National Chief condemns Niagara Falls council meeting remarks

AFN National Chief Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak

 Calls for Compassion and Closing the Infrastructure Gap   Unceded Algonquin Territory, Ottawa) –  National Chief Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak spoke out today (June 29,2026) in response to reported remarks made during a recent Niagara Falls council meeting in which speakers indicated First Nations evacuees negatively affect tourism because they’re seen as “homeless” people and they are “too much at one time” for the city. “I am deeply disappointed by these remarks from Mayor Jim Diodati and other speakers in the council meeting,” said National Chief Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak. “The First Nations citizens in Niagara Falls are evacuees from Kashechewan First Nation who have been forced from their homes for six months now. They deserve care and compassion. This evacuation is already traumatizing, and many now feel unwelcome in the city…

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