Published 3 days ago • loading... • Updated 2 days ago

Indigenous Protesters Block Two N.S. Highways in Response to Cannabis Crackdown

On Thursday, RCMP raids on unlicensed cannabis shops in Potlotek First Nation and Sipeknekatik First Nation triggered blockades, halting traffic on Highway 4 and Highway 102 in Nova Scotia.
Tensions escalated after Attorney General Scott Armstrong issued a December directive requiring police to increase enforcement against unlicensed dispensaries; the province maintains cannabis sales are not protected by treaty rights.
In Potlotek, residents blocked Highway 4, forcing RCMP officers to abandon their vehicles after the raid, while over 20 Sipeknekatik members blocked Highway 102 near Shubenacadie, reducing traffic to one lane.
Sipeknekatik First Nation Chief Michelle Glasgow stated the protests are not about "weed shops," but about the "government asserting jurisdiction over our communities and over our unceded Mi'kmaq lands."
The Assembly of Nova Scotia Mi'kmaw Chiefs warns these raids undermine relationship-building efforts, as Indigenous communities assert their treaty right to regulate cannabis and tobacco sales.

Insights by Ground AI

16 Articles

castanet.net

+2 Reposted by 2 other sources

Center

Highway 4 reopens after First Nation protest over cannabis crackdown, police say

A Nova Scotia highway is up and running this morning after it was blocked by First Nations protesters following an RCMP raid on a cannabis shop. Highway 4 through Potlotek First Nation in Cape Breton has reopened, RCMP say, and a Potlotek band councillor says the protest is over. RCMP said it raided...

2 days ago·Kelowna, Canada

Read Full Article