Regina INAC protesters demand that offices re-open to the public
A small group of protesters camping outside the office of Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada (INAC) in Regina are demanding that the federal government department unlock the office doors and talk to them.
The INAC office has been locked since the original protest began more than a week ago in solidarity with a national movement called OccupyINAC at offices in Toronto, Winnipeg and Vancouver.
While the protests across Canada originally sprang up in response to the suicide crisis on the Attawapiskat First Nation in northern Ontario, organizers in Regina pointed to three reserves in Saskatchewan that also declared mental health crises last month. The group is also calling attention to the housing issues on many reserves, with one banner describing the camp as ‘INAC overflow housing’.
Protesters say the ongoing struggles of First Nations across Canada are rooted in the history of colonialism which is why they call it ‘Colonialism No More – Solidarity Camp’.