Ontario considering change to length of teachers’ college, documents suggest
By Allison Jones The Ontario government is considering shortening the length of teachers’ college in order to address a worsening shortage of educators, documents obtained by The Canadian Press suggest. A freedom-of-information request on teacher supply and demand came back with research and jurisdictional scans the Ministry of Education conducted last year on the supply issue and the length of initial teacher education programs. Highlighted in the summary of the document on teachers’ college are findings that longer programs do not make better teachers. “There is little evidence that the amount of course work in ITE (initial teacher education) makes a difference in teachers’ effectiveness when they enter the profession,” the document says. Real in-class experience, however, does appear to make a difference. “Literature research shows that teachers who complete...
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Decades of resistance highlighted in film about a diverted rive
By Sam Laskaris, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Windspeaker.com When Stellat’en First Nation filmmaker Lyana Patrick was invited to become involved in a film project in British Columbia she jumped at the opportunity. That’s because the film’s focus was on the decades-long struggle by her own First Nation against the disruption of an important river. Patrick is days away now from the world premiere of the feature documentary she directed titled Nechako: It Will Be a Big River Again. The film will be screened for the first time in Vancouver on May 3 at the DOXA Documentary Film Festival. The documentary chronicles the challenges that her Nation and neighbouring Saik’uz First Nation have endured since the Kenney Dam was built in the 1950s. Construction of the dam diverted 70 per cent...
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‘We’ll have full autonomy’: Six Nations development corporation building economic self-sufficiency without compromising traditional values
By Celeste Percy-Beauregard, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Hamilton Spectator The midday sun streams through the window of Matt Jamieson’s Six Nations office. At his desk, he’s surrounded by Indigenous artwork and family photos. The roulette tables and slot machines that once fuelled him might as well be a million miles away — but he carries a piece of that past with him. Before he became CEO of Six Nations of the Grand River Development Corporation (SNGRDC), Jamieson was climbing the corporate ladder, helping casino enterprises rake in profits. “It wasn’t until I was out that I actually … reflected on the things that I did and the damage that it caused. Because that industry doesn’t really create value — it diminishes value, right?” In 2009, he came home to...
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A town refuses to give up the school’s Native American mascot – and gets Trump’s support
By Philip Marcelo MASSAPEQUA, N.Y. (AP) — As a high school hockey player, Adam Drexler wore his Massapequa Chiefs jersey with pride. But as the Chickasaw Nation member grew up and learned about his Indigenous roots, he came to see the school’s mascot — a stereotypical Native American man wearing a headdress — as problematic. Now his Long Island hometown has become the latest flashpoint in the enduring debate over the place of Indigenous imagery in American sports: The Trump administration launched an investigation Friday into whether New York officials are discriminating against Massapequa by threatening to withhold funding. The town has refused to comply with a state mandate to retire Native American sports names and mascots. “There was no tribe east of the Mississippi that ever wore a headdress...
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‘An ongoing genocidal act’: First Nations advocate talks about Red Dress Day on Before the Peace
By Ed Hitchins, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Energeticcity.ca FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. — A prominent First Nations advocate has said more needs to be done to bring awareness to Murdered and Missing Indigenous Women and Girls (MMIWG) during the latest episode of Before the Peace. Connie Greyeyes currently works with the Indian Residential School Survivors Society as a resolution health support worker and a MMIWG coordinator. She said her trip into advocacy began with a relative who was murdered back in the 1990s and also includes Renee Didier, a local woman who was found murdered in 2024. Didier is also Greyeyes’ cousin, and the murder hit “too close to home.” Speaking to host Chris Walker about Red Dress Day, Greyeyes described it as an “important day” to honour MMIWG, raise...
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Climate Disaster Project: ‘You didn’t think that your world was going to burn’
By Melanie Stutt and Eagle Andersen, Local Journalism Initiative Reporters, The Wren Melanie is the emergency services coordinator for Simpcw First Nation and is in charge of its Indigenous Initial Attack Crew. She also volunteers as the community’s deputy fire chief, and is the author of a fire safety-themed children’s book, Shawn and Flash. Born on the Sunshine Coast, her family moved to the small Interior town of Barriere, British Columbia when she was eight. “I guess my dad was having a midlife crisis in his mid-30s and said, ‘I want to buy a cattle ranch and become a farmer,’” said Melanie. In 2003, when the nearby McLure fire erupted near her community, the 20-year-old had no idea the battle to protect it would shape her future career. Barierre was...
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Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew congratulates prime minister on election night victory
By Brittany Hobson Manitoba’s premier congratulated Prime Minister Mark Carney on his election victory Tuesday, while also acknowledging that the fall of the federal NDP has made it a tough day for those who support orange. Wab Kinew said in a social media post that he looks forward to continued work building Canada with Carney’s federal government. In a separate post, he offered well wishes to Jagmeet Singh, who stepped down as NDP leader after losing his B.C. seat of Burnaby Central. “Thank you, Jagmeet Singh, for your years of service and for standing up for working people,” wrote Kinew. “You led with the value we both share: fairness, justice and compassion.” During the five-week snap election, Kinew was pressed on whether he supported Singh as prime minister. Kinew declined...
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Canada’s 45th Federal Election by the Numbers
GATINEAU, QC, April 29, 2025 – The 45th federal general election took place on Monday, April 28, 2025. To serve Canadians, Elections Canada opened 492 offices, hired some 230,000 people and offered around 7,200 advance and 65,000 election day voting desks in 343 electoral districts. Elections Canada’s preliminary estimates indicate that 19,583,016 Canadians cast a ballot. This translates into a voter turnout rate of about 68.65%. Approximately: 11,062,539 voted at their polling station on election day or in their long-term care facility 7,280,975 voted at advance polls between Friday, April 18, and Monday, April 21 928,311 voted by special ballot from within their electoral district 215,057 voted by special ballot from outside their electoral district (includes deployed military personnel, inmates and electors who were in Canada but outside their electoral district) 57,440 electors...
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‘An ongoing genocidal act’: First Nations advocate talks about Red Dress Day on Before the Peace
By Ed Hitchins, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Energeticcity.ca FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. — A prominent First Nations advocate has said more needs to be done to bring awareness to Murdered and Missing Indigenous Women and Girls (MMIWG) during the latest episode of Before the Peace. Connie Greyeyes currently works with the Indian Residential School Survivors Society as a resolution health support worker and a MMIWG coordinator. She said her trip into advocacy began with a relative who was murdered back in the 1990s and also includes Renee Didier, a local woman who was found murdered in 2024. Didier is also Greyeyes’ cousin, and the murder hit “too close to home.” Speaking to host Chris Walker about Red Dress Day, Greyeyes described it as an “important day” to honour MMIWG, raise...
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‘You hope there’s enough interest that the Arctic is still a priority’
By Aastha Sethi, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Cabin Radio “I think that door is going to be wide open now in trying to move things forward.” Dehcho Grand Chief Herb Norwegian struck a hopeful note on Tuesday after Canada elected a Liberal minority government and the Northwest Territories chose Liberal Rebecca Alty to be its next MP. Norwegian said N.W.T.-born prime minister Mark Carney’s victory speech touched on the themes of humility, sharing, and the importance of working with First Nations. “I am hoping that now we can start getting back to work and start doing the things that are important to our people,” Norwegian told Cabin Radio. He believes the new government will succeed in addressing urgent matters affecting the Dehcho. To Norwegian, getting that done can be more...
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Weather warning in effect for Six Nations, Brant County areas
Six Nations of the Grand River is under a weather alert with a severe thunderstorm watch in effect. Environment Canada has issued a warning that severe winds with damaging gusts of up to 110km/hr could occur along with hail and have also issued a risk of a tornado. Damages could occur to buildings, roofs, shingles and windows. Winds could toss loose objects or cause tree branches to break High winds could also see power outages and tree branches to fall. Motorists are warned to be prepared ot adjust your driving with changing road conditions and high winds. ...
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Five pivotal moments in Pope Francis’ relations with Native communities in the Americas
Here are five pivotal moments in Pope Francis’ relations with Native communities. Santa Cruz, Bolivia, July 9, 2015 At a world summit of activists against social inequality, Francis asked “forgiveness, not only for the offenses of the church herself, but also for crimes committed against the Native peoples during the so-called conquest of America.” Going off script, he added that many priests “strongly opposed the logic of the sword with the power of the cross.” But, he acknowledged, “we never apologized, so I now ask for forgiveness.” Washington, Sept. 23, 2015 Before a sunbaked crowd outside the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in his only U.S. visit, Francis officially declared the 18th-century missionary priest Junipero Serra to be a saint. Serra “was the embodiment of a...
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‘#Skoden’ doc shows ‘kind and gentle’ side of unhoused Indigenous man who became a meme
By Alex Nino Gheciu Pernell Bad Arm never asked to become a meme. But in the early 2010s, a photo of the First Nations man — clad in a windbreaker with his fists up in a fighter’s stance, his gaze slightly vacant — spread across the internet. Shared on message boards such as 4chan, the picture was initially used mockingly to perpetuate stereotypes of Indigenous people. “It was being shared mostly by non-Indigenous people to kind of ridicule and make fun of us,” says filmmaker Damien Eagle Bear. But Indigenous users soon reclaimed the photo, captioning it with the rez slang word “skoden” — as in “let’s go, then” — and transforming it into part meme, part rallying cry. Still, when Eagle Bear first saw the photo in 2013, his...
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The next pope will inherit Pope Francis’ mixed legacy with Indigenous people
By Peter Smith Whoever succeeds Pope Francis will inherit his momentous and controversial legacy of relations with Indigenous people throughout the Americas. Some found Francis to be a reconciling figure, others a disappointment. Even those who applauded the actions he took during his 12-year papacy said they were just a beginning, and that his successor will need to continue to work toward healing. Francis, who died April 21, at age 88 issued a historic apology for the “catastrophic” legacy of residential schools in Canada and oversaw the repudiation of the “Doctrine of Discovery” — the collective name given to a series of 15th-century papal decrees that legitimized colonial-era seizure of Native lands. But some Indigenous leaders criticized him as slow to fully recognize the traumatic impact of Catholic missionary efforts...
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What is a conclave? What to know about the secretive process to elect the next pope
By Nicole Winfield What is a conclave? VATICAN CITY (AP) — A conclave is the centuries-old election of a pope that derives its name from the Italian “con clave” (with a key) to underscore that cardinals are sequestered until they find a winner. Cardinals have no contact with the outside world after the master of liturgical ceremonies utters the words “Extra Omnes” the Latin phrase for “all out,” to ask all those present except the cardinal electors to leave the Sistine Chapel to begin the voting process. In between votes, the cardinals will be staying at the Domus Santa Marta hotel in Vatican City and possibly another nearby Vatican residence, since there are more cardinal electors than Santa Marta hotel rooms. How will it work? The conclave begins May 7,...
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Fort Nelson Community Forest to receive part of $1 million investment
By Ed Hitchins, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Energeticcity.ca FORT NELSON, B.C. — Northeast BC forests will receive $1 million in funds for enhancement projects from the provincial government. Fort Nelson Community Forest, which will receive a portion of those funds, is a joint venture between the Northern Rockies Regional Municipality (NRRM) and Fort Nelson First Nation (FNFN). Ravi Parmar, minister of forests, made the announcement on Thursday, April 24th at the BC First Nations Forestry Council’s (FNFC) conference in Penticton, according to a press release. The area was hammered with forest fires in 2024, which included a full-scale evacuation of the town last May. The money announced will go toward waste wood utilization, including “funding to support additional wildfire reduction work west of the community of Fort Nelson,” and money...
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Man from Nova Scotia First Nation charged with assaulting DFO officer with car
-CP-The Mounties are alleging that a man from a Mi’kmaq First Nation struck a fisheries officer with his car as the officer was attempting to carry out an inspection early Saturday. RCMP say in a release today that a 36-year-old man from Sipekne’katik First Nation was arrested near Highway 7 in Smiths Settlement, about 45 kilometres east of Halifax. Police say the fisheries officer wasn’t injured, however the driver has been charged with assault with a weapon. Investigators say the fisheries officer was attempting to conduct an inspection at Eel Pond, just off the highway, when a man driving an Acura collided with a uniformed fishery officer who was instructing the driver to stop. The driver was arrested at the scene by RCMP officers, and investigators say that during a...
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Trump made big promises and moved at frenetic speed. 100 days in, here’s what he’s done and not done
By Chris Megerian And Calvin Woodward WASHINGTON (AP) — The weeks since President Donald Trump returned to office have been a whirlwind of activity to show Americans that his administration is relentlessly pursuing his promises. With a compliant Republican-controlled Congress, Trump has had a free hand to begin overhauling the federal government and upending foreign policy. As Trump hits his 100th day in office Tuesday, his imprint is everywhere. But the long-term impact is often unclear. Some of the Republican president’s executive orders are statements of intent or groundwork to achieve what has yet to be done. On Day 1, for example, he declared an energy emergency to spur production. But he’s not promising a payoff until next year, when he told voters to count on a big drop in...
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Man accused of manslaughter gets time to hire lawyer
By Andrew Bates, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Telegraph-Journal A 31-year-old man accused of manslaughter in the death of a 26-year-old woman in Musquash is getting two weeks to finalize plans to hire a lawyer. Calvin Burns-Smith, of no fixed address, was due to appear for a bail hearing Monday on charges of manslaughter and indignity to remains. The New Brunswick RCMP said last week that they arrested Burns-Smith, who they identified as from Musquash, in connection with the death of Sarah Teakles, of Rothesay. Police said Teakles was last seen April 14 in Musquash, a community 30 kilometres southwest of Saint John that is part of the Fundy Shores municipality. She was reported missing the next day. On April 17 teams with the RCMP’s major crime unit found her body...
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Kahkewistahâw First Nation receives $133.6 million in Cows and Plows settlement
By Ryan Kiedrowski, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The World-Spectator Federal government dollars to compensate Saskatchewan First Nations for undelivered treaty benefits have started reaching the intended people. Recently, members of the Kahkewistahâw First Nation began receiving individual payments, directly deposited to their bank accounts. In total, the Kahkewistahâw First Nation is set to receive $133.6 million as their portion of the Cows and Plows settlement, of which $37.2 million is devoted to a per capita distribution. That distribution began April 17 with every elder receiving $30,000; adults (18 to 59 years) seeing $25,000 with a top-up of $5,000 at age 60; and minors entitled to $2,500 with top-ups at age 18 ($22,500) and age 60 ($5,000). “It’s going to be a really positive time for us,” said Chief Evan Taypotat...
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