Collaboration As Key to Success

CCTF member Paul Strome stood up at the September 20th Draw The Line protest in Antigonish and shared heartening words encouraging us to rise and meet this moment we find ourselves in. We‘d like to share them with you…

“I believe “Collaboration is one of the greatest keys to success”

My Name is Paul Strome. I am the Atlantic representative on the national steering committee for the Seniors For Climate organization and I am thrilled to see all of you here. We are gathered here today for DRAW THE LINE - a joyful, creative and justice-driven, public event. This is more than a rally - it’s a festival of resistance and imagination, grounded in five key demands with one voice for critical social justice demands: economic justice, Indigenous sovereignty, migrant rights, peace and anti-war, and CLIMATE JUSTICE.

One definition of a leader is “Someone with a magnet in their heart and a compass in their head”.  Our dynamic local team here in Antigonish is spearheaded by just such a person, retired Dr. Edwin DeMont.  

This is a rally to bring concerned citizens like you together to make YOUR voices heard by those people who make critical decisions that impact all of us.

This rally is about collaboration and relationships. One of those critical relationships is with our Indigenous brothers and sisters. The 94 Calls To Action of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) were released in December 2015 and yet only 13 have even been started. (I want to note that glaciers travel at about the same pace.)

​Here in Mi’kma’ki we need to continue to strongly support Indigenous sovereignty through education, collaboration, communication and PARTICIPACTION. 

​We currently have an issue that is focused on Hunter’s Mountain on Cape Breton. It concerns industry clear-cutting huge tracts of forest. Mature forests are critical habitat for medicines, food and many species of traditional food. Moose and deer call it home but that home disappears when the trees are harvested. First Nations depend on the forest for survival and we, as settlers need to recognize and support that. The management of our forests should be done in consultation with the Mi’kmaw nation in such a way that maintains enough of our forests for their livelihood. I sincerely hope the Mi’kmaw continue the blockade on Hunter’s Mountain until there is a satisfactory forestry agreement in their favour. It is long overdue.

The public has seen significant, positive progress made here in Antigonish with Indigenous-related courses at St. FX and I am confident this will continue. 

I want to remind us about what is the absolute source of our very being. The absolute source of clean air and water and everything we eat. The absolute source is not mankind … it is Mother Earth. We owe our very existence to Earth but yet so many people treat her with disrespect. We need to change our behaviour and our beliefs if we want to have the luxury of enjoying life on this planet for any significant length of time. 

Metaphorically, there was a line drawn to represent a point that was not to be crossed. Mother Earth has nine of those lines and we have crossed 7 of them to date. Mother Nature has limits and we are supporting her and drawing a line. We are voicing our opinion about the desperate need for the basics of life for every single one of us. Thank you”