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Kinder Morgan protester:
The RCMP were kind and civil as they arrested me on Burnaby Mountain
Vancouver Observer November 24th, 2014
During the afternoon of Saturday, November 22, I chose to cross the police line and submit to arrest at borehole #2 on Burnaby Mountain . I was taken into custody and charged with Civil Contempt of the Order and Injunction pronounced by the British Columbia Supreme Court on November 14. How did this happen?
I'm 68 years old and I teach a course in interdisciplinary thought and practice at the University of British Columbia , as well as a course in systems thinking, worldviews and ethics in the Environmental Education and Communication graduate program at Royal Roads University . In teaching these courses it has become more and more clear to me that we are all embedded in our current dysfunctional political and economic system; there are no angels or demons here, no easy solutions. We all live lives of contradiction.
We all try to do the best we can.
Each September I spend a month alone in the wilderness to directly experience belonging in (and to) the world of lakes, mountains, trees and sky. To feel, again, in my bones, that the earth is my home. I've long recognized that climate change is real and is largely the result of human activities, and yet I don't live as though I actually believe such destructive changes are happening. Sure, I recycle, drive an old Honda that uses little gas, minimize my driving, sign petitions, etc, but for the most part I go through my days as if everything will just keep on keeping on.
When I heard about the protest on Burnaby Mountain , I decided to go up and lend support. During my first several visits there were no police in sight. That changed last Thursday when the RCMP moved in to enforce the injunction handed down by the BC Supreme Court. We've seen media photos and video of the physical conflicts that have sometimes developed, but those instances have been rare and it's important to keep them in perspective.
On Thursday I was quietly sitting in my chair just to the side of the main body of protestors, when the RCMP's shoulder-to-shoulder line started to push everyone back up the road so as to cordon off a larger prohibited area. Things were tense, but I decided not to move unless specifically asked.
Even though I was within the newly stretched yellow ribbon, no one asked me to leave. After an hour or so I heard an officer ask another one who I was. The response was, “We don't know, but he's not causing problems so we're letting him stay.”
During the 3 ½ hours I sat there, meditating and quietly watching, several of the RCMP came over to ask if I was OK. They said I looked cold and offered me a blanket, water and other hot and cold beverages. I politely declined everything. What I wanted was to pee, but I didn't want to move. One of the most solicitous of them said he had sort of adopted me and was concerned for my well-being.
At 4:30 another officer came over to say that heavy equipment was coming into the area and they were concerned for my safety in the gathering dark. He asked if I'd move to outside of the cordoned off area. I politely told him that I was considering whether to be arrested rather than move. He said he'd give me a few minutes to decide. I thought it over and decided it was time to go home. My 3 hour shift was over.
Mostly the day was peaceful. With a few exceptions, the RCMP were friendly and polite, except when someone physically challenged them, and then their response was instant and overwhelming. One of them told me he was glad we were there standing up for what we believe. I suspect many agree with the protest, but they have a job to do. It's a tough spot for them to be in. And of course some of the young protestors had their testosterone flowing.
Shortly after I arrived to the mountain on Saturday, I decided it was time to submit to arrest as an act of civil disobedience. The drilling rig was operating in front of us and I could no longer fail to respond. I told two of the RCMP on the line that I was going to peacefully step across, and that I have a prosthetic leg and buggered up shoulder. They walked me toward their van without putting hands on me.
Seeing us walk in, the officer who had "adopted" me on Thursday came up and said he was glad to see me.
He thought I was returning to the spot where I'd been sitting, and when I told him I'd been arrested, he was upset and said, "You don't want to do that. Can I talk to you for a minute first?”
“Sure,” I replied, “but I've made up my mind.” Then another officer came up and said we had to move the arrest process forward.
Again, everyone was polite, friendly and concerned for my wellbeing. Before climbing into the back of their car, I asked if I could bow to the four directions and they agreed.
I was locked into a cell for about 4 hours as they processed me and others that earlier in the afternoon had been arrested. I thought I would need to catch a bus back to my car (again the contradictions) and they went online to find the route and schedule for me. But on my release a group of supporters was waiting outside. They had been there in the chill afternoon and night for hours to be sure each of us had someone to welcome us. They greeted me warmly and gave me a ride.
This was not even close to being one of the more unpleasant experiences of my life. My biggest complaint was that the blueberry muffin, served as part of dinner in the jail, was tasteless. It is so easy to demonize the RCMP and to focus on their at times very problematic behaviour. So I think it's important to also acknowledge when they behave not only professionally and respectfully, but also show friendship and kindness.
They, like all of us, are embedded in a dysfunctional system that needs to change. This will be a long process of waking up and learning to live in different ways. None of us has a complete solution to our current difficulties, but it's vital that we move in a positive direction. Expanding pipeline infrastructure and the tar sands is not a positive or sustainable direction.
The response to my arrest on Burnaby Mountain
December 1st, 2014
In response to the essay I wrote about my experience of being arrested on November 22 for civil disobedience on Burnaby Mountain and published by the Vancouver Observer on November 24, I've received a number of emails.
Most have been appreciative, but one from a long time friend was sharply critical. Since I believe his voice deserves be heard, I've asked the Observer to publish our email exchange. His comments are left justified and my responses to him are indented. He asked that his name be kept confidential.
I've also asked the Observer to publish an email I received from Scott Fefchak, an RCMP officer in Churchill , Manitoba . We've heard a lot from protestors and others, but very little from the RCMP in their own words, and I believe Scott's voice also deserves to be heard. His letter is below my exchange with my friend.
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Activist friend: This may come out as a bit of a scatter shot, as there are many points to cover. Let's start with why the RCMP were kind & gentle with you. And there's not really a gentle way to say this: You are a white, male, late middle aged professor with a visible disability and the ABILITY to publish. Of course the cops are going to be gentle with you. They have been significantly less gentle with young idealistic passionate activists, with first nations, with known organizers etc...
Bob: Hi—,
Yes, I'm an older white guy in the eyes of the cops. Period. On Thursday they had nothing more to judge me by but my peaceful demeanor. I was wearing old clothes and, had I made any moves to the contrary or challenged them, they would certainly have rousted me, too. They did not know I teach at the university or that I'm an author with the ability to publish. They could not see my prosthetic leg or buggered up shoulder. You created all that in your mind. Of course being a middle-aged white guy in such situations isn't trivial, but on the mountain I saw people of all ages, ethnicity and both genders peacefully arrested and treated respectfully by the police.
I am not a professor. I've been a part time sessional lecturer for several years and I have zero job security. I'm actually a migrant worker of the “intellectual” class. The only time in my life I've earned above the poverty line has been during the past 3 or 4 years. I live in a 225 sq ft basement apartment and drive a 1984 Honda Civic. So I don't hold a position of that much privilege or power in our culture.
Of course cops can be brutal. I was being hassled by cops in both North and South America 50 years ago. I used to be a long haired hippie in the 60s and came to Canada two steps ahead of the FBI with a warrant out for my arrest for draft evasion and a 5 year prison sentence hanging over my head. I left my country not knowing if I'd ever be able to return. And for 9 years I couldn't return due to that arrest warrant. I did not apply for amnesty because I refused to admit that I'd done anything wrong. I've always had difficulty with authority, and when I see a cop, my knee-jerk emotional reaction still tends to be anger and resentment. I think I wrote the essay about getting arrested not only to describe my personal experience to others, but also as a reminder to myself to not demonize the police as a whole.
Activist friend: Further, the lived experience of many activists (myself included) has shown that the cops will be as brutal & violent as they please, when they please. So imagine what effect your article has on the young Gixtan man in a bandanna who was woken up at gunpoint by cops with a no-knock warrant for being suspected of spraying 'no pipelines' graffiti. Or every indigenous woman in Canada who fears she will be the next one on the list of over 1,200 murdered & missing women, and knowing the RCMP will do nothing. Or me, who watched my partner be violently arrested at a demonstration two years ago for the crime of being vocal & female. They destroyed her rotator cuff that day, and her arm will never be the same again.
There is a divide forming in the Burnaby Mountain activists, young first nations warriors are being shunned when they show up with bandanas on their faces, white middle class NIMBYs are now worried about how the group will look to the cops & are afraid of offending the RCMP. When I have asked them why, they cite your article.
Bob: Yes, cops will respond to a direct physical challenge. We know this, and we should also know that engaging in such confrontation is futile and, in my view, counterproductive. When I spend time alone in the wilderness, I know that if I challenge a grizzly bear I will very likely get seriously fucked up. So I don't do it. I do all I can to accomplish what I want to accomplish and still stay safe. Did the RCMP ever over-react during the past week? It seems so to me in a few instances. But considering what the cops have been doing in Ferguson , the RCMP have been very restrained here. I think it makes sense to reinforce that when possible.
Cops will also, at times, react badly to direct verbal challenge, although on the mountain I've watched them stand calmly in the face of serious verbal abuse. Imagine what would happen to you if you got in someone's face like that in a bar. We expect cops to remain calm in the face of verbal abuse. They are paid to do so and they have all the power on their side. We should criticize them when they do not. We should also acknowledge it when they behave well.
My intention in going to the mountain is to express my disapproval not only of this pipeline, but of the expansion of fossil fuel production and transport in general. Challenging the RCMP is a red herring. They are not going away. Period. Unless you are prepared for a general armed revolution. And, it seems to me, such revolution seldom results in positive long term change. Of course the RCMP need to be held to account when they behave badly, which they sometimes do. But it is pointless and counterproductive to demonize them when they are not behaving badly. And it alienates those of them who are trying to remain human. I don't want Canada to devolve into the US .
I understand that from the perspective of some First Nations people, what I've just said might well seem like total horseshit since they have at times suffered terrible abuse at the hands of the RCMP. And on occasion they have used either symbolic violence or threat of violence effectively. But I, and many of the protesters on the mountain, are not First Nations. It's also vital to recognize that during the protests I've been to during the past year, First Nations speakers have all spoken for peaceful resistance.
Activist friend: Every time we publicly voice the 'nice cops' narrative, it gives them & the mainstream press the opportunity to parade out the tired, old “Good protester vs, Bad protester” false dichotomy. It's how they weaken & destroy social & environmental justice movements.
Bob: I've now been on the receiving end of the “Good protester vs Bad protester” false dichotomy...but not from the press. Rather, the judgment comes from a subset of all the protesters on the mountain. Your group seems to believe you have a unique handle on the only Truth and that everyone must agree with you. That attitude, in my view, hinders the wide-spread substantive change I seek from taking place.
I wrote my essay in response to the early focus by the media on the few acts of violence I've seen during the days I've been on the mountain. I don't claim to have seen them all, but I was writing from my own direct experience. It seems to me that there are those on both sides of the line who wish to exploit the rare acts of violence. None of this is new to you. This same discussion is taking place between various people all over the world.
Activist friend: The RCMP's motto is "Maintiens le droit" Uphold the Right. That which is good & proper. How exactly are they good & proper, defending a foreign owned corporate leviathan (who are the same folk that brought you ENRON) against Canadians.
Bob: Of course defending a foreign-owned corporation (especially one as irresponsible as Kinder Morgan) against Canadian citizens and interests isn't right. And that corporation is just a small (or not so small) piece of the huge dysfunctional system. As are the cops. As are we all.
Activist friend: Do I want to see a violent confrontation with cops? No. But I do want them to be publicly shamed, constantly reminded that what they are doing is NOT "Maintiens le droit".
Bob: To me, yelling shame in someone's face doesn't seem like the best way to get them to reflect on their behaviour (any more than it's a good way to engage with a child). It only generates resistance and allows them to discount you as a mindless jerk. Challenging the law peacefully and being willing, if necessary, to suffer the consequences is (again, this is my view) more effective. It's like judo. You don't resist directly.
Activist friend: I want them to be told, every time they pull out the 'I am just following orders' line (which they have) that that was debunked at Nuremburg. That under their uniforms they are thinking people who are obligated to refuse shitty orders & THIS is a shitty order.
Your article in the Observer has been making the rounds in every activist circle I am connected to. It has done far more harm than good. I hope you can reflect on the reasons for that & see why publishing it has been deeply problematic.
Bob: I agree the injunction was a shitty order, which is why I chose to step across the line. In my view, the whole global economic system is seriously broken and it may need to collapse before things will change. But if that collapse is accompanied by violent confrontation, it will, I think, be much worse than otherwise. So I hope that's not the path we will end up following.
I imagine my responses above won't be satisfactory to you or to others in your activist circles, but I need to think and act as seems right to me, not as seems right to you.
Take care,
Bob
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Here is the email from Scott Fefchak
Dear Mr. Kull
I'm writing you this as a police officer, but mores as a husband and father of 3 great kids.
I just finished reading your article about getting arrested at the Kinder Morgan site in the Vancouver Observer. I am a member of the RCMP presently posted as the NCO in charge of Churchill Detachment here in Manitoba .
I want to tell you that I am grateful you took the time to share a positive experience about the RCMP. I don't think rehashing the negative press is needed as you most certainly will be aware of it, which is why it's so important people like you take a moment to revitalize the majority of our Mounties who are trying to do it right. When someone tells a positive story about how the majority of the folks we arrest are dealt with, it's sadly become appreciated, and in my case, accompanied by a sense of relief. Someone took the time to see things from our point of view.
I also want to let you know that you are absolutely correct about being in an uncomfortable position for those folks out there enforcing the law. You're astute enough to understand we have to enforce the laws of the land, not just the ones we agree with, and I thank you for recognizing that. When people are acting maturely in these instances, as you were, there will virtually never be any drama associated with the instance.
I love the fact you recognized we're not a bunch of jack booted thugs, and acknowledged we're people who are trying to do it right. I wish more people would share their similar experiences.
Contrary to what the media chooses to write about, the RCMP is full of excellent people, the VAST majority of whom do it right hundreds of times every day across the country. Understandably most people don't like to talk about being arrested so it only stands to reason we only hear about the bad ones.
Thank you so much for sharing. If you ever get the chance to come to Churchill , MB to see the Belugas or Polar Bears, I'd love to show you around. I'd even ensure you were able to have a peaceful protest about whatever you like! Your first thermos of coffee or tea is on me!
Thank you again Sir. I wish there were more like you.
Scott Fefchak
Churchill , MB