Grassy Narrows First Nation sues Ontario, Canada over mercury contamination
The Canadian Press 04/06/2024 11:27 A northern Ontario First Nation is suing the governments of Ontario and Canada over ongoing mercury contamination in a river system that flows through its territory. Grassy Narrows First Nation alleges the governments breached their obligations by failing to ensure the community could safely practise its right to fish. The lawsuit alleges the governments first allowed the English-Wabigoon river system to be contaminated, then failed to remediate it, all while authorizing industrial activities that worsened the harm. The legal action comes weeks after a study suggested discharge from a paper mill upstream of the community is exacerbating mercury contamination that dates back decades. Researchers behind the study said that while the mill’s wastewater doesn’t contain mercury, the combination of sulphate and organic matter in it...
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Winnipeg murder trial hears killer hospitalized numerous times for mental health
The Canadian Press 04/06/2024 12:13 A Winnipeg murder trial has heard an admitted serial killer has a history of mental illness, including depression and thoughts of suicide. Court heard Jeremy Skibicki, who is 37, was first assessed in his early teens after his parents reported aggressive outbursts and an incident where Skibicki put his hands around his female cousin’s throat while sleepwalking. Skibicki has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder in the deaths of four Indigenous women in Winnipeg in 2022. His lawyers admit he killed the women but argue he should be found not criminally responsible due to mental illness. Dr. Sohom Das, a forensic psychiatrist from England, said he assessed Skibicki twice since Skibicki’s arrest and studied his medical files and social media posts. Das testified medical documents...
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Construction on Bekevar wind project on schedule, slated to wrap up in August
Ryan Kiedrowski Local Journalism Initiative 03/06/2024 23:00 All they need now is some calm, non-windy days. “It’s the classic joke in the wind industry, actually – during construction is the only time you’re praying for low wind,” said vice-president of Construction and Engineering, Michael Capaldo with Innagreen Investments. Wind is a key factor in Capaldo’s line of work – renewable energy from Saskatchewan’s dependable breezy conditions – but during construction of the 36 total turbines in the Bekevar project near Kipling, calm days are crucial to ensure safe construction. “We had 15 turbines delivered last year, and then we’re doing the other 21 – these are actually happening right now – and they’ll be done by the end of June; we’ll have all the turbines on site,” Capaldo said, adding...
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Credibility of psychiatrist heard in Winnipeg trial of admitted serial killer
The Canadian Press 03/06/2024 21:08 A judge is allowing a forensic psychiatrist with a YouTube channel providing “tongue in cheek” commentary on mental illness and crime to give expert testimony at the Winnipeg trial of an admitted serial killer. Dr. Sohom Das, who is based in England, has posted numerous videos on the channel called “A Psych for Sore Minds.” In the videos, referenced in court Monday at the trial of Jeremy Skibicki, Das talks about how to fake a mental illness and why accused killers confess. “Absolutely do not kill anybody. But if you do, don’t tell anybody,” Das says in a videos titled “Why Do Murderers CONFESS?” In another video that has since been taken down, Das outlines steps to fake a mental illness. He also says he...
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Manitoba First Nations community put in lockdown following double homicide
By Dave Baxter Local Journalism Initiative A First Nations community was put into lockdown on Monday after reports of a violent incident that included police being shot at, and RCMP are now confirming two people have been killed in what they are calling a double homicide. “Chief and council are sad to announce there was a community lockdown this morning due to a serious incident that cost the lives of two band members,” chief and council of Minegoziibe Anishinabe, a community also commonly referred to as Pine Creek First Nation said in a public notice released on Monday. RCMP have now confirmed that on late Sunday evening, around 11:30 p.m., Winnipegosis RCMP received a report of shots fired in the northern community located about 110 kilometres north of Dauphin. Police...
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B.C. First Nation prepares for potential school site excavation, signs protocol deal
The Canadian Press 03/06/2024 20:06 The Williams Lake First Nation is preparing for the potential excavation of the site of a former residential school where it believes human remains may be located and has signed an agreement with the province and RCMP to help guide the sensitive process. The Ministry of Indigenous Relations said Monday that the memorandum of understanding was the first of its kind in B.C. and sets out the process used for potential recovery, identification and repatriation of remains linked to the St. Joseph’s Mission Residential School. Chief Willie Sellars of Williams Lake First Nation said it had not been decided that a dig would take place, but the agreement needed to be put in place in case the work moved forward. Signing the memorandum was an...
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AFN national chief blasts governments’ inaction on fifth anniversary of MMIWG report
The Canadian Press 03/06/2024 19:39 The national chief of the Assembly of First Nations blasted all levels of government on Monday, the fifth anniversary of a national inquiry’s report into missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls, for what she calls slow progress to stop the crisis. Only two of the more than 150 calls to action focused on First Nations people have been implemented since 2019, Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak said. That’s despite constant calls from advocates for more funding from all levels of government for Indigenous housing, justice and programs for LGBTQ+ people that they say would keep women and girls safer. “There is a long, winding road ahead to address and prevent all forms of gender-based violence,” she said Monday morning. “But together, with all Canadians, we remain...
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Hackers may have accessed 22 B.C. government inboxes, data on 19 employees: Farnworth
The Canadian Press 03/06/2024 18:34 Twenty-two British Columbia government email inboxes with sensitive personal information on 19 employees may have been accessed during a cyber attack on the province’s networks, the minister of public safety said on Monday. Mike Farnworth said there’s no indication the general public’s information was compromised and investigators have not identified any misuse of the information the criminals may have accessed. “A handful of these inboxes contain sensitive personal information on 19 individuals. These were employee files, and with one exception being an employee who had family information on their inbox,” he said. Farnworth said the investigation into the attacks in April, which were made public in May, is continuing and evidence still points to state or state-sponsored actors as those responsible. The minister would not...
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Manitoba cabinet minister received government contract, faces disclosure questions
The Canadian Press 03/06/2024 18:53 A Manitoba cabinet minister is being accused of hiding the fact he has a contract with the provincial government. The Opposition Progressive Conservatives filed a complaint Monday with the province’s ethics commissioner, alleging Ian Bushie, the minister of municipal and northern relations, was unfairly granted a contract without allowing other people to bid on it. The Tories also allege Bushie failed to reveal the contract in his disclosure statement, which all Manitoba politicians are required to fill out in order to show their business interests and other holdings. “The ethics commissioner and the (Conflict of Interest) Act has a process that you have to abide by,” interim Progressive Conservative leader Wayne Ewasko said. Bushie is the sole proprietor of Grandpa George’s, a family-run gas station...
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Hackers may have accessed 22 B.C. government inboxes, data on 19 employees: Farnworth
The Canadian Press 03/06/2024 16:04 British Columbia’s public safety minister says 22 government email inboxes with sensitive personal information on 19 employees may have been accessed during a cyber attack on the province’s networks last month. Mike Farnworth says there’s no indication the general public’s information was compromised and investigators have not identified any misuse of the information the criminals may have accessed. Farnworth says the investigation is continuing and evidence still points to state or state-sponsored actors as those responsible. The minister would not provide details on where the employees work who were swept up in the breach, but says they are with the public service, not the government cabinet. Farnworth says the employees have been notified and will be receiving credit monitoring and help with identity protection. The...
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Credibility of psychiatrist heard in Winnipeg trial of admitted serial killer
The Canadian Press 03/06/2024 16:05 Lawyers at the Winnipeg trial of an admitted serial killer are discussing whether a forensic psychiatrist, author and YouTuber can provide expert testimony. Dr. Sohom Das has twice assessed the mental state of Jeremy Skibicki since his arrest. Skibicki, who is 37, has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder in the killings of four Indigenous woman in 2022. He has admitted to the slayings, but his lawyers argue he should be found not criminally responsible due to mental illness. Das, who is based in England, provides analysis for civil and criminal cases in the United Kingdom and has a YouTube channel about mental illness. Prosecutors questioned Das about a video in which he outlines how to fake mental illness, but Das says some of his...
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B.C. First Nation plans dig for remains at ex-school, signs deal with RCMP, province
The Canadian Press 03/06/2024 16:28 The British Columbia government says the Williams Lake First Nation is planning to excavate the site of a former residential school to recover possible human remains and has signed an agreement with the province and RCMP to help guide the process. The Ministry of Indigenous Relations says the memorandum of understanding is the first of its kind in B.C. and sets out the process used for potential recovery, identification and repatriation of remains linked to the St. Joseph’s Mission Residential School. The ministry says the First Nation has been investigating the deaths and disappearances of Indigenous children who attended the school that operated until 1981, including the use of ground-penetrating radar, archival research and survivor interviews. It says the research has determined Indigenous children died...
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AFN national chief blasts governments’ inaction on fifth anniversary of MMIWG report
The Canadian Press 03/06/2024 12:39 On the fifth anniversary of a national inquiry’s report into missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls, the national chief of the Assembly of First Nations is blasting all levels of government for what she calls slow progress to stop the crisis. Only two of the more than 150 calls to action focused on First Nations people have been implemented since 2019, Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak says. That’s despite constant calls from advocates for more funding from all levels of government for Indigenous housing, justice and programs for LGBTQ peoples that they say would keep women and girls safer. The 2019 inquiry concluded Indigenous women are 12 times more likely to go missing or murdered than their non-Indigenous counterparts, and brought forward a total of 231...
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Encounter with wolves ‘one of the most epic experiences of my life’
By Kira Wronska Dorward Journalism Initiative Reporter 03/06/2024 10:44 “This has always been my biggest dream,” says Amit Eshel, speaking to Nunavut News from his home country of Israel, where he is in the process of being filmed for Israeli national television and setting up an exhibit in Tel Aviv with the incredible photos he shot on his recent trip to photograph Arctic wolves on northern Ellesmere Island. Eshel and his team spent 18 days in the High Arctic around Grise Fiord in what was his second, and this time wildly successful endeavour to track the elusive white wolves. “Just getting there is very expensive,” he says, “and you never know if you’re going to find them. Usually these kinds of photos are only managed by publications like National Geographic...
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100 years ago, US citizenship for Native Americans came without voting rights in swing states
The Associated Press 01/06/2024 13:29 SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Voter participation advocate Theresa Pasqual traverses Acoma Pueblo with a stack of sample ballots in her car and applications for absentee ballots, handing them out at every opportunity ahead of New Mexico’s Tuesday primary. Residents of the tribal community’s original mesa-top “sky city” that endured after the Spanish invasion in the late 1500s know firsthand the challenges voters have faced across Indian Country, where polling places are often hours away and restrictive voter laws and ID requirements only add to the barriers. It’s been a century now since an act of Congress granted citizenship to Native Americans, but advocates say that right bestowed in 1924 still hasn’t translated into equal access to the ballot. Inequities are especially pronounced in remote...
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B.C. unveils 240-language racism helpline as survey suggests systemic problems
The Canadian Press 01/06/2024 13:17 British Columbia has launched a new helpline for people who witness or experience a racist incident, with support available in more than 240 languages. The province said in a news release that helpline callers would receive support and guidance, which could include referrals to local community support services, such as counselling or help with reporting to police. But it’s also part of an effort to collect more data about racism in the province, that includes a provincewide demographic survey about systemic racism. The helpline and the results of the survey into barriers experienced by Indigenous and racialized people in the public service, schools and health care were separately announced on Thursday. The Ministry of Citizens’ Services said the data from the survey and “other sources”...
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The healing power of fire
By Matt Simmons Local Journalism Initiative Reporter This is the first story from In the Line of Fire , a series from The Narwhal digging into what is being done to prepare for — and survive — wildfires. Gitanyow Elder Darlene Vegh drips fire onto a patch of dry leaves, moss and twigs on a ridge above Xsit’ax (Kitwanga River) on Wilp Gwaas Hlaam lands in northwest B.C. It’s a clear spring day a few weeks after the winter snowmelt exposed the forest floor. The orange light of the little flames dancing along the ground is soft and warm against the deep shadows cast by the trees. Vegh’s fire starts the day’s cultural burn, an Indigenous-led practice that brings fire back to the land in a good way. Fire —...
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Arizona tribe temporarily bans dances after police officer is fatally shot responding to disturbance
The Associated Press 02/06/2024 19:12 SANTAN, Ariz. (AP) — The Gila River Indian Community has issued a temporary ban on dances after a tribal police officer was fatally shot and another wounded while responding to a reported disturbance at a Santan home, tribal officials said Sunday. Stephen Roe Lewis, governor of the tribe south of Phoenix, said a special meeting of community council’s leaders was held Saturday night. The council approved a temporary moratorium on all permitted and non-permitted dances in the community, effective immediately, along with enhanced penalties for trespassing and disorderly conduct, he said. The Phoenix FBI is investigating the fatal shooting, but it has not released many details. The Arizona Republic reported that the shooting occurred at a teenager’s birthday party in Santan, located in one of...
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Trudeau pitches strong ties to Mexico’s new leader Claudia Sheinbaum amid U.S. tumult
The Canadian Press 03/06/2024 10:39 Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is welcoming the election of Mexico’s next president, Claudia Sheinbaum, and pitching closer ties between the two counties as they ponder the future of North American relations. Mexicans elected Sheinbaum as their first female president Sunday, and in October she will replace Andrés Manuel Lopéz Obrador. The election comes three months after the Liberals reimposed a visa requirement for Mexican visitors over concerns that the 2016 lifting of the requirement led to a rise in ineligible refugee claims and human smuggling into the U.S. The two countries will be part of the 2026 review of the trade deal that replaced NAFTA, as both U.S. President Joe Biden and his likely election opponent Donald Trump propose policies that would clamp down on...
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Unique trades program at Birdtail Sioux Dakota Nation
By Ryan Kiedrowski Local Journalism Initiative 31/05/2024 22:11 It’s an intense but effective initiative promising to propel participants from having no experience in the trades to being job ready—all in under two weeks. That’s the goal of a new study being funded by the federal government on the Birdtail Sioux Dakota Nation to the tune of $352,500, part of a larger announcement on March 6 that saw Indigenous Natural Resource Partnerships devote a total of $10.4 million to seven mining projects. “Government, over the last two decades, has done a pretty darn good job of training up Indigenous people and getting them ready for the workforce and the work environment,” said Greg Farney, co-founder of Straight Talk Advisory and Training. “The one thing that we’ve all failed at is...
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