Taanshi,<br><br>Please consider adding your signature to this letter or writing your own to Stephen Harper, Prime Minister of Canada, about restoring funding to the First Nations University. It will close if additional funding is not in place by the end of this summer....<br>
<br>Much good work on the indigenous languages of Canada--especially Cree, Ojibwe, etc.--is being done there. Indigenous Canadians are learning how to do research that fits with their community ways, needs and desires.... The university is important to us and we need your help to ensure that it survives....<br>
<br>Eekoshi pitamaa.<br>Heathe<br><br>**************<br><div class="gmail_quote"><br>Subject: Open Letter of support to restore funding to First NationsUniversity from CAUT<br>
<br>
We would like to invite you to sign the Open Letter to Stephen Harper<br>
regarding the Federal Government's funding of First Nations University<br>
of Canada. The letter is reproduced below. If you wish to sign the<br>
letter, please go to <a href="http://www.caut.ca/fnuc/" target="_blank">http://www.caut.ca/fnuc/</a> and click on the line "Add<br>
your signature to this letter." I hope you will do so and will forward<br>
this email as widely as possible. Unless we can get the Federal<br>
Government to restore full funding, the First Nations University will<br>
not survive.<br>
<br>
Yours respectfully,<br>
<br>
James L. Turk<br>
Executive Director/Directeur général<br>
Canadian Association of University Teachers/<br>
Association canadienne des professeures et professeurs d'université<br>
2705, promenade Queensview Drive, Ottawa (Ontario) K2B 8K2<br>
Tel/Tél: 613-726-5176, Mobile: 613-277-0488, Fax/Téléc: 613-820-7244<br>
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<br>
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<br>
OPEN LETTER<br>
<br>
April 2010<br>
<br>
The Hon. Stephen Harper<br>
Prime Minister of Canada<br>
<br>
Dear Prime Minister:<br>
<br>
In June 2008 you did what no prime minister before has been willing to<br>
do - offer an apology to former students of Indian residential schools.<br>
In that apology you noted that "Two primary objectives of the<br>
residential schools system were to remove and isolate children from the<br>
influence of their homes, families, traditions and cultures, and to<br>
assimilate them into the dominant culture."<br>
<br>
Now, less than two years later, your government is forcing the closure<br>
of Canada's only First Nations university -- the sole university in<br>
Canada based on First Nations traditions and cultures. By refusing to<br>
restore full funding for First Nations University, your government will<br>
now make it impossible for First Nations university students to study in<br>
an institution based on First Nations traditions and cultures.<br>
<br>
There is a bitter irony in your government's action, coming as it does<br>
after the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations (FSIN) has addressed<br>
all of the concerns that have been expressed about the University's<br>
governance structure and after the FSIN, the First Nations University,<br>
the University of Regina and the Government of Saskatchewan have entered<br>
into a partnership agreement to ensure proper financial and<br>
administrative management of First Nations University.<br>
<br>
Your government's refusal to restore full funding, which will cause the<br>
University to close after August 31, 2010, is an act of disrespect to<br>
First Nations peoples in Canada and a continuation of the very practices<br>
for which you apologized in June, 2008.<br>
<br>
We urge you to back up your 2008 apology by restoring full Federal<br>
funding to First Nations University immediately so that it can grow and<br>
expand, not have to wind down and close.<br>
<br>
Yours truly,<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
TO ADD YOUR NAME TO THIS OPEN LETTER, GO TO: <a href="http://www.caut.ca/fnuc/" target="_blank">http://www.caut.ca/fnuc/</a><br>
<br>
Nancy Carter<br>
TUFA Assistant<br>
<br>
TUFA Office<br>
Email: <a href="mailto:tufa@trentu.ca">tufa@trentu.ca</a><br>
Phone: (705) 748-1011, ext. 7334<br>
Fax: (705) 748-1651<br>
Web: <a href="http://www.trentfaculty.ca" target="_blank">www.trentfaculty.ca</a><br>
<br>
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