Profs McAdam, Rogin & Bahdi co-author The Conversation Canada article

Windsor Law professors Sylvia McAdam, Jillian Rogin, and Reem Bahdi wrote an article for The Conversation Canada about McAdam's ancestral lands. Also the co-founder of Idle No More, Sylvia McAdam was brought before a Saskatchewan judge and put on trial for attempting to use her family’s ancestral lands.

Sylvia and her brother, Kurtis McAdam (Saysewahum), had begun building a shelter on provincial park lands that they claimed as their ancestral home. The shelter was at Delaronde Lake near their community’s graveyard and in the area of Big River First Nationwhere they are registered members.

A conservation officer ordered them to remove their belongings from the park. They did not. Charged and ordered to appear before a judge, Sylvia and Kurtis risked imprisonment and fines.

After a one-day trial, a judge dismissed the case. The government had not presented enough evidence to prove its case and Sylvia and Kurtis did not testify. Though the case ended without their testimony, it shows that a deeper commitment to reconciliation is needed.

Read the full article on The Conversation Canada's website.