Land
Islanders and the Land
Islanders and the Land – a video documentary of how the people of Prince Edward Island have struggled to keep land in the hands of communities. Click here to see the video: Islanders and the Land
It explores the history of resistance on the Island of over two centuries as communities have fought for the land to be liberated from the encroachment of Lords of the Land. It follows the words of Reg Phelan, author of the book Islanders and the Land, who said “The Islanders’ struggle for land in the 19th century is crucial to an understanding of the appreciation and ties to the land today. This history which has stayed alive against heavy odds informs our present attitudes and perceptions of development”. This documentary looks at how land grabbing and concentration and corporate control over inputs and outputs of the farm economy pose a massive threat to farm communities in Canada. It shows how we can learn from the people of Prince Edward Island in building a national resistance and alternatives to the industrial agricultural model.
We thank very much the people of the Island and the National Farmers Union for their warm hospitality and interest in supporting this video documentary.
Produced by Don Kossick and Denise Kouri, Making the Links Productions, 2016
Food Sovereignty
Farmers from PEI and New Brunswick participated in a two-day workshop to develop their understanding of food sovereignty. The result was this document:
History
Agrarian Protest and Provincial Politics:
Prince Edward Island and the 1971 National Farmers Union Highway Demonstration
Ryan O’Connor
University of Western Ontario
Abstract
During ten days in August 1971 Prince Edward Island farmers, led by the local chapter of the National Farmers Union, staged high-profile public protests against the provincial government’s neglect of family farm issues and its promotion of economic rationalization and modernization as exemplified in the government’s 1969 Comprehensive Development Plan. While these protests did not stop the trend towards farm abandonment, they did manage to put the concerns of small farmers on the political agenda and dampen the government’s enthusiasm for development planning that ignored small producers. The result was a consultation process between the government and small farmers and the government’s 1972 Family Farm Development Policy.
Read the whole article here.
