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Over the objections of Grassy Narrows and other First Nations communities, the province continues to issue permits for logging, mining and other large-scale industrial projects on ancestral lands. First Nation representatives at the event described how such projects degrade the land and infringe on traditional cultural practices and economic rights guaranteed to them under Canadian treaty.

The province recently agreed to send former Supreme Court Justice Frank Iacobucci to negotiate with Grassy Narrows but hasn't agreed to enforce the community's moratorium. "We've heard positive commitments recently, but we've heard them many times before," said Grassy Narrows Chief Simon Fobister. "The election will be over in less than a month but the situation in Grassy Narrows will remain the same. We need to see less political rhetoric and more results for our community. We need to have control over decisions that affect our land."

"Profiting from the devastation of public health and the environment should be a thing of the distant past for these industries," said Brant Olson, director of RAN's Old Growth Campaign, "but for Grassy Narrows and other First Nations represented today, it's a daily reality."

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