Join Water Allies a panel discussion with five Indigenous women who are in solidarity with the Wet’Suwet’En Hereditary Chiefs and their struggle against the Coastal Gas Link (CGL) Pipeline, a 670 km natural gas pipeline that will be laid through mountains, valleys and waterways that have supported the Wet’suwet’en people since time immemorial. To construct the pipeline deforestation of traditional territories has already begun, impacting the waters, salmon runs and moose migration routes that the Wet’suwet’en have relied on for substance for generations.

The event is dedicated to Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (MMIWG) as there is an upcoming court date on February 14th, which is the National Day of Inquiry for MMIWG, where these women are facing charges laid by Coastal Gas Link and the BC Supreme Court for being present on Indigenous land when the RCMP raided the territory in November 2021.

Although peaceful in their demeanor these women have been charged as per the injunction that supports Coastal Gas Link, a subsection of TC Energy, over Indigenous Aboriginal Rights & Title. Even though in 1997 and again in 2012, the Delgamuukw vs. BC Supreme Court ruling has supported the Hereditary Chiefs regarding decisions made on the territory, and the environmental assessments clearly state that there will be irreversible environmental damage due to the pipeline, BC courts have sided with Coastal Gaslink, which unjustly infringes on constitutional rights of the Wet’Suwet’En.

This event will be a useful tool for all educators as these issues have a direct impact on climate change. Therefore, it is important to build solidarity between students and Indigenous movements as these issues have a direct impact on their futures. Grades 7-University level students and the broader public are welcome to attend.