by Shirley Christmas MMNN Contributor

Hello and welcome to this month’s episode of Shirley’s Corner. Back in the early 90’s I took part in the saving of our beloved Kluskap Mountain that was about to be ravaged by a corporate bigwig known as Quarry Rock. We were but a handful who stood up against this giant who was not taking this interruption lightly. As we stood our ground, he was thinking of the money he was losing because no one was able to work.

During the days we were there we made a Sacred Fire to pray for guidance, we also drummed and sing. Then one day to our surprise, fire trucks come blaring up to where we were and started putting out the fire and boldly said there was no such thing as a sacred fire. At that very moment my spirit, soul and heart were crushed to pieces, and I broke down in tears. I was not only hurt but was filled with such anger for what was done. I was not going to sit idly by and allow this to happen to my culture. Their action became my weapon, and I fought back by getting the media involved. Once word got out the battle of Kluskap Mountain began. It took months but finally Quarry Rock released its hold on our Sacred Mountain.

It wasn’t until a few years later I decided to write a play which is called, “Drums Over the Mountain”. However, I made a few changes such as seeing into the future if we did not stand up to the corporate giants. What happened to the mountain? What happened to the Mi’kmaq Nation? ...

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