Canada’s chief justice decries misinformation as top court turns 150
By Marcy Nicholson -CP-Canada’s top court is expanding its public outreach to build trust at a time of increasing misinformation as more people get their news from social media. Chief Justice Richard Wagner and other justices of the Supreme Court of Canada launched a cross-country tour in Victoria, B.C., on Monday to mark the court’s 150th anniversary. The high court needs to do more now than it did 25 years ago to inform the public about what the court is doing and how its decisions will affect the lives of Canadians, Wagner said. The Supreme Court of Canada was established in 1875 and is the final court of appeal that has made groundbreaking decisions on topics such as abortion, marriage and medically assisted suicide. “It’s very difficult for people to...
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Manitoba pausing countermeasures to fight against U.S. tariffs after reprieve
By Steve Lambert MANITOBA-CP-The Manitoba government called off plans Monday, at least temporarily, to pull United States liquor products from store shelves as retaliation against threatened U.S. tariffs. The move came after U.S. President Donald Trump announced he’s holding off for 30 days on imposing broad tariffs on Canadian and Mexican goods. The tariffs were set to start Tuesday but Trump said he would give more time to reach an economic deal with Canada and Mexico. “The fact that we, along with other provinces, were banning U.S. booze from the shelves — along with the counter-tariffs by the federal government that we supported — I think got the attention of the United States of America,” Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew told reporters. “This is a reprieve. Hopefully this is one that...
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Here’s the latest as Canada faces tariffs from United States President Donald Trump
Following a phone conversation Tuesday afternoon, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that U.S. President Donald Trump is pausing threatened 25 per cent tariffs on most Canadian goods. Trudeau says he and Trump discussed Canada’s $1.3 billion border plan, which includes helicopter patrols, and announced $200 million in new initiatives to address fentanyl trafficking. These new initiatives include a joint Canada-U.S. organized crime task force, Canada listing drug cartels as terrorist entities, and the appointment of a “fentanyl czar.” Here’s the latest (all times eastern): — 7:45 p.m. British Columbia Premier David Eby says his government will pause its response to threatened American tariffs after a 30-day reprieve was negotiated today between Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and U.S. President Donald Trump. Eby says it doesn’t mean the province will abandon its...
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‘Here we are again’: Death row Canadian waits as Montana looks at resuming executions
By Bill Graveland The fate of a Canadian who has been on death row in Montana for the past 42 years has been thrown into more uncertainty as state legislators try again to remove obstacles to resuming executions. Ronald Smith, 67, is originally from Red Deer, Alta., and has been on death row since 1983, a year after he and another man, high on LSD and alcohol, shot and killed two young Indigenous cousins near East Glacier, Mont. Time moves slowly at Montana State Prison in Deer Lodge, Mont. where Smith has been described as a model prisoner for four decades. But almost like clockwork every two years, another attempt to allow the state to resume executions begins in the Montana legislature. All executions have been stayed in Montana since...
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Why Nova Scotia MP Jaime Battiste dropped out of the Liberal leadership race
By Michael MacDonald Nova Scotia MP Jaime Battiste says his decision to drop out of the federal Liberal leadership race was partly motivated by a lack of money. The Indigenous politician from Cape Breton said Friday that raising enough cash to cover the $350,000 deposit required by the party by Feb. 17 would have been a huge challenge. “The funding was always going to be difficult because of the sheer amount of money needed in a short amount of time,” he said in an interview with The Canadian Press. “The money was absolutely a factor …. Once next week kicked in, and it was a $125,000 (instalment required), I was looking at it and saying, ‘Is this possible?’” Battiste, however, said money wasn’t the only reason he gave up his...
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Frederick Blake Jr. was sworn in as Grand Chief of the Gwich’in Tribal Council at a ceremony in Tsiigehtchic
The ceremony went ahead even as the tribal council’s board of directors said earlier on Friday it would appeal this month’s N.W.T. Supreme Court decision that declared Blake the winner of last year’s grand chief election. Whether the tribal council’s board recognizes Blake as its own grand chief is not clear. The tribal council did not respond to multiple requests for clarification. “I did not come here alone. I stand on the shoulders of those who came before me, who fought to protect our rights, our lands and our way of life,” said Blake after taking an oath to faithfully and honestly fulfill his duty to the Gwich’in people. “Together, we can protect our rights, strengthen our communities and create a future where every question person has the opportunity to...
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B.C. Premier Eby bemoans ‘chaos’ and ‘confusion’ as U.S. tariff threat looms
By Marcy Nicholson As economists met British Columbia’s Finance Minister Brenda Bailey around a Vancouver hotel conference table and online on Friday, one announced news fresh to hand, sending a ripple through the group as they discussed the fate of the province’s economy. He told the meeting of the Economic Forecast Council for B.C. that a report had emerged out of Washington — U.S. President Donald Trump’s promised 25 per cent tariffs on Canadian exports were said to be delayed by a month to March 1. But before Friday’s meeting even ended, it was told a new report had scotched that hope, and Trump was proceeding with the tariffs on Saturday after all, as originally threatened. The conflicting reports underscore what Premier David Eby would call the “chaos and confusion”...
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2 Navajo men and a business partner are indicted for illegal marijuana grow operations
By Susan Montoya Bryan ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — A federal grand jury has indicted a Navajo man, his father and a business partner on charges that they were running illegal marijuana growing operations in New Mexico and on the Navajo Nation to supply the black market. The indictment was unsealed Thursday, a week after local, state and federal authorities raided the home of one of the defendants and two farms in a rural area east of Albuquerque that were no longer licensed by the state. Items seized included 8,500 pounds (3,855 kilograms) of marijuana, some methamphetamine, two firearms, $35,000 in cash, illegal pesticides and a bullet proof vest. The charges against Dineh Benally, 48; Donald Benally, 74; and Irving Rea Yui Lin, 73, of California, include conspiracy to manufacture and...
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B.C. Premier Eby bemoans ‘chaos’ and ‘confusion’ as U.S. tariff threat looms
By Marcy Nicholson As economists met British Columbia’s Finance Minister Brenda Bailey around a Vancouver hotel conference table and online on Friday, one announced news fresh to hand, sending a ripple through the group as they discussed the fate of the province’s economy. He told the meeting of the Economic Forecast Council for B.C. that a report had emerged out of Washington — U.S. President Donald Trump’s promised 25 per cent tariffs on Canadian exports were said to be delayed by a month to March 1. But before Friday’s meeting even ended, it was told a new report had scotched that hope, and Trump was proceeding with the tariffs on Saturday after all, as originally threatened. The conflicting reports underscore what Premier David Eby would call the “chaos and confusion”...
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Man who attacked, set fire to homeless woman in Saskatchewan gets statutory release
By Bill Graveland A man who attacked a homeless woman and set her on fire in Saskatchewan has been granted statutory release from prison with special conditions. Leslie Black, now 39, pleaded guilty to attempted murder in the 2014 beating, burning and sexual assault of Marlene Bird in Prince Albert, Sask. Bird’s injuries resulted in the amputation of both of her legs. The Indigenous woman also lost much of her eyesight. She died in 2017 at the age of 50 from heart, liver and kidney failure. Court heard that Black set Bird’s shirt on fire then left to get candy at a store. He walked past the woman again and she was still on fire, but he ignored her. Bird was found several hours later with burns so severe her...
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Brant Local health unit warns of measles exposure in area
By Joshua Santos Writer Health officials are warning of a growing measles outbreak near Six Nations with 12 confirmed cases and concerns about further spread. “Measles is highly contagious,” Shawn Falcao, communications supervisor for Grand Erie Public Health told Turtle Island News. “Symptoms can include red rash, fever, cough, runny nose, red eyes, and fatigue.” Measles spreads easily through the air. It is passed in droplets when an infected person coughs, sneezes or breathes. It can survive in the air for up to two hours. Grand Erie Public Health is investigating a second confirmed case of measles. The recent case involves a child from Haldimand-Norfolk who is currently recovering from home, according to a Six Nations of the Grand River news release on Jan. 29. Six Nations urges the community...
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Special Rapporteur Hears About First Nations Water Rights at International Seminar
By Jeremy Appel, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Alberta Native News Last week in Maskwacis, Samson Cree Nation and the International Organization of Indigenous Resource Development co-hosted the International Seminar on Treaties and Indigenous Laws, which featured presentations on upholding Treaty rights through national and international legal frameworks. Albert Barume, an international human rights law expert from the Democratic Republic of Congo who was appointed UN special rapporteur on the rights of Indigenous Peoples in December 2024, was in attendance via video-conferencing. On Jan. 24, the seminar’s final day, Kehewin Cree Nation Chief Vernon Watchmaker addressed the conference on behalf of the Chiefs Steering Committee on Technical Services, a group of chiefs from Treaties 6, 7 and 8 that has been harshly critical of the federal Liberals’ proposed Clean Water Act....
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With families ‘beyond their breaking point,’ watchdog calls on ‘B.C.’ to support young people with disabilities
By Amy Romer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, IndigiNews The province’s Representative of Children and Youth (RCY) says “B.C.” must do more to assist 83,000 young people with disabilities who aren’t receiving adequate supports as families are “beyond their breaking point.” On Wednesday, Jennifer Charlesworth released her latest report, Too Many Left Behind — the latest in several sparked by the tragic and preventable death of an 11-year-old First Nations boy in a “Fraser Valley” foster home four years ago. Referred to in her report as “Colby” — his name and community were withheld to protect his identity — the boy was born with severe, complex developmental disabilities and required ongoing, intensive medical care. Colby also needed special attention from his caregivers. He had difficulty swallowing and needed help eating; he...
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Chief Antoine urges flu-hit Dehcho to mask up and stay active
By Claire McFarlane, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Cabin Radio Chief Kele Antoine of the Łı́ı́dlı̨ı̨ Kų́ę́ First Nation knows how you feel if you’re a Dehcho resident under the weather this week. On Thursday, the Northwest Territories’ chief public health officer issued an advisory warning of an increasing number of influenza A and B cases in the region. The office of Dr Kami Kandola said a “significant spike” of flu virus had been found in the wastewater of Fort Simpson, where the First Nation is based. Chief Antoine said he himself started to develop flu symptoms such as chest congestion, achy joints and lethargy on Sunday evening. “It kind-of hit me hard, but I’ve been in good spirits and just trying to stay active and keep the body moving, keep...
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2 Navajo men and a business partner are indicted for illegal marijuana grow operations
By Susan Montoya Bryan ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — A federal grand jury has indicted a Navajo man, his father and a business partner on charges that they were running illegal marijuana growing operations in New Mexico and on the Navajo Nation to supply the black market. The indictment was unsealed Thursday, a week after local, state and federal authorities raided the home of one of the defendants and two farms in a rural area east of Albuquerque that were no longer licensed by the state. Items seized included 8,500 pounds (3,855 kilograms) of marijuana, some methamphetamine, two firearms, $35,000 in cash, illegal pesticides and a bullet proof vest. The charges against Dineh Benally, 48; Donald Benally, 74; and Irving Rea Yui Lin, 73, of California, include conspiracy to manufacture and...
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Indigenous Art Heads for the Moon
By Carol Baldwin, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter Two Saskatchewan artists submitted their work to be part of The Lunar Codex. Nigel Bell, a multiplatform musician from La Ronge, Sask., is one of the Indigenous artists already selected to be part of the project. The second, Teagan Littlechief, a singer/songwriter from White Bear First Nation, said that including Indigenous people is another step towards reconciliation. “The recognition that Indigenous people work so hard every day in their artistic ways and just to be recognized in such a manner is a humble [sic] experience.” Teagan Littlechief’s name is familiar, not only because she is a rising artist who appeared on the province-wide Telemiracle 2024, but she also sat down with Funky Moose Radio’s Joel Gaudet and Mark Poppin for ‘The Sit Down...
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Wendy Cocchia sworn in as B.C.’s 31st lieutenant-governor
-CP-Premier David Eby has introduced British Columbia’s new lieutenant-governor, saying Wendy Cocchia’s lifelong leadership and dedication to community service sets an example for everyone. Cocchia, a longtime businesswoman and philanthropist, was sworn in at a ceremony at B.C.’s Parliament buildings on Thursday before an audience of family, friends, Indigenous leaders, members of the legislature and other dignitaries. One of Cocchia’s first acts in her role was to inspect a 50-person Guard of Honour provided by Maritime Forces Pacific and Canadian Forces Base Esquimalt. The Naden Band of the Royal Canadian Navy played The Viceregal Salute, consisting of the six opening bars of God Save the King, followed by the four opening and four closing bars of O Canada. A 15-gun salute was fired by troopers of the 5th Field Regiment,...
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Diabo sends letters to Trump, Trudeau
By Marc Lalonde, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Iori:wase LJI is a federally funded program Mohawk Council of Kahnawake Grand Chief sent official letters to both United States President Donald Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau this week asserting Kahnawake’s independence from both countries. “It was an idea I got when Trump was elected last November,” Diabo said, and a lack of a good relationship with Canada’s federal government prompted the letter to Trudeau. “We have no interest in aligning ourselves with a government that has committed genocide upon us throughout history.” He called the community’s relationship with the federal government “non-existent.” Diabo added that the letter to Trudeau was sent in response to his call for First Nations communities to support the Canadian government’s efforts to lobby against Trump’s...
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B.C. fires Victoria School Board over ban on police in schools
By Marcy Nicholson -CP-British Columbia’s education minister has fired the entire Victoria School Board after a lengthy dispute over its refusal to allow police in schools except in emergencies, in a rare move the ousted chair called “profoundly undemocratic.” The elected board of School District No. 61 has said the ban, in place since 2023, was based on reports that some students and teachers — particularly those who are Indigenous or people of colour — did not feel safe with officers in schools. But B.C. Education Minister Lisa Beare said Thursday that students were at risk in the district from the board’s failure to implement a revised safety plan, as she fired the nine-member board and appointed a lone trustee to oversee the district until municipal elections set for the...
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A New Zealand mountain is granted personhood, recognizing it as sacred for Māori
By Charlotte Graham-mclay WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — A mountain in New Zealand considered an ancestor by Indigenous people was recognized as a legal person on Thursday after a new law granted it all the rights and responsibilities of a human being. Mount Taranaki — now known as Taranaki Maunga, its Māori name — is the latest natural feature to be granted personhood in New Zealand, which has ruled that a river and a stretch of sacred land are people before. The pristine, snow-capped dormant volcano is the second highest on New Zealand’s North Island at 2,518 meters (8,261 feet) and a popular spot for tourism, hiking and snow sports. The legal recognition acknowledges the mountain’s theft from the Māori of the Taranaki region after New Zealand was colonized. It...
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