Letter to the Editor: Bill 5 is a violation of our treaties, our lands, and our future

By Steven Rickard

Doug Ford’s Bill 5 – Protect Ontario by Unleashing our Economy Act, 2025 is not progress. It is a deliberate attack on First Nation rights, the environment, and the very legal framework that governs Crown-First Nation relationships in this province. It is a bill rooted in erasure—not advancement.

This legislation strips away key environmental protections and removes the legal obligation for Ontario to consult with First Nations on decisions that affect our lands and waters. This is not just morally wrong—it is a direct violation of Section 35 of the Constitution Act, which affirms and protects our Indigenous and Treaty rights. It disregards landmark court decisions, legal precedent, and the very treaties that allowed this province to exist.

Including the lands governed by Treaty No. 9, the Robinson-Huron Treaty, and others —these agreements were made in good faith between sovereign Indigenous Nations and the Crown. These were not documents of surrender. They were agreements based on partnership, mutual respect, and shared stewardship of the land and its resources

Bill 5 tramples over those principles. It paves the way for industry to develop on Indigenous territories without input or consent from the very people who live there, care for that land, and hold sacred responsibilities to it. It allows corporations and the government to push forward pipelines, mines, highways, and other developments with zero accountability to First Nations or the ecosystems they depend on.

And what’s even more disturbing than the bill itself was the treatment of NDP Deputy Leader Sol Mamakwa, one of the only Indigenous voices in the Ontario Legislature. Sol stood up with an Eagle feather in hand and called the Bill what it is—untruthful. Naming the harm, it would cause and demanded that the government fulfill its obligations to First Nations.

For that, he was silenced and removed from the Legislature.

Not for disrupting.
Not for using profanity or slander.
But for speaking truth to power.

His removal was no coincidence. It wasn’t just a political maneuver—it was a message: that First Nations dissent will not be tolerated. That truth will be punished. That standing up for the land, the treaties, and our future will be met with force, not discussion.

That wasn’t discipline. That was erasure.

Sol demonstrated exactly what a leader is supposed to do—he stood for his people, for the treaties, and for the land. He showed what it means to carry the voices of generations, and to fulfill the responsibilities our ancestors passed down.

If the Ford government thinks that removing one Indigenous voice from Queen’s Park will silence the rest of us, they are gravely mistaken.

Bill 5 is not about reconciliation, nor is it about progression. It is regression. It moves us backward, into an era of unchecked exploitation and silenced resistance. It pretends that “red tape” is the problem when the real “problem,” in their eyes, is First Nations Peoples refusing to be ignored.

Let me be clear: we are not against development. But we are against development that ignores our consent, our rights, and our laws. We are not obstacles to growth—we are the stewards of this land. For thousands of years, we have cared for these rivers, forests, lakes, and medicines. We do not stand in the way of the future—we stand for a future that includes all of us, not just those who profit.

To the people of Ontario: this is not just an “First Nation issue.” This is about what kind of Ontario you want to live in. One where government is held accountable, where the law is respected, and where the land is protected? Or one where voices are silenced and the earth is sacrificed for convenience?

To Premier Ford and his cabinet: you cannot legislate away the Treaties. You cannot bulldoze your way through the law. If you believe reconciliation means ignoring the very people you claim to reconcile with, then you have fundamentally misunderstood your responsibilities as a leader.

And to our Nations, our youth, our Elders, and our allies—this is our moment to rise. This bill cannot happen without our resistance. We must speak up, challenge, and protect the lands that our ancestors walked and our grandchildren will inherit. We have stood through colonization, assimilation, and displacement. We are still here. And we will not be erased—not by legislation, not by silence, and certainly not by fear.

More importantly – our land is not for sale.