Kanehsatake: 270 Years of Resistance

In July 1990, a serious conflict erupted in Oka, Quebec, between Kanien'kehá:ka (Mohawk) protesters, the Quebec police and the Canadian army. The trigger was the planned construction of a golf course on indigenous land. When the Kanien'kehá:ka erected a barricade to block access to the construction site, the situation escalated. Violent attempts to clear the barricade were made to end the protest. Alanis Obomsawin documented the 78-day conflict from an indigenous perspective behind her own lines. Her film not only highlights the specific events, but also places the conflict in a larger context: as an expression of a systemic, ongoing struggle for indigenous rights. The multi-award-winning work is now considered a milestone in indigenous filmmaking and a central document of colonial continuities in Canada. (M.G.)

Introduction Michaela Grill