Petition for Mi'kmaq Studies at College of North Atlantic

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Support the Petition for Mi'kmaq Studies at the College of North Atlantic

http://www.petitiononline.com/kwe2003/petition.html


Mi'kmaq Studies should be available at the College of the North Atlantic
By Jasen Sylvester Benwah

The following is a copy of a letter sent to the college, Primer's Office, and Minister of Education

March 3, 2004

To: The President of the College of the North Atlantic

Dear Sir or Madame,

It is obvious to me that you are unaware of the large and proud population of Mi'kmaq people in the Baie St-George area and West Coast area of Newfoundland. And there are other areas throughout the province as well. These lands are aboriginal lands that were never surrendered to the European invaders. The population of Baie St-George is not made up of only white European descendants, as some individuals mistakenly believe.

The Mi'kmaq people are a people starved of culture, and knowledge and we blame the past and present Colonial Governments for deliberately trying to assimilate us and absorb us into the mainstream European society. I have to tell you that this has not and will not ever succeed.

This brings me to the main purpose of this letter. I want to appeal to your sense of justice and reconciliation and ask that you include aboriginal studies into the programming at your colleges especially here in Stephenville.

It is not right that my people have to go to Cape Breton, Moncton or elsewhere to take a program in aboriginal studies when this should be made available here. We need the College of the North Atlantic to live up to it's mandate and set up a local Mi'kmaq institute at the college to help guide and provide these programs we so very much crave for.

With this in mind, I will soon be starting a petition demanding this very thing. Do not dismiss this letter. You will find that is a very serious matter that will not be dropped and I ask you to seriously look at the repercussions if you do not. It will not look good for the college if you do not take the lead in this matter. This is a time when the powers that be have an opportunity to make amends for past crimes- this is one of those times and one of those requests where you have the opportunity to do your part in the healing process of a people neglected, abused and shamed.

I thank you for giving me the opportunity to bring this to your attention and I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Jasen Sylvester Benwah, local Mi'kmaw citizen

P.O. Box 552

Stephenville, Ktaqamkuk (Newfoundland)

Canada. A2N 3B4

email: postmaster@jasenbenwah.ca

website: www.jasenbenwah.ca

http://groups.msn.com/KtaqamkMikmaq