Kootenay artist nominated for illustrated children’s literature prize
By Rachael Lesosky, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Valley Voice The BC and Yukon Book Prizes’ 2025 shortlists have been announced. Kootenay-based Cree artist Delreé Dumont, and Scottish and Cree author Tonya Simpson, have been nominated for the Christie Harris Illustrated Children’s Literature Prize. Dumont’s art appears in Simpson’s picture book, This Land Is a Lullaby, printed by Orca Book Publishers in 2024. “I’m thrilled that we have been nominated and look forward to the results in September,” Dumont told the Valley Voice. “Whether we win or not, just being nominated is a prize itself!” This Land Is a Lullaby takes place on a stormy summer’s night, while a mother calms her infant with images of their ancestral home in the prairies and plains – the hum of dragonflies, the drumming...
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Conservatives, Liberals called out over lack of ‘prudence’ in platforms
By Craig Lord Pierre Poilievre is defending the Conservative campaign platform’s heavy reliance on economic growth in a period of deep uncertainty, while the NDP and Liberals spar over cost-cutting. The Conservative leader was campaigning in Hamilton, Ont., on Wednesday, with just days to go before the federal vote on Monday and a day after he released the party’s costed campaign platform. That plan promises to reduce the federal deficit to $14 billion in four years. It also banks on billions of dollars in unrealized revenues from cutting “red tape” and getting new projects built over that horizon. Poilievre was asked Wednesday whether those projections are realistic given Canada is just two months into a trade war with the United States — and as some economists predict the country could...
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UBC lawsuit over land acknowledgements sparks Indigenous, legal backlash
By Sonal Gupta, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Canada’s National Observer A lawsuit filed by four UBC professors and a former graduate student in BC’s Supreme Court argues that the university’s widely practiced land acknowledgements are political, and therefore against provincial law. But legal scholars and Indigenous leaders warn it will undermine progress on Indigenous land rights and reconciliation. The professors cite the provincial University Act, which says universities must be non-political and non-sectarian, and argue that by using words like “unceded” — meaning the land was never surrendered through treaty agreements — the land acknowledgments say Canada’s land is “stolen” and question the legitimacy of the state itself. This, they say, forces faculty and students to conform to the institution’s political views. The petitioners from UBC Okanagan include philosophy professor...
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Hudson’s Bay to seek court permission to auction off charter, art and artifacts
By Tara Deschamps Hudson’s Bay is expected to seek court permission today to auction off its art, artifacts and the 355-year-old royal charter that launched the company, which announced Wednesday it will liquidate all its remaining stores. The department store company, which is Canada’s oldest business, filed a notice of motion last week asking to separate the charter along with 1,700 pieces of art and more than 2,700 artifacts from an ongoing sales process. An auction “is the most transparent, fair and efficient approach to monetize the art collection while recognizing and protecting its cultural and historical significance,” the company said in the motion it filed. The move was meant to ensure the items get the “care, consideration and expertise” they need. However, the potential auction, which Hudson’s Bay wants...
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Judge rules federal government owes nearly $28 million to North Dakota for pipeline protests
By Jack Dura BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — A federal judge on Wednesday found the state of North Dakota entitled to nearly $28 million for responding to protests of the Dakota Access oil pipeline in 2016 and 2017 — a win for the state in its multiyear effort to recoup the costs from the federal government. The state filed the lawsuit in 2019, seeking $38 million for policing the protests. The sometimes-chaotic demonstrations drew international attention for the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe’s opposition to the pipeline’s Missouri River crossing upstream of the tribe’s reservation. The tribe has long opposed the pipeline, fearing an oil spill polluting its water supply. A trial played out over several weeks in early 2024 in federal court in Bismarck, the state capital. People who testified included...
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Gov. Gen. Mary Simon to represent Canada at Pope Francis’s funeral Saturday
By Dylan Robertson Gov. Gen. Mary Simon will represent Canada at the funeral for Pope Francis at the Vatican on Saturday, says Prime Minister Mark Carney. “I’m not going to be attending the funeral, given the … crucial election, and sending the right signal,” he said Wednesday during a campaign stop as Liberal leader in Victoria. “We’re represented at the highest level, appropriately so, and we will also have a senior delegation alongside” the viceregal, he said. A spokeswoman for the Prime Minister’s Office said the rest of the delegation hasn’t been finalized. The funeral will be held Saturday in St. Peter’s Square and will be attended by world leaders, including U.S. President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The archbishop of Toronto, Cardinal Frank Leo, said all five...
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CP NewsAlert: Medicine man sentenced to 8 years in prison for sex assaults of women
A Saskatchewan man has been sentenced to eight years in prison for the sexual assaults of 12 women while under the guise of being an Indigenous medicine man. A Saskatoon judge told court it was vile for Cecil Wolfe, 63, to use his position of power as a spiritual healer to violate the women over nine years. More coming....
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Dehcho leaders discuss ‘outside interference’ in communities
By Aastha Sethi, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Cabin Radio “The reason we’re bringing this issue to the table before the leadership is, as you know, the issues that we’re dealing with in the communities are humongous.” That was the message from Grand Chief Herb Norwegian to Dehcho First Nations leaders on Tuesday as a three-day meeting on social issues in communities began at Yellowknife’s Tree of Peace Friendship Centre. Fort Providence’s drug-related shootings last month formed a key topic on the agenda. Those shootings resulted in the death of one person and left two others injured. Krystian Cogswell, a 22-year-old from Surrey, B.C. has been charged with murder, attempted murder and two counts of aggravated assault. Despite a nationwide search for Cogswell, he remains at large. RCMP have made no...
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Guatemala arrests Indigenous leader of 2023 protests, accusing him of terrorism
By Sonia Pérez D. GUATEMALA CITY (AP) — Guatemalan authorities on Wednesday arrested an Indigenous leader of nationwide protests in 2023 that sought to ensure then President-elect Bernardo Arévalo’s transition to power while also demanding the resignation of the country’s attorney general. The Attorney General’s Office accuses Luis Pacheco, now serving in Arévalo’s government, of terrorism and illicit association, according to an official who requested anonymity to speak about a case that a judge has declared under reserve. In October 2023, Pacheco led an alliance of 48 Indigenous communities in peaceful protests that shut down highways across Guatemala for three weeks. Despite Arévalo’s resounding victory that August, the Attorney General’s Office continued to investigate the election and members of his party, accusing them among other things of improperly gathering signatures...
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Poilievre defends economic growth projections in Conservative platform as ‘essential’
By Craig Lord Pierre Poilievre is defending the Conservative campaign platform’s heavy reliance on economic growth in a period of deep uncertainty. The Conservative leader was in Hamilton, Ont., on Wednesday, with just days to go before the federal vote on Monday and a day after he released the party’s costed campaign platform. That plan promises to reduce the federal deficit to $14 billion in four years. It also banks on billions of dollars in unrealized revenues from cutting “red tape” and getting new projects built over that horizon. Poilievre was asked Wednesday whether those projections are realistic given Canada is just two months into a trade war with the United States — and as some economists predict the country could hit a recession if the trade uncertainty is not...
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Six Nations’ Helena Logan Celebrates 100 Years
A Joyful Spirit and Tuscarora Roots: Six Nations’ Helena Logan Celebrates 100 Years By Joshua Santos Writer A joyful spirit and deep Indigenous roots have carried Helena Logan through a century of life and she’s still laughing. The proud Tuscarora woman and lifelong Six Nations resident is turning 100 on April 19. The community is celebrating in a big way. In recognition of her milestone and enduring connection to the territory, Six Nations Elected Council has officially declared the day as Helena Logan Day. “I wish I could get out there and dance,” said Logan. Born and raised on the Six Nations, Logan’s life has been closely tied to her Indigenous identity and the land she calls home. She attended school on the reserve and later worked in the tobacco...
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Six Nations partners with McMaster University on $24M brain health research program
By Joshua Santos, Writer Six Nations is partnering with McMaster University on a $24 million Indigenous-led brain health research project funded by the federal government. The group was awarded the funds to transform brain health and develop a bundle of dementia assessment tools that will benefit Indigenous groups across Ontario, Canada and around the world. “This national project includes team member researchers from Six Nations who work at McMaster University and researchers, Jacqui Powless, who work at the Six Nations Department of Planning, Performance and Evaluation,” said Jennifer Walker, associate professor with McMaster University’s Department of Health Research Methods, Evidence, and Impact. “We spent time with the Director of the Department of Well-Being to design a project that would be responsive to the Six Nations community priorities around dementia and...
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Indigenous Issues Prominent in Brantford–Brant South–Six Nations Federal Race
By Joshua Santos Writer Indigenous issues, including access to clean drinking water, internet infrastructure, housing, health care, and justice, are central in the Brantford–Brant South–Six Nations riding as the federal election approaches on April 28. The newly revamped riding includes the City of Brantford, parts of Brant County, Six Nations. the most populous First Nations reserve in Canada, and the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation. The new electoral district was created after redistribution from the former Brantford–Brant riding, which was split into two: Brantford–Brant South–Six Nations and Flamborough–Glanbrook–Brant North. Elections Canada has confirmed seven candidates in the riding. Conservative MP Larry Brock, who was elected in 2021 with 40.3 per cent of the vote, is seeking re-election. A Turtle Island News scheduled interview with Brock’s campaign, was cancelled and...
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Easter bunny makes it to Six Nations’ 56th annual Easter Egg hunt
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Even politicians need training
Six Nations Elected Council (SNEC) appears to be jumping feet first into labour issues. The current council, who seems to have an aversion to political issues, is now encroaching on its human resources department’s territory. At a number of meetings since the new council was elected, the Elected Chief has met privately in her office with staff complaining of a variety of issues involving their working conditions breaching what has always been and continues to be, a no-go zone for any politician at any level. Staffing issues has always been the domain of human resources. Since the Elected Chief appears to be suffering from a job description let’s be brief. Staff complaints are sent to directors who send them to the Senior Administrative Officer (SAO) who meets with the Human...
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Weekly Cartoon
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Today in History
April 20 In 2022, Chief Byron Bitternose of the George Gordon First Nation in Saskatchewan said a months-long search with ground-penetrating radar near the George Gordon Indian Residential School site detected 14 possible graves. The George Gordon residential school was run by the Anglican Church between 1888 to 1996 and has been described as one of the worst residential schools in Canada. In 2023, the Shishalh Nation on British Columbia’s Sunshine Coast said ground-penetrating radar identified what are believed to be 40 unmarked graves of children on or near the site of the former St. Augustine’s Residential School. April 21 In 2022, a national Inuit organization endorsed a plan that aims to change Crown-Inuit relations. The Inuit Nunangat policy acknowledges the distinct geopolitical region in the North and creates a...
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By Joshua Santos, Writer BRANTFORD, ONT-Three Brantford men are facing drug trafficking and weapons charges after police seized suspected fentanyl, crack cocaine, brass knuckles, and other illegal items during a traffic stop. Brantford Police Service (BPS) officers conducted the stop on a vehicle travelling along Brock Street on April 9, according to a BPS news release. Three men were in the vehicle, including a driver who police said was driving with a suspended licence and wanted on a warrant. During the traffic stop BPS said a bag containing a white powdered substance was seen, in plain view, prompting a search of the vehicle and its occupants. As a result police seized approximately 22.7 grams of suspected fentanyl, about 10 grams of suspected crack cocaine, nearly 24 tablets of dilaudid, brass knuckles...
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Hydro One Upgrades Electrical Infrastructure in Six Nations
By Joshua Santos, Writer Hydro One has begun installing new network equipment on distribution poles in Six Nations as the first step toward replacing electricity meters later this year. According to a Six Nations’ social media post, the upgrades are intended to support the growing energy needs of the community and will be carried out without cost to Six Nations Elected Council or customers. “Hydro One will replace meters in the Six Nations later this year,” said Tiziana Baccega Rosa, senior media relations advisor. “As part of this replacement, the first step is to install new network equipment on some of our distribution poles in the community. Traffic controls are used to safely install the network equipment however road closures are not expected.” Installation work began on April 5 and...
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Six Nations elite athlete Bev Beaver passes away
By Sam Laskaris Writer Six Nations member Beverly Beaver, a local multi-sport athlete holding numerous sports awards, has passed away. Beaver died this past Saturday. She was 77. Beaver excelled at fastball, hockey and bowling. At only fourteen years of age she also became a key member of the Ontario Senior All-Star team She would go on, with her remarkable athletic ability, hard work, and team leadership to be honoured with more than twenty awards, including multiple Tom Longboat awards for the most outstanding native athlete. Her accomplishments include winning a regional (southern Ontario) Tom Longboat Award in 1967 as well as a national Tom Longboat Award in 1980. The awards are named after legendary Six Nations runner Tom Longboat. Regional and national awards are presented to the top Indigenous...
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