yau, tansi, and hello,
Welcome to June Edition of tânte ohcî kîyâ!
Extending our
“Congratulations to All Our Indigenous Students who are graduating this 2024! Wishing continued success in all your endeavours.”
We are also extending our “Happy Father’s Day to all our mosums, dads, uncles and the single moms who fill both roles.
Other topics we will be covering are:
• National Indigenous Day
• Happy Father’s Day
• Pow Wow 2024
• Indian Relay Races 2024
• Current Events
Happy Reading!
Shannon Callingbull Founder/ Editor
NationalMonthlyIndigenousMagazine
Bridging Communications Across Canada Nation to Nation tânteohcîkîyâ
To ALL Dads, granddads, great-grand dads, uncles, big brothers, and moms who fill both roles
Whether it’s your first year, or 2nd or more….
We take this opportunity to acknowledge you, honour you and thank you for all the wonderful things you do as a father figure!
A superhero without a cape, a teacher without a degree…. A role model that leaves permanent footprints for little ones to follow….
Thank you for all your hard work...sometimes unseen, Thank you for your dedication to us… Most of all...Thank you for your love and guidance… Thank you for being there….
As a grandfather, father, uncle, big brother….or a mom who fills both roles…
7003 Roper Road NW
Edmonton, Alberta T6B 3K3 Canada
Contact Number: 780.439.1211
Website: http://www.westernvarieties.ca
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/westvar
“Thank you, Rogers, and thank you to everyone who voted for me. Thank you to my family and friends and everyone back home. Thank you so much, Marsi Cho,” Strong said in a statement on Wednesday.
The results are in and Indigenous singer Rebecca Strong is Canada’s Got Talent season 3 winner!
Hailing from Prince Albert, Saskatchewan, the 20-year-old musician won a whopping $1 million cash prize after wowing the audience with her captivating performance of Adele’s Rolling in the Deep during Tuesday’s live two-hour finale.
Strong beat seven other finalists including dance duo Funkanometry, comedian Travis Lindsay, magician Mark Clearview, singer Natalie Morris, roller skating duo Mat & Mym, comedy act Sterling v. Scott and lastly, singer Eshan Sobti. Dance group Conversion wins Canada’s Got Talent season 2
Strong launched her career in 2019 but has been singing since she was a young child. As she grew older, her passion for music only grew stronger.
She began posting videos of herself singing covers on TikTok's from Billie Eilish, Harry Styles, and Daniel Caesar, among others.
Once she started appearing on Canada’s Got Talent, the singer quickly became an internet sensation and a hometown hero. It wasn’t long until she received a Golden Buzzer from content creator and judge Lilly Singh, securing a straight ride to the live shows along with a $25,000 prize.
According to media reports, Strong is planning on using her massive win to help her family and go on a vacation.
Little Buffalo, AB –In solidarity with actions across the country today, the Government of the Lubicon Lake Nation will set up multiple checkpoints throughout the oil and gas fields which are contained within their Traditional Lands. The Lubicon have made it clear, that this demonstration of sovereignty and exercise of jurisdiction is peaceful in nature and should not be misconstrued as a “blockade”. However, this morning, the Government of the Lubicon Lake Nation provided notice to Oil and Gas exploration companies operating within their Traditional Lands known as “the Teardrop” that the Nation would be delaying
traffic throughout the oilfield to get their message out and a warning to oil companies that it could get worse.
“We’re not out blocking the roads and shutting things down, we’re not at that point.” said Councillor Bryan Laboucan of the demonstration. “All we’re doing here today is taking a few minutes to talk to people visiting our territory whether for work or just passing through and educate them on our situation.”
The Lubicon Lake Nation remains without a Treaty or Land Rights Settlement with the Canadian Crown.
According to the Canadian Constitution, the Government of Canada is required to enter into Treaty with any
First Nation in order to extinguish the Aboriginal Title to the First Nations’ land. If the Crown has not done so, clear title cannot be transferred to Canada or the provinces.
This has not stopped the Government of Alberta from issuing thousands of oil and gas leases and licences for resource extraction within Lubicon borders. This extraction continues largely without the consent and involvement of the Lubicon and our community remains one of the poorest in the province, with inadequate infrastructure despite the 14 billion dollars of oil and gas that has been removed from Lubicon lands.
Chief of the Lubicon Lake
Nation, Bernard Ominayak gained international notoriety throughout the last 30 years for his strong stance against development of Lubicon lands and Federal and Provincial interference. During demonstration preparations the Chief said “It is time for industry to recognize that we are awake, and we’re not going to let this type of exploitation continue around us without serious changes.”
Contact Information: Garrett Tomlinson –Communications Coordinator Lubicon Lake Nation TEL (780) 618-3794
Consultation
@LubiconLakeNation.ca www.LubiconLakeNation.ca
History of the Jingle Dress Dance
The Jingle Dress Dance began with the Mille Lacs Band of the Ojibwe Tribe in the early 1900s and became prevalent in the 1920s in Wisconsin and Minnesota (Great Lakes region) in the US and in Ontario, Canada. The story is that the dress was first seen in a dream. A medicine man’s granddaughter grew sick, and as the man slept his Indian spirit guides came to him and told him to make a Jingle Dress for the little girl. They said if the child danced in it, the dress would heal her. The Jingle Dress was made, and the tribe came together to watch the child dance. At first, the child was
jingles, or cones. Nowadays, these cones are often machine-made.
The dresses come in every color imaginable, from yellow to bright blue, to deep red, and accented with sparkles and even neon-colored fabrics. They are often made with shiny and sparkly materials and decorated with fringes, embroidery, beading, and more.
or so the story goes. Often, they keep their hands on their hips, and if they are dancing with a feathered fan (full of neutral colors, like eagle feathers) as the more modern Jingle Dress Dancers do, they will raise it into the air as they dance to receive healing.
too sick to dance alone so her tribe carried her, but after some time, the little girl was able to dance alone, cured of her sickness.
The dance has since been not only a ritual of healing but also one of pride.
What Do Jingle Dresses Look Like?
Jingle Dresses, also known as Prayer Dresses, are believed to bring healing to those who are sick. As mentioned above, the dance gets its name from the rows of ziibaaska’iganan (metal cones) sewed to the dress. These cones are traditionally made from rolled snuff can lids and hung from the dress with ribbon close to one another, so they make a melodic sound as the girls and women dance. Traditionally, the dress is adorned with 365 visible
They usually have threequarter length to full-length sleeves and come down to mid-calf or the ankle. They are secured at the waist with a thick belt, often made of brown leather. On their feet, the dancer wears decorative moccasins embellished with the same kind of detail found on their dresses.
What are the steps for the Jingle Dance?
As the ziibaaska’iganan hit one another it sounds like rain falling, so it’s important for the dancer to be light on their feet, to move in time with the drum and stop when the beat stops. They keep their foot movements low to the ground while dancing, kicking their heels and bouncing on their toes to the music. Typically, this dance is done in a zigzag pattern, said to represent one’s journey through life
The traditional Indian dance involves low, soft-footed steps, as could be performed by those who were sick, while the modern competitive dancers push the boundaries some as they try to out-dance their competitors. The manner in which the dance has evolved has built firmly on its origin story.
What are the songs and music for Jingle Dance?
The music for this style of dancing has a foundation of a solid drumbeat, and of course, the metal cones make a loud jingling (hence the name) as the women move, which contributes to the music you’ll hear at a Jingle Dress Dance. Jingle Dancers will usually dance to Northern drum groups. Special songs for Jingle Dance include a Side Step or Crow Hop
