Keep the Olympics Authentic and Accountable

Vancouver Olympics neither Authentic nor Accountable

Local Aboriginal producers of “Authentic Aboriginal Products” -- those designed, produced and distributed by Aboriginal people in Canada –- are dismayed by the lack of commitment to authenticity and accountability of the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic Games (VANOC). We took VANOC at its word when it promised unprecedented support for Aboriginal economic development as well as Aboriginal employment and training leading up to and during the 2010 Winter Olympics.

VANOC has said all the right things through its Aboriginal Procurement Strategy, Aboriginal Licensing and Merchandising Program, and Buy Smart Program. However, VANOC’s words and the reality don’t match. Local Aboriginal businesses have found themselves on the short end of an unfair competition with non-Aboriginal companies who appropriate First Nations culture by selling products with Aboriginal designs on them, but originate overseas. VANOC actually licenses these products and allows them to carry the label of “Authentic Aboriginal Products”. They are not.

By appropriating the term "Authentic Aboriginal Products", VANOC, along with its associated suppliers, are profiting in the tune of millions of dollars, all the while leaving Aboriginal owned businesses and their Aboriginal employees – the producers of truly Authentic Aboriginal Products – with virtually nothing. How does this meet VANOC’s objectives of promoting Aboriginal participation and optimizing opportunities for Aboriginal businesses? It does not.

It is not too late to call on VANOC to honour its commitment to people from First Nations communities and their businesses. Tell VANOC to be authentic and accountable, by signing the petition below: