First Nations schools benefit from literacy funding from Indigo
By Sam Laskaris, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter Eleven schools located in First Nations communities in Ontario and Alberta are among the latest recipients from the Indigo Love of Reading Foundation. These schools will collectively receive more than $300,000 in funding to purchase new books and literary resources. This funding is part of the $1 million the Indigo Love of Reading Foundation is donating this year to more than 30 schools across the country. “Libraries play an important role in student engagement,” said Shelby Ch’ng. She is the education partnership liaison for the Matawa First Nations Education Department based in Thunder Bay, Ont, which assists five First Nations schools. “Northern and remote school boards are underfunded and short on space.” “Principals and school boards often have to make tough decisions between...
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Superior Court awards $3.22 million in court costs to Saugeen FirstNation
By Cory Bilyea Local Journalism Initiative Reporter SAUGEEN OJIBWAY NATION – In a significant development, Ontario Superior Court Justice, the Honourable Susan Vella, ruled in favour of the Chippewas of Saugeen, awarding the reserve a substantial sum of $3.22 million for court costs, disbursements and HST in the long, historic court case that disputed the reserve boundary on the north side of Sauble Beach. The costs have been apportioned as follows: – Government of Canada, $322,000; – Province of Ontario, $1.28 million; and – Town of South Bruce Peninsula, $1.67 million. In addition, Justice Vella has mandated that the town pay $467,000 of Canada’s costs. On May 22, Saugeen First Nation Chief Conrad Ritchie commented to the Saugeen community, saying, “Chief and council are grateful that the court has recognized...
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Judge dismisses Native American challenge to $10B SunZia energy transmission project in Arizona
The Associated Press 06/06/2024 A U.S. district judge has dismissed claims by Native American tribes and environmentalists who sought to halt construction along part of a $10 billion energy transmission line that will carry wind-generated electricity from New Mexico to customers as far away as California. Judge Jennifer Zipps said in her ruling issued Thursday that the plaintiffs were years too late in bringing their challenge. It followed an earlier decision in which she dismissed their requests for a preliminary injunction, saying the Bureau of Land Management had fulfilled its obligations to identify historic sites and prepare an inventory of cultural resources. The disputed stretch of the SunZia transmission line is in southern Arizona’s San Pedro Valley and passes through an area that holds historic, cultural and religious significance for...
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Key points from report into RCMP response to Saskatchewan mass killing
By The Canadian Press 06/06/2024 15:24 RCMP released a report Thursday into how Mounties responded to a mass stabbing in Saskatchewan. Myles Sanderson killed 11 people and injured 17 others on the James Smith Cree Nation and in the nearby village of Weldon on Sept. 4, 2022. He died of a cocaine overdose three days later, shortly after he was taken into police custody. Here are some of key points from the report: No fundamental issues On a broad level, the report didn’t identify any “common underlying circumstance” that significantly impeded the RCMP’s ability to manage its response. It did, however, find areas where the RCMP can make improvements. Appropriate response time The report says it took 37 minutes for officers to arrive at the scene after the initial 911...
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Ontario chemical company says federal, provincial governments unfairly targeting it
The Canadian Press 06/06/2024 A Sarnia, Ont., plastics plant says it is being unfairly and “relentlessly targeted” by the federal and provincial governments, which have both recently instituted new rules specifically aimed at benzene emissions from that one facility. Earlier this week, Ontario introduced a new regulation limiting benzene emissions at Ineos Styrolution, with the government saying it is concerned about how the emissions are affecting the neighbouring Aamjiwnaang First Nation. The province has issued four orders to Ineos Styrolution since 2019, recently temporarily shut down the facility and added new conditions to its licence that it must meet before it restarts operations, but the government says benzene levels remain elevated. Ontario’s new regulation came shortly after new air quality standards from Environment Canada that targeted Ineos Styrolution. In a...
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Liberal government launches $1.5B program to build more co-op housing
The Canadian Press 06/06/2024 Housing Minister Sean Fraser announced the launch of a $1.5-billion co-operative housing development program that the federal government promised in its 2022 budget. Fraser was in Winnipeg on Thursday to announce the program, which Liberals touted as the largest federal investment in co-op housing in 30 years. The program is expected to build thousands of new homes by 2028, though the exact number will depend on where those homes are built. “The real reason that we want to invest in co-operative housing is not only so we can create a lower cost of rent today, but that affordability will be preserved for the long-term when profit is not entered into the equation,” Fraser said in an interview with The Canadian Press. Co-op housing is managed by...
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Kenora appoints Indigenous adviser
Mike Stimpson, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, 06/06/2024 KENORA – A man from a Treaty 3 First Nation has been appointed Indigenous relations adviser to the government of the westernmost city in Ontario. A city news release this week said Ed Mandamin “will be pivotal in fostering collaborative relationships between the city and Indigenous communities in this newly established role.” His appointment reflects Kenora’s “commitment to reconciliation, diversity and inclusion,” the release said. Mandamin is a member of Iskatewizaagegan #39 Independent First Nation, also called Shoal Lake 39, southwest of Kenora on the west shore of Shoal Lake. He was raised on the reserve but spent some of his childhood living in Kenora – at a residential school. “Yeah, I was there from 1973 to 1976,” he said Thursday in...
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Tory MP says he misspoke after NDP MP accuses him of making anti-Indigenous comment
The Canadian Press 06/06/2024 A Conservative MP apologized in the House of Commons on Thursday after an Indigenous colleague from across the political aisle called him out for linking an offender’s criminal record to his race. Brad Redekopp says he misspoke earlier this week when he brought up the 2022 mass stabbings in Saskatchewan during a debate about measures to address systemic racism within the RCMP. On Tuesday, the Saskatoon MP criticized parole officers for releasing Myles Sanderson on parole before the James Smith Cree Nation member perpetrated the killings. He incorrectly suggested that the parole board predicted Sanderson “was likely to reoffend because of his racial background.” The Conservative party sought to correct the record — not by striking the claim altogether but by changing it to say “regardless”...
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Chiefs of Ontario annual assembly and election at Six Nations next week
By Austin Evans Turtle Island News Writer The Chiefs of Ontario Regional Chief Election is just a few days away and so far only one candidate has announced. The Chiefs of Ontario will hold its annual assembly at Six Nations of the Grand Rivers along with the Ontario Regional Chief Election between June 11 to 13 at Six Nations Sports and Cultural Memorial Centre. This year, the ACA is themed, “Coming Together: Advocating for First Nations Sovereignty.” The election for the Office of the Ontario Regional Chief will be conducted by Gordon “Chop” Waindubence and Gary Dokis at 2 pm on June 12. The ACA will also include important updates on issues and priorities for First Nations in Ontario, such as health, rights assertions, and mining. The only candidate to...
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Mohawk writer Alicia Elliott wins Amazon Canada First Novel Award
The Canadian Press 06/06/2024 Alicia Elliott has won the prestigious Amazon Canada First Novel Award. She took home the $60,000 prize for “And Then She Fell,” which follows an Indigenous woman made to feel like an impostor in her wealthy Toronto neighbourhood while she tires to write a modern retelling of the Haudenosaunee creation story. Elliott is a Mohawk writer who lives in Brantford, Ont. She was previously shortlisted for the Hilary Weston Writers’ Trust Prize for Nonfiction for her memoir “A Mind Spread Out on the Ground.” Runners-up, who each receive $6,000, are “Empty Spaces” by Jordan Abel; Kōtuku Titihuia Nuttall for “Tauhou;” “The Berry Pickers” by Amanda Peters; Janika Oza’s “A History of Burning;” and “As the Andes Disappeared,” written by Caroline Dawson and translated by Anita Anand....
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SRU and KYC combine forces on community recreation project
By Marc Lalonde Local Journalism Initiative Reporter 06/06/2024 The Mohawk Council of Kahnawake’s Sports and Recreation Unit and the Kahnawake Youth Center are teaming up on a project that will identify the community’s recreation needs as a whole and seek to fill in the gaps as needed. The new Kahnawake Recreation Steering Committee (KRSC) will be tasked with a pair of major projects. The first is a comprehensive ten-year Recreation Master Plan, while the the second is a feasibility study for a new, or expanded, Kahnawake Youth Center. “We had our first meeting on this in early May,” MCK Sports and Recreation Unit Director Roiatate Horn said. “We’re trying to get started to be able to have an initial report ready by this time next year. What we want to do...
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Space for Algonquin Peoples to open near Parliament, but no date set
The Canadian Press 05/06/2024 Algonquin leaders and the federal government have signed an agreement committing to a new space for Algonquin Peoples in Ottawa’s parliamentary precinct. The new building will be located in a prominent spot along Wellington Street, directly in front of Centre Block. Official plans for its usage and building design are still under development, but the goal is for the building to serve as a hub where Algonquin Peoples and leadership can congregate. Grand chief Savanna McGregor of the Algonquin Anishinabeg Nation Tribal Council says the agreement is an act toward reconciliation, and that the space will be one future generations can be proud of. Algonquin leaders have long pleaded for such a space, arguing the existing Indigenous Peoples Space in front of Parliament unfairly excludes them,...
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Mother tells Quebec inquest she can’t fathom how her son could die in the cold
The Canadian Press 05/06/2024 A grieving mother has told a coroner’s inquest that she can’t understand how her son could have been allowed to die in the cold outside a Montreal homeless shelter. Suzanne Chemaganish says her son Raphael André grew up in the woods with his Innu family in northern Quebec and was used to cold weather. She says that in her community, when someone knocks on the door, the person is let inside to make sure they’re out of the cold. Coroner Stéphanie Gamache is presiding over the inquest into the death of André, who was 51 when he died in January 2021 inside a portable toilet close to a Montreal homeless shelter he frequented. The death came after Quebec had imposed a nighttime curfew to curb the...
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RCMP drone pilot takes flight in Îyârhe Nakoda FirstNation
By Jessica Lee Local Journalism Initiative 05/06/2024 Is it a bird, is it a plane? No, it’s an RCMP drone. Stoney Nakoda RCMP is launching a high-flying pilot program in Mînî Thnî June 4-15, using drones to get a bird’s eye view and swiftly respond to calls for service. “Every community is unique in the layout and the calls for service, and Stoney Nakoda being a really large community that’s in the foothills, this project will provide us with a really unique lens on how we can best serve this area,” said Stoney Nakoda RCMP Staff Sgt. Chad Fournier. During the trial period, drones will assist police in responding to crimes in progress, fleeing suspects, suspicious persons, missing persons, EMS and fire calls, and natural disasters. Drones will be deployed...
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Proposed Inuit Heritage Centre would bring artifacts home to Nunavut
By Jeff Pelletier Local Journalism Initiative Reporter A new Nunavut Inuit Heritage Centre in Iqaluit would bring home some of the territory’s artifacts, and offer new space for the community to gather for performances and cultural activities. Annette Kurtzmann of Dorte Mandrup Architects presented her company’s plans for the new centre at a community meeting Tuesday night at the Franco-Centre, attended by about 20 people. The Inuit Heritage Trust awarded the contract to the Denmark-based architectural firm last year. While outlining some of its key features, Kurtzmann said the centre is the “most exciting project” she has been a part of. From the outside, the building will be built into an Iqaluit hillside, with a roof people can walk on and large windows. The exterior design is meant to...
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HEC plays host to Indigenous economic summit
By Marc Lalonde Local Journalism Initiative Reporter 06/06/2024 Hydro-Quebec CEO and Assembly of First Nations of Quebec and Labrador (AFNQL) Chief Ghislain Picard were among the headliners for an Indigenous economic summit held Monday at the Universite de Montreal’s prestigious Hautes Etudes Commercials business school. The Gathering of the Grand Economic Circle of Indigenous Peoples and Quebec brought together about 300 participants to the day-long event, which was co-organized by the First Nations of Quebec and Labrador Economic Development Commission (FNQLEDC) and First Nations Executive Education (FNEE) and featured a number of presentations and networking opportunities. FNEE is an HEC-run program for Indigenous leaders and features a number of development programs for Indigenous community, economic and entrepreneurial leaders. The department played host to the event, which featured such presentations as one...
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New centre in the works to track Indigenous data on businesses, land and resources
By The Canadian Press 06/06/2024 A new institute is in the works that would track Indigenous economic prosperity in Canada by collecting data on population, businesses, land and resources. The First Nations University of Canada announced today that it will set up the centre with help from two foundations. University president Jacqueline Ottmann says Indigenous communities can prosper when they track and manage their own data. The Mastercard Foundation is putting forward $6 million over five years, while the McConnell Foundation is adding another $1.5 million over the same time frame. Jennifer Brennan, the director of Canada programs at the Mastercard Foundation, says the institute will show how the country benefits from a strong Indigenous economy. The 2022 National Indigenous Economic Strategy drafted by 20 Indigenous organizations recommended that the...
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Six Nations Police charge two after shots fired lead to bust
SIX NATIONS OF THE GRAND RIVER- Six Nations Police have charged two people and seized weapons and $50,000 of fentanyl after reports of shots being fired on Bateman Line led to a drug bust on Seneca Road. The arrest of the man and woman on Bateman Line led Six Nations Police to search a mobile trailer and two motor vehicles on Seneca Road where police said they found a handgun loaded with ammunition and approximately $50,000 worth of Fentanyl. Police also seized digital scales, weapons, drug packaging materials, firearm ammunition, and cell phones. As a result of the investigation, Darrell Glen Porter Jr. , 32, of Ohsweken is facing 16 charges stemming from 13 criminal offences including: three charges of careless use of a firearm, two charges of possessing a...
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Review finds RCMP confusion, communication problems at Saskatchewan mass killing
The Canadian Press 06/06/2024 A report into how Mounties responded to a mass killing and manhunt in Saskatchewan has found some communication problems but nothing that significantly impacted the outcome. Police captured Myles Sanderson three days after he killed 11 people and injured 17 others on the James Smith Cree Nation and in the nearby village of Weldon. Sanderson, 32, died of a cocaine overdose shortly after he was taken into custody. On Thursday, RCMP released a report, conducted by Mounties in Alberta, assessing the police response in 2022 and recommending improvements. “On a broad level, the review team did not identify any common underlying circumstance that significantly impeded the RCMP’s ability to manage the response to the (James Smith Cree Nation and Weldon) event,” says the report. “At the...
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Supreme Court sides with Native American tribes in health care funding dispute with government
The Associated Press 06/06/2024 WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court sided with Native American tribes Thursday in a dispute with the federal government over the cost of health care when tribes run programs in their own communities. The 5-4 decision means the government will cover millions in overhead costs that two tribes faced when they took over running their health care programs under a law meant to give Native Americans more local control. Covering those costs is “necessary to prevent a funding gap,” Chief Justice John Roberts wrote in the majority opinion. Not reimbursing them forces tribes to “pay a penalty for pursuing self-determination.” The Department of Health and Human Services had argued it isn’t responsible for the overhead costs associated with billing insurance companies, Medicare and Medicaid. Paying those...
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