Dancing under the sun at the Credit First Nation powwow
Three Fires Pow wow…dancing softly on Mother Earth By Austin Evans Writer MISSISSAUGAS OF THE CREDIT FIRST NATION-It didn’t matter if they were a lifelong dancer, a first-time visitor, or Ontario’s Lieutenant Governor everyone joined in the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation’s (MCFN) annual Three Fires Homecoming Powwow’s welcoming dance this past weekend. MCFN Chief Claire Sault welcomed attendees to the 36th annual event calling it, “a day that we celebrate our progress.” She told the crowd gathered under the shade of the trees at the community’s “Grove,” it was a time to mark the community’s perseverance. “We celebrate our unique heritage, diverse cultures, and our outstanding contributions we’ve made to Canada,” she said. “Our people and our families were very resilient and survived a lot of adversity, but today...
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Two dead, others injured after semi crosses centre line and collides with motorcycles
The Canadian Press 01/09/2024 14:41 FAUST ALBERTA-Two people are dead and at least six others were injured after police say a semi truck crossed the centre line of a highway and collided with a group of motorcycles in northern Alberta. RCMP say members from the detachment in Faust, Alta., responded to a report of the crash on Highway 2 — about 250 kilometres northwest of Edmonton — shortly before noon on Saturday. They say an off-duty RCMP officer was already on-scene helping the injured as other emergency services arrived. Police say two of the motorcycle riders — a 38-year-old resident of Drift Pile First Nation, Alta., and a 33-year-old from Edmonton — were killed. At least six additional riders with various injuries were taken to hospital. Police say their Initial...
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The increasing popularity of Indigenous clothing and designs can get complicated
By NC Raine Local Journalism Initiative Reporter Eunice Ketchemonia-Cote, who creates unique ribbon skirts and star blankets says social media can be a double-edge sword for home-based artists like herself. From the Keeseekoose First Nation, she often posts and sells her items on Facebook because it’s a quick way to showcase her work. As a result, Ketchemonia-Cote’s one-of-a-kind designs have been replicated without her consent more times than she can remember. “I think it’s a problem that happens a lot more than people realize,” said Audrey Dreaver, an artist and program co-ordinator of Indigenous Fine Arts at the First Nations University of Canada. She said misusing or outright theft of Indigenous people’s artwork or “intellectual property” has been happening for decades. “It’s a weird phenomenon that is claiming to honour...
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First Nations created wealth fund growing
The Ontario First Nations Sovereign Wealth Fund is in a solid position, but its funds won’t be available to any First Nation until 2030. Ron Jamieson, who sits on the Ontario First Nations Sovereign Wealth Fund (OFNSWF) board on behalf of Six Nations Elected Council (SNEC) came to the General Finance meeting on August 19 to give the new council a better idea of the fund and its progress. The fund was an agreement between 129 Ontario First Nations, including Six Nations, that purchase more than 14 million shares of Hydro One six years ago. The fund has gained more than $200,000 since 2021, but Jamieson wants to see it get to $1 billion before the funds are divided between the 129 First Nations, who signed up for the deal...
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Elected Chief tells water conference Six Nations lacks access to clean water
By Austin Evans Writer Six Nations Elected Chief Sherri-Lyn Hill told the World Water Conference (WWC) last week the Canadian government is to blame for poor drinking water access at Six Nations and asked for their support in fixing it. The WWC, hosted by the International Water Association (IWA) brings professionals and companies in the water sector together bi-annually to discuss the future of water management. Elected Chief Hill welcomed the delegates from 140 countries around the world to the Toronto event August 11. In a short welcoming address armed with a power point she asked the crowd if they believed access to clean drinking water was a basic human right. When they raised their hands, she said the government of Canada did not agree with them. She told the...
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Stuffing the bus to help Six Nations kids heading back to school
By Austin Evans Writer Six Nations Bingo collected $10,000 of school supplies to help kids start the school year off right. From August 6 to August 24, Six Nations Bingo invited the community to donate school supplies, student supplies and school toys. Donors received special bingo cards in exchange for their donations which could be used in two bingo games on August 24. Each game had a prize of $1500. Players got a card each time they donated, encouraging them to donate multiple times to increase their odds of winning. Six Nations Bingo is a division of Six Nations of the Grand River Development Corporation (SNGRDC). SNGRDC CEO Matt Jamieson said they collected an estimated $10,000 worth of donations and gave out about 200 bingo cards. “At last count we...
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Mild earthquake rattles three Quebec cities, no damage reported
The Canadian Press 01/09/2024 17:56 A 4.6 magnitude earthquake rumbled through parts of Quebec early Sunday morning. Natural Resources Canada says the quake struck at 5:43 a.m, and was “lightly felt” in Drummondville, Trois-Rivières and Montreal. It hit 26 kilometres northwest of Drummondville, 35 kilometres from Trois-Rivières and 91 kilometres from Montreal. There were no immediate reports of damage. The federal agency says the earthquake occurred at a depth of 18 kilometres. The U.S. Geological Survey’s Earthquake Hazards Program places the epicenter in the region of Pierreville in the Centre-du-Québec region of the province. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 1, 2024. ...
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Extravaganza sends kids back to school
By Austin Evans Writer Free food, haircuts, and backpacks helped draw in the crowd at the End of Summer Extravaganza in Chiefswood Park. This was the third year Six Nations Family Services hosted the event. Supervisor Karissa Elliott has overseen the event since its first year indoors at the Iroquois Lacrosse Arena. They had to move outdoors the next year because so many people showed up. “It’s just getting bigger,” she said. “Last year we had 1100 people… We also are getting a lot more booths and stuff to set up, a lot more community department involvement.” Kids came out to play in the bouncy castles, get their faces painted, and watch a magician along with other activities. Shay Claus heard about the event half an hour before through Facebook...
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Today in History
Sept 1 In 2020, the federal government recognized residential schools as a National Historic Event. Jonathan Wilkinson, minister responsible for historic sites and monuments, said history has to tackle tough subjects as well as happy events. Chief Dennis Meeches of the Long Plain First Nation said the band hopes to open a national residential school museum near Portage la Prairie, Man. Sept 3 In 1609, English explorer Henry Hudson and his crew aboard the “Half Moon” entered present-day New York Harbor and began sailing up the river that now bears his name through Mohawk territory. (They reached present-day Albany before turning back.) Sept 4 In 1886, Geronimo and his Apache forces surrendered to the United States army at Skeleton Canyon, Ariz. In 1995, a splinter group of about 30 members...
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Investigative journalist Stevie Cameron dies at home in Toronto, age 80
The Canadian Press 02/09/2024 14:17 An investigative journalist who authored books that tackled topics ranging from a prime minister’s involvement in jet purchases to the murders of women on a British Columbia pig farm has died. Stevie Cameron died Saturday at home in Toronto from Parkinson’s, her daughter Amy Cameron said, noting her mother also had dementia. She was 80. Among Cameron’s best-known works is an investigation she did into then-prime minister Brian Mulroney’s involvement in the purchase of new Airbus jets. Cameron was accused of being an informant for the RCMP when they launched their own investigation, but those accusations were later recanted. Amy Cameron said her mother believed in speaking truth to power but power sometimes fought back, and the accusation that she was a police informant was...
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The Native North American Travelling College Has Deep Roots
©By Doug George-Kanentiio The Native North American Travelling College is celebrating its 50th year as a formal entity. It has long served the Akwesasne community by sponsoring many artists and teachers over the past five decades while giving visitors and students from the northeast insights into the culture and history of Indigenous peoples. In the spring of 1974 the founder of what was then the North American Indian Travelling College, the late Ernie Benedict, passed on the duties of directing the College to his daughter Salli Benedict, a student at the State University of New York at Oswego. A creative and effective grant writer Ms. Benedict hired Gloria Thompson as the finance director and a group of students to begin the work of converting the Peters farm on Kawehnoke into...
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Haudenosaunee roster announced for world box championships in Utica
By Sam Laskaris Writer Several seasoned local veterans but also some newcomers to the international stage are among those who have been named to the Haudenosaunee Nationals men’s lacrosse squad. The 23-player roster for the squad was announced on Monday. The team will participate at the world box championships, which will be held in the New York city of Utica. The tournament will begin on Sept. 20 and continue until Sept. 29. The local contingent of those selected for the Haudenosaunee club includes players such as Cody Jamieson, Randy Staats, Warren Hill and Doug Jamieson, who have already made a name for themselves internationally. Two Six Nations members who are new to the Haudenosaunee senior men’s team though are Justin Martin and Travis Longboat. Martin’s stock has risen tremendously in...
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Three First Nations will co-host the 2025 Little NHL tournament
By Sam Laskaris Writer Six Nations teams now know where they will have to travel to compete in the 2025 Little NHL. It was officially announced this past Saturday that the tournament, like this year, will once again primarily be staged in Markham. It was also announced that next year’s tournament, which will run from Mar. 9-13, will be co-hosted by the Chippewas Tri-Council, which consists of the First Nations of Rama, Beausoleil and Georgina Island. The Little NHL has become the largest Indigenous youth tournament in the province. Tournament officials traditionally award hosting rights to various First Nations throughout the province. But the Little NHL executive hosted the event this year as it marked the 50th anniversary of the tourney. The tournament was first held in 1971 in Little...
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Mine review begins in Yukon despite First Nation concerns
The Canadian Press The Yukon government says an independent review of a catastrophic ore slide and cyanide solution spill at a gold mine in June is now underway, in a process that’s going ahead despite concerns raised by the local First Nation. A statement from the Ministry of Mines says the First Nation of Na-Cho Nyak Dun has reviewed draft terms of reference and there’s an “open invitation” for it to participate. But the First Nation this week accused the government of trying to “erase” its role in the process, saying it would only support the review looking into what happened at the Eagle Gold mine if it could “co-manage” the process and appoint its own advisers alongside three experts now named by the Yukon government. The First Nation has...
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Final season of Friday Night Thunder to begin airing next month
By Sam Laskaris Writer The final season of Friday Night Thunder will soon start airing on the Aboriginal Peoples Television Network (APTN). The fourth and final season of the series, filmed at the Ohsweken Speedway, will commence on Sept. 6. As in previous seasons, there will be 13 half-hour episodes. They feature the Indigenous drivers that compete in sprint cars races at the local track. “Audiences keep coming back to Friday Night Thunder because the drivers’ passion for what they do is infectious,” said Adam Garnet Jones, APTN’s director of TV content and special events. “With fast cars, big characters and high stakes at Ohsweken Speedway, the show is all grit, grease and heart. We are sad to see it go but it will have a long life on our...
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Workers breach key Klamath dams, allowing salmon to swim freely for the first time in a century
The Associated Press Workers breached the final dams on a key section of the Klamath River on Wednesday, clearing the way for salmon to swim freely through a major watershed near the California-Oregon border for the first time in more than a century as the largest dam removal project in U.S. history nears completion. Crews used excavators to remove rock dams that have been diverting water upstream of two dams, Iron Gate and Copco No. 1, both of which were already almost completely removed. With each scoop, more and more river water was able to flow through the historic channel. The work has given salmon a passageway to key swaths of habitat just in time for the fall Chinook, or king salmon, spawning season. Standing at Iron Gate Wednesday morning,...
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NTI lawsuit over Inuktut education to proceed; GN out of appeals
By Kira Wronska Dorward Local Journalism Inititiative Reporter The Nunavut Court of Appeal has upheld the previous decision by the territory’s court to deny the Government of Nunavut’s motion to dismiss the Inuktut education rights case filed by Nunavut Tunngavik Incorporated (NTI), Bernice Clarke and Lily Maniapik, ensuring that it will proceed to trial. NTI President Aluki Kotierk stated, “It is disappointing that Inuit must use the courts to ensure fair treatment of Inuit students, from a government created by Inuit, and that the government has used its resources to delay and stall the hearing. However, we are pleased that the courts have sided with NTI again in affirming that this case has merit and should proceed.” “In our view, whether NTI’s claim is limited to protecting language rights (as...
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Revised no-cost Calgary to Banff rail deal hinges on province’s rail master plan
By Jessica Lee Local Journalism Initiative Reporter Proponents of a commuter rail connecting Calgary to Banff hope to sweeten a deal with the province in response to Alberta’s rail master plan which envisions tying the Rocky Mountain parks to Calgary, Edmonton and surrounding communities via passenger rail. In a move it hopes will help facilitate this, Banff-based Liricon Capital and its development partner, Plenary, say if the province builds a rail line from the Calgary International Airport to a central terminal in downtown Calgary, connects regional rail with the city’s Green Line and fixes a downtown pinch point, Liricon and Plenary will develop, build, and operate a line from the city to Banff at no cost to the province. The proposal also requires the Calgary airport to downtown track to...
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Search persists for woman swept away by flash flooding in the Grand Canyon
The Associated Press Published: 23/08/2024 15:56 PHOENIX (AP) — Search and rescue crews at Grand Canyon National Park were looking Friday for an Arizona woman who has been missing since she was swept into a creek during a flash flood near where other stranded hikers were rescued on Thursday. The woman was hiking and not wearing a life jacket when she was swept into Havasu Creek about a half-mile (0.8 kilometers) from the confluence with the Colorado River after the flash flood struck at about 1:30 p.m. Thursday. She was identified as 33-year-old Chenoa Nickerson of Gilbert, the National Park Service said Friday. She had camped overnight at Havasu Campground and was hiking to the confluence when she was swept away, the service said. The flood trapped several hikers in...
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