On September 17, 1999, the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) issued its decision in the R. v. Marshall case, confirming that the treaties of 1760-61 protect the Mi’kmaw right to hunt, fish, gather and engage in commercial trade. Yet, 21 years later and successive federal and provincial governments in Mi’kma’ki (Atlantic Canada) have failed to fully respect or implement the right of Mi’kmaw peoples to earn a livelihood from our own lands and waters. To make matters worse, when Mi’kmaw at Sipekne’katik (formerly Indian Brook First Nation) develop their own governance plan for their fisheries, they are met with racism, threats, violence and destruction of their fishing gear. Where is the so-called ‘rule of law’ when Mi’kmaw rights and lives are at risk?

Well, the short answer is that the rule of law is MIA. Non-native commercial fisherman, many of them identifying as Acadians, have openly threatened and harassed Mi’kmaw peoples at Saulnierville wharf in southern Nova Scotia in front of the RCMP. They have also gathered their fishing boats in large numbers to chase the much smaller Mi’kmaw boats, shoot flares at them and by Mi’kmaw accounts, try to ram their boats—all while the federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) and the Coast Guard look on. These same non-native fishermen have also hauled Mi’kmaw lobster traps out of the water, cut their lines or damaged them. Again, law enforcement has done little to protect Mi’kmaw peoples or property.

In the Colten Boushie case in Saskatchewan, Gerald Stanley, a white farmer, shot and killed Boushie in the name of defending “his” property. He was found not-guilty for taking Boushie’s life. Farmers then rallied around Stanley, threatening to take the law into their hands—with lethal force if necessary—to protect property. In Winnipeg, a 16-year-old girl, Eisha Hudson, was shot and killed by Winnipeg Police over an alleged theft at a liquor store—this time to protect a few stolen bottles of booze. If you are starting to a see a pattern, then join the club. The lives of Indigenous peoples have long been considered both exploitable and expendable in the name of private property.