Cortes Currents

Roy L Hales / Cortes Currents - A local government initiative to protect Vancouver Island’s old growth forests may have been checked by aboriginal title issues. 

The controversial Fairy Creek logging blockade is within the traditional territory of the Pacheedaht First Nation, which has ”secured commitments from tenure holders and the government of BC to suspend operations.” They are strongly urging outsiders to "show an appropriate level of respect to the sovereignty and wishes of our nation" and "respect our desire for self-determination."

Prior to this, the Comox Valley Regional District, and municipalities of Powell River, Courtenay, Cumberland, Lantzville, Nanaimo, Port Renfrew, Metchosin, Colwood, Victoria and Port Moody all passed resolutions requesting the province defer logging in old-growth forests until the recommendations of the province’s Old Growth Strategic Review have been implemented.

While it has not yet had time to respond, some local residents have asked the Strathcona Regional District Board to follow suit.

A similar motion was on the agenda of the Capital Regional District (CRD Wednesday, but the Pacheedaht “strongly encouraged CRD to continue to focus on policy, planning and service delivery, and to work with our Nation and the nearby communities on priority matters within CRD jurisdiction.” 

Their memorandum summarized three key points from a letter message the Pacheedaht sent the CRD a month earlier:

(1) "Pacheedaht First Nation is concerned that third-party interference on our Nation’s interests and affairs including resource stewardship is polarizing and harming our community, and we have asked for it to cease." 

(2) "Pacheedaht is conducting an inclusive Integrated Resource Stewardship Plan (IRSP) involving our entire community to guide the future management of our Traditional Territory." 

(3) "Pacheedaht does not welcome unsolicited interference or involvement from others."

In closing, the memo states, “In the event that Pacheedaht First Nation determines at some point in the future that our Nation would benefit from increased involvement from CRD in the stewardship of our Traditional Territory, we will contact you.”

The CRD has not yet published the minutes of their May 12th meeting, but a CTV news reporter noted that of 2:35 PM it had not been discussed.

Image from old growth protest in Campbell River

De Clarke/ Cortes Currents - part 4 of a series in which three Cortes Island residents discuss QAnon

Photo credit: Alexander Andrews via Unsplash

De Clarke/ Cortes Currents - part 4 of a series in which three Cortes Island residents discuss QAnon

Photo credit: Alexander Andrews via Unsplash

De Clarke/ Cortes Currents - part three of a series in which three Cortes Island residents discuss QAnon and its local manifestation.

Photo credit: QAnon in red shirt" by marcn is licensed with CC BY 2.0.

De Clarke/ Cortes Currents - part three of a series in which three Cortes Island residents discuss QAnon and its local manifestation.

Photo credit: QAnon in red shirt" by marcn is licensed with CC BY 2.0.

De Clarke/ Cortes Currents - part two of a series

QAnon - Q Conspiracy - Deep State Trump by mikemacmarketing is licensed under CC BY SA, 2.0 License

De Clarke/ Cortes Currents - part two of a series

QAnon - Q Conspiracy - Deep State Trump by mikemacmarketing is licensed under CC BY SA, 2.0 License

De Clarke/ Cortes Currents - For many people, their first awareness of a social media phenomenon called “QAnon” came with news coverage of a failed autogolpe in the US, on January 6th of this year. On that date, an organised mob invaded the US Capitol building in an attempt to derail the election process and prevent the inauguration of newly-elected President Joe Biden. Their mission was to keep the defeated incumbent Donald Trump in power.

Among the banners and signage carried by the insurgents, onlookers saw many variants on the letter Q and slogans like “Where We Go One We Go All,” “The Great Awakening,” “Trust the Plan,” “Save the Children,” etc. For those who had been observing the QAnon phenomenon during the decade leading up to the insurrection, all these slogans and symbols were familiar indicators of a deeply troubling development in both US history and social media culture.

Among those worried observers were Darshan Stevens and Alex Hornby of Cortes island. When we discovered our mutual interest in the topic (cults in general and QAnon in particular), I suggested an interview for Currents. The result became a four-part special feature, airing the week of May 10th 2021.

De Clarke/ Cortes Currents - For many people, their first awareness of a social media phenomenon called “QAnon” came with news coverage of a failed autogolpe in the US, on January 6th of this year. On that date, an organised mob invaded the US Capitol building in an attempt to derail the election process and prevent the inauguration of newly-elected President Joe Biden. Their mission was to keep the defeated incumbent Donald Trump in power.

Among the banners and signage carried by the insurgents, onlookers saw many variants on the letter Q and slogans like “Where We Go One We Go All,” “The Great Awakening,” “Trust the Plan,” “Save the Children,” etc. For those who had been observing the QAnon phenomenon during the decade leading up to the insurrection, all these slogans and symbols were familiar indicators of a deeply troubling development in both US history and social media culture.

Among those worried observers were Darshan Stevens and Alex Hornby of Cortes island. When we discovered our mutual interest in the topic (cults in general and QAnon in particular), I suggested an interview for Currents. The result became a four-part special feature, airing the week of May 10th 2021.

Manda Aufochs Gillespie/ Folk U Radio - In this edition of the Folk U Radio’s Reporters Roundtable, our journalists talk about environmental issues in some Vancouver Island small communities.

Our host, Manda Aufochs Gillespie of Folk U Radio, is joined by:

Shalu Mehta, reporter for The Discourse in the Cowichan Valley and on the West Shore.

Rochelle Baker, Quadra Island resident and reporter with the National Observer

Roy Hales, editor of Cortes Currents .

Marc Kitteringham, reporter with the Campbell River Mirror