"We all drink water and share the land"

If you are concerned about the impact that proposed fracking could have on the environment and people on the west coast of Newfoundland, come to Galliott Studios this Sunday, June 28 at 2pm.

Independent journalist and author Miles Howe and Annie Clair, a Mi'kmaq land defender from Elsipogtog First Nation, will be hosting a book talk and a discussion about the anti-fracking movement. Both Howe and Clair were participants in the protest against shale gas development in New Brunswick in 2013 that became shockingly violent when an initially peaceful demonstration was confronted by RCMP in full riot gear. 

Howe's book, Debriefing Elsipogtog, explores what went wrong in terms of regulatory oversight and an insufficient consultation process, as well as how people united to build a successful resistance. Ultimately, Southwestern Energy were forced to leave New Brunswick. Howe says, “What happened in New Brunswick can just as easily happen in Newfoundland.This isn't a book I necessarily wanted to write, but its value as a primer to those who find themselves in similar situations of opposition shouldn't be underestimated.”

This is the kind of issue that it would be easy to ignore until it is too late. As Annie Clair says, “Sharing the story of this struggle is important to all people, not just Mi'kmaq people. We all drink water and share the land.”