At a pivotal time for both Indigenous rights and the climate crisis, activists are increasingly turning to direct action, including blockading railways and other critical infrastructure. In past decades, eco activists found themselves at odds with Indigenous groups (Greenpeace opposing the Inuit seal hunt, for example), but now radical environmental activists are aligning themselves with Indigenous struggles. Through 2020, activists appear to have carried out their promise; at least 40 shunts appeared on railway tracks in Washington State. In May 2020, an anonymous poster also claimed responsibility for sabotaging train tracks in Hamilton, Ontario. “These charges are clearly an attempt to discourage solidarity with Indigenous sovereignty because we threaten the legitimacy of Canada,” she concluded.

Source: The Guardian July 29, 2021 10:52 UTC