Why tax literacy should be a national priority in Canada
By Esteban Vallejo Toledo, PhD Student in Law and Society, University of Victoria The last time Canada’s political parties campaigned during a tax season was more than a decade ago. This year, taxes are a hot topic, and for good reason. Shortly after the federal election was called, the political parties began rolling out promises of tax cuts to win over voters. At the same time, although Canada’s consumer carbon tax was scapped last month, debates about the industrial carbon tax are likely to continue. As the election campaign continues and political parties make more tax-related promises, approximately 3,520 tax clinics and 18,090 volunteers are doing their best to help people file their taxes until April 30. Some of the volunteers are struggling to help as many people as possible....
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Flooding April 5, 2025
Flooding April 5, 2025 saw the Grand River not only flow over her banks but across roadways on Six Nations with some of the worst flooding on Fourth Line at Mohawk Road. (Photo by Jim C.Powless)...
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Six Nations Councillor: a lifetime of local politics
By Lynda Powless Editor At 60, and heading into a new chapter, Helen Miller wasn’t ready to simply retire. Active, interested in community issues she stepped into politics with a political career that would span 21 years as a Six Nations Elected Councillor. In a freewheeling interview with Turtle Island News she talked about being a councillor. She had always followed Six Nations politics, attending community meetings, council sessions and staying alert to local issues. “I wrote a lot of letters to the editor on different issues. I just always had an interest in politics.” She went to public school at Six Nations before heading to Caledonia for ight school saying she got “a late start in life.” Married in 1962 and later divorced she was a single mom in...
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AFN: First Nations could decide outcome of 36 federal ridings
AFN identifies First Nations ridings that can shape the election By Joshua Santos Writer With a federal election looming the Assembly of First Nations (AFN) has identified 36 federal ridings where First Nation voters could determine the outcome of Canada’s 45th federal election on April 28. “The federal election represents an important opportunity for each federal party to say how they intend to build a strong and mutually beneficial relationship between the Crown and First Nations,” said National Chief Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak. In an interview with Turtle Island News, National Chief Nepinak said “Canada’s economic success and future stability depends on First Nations people being partners in decision making.” The AFN compared population data from the 2021 Census with Election Canada’s voting results from the 2021 federal election. The AFN...
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Measles Hangs in the Air as Hamilton Health Sounds Alarm
By Joshua Santos Writer Hamilton Health Sciences (HHS) is sounding the alarm on measles prevention as cases rise in the region. The health authority said measles spreads through coughing or sneezing and can stay in the air or on surfaces for up to two hours after an infected person leaves. Symptoms begin with fever, cough, runny nose, and red, watery eyes, followed by a rash starting on the face and spreading to the rest of the body. Complications can include pneumonia or swelling of the brain, especially in young children, older adults, and those with weak immune systems. HHS states the best prevention is two doses of a measles-containing vaccine, such as the measles, mumps, rubella (MMR) vaccine. Children routinely receive two doses of MMR vaccine as part of Ontario’s...
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Voting patterns changing
There’s a federal election going on, in case there is any chance someone missed that little fact. With just three weeks left for Canada to decide who its newest Prime Minister is going to be. For First Nations, for perhaps one of the first times in electoral history, Indigenous issues are actually being heard on the election trail. That is the campaigns of the Liberals and Conservatives. Like the rest of the country we are still wondering what the NDP are doing? Meanwhile both have highlighted the need to work with First Nations, no plans on how that would happened but it is clear First Nations voters are becoming a focal point but whether their issues are is another question. First Nation leaders want to see a commitment to work...
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Weekly Cartoon
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Today in history
April 6 In 1909, the North Pole was apparently reached by American Robert Peary. He began his sixth attempt to reach the Pole at Ellesmere Island, and was joined later by aide Mathew Henson and four Inuit. They spent nearly 30 hours at the spot scores of explorers had sought to reach. But Peary’s claim to be the first one there is still disputed. Another explorer, Dr. Frederick Cook, said he got there in 1908 but the U.S. Congress rejected his claim. April 7 In 2008, the federal government signed a deal with the Dene and Metis to create a national park around the headwaters of the South Nahanni River in the Northwest Territories. It would be called the Naats’ihch’oh National Park Reserve. April 9 In 2019, Prime Minister Justin...
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Gane’ Yohs Health Centre mold remediation begins
By Joshua Santos Writer Demolition crews began tearing down interior walls and ceilings at the Gane’ Yohs Health Centre launching a critical mold remediation project by the Six Nations to address health and safety concerns at the facility on March 24. The health centre has been plagued by mold for the past year. Remediation efforts, conducted in collaboration with Indigenous Services Canada (ISC), follows an engineering assessment to evaluate the extent of the damage caused by water infiltration. The pharmacy at the front of the building and the mental health and addictions office at the rear remain unaffected while the public health office in the middle section of the facility is undergoing remediation. “Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) is supporting Six Nations of the Grand River in their work to assess...
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Rebels prepare for regular season opener following pre-season tournament
By Sam Laskaris Writer Blue Hill now has a much better indication of what his roster will look like this season. Hill is entering his first season as the head coach of the Six Nations Rebels Junior B lacrosse squad. The Rebels played three games in a pre-season tournament they hosted this past Saturday at the Iroquois Lacrosse Arena (ILA). The Rebels utilized 32 players in their weekend tourney. And Hill said he wasn’t overly concerned about the results in those matches. Six Nations registered a victory over the Welland Generals but was beaten in its two other outings by the Kahnawake Hunters and Halton Hills Bulldogs. “The wins and losses for that day didn’t really matter,” Hill said. “I just wanted to get a look at the players and...
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Six Nations goalie stars for Flamborough hockey squad
By Sam Laskaris Writer Thanks in large part to a Six Nations member, a Flamborough-based boys’ minor hockey squad exceeded expectations this season. Katsienhiio Squire was a star goaltender for the Flamborough Sabres’ Under 15 AA club. Squire and his teammates would prefer to still be playing this season. But their 2024-25 campaign came to an end when they were edged 4-3 in a shootout by the Milton Winterhawks in their Ontario Minor Hockey Association (OMHA) championship final held Mar. 30 in Whitby. The OMHA final against Milton was a marathon match. The two squads were deadlocked at 3-3 following three periods (15 minutes each) of regulation time. The Sabres and Winterhawks then played three scoreless 10-minute overtime periods. The game then moved on to a shootout to determine a...
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Six Nations lacrosse players have a league of their own
By Sam Laskaris Writer Mia Martin just wanted to continue playing lacrosse in her home community. So, the Six Nations member did something about it. She created a league, which will primarily feature other local adults who were also keen to take to the field. The result is the Womens Lacrosse League (WLL), which will kick off on May 18. All WLL matches will be staged at the Blue Track at the Six Nations Sports & Cultural Memorial Centre. Martin was blown away by the interest in the new circuit. She had to cap off the registrations at 84 players. The inaugural season will feature four squads. Each team will have 21 players on its roster. The clubs are simply called different colours – Blue, Purple, Green and Pink. Martin,...
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York-Durham: A new federal riding brings changes for local voters
By Darryl Knight, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter With Canadians set to go to the polls on Monday, April 28 to elect a new Parliament, many residents should take note that they are now part of a newly restructured riding. For the past few elections, Uxbridge Township voters were part of the Pickering-Uxbridge riding, which stretched in an elongated shape from Pickering’s shoreline up to Uxbridge’s northern boundary. Meanwhile, Scugog voters belonged to the Durham riding. However, following the 2022 electoral redistribution, Durham has been divided, with Clarington and Oshawa portions forming the new Bowmanville—Oshawa North riding, while Scugog has been incorporated into York-Durham. Similarly, Brock voters, who were long part of the Haliburton-Kawartha Lakes-Brock riding, are now included in York-Durham as well. The newly created York-Durham riding is significantly larger...
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Aboriginal housing project seeking artist for mural
By Alexandra Noad, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter The Aboriginal Housing Society will be opening their Iinii’toyis-Buffalo Lodge multi-unit housing unit and are putting a callout for artists to be part of a mural project. Aboriginal Housing Society provides sustainable housing solutions built on a cultural basis. Melissa Many Fingers, vice chair and treasurer for the society, says Aboriginal Housing provides support for Indigenous people who need to move from reserve to more urban settings for economic reasons such as work or school, which can be challenging. “We just want to be able to give that equal opportunity and gear our housing needs more cultural based, so that way we’re serving our clients in the best way we can.” Aboriginal Housing offers a graduate-style program where people who are struggling are...
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Thieves boost eight pickup trucks in one night from same property in rural Norfolk
By J.P. Antonacci, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter The thieves came and went over the course of two and a half hours, returning “multiple times” to a rural property in Norfolk County to steal eight pickup trucks in one night. Norfolk County OPP say three or four suspects made several trips to the property on Concession 3 Townsend in Wilsonville between 1:40 a.m. and 4:10 a.m. on Monday. The pack of thieves allegedly made off with eight pickups trucks which had been parked on the property. The theft was discovered later that morning. Two of the stolen trucks were later recovered at the intersection of Concession 3 Townsend and Cockshutt Road. Police say the vehicles were “extensively damaged and deemed beyond repair.” The other six trucks were found in various locations...
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Chief of Champagne and Aishihik First Nations glad to see bear hunt measures in place
By Talar Stockton, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter Chief Barb Joe of Champagne and Aishihik First Nations said she’s happy to see the Yukon government ban grizzly hunting in proximity to the traditional village of Klukshu. The ban was announced on March 31 alongside other changes to territorial hunting and fishing regulations. For the 2025-26 hunting season, hunters will not be able to kill grizzlies within 100 metres of the Haines Road corridor from Gribbles Gulch to Unnamed Creek No. 1. Previous restrictions on hunting were already in place on the west side of the road, as it falls within the boundaries of Kluane National Park (hunting is generally banned in national parks). Now, the prohibition will also apply to the east side of the road, where grizzly hunting was previously...
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Six Nations Police charge woman with impaired driving
OHSWEKEN, ON- An Ohsweken woman is facing impaired driving and child abandonment charges after Six Nation Police (SNP) received a complaint of impaired driving Friday, Feb. 21, 2025 . SNP received an impaired driving complaint at about 10:04 p.m. Advising police of a vehicle in the area on Sixth Line and Tuscarora Road driving erratically. SNP said they were advised by the witness that the vehicle had pulled into a local business on Chiefswood Road. Upon arriving police were directed to the vehicle involved by the witness. Police spoke with the female driver and said signs of impairment were detected on the driver. Police said there was also a child in the vehicle. As a result of the investigation, police have arrested and charged a female from Ohsweken, Ontario with...
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More than a department store: The long, complicated legacy behind Hudson’s Bay Company
By Heather Whiteside, Associate Professor of Political Science, University of Waterloo The bankruptcy of the Hudson’s Bay Company (HBC) is often framed as the fall of “Canada’s oldest company.” Media narratives typically treat HBC as if it were a straightforward retail firm, albeit one with an exceptionally long history. But HBC was always more than a hinterland mercantile fur trader in earlier centuries, just as it was more than a department store anchoring downtown shopping in the 20th century. Like the beaver it nearly wiped out, HBC made Canada into its home by fundamentally transforming its environment, and no bankruptcy court will liquidate that legacy. Still, that legacy is more complex than many might assume. HBC and the making of Canada HBC’s initials have sometimes been jokingly elaborated as “here...
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‘Just respect the fire’: Returning cultural burns to a parched Okanagan landscape brings risk and reward
By Aaron Hemens, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, IndigiNews Growing up in the bush in the mountains around snpink’tn (Penticton) in syilx Okanagan territories, Charles Kruger’s family taught him how to start fires when he was no older than five. “Being able to start a fire really young was crucial,” said Kruger, who is of syilx Okanagan and Sinixt ancestry. “Because we live off the land — deer, moose, elk, grouse, stuff like that — being able to start a fire in the rain, in the snow, is super important. That’s a skill in itself.” Kruger comes from a long line of hereditary fire chiefs, stretching back “many hundreds of years,” he said. “My grandma would be the one to tell everybody when to burn. She was the fire-keeper, I guess...
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Showing Their Potential – Quebec Indigenous Science Fair fosters scientific innovation
By Patrick Quinn, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Nation The Quebec Indigenous Science Fair (QISF) brought 80 students from 21 Indigenous communities to the Cree and Inuit communities of Whapmagoostui and Kuujjuaraapik March 18-20, an event co-hosted by the Cree School Board and Kativik Ilisarniliriniq. This year marked the event’s 25th anniversary, which has been organized by the Quebec Aboriginal Science and Engineering Association (QASEA) since 1998. The science competition aims to foster innovation and scientific interest among Indigenous youth while promoting public speaking. “I am really impressed by the quality of the projects,” said QASEA president Marc Lalande. “We see more and more projects related to culture and history. Students are proud to talk about their Elders’ knowledge. We need visibility for the good things happening in communities.” Each...
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