Mabou Fights Back

When it came time to announce the closing of the Mabou post office in Cape Breton Island in Eastern Canada back in March of 1991, it was viewed as a “natural opportunity” by Canada Post. Here was a rural community servicing 1,000 residents whose post master had retired a few years ealier and had never been replaced. It was merely a matter of giving notice and assuming that a local store would be willing to take up the slack. It turned out that Mabou was not a typical rural community. There is a strong sense of heritage there, including the preservation Scottish music of Gaelic culture. Many households are self-employed in farming, fishing, business, tourism and the arts. The lost of the post office would be devastating to the local economy. What was to be done? Rallies were held, petitions signed, letters send and people organized. There was a town meeting where Canada Post brought in their public relations people to try and pacify the community. They were clearly not prepared for the response from the people of Mabou who believed that their postal service was there to serve them, not just to make the maximum profit. Despite the fact that the community was supposedly powerless, they did manage to work out a compromise. Their post office building would not be sold. Instead they would be allowed to run it themselves with a community owned, operated and financed corporation. Though there was a victory of sorts, “Mabou Fights Back” raises many questions. Is profitability a greater priority than national unity? What about the economic needs of Canada Post versus those of the rural communities it is supposed to serve? What real options do people have in making themselves heard? How does the system really work, and for whom?