Supreme Court Decision

On Thursday, the Supreme Court of Canada decided that a private developer should be granted permission to develop a year round ski and recreational complex in the Kootenay region of British Columbia. The Ktunaxa First Nation had opposed the development on the grounds that their religious freedoms were being infringed upon. According to the CBC " The Ktunaxa believe the project will drive Grizzly Bear Spirit from Qat'muk, the traditional name for the spiritual territory, and permanently impair their religious beliefs and spiritual practices" (CBC).

I could never be a supporter of anyone or any company who believed that what we really need  is another tourist destination. Once developers start redefining the landscape - the landscape, the people the scenery all change. One only needs to look at what happened to Whistler, Golden, Canmore or Banff to see how the natural beauty of a place has been fundamentally altered in the pursuit of money. Mountain vistas that were once within the public's right to see and enjoy become private property marred by ski trails. mountain bike trails, chair lifts and expensive chalets.  I will always argue that the gain in seasonal jobs is a poor trade off for outside investors' personal gain.

Having said all of the above, I agree with the justices of the Supreme Court. While such a development maybe tasteless and not needed, the faith of one group should not have the right to prevent what most people would assume is the right of the world to grow and evolve - even if we do not agree with the direction it is growing.

Some First Nations advocates will argue that this is just one more bit of proof that the white hierarchy is continuing on in its agenda of intentionally destroy First Nation cultures. That if the state had any real commitment to reconciliation, that it would not allow such development. There is of course one fundamental flaw in this argument. In the past - the Supreme Court has fairly constantly ruled in favour of First Nation issues. They did so long before governments or Canadians in general became empathetic or even aware of what those issues were. In fact, it was the decisions of the Supreme Court that exposed both governments and citizens to the injustices of government policies. First Nations need to be careful that in one breath they use previous Supreme Court decisions to their advantage and at the next breath condemn the institution. It leaves First Nations vulnerable to accusations of just "playing the political game"

Similarly First Nations need to be careful of waving the reconciliation flag every time something happens that they do not agree with. The overwhelming obligation of Canadians to accept the implications and consequences of colonialism does not mean that every decision needs to be designed to rectify our nation's past wrongdoings. To suggest overly frequently that reconciliation should be the primary concern of everything from Supreme Court decisions to how we name elementary schools - will exhaust the public, detract power from the word and allow people to forget why it is both an important process and obligation.

Our public institutions will continue to make decisions that irritate people. Specifically the Supreme Court is part of an adversarial process. There are, therefore winners and losers in every decision. We might not like the answers - but we should not cast aspersions upon the institution and its values.