Six Nations Elected Council to limit online meeting access to band members only
Worried about who is watching Six Nations Elected Council (SNEC) meetings has band councillors clamping down on who gets to watch them. SNEC unveiled a new, simplified website during its Oct 13th session that will soon include a secure portal that will allow only band members to view public council meetings. SNEC’s plan is to move access to its meeting recordings and livestreams into a secure online portal that would restrict viewing to verified community members, it introduces a redesigned website intended to improve access to information while strengthening privacy. Six Nations CEO Debra Jonathan outlined the plans during SNEC’s General Council meeting on Oct. 13, confirming that the new website, Sixnations.ca, is now live, while the community member portal is still under development. The proposed portal would require users...
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Six Nations may join national water/waste system costs study
Six Nations will consider participating in a national study examining whether federal funding adequately covers the cost of operating and maintaining First Nations water and wastewater systems. The proposed study, presented to Six Nations Elected Council during the Oct. 13 General Council meeting, aims to document the difference between actual operating costs, funding provided through Indigenous Services Canada (ISC), and the operation and maintenance costs associated with industry best practices. Craig Baker, Senior Engineer and General Manager at First Nations Engineering said the company doesn’t believe ISC is appropriately funding infrastructure on First Nations because they are seeing water treatment facilities with early rust and other ailments. “[ISC] keep[s] funding 100 per cent of infrastructure projects, but when it comes to brand new water treatment plants, brand new water main,...
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Community mural of hope and healing unveiled
By Barbara Latkowski Writer The message is of duality, unconditional love and healing. On Wednesday, Six Nations community members gathered for the unveiling of a mural at Egowadiya’dagenha’ Land Based Healing Centre, a colourful cultural symbol that now stands proudly in celebration of ‘the healing journey’. “Our work here is rooted in the understanding that with the right support, encouragement and connection to our culture, our ways of being and the relationship with the land, people can begin to heal, said Egowadiya’dagenha’ program manager, Karissa John. “We can find our way forward together and this mural reminds us that it’s not an individual journey, but a collective responsibility.” The mural’s creation was a group-based effort by Ripple FX Arts Collective, who’s founder, Krystal Froman, says highlights important themes such as...
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Editorial: Stepping down takes courage
In just four days Six Nations will mark one of the most important events of its history here along the Grand River. An event our school children can tell you about. An event responsible for our presence here at Six Nations. The signing of the Haldimand Deed on October 25, 1784. Now, that deed ensures “the Mohawks… and such other’s,” of a homeland forever. A homeland along the Grand River extending over 950,000 acres from its mouth to its source. It’s a story our school children know and it is our history. So, someone tell us all, how did the Six Nations Elected Chief not know? Last week in a stunning display of historical ignorance Six Nations Elected Council‘s (SNEC’s) much awaited multi-billion-dollar land claim trial opened and its elected...
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Today in History
Oct 26 In 2004, a Saskatchewan public inquiry found that aboriginal teenager Neil Stonechild, who froze to death in a snowy field on Saskatoon’s outskirts nearly 14 years earlier, was in police custody just before he died and that investigators closed the case prematurely. In 2021, Carolyn Bennett was shuffled out as minister of Crown-Indigenous relations. First Nations leaders had been deeply critical of her performance, saying she hadn’t lived up to the government’s mandate of reconciliation with Indigenous people. She was tapped to become the first minister of the new portfolio of mental health and addictions. In 2024, Ottawa apologized to a group of Ontario First Nations for mismanagement of their money over a century prior. The apology was based on a deal the Crown made with the First...
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Thomas inks three-year contract with Halifax Thunderbirds
By Sam Laskaris Writer Six Nations member Brody Thomas has been given an opportunity to prove he belongs in the big leagues. The Halifax Thunderbirds, who compete in the professional National Lacrosse League (NLL) signed Thomas to a three-year contract earlier this month. Thomas, who is 22, was considered a free agent. His actual NLL draft year was a year ago but he wasn’t selected by any team then. Thomas started turning some heads this season with his solid defensive play with the Six Nations Rivermen, the local Senior B men’s squad. “There was always scouts around during the season as there always is,” Thomas said. Those talent seekers were also at the national Presidents Cup tournament held in August in Edmonton. Thomas and his Six Nations teammates competed at...
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Brown registers hat trick to lead Ironmen to victory over host Jets
By Sam Laskaris Writer Mitch Brown picked a rather opportune moment to accomplish a feat which he had last fulfilled when he was a teenager. Brown, a 33-year-old forward with the Six Nations Ironmen, completed his hat trick this past Friday, scoring with just 13 seconds left in the game to lift his squad to a 6-5 victory over the host Strathroy Jets. It was the first road win of the year for the Ironmen, who are competing in their second season in the Northern Premier Hockey League (NPHL). The W also boosted Six Nations’ record to 2-0. The Ironmen had also beat the Akwesasne Wild 8-5 in their home opener staged on Oct. 4. Brown originally thought that overtime would be required to settle Friday’s match in Strathroy. “At...
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Six Nations teen has adjusted to Junior A ranks with Burlington squad
By Sam Laskaris Writer Though he only turned 16 earlier this month, Six Nations member Calder Anderson is making an impact in his first season of junior hockey. Anderson is a forward with the Burlington Cougars, a Junior A squad that competes in the Ontario Junior Hockey League (OJHL). He’s participating in a circuit that includes players who are turning 21 this season. But that hasn’t prevented Anderson from making contributions to the Cougars. He scored six goals and added one assist in his first 16 regular season matches with the Burlington club. “It’s been pretty good,” Anderson said of his rookie season in the OJHL, this past Friday after the Cougars’ 5-4 overtime win against the Oakville Blades. “A bit of adjustment going from guys all my age to...
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Six Nations annual fall festival brought in crowds
There was a big turnout at the Six Nations Groups’ annual Fall Festival at Chiefswood Park on Saturday including pumpkin painting, rides, live music, a petting zoo, face painting, vendors and raffle prizes. The festival is organized annually by the SNG (fromerly Six Nations Economic Development Corp) giving community members a chance to stroll through the park, enjoy activities from climbing high to decorating pumpkins or shopping....
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A First Nation community in Canada is using a data center to preserve its heritage
By Kelvin Chan WIIKWEMKOONG UNCEDED TERRITORY, Ontario (AP) — For thousands of years, Indigenous peoples have passed down their traditions and culture through oral storytelling. Now, a Canadian Indigenous community is using a data center to help preserve its heritage. The Wiikwemkoong Unceded Territory in rural Ontario installed a small data center as it modernized its recordkeeping systems. Among the digital files it holds are video recordings of Anishinaabe speaking their native language. “Our language is one of the biggest things that most First Nations across the country are losing,” said Wiikwemkoong Chief Tim Ominika. “We will have our knowledge keepers, our language speakers who may be moving on to the spirit world, but their legacy is still going to be protected for many years to come by having our...
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‘More than just a headline:’ Winnipeg family seeks public inquiry into police death
By Brittany Hobson First Nations leadership and the family of a First Nations girl fatally shot by Winnipeg police are renewing calls for a public inquiry into police-related deaths of Indigenous people. Eishia Hudson was shot on April 8, 2020, after police responded to reports of a liquor store robbery and chased a stolen Jeep. Police have said the stolen vehicle “rammed” into a police cruiser and hit other cars during the pursuit before shots were fired. An inquest into the 16-year-old’s death, which concluded on Friday, heard an officer fired two shots at Eishia because he believed the lives of fellow officers were in danger. William Hudson, Eishia’s father, is pushing for the province to call a public inquiry to examine the broader issue of police-related deaths and how...
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Inquest into death of Regis Korchinski-Paquet hears and sees woman’s final moments
By Paola Loriggio Regis Korchinski-Paquet expressed difficulty breathing and reported losing control in a fight with her family in a series of agitated 911 calls shortly before she fell to her death from a 24th-floor balcony while police were inside her home, a coroner’s inquest heard Thursday. Some of the 29-year-old Afro-Indigenous woman’s final moments were laid bare as jurors watched a compilation video that overlaid the recordings of five 911 calls and two police microphones with CCTV footage from the hallway outside her home and video from a police cruiser on May 27, 2020. The calls made to 911 over roughly half an hour late that afternoon, including three by Korchinski-Paquet herself, brought six police officers and two paramedics to the west Toronto building in short succession. Korchinski-Paquet’s mother,...
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Winnipeg family seeks public inquiry after inquest into teen’s fatal police shooting
By Brittany Hobson The family of a First Nations girl fatally shot by Winnipeg police is renewing calls for a public inquiry into police-related deaths of Indigenous people. Eishia Hudson was killed in 2020 after the vehicle she was driving was involved in a liquor store robbery and police chase. The inquest into the 16-year-old’s death, which concluded last week, heard an officer fired two shots at Eishia because he believed the lives of his fellow officers were in danger. William Hudson, Eishia’s father, says he is pushing for the province to call a public inquiry to examine the broader issue of police-related deaths and how Manitoba investigates them. The inquest examined whether the use of force was appropriate and whether systemic racism played a role in Eishia’s death because...
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Sarnia officer honoured as Hero Beyond the Badge in Aamjiwnaang
By Blake Ellis, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Petrolia Lambton Independent A Sarnia police officer has been honoured for his role in Truth and Reconciliation with Indigenous people. When Const. Tyler Callander was selected to be the first community officer in Aamjiwnaang First Nation, he didn’t realize his role is connected to Truth and Reconciliation. “Now that I am here and I am invested and it is part of who I am now,” said Callander. “I consider what I do everyday part of that Truth and Reconciliation.” Callander received the Heroes of the Badge Award on Monday at Aamjiwnaang First Nation. The award recognizes members of Ontario’s policing community whose contributions go beyond the normal expectation of their role. Sarnia Police Service has provided policing services to Aamjiwnaang First Nation under...
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Checkpoint controversy deepens as Bloodvein members call for removal
By Steven Sukkau, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Winnipeg Sun The Manitoba Wildlife Federation is renewing its call for a controversial highway checkstop near Bloodvein River First Nation to be moved onto reserve land, as a dispute over hunting access takes a new turn following allegations that a provincial minister offered economic development funding while seeking the checkpoint’s relocation. Bloodvein Chief Lisa Young told the Winnipeg Free Press that Natural Resources and Indigenous Futures Minister Ian Bushie offered up to $250,000 for economic development during a private conversation in September, while also indicating the First Nation would receive a letter directing it to move the checkstop off a provincial highway. Young said she felt she was being pressured and interpreted the offer as a bribe. Bushie denied offering money in exchange...
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A First Nation community in Canada is using a data center to preserve its heritage
By Kelvin Chan WIIKWEMKOONG UNCEDED TERRITORY, Ontario (AP) — For thousands of years, Indigenous peoples have passed down their traditions and culture through oral storytelling. Now, a Canadian Indigenous community is using a data center to help preserve its heritage. The Wiikwemkoong Unceded Territory in rural Ontario installed a small data center as it modernized its recordkeeping systems. Among the digital files it holds are video recordings of Anishinaabe speaking their native language. “Our language is one of the biggest things that most First Nations across the country are losing,” said Wiikwemkoong Chief Tim Ominika. “We will have our knowledge keepers, our language speakers who may be moving on to the spirit world, but their legacy is still going to be protected for many years to come by having our...
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Group assisting long-planned review of firearms — including SKS — has yet to meet
By Jim Bronskill An advisory group that’s supporting a federal review of firearms classification — including a look at the SKS rifle — is expected to hold its first meeting this fall, almost a year after Ottawa announced the review. Public Safety Canada says members of the Firearms Classification Technical Advisory Group, appointed to provide expert advice to the department and the RCMP, “will be meeting later this fall.” The Liberal government has faced fresh questions about the SKS after a document filed in a U.S. court said the killer in the Tumbler Ridge, B.C., mass shooting talked about having an SKS gun. Eighteen-year-old Jesse Van Rootselaar killed eight people in the Feb. 10 Tumbler Ridge attack before taking her own life. The RCMP has declined to release details about...
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New Inuk recruit talks benefits, challenges of policing in his hometown
By Dominique Gené, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Nunatsiaq News Cst. Jerry Patterson has always wanted to follow in his father’s footsteps. His father Allen Patterson served as a police officer with the Kativik Regional Police, now known as the Nunavik Police Service, for seven years. “I spent my entire youth watching my dad be a cop,” Jerry Patterson said. “It inspired me to pursue that path.” Now, Patterson is one of three Inuit officers in the Nunavik Police Service, which is working to increase Inuit recruitment. The number of Inuit officers has remained at three since at least last year, despite the hiring of Patterson in July, due to another Inuk officer who left the service a few months ago and has since taken a position with another police service....
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New Inuk recruit talks benefits, challenges of policing in his hometown
By Dominique Gené, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Nunatsiaq News Cst. Jerry Patterson has always wanted to follow in his father’s footsteps. His father Allen Patterson served as a police officer with the Kativik Regional Police, now known as the Nunavik Police Service, for seven years. “I spent my entire youth watching my dad be a cop,” Jerry Patterson said. “It inspired me to pursue that path.” Now, Patterson is one of three Inuit officers in the Nunavik Police Service, which is working to increase Inuit recruitment. The number of Inuit officers has remained at three since at least last year, despite the hiring of Patterson in July, due to another Inuk officer who left the service a few months ago and has since taken a position with another police service....
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Mother of First Nation woman who couldn’t get medical transport and died seeks reform
By Liam Casey and Alessia Passafiume If only. It’s a phrase that plays over and over again in Eva Mamakwa’s mind. If only her daughter, Miranda Mamakwa, had made it to at least one followup appointment after open-heart surgery, she may be alive. If only Indigenous Services Canada’s non-insured health benefits program had arranged travel for just one of her four missed appointments, Miranda may be alive. The 31-year-old mother of three from Fort Severn First Nation died on Sept. 8, weeks after asking people on social media to seek action in case of her death. “I don’t want this to happen to anyone else,” Eva Mamakwa said in an interview with The Canadian Press from her home before falling quiet, overcome with emotion. She is speaking out about her...
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