Six Nations encourages measles vaccinating as Ontario outbreak grows
By Tara Lindemann Writer Ontario has received reports of 2,230 cases of measles in 2025, according to Public Health Ontario’s Enhanced Epidemiological Summary. Although there are no reported cases in Six Nations of the Grand River in that period, the report revealed that the second-largest Ontario-wide outbreak since October 18, 2024 occurred next door. Grand Erie Public Health has reported 289 cases of measles in Brant County, accounting for 13 percent of infected Ontarians. Measles is a highly contagious respiratory virus that remains in the air or on surfaces for up to two hours. Symptoms include a fever and small, white spots inside the mouth; red, watery eyes and cough, and a rash forms at least three to five days after symptoms reveal themselves. Measles offers a 90 percent infection...
Register
Seniors on reserve to get more in Senior Relief Fund
Six Nations seniors who live off-reserve won’t have access to the Six Nations Senior Relief Fund, but for those living on-reserve the income cap was increased. Six Nations Elected Council (SNEC) approved amendments to the Senior Relief Fund Policy during its General Finance meeting on July 7, following discussion around income thresholds, eligibility, and the evolving financial needs of community members. Elissa Smith, Senior Manager of Allied Health Services at Six Nations Well-being Department walked SNEC through highlighted updates, including revised eligibility criteria, financial caps, and new provisions for urgent needs and medical equipment not covered by other funding sources. One change, which didn’t see opposition, is in the scope of the policy which will only allow members living on the reserve to qualify for the fund. “Off-reserve homes develop...
Register
No other word for it but secrecy…
In a day and age when cities, countries and the world are all looking to open their doors and get their citizenry involved….Six Nations Elected Council (SNEC) is moving in the opposite direction. Under the guise of claiming they are trying to provide information to the community the current council is taking a huge step backwards. It is looking to shut down the live streaming of council meetings and allow in person attendance at council sessions only. They haven’t explained why or even how they intend to even ensure a in-house audience would be Six Nations members unless they plan to demand status cards or even are able to explain how they have the right to demand a status card from an individual. It is going to get complicated to...
Register
Weekly Cartoon
...
Register
Today in History
July 16, 2003 Phil Fontaine returned as National Grand Chief of the Assembly of First Nations, defeating incumbent Matthew Coon Come, in a three-way leadership race. July 18, 1817 Selkirk Treaty signed. Lord Selkirk signed a treaty with five Anishinaabe and Ininew (Cree) leaders recognizing Indigenous land rights in the area of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers in present-day Manitoba, Canada. July 19, 1958 Kwakwaka’wakw Chief Mungo Martin presented the Royal Totem to Her Majesty the Queen Mother in London, who accepted on behalf of Queen Elizabeth II, to mark the centennial of the creation of the colony of British Columbia. July 19, 2020 1492 Landback Lane Protest begins when Six Nations of the Grand River, located near Hamilton, Ontario, people took over a housing develpment constructed on unceded Haudenosaunee...
Register
Six Nations Police impaired driver charges
OHSWEKEN, ON- Six Nations Police have charged eight people following separate impaired driving-related incidents between May 26th, 2025, and June 14th, 2025. Six Nations Police Chief Darren Montour said the service is noticing an increase in impaired charges. “We have noticed an increase in impaired driver arrests in the past few months,” he told Turtle Island News. “We take traffic safety seriously as it affects the safety of our community. We will continue being diligent and ensuring we make every effort to keep impaired drivers off our roads,” he said. He cautioned the community. “We want to remind everyone that impaired driving affects us all and to please not drink and drive. Call a friend or call a cab. Your family will appreciate it! “ Meanwhile in eight seperate incidents eight...
Register
Host Attack registers victory versus Peterborough
By Sam Laskaris Writer The Grand River Attack welcomed all of its Women’s Major Series Lacrosse (WMSL) rivals on Saturday. And the Six Nations-based club was able to pull off a significant victory, in large part as an honour to one of the Attack veterans, Alisha Smith, who was playing in her final match for the squad. The Attack defeated the visiting Peterborough Lakers 7-4 in a contest held at the Iroquois Lacrosse Arena (ILA). All 10 WMSL squads played a game at the ILA on Saturday. With the victory against the Lakers, the Attack is now sporting a 4-3 record. Peterborough, which had lost just once in its first half dozen outings, saw its mark fall to 5-2. “That’s the best win we’ve had of the year,” said Attack...
Register
Rivermen travel to Collingwood and defeat host Cruise
By Sam Laskaris Writer It wasn’t the cakewalk that perhaps some team members were expecting. But the Six Nations Rivermen hit the road on Sunday and emerged with an 11-7 victory over the Collingwood Cruise in an Ontario Series Lacrosse (OSL) match. “It was a little iffy at times,” said Jay Smith, the general manager of the local Senior B men’s team. “It was a lot tighter than expected.” While the Rivermen, the defending league champs are hoping for another lengthy playoff run, the Collingwood squad, which is now sporting a 3-12 record, will not be among the Top 4 regular season finishers and thus will not advance to post-season action. The Six Nations club was perhaps also a bit overconfident as it headed to Collingwood. That’s because the last...
Register
SPORTS BRIEFS: Arrows edged in OT in playoff opener
By Sam Laskaris Writer It was not the post-season start that the Six Nations Arrows were hoping for. The local Junior A club kicked off its best-of-five Ontario Junior Lacrosse League (OJLL) quarter-final series versus the visiting Peterborough Lakers on Sunday. The Lakers managed to prevail in the series opener, eking out a 6-5 overtime victory. As the boxscore indicates, this contest was rather even throughout the night. Both teams scored once in the opening period. The Arrows and Lakers then netted two goals each in the middle frame. And both teams also scored two goals apiece in the third period, which forced the OT session. The Arrows did manage to outshoot Peterborough 51-47. But they came up just a bit short in the only statistic that really mattered on...
Register
Brantford Police seeking witnesses in collision
BRANTFORD, ONT-The Brantford Police Service is seeking the public’s help in providing information from anyone who may have witnessed a collision, which occurred at approximately 6:40 p.m. on Sunday, July 13, 2025, near the intersection of Shellard Lane and Anderson Road, Brantford. The motor vehicle collision involved two motorcycles and two automobiles. One person was transported to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. Any witnesses having information or anyone with dash-cam or video footage of the collision are being asked to contact Constable Jeff BIRNIE of the Brantford Traffic Unit at 519-756-0113 ext. 2823 or at jbirnie@police.brantford.on.ca...
Register
Advocate says progress being made since B.C. child torture death, more work required
By Ashley Joannou British Columbia’s representative for children and youth says some progress is being made to improve the child welfare system, but she’s concerned “fiscal limitations” will prevent timely help from getting to those most in need. Jennifer Charlesworth’s statement Tuesday comes a year after her report on the myriad of failures that ended in the death of an 11-year-old Indigenous boy who was tortured by extended family members who had been approved to care for him by the government. She credits the government with making progress on some of the recommended improvements that came out of the report, such as working toward a “child well-being strategy and action plan.” She said more than 90 per cent of young people are now being seen within 90 days as per...
Register
In Colombia, Indigenous youth seek to protect land. They have to escape violence to do it
By Steven Grattan LAS DELICIAS, Colombia (AP) — Adriana Pazu wiped away tears as she remembered a colleague who was shot dead earlier this year by an armed dissident group for defending their land. Pazu, an Indigenous authority from the Nasa territory of San Francisco, Toribío, was attending an Indigenous youth assembly this week in Las Delicias, Cauca, a region long affected by conflict. Despite years of threats and an official security detail, Pazu’s colleague Edgar Tumiña was killed — months after one of his bodyguards was killed in an earlier attack. “He gave everything to protect this land and our youth,” Pazu said, her voice breaking. “Now, there are only a few of us left, holding onto this responsibility.” Indigenous groups have often argued that they are uniquely qualified...
Register
Calgary police officer charged with two counts of second-degree murder
A Calgary police officer has been charged with two counts of second-degree murder after the occupants of a van were shot dead following a slow-speed pursuit in 2023. The Alberta Serious Incident Response Team, also known as ASIRT, announced the charges in a news release Tuesday. Calgary police, in a statement, said the officer charged is on leave from the service. The shooting took place on the morning of May 29, 2023, after police were called to a report of suspicious persons on private property, who then fled the scene in a stolen cube van. Police said at the time that additional calls were then received about the white cube van driving erratically on Memorial Drive. Video of the chase shows the van being followed by a number of police...
Register
Federal departments fall short of Ottawa’s 5% Indigenous procurement target
By Sonal Gupta, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Canada’s National Observer Several of Canada’s federal departments didn’t meet the mandated target for Indigenous procurement in 2023-2024, according to government documents obtained by Canada’s National Observer through an Access to Information request. The policy, introduced in 2021, requires that at least five per cent of all federal spending must go to Indigenous businesses to address economic gaps and increase Indigenous participation in government supply chains. Although the federal government as a whole awarded more than $1.24 billion in contracts to Indigenous businesses last year — representing 6.1 per cent of all eligible contracts — the documents show significant variation in the awarding of federal contracts between departments. An Indigenous business is defined as one owned and operated by elders, band and tribal...
Register
Snubs and scrambles ahead of Carney’s major projects meeting with First Nations
By Sonal Gupta, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter and Arno Kopecky, Canada’s National Observer As First Nations leaders head to Gatineau for a high-stakes summit with Prime Minister Mark Carney, tensions are running high over the federal government’s handling of Bill C-5 — a sweeping new law that accelerates approvals for major infrastructure and resource projects. Indigenous leaders say the process has left their communities out and broken promises to respect their rights, protect the environment and seek free, prior and informed consent. “We worked hard to get the prime minister to agree to this meeting,” said national chief Cindy Woodhouse-Nepinak, calling it a “historic” gathering. “First Nations cannot be on the sidelines in the year 2025.” But many see the haste with which the July 17 meeting was assembled as...
Register
Advocate says progress being made since B.C. child torture death, more work required
By Ashley Joannou British Columbia’s representative for children and youth says some progress is being made to improve the child welfare system, but she’s concerned “fiscal limitations” will prevent timely help from getting to those most in need. Jennifer Charlesworth’s statement Tuesday comes a year after her report on the myriad of failures that ended in the death of an 11-year-old Indigenous boy who was tortured by extended family members who had been approved to care for him by the government. She credits the government with making progress on some of the recommended improvements that came out of the report, such as working toward a “child well-being strategy and action plan.” She said more than 90 per cent of young people are now being seen within 90 days as per...
Register
Biggest salmon barbecue in B.C. booked for inaugural Celebrate BC festival in Coquitlam
By Patrick Penner, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Tri-Cities Dispatch A new event is set to make a splash this B.C. Day. Celebrate BC is a free all-ages festival at Town Centre Park in Coquitlam scheduled for Aug. 4 and featuring what organizers are calling the largest salmon barbecue in B.C. history. Announced July 8, the one-day festival will be hosted by S.U.C.C.E.S.S. in partnership with the City of Coquitlam and guided by the Kwikwetlem First Nation. It aims to honour the diverse cultural heritage of the province through music, food, art, and storytelling. At the heart of the festival will be a massive culinary undertaking: 2,000 pounds of wild salmon, barbecued on-site by some of B.C.’s top chefs in a tribute to the province’s Indigenous traditions and coastal roots. The...
Register
Wildfires spark demand for Indigenous fire stewardship
By Rochelle Baker, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Canada’s National Observer Danny Masuzumi Sr. shakes his head, recalling the jumble of emotions he experienced as a raging wildfire bore down on the remote K’ahsho Got’ine community of Fort Good Hope, NWT. A year ago, local leaders, other emergency personnel, Masuzumi and his team of Indigenous Guardians had to make a terrifying decision to evacuate with most of the community living alongside the east bank of the Mackenzie River — or stay and fight the fire along with territorial wildfire crews. They chose to stay. “We had no hoses, no pumps, no nothing,” said Masuzumi, executive director of the K’ahsho Got’ine Foundation that manages the protection of the community’s new Indigenous and Territorial Protected Area with the help of its Guardian team...
Register
Native American radio stations at risk as Congress looks to cut $1B in public broadcasting funding
By Margery A. Beck OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Dozens of Native American radio stations across the country vital to tribal communities will be at risk of going off the air if Congress cuts more than $1 billion from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, according to industry leaders. The U.S. Senate is set to vote this week on whether to approve the Department of Government Efficiency’s plan to rescind previously approved public broadcasting funding for 2026 and 2027. Fear is growing that most of the 59 tribal radio stations that receive the funding will go dark, depriving isolated populations of news, local events and critical weather alerts. The House already approved the cuts last month. “For Indian Country in general, 80% of the communities are rural, and their only access to...
Register
Smith, Alberta Next panel’s first town hall hears support, calls for separation vote
By Lisa Johnson Alberta Premier Danielle Smith and her hand-picked panel heard from several Albertans Tuesday who argued the only way to get the province a fair deal from Ottawa is to leave confederation. The event in Red Deer was the first in a series of town halls to address public concerns with the federal government. Some 450 people showed up to put questions to Smith and the 15 other members of her Alberta Next panel about the grievances inspiring separatist sentiment in the province. Most of the attendees lauded Smith and the panel’s strategies to wrest more control from the federal government, including pulling out of the Canada Pension Plan and creating a provincial police force to replace the RCMP. Jon Sedore came from the town of Trochu, about...
Register
