Indigenous dating show snags some love at Tkarón:to’s imagineNATIVE film festival
By Daniel Opasinis, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, IndigiNews It’s nearly summer in downtown Tkarón:to (Toronto), and a crowd gathers around the entrance to the TIFF Lightbox on King Street West. While it’s almost 8 p.m., the warm early June breeze and light blue sky is a reminder of the summer solstice, just around the corner. Moviegoers file into the city’s star-studded venue, many adorned in beads, ribbons, brooches and hide as they walk along the red carpet. The imagineNATIVE Film and Media Arts Festival is in full swing, bringing filmmakers and audiences across the country together to celebrate excellence in Indigenous cinema. Tonight, a movie isn’t being shown, but a buzzy reality TV show. Rezervations for Two is set to premiere on Monday on Aboriginal Peoples Television Network (APTN) and...
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Mattagami First Nation member credits sobriety, training for strong powerlifting start
By Marissa Lentz-McGrath, Local Journalism Initiative, TimminsToday.com MATTAGAMI FIRST NATION – Neebin Prince finished her first powerlifting competition with a perfect scorecard, three personal bests, and a message she hopes will inspire Indigenous youth. Prince, from Mattagami First Nation, completed all nine lifts at the Band of Barbells Spring Classic and finished with a total of 332.5 kilograms (733 pounds). For Prince, though, the achievement meant more than just numbers. She explained that this moment reflected years of hard work, rebuilding her life through sobriety, reconnecting with her culture, and showing that Indigenous athletes belong in any sport they choose. “I got into a really bad situation with alcohol abuse and alcohol addiction,” she said. “In 2022, I gave it all up, and I started going to the gym, and...
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Kanesatake students say shé:kon to the future
By Fern Marmont, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Eastern Door The ceremony on June 6 honoured the nine graduates who completed the intensive three-year immersion program. So far, this has been the largest graduating cohort for the program. “There is always the fear that when students from the program graduate, they get lost within the community,” said Wenn’tiio Will Gareau, a language teacher at Ratiwennenhá:wi. He added that it’s always a struggle to maintain the Kanien’kéha speaking community. “S,o it’s great to see that since this cohort has finished, they seem even stronger in their conviction towards our language, to save our language, and to keep speaking,” said Gareau. “That’s what they showed at the graduation, the confidence and pride for how far they’ve come,” said Gareau. For Gareau, this...
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American man found guilty of second-degree murder in 2024 killing in New Brunswick
A 49-year-old man from Maine has been found guilty of murder in the 2024 killing of a man in Esgenoopetitj First Nation, in northeastern New Brunswick. RCMP say a jury found Keith Martin guilty on Thursday of second-degree murder and attempted murder after a 23-day trial. Martin was the subject of a nearly 24-hour police manhunt in September 2024 and an alert warning residents of the First Nation to shelter in place because he was at large and armed. Police issued the alert after 48-year-old Mark Dwayne was found dead on Sept. 5, 2024, and Sylvio Savoie was found injured in what police called a firearm-related incident. Martin was arrested about a day later by police dog services and emergency response members. On Sept. 11, 2024, he appeared in Miramichi,...
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‘I had nothing to live on’: The $60,000 romance scam that broke a B.C. senior’s heart
By Radha Agarwal, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Delta Optimist At 75 years old, B.C. resident Sharon Blakeborough suffered a heart attack. It was not just a sudden medical emergency. It was the physical breaking point of a year-long deception. A sophisticated romance scam left her with severe emotional trauma and $60,000 in financial losses. Blakeborough separated from her husband in 2022. Soon after, a man approached her on Facebook. “I started to believe in him because I was vulnerable, because I was lonely. Yes, I was very lonely,” she said. He used the name “David Thompson.” He presented himself as a military doctor who had served in Syria. He showered her with affection and promised to build her a house on her reserve in Chowéthel (Chawathil). The casual conversation quickly...
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Full construction will not begin on Nunavut port this year
By William Koblensky Varela, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Nunavut News The start date of full construction on the proposed Qikiqtarjuaq deep-sea port is not yet known, but it won’t be this year, according to an update from the proponent Arctic Economic Development Corporation (AEDC). In December 2025, AEDC said it was hoping to begin construction in June 2026. Project leader Harry Flaherty went to Ottawa in late 2025 in an attempt to secure fast-tracked funding for the project, but large gaps in financing remained. “These processes have not moved quickly enough to allow for a full construction season in 2026. Instead, we are hoping that we can still begin some on-site construction work later in 2026, pending federal funding decisions,” the AEDC report states. Phase 1 of the Qikiqtarjauq port...
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Ottawa to introduce privacy, clean drinking water legislation this week
By Anja Karadeglija The federal government will introduce two major bills in the last days of the Parliamentary sitting, focusing on privacy and ensuring First Nations have access to clean drinking water. The Liberal government has given notice it will bring forward a long-promised update to Canada’s private-sector privacy law. The bill is expected to include protections for children’s data as well as measures ensuring Canadians’ data is not used for surveillance pricing. It would be the Liberal government’s third attempt to update the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act, after introducing bills in 2020 and in 2023 that did not become law. The government has also given notice it will introduce a bill “respecting water, source water, drinking water, wastewater and related infrastructure on First Nation lands.” A...
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These Albertans signed petitions. What do they think of the separation referendum?
By Dayne Patterson Alberta is planning to ask residents in an Oct. 19 referendum whether the province should stay in Canada or if there should be a future binding referendum on separation. It was prompted by two citizen-led petitions. A petition from the group Forever Canada, asking if Alberta should stay in the country, was verified in December with about 400,000 signatures. The separatist group Stay Free Alberta, which handed in the other petition in May, said it collected roughly 300,000 names of people who want Alberta to become an independent state. Soon after, a judge quashed the petition, ruling it never should have been issued and that the government neglected its duty to consult First Nations. United Conservative Party Premier Danielle Smith says she can’t ignore those who signed...
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New funding for MMIWG Calls for Justice projected to be cut in half: CCPA report
By Jeremy Appel, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter The Canadian government is backsliding on its funding commitments for achieving the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls’ (MMIWG) Calls for Justice, according to a new report. The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA) tracked federal spending on programs related to the 231 Calls for Justice from the inquiry into MMIWG’s 2019 final report, Reclaiming Power and Place. The CCPA identified $146.3 billion in spending commitments related to the calls from 2019/2020 to 2030/31 across 94 federal programs and initiatives. That figure includes $24.7 billion, or 17 per cent, for new programs, including child welfare, housing and infrastructure, health and wellness, culture, and safety. “These investments reflect a recognition that the violence faced by Indigenous women, girls, and gender-diverse...
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Five Years of Healing: Indigenous Psychological Services Celebrates Milestone Anniversary
By Chevi Rabbit, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Alberta Native News What started as one woman’s personal healing journey has grown into a nationally connected network of Indigenous mental health professionals dedicated to helping communities heal through culture, ceremony, and connection. On June 5, Indigenous Psychological Services (IPS) celebrated its fifth anniversary, marking five years of providing culturally grounded counselling and wellness services for Indigenous people across Alberta and beyond. According to Indigenous counsellor and facilitator Joanna Gladue, the organization’s roots are deeply personal. Five years ago, founder and CEO Leigh Sheldon was navigating her own healing journey while searching for Indigenous mental health supports. “Leigh Sheldon was on her own journey of healing and trying to seek out Indigenous counsellors and trying to get some help with her own things...
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New Indigenous kids show filmed at Capilano University celebrates Cree language and culture
By Abby Luciano, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, North Shore News A new kids show is set to hit TV screens next week teaching Cree language and culture. Kokum & Dot, produced and directed by filmmaker April Johnson and filmed at Capilano University in North Vancouver, follows Kokum Dorothy talking to her hand-puppet friend Dot about her day, introducing vocabulary and guiding principles in Cree culture. “We’re excited,” Johnson said. “These languages and honouring the wisdom of our elders is really important.” The eight episode series intertwines live-action and animation, starring Cree/Anishinaabe actor and musician Renae Morriseau as Kokum (meaning grandmother in Cree) Dorothy and ventriloquist and puppeteer Kellie Haines as Dot. Johnson took inspiration for the show from Dorothy Visser, an elder with the Cree Nation of Saddle Lake, Alta.,...
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No appeal of RCMP acquittal for assault of Eskasoni woman
By Rosemary Godin, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Cape Breton Post The family of Christina Gillis has learned that the New Brunswick Prosecutors Office is denying her appeal of an RCMP officer’s May 1 acquittal on a charge of excessive force. Cpl. Andrew Whiteway of the Woodstock RCMP was found not guilty of using excessive force while arresting Gillis who had called for help one day in June 2024 after being concerned about her daughter’s safety. Gillis, who is a member of the Eskasoni First Nation, has been living in New Brunswick with her partner — a Woodstock police officer — and her three children. According to news reports, four officers responded to Gillis’s call for help in calming her distressed daughter. Gillis’s husband arrived on the scene as well. Gillis...
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Retired senator addresses Upper Chamber about cannabis
By Rosemary Godin, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Cape Breton Post Former senator Dan Christmas says that little was put in place to include the First Nations communities when cannabis was first legalized in 2018 — and that’s causing problems. “Cannabis retailers in my community (of Membertou) had no rules to follow,” he told the standing Senate committee for Indigenous People recently. “We basically had an unregulated industry at the beginning. It was because of all those issues and all of the community problems that arose, that we are doing this backwards.” COMMON RULES He said in Nova Scotia, there has been no opportunity to develop a common set of rules as has happened in other provinces such as Alberta where regulations are left up to the municipalities. “It’s like trying...
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Judgment Day – International tribunal finds Canada’s residential school system constituted genocide
By Patrick Quinn, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Nation Following a week of testimony, Canada was judged guilty of genocide by the Rome-based Permanent Peoples’ Tribunal, an international court of opinion that convened in Montreal May 25-29 to investigate the country’s residential school impacts. “In international law, genocide need not involve mass killings,” said PPT co-chair Frances Webber. “It can be a slow and continual process taking place over centuries. The genocidal intent behind the forced removal of children was explicit.” This is the preliminary verdict from seven judges of the 57th PPT, a legally non-binding forum that has examined human rights violations on a global stage since 1979. A final decision and report will follow on September 30, the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, after the judges have...
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Testimony of Trauma – Indigenous victims of obstetric and gynecological violence share their stories of abuse
By Natalia Fedosieieva, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Nation A Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue study released in May documents obstetric and gynecological violence experienced by Indigenous women in Quebec’s healthcare system. Phase I of the study collected 35 testimonies from First Nations women, and was published in November 2022, revealing accounts of forced sterilization and mistreatment during pregnancy and childbirth. Phase II analyzed testimony from 94 First Nations women, including three Cree participants, and identified 55 cases of imposed sterilization and 39 cases of other obstetric and gynecological violence (OGV). The report looked at incidents that took place between 1956 and 2023 involving women aged 15 to 40, that resulted in lasting trauma. UQAT professor Suzy Basile told the Nation the project emerged in 2020 from a conference in...
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First Nation in Manitoba declares state of emergency due to drugs, violence
The chief of a northern Manitoba First Nation says her community is so overwhelmed by drugs and the resulting violence that her members live in fear. Sayisi Dene First Nation has declared a state of emergency and called on provincial and federal governments for better policing and mental health and addiction supports. The fly-in community about 325 kilometres north of Thompson sees an RCMP presence about once a month, with two officers travelling there, often for less than a day. Chief Kelly-Ann Thom‑Duck says recent violence has members scared to visit the band office or grocery store, and that previous conversations with the RCMP have led “nowhere.” Premier Wab Kinew says keeping people safe is a “top priority” and that the province will work with the community. An RCMP spokesperson...
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Alberta files appeal on court decision to throw out separatist referendum petition
By Jack Farrell Alberta’s government has filed its appeal of a judge’s decision to quash a petition looking to force a vote on the province quitting Canada. Premier Danielle Smith criticized the ruling last month, calling it “anti-democratic,” and promised to appeal. Court of King’s Bench Justice Shaina Leonard found the referendum petition shouldn’t have been issued under provincial law and that Smith’s government neglected its duty to consult First Nations. Leonard’s decision effectively threw out the petition, which organizers submitted to Elections Alberta at the beginning of May. The campaign’s leaders have said almost 302,000 Albertans signed their names. A group of Alberta First Nations challenged the petition and Elections Alberta’s decision to issue it, arguing that separation would violate treaty rights and that the petition process was unconstitutional....
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Turning Sun Solar Breaks Ground
By Carol Baldwin, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Wakaw Recorder Located on the traditional territory of the Ocean Man Nakoda Nation, the Turning Sun Solar project is one of the largest solar photovoltaic (PV) projects in the province of Saskatchewan and one of the largest renewable energy projects currently under construction in Canada. The Turning Sun Solar Project includes 10 percent Indigenous ownership through the partnership with the Ocean Man First Nation. At the groundbreaking ceremony on June 5, MP Terry Duguid, on behalf of the Honourable Tim Hodgson, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, announced $15 million in federal funding for the project provided by the Government of Canada’s Smart Renewables and Electrification Pathways Program (SREPs). This $4.5-billion program is designed to support the deployment of grid modernization, energy storage...
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Nuu-chah-nulth artists speak out against AI-generated art and fashion models
By Nora O’Malley, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Ha-Shilth-Sa From a shared house in Medellín, Colombia, Koyah Morgan-Banke from the Toquaht and Secwépemc First Nations says all her career aspirations are going to be impacted by AI. The 20-year-old is spending the summer in South America after signing with a modelling agency. The Ucluelet Secondary School graduate also specializes in Indigenous formline design and is studying Neuroscience at the University of British Columbia (UBC). In science, AI excites me because data analysis is so much easier now. In every other facet, specifically creative, it’s horrifying. It’s very, very scary,” said Morgan-Banke over Facetime. When it comes to the modelling industry in 2026, Morgan-Banke says she is competing with computer generated models for gigs, and she has to be vigilant when signing...
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HBC Royal Charter welcomed in ceremony at Manitoba Museum
By Ian Bickis A 356-year-old document that granted the Hudson’s Bay Co. control over roughly one-third of Canada is now in public hands. The HBC Royal Charter was unveiled Thursday at the Manitoba Museum in Winnipeg in a ceremony that was both a celebration of the new life of the document and a reflection on the troubled legacy it created. “In 1670, a king, sitting across the ocean, claimed authority over our lands,” said Ovide Mercredi, former national chief of the Assembly of First Nations. “Through the so-called right of discovery, vast territories were granted to the Hudson’s Bay Company, as if our lands and territories were empty. But our lands were not empty, our nations were here.” Canada later bought the lands from the company, without recognizing the ancestors...
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