First Nations Against Nestle
THE FIRST NATIONS
Map of all the Assembly of First Nations recognized reservations. Map used courtesy of The Assembly of First Nations.
Location of the Six Nations of the Grand River Reservation
First Nations against Nestle
Ranking sixteenth in the United Nations Human Development Index (HDI), above countries like Austria and Japan, it is hard to believe that a nation like Canada would have citizens who lack a functioning water system or indoor plumbing (UNDP 2020, 1). Nevertheless, many residents of the Six Nations Reservation in Ontario, Canada lack access to water, and they blame Nestle, which extracts and bottles water on land officially owned by the Indigenous group. Through their representative organization, the Assembly of First Nations, the Grand River and other tribal nations have mounted a campaign against Nestle, including legal actions and a call to boycott Nestle products. The social advocacy of the Assembly of First Nations has had more success than their political advocacy, as Indigenous groups often face many hurdles when trying to adequately address their issues within government systems.
First Nations Advocacy
In Ontario, Canada, the town of Grand River, located on the Six Nations Reservation faces many issues, the most severe being a lack of access to water. Every day, Nestle extracts millions of litres of water from the Erwin Well that otherwise serves as a reliable source of freshwater to the Six Nations Reservation (Peralta 2019, 1). Grand River residents complain that since Nestle began pumping, their water has become dirty, and it smells even worse. In order to get clean water, residents have to fill buckets and jugs at community water sources managed by the Six Nations Reservation. Ironically, some residents are even turning to bottled water from companies like Nestle.
Through the Assembly of First Nations, the Grand River Reservation has filed multiple lawsuits against Nestle and is lobbying to push legislation prohibiting unwanted drilling on reservation land. The Canadian government’s increased focus of incorporating Indigenous voices was codified in the Justice at Last (JAL) law. Passed in 2007, JAL, and specifically the element known as the Specific Claims Tribunal Act (SCTA) gives Indigenous groups a chance to bring their appeals before the Canadian government. Through the review of SCTA, the Assembly of First Nations was able to “carry out significant advocacy to ensure First Nations perspectives were represented” (The Assembly of First Nations, 2020). Although the SCTA is highly celebrated and applauded within the Canadian government and many Indigenous groups, the difficulty of obtaining a favorable judgment from the tribunal exemplifies a common issue faced by Indigenous groups in trying to petition governments for their rights. An additional hurdle for the Assembly of First Nations and the Grand River reservation is that Nestle's operations on the reservation are 100% legal. Even though the Grand River Reservation holds ownership of the aquifer, the Canadian government holds management rights. The law requires only that the Grand River reservation be “consulted” when new organizations or companies are granted access to their lands. This legality means that any changes the Assembly of First Nations wants to see has to come in the form of new legislation that would limit Nestle’s business practices. As is best put by Cultural Survival, a social advocacy and cultural preservation group “Indigenous people recognize that a political presence will not be given; it must be taken to be owned”. (Cultural Survival 1997, 1)
Social Advocacy
The introduction of new legislation is only possible through increased and effective social advocacy, which brings Indigenous issues to the attention of outside groups. The limitations that the Assembly of First Nations face in political campaigns are not present in social advocacy, allowing for a more effective method of solving Indigenous issues. Through the social advocacy of Indigenous groups like the Assembly of First Nations, Indigenous issues such as treaty rights, environmental racism, and missing and murdered Indigenous women have found an audience in mainstream social justice action. A large portion of Six Nations social advocacy is spreading awareness through many different mediums including social media and news articles. A recent article published by The Guardian about water access issues on the Six Nations reservation has been shared through social media a total of 35,987 times (Shimo, 2018). The Facebook page of the Assembly of First Nations has over 8,000 followers, and provides a powerful tool for social advocacy both within and outside the reservation. Through its Facebook page, the Six Nations Reservation notifies residents of community water distribution events, and raises awareness of issues faced by the Six Nations Reservation.
Hindrances to Advocacy
However impactful rising indigenous social and political movements against Nestle may be, they are still facing a global corporation that owns over 50 subsidiary companies that make products ranging from cookies to kitty litter (Lakota People's Law Project 2018). Although the Assembly of First Nations now has a larger voice in the Canadian government, they are not able to overpower Nestle’s lobbyists. Even though the rights of Indigenous groups have now gained the support of the general Canadian population, Nestle retains enough legal power to continue the exploitation.
"Aerial shot of Nestle Headquarters and Vevey" by Nestlé is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
Impacts of the Grand River Reservation and The Assembly of First Nations
The Grand River Reservation and the Assembly of First Nations have had a significant impact upon the social and political movements of recent Canadian history. Having faced these environmental and social injustices for many years, First Nations voices are now being heard in the Canadian Government. This acknowledgment within the government process has been made possible through significant and effective social advocacy. However, in order to be recognized by the government, oftentimes Indigenous groups like the Grand River reservation are forced to make concessions and to conform to governmental processes. Political advocacy is most successful when it meets with a sympathetic government. On the other hand, the Assembly of First Nations has found greater success in its impact on mainstream social movements, bringing the general public an increased awareness of indigenous issues. Nongovernmental social movements allow Indigenous groups to express themselves more fully and not have to conform as much when compared to political advocacy.
Works Cited
Macdonald, Theodore Jr. 1997. “Introduction: 25 years of the indigenous movement in the Americas and Australia” Cultural Survival Quarterly Magazine. June 1. Accessed April 27, 2021. Retrieved from: https://www.culturalsurvival.org/publications/cultural-survival-quarterly/introduction-25-years-indigenous-movement-americas-and.
Lakota People's Law Project. 2018. “Buy These Alternatives to Nestle and Starbucks” Accessed April 27, 2021. Retrieved from: https://lakotalaw.org/resources/nestle-alternatives
Peralta, Katy Kole De. "Noxious Natures: The Commercialization of Natural Resources and Environmental Racism against the Six Nations People." Environmental History Now. April 22, 2019. Accessed April 27, 2021. Retrieved from: https://envhistnow.com/2019/04/22/six-nations-has-no-water-a-tragic-story-of-resource-commercialization-and-indigenous-suffering/.
Shimo, Alexandra. 2018. “While Nestle extracts millions of litres from their land, residents have no drinking water”. The Guardian, October 4. Accessed April 27, 2021. Retrieved from: https://www.theguardian.com/global/2018/oct/04/ontario-six-nations-nestle-running-water.
The Assembly of First Nations, 2020. “Policy Sectors: Land and Claims”. Accessed April 27, 2021. Retrieved from: https://www.afn.ca/policy-sectors/lands-claims/
United Nations Development Programme. 2020. Human Development Report 2020: Human Development Data Center. Accessed April 27, 2021. Retrieved from: http://hdr.undp.org/en/data
Pictures used:
"Aerial shot of Nestle Headquarters and Vevey" by Nestlé is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
(All photos except for the map of all First Nations communities have been sourced from a creative commons search engine, and are licensed for public use, photo citations are included. The map of First Nations communities was used courtesy of the Assembly of First Nations)
