Taylor Bachrach voted against his riding in Skeena–Bulkley Valley
Taylor Bachrach voted in parliment today (Feb 24th 2020) against standing in solidarity with every elected band council on the Coastal GasLink route and the vast majority of the Wet’suwet’en people who support the Coastal GasLink project and to condemn the radical activists holding our economy hostage.
Taylor Bachrach turned his back on all northern First Nations people, the Stellat’en First Nation, Saik’uz First Nation, Cheslatta Carrier Nation, McLeod Lake Indian Band, Saulteau First Nations, Kitselas First Nation, West Moberly First Nations, Lheidli T’enneh First Nation, Nadleh Whut’en Indian Band, Burns Lake Indian Band, Blueberry River First Nations, Halfway River First Nation, Doig River First Nation, Wet’suwet’en First Nation, Yekooche First Nation, Nee Tahi Buhn Indian Band, Skin Tyee First Nation, Witset First Nation, Nak’azdli Whut’en, Haisla Nation, all of whom support the CLG pipeline.
Taylor Bachrach turned his back on Witset’s 661 on-reserve members, he turned his back on Hagwilget and its 190 members, Browman Lake and its 140 members, the Skin Tyee and its 134 members, and the Nee Tahi Buhn and its 210 members.
Instead Taylor Bachrach chose to support 5 out of 13 Herditary Chiefs, 3 of those have seriously questionable Hereditary titles, meaning obtained outside of the traditional hereditary system. However they do fit with his Sierra Club agenda.
As a long time member and active participant in the Sierra Club, Taylor Bachrach was Communications Coordinator for the Sierra Club. As recently as Jan 2010 the Sierra Club released its support for the Office of Wet’suwet’en. “A number of our membership, wanting to better understand the situation, have reached out to us to ask questions. We’ve begun to answer these to the best of our ability below. We also encourage people to keep doing their own research. The Office of the Wet’suwet’en provides detailed information on the nation’s hereditary chiefs and governance system.”
Below is the speech made by Taylor Bachrach where he completely abandons all his constituents down to a single sentence. Below I will comment on all his comments giving a time stamp for when he said it.
At the 46 second mark Taylor lumps all the Wet’suwet’en into one sympathy basket, as if he is speaking for all of them. Then he uses a story by one elder Sue Alfred, while completely ignoring the stories of other elders like Rita George, who was one of the key players in the Delgamuukw land claims trial. Indeed such a touching story, well maybe Taylor you need to listen to this one. Introducing Gulaxkan (The Bear That Sleeps All Winter Long) also known as Rita George I am sure you will never mention her name when you stand up for the Wet’suwet’en in our constituency, it does not fit with your “Shut Down Canada” agenda. You talk about the Tiljoe family, but you sure as heck made no mention of what the wife of Larry Tiljoe said in this scathing letter Wolves in Fancy Blankets This letter was written by the wife of one of her children, so its no surprise, it also does not fit the Sierra Club narrative.
At the 3:56 mark Taylor make much ado over the Delgamuukw Land claim case, but does not bother to speak to the most educated elders and matriarchs, he talked to a hand picked selected few, hand picked by the questionable 5 hereditary chiefs. He could have talked to Wet’suwet’en hereditary subchief Gary Naziel who said “These five so-called hereditary chiefs, who say they are making decisions on behalf of all Wet’suwet’en, do not speak for the Wet’suwet’en,” Gary Naziel said. “They are neither following nor abiding by our traditional laws. They are changing them to suit their own purposes, to benefit themselves,”
From the Globe and Mail “In doing so, Mr. Naziel adds, many hereditary chiefs and matriarchs are being disrespected, bullied and targeted. This echoes what Rita George, a hereditary subchief and expert in Wet’suwet’en law, said on Thursday. Mr. Naziel, from the Laksilyu (Small Frog) Clan who was groomed for leadership from birth, says the Wet’suwet’en name “is being dragged through the mud and used by other First Nations across Canada to wage their own battles.”
Again it does not fit the Sierra Club narrative.
Clearly Taylor is using the crisis as leverage in a case of extortion, to promote control by the Office of Wet’suwet’en, who are clearly losing control of their own nation, they have alienated themselves based on what appears to be internal corruption. At the 5:16 mark Taylor wrongfully says, this is the same group who fought the Delgamuukw, that is categorically untrue. The Office of Wet’suwet’en is made up of NEXT GENERATION chiefs who know very little about the Delgamuukw trail and what was said there.
Taylor does a lot of self serving song and dance in our parliament, at the 6:34 mark Taylor makes another claim, namely that the courts affirmed it is the Hereditary Chiefs are the legitimate decision making body, but fails to tell the whole truth, that any group representing the Wet’suwet’en, be it band counsel or Matrilineal Coalition could also be a legitimate negotiating body. See Bands Authority vs. Hereditary Chiefs Authority regarding Land Claims
At the 6:40 mark Taylor says he was at the balhats where the Office Chiefs ratified their non consent, it is without a shadow of a doubt that Taylor Bachrach knows there was no quorum or even close to enough members attending to speak for the entire Wet’suwet’en Nation. If 1000 members showed up that would only be half, if 200 people showed up, they would have called it a massive crowd attending, as it was it was only a small group, mostly relatives of the 5 questionable chiefs.
How many were there Taylor, maybe 50 to 75 people?
At the 6:49 Taylor talks about alternative routes, there routes are simply a ways and means to stall the project long enough to kill the project, how can anyone seriously believe in an alternative route when the 5 chiefs have sworn off on “CGL will NEVER cross our lands.” The gesture of alternate route is a Trojan Horse used with ill intent to kill the project.
At the 7;30 mark Taylor now justifies the illegal road blocks, putting the blame on goverment for not catering to the will of people who refused to come to the negotiating table. My God it makes me wonder if Nathan is a moron, but even I know him better than that, he talks about the Office of the Wet’suwet’en, yep secretly withholds that they removed themselves from the negotiating table in 2008-09.
My question is, is Taylor that dumb he does not know this, or that cunning that he pretends he does not know this when he is addressing the Canadian Parliament?
At the 7:02 mark Taylor attacks our national police accusing them of pointing guns at unarmed Wet’suwet’en, not once has he stood up for the RCMP defending their position, in particular the right to be ready in the event of an armed altercation. Considering what was posted in social media the RCMP had every right to be concerned. Meet the Uni-Hooligans and read what they have said! But then again it does not fit with the Sierra Club narrative.
Taylor Bachrach wants us to listen to the blockaders and to hell with what the 10 Thousand plus aboriginals living in Northern BC have to say, because it also does not fit the Sierra Club narrative. How do you negotiate with people who will not negotiate, but instead use extortion?
In closing Taylor Bachrach insults the memory of Henry Alfred, but here Taylor admits to know that there are NO Herditary Chiefs today that are alive, he refuses to admit, that the new faces are a different breed. Not all of the descendants of Henry Alfred are opposed to the pipeline. No mention is made of the majority of that family who support the CGL pipeline and support the local elected Witset Band Office.
I would like to end it here, but that would not be fair either, not one word about the rest of society, there is according to 2016 census, 88,920 people living in a riding that Taylor seems to not care about.
When the next election comes, and that might be sooner than you think, let us not forget its going to be about the Sierra Club/Five Chief Coalition vs the people of Skeena—Bulkley Valley.
PS Just in case your reading this Taylor, regarding your poor misunderstood protestor friends, maybe while you already know we are picking up their tab for medical costs every time they enter Wrinch Memorial Hospital in Hazelton, maybe with your new found wealth ($178,900 a year) you can pick up the tab for four police cars at the Hazelton Detachment that had their tires slashed by your misunderstood friends on the night of Feb 25th 2020?
Thanks for having taken the time to visit and read our articles. I had my say, feel free to post your thoughts as well, be part of making a difference.
I would have thought Taylor would have stepped lightly and with a more studied and cautious discernment before choosing a side in this ongoing complex conflict? He has opted for the “green” solution while his NDP Provincial counterpart is in favour of the gas pipeline. Truly, politics does make for strange bedfellows these days! I believe the coin toss is still in the air with the many issues vexing the Bulkley Valley at this juncture and what side of the coin will win is still anybody’s call.
I know Taylor, of course, but more in a social kind of friendly pass you on the street kind of way involving polite chit-chat. I did not know of his strong Sierra Club affiliation. Perhaps he has somethings in common with the Office of the Wet’suwet’en and the chiefs in that they get some funding from the Tides Canada organization, which also funds environmental movements and social justice issues etc. The June, 2019 video below shows an admittance of the funding by a few of the chiefs…but not after first denying it. What? Are they afraid of something? Anyways, what struck me the most was the casual way in which Hereditary Chief John Risdale (Namocks) mentioned his rather exotic (and expensive?) travel itinerary. Oh yeah…Geneva, Switzerland…New York for a UN meeting…Vancouver for 3 days every 2nd month to confab with other mucky-mucks in the various First Nations confederation of organizations. No wonder the Office has certain staff busy, busy always searching for new ways of funding. Perhaps a GoFundME account will be next? Who knows? But, like Mel Brooks once said while playing the part of King Louie of France ” It’s nice to be the king”.
Risdale , Tides and Travel. You can watch/listen to the short interview in the link below.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u_yt3Ju1GO4&feature=youtu.be&fbclid=IwAR3lCY6ixX5mFAZwU-mVrSRu_o2WEqc2HTIpLDND7gBXdZ4IlEvXWcH7m1A
Ciao for now.
You must keep in mind though, that Bachrach really has no idea what he’s doing and is clearly out of his depth in Ottawa. He’s an image-driven person, and really is interested more in his Woke credentials than actually representing his riding.
He’ll be on the back-bench for some time.
IMPORTANT NOTICE !!!
I inadvertently came across the document below that was in an ” Idle No More” FB post and I believe that post was copying the notice below that was recently advertised in the Terrace Standard Newspaper?
It seems forces are at play calling for a FEAST among some First Nation groups to SHAME a list of respected First Nation personalities and Elders for their affiliation or support of the proposed Gas Pipeline through the area. These people include RITA GEORGE, GARY NAZIEL, ELLIS ROSS and others listed below in the notice. I am guessing this is being organized by the Unist’ot’en gang with support from their friendly Hereditary Chief puppets. Scary stuff. The announcement also includes a TREATY document ostensibly written and signed in 1991 by various First Nations in the valley. It details what constitutes ( what they term) ACTS OF TREACHERY. Wow…our own regular Night of the Long Knives!
I would urge anyone who knows the people listed to warn them…and to perhaps the Terrace Standard and fins out more about who and when this was advertised? Thanks.
“THERE IS A TREATY IN NW BC - ALL NATIONS AND HEREDITARY CHIEFS ARE OBLIGATED TO RESPECT IT. THOSE WHO DO NOT ARE TREASONOUS. SPEAKING OUT AGAINST THIS ANCESTRAL STRENGTH DEMANDS A SHAME FEAST.
These are those who betray the Treaty and stand in shame;
Chris Sankey, Gary Naziel, Ellis Ross, Rita George, Karen Ogden Towes, Bonnie George, Alma, Rita etc.
NORTHWEST TRIBAL TREATY
We, the Northwest First Nations have occupied and governed our respective territories since time immemorial. The Creator put us on our territories and gave us laws in which to define and govern our relationships with each other and with the animals, plants, lands, waters and air. We have maintained our spiritual beliefs, our languages, our way of life and traditions. We have done this through intermarriage and the exchange of material and food resources, and shall continue to do so through infinity. We, the signatories to this Treaty are of one heart in the advancement and protection of our common interests identified in the following principles:
We shall continue to practice our own tribal political system and laws, and we intend these separate jurisdictions to continue.
We shall continue to express our sovereignty as Nations.
We shall assist each other to reaffirm our continuing Hereditary Title and give expression to our rights; and to defend these against any erosion through external forces.
We shall collectively join the other First Nations’ efforts to pursue the explicit recognition of aboriginal title in Canada’s constitution.
We shall continue to enter into bilateral and multilateral relationships with each other to strengthen and assist in settling matters and common concerns regarding our respective cultural identities, traditions, diversity, equality of our peoples and our common boundaries according to our traditional laws.
We shall, in the spirit of sharing and co-existence, continue to enter into mutually beneficial relationships regarding access to traditional territories and natural resources. These include all resources that come from our territories.
We, as represented by the undersigned leaders of the respective First Nations, reaffirm these principles by this treaty.
Dated at Lax Kxeen, Monday February 11, 1991
In public, in front of hundreds at the All Native Basket Ball Tournament, Prince Rupert.”
Damn, my name is not on the list, I feel slighted 🙂 To be on that lists is an honor, i missed the boat somehow.
“Mr. Ross said he could never get a straight answer from members of his community about why they voted NDP..”
Many others should be asking the same thing right now.
Taylor “Bike Rack” is another one of the Leap Manifesto NDP such as Nathan Cullen who does not believe in development. His anti business policies as mayor of Smithers has led to high business and personal property taxes and no growth in the town. His policies also almost killed the drive for a new hospital. I couldn’t believe it when he said Smithers is a tourism based community, but that reflects his beliefs that the only development that should happen in Smithers is that everyone should ride a bike, hence the dozens of bike racks. I guess that is why he lost the vote in Smithers to the Conservative candidate but was bailed out in Prince Rupert, Terrace and the Nish’ga lands
I’m still flabbergasted that he even won his riding. After all the questionable decisions he made as mayor of Smithers, I really thought people wouldn’t elect him into a higher position.
This dildo couldn’t look after a town of 7-8000 people. He cost the tax payers thousands of dollars and the businesses even more. Let’s not forget the famous “sidewalk to nowhere”. He’s out of his league and does not speak for anyone in this area. He’s absolutely clueless!!!
Taylor Backtrack Bikerack Bachrach led the charge against the CGL from the beginning as the Mayor of Smithers followed by the feeble minded minions on his council. He led the town down the Rabbit hole.
Mr.Bachrach I voted for you in the last election. Never again, I have no use for a politician that does not represent the majority of his constituents. You are obviously one of those people that believes in shutting Canada down.
I went to high school with Taylor and he hasn’t changed his ideals since he became AMA her of DESC, Dunster Student Environmental committee.
Some things will never change, including Taylor’s ability to sell out democracy to further his own agenda.