    ByKeri Coles

    The last two months have been such an incredibly wonderful and horrid journey. On May.3rd, I woke up in the middle of the night and the world was spinning (imagine drunk spins but times it by a thousand). Honestly, I thought I was dying from a brain aneurysm. It felt that wrong. I couldn’t stop throwing up. I called my parents to take me to the hospital so Gene could stay home with Ella. When we got to the hospital, the doctor said it was an inner-ear infection and, since it was viral, I just had to wait it out….

  • Beloved Japan.

    ByKeri Coles

    Gene and I took Ella to Asia when she was 3.5 months old. I will forever be grateful for the experiences we had there, especially as new parents navigating the waters of “how to be a good parent”. Being immersed in other cultures while we were raw and evolving in our new roles was such a gift. We got to witness over and over again that a “norm” is culturally based and not static, which gave us the courage to challenge assumptions and norms from back home. The biggest one of these for me was integrated community. Everywhere we travelled,…

4 Comments

  2. Fabulous coverage of such an important event.
    It isn’t a matter of If there is a spill it is when.
    I grew up in Bella Coola and there is no room for
    Tankers anywhere on any of OUR coast.
    Thanks for being there

Comments are closed.