by Gabrielle Bossy

Just last night, I had the opportunity to see Neil Young perform live at Massey Hall in Toronto, Ontario in the single most amazing musical performance and most politically-charged event that I have ever been to.  As an avid concert-goer this is a hard title for me to give away but Young most definitely deserved it.  The show was part of the “Honor the Treaties” concert series that Neil Young is putting on with opening act Diana Krall (who was not too bad herself!) to raise money for the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nations community and their struggle against the Canadian Oil Sands and tar sands extraction.  By teaming up with the Honor the Treaties foundation, Young filled Massey Hall and donated all profit to the organization’s Canadian cause.

Recently Neil Young spoke out about the devastation the tar sands are wreaking on wildlife, aboriginal communities and pollution levels in Canada.  In a backlash, several radio stations in the area stopped playing his music with claims that he doesn’t know what he’s talking about or that he’s ignoring the amount of jobs provided by the tar sands.  With a little research, it seems to me that Young knows exactly what he’s talking about.  Not only is the industry ruining the environment but fiscally it does very little for Canada.  In fact 71% of its shareholders are foreign![1]  That’s a lot of money leaving the country when you consider the degradation taking place.  So where Norway has been able to gain 644 billion dollars from their petroleum industry, Alberta has only gained sixteen billion.[2]  If we’re talking pure numbers here it doesn’t really even make sense.  Factor in the emotionally-charged, treaty-violating, climate-destructing aspect and the cause is completely worthwhile.

VIDEO: Neil Young supports the Athabasca Chipewyan first nation[3]

In terms of the effect on humans, indigenous communities downstream from the tar sands have experienced above average rates in deadly cancers and have lost access to much of their land.  In fact, the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nations and Mikisew Cree First Nations have lost 80% during parts of the year due to the tar sands.[4]  In terms of wildlife, the development has devastated the boreal forest, only 0.15% of which is reclaimed.[5]  In twenty years it is estimated that 30 million birds will be lost and over time the caribou population will die off altogether.[6]  I’ve just given you some of the more disturbing factors that I found but you can get educated on the dangers of expansion at Oil Sand Reality Check.

Finally Young took the stage- the moment we had all waited for all night.  Sitting amongst a circle of acoustic guitars, he opened his act with From Hank to Hendrix and from then on it was history in the making.  He mixed his set list with lots of political songs (both new and old) with a hit-heavy second half to really excite his audience.  My personal favourite of the night had to be Southern Man, written about racism in the southern United States. There was definitely something haunting about it.

Young proved however that his music is still politically relevant with his latest rendition of Pocahontas, changing the lyrics to scold Stephen Harper for his carelessness in office and documenting the plight of indigenous populations.  He sang, “and maybe Stephen Harper would be there by the fire and sit and talk about Ottawa and the good things there for hire in the broken treaties….Stephen Harper and the broken treaties.”

The music was incredible and the impact of the concert even more so.  Most concert-goers left in t-shirts or carrying posters asking people to Honour the Treaties.  The event drew in a respectable audience that included folk singer Gordon Lightfoot (I KNOW!) and Canadian environmentalist David Suzuki (who we met after the show–I had to say it).  Not only did Honour the Treaty gain donations via the tickets but direct donations were also taken in for the Athabasca cause online and at the concert.  You can donate yourself right here.

For somebody who has always longed to grow up in the 1960s–an era of change and important political events, this concert is always going to stick out in my memory.  The music was amazing and Young reminded me that pressing issues still exist today in Canada and require our attention.

For a link to my personal blog and to see live footage of the concert please visit www.gabriellebossy.wordpress.com.

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Gabrielle Bossy

Student at Western University, Masters of Public History

Gabrielle Bossy graduated from Trent University in 2013 with an Honors BA in History, placing on both the Dean’s List and President’s Roll. For the past three summers, Gabrielle has worked as a Historical Research Assistant and Summer Tourism Assistant at Annandale National Historic Site in Tillsonburg, Ontario. At ANHS Gabrielle worked on the Living Memories Project, which seeks to document the history of Tillsonburg via numerous interviews with prominent Tillsonburg residents. This project furthered Gabrielle’s interest in public history as she learned critical interview and transcribing skills and gained an appreciation for preserving the past. During her time at Annandale, she gained valuable knowledge regarding historical research and preservation and also curated a number of exhibits. Gabrielle is looking forward to merging the skills she has gained thus far with her education at Western University as a student of Public History to find a suitable career in a historical field. Currently, her interests lie in the Yorkville music scene of the 1960s

Latest posts by Gabrielle Bossy (see all)

• Honouring the Treaties with Neil Young at Massey Hall - January 15, 2014