About a month ago, I brought you the story of Toobeah, the small Queensland town that has been claimed by an Aboriginal tribe that doesn’t even live there.

With a man-made watering hole that was created after European settlement that’s now been claimed as a culturally significant site for the Aboriginal tribe that again doesn’t live there. I warned in that video that the fight for Toobeah was one that affected us all because if such land claims were allowed to stand unchallenged there, then nowhere in Australia would be safe. And then this week, the story broke out of the Soviet Socialist Republic of Kanakistan, also known as Canada, showing that this is a problem that isn’t unique to Australia. And if anything, they might actually have it worse. Not that it’s a competition, or at least it’s not a competition that anyone wants to win.

This issue of native title, land rights, and the claiming of buildings and infrastructure that’s been built in the last few decades on the basis that someone’s ancestors used to walk on that land hundreds of years ago well, that issue is not going away anytime soon without a fight. And if the events at Toobeah weren’t enough to get you involved in this fight, then let this news out of Canada be the wake-up call that you need. Because in this case in British Columbia, we’re no longer talking about a tiny town in remote middle of nowhere. No offense to the residents of Toobeah. We’re talking about hundreds of acres within the downtown area of the city of Richmond in British Columbia. We’re talking hundreds of millions, if not billions of dollars in real estate and infrastructure, to say nothing of the lives of the 200,000 residents who live on Lulu Island where the city of Richmond sits.

Here in Australia, we were told that it was just about native title in areas where Aboriginals and their tribes still lived, hence the Mabo decision.

Then we were told that Mabo wasn’t enough. There needed to be a sorry. Well, then they got that courtesy of Kevin Rudd. Then we were told that that’s not enough and now they wanted a voice. Well, now they want treaty and reparations, pay the rent, Makarrata. And now it’s clear that whether you live in Australia or in Canada, these activists quite literally want the roof over your head and the pillow out from underneath it.

My name’s Topher Field. This is the Topher Project and I help busy people like you to make sense of the nonsense that surrounds us and to keep up with the world as it changes around us. I am 100% viewer supported. So, if you appreciate having someone out there who keeps an eye out for stories like this one and then brings them to you in a way that makes sense, then please support my work by buying me a coffee via the button at topherfield.net. And if you like my videos, then you will love my books about human rights and civil disobedience, as well as my multi-award-winning documentary Battleground Melbourne, and my t-shirts and hoodies in a range of designs, all available at goodpeoplebreakbadlaws.com.

Someone somewhere is going to have to fight this fight and win it for the sake of us all. Here in Australia, for the last 33 years, since the Mabo decision to overturn the principle of terra nullius, we’ve been subjected to a relentless campaign of demonization for the crime of bringing European civilization with its attendant increases in quality of life and life expectancy and the rule of law and so much more. The fact is that life in Australia today for Aboriginal people is way better than it ever was prior to European settlement. And if anyone ever says otherwise, well, I challenge them to head out, let’s say, into the vast untouched bushlands in the southeast of Australia or the endless deserts of the Red Center or into the dense jungles of the DNR. Go and live like they did. See how long you can take it before you realize that you’re just not cut out for a life without the modern conveniences and technologies that Europeans brought here and then built here over the last 250 years.

But we’re being treated like we’re war criminals. And yes, there is no question some crimes were committed long before you or I were born. But this supposed crime of bringing civilization in the form of colonialism and also the very real crimes that were committed by people who are now long dead, they’ve been used for the last 33 years, weaponized against us. And unless something changes, more and more of us will soon wake up to discover that all of a sudden we have to fight for our own homes and businesses and favorite holiday destinations as well. That means that just like the battle for Toobeah in Queensland, the battle for Richmond, British Columbia in the Soviet Socialist Republic of Kanakistan is a battle that affects us all.

So, what happened? Well, as far as most of the residents of Richmond were concerned, it all started with a letter that showed up in their mailbox. It was a letter from the mayor of the city of Richmond and said, “Notice to registered owner. Please take note that the recent British Columbia Supreme Court decision of Cowichan Tribes versus Canada 2025 BCSC 1490 made some very important decisions which could negatively affect the title to your property. A briefing paper prepared by City of Richmond staff is attached for your reference. If you look at the draft map attached to the briefing, your property is located within the claim area outlined in green. For those whose property is in the area outlined in black, the court has declared Aboriginal title to your property, which may compromise the status and the validity of your ownership. This was mandated without any prior notice to the land owners. The entire area outlined in green is claimed on appeal by the Cowichan First Nations. Given the serious implications of this court decision and the pending appeal, this city is hosting an information session etc etc.”

The similarity to what happened in this case in Canada and in the case of Toobeah in Queensland is too close to ignore

because in both cases people in positions of power were making deals and decisions to literally hand over the ownership of other people’s property and they were doing it in secret without the knowledge of the people whose land and property was to be given away. The first those land owners knew about it was after it had already happened. Literally any one of us could wake up and find a letter like that in our letter box. You wouldn’t know about it until after it had happened.

Now, there is obviously legal history to this case in British Columbia that I won’t go into because it’s Canada. It’s whilst our laws do have a lot of similarities, you just can’t use a case precedent from one country in another country. So, there’s not a lot to gain by going too deep into the weeds on the specifics of the legal history, but I do think that it’s important to bring the story to your attention because unlike the situation in Toobeah, where they’re struggling to get publicity, at least not the publicity they deserve because again, no offense, they’re a blink and you’ll miss it one pub town in rural Queensland. And sadly, no one seems to care. They should, but this time we’re talking about a big, beautiful city in Richmond, British Columbia. It’s a part of Vancouver, the capital city, the western most province in Canada.

The Australian equivalent would be giving away Bondi in the surrounding suburbs.

Actually, that’s a bad example. There’s a lot of us who would happily give away Bondi. Forget that I said that. My point is that this time there’s a lot of people who are going to be fighting back. There’s high-rise buildings which will be owned by big investment firms with deep pockets and a lot to lose. There’s families who have faithfully paid their mortgages for years or decades. There’s businesses and parks and roads and all the amazing technology and infrastructure that modern civilization brings and it’s all being given away.

The mayor, Malcolm Brody, defended his decision to alert the population of Richmond, British Columbia, because yes, some people said that he shouldn’t have even written that letter. He shouldn’t have even let his own residents know that their land was being given away. He explained, “This is the biggest investment that many people have in their lives.” He said, “If you’re a purchaser of property, you’re not going to buy one of these properties because now you have notice of Aboriginal title. You can’t say you were surprised if you buy a property expecting a fee simple title.” “It could have a very significant effect on the sales,” said Brody, who added that residents are upset in the extreme. “Yeah, I’ll bet they are.” Brody said the issue goes beyond Richmond because it sets a precedent where Aboriginal title could supersede private property rights. It could affect the rest of the province and it could affect the rest of the country, said Brody.

So, they’re fighting back. And personally, I’m glad because when I reported on the situation in Toobeah a month ago, well, lots of people did care, but not nearly enough. Not nearly enough people were outraged nearly as much as they should be. And nor have enough people yet realized that it really is true that this could happen to any one of us at any time. So, I’m glad that it’s now happening on a much bigger stage, albeit on the other end of the planet. But hopefully, we will see a proper fight for Richmond, British Columbia. And hopefully, we will see an end to this creeping insanity where, unless you’re an Aboriginal, you already own nothing. You just don’t know it yet.

My name’s Topher Field. This is the Topher Project, and I help busy people like you to keep up with the world as it changes around us. I hope you don’t see this story as some sort of a doom and gloom fear-mongering story. I actually believe that this is great news because the fight back is going to be fierce and it has the potential to benefit us all. And I do try to bring good news and a positive view on the world where possible. And I am 100% viewer supported. So if you appreciate what I do, then please buy me a coffee via the button at topherfield.net. And if you haven’t checked out my books yet, well, why not? There’s Good People Break Bad Laws, which is about civil disobedience in the modern age. Good Christians Break Bad Laws, which is all about the theology of civil disobedience. Then there’s my DVD documentary Battleground Melbourne. Then there’s my t-shirts and my hoodies, and it’s all available at goodpeoplebreakbadlaws.com.

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