We’re heading to the north of Canada today, and our northernmost protest recording from Yellowknife in the Northwest Territories, for a protest around the rights of indigenous people.

The recording and photographs are by George Lessard, who provided this information from the protest’s event page:

“To demonstrate your support for the rising global Indigenous Peoples Movement by taking action in your community with your event to run parallel to the meeting between PM Harper and the AFN.

The goal is to raise the profile of the movement, demonstrate our global presence, and give visibility to the growing momentum as a peoples’ movement first. As only a few AFN-determined representatives will be chosen to participate in the meeting with Harper, it will be important to show that the rest of the movement stands united with one voice, that it is not going anywhere, and that we here to demonstrate the strength and resurgence of our nations.

“January 11 will also be in honour of Chief Theresa Spence to mark the 1-month anniversary of her hunger strike. As well as to honour the other chiefs and elders who have been on hunger strike with her.

“All nations and all people from around the world are invited to join in celebrating and affirming their support for what is happening and the need to keep things moving forward together….”

City version:

Ryan Cross’ reimagined version invokes Ginsberg to talk about our responsibility to the planet:

“This protest is part of a wider movement called Idle No More which is a collective of indigenous groups in Canada that are united to defend the rights and lands of native groups.

“It uses speech from the protest, as well as the beating drums that played during the march. The drums have been separated into left and right channels, with one channel the reverse of the same drum beat.

“The forward/backwards drums will switch in the listeners ears, with the intent of producing a dissonance, but also the idea of the breakdown in binary thinking.

“Starting off with the idea of indigenous/non-indigenous, the piece seeks to dissolve these differences and in the end we are to understand, as the title suggests, that we are all indigenous to this planet and that we all have a responsibility to it.

“At the end is an excerpt from Allen Ginsberg’s epilogue to his poem “Howl,” which reinforces the sacred nature of all human existence.”

Memory version: