Agricultural Day educates Six Nations about local food security
By Carly McHugh Writer The Six Nations Farmers Association’s Agricultural Day brought community members of all ages together for a common goal: to educate them about local farming initiatives and ensure the future of food security. Held at the Six Nations Community Centre on Nov. 7, the second-annual event featured interactive activities including a photo booth; corn, grain, greenhouse and vegetable garden displays; artwork depicting a cultural way of life and the growing cycle; and children’s farm activity centres. Attendees could also contribute to a variety of fundraisers, including a scratch board, a 50/50 draw, and beef and pork draws, with proceeds going toward the association’s upcoming agricultural resource centre. The project began back in 2017, after local farmers assessed the status and future of agriculture in Six Nations. At...
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Six Nations, Brantford prepare for elders’ move to former Fox Ridge facility
By Carly McHugh Writer The Six Nations elders who were evacuated from Iroquois Lodge after the flood back in June will officially be making a temporary home at the former Fox Ridge Community Care building in Brantford. Close to 50 residents who had no choice but to leave Six Nations and stay at Peoplecare Communities in Delhi will soon be relocated to the fully operational long-term care (LTC) facility, which was recently purchased by the city. Brantford city council voted in favour of the plan on Oct. 28, and the city took possession of the building on Oct. 30. All previous residents were moved to Fox Ridge’s new site prior to the sale. Now that Brantford has possession of the building, they will prioritize moving the displaced elders. There will...
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Six Nations man facing attempted murder charge
BRANTFORD, ONT- Brantford Police have arrested an Ohsweken man accused of stabbing two men on Saturday. Police said the man was arrested Monday ( Nov. 12). Brantford Police said the charges came after learning that an altercation had occurred around 2:20 a.m. Saturday outside a bar at Market and Chatham Streets. Two men were stabbed in the incident. Police said one man was treated with life-threatening injuries and the second man was treated for serious injuries. Police said the suspect fled the scene following the stabbing. Police arrested a 27-year-old man of Ohsweken Monday at 11 a.m. The man has been charged with: • two counts of attempted murder • two counts aggravated assault. • breach of probation, release order and undertaking. The accused man was held for bail. Police...
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Indigenous leaders federal budget short on health care, education
By Dylan Robertson The federal budget fails to offer the investments in health and education their communities desperately need, some Indigenous leaders said Wednesday, a day after the Liberals tabled the latest fiscal plan in the House of Commons. The budget froze annual base funding for Indigenous health and social services and for treaty work. Ottawa says that freeze amounts to a two per cent cut at a time when most federal agencies face a 15 per cent cut. Assembly of First Nations National Chief Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak said the freeze will have serious impacts on communities with high birthrates. She also said the budget offers no plan to close the education gap that holds back economic growth in Indigenous communities. “Sadly, yesterday’s budget did not include any generational investments...
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Budget lacks fiscal detail, says Chiefs of Ontario official
The Chiefs of Ontario is seeking greater clarity on how new government programs will be implemented in partnership with First Nations and are calling for stronger, distinctions-based investments following the release of the 2025 federal budget this week. In a release to The Chronicle-Journal on Wednesday, Ontario Regional Chief Abram Benedict said Ontario First Nations want commitments that close the long-standing gaps in infrastructure, housing and essential services. “We recognize the federal government’s focus on growth and resilience, but true national strength must include equitable investments that ensure First Nations can thrive alongside all Canadians and are not left behind,” Benedict said. A three-year, $2.3-billion investment to renew the First Nations Water and Wastewater Enhanced Program and $1 billion to create an Arctic infrastructure fund are among several Indigenous-related investments...
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Budgets appear to weaken treaty pledges: grand chief
By Sandi Krasowski, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Chronicle-Journal Leaders of Nishnawbe Aski Nation (NAN) voiced their concerns during the Treaties Recognition Week Fall Assembly that the 2025 federal budget offers little comfort and uncertainty for First Nations. The NAN leaders echoed the unease by the Chiefs of Ontario about funding cuts for Indigenous Services, and Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada, without clarity on where cuts will fall. NAN Grand Chief Alvin Fiddler says the budget replaces long-term investments with short, year-to-year cycles, which is concerning about how it will affect NAN’s collective efforts to close the housing, infrastructure and health gaps that define life in its communities. In a release to The Chronicle-Journal on Wednesday, Fiddler said Treaties Recognition Week should be a time to honour the sacred...
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Indigenous Services minister says Indigenous leaders shouldn’t worry about “zeros” in the budget
The Indigenous Services minister says community leaders shouldn’t worry about zeros in the recent federal budget for programs their members rely on. Instead, Mandy Gull-Masty says those holes are an opportunity for leaders to suggest where the government should allocate money in the future. The budget froze annual base funding for Indigenous health and social services and treaty work. Gull-Masty says this amounts to a two per cent cut at a time when other ministers were told to trim spending by 15 per cent. Indigenous leaders worry the cuts go far beyond the advertised two per cent, with funding for Trudeau-era programs — including education and emergency management — set to expire next year, Instead, this budget, unlike previous ones, has no specific chapter on Indigenous spending, with a heavy...
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SNIPE keeps the scares going long after Halloween
By Carly McHugh Writer Since they were eight years old, Todd Thomas Sr. and his brother, Trevor Thomas, have had a passion for interacting with ghosts. Back then, no one believed them. But that has very much changed, as they have now gained a following from getting up close and personal with spirits from Ohsweken and beyond. In 2011, after years of visiting haunted locations casually with friends, Todd founded Six Nations Investigating Paranormal Encounters (SNIPE) and began getting more serious about ghost hunting. Over time, his team has improved their techniques and grown to involve familiar faces like his close friends Artie Martin and Jay Smith. In fact, SNIPE has gained so much traction in the ghost hunting realm that they now have their own TV show on APTN....
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Will he build, baby build?
Indigenous Services Minister Mandy Gull-Masty says we shouldn’t worry about all the zeros in the federal budget released last week. Nor should Indigenous leaders worry about what the feds are calling only a two percent cut in funding . Kinda makes you wonder if she’s reading the same document Indigenous leaders are. Remember these are the same Liberals who say they are still ‘committed to reconciliation.’ But instead of a commitment to a way forward what has happened is the slashing of Indigenous communities much needed funding to two percent at both Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) and Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada (CIRNAC) by the Carney government. Add to it a freeze on funding for Indigenous health and social services. Add to that not a word on closing the...
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Today in History
Nov 10 In 2024, Indigenous leaders gathered along with politicians, family and friends in celebrating the life and legacy of Murray Sinclair. The former Truth and Reconciliation Commission leader died on Nov. 4 2024 at the age of 73. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau paid tribute to Sinclair at the commemorative ceremony held at Winnipeg’s Canada Life Centre, home to the NHL’s Winnipeg Jets. Nov 11 In 2008, Joseph Boyden won the $50,000 Scotiabank Giller Prize for his second novel “Through Black Spruce,” a portrait of contemporary aboriginal life and family struggles that ensue after a beautiful young woman goes missing. In 2021, Indigenous author Lee Maracle, who championed the stories of native women to change the face of Canadian literature, died. A family friend said the acclaimed author, poet and...
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UNDER THE NORTHERN SKY: There Is No Such Thing As A Just or Honourable War
By Xavier Kataquapit As we are ready to honour November 11, Remembrance Day I think about the destruction war has done to my James Bay Cree family and my partner Mike’s Irish Canadian family. When you are affected by the death, wounding or dramatization of family members you realize how the terrorism of war ripples on into generations. There is no glamour, no justice and no sense to any war ever fought that I can understand. In the First World War a recruiter made his way by canoe on the river systems all the way to Attawapiskat in 1916 and in fact more or less coerced a group of 22 young Cree men. He took them by canoe route south where these men ended up on a train which travelled...
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Former Six Nations chief Ava Hill named to Hockey Canada’s Indigenous Advisory Circle
By Sam Laskaris Writer Hockey Canada officials are doing their bit to further reconciliation efforts. And they’ve chosen a former Six Nations chief to assist with their endeavours. Ava Hill, who spent 15 years on the Six Nations council, including a pair of terms as chief, is one of 11 individuals who have been appointed to Hockey Canada’s inaugural Indigenous Advisory Circle. The group, which will have its first meeting in Toronto on Wednesday, will help inform Hockey Canada’s policies, programs and practices as well as initiatives that will advance work with Indigenous peoples. Hill, who did not seek to be re-elected as the local chief after her last term expired in 2019, said individuals had to apply to join the Indigenous Advisory Circle. “It looks like they were making...
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Rookie university football season ends for Six Nations member
By Sam Laskaris Writer For Six Nations member Brody Thomas it was a year of paying his dues. Thomas, a defensive lineman, was a rookie with the Wilfrid Laurier University Golden Hawks’ football squad. Though he was a star at Caledonia’s McKinnon Park Secondary School, Thomas did not dress for any of the Golden Hawks’ matches this season. Laurier’s 2025 campaign came to an end this past Saturday. The Golden Hawks were downed 30-27 by the visiting Queen’s Gaels of Kingston in the Yates Cup, the Ontario university championship match. Laurier had won the Yates Cup last year and also advanced to the national Vanier Cup final, which was captured by the Laval Rouge et Or. The Golden Hawks had more than 100 players on their roster this season. Thus,...
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SPORTS BRIEFS: Six Nations Ironmen split weekend games
By Sam Laskaris Writer Ironmen register Sunday victory with last-minute goal Thanks to a last-minute goal on Sunday, the Six Nations Ironmen were able to split their two weekend games. The Ironmen, who are competing in their inaugural season of the Northern Premier Hockey League (NPHL), edged the Tilbury Bluebirds 4-3 on Sunday. Tyler Hill scored the game-winning goal, assisted by his younger brother Theo, with just 18 seconds remaining in the contest, held at the Six Nations Sports & Cultural Memorial Centre. It was a welcome result for the Six Nations squad which was thumped 11-3 by the host Alvinston Killer Bees on Saturday night. Theo Hill, Tycie Cowan and Terry Bridgland scored the other Ironmen goals on Sunday. Meanwhile, Tim Porter, who made 29 saves, picked up the...
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Gen7 Fuel founder facing charges related to fraudulent documents
By Carly McHugh Writer Former president of Original Traders Energy (OTE) and founder of Gen7 Fuel, Glenn Page, is facing three charges related to using fraudulent documents, following an investigation by the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP). According to a court document obtained by The Turtle Island News, Page was arrested on Nov. 5, under two charges of cause or attempt to use a forged document and one charge of fraud over $5,000. The first charge is related to a fabricated, unaudited OTE financial statement that Page emailed to the Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) in June 2022, using letterhead from accounting firm Pettinelli Mastroluisi LLP. In a previous court document from December 2023, an accountant and partner claimed the firm had not prepared the statement. The other two charges pertain...
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Treaty First Nations leaders reject Carney’s inaugural budget as inadequate
By Jeremy Appel, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Alberta Native News First Nations leaders across Canada say that the 2025 federal budget delivered last week by Finance Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne shortchanges Indigenous communities, providing nowhere near enough funding to fulfil Canada’s Treaty obligations. The budget — entitled Build Canada Strong — outlines $141 billion in new federal spending planned for the next five years, including $56 billion in military spending, which will be funded with $58 billion in cuts. A fact sheet from the Assembly of First Nations (AFN) notes that the budget has no specific chapter on Indigenous investments, which it had in previous years. The budget “will continue the burdens of systemic harm and uncertainty for First Nations” by leaving “critical services for our Peoples without the sustained funding...
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‘Our survivors are important’: Rally sharing organization’s work and challenges
By Marissa Lentz-McGrath, Local Journalism Initiative, TimminsToday.com TIMMINS – A group of First Nations youth are taking their message straight to Parliament Hill this month, hoping to shine a national spotlight on a Timmins-based non-profit struggling to keep its healing work alive. On Nov. 21, members of Youth Rising Together will host the Keep the Healing Going rally in Ottawa to honour survivors of residential schools, day schools, and the Sixties Scoop, while raising awareness and support for Quilts for Survivors. Founded by Vanessa Génier, Quilts for Survivors has sent out more than 8,000 quilts since 2021. Katherine Jeremiah-Génier — who uses the pronouns they-them — is the studio manager at Quilts for Survivors and one of the lead organizers of Youth Rising Together. They said that despite national recognition...
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Duty and sacrifice: Hundreds gather in Halifax to honour vets on Remembrance Day
By Emily Baron Cadloff Sailor First Class Christian Zenglein, 21 years old, said he attended Halifax’s Remembrance Day ceremony on Tuesday to pay special tribute to the veterans of the Second World War. After the ceremony at the Grand Parade, he walked slowly around the cenotaph, dedicated to the soldiers who died in that war, but also to those who lost their lives fighting for Canada in several other conflicts, including the Korean and Afghanistan wars. He said this year and next “may be the last few years” of Second World War veterans who are alive to tell their stories. Zenglein read the sashes on each wreath placed on the cenotaph, removed his poppy from his uniform and placed it down with the many others that visitors had deposited on...
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Travelling exhibit in development to honour Indigenous veterans
By Matt Prokopchuk, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, TBnewswatch.com THUNDER BAY — A touring exhibit is under development to better represent the stories of the region’s Indigenous war veterans. The project is called Anishnaabe Zhiimaagnishii Inaadiziwin, or Life of Indigenous Soldiers. The Thunder Bay Museum’s website says it has numerous partners and key personnel, one of whom is David Michael Thompson, a research developer and project manager who has spent decades helping to collect the stories, photos and other reminiscences of Indigenous members of the Armed Forces in the region. He told a crowd at Lakehead University on Nov. 10 who gathered to observe National Indigenous Veterans Day, that he was mentored by Charles “Willy” John, a veteran of the Second World War who was from the Red Rock Indian Band’s...
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‘Give us closure’: Hit-and-run victim’s father pleads for answers two years later
By Marissa Lentz-McGrath, Local Journalism Initiative, TimminsToday.com MOOSE FACTORY – Two years have passed since 21-year-old Loni Chum was killed, and her family says the pain has only grown deeper with time. “It’s been 731 days,” said her father, Robert Chum, who described the past week as “heavy.” “Hardly anyone’s sleeping,” he said. Loni’s death is believed to be the result of a hit-and-run on Jaban Road in Moose Factory in the early hours of Nov. 7, 2023. The case remains unsolved. The James Bay OPP is leading the ongoing investigation, and no charges have been laid. The hardest part for Chum is living without answers in a community where reminders of Loni are everywhere. “Moose Factory is a small community. We know everybody here and everybody knows my family,”...
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