SIX NATIONS — On Sunday, a release from the Six Nations of the Grand River Elected Council and Emergency Control Group today, announcing that restriction of access to the community “has moved up the timeline,” due to large amounts of non-residents visiting the community to purchase cigarettes and gas.
“Effective immediately, we are asking all businesses to shut down operations,” reads the release.
This prompted groups of Haudenosaunee members to safe guard access to the Six Nations community by asking visitors and residents to show their status cards to regain entry to Six Nations at all access points.
Gordo Salinas, who is just one of many of the Haudenosaunee members taking to safeguarding entry to the reserve said that there will be a sentry gate at every entrance, and that it isn’t out of hate.
“We are here out of love and not hate. We do this because we care about our children, our parents and our grandparents and we just want everyone to understand that once this virus is cleared up and over with, you’re more than welcome to come back,” said Salinas. “It’s not that we hate yous’, it’s not that we don’t want yous’ here, it’s just that we want to protect our families.”
After two, now three confirmed cases on Six Nations, he said that the community “can’t risk this.”
“We’re here as the people,” he said. “No one hired us yet, the security force was supposed to hire a couple of days from now and we’re supposed to find out who’s gonna work where. As a community everyone came together we decided that we can’t risk this and we can’t sit back and wait,” he said.
He said that collectively, the announcement to shut down the businesses on reserve attracted droves of visitors looking to purchase cigarettes and gas, which prompted the lock down of the borders of Six Nations.
“That put our community in danger and we wanted to fight against that danger and close off our borders,” he said.
As of Monday, the borders of Six Nations are manned by Haudenosaunee members that were hired through Nighthawk security and will remain until further notice.
