I am honoured and overwhelmed by the amount of information I have absorbed since 2004 pertaining to the land claims issue in Brantford and surrounding areas.
After having listened to opinions from a wide variety of sources, the following conclusions are evident.
Almost everyone in the area is aware that there is a long-standing issue of title to the lands around the Grand River.
Most of us are confused about the best course of action, despite a common willingness to find a solution.
There is a collective atmosphere of fear and distrust that does not lend itself to a fruitful process of conflict resolution.
The sense of anger felt by many of the affected parties gives way to an adversarial mindset causing people to react negatively rather than respond.
There is a palpable and increasing concern about the physical safety of all persons directly or indirectly involved in this imminent conflict.
There is a growing desperation concerning the future relationships within our community following the ultimate clash of our collective ideals.
There is a strong distrust and disdain for existing systems of governance, both large and small, that fail by their unwillingness or inability to work toward a common goal and recognize the necessity for an expedient change in how we structure and facilitate growth within the limits of our ecosystem.
There is a growing sense of hopelessness surrounding a workable solution that extends itself, or is projected, onto our future generations.
There is a concern about the sustainability of our local economy within a larger framework of the ultimate systemic failure of a global economy.
There is a profound sense of loss connected to our combined inability to find a workable solution worth demonstrating to cultures that contain far less health, wealth, and freedom.
I propose the following course of action.
Explain this conflict to a five-year-old child in a language she will understand.
Explain to her why we are unwilling to share.
Watch the expression on her face fall along with the wisdom we could all possess.
Jan Vander Stelt Brantford