For immediate release:
April 16, 2008

No action from Bryant on ‘potluck’ at DCE
Grice, Brown and Barrett at Queen’s Park

Queen’s Park -- On the heels of an impassioned media studio presentation by Caledonia resident Dave Brown – accompanied by Haldimand County Councillor Craig Grice –  MPP Toby Barrett brought the Haldimand land dispute to the floor of the Legislature once again today.

Just over an hour after Mr. Brown spoke of the very real human and family impacts of living next door to mayhem at DCE for the past two years, Barrett questioned Aboriginal Affairs Minister, Michael Bryant, about granting permission for a ‘potluck’ on taxpayer-owned land.

“It’s being held this coming Sunday, April 20, and some of my constituents are concerned that this type of event is provocative and would renew tensions between various groups,” Barrett told Bryant. “…April 20 is the second anniversary of the OPP raid at DCE. Aside from the potluck, the agenda features the Oka raid of 1990, the Ipperwash raid of 1995 and a previous RCMP raid at Six Nations. Minister, have you given the organizers permission to host this kind of event on Ontario government property?”

Minister Bryant seemed incensed that MPP Barrett would even pose the question and did not answer whether or not the province provided permission to the organizers.

“I can tell you that the last time a potluck dinner took place on these lands, lands that the member knows very well are, right now, utterly vacant, there was a potluck dinner and members of the broader community, the townsfolk of Caledonia, joined the members of Haudenosaunee Six Nations,” Bryant said. “The member tries to suggest that there’s something integrally dangerous about a potluck dinner; I say to the member that I would respectfully disagree. It’s a potluck dinner, for goodness’ sakes.”

Barrett then pointed out to the Minister that he missed the “subtleties’” of the question, noting that the last time a ‘potluck’ was held, “All hell broke loose.” He then informed the House that Bryant’s predecessor, David Ramsay (then Minister of Natural Resources) had discussions with and wrote to the chief representative of the Haudenosaunee/Six Nations to inform them that the province had not provided permission for additional persons to be on the DCE site and he also urged organizers to find an alternative location for what they were calling a picnic.

“Keep in mind, this is Ontario government-owned property – it’s taxpayers’ land,” Barrett told Bryant. “Minister, have you written to and urged the organizers – and the precedent has been set – to find an alternate location for this provocation, this potluck?”

Still agitated by the line of questioning, the Minister responded with: “The alleged provocation is a potluck dinner. This is a gathering of people who bring food. Nothing offends the community of Caledonia more than this suggestion made over and over again, that, in fact, this is some inherently dangerous place where dangerous activities take place. I say to the member, he doesn’t seem to support negotiations between Haudenosaunee Six Nations and the government.

Following Question Period, MPP Barrett said that it was obvious from Bryant’s answer that the province has no intention of asking the organizers to move their ‘potluck’ off government-owned land.

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MPP Toby Barrett at 1-800-90-8629


Aboriginal rights (tentative)

Mr. Toby Barrett: Minister of Aboriginal Affairs, last week I faxed your office a letter addressed to you and I informed you about the potluck planned for the Ontario government-owned Douglas Creek Estates in Caledonia. It’s being held this coming Sunday, April 20, and some of my constituents are concerned that this type of event is provocative and would renew tensions between various groups. Haldimand councillor Craig Grice and resident Dave Brown just finished chronicling the past two years of mayhem at DCE this morning in the media studio.

I also made you aware that April 20 is the second anniversary of the OPP raid at DCE. Aside from the potluck, the agenda features the Oka raid of 1990, the Ipperwash raid of 1995 and a previous RCMP raid at Six Nations.

Minister, have you given the organizers permission to host this kind of event on Ontario government property?

Hon. Michael Bryant: I say to the member, it’s a potluck dinner that he wrote me about. He has an objection to a potluck dinner taking place by members of Haudenosaunee Six Nations. I can tell you that the last time a potluck dinner took place on these lands, lands that the member knows very well are, right now, utterly vacant, there was a potluck dinner and members of the broader community, the townsfolk of Caledonia, joined the members of Haudenosaunee Six Nations. The member tries to suggest that there’s something integrally dangerous about a potluck dinner; I say to the member that I would respectfully disagree. It’s a potluck dinner, for goodness’ sakes.

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Supplementary.

Mr. Toby Barrett: You’ve missed the subtleties of the question. The last time there was a potluck, that was October 15, 2006, and all hell broke loose. Large gatherings were held at both Douglas Creek Estates and the Lions parking lot in Caledonia. Two days prior, your predecessor, the then-Minister of Natural Resources Ramsay, had discussions with and wrote to the chief representative of the Haudenosaunee Six Nations. He informed them that the province had not provided permission for additional persons to be on the DCE site. Minister, he also urged the chief representative to find an alternative location for what they called then a picnic. Keep in mind, this is Ontario government-owned property. It’s taxpayers’ land.

I’m asking you, minister, have you written to and urged the organizers—and the precedent has been set—to find an alternate location for this provocation, this potluck?

Hon. Michael Bryant: The alleged provocation is a potluck dinner. This is a gathering of people who bring food. The member seems to suggest that, in fact, there’s a level of protest activity taking place on those lands right now. That, in fact, is not the case. The member would suggest that if you looked out at those lands, referred to in the community as the DCE lands, that, as the member said, all hell is breaking loose. Nothing could be further from the truth. Nothing offends the community of Caledonia more than this suggestion made over and over again, that, in fact, this is some inherently dangerous place where dangerous activities take place. I say to the member, he doesn’t seem to support negotiations between Haudenosaunee Six Nations and the government. He doesn’t seem to support a potluck dinner. Is there any doubt that people continue to think that this is the party consistent with the reports in Ipperwash—