By J.P. Antonacci Local Journalism Initiative Reporter When R. Stacey Laforme won his first of four elections as chief of Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation (MCFN), he ran on a platform of leading the First Nation southwest of Hamilton toward “self-sufficiency and sovereignty, moving slowly away from the Indian Act.” Laforme, who was first elected as a councillor in 1999, said band members took a major step toward political autonomy from Ottawa when they voted on April 22 to ratify MCFN’s first constitution, which the chief described as a “foundation document” asserting that “we have the inherent right to determine our future.” The constitution, Laforme added, is also a “declaration” that MCFN has sole jurisdiction to enact laws governing such areas as environmental stewardship, economic development, land use, public…
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