On Navajo Nation, a push to electrify more homes on the vast reservation
HALCHITA, Utah (AP) — After a five-year wait, Lorraine Black and Ricky Gillis heard the rumblings of an electrical crew reach their home on the sprawling Navajo Nation. In five days’ time, their home would be connected to the power grid, replacing their reliance on a few solar panels and propane lanterns. No longer would the CPAP machine Gillis uses for sleep apnea or his home heart monitor transmitting information to doctors 400 miles away face interruptions due to intermittent power. It also means Black and Gillis can now use more than a few appliances — such as a fridge, a TV, and an evaporative cooling unit — at the same time. “We’re one of the luckiest people who get to get electric,” Gillis said. Many Navajo families still live...
Register
Minister apologizes for government’s handling of First Nations’ money in 1800s
The Canadian Press-Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Gary Anandasangaree has apologized on behalf of the Canadian government to a group of Ontario First Nations for mismanagement of their money over a century ago. The minister issued the apology Saturday at Aundeck Omni Kaning First Nation on Manitoulin Island, about 350 kilometres northwest of Toronto, during a ceremony that also commemorated a $447.9 million compensation settlement that will be shared among the five First Nations. A news release from the federal government says the Crown made an agreement with the First Nations in 1862 for sales of Indigenous land, but used the profits from the sales to build roads and open up Manitoulin Island for settlement rather than giving the money to the First Nations as intended. The release says “the Crown failed...
Register
US Navy apologizes for the 1882 obliteration of a Tlingit village in Alaska
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Shells fell on the Alaska Native village as winter approached, and then sailors landed and burned what was left of homes, food caches and canoes. Conditions grew so dire in the following months that elders sacrificed their own lives to spare food for surviving children. It was Oct. 26, 1882, in Angoon, a Tlingit village of about 420 people in the southeastern Alaska panhandle. Now, 142 years later, the perpetrator of the bombardment — the U.S. Navy —has apologized. Rear Adm. Mark Sucato, the commander of the Navy’s northwest region, issued the apology during an at-times emotional ceremony Saturday, the anniversary of the atrocity. “The Navy recognizes the pain and suffering inflicted upon the Tlingit people, and we acknowledge these wrongful actions resulted in the loss...
Register
Brantford City Council endorses HART Hub application proposal
By Kimberly De Jong Local Jouranlism Initiative Program City of Brantford Council unanimously voted to endorse SOAR Community Services’ proposal to apply to be one of the Ontario government’s new HART Hubs, during a Special City Council meeting on Tuesday, October 15, 2024. SOAR Community Services, in partnership with De dwa da dehs nye>s Aboriginal Health Centre, Brantford Native Housing, Grand River Community Health Centre, Brant Community Healthcare System and the City of Brantford, will be taking the lead to submit a proposal for the Brantford/Brant HART Hub project. “The homelessness and addictions recovery treatment proposal is part of a response from the Ministry of Health to address issues of complex homelessness and substance use within communities across the province,” said Kim Baker, executive director for SOAR Community Services. “It...
Register
Requirements for success identified for Indigenous businesses
By Carl Clutchey, Local Journalism Initiative reporter THUNDER BAY, ONT-A panel discussion on the impact of Indigenous business in Northern Ontario took place in Thunder Bay on Thursday, hosted by the Anishnawbe Business Professional Association (ABPA). The panel discussion was moderated by Peter Collins and Chi Mino Ozhitoowin, and featured panelists Jason Thompson of Superior Strategies, Jonathon Mamakwa of the TGK Group and Sarah Levesque of Supercom Industries. The conference examined opportunities and the challenges facing Indigenous businesses in the region. Panelist Sarah Levesque described the success of Supercom Industries, which was derived by a partnership and collaboration of six First Nation communities. She said each community had a common goal involving revenue generation for their communities, capacity building, opportunities for local First Nation businesses and job creation. A series...
Register
A century after Native Americans got the right to vote, they could put Trump or Harris over the top
RED SPRINGS, N.C. (AP) — Native American communities were decisive voting blocs in key states in 2020, and with the 2024 race remaining stubbornly close both campaigns have tried to mobilize Native voters in the final weeks of the presidential election. But when it comes to messaging, the two campaigns could not be more different, many Native voters said. It’s been 100 years since Native Americans were given the right to vote, with the passage of the Snyder Act in 1924, and whichever campaign is able to harness their power in this election could swing some of the most hotly contested counties in the country. In swing states like Arizona, North Carolina, Michigan, and Nevada, the candidates — particularly Vice President Kamala Harris — have been targeting Native Americans with...
Register
Canadian Indigenous leaders call Biden’s apology for residential schools ‘first step’
(CP)-Canadian Indigenous leaders say U.S. President Joe Biden’s apology for his country’s residential school system is only the first step toward healing generations of harm. On Friday, Biden apologized for the U.S. boarding school system that for more than 150 years separated Indigenous children from their parents, calling it “one of the most consequential things” he’s done as president. The apology comes 16 years after former prime minister Stephen Harper apologized for Canada’s residential school system. It follows an investigation of boarding schools driven by U.S. Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland, the country’s first Indigenous cabinet secretary, which was prompted by the discovery of 215 suspected unmarked graves at a residential school site in Kamloops, B.C. “The federal Indian boarding school policy and the pain it has caused will...
Register
Havasupai Tribe set to receive federal aid for severe flood damage
The Associated Press SUPAI, Ariz. (AP) — The Havasupai Tribe is set to receive federal emergency aid to help repair damage caused by severe and deadly flooding this summer. President Joe Biden on Friday approved a disaster declaration for the Havasupai, whose reservation at the southwestern edge of Grand Canyon National Park is one of the most remote in the continental U.S., accessible only by foot, mule or helicopter. Flash flooding in late August swept an Arizona woman into Havasu Creek above the Colorado River confluence, killing her. The rushing waters also sent hikers scrambling for high ground and trapped several in the area above and below Beaver Falls, one of a series of usually blue-green waterfalls that draw tourists from around the world to the scenic site. The area...
Register
Finding peace and friendship, 264 years on
By John Chilibeck Local Journalism Initiative Reporter During his 25 years as a criminal prosecutor, Brett Vottero spent plenty of time reviewing the details of arson and murder cases in western Massachusetts, trying to establish the grisly facts of what had happened. Little did he know these skills would come in handy with the St. Andrews Historical Society, established by a small group from the town in southwestern New Brunswick last year. The group wanted to do a public launch with a splash. One of their goals was to assist the Peskotomuhkati, also known as the Passamaquoddy, in researching and education about their history. After all, the Indigenous people had been in the area for thousands of years before Loyalists, lumberjacks, fishermen and tourist guides even showed up. “At one...
Register
Man has straightened out his life since gun incident more than five years ago
By Keith Lacey Local Journalism Initiative Reporter A young man from the Osoyoos Indian Band in Oliver who engaged in a momentary lapse of reason during a drunken argument where he ended up firing a shotgun more than five years ago was given a one-year suspended sentence Thursday. Hunter Terrence Styles Kruger, now in his early 30s, pleaded guilty to one count of possessing a shotgun dangerous to the public peace before Judge Shannon Keyes Thursday morning at the Penticton courthouse. Court heard that on May 17, 2019, Kruger got into an argument with another man over the First Nations tradition of who should be the “firekeeper” or person responsible for ensuring a fire is set and remains burning once a First Nations person is pronounced dead. They are responsible...
Register
Keeping renewable project information public
With five large renewable projects in various stages of planning and approval, MD of Willow Creek administration is continually informing council and rural ratepayers on the status of these applications. “It’s on the agenda for public information,” chief administrative officer Derrick Krizsan said, referring to the Oct. 9 municipal planning commission meeting. “These are really large projects for our community. It’s important to keep people and council informed on the status of these applications. So, we included them on our agenda as discussion items, and in particular, some of the Alberta Utilities Commission’s (AUC) requests for information.” “We wanted some council feedback on some of those requests for information, but we include that information as a matter of transparency,” Krizsan said. On the MPC agenda under miscellaneous, three of the...
Register
US Navy will apologize for the 1882 obliteration of a Tlingit village in Alaska
The Associated Press ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Shells fell on the Alaska Native village as winter approached, and then sailors landed and burned what was left of homes, food caches and canoes. Conditions grew so dire in the following months that elders sacrificed their own lives to spare food for surviving children. It was Oct. 26, 1882, in Angoon, a Tlingit village of about 420 people in the southeastern Alaska panhandle. Now, 142 years later, the perpetrator of the bombardment — the U.S. Navy — is set to say it is sorry. Rear Adm. Mark Sucato, the commander of the Navy’s northwest region, will issue the apology during a ceremony on Saturday, the anniversary of the atrocity. While the rebuilt Angoon received $90,000 in a settlement with the Department of...
Register
MAiD and marginalized people: Coroner’s reports shed light on assisted death in Ontario
By Karandeep Sonu Gaind Professor of Psychiatry, University of Toronto Earlier this month, the Office of the Chief Coroner for Ontario released new reports highlighting some of the reasons some Canadians have chosen medical assistance in dying (MAiD, which in Canada involves euthanasia — meaning medically-administered injection rather than self-administered — over 99.9 per cent of the time). The reports have received international attention for what they highlight, including patients being euthanized despite untreated mental illness and addictions, unclear medical diagnoses and suffering fuelled by housing insecurity, poverty and social marginalization. Some are shocked by what these reports reveal, but none should be surprised. This is what happens when you let the foxes run the henhouse, as Canada has arguably done by allowing right-to-die advocacy to shape policy and replace...
Register
Toxic waste project on hold amid environmental concerns and unified resistance from area leaders
By Jacqueline St. Pierre, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter The Manitoulin Expositor AGNEW LAKE—The contentious plan to transport niobium tailings to the Agnew Lake Tailings Management Area (ALTMA) has been halted for further environmental assessment following a united outcry from both First Nations and local municipalities over a lack of consultation. A recent town hall meeting in Nairn Centre underscored the anxiety surrounding the project, which seeks to ship approximately 34,000 tonnes of processed niobium tailings to a site with a history of uranium mining. Chief Rodney Nahwegahbow of Whitefish River First Nation articulated the concerns of his community, stating, “Nairn Centre is in the heart of our traditional territory. We should have been consulted long before any plans were made public.” His sentiments reflect the deep-rooted frustration among First Nations...
Register
Documentary returns to Inukjuak 100 years after ‘Nanook of the North’
By Jeff Pelletier Local Journalism Initiative Reporter Inuit have come from the Ice Age to the Space Age in one lifetime. That’s one observation included in documentary A Century After Nanook, which premièred in front of nearly 200 viewers Oct. 19 at Inukjuak’s Pinguavik Recreation Centre. The film takes viewers to the community 100 years after Nanook of the North, a 1922 American silent film that follows a man named Allakariallak (in the film dubbed Nanook) as he hunts, traps and trades. Kirk French, a Pennsylvania State University anthropologist and documentary filmmaker, said the inspiration for A Century After Nanook came from the realization that the historic film was about to hit the 100-year mark. “We had never worked in the North before, so we’re joking around about Nanook of...
Register
Salluit 4-year-old suffers months-long eye infection with no referral south
By Cedric Galant/Local Journalism Initiative Reporter A Salluit family fears four-year-old Isaiah Tayara Saviadjuk might have lasting complications from an eye infection after struggling for two months to get adequate medical care. “The service here is very poor,” Maggie Tayara said about the care her grandson Isaiah received at the community’s health centre, a clinic run by the Inuulitisivk Health Centre. The Puvirnituq-based health centre provides health care for all the Hudson Bay communities in Nunavik. “They just said they did not know what to do.” In August, Isaiah started suffering pain and swelling in his eyes. He couldn’t open them, tolerate light, or get a good night’s sleep. “The regular cloudy daylight is too bright for him, so we have no choice but to have our curtains closed,” Isaiah’s...
Register
Biden visits Indian Country and apologizes for the ‘sin’ of a 150-year-old boarding school policy
LAVEEN VILLAGE, Ariz. (AP) — President Joe Biden on Friday formally apologized to Native Americans for the “sin” of a government-run boarding school system that for decades forcibly separated children from their parents, calling it a “blot on American history” in his first presidential visit to Indian Country. “It’s a sin on our soul,” said Biden, his voice full of anger and emotion. “Quite frankly, there’s no excuse that this apology took 50 years to make.” It was a moment of both contrition and frustration as the president sought to recognize one of the “most horrific chapters” in the national story. Biden spoke of the abuses and deaths of Native children that resulted from the federal government’s policies, noting that “while darkness can hide much, it erases nothing” and that...
Register
Family fears drug dealers may have abducted missing M’Chigeeng woman amid Island’s growing drug crisis
M’CHIGEENG—The disappearance of Juanita Migwans, a 30-year-old First Nations woman last seen on October 2 in M’Chigeeng First Nation, has her family fearing the worst. Her loved ones believe she may have been abducted by drug dealers from the Greater Toronto Area who have been infiltrating First Nations such as M’Chigeeng. Ms. Migwans, who was reported missing on October 7, had struggled with addiction in recent years. “There’s been no activity on her bank account,” said her aunt, Mary Ashcroft, who took to social media to urge anyone with information to come forward. “Our fear is they may have taken her against her will. She could be anywhere.” Her father, Morris Ashcroft, voiced his concern as well, highlighting the alarming presence of big-city drug traffickers on First Nations reserves. “Urge...
Register
Brazil reaches $23 billion settlement with mining firms over 2015 environmental disaster
SAO PAULO (AP) — Brazil’s federal government on Friday reached a multibillion-dollar settlement with the mining companies responsible for a 2015 dam collapse that the government said was the country’s worst-ever environmental disaster. Under the agreement, Samarco — a joint venture of Brazilian mining giant Vale and Anglo-Australian firm BHP — will pay 132 billion reais ($23 billion) over 20 years. The payments are meant to compensate for human, environmental and infrastructure damage caused by the release of an immense amount of toxic mining waste into a major river in southeastern Minas Gerais state, killing 19 people and ravaging entire villages. “We are fixing a disaster that could have been avoided, but wasn’t,” President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said in a hall of the presidential palace, surrounded by governors...
Register
Biden at last visits Indian Country, where he will apologize for 150-year-old boarding school policy
PHOENIX (AP) — President Joe Biden is using his long-promised first presidential visit to Indian Country to formally apologize to Native Americans on Friday for a government-run boarding school system that for decades forcibly separated Indian children from their parents. Democrats hope Biden’s visit to the Gila River Indian Community’s land on the outskirts of metro Phoenix in Arizona will also provide a boost to Vice President Kamala Harris’ turnout effort in a key battleground state. Biden, whose presidency is winding down, had promised tribal leaders nearly two years ago that he would make a visit to Indian Country. The president, in an exchange with reporters Thursday before departing for Arizona, said an apology for the U.S. government’s role in the abuse and neglect of Native children was “something that...
Register
