The Shabot Obaadjiwan First Nation, formerly known as the Sharbot Mishigama Anishinabe Algonquin First Nation and as the Sharbot Lake Algonquin First Nation, is a non-status Algonquin (Anishinaabe) community located north of Kingston, Ontario. It is currently in negotiation with the federal and provincial governments over claims to Aboriginal title in the area. Its chief is Doreen Davis.
The Sharbot community was offered a reservation in Bedford Township in 1844, but declined it. "Our families chose not to go to a reserve," Chief Davis said in a 2000 interview. "They just thought it was an awful place and they chose to stay with their non-native friends in the community."[1]
In 2007 and 2008, the Shabot Obaadjiwan First Nation worked closely with the Ardoch Algonquin First Nation to oppose uranium exploration in the Sharbot Lake area. Both communities took part in a non-violent blockade of a proposed mining site, and were involved in legal action against the prospecting company Frontenac Ventures.[2]
References
- ^ Murray Hogben, "Algonquin natives seek Crown land: First Nations have no desire to take over private property", Ottawa Citizen, 26 January 2000, D15. At the time of this interview, Davis was described as representing 500 adults and 250 children around Sharbot Lake and in urban centres such as Smiths Falls, Brockville and Kingston.
- ^ Suzanne Ma, "Uranium drilling fight gets hot", Ottawa Citizen, 30 July 2007, D1; Ciara Byrne, "Uranium mine protesters use drums, voices to drown out words of injunction", Ottawa Citizen, 1 September 2007, E1; "Lawsuits launched", Windspeaker, October 2007, p. 9; Helen Forsey, "FIRST NATIONS FIGHT TO PROTECT THEIR LAND: Algonquins and settler allies block proposed uranium mining", CCPA Monitor, April 2008, p. 22.