Defend Equal Access For All
On May 10th, Parks Canada closed a section of Long Beach in Pacific Rim National Park near Tofino.
The stated reason was to allow the Tla-o-qui-aht First Nation to hold a private ceremony for a grey whale carcass that had washed ashore.
Parks Canada cited “Indigenous cultural protocols” as part of the justification for the closure.
Let’s be clear: the presence of the whale may have warranted temporary safety measures - no one is suggesting that the situation should have been ignored or left unmanaged.
However, instead of focusing on public health protocols, the government explicitly closed the beach to the public for a private, culturally exclusive event.
There's even a snitch line to report those breaching the ban - and fines up to $25,000 if you're caught!
That is unacceptable on public land.
This decision crosses a critical line.
It moves us away from equal access and toward a system where access to public spaces is determined by race, heritage, or political considerations.
National parks, beaches, and other publicly owned spaces exist for the benefit of all Canadians - not for the exclusive use of certain groups, no matter how well-intentioned the reasoning.
The role of government is to steward public lands for the benefit of all citizens equally.
Canadians fund and maintain national parks with the expectation that they will remain open and accessible to everyone.
When governments begin restricting access to public spaces based on cultural or racial identity, they erode the very idea of shared citizenship and equal rights.
This isn’t just about a beach.
It’s about a growing pattern in which governments are prioritizing identity-based policies over universal access, and slowly redefining the meaning of “public” to mean “restricted - unless you qualify.”
There must be equal access to public property.
No special access based on race or ancestry.
No closures that divide us into groups with different rights.
No government-sanctioned discrimination under the guise of cultural sensitivity.
If you believe that public spaces should remain open and accessible to all Canadians equally, please sign the petition telling the government to Defend Equal Access For All.
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