In light of BC MLA Dallas Brodie’s persistent residential school denialism, it’s important to understand these actions as part of a broader far-right strategy. To help people better recognize it, Sean Carleton joined the Redeye podcast to discuss why Brodie’s rhetoric is yet another far-right distraction aimed at stoking anti-Indigenous hatred for political gain.

Canada’s new “elbows up” nationalism frames itself as resistance to Trump and US expansionism—but it risks recycling colonial myths. By glossing over the Mohawk Resistance and ongoing land theft, patriotic rhetoric hides violence against Indigenous peoples. Real strength means truth, reconciliation, and resisting colonialism, not shallow nostalgia.

It’s time for Pierre Poilievre and the Conservatives to move on from Aaron Gunn and leave residential school denialism behind once and for all. If the Conservatives are truly serious about “common sense,” they must unequivocally renounce residential school denialism—or else risk paying a political price on April 28.

On May 23, 2023 the Royal Canadian Mounted Police celebrated its 150th anniversary and kicked off a series of #RCMP150 initiatives. To counter the uncritical mythologizing of the Mounties we are seeing—from the prime minister to the RCMP itself—the National RCMP Research Council has created a new website to share truths about the force.

To mark the 30th anniversary of “Oka,” and as global movements to end systemic racism rage on, CD’s Sean Carleton had the opportunity to speak with legendary Toronto hip hop icon Wesley Williams (better known as Maestro Fresh-Wes or Maestro) about his music and the song “Nothing At All” specifically—and what they can teach us today, if we take the time to listen.

With people sheltering in place as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, many are turning to their TVs for comfort. If you’ve already watched popular choices like Contagion and Outbreak and are still craving more disaster content, don’t worry. On April 28, Mi’kmaq director Jeff Barnaby’s new anti-colonial zombie film, Blood Quantum, is being released across all on-demand and digital platforms.

While we are all doing our best to adapt to the changing circumstances of the COVID-19 crisis, we must ensure that our isolation does not lead to collective complacency. Now is the time to double-down on our demands for justice and to distance ourselves from capitalism and colonialism.

The recent outpouring of support for the Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs and their supporters indicates that many Canadians are no longer willing to sit idly by while their governments and police forces ignore legal rulings and violate the rights of Indigenous peoples. Meaningful reconciliation will require Canada to have the courage to switch strategies, trading coercion and violence for nation-to-nation negotiations and diplomacy.

Despite Canada’s promises to strengthen its “Nation-to-Nation” relationship with Indigenous peoples, the events in Wet’suwet’en territory confirm that Canada remains committed to its “might is right” approach. History shows us that this is a losing strategy. Meaningful reconciliation will require Canada to switch tactics, trading armed police and military invasions for negotiation and diplomacy.

With the 30th anniversary of the resistance on the horizon, CD’s Sean Carleton had the opportunity to sit down with Chris Hannah, lead-singer and guitarist of the Winnipeg-based punk band Propagandhi, who wrote and released a song of solidarity with the Mohawks in the conflict’s immediate aftermath. “Oka Everywhere” was first released in 1995 on I’d Rather Be Flag-Burning, a 10” split between Propagandhi and I Spy on Recess Records.