The month of February 12 to March 12, 2007, was a difficult one for the Vancouver Olympic Organizing Committee (VANOC). In their own words it was, at times, "frustrating," "disappointing," and "unfortunate."
During this time, VANOC had hoped to gain positive media coverage & promotion for the 2010 Games. They organized public ceremonies to mark the three year countdown, all of which were designed as media spectacles with government officials and corporate sponsors. Instead, they were hit by militant direct actions and protests that became the primary news stories related to 2010.
It all began Feb. 12 with the unveiling of a 3-year Olympic countdown clock at the Vancouver Art Gallery. Just as the event began (along with live CTV coverage) a masked Native stormed the stage and grabbed the mic, shouting "Fuck 2010! Fuck your Corporate Circus!" before being arrested.
Government & corporate officials had to shout into the mics to be heard over the noisy protesters, 7 of whom were arrested in total.
Two weeks later, on Feb. 23 at a groundbreaking ceremony for construction of a new Olympic curling venue, security measures & protesters were again the main story. Scores of police and crowd-control fencing were used to keep protesters away from officials & media.
The next day, on Feb. 24, Harriet Nahanee, a Native elder, passed away in a Vancouver hospital shortly after serving a 14 day jail term. She had been convicted of contempt of court for participating in a 2006 blockade of the Sea-to-Sky Highway expansion for 2010.
Then, on March 6, the massive Olympic flag that flew at city hall was stolen, just as a delegation of International Olympic Committee officials arrived for an inspection of VANOC's work. Days later, as the IOC tour ended, the Native Warrior Society released a communique claiming responsibility for the theft. They cited Harriet Nahanee's death and anti-2010 opposition as their motivations.
On March 12, the final countdown 2010 event was held: a flag lighting ceremony at city hall. Some 200 protesters passed through police security & searches to disrupt the event with yelling, whistles, & fog horns. Once again, the heavy police & security presence, along with protesters, were the main story.
From our perspective, of course, the main story was the emergence of grassroots Indigenous resistance to 2010.
Native peoples in 'British Columbia' have a long history of fighting corporate invasion. In the 1800s, the main colonial power in the region was the Hudson's Bay Company, backed by gunboats from the Royal Navy.
Today's anti-Olympic resistance is not all that different; corporations still rely on government force to invade & plunder our ancestral territories.
Unlike the past, however, this is not clear to many of our people today (assimilation). In addition, the methods of struggle have changed.
Nevertheless, the same principles apply: defense of our peoples, territory & way of life.
This documentation of the Indigenous anti-Olympic movement is meant to inform & inspire Natives into anti-2010 resistance. Make copies to distribute in your area and help build our movement.
For information on the 2010 Winter Games:
www.no2010.com
Warrior-publications(at)hotmail.com
Purpose: to Promote Indigenous Warrior Culture, Fighting Spirit, & Resistance Movement.
Indigenous Anti-Olympics Resistance
Insurrectionary Anarchists of the Coast Salish Territories