Sam Laskaris – BEHIND THE ACTION – Tom Longboat
By Sam Laskaris Writer He died almost 75 years ago. But Tom Longboat continues to put Six Nations on the map. That’s because it was announced on Monday that the National Basketball Association’s Toronto Raptors and the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) have joined forces for a campaign that will celebrate the contributions of Indigenous athletes not only in Canada but on international levels as well. Various TTC buses and streetcars will be specially wrapped and feature the images of eight Indigenous athletes, including Longboat. Longboat was the legendary Onondaga distance runner from Six Nations. He was the first Indigenous runner to win the Boston Marathon, capturing top honours in the famed race in 1907. Longboat died in 1949. But now, all these years later, those who don’t know about Longboat’s...
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Six Nations SPORTS BRIEFS
By Sam Laskaris Writer Anderson starring with Falcons Six Nations’ Brenden Anderson is making an impact with his latest hockey club. Anderson, a 20-year-old forward in his final season of junior eligibility, is currently toiling with the St. Catharines Falcons. The Falcons compete in the Greater Ontario Junior Hockey League, considered a Junior B circuit. Anderson is averaging more than one point per game with the St. Catharines squad. He’s racked up 11 points (five goals and six assists) in his first 10 matches with the club. Anderson was an instant hit with the Falcons. In his first game with the squad he had a four-point night (one goal and three assists) in St. Catharine’s 10-3 win against the Pelham Panthers on Oct. 13. Anderson has had two other multiple-point...
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B.C. lacrosse coach captures National Indigenous Coaching Award
By Sam Laskaris, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Windspeaker.com Savanna Smith is proud of the fact she has won a National Indigenous Coaching Award. Smith, who has Blackfoot ancestry and lives in Surrey, B.C., is this year’s female recipient of the award. She also likes the fact the 2023 male recipient, Tyndall Fontaine, a member of Sagkeeng First Nation in Manitoba, is, like herself, a lacrosse coach. “It was really cool that two people who are lacrosse coaches ended up getting this award,’’ said Smith, who is involved in numerous initiatives in her home province. Winners of the National Indigenous Coaching Award are annually selected by reps from the Aboriginal Sport Circle (ASC), the governing body of Indigenous athletics in Canada. Both Smith and Fontaine were presented with their awards during...
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Six Nations Police block Fourth Line looking for man who pointed a firearm
SIX NATIONS OF THE GRAND RIVER- Six Nations Police have blocked Fourth Line at Chiefswood Road this morning ( Nov., 15, 2023) at 8 a.m. after a man armed with a firearm pointed the firearm at a person walking near the Chiefwood Road and Fourth Line intersection at Veterans’ Park in Ohsweken. No shots have been fired. No injuries reported. Police blocked the roadway and are searching for the man along Fourth Line towards Seneca Road. Please avoid the area. ...
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Halloween hit and what a ghostly, ghastly event!
Welcome to Halloween Six Nations style!...
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Six Nations man charged in gunfire exchange with police
By Lynda Powless Editor A 40-year-old Six Nations man is facing a series of charges after being involved in a standoff and gunfire exchange with police last week. Six Nations Police were called at about 11:30 p.m. to a Chiefswood Road address Oct., 31st, Halloween night, after receiving complaints that a man had been seen walking along Chiefswood Road, between Fifth and Sixth Line roads, armed with a firearm and threatening he was “cop hunting.” Turtle Island News has learned that the man walked along Chiefswood Road, past the newspaper and stopped at Grand River Enterprises, that had a nightshift working, where he engaged in a short conversation with a security guard. Sources said he told the security guard “he was cop hunting.” He asked if they saw any cops...
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Six Nations Elected Council questions why it isn’t getting enough ISC funding
Six Nations continued to question why the community doesn’t receive its fair share from Indigenous Services Canada. Six Nations is the largest community in Canada by population and the second largest in size, but doesn’t receive adequate funds from Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) for its minor capital budget allocations. Mike Montour presented the Public Works 2023-2024 minor capital budget from ISC at Six Nations Elected Council’s (SNEC) General Finance meeting on October 16. He said ISC caps Six Nations allocation at about 60 per cent of its population. “I know we’ve been harping on [ISC] for a few years,” he said. “This has remained pretty stagnant for the last five years. It’s at the same level, even though costs have risen and needs have risen, we need to have more....
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Six Nations Elected Council new chief, and new faces
SIX NATIONS OF THE GRAND – Shortly after becoming the third woman to hold the office of Six Nations Elected Chief, Sherri-Lyn Hill said “transparency” is first up on her agenda. The 2023 election results were announced at the Six Nations Community Hall on Saturday (Nov 5). Approximately 100 community members attended the in-person announcement of the newly elected chief and councillors who now form the 59th Six Nations Elected Council. Turtle Island News posted a livestream of the event on social media. Elected Chief Sherri-Lyn Hill gathered with her grandkids and family in one corner of the hall as she awaited news of the results. At about 6:30 pm the results came in, Chief Electoral Polling Officer (CEP0) Dorothy Patterson announced Elected Chief Sherri-Lyn Hill won with 606 votes....
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Six Nations students making strides in education
Six Nations students are making gradual strides in their education. Claudine VanEvery-Albert, the Six Nations Grand Erie District School Board (GEDSB) Trustee introduced the 2022-2023 school year Education Agreement Report at Six Nations Elected Council (SNEC)’s last General Council meeting of the 58th council on October 24 to show how well Six Nations students are fairing and what the board is doing to help them transition from federal schools and thrive. “Now the agreement is between GEDSB and ISC (Indigenous Services Canada) however because the children who attend under this agreement are Six Nations students we feel that it’s always important to make the presentation to Six Nations council,” she said. Kevin Graham, superintendent of education presented the report and said the report is based on the last school year...
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Bullying affecting lives of Six Nations people
Bullying is having a detrimental effect on the lives’ of Six Nations community members. Jennifer MtPleasant the Six Nations Anti-Bullying Task Force lead and Sara Curley Smith, epidemiologist, presented the results of the task force’s community survey at a recent Six Nations Elected Council (SNEC)’s last General Council meeting of the 58th Elected Council on October 24 and said a large percentage of respondents feel the impacts of bullying in their everyday lives and it’s getting worse. “We also wanted to know what the impacts of bullying are. Over 50 per cent of respondents felt impacts across many different areas including emotional wellbeing, mental health, physical health, relationships, self esteem and sense of safety,” Curley Smith said. Almost 300 people of all ages took part in the survey, Curley Smith...
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Former elected chief gives farewell address
Mark Hill’s four years at the helm of Six Nations Elected Council has been a “journey of a lifetime.” The Elected Chief took a moment at the end of the last General Council meeting of the 58th Six Nations Elected Council (SNEC) on October 24 to thank his colleagues, family, staff and the community for a challenging, life changing, learning opportunity over his last four years in office. Hill is not seeking re-election this November and says he’s excited to move on to the next chapter in his life after leading Six Nations through a global pandemic. “I know it’s been a very challenging term, I am so pleased to have been able to work along your side for the betterment of the community. It’s been a huge undertaking, I’ve...
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Weekly Cartoon
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Not about the “I” but the “we”!
Six Nations of the Grand River has a new Elected Council but with a lot of familiar faces. Half of the 12-member council is made up of previous councillors who have been re-elected but along with them are also a couple of well known faces. Cynthia Jamieson and Dayle Bomberry have a long history with Six Nations administration both have served as former Senior Administration Officers (SAOs now CEO) and not just for a year, and now they have dipped their toes in politics. With that kind of strong politically astute background we look forward to watching them over the next four years and in particular are anxious to see their take on the multi-million dollar new administration that still has heads turning and has effectively created a entire new...
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LETTERS: The courage of young women and men
On Remembrance Day, look at the old veterans gathered at your local cenotaph, standing proudly, or seated with a warm blanket on their lap. Try to imagine what they experienced many decades ago when they were young, and the world was at war. The great invasion to kick the Nazis out of France took place on June 6, 1944. The largest allied armada of war ships readied for the battle of Normandy. Those onboard would face an array of deadly obstacles; barbed wire, mines, and heavy concrete fortifications containing cannons and machine guns. This was the beginning of the end of Nazi Germany’s grip on Western Europe. Many years of preparation had taken place to get the allies ready for this day. Canada was already fighting in Italy, slowly pushing...
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OMSK students donate to Six Nations Food Bank!
The Oliver M. Smith Elementry School Student Council, made up of Grade 7&8 students raised $800 recently to donate to the Six Nations Food Bank. OMSK established a student to give students leadership opportunities and positive role models for younger students. Student council reps took Candy Gram orders from each class to raise funds for the Six Nations Food Bank. Mary Monture attended to receive the cheque on behalf of the Food Bank. With parent support, the OMSK student council was able to raise $800.00 (Supplied Photo)...
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Lacrosse coaches receive national Indigenous awards
By Sam Laskaris Writer Both of this year’s recipients of the National Indigenous Coaching Award are lacrosse coaches. Savanna Smith, who has Blackfoot ancestry and lives in Surrey, B.C., is the female recipient. And Tyndall Fontaine, a member of Sagkeeng First Nation in Manitoba, is the male winner. The winners are annually selected by the Aboriginal Sport Circle (ASC), the governing body for Indigenous athletics in Canada. Both Smith and Tyndall were presented with their awards this past Friday. They were honoured at the Petro-Canada Sport Leadership Awards Gala, which was hosted by the Coaching Association of Canada. The ceremony was held in Calgary. ASC president Rob Newman said both Fontaine and Smith are deserving recipients of their awards. “It is an honour for the Aboriginal Sport Circle to be...
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Porter among Haudenosaunee players seeking gold medal at Jamaica tournament
By Sam Laskaris Writer Fawn Porter is off to the Caribbean. But the Six Nations member is not heading on a vacation to soak up the sun and to get some rest and relaxation. Instead, Porter is on the Haudenosaunee women’s squad that will participate in the Pan-American Lacrosse Association (PALA) Sixes Cup, which will be held in Kingston, Jamaica. Porter is the only Six Nations player on the team. But the club does have another local connection as Six Nations’ Tim Bomberry is the head coach. The Haudenosaunee side, one of seven entrants in the women’s portion of the tourney, is considered the heavy favourite. The Haudenosaunee squad has been placed into a round-robin pool with host Jamaica, Peru and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Puerto Rico, Argentina and Mexico...
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Evictions being used to battle drug trafficking on Pine Creek First Nation
By Dave Baxter Local Journalism Initiative Reporter A First Nations community is taking tough and extreme measures to stop drug and alcohol dependency and warn that anyone caught trafficking could be immediately evicted from their home. In a notice from the community’s Chief Derek Nepinak and council, Pine Creek First Nation (PCFN) said multiple community members living in a band-owned housing unit were arrested and charged by RCMP for drug trafficking. PCFN said that as part of their Housing and Tenancy Policy, which community members must sign to rent or lease a band-owned home, those charged by RCMP in the incident have been evicted from the house. The community is now warning that anyone who lives in a band-owned home arrested for trafficking will face immediate eviction and said the...
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B.C. Indigenous summit addresses the elephant in the backroom
B.C. Indigenous summit addresses the elephant in the backroom VANCOUVER- British Columbia Premier David Eby says Indigenous leaders “raise an important point” about bureaucrats standing between First Nations and political leaders on the path to reform. Eby addressed First Nations’ frustrations of trying to change attitudes, relationships and laws in the province at the opening news conference of the eighth B.C. Cabinet and First Nations Leaders’ Gathering, underway in Vancouver. He was responding to First Nations Summit executive Robert Phillips, who says he’s still waiting to see the province and Indigenous leaders work together on “true co-development” of reforms. Despite B.C.’s Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act four years ago, Phillips says First Nations teams still face roadblocks behind the scenes as bureaucrats “stop” what he calls the...
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Buffy Sainte-Marie … Icon or Fraud?
Revelations about Buffy Sainte Marie’s ancestry is having a devastating impact on Indigenous communities across Canada By Lori Campbell Writer This isn’t a story about whether Buffy Sainte-Marie, musical icon, activist, community member and beloved Auntie, is biologically Indigenous. Rather, it’s more important to understand the deep impact a CBC report casting doubts on the singer’s ancestry is having across Indigenous lands, and how the fallout from the report shows what reconciliation is not. But before I go there, allow me to situate myself. It will shed some light about why this story may not sound like the one you are looking for, like most Indigenous peoples, I still need time to digest this news about Buffy, but why the impact of the story is something non-Indigenous people need to...
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