Volume 34 No. 6 • June 2016
Inform. Impact. Inspire. Independent. Indigenous. Grassy Narrows: The most toxic community in Canada, says scientist Page 6
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Money from feds limits candor —CAP national chief Page 2
First Nations CAO, under siege, hires controversial editor Page 8
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All you need for the 2016 Powwow Trail The 2016 Guide to Powwow Country Inside! Starts on page 19. Events calendar on pages 22 & 23.
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[ news ]
Money from feds limits candor—CAP national chief
PHOTO: FILE
Indians, CAP has leverage, said Dorey. “The Supreme Court in Daniels clearly specified that non-status are a distinct group,” said Dorey. “The court indicated that we are a rightbased people … and we had the right to be consulted and negotiated.” Dorey said CAP also speaks for the Métis people, noting that many of CAP’s Métis members fall under the Powley definition of Métis. But Métis National Council President Clément Chartier says it is his organization that embraces the Powley definition for Métis and therefore his organization alone that represents Métis. “The federal government has already agreed to a nation-tonation basis with the Métis Nation, so we’re not concerned about that,” said Chartier. He says he is also not concerned about the lack of movement on the part of the federal government on the Daniels’ decision. While MNC has not specifically spoken to Bennett on the decision, Chartier says there have been “general discussions.” He anticipates meetings will come by late summer when the government has analyzed the Daniels decision and has studied
the recommendations of the McIsaac report. Tom McIsaac was appointed by the Harper government to meet with the MNC, other Indigenous organizations, and provincial and territorial governments to outline a process in moving forward on discussions on Section 35 Métis rights. That report is expected in the next several weeks. “I’m satisfied that there have been discussions with the federal government generally and I believe the Daniels’ decision is going to further inform these discussions with the government,” said Chartier. Dorey says both CAP and MNC can speak for Métis rights. Dorey says he will be sending a letter to the leaders of MNC, AFN and ITK suggesting they meet and talk about the implications of the Daniels’ decision and perhaps develop a process to move forward. But for now, Dorey is concentrating on his June 2 meeting with Bennett. He expects that meeting to include only government officials and members of CAP. Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada would offer no comments on how the department is moving forward on the Daniels’ decision.
National Chief Dwight Dorey of the Congress of Aboriginal Peoples By Shari Narine Windspeaker Contributor
NEW YORK
His decision to speak at the United Nations this week–and not take money from the federal government to cover the cost of his ticket to New York–finally netted him a meeting with Indigenous Affairs Minister Carolyn Bennett about implementation of the Daniels’ decision. National Chief Dwight Dorey of the Congress of Aboriginal Peoples is convinced of that. “Their office called me,” said Dorey. “There had been some attempts to try and get a meeting and she never seemed to be available.” Dorey said the federal government offered to pay his way to the U.N., but he was concerned that accepting that offer would limit his ability to speak his mind. He says when federal funds paid for him to attend the climate change conference in Paris late last year, he had to sign a waiver agreeing not to criticize the government. “I’m going to be going to the United Nations (now) saying what I want to say,” said Dorey. “We’ve been discriminated against since the Daniels’ case. Nothing’s happening since the Daniels decision. I’ve not even
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had a sit-down meeting to discuss the potential impacts and where we go from here.” Dorey says speaking critically about the government at the U.N. will not hamper any future discussions with Bennett. “I have nothing to lose,” he said. “There’s no process, there’s no dialogue. That concerns me.” Last month the Supreme Court of Canada ruled in the Daniels’ case that Métis and non-status Indians were a federal responsibility and would no longer be in a “jurisdictional wasteland with significant and obvious disadvantaging consequences.” Dorey was expecting the Trudeau government to start discussions on delivering services and supports to both Métis and non-status Indians similar to what is already being offered to First Nations and Inuit peoples. Instead, Dorey says, there has been nothing and he’s not sure whether he’s being frozen out of the discussions. In March, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the premiers met with Indigenous leaders in Vancouver to discuss climate change. Dorey was not invited, although his counterparts from the Assembly of First Nations, Métis National Council and Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami were. But as the only national body that represents non-status
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[ contents ]
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First Nations CAO under siege, hires controversial editor
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Three years after he allowed a racist letter to be printed in the now defunct Nanaimo Daily News, the editor of that newspaper has been contracted as a communications consultant with the city. It may seem like a strange turn of events, says Nanaimo Chief Administrative Officer Tracy Samra, but she made the offer to Mark MacDonald as an act of reconciliation.
Ontario steps up with action on health
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Ontario has committed close to $222 million over three years to address gaps in health services for the province’s Indigenous population, particularly those in the north.
Indigenous trail system starts at Simpcw Nation
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Members of a First Nation in British Columbia are hoping a short film will help its residents become more active and eventually turn its community into a tourist attraction. The film, which is titled All Trails Are Indigenous, was released last week. The movie, just over seven minutes long, was shot this past October on the Simpcw First Nation.
Hunters’ endurance, strength and agility boosted by games
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The Banff Center for the Arts has a special guest coming around for this year’s National Aboriginal Day celebration. The Centre has chosen to spotlight the Inuit people for its three-day event, beginning June 20.
15 Departments [ alberta sweetgrass ] 10 - 13 [ sports ] 14 - 15 [ health ] 16 [ education ] 17 [ footprints ] Larry Loyie 18 One cold winter night, Larry Loyie and his younger sisters hauled an old steamer trunk up Rabbit Hill overlooking Alberta’s Slave Lake. Unable to afford a real sled, a scoop shovel and tin strips served as sled runners as the children hopped in the box to whiz over the snow. It’s scenes like this, simply and honestly told, that engaged readers, young and old alike, in Loyie’s books. His Cree upbringing was first captured in As Long as the River’s Flow; it’s success paved the way for three more books detailing his early life.
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Windspeaker is published by the Aboriginal Multi-Media Society (AMMSA) Canada's largest publisher of Aboriginal news and information. AMMSA's other publications include:
Alberta Sweetgrass — The Aboriginal Newspaper of Alberta Saskatchewan Sage — The Aboriginal Newspaper of Saskatchewan Raven's Eye — The Aboriginal Newspaper of British Columbia Ontario Birchbark — The Aboriginal Newspaper of Ontario
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End child poverty: Where there's a will, here's the way As we go to press, a new study has been released by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, and we’d like to draw our readers’ attention to it. It’s entitled “Shameful Neglect: Indigenous Child Poverty in Canada.” It can be viewed here: https:// www.policyalternatives.ca/publications/ reports/shameful-neglect. The report starts with an “outrageous reality.” The majority of children on First Nation reserves in Canada live in poverty. That’s 60 per cent as of the most recent stats. And this report states the situation is becoming worse for our children. When one looks at the statistics for rates of children living in poverty, it is stunning enough to learn that 30 per cent of non-status First Nations children struggle under the poverty line with not enough resources to sustain them, with Inuit children (25%) and Métis children (23%), not far behind. But the on reserve stats are incomprehensible. “The worst is among status First Nation children,” the report reads, “51% of whom live in poverty, rising to 60% on reserve.” SIXTY PER CENT! And the rates of poverty become sickening in Manitoba and Saskatchewan. “Shocking” at 76 per cent in Manitoba, reads the report, an understatement of such magnitude it makes the blood boil. In Saskatchewan it’s 69 per cent. The frustrating, maddening, even criminal thing about our situation here in Canada is that there are solutions to child poverty at hand, but Canada and the provinces just refuse to adopt them. Outright refuse to allow the benefits of the land to flow to the first peoples of the land. We hear often from pundits who are not as informed as they should be about such matters that there are no opportunities around remote and isolated reserves, but we reject that characterization of our homes. The bottom line is that it isn’t true. What those people mean is that there are no opportunities that Canada, the provinces and big business are willing to share. They let the children starve as they deny the opportunities at hand in favor of steadfast and stubborn turf protection. The report reads: “At the other end is Quebec where the poverty rate is 37%,” reads the report. “This is largely due to the relatively low poverty rate (23%) among the children of Eeyou Itschee (James Bay Cree), who benefit from a resource revenue sharing agreement.” and
“Reserves are often located in remote and rural areas, which may restrict access to employment that is otherwise available in more populated, urban areas. On the other hand, resource development is more likely to happen in remote locations. As observed above, non-Indigenous child poverty is ac≠tually lower in rural areas compared to urban areas. As such, merely living in a rural area does not assure higher child poverty rates.” The report offers up short-term solutions, including investments to improve education success among children living in poverty, because that’s a road that leads to opportunities for our young people. “The education level is quite low among status First Nations parents with children living in poverty… Almost 60% of status First Nations parents with children in poverty did not graduate high school… this shortfall is due to the long shadow of residential schools and the result of chronic underfunding of reserve schools. Low levels of education, over and above the limitations imposed by geography, make a good job that much harder to obtain. With this in mind, it is likely that adult education in literacy and numeracy, as well as high school equivalence, are also important to reducing child poverty through better parental employment.” But it’s the long-term solutions that will bring the hammer down on poverty for Indigenous populations, with an ultimate benefit to Canada, if it would only get out of its own way—sustainable funding for reserves, resource revenue sharing agree≠ments, and self-government. Canada has the solutions to child poverty at its finger-tips, it always has, and it has always known it has. But Canada and the provinces have shown no will to do what is necessary; to do the right thing. Canada, so far, willfully chooses to patch over the problems and do anything but what it knows will work. The report concludes: “For Canada’s youngest and fastestgrowing population, it is critical that we come to terms with the ongoing crisis affecting Indigenous people and act immediately to help resolve it. The circumstances in which these young people find themselves on reserve reproduce the nightmare of residential schools, with which Canada is only now beginning to come to terms. The growth of Indigenous child poverty in Canada cannot be allowed to continue until another generation is lost.” Windspeaker
Do you have a rant or a rave? Criticism or praise? E-mail us at: letters@ammsa.com twitter: @windspeakernews facebook: /windspeakernews June II 2016
[ rants and raves ]
News Briefs Historic step 146 years in the making A memorandum of understanding was signed May 27 between the Métis of Manitoba and Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada. The MOU outlines the government’s commitment to honor a promise made by Sir John A. Macdonald to distribute 5,565 sq. km. of land, some of which has become Winnipeg in the century and a half since. Macdonald’s deal with the Métis was part of the Manitoba Act of 1870, which promised to give 7,000 Métis children a plot of land in the attempt to end the Red River Rebellion led by Louis Riel. The act also ushered Manitoba into the Canadian federation. Three years ago, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled that the federal government failed to carry out the promise made in 1870. Some speculate that the MOU will lead to a modern-day treaty worth billions, and has been in the works since the Liberals came to office last fall, CTV reports. “The parties are taking a historic first step toward a shared and balanced solution that advances reconciliation between Canada and the Manitoba Métis Community,” reads a press statement from Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada said. “We waited 146 years for this. The future is going to change for generations to come, and we are no longer going to be sitting on the sidelines,” said President David Chartrand of the Manitoba Métis Federation.
Name change for FSIN Treaty4News reports that the name Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations will replace Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations. The organization’s name change was decided by vote on May 25 at the FSIN Legislative Assembly held in North Battleford, with 22 nations voting for the change, four opposed and a number of the 74-member nations abstaining. The idea to rebrand the organization had been floating around since 2013, reads the report. The word “Indian” as a label to describe the Indigenous peoples of North America was one that was opposed by many. “We all have our own language to describe ourselves. When we start to accept the labels that our oppressors place upon us and our grandchildren, then we’re lost,” said Sakimay Chief Lynn Acoose. The name Saskatchewan was removed because it implies a provincial government connection. Treaty4News reports that Wahpeton Chief Leo Omani spoke in favor, however, of keeping that term because of its Cree origin “kisisk‚ciwan” or “Kisiskatchewani Sipi”, which describes the swift-flowing Saskatchewan River. FSIN Chief Bobby Cameron said the organization will work with the nations that abstained and opposed the name change, to seek input, strengthen their support and establish unity.
New program at UVic prepares for transition from status quo A new diploma program in Indigenous Community Development and Governance is being offered by the University of Victoria’s School of Public Administration. The school reports that it consulted with Indigenous alumni and leaders on “guiding principles and delivery methods” to develop the program, and says it respects traditional forms of governance. “This diploma gives future students a starting point to continued learning through any of our Indigenous and nonIndigenous degree programs,” said Catherine Althaus, director of the School of Public Administration, in a press release. “We must prepare to engage government-to-government,” said Satsan (Herb George), a Wet’suwet’en hereditary chief and speaker for the Wet’suwet’en Nation. Satsan served on the program’s advisory council and taught at the school for several years. “We need to prepare for our transition from the status quo of the Indian Act so Indigenous governments can move forward under the Inherent Rights of Self-Governance.” Satsan is currently a member of the leadership team at the Centre for First Nations Governance. The two-year, part-time program includes courses on governance; strategic planning; land, resources and economic development; human resources and intergovernmental relations, among others. The release contends it is the only program of its kind in B.C. using “a blended teaching model of online courses with five-day on-campus sessions each term.” Information about the program is available on the school’s website. Deadline for applications is May 31, though late applications will be considered because it is the inaugural year. Classes begin Sept. 6.
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[ strictly speaking ]
The shame of skirt shaming [column]
Not long ago my partner was attending an Aboriginal healing function when she found out there was going to be a women’s ceremony included, one that she had not been told about in advance. Under normal circumstances that would not have been a problem. For most it’s usually an enjoyable and respected experience where women come together to share and heal. But her immediate first thought dealt with the fact she hadn’t brought along the proper attire, specifically a long skirt that fell to her ankles. It is usually what is worn by women to take part in such spiritual ceremonies. In some cases, it is the only below the waist apparel permitted. Women who dress otherwise often face the threat of what is called ‘skirt shaming’, which has become an issue of controversy in the Native community. Skirt shaming is when women who do not meet the so-called dress code are criticized for being disrespectful to tradition, and either asked to leave the circle or are somehow required to change their clothing to adhere to protocol. Some Elders who hold these ceremonies can be quite rigid in enforcing etiquette of this type. Stories abound in the community of women who have been asked to leave ceremonies because of how they are dressed, some in long pants, others might be wearing shorts or skirts of different lengths, citing that these ceremonies are to honour women and that involves a certain modesty in dressing as well as an adherence to what might be called traditional attire. Frequently, this censure might be done publically, in front of other participants in the circle. For many, this would not be considered a good way to heal.
THE URBANE INDIAN
Drew Hayden Taylor
“Yes, unfortunately it is a common experience” says Joanne Dallaire, Resident Elder for Ryerson University’s Aboriginal Student Services, who herself discourages the practice. Author Lee Maracle agrees, adding “I have heard it actually traumatizes some women.” It‘s not uncommon for friends and family to receive panicked calls from women who had forgotten such skirts, or were unaware ceremonies had been planned for certain events, desperately seeking immediate delivery of adequate coverage for their legs. It’s the definition of this socalled modest and traditional attire that can get many people upset. Many believe it is not so cut and dry. Leanne Simpson, noted Anishnawbe author, says “We have some important practices and stories about skirt wearing for women. We have some ceremonial leaders that have very rigid protocols around gender. I have seen women and girls pressured into wearing skirts and excluded if they don’t feel comfortable doing this. I have been pressured into wearing a skirt in order to participate.” In a country with several dozen different cultures and languages,
requiring one particular mode of dress is next to impossible. Lee Maracle tells this story of attending a conference when she was a young woman, wearing a short skirt, high boots, and a provocatively thin t-shirt.† A male Elder came up to her after her presentation and chastised her for not being respectful in how she had dressed for the event. ‘Maybe you should consider dressing the way your ancestors would have wanted.’ Immediately agreeing with the old man, she took her top off, adding that traditionally Salish women went topless during the hot summer months. Respectful traditional apparel has become even more of an issue in the Aboriginal LGBT community where the lines of gender dressing are frequently blurred. Recently I was at an Elder’s conference where a noted Elder commented that she was Two Spirited and as a result, refused to wear a skirt and damn the consequences. “I would like to point out that gay women would not necessarily have dressed as women; they were free to dress as men. In fact, we were all free to dress as we wanted” comments Lee Maracle, author, activist and
cultural mentor for the University of Toronto’s First Nations house. Leanne Simpson agrees. “In rebuilding our nations and our communities, I don’t think we can afford to replicate sexism, homophobia and gender violence.” The reason for such a strict dogmatic approach to such ceremonies? There are several schools of thought, many of them not flattering. Some believe it is a desire to desexualize the person in clothing that does not hug the body. Ceremonies are spiritual, not physical. Others feel it is no different than wearing your ‘Sunday Best’ to Church on Sundays. On occasion, the term ‘hijab’ comes up. Lee Maracle has her own ideas. She suggests “skirt shaming is yet another way to promote patriarchy in our community. No one expects men to wear the old ‘mini-skirts’ of the 1800’s, but women are expected to wear the long skirts of the same era.” I believe the ‘old mini-skirts’ for men she was referring to are more commonly known as breach cloths. It should also be pointed out that there doesn’t seem to be any male equivalent of skirt shaming. Leanne Simpson thinks skirt shaming has darker overtones. “We were forced to wear skirts in residential schools, at church and in missions in order to assimilate us from being Nishnaabeg women into the ideals of settler housewives. Under colonialism the skirt has been and still is in many cases a tool of oppression. Indigenous women’s bodies remember this.” Full Time Elder in Residence for Wilfrid Laurier University Elder Banakonda Kennedy-Kish agrees. “Shaming is sourced in the overlay of Christian doctrine’s focus on good and evil,
of silencing, of black and white framing. It is also a gate keeping method. “She adds “It undermines concept of noninterfering, respect for diversity, and can promote sexism.” How to deal with this issue has been discussed frequently in the Native community, trying to find that middle ground between respecting the ceremony and also the people participating. †Lee Maracle confesses she just goes ahead and wears pants, and if this is a problem, refuses to participate in a ceremony she considers unfair. Some, like Joanne Dallaire, believe the best way to address the problem is to be aware of what ceremony you are attending and who is leading it. “I have been taught to ask what the Elder doing the ceremony expects and if that goes against your teachings then I suggest you don’t attend. Having said that, for me I choose not to believe in teachings that are shaming or blaming and believe that how we come to ceremony is more important about our frame of mind than what we are wearing.” Leanne Simpson agrees. “In my own life I don’t always feel comfortable wearing a skirt, particularly if I am being pressured. I have seen the skirt wearing stories shared and ceremonial leaders adding that it is up to individuals to decide what they wear. I mostly work with Elders that believe that consent, respect for individual self-determination, diversity and non-interference, basic Nishnaabeg values, are more important than rigid protocols.” “I have heard a lot of stories that are horrific…why would we want to continue to force anyone to do anything in the name of spirituality” says Lee Maracle. Why does that question sound vaguely familiar?
Grassy Narrows: The most toxic community in Canada, says scientist By Barb Nahwegahbow Windspeaker Contributor
“I would say 100 per cent of our people are poisoned by mercury,” said grandmother Judy Da Silva speaking about her community of Grassy Narrows First Nation. “Some of our people don’t even understand that they are being poisoned by mercury when they have all these different ailments,” she said. She was speaking at a press conference in Toronto on May 31, along with the Chief of Grassy Narrows Simon Fobister, Ontario Regional Chief Isadore Day, scientist Faisal Moola of the David Suzuki Foundation, and Craig Benjamin of Amnesty International. During the 1960s, the Dryden Chemical Company dumped 9,000 kilograms of mercury into
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the Wabigoon and English River systems, the waterway that provides fish and water to Grassy Narrows residents. Scientist Faisal Moola from the David Suzuki Foundation and the University of Toronto said he has visited many First Nations and has seen the impact of environmental degradation on their territories. “But I have never witnessed something as horrific as what’s going on in Grassy Narrows,” said Moola. Grassy Narrows is, “the most toxic community in Canada” he said. Multiple generations of Grassy Narrows families suffer from the debilitating effects of mercury poisoning, including loss of vision, balance issues and trembling. For nearly 50 years, Grassy Narrows has been urging the Ontario government to clean up
PHOTO: BARB NAHWEGAHBOW
From left to right: Craig Benjamin of Amnesty International, Chief Simon (Fobister of Grassy Narrows First Nation, and Ontario Regional Chief Isadore (Day in Toronto, May 31. Grassy Narrows leaders and mercury that’s been poisoning the the river, but the government has refused to act. Ontario had long supporters are in Toronto this waters, the fish and the people of denied that a clean-up was week to again ask the Ontario Grassy for almost half a century. government to clean up the possible or even necessary. Continued on page 17.
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[ news ]
Province to celebrate treaties each November Ontario has recognized the importance of treaties by passing legislation to bring awareness to the treaty relationships between First Nations and non-First Nations people. The Treaties Recognition Week Act, 2016, which designates the first week of November each year as Treaties Recognition Week, was passed with the support of all parties in the Ontario legislature on May 30. A press statement says it’s the first legislation of its kind in Canada, and the week will provide
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teachers the opportunity to plan activities about treaties during the school year and promote awareness of treaties in the broader public. Ontario is covered by 46 treaties and other agreements, such as land purchases by the Crown signed between 1781 and 1930. Treaties Recognition Week is one step on Ontario’s journey of healing and reconciliation with Indigenous peoples, reads the statement. “Treaties are the reason Canada and Ontario exist as we know
them today. All Ontarians, especially students, need to gain a better understanding of treaties,” said David Zimmer, minister of Aboriginal Affairs. The legislation supports Premier Kathleen Wynne’s Apology and Statement of Ontario’s Commitment to Reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples made in the legislature also on May 30. In her apology, Wynne said “Despite the promise of early treaties and the respectful, nationto-nation partnerships they established, Indigenous Peoples
became the target of colonial policies designed to exploit, assimilate and eradicate them. Based on racism, violence and deceit, these policies were devastatingly effective… “As Premier, I apologize for the policies and practices supported by past Ontario governments and for the harm they caused. I apologize for the province’s silence in the face of abuses and deaths at residential schools. And I apologize for the fact that the residential schools are only one example of systemic,
intergenerational injustices inflicted upon Indigenous communities throughout Canada.” She said she hopes to demonstrate the Ontario government’s commitment to changing the future by building relationships based on trust, respect and Indigenous Peoples’ inherent right to self-government. The apology in full can be read here: https://news.ontario.ca/opo/ en/2016/05/ontarioscommitment-to-reconciliationwith-indigenous-peoples.html
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[ news ]
First Nations CAO under siege, hires controversial editor
By Shari Narine Windspeaker Contributor
NANAIMO, B.C.
Three years after he allowed a racist letter to be printed in the now defunct Nanaimo Daily News, the editor of that newspaper has been contracted as a communications consultant with the city. It may seem like a strange turn of events, says Nanaimo Chief Administrative Officer Tracy Samra, but she made the offer to Mark MacDonald as an act of reconciliation. It is one step in a long list of steps both MacDonald and Samra have taken. Right after the letter was published in 2013, Samra, not the city’s CAO at that time, approached MacDonald and offered to write a column that would debunk Indigenous stereotypes and shed light on immigrants and multiculturalism. MacDonald took her up on the offer and she wrote 10 columns. “From my perspective, it was getting Indigenous issues out there and getting a voice in a paper that didn’t necessarily give that voice,” said Samra, who is a lawyer and member of the Saddle Lake Cree Nation of Alberta. Since then, MacDonald, who ran unsuccessfully for the Conservatives in the last federal election in the riding of Nanaimo-Ladysmith, explained his actions to the neighboring Snuneymuxw First Nation and attended numerous multicultural events. “We can marginalize and attack people or we can reach out and try to educate, and, through reconciliation, see where we can go,” said Samra. And where has the city gone since people demonstrated at the newspaper’s office in March 2013 after the racist letter was published? It seems as if impressive strides have been made:† Samra is the first First Nations woman to serve as CAO for Nanaimo, Bill Yoachim is the first First Nations man to sit on city council, and there is a good working relationship between Nanaimo and the Snuneymuxw First Nation. But impressive may be surface only – despite a news release issued by council in March when Samra successfully completed her interim period as CAO and council bragged her up as “Nanaimo’s first female and first Aboriginal CAO.” It hasn’t been a positive experience since then – nor before, says Samra.
PHOTO: GORDON FULLER
PHOTO: HA-SHILTH-SA/DEBORA STEEL
Tracy Samra is Nanaimo’s first female and first Aboriginal CAO.
Editor Mark MacDonald seen during angry protests at the Nanaimo Daily News after a racist letter was published and brought national media attention.
In a public statement read by Samra at the May 16 council meeting, she said her working environment had gone from “challenging” to “hostile” because of the actions of Mayor Bill McKay and Councillor Diane Brennan. Samra outlined the steps taken by both McKay and Brennan to overturn her appointment as interim CAO and as permanent CAO. When Samra was appointed as interim CAO, Brennan asked McKay to suspend her and investigate the appointment. Legal advice from city corporate lawyers and an independent law firm confirmed the hiring process was lawful. Samra said Brennan continues to “openly challenge” the CAO’s decisions in front of staff and recently in the media. As for McKay, he has approached Community, Sport and Cultural Development Minister Peter Fassbender and the provincial ombudsman to investigate Samra’s hiring. Neither took action, with Fassbender’s office saying a motion from council would be required to launch an investigation. WorkSafe BC did investigate Samra when McKay accused her of creating an unsafe work place and found no reason for concern. Samra said while council had taken both formal and informal action to direct McKay and Brennan to “cease such conduct,” there had been no improvement. She said she
would not resign despite McKay’s and Brennan’s efforts. She ended her statement by asking McKay to commit to a professional relationship. Instead, McKay said, “Well that was probably one of the most bizarre things I have ever heard.” However, Samra’s statement received applause from the public gallery. Speaking a few days after that council meeting, Yoachim says Samra is not wrong in her assessment of the situation. Yoachim says it is “night and day” how McKay treats Samra and how he treated the previous CAO. Samra began as interim CAO in November 2015. McKay was elected as mayor in the province-wide municipal elections on Nov. 15, 2014. “I can’t figure out why the mayor is having such a difficult time working with Tracy Samra considering … she’s bright, intelligent, doing a good job following the mandate of the city,” said Yoachim, who was elected the same time as McKay. Yoachim admits that he and the mayor have clashed as well. “I have my challenges with the mayor and I’m sure he has his challenges with me. I would hope that (me being an Indigenous person) wouldn’t be a factor, but at times, the way Tracy has been treated and myself at times, one could not rule it out,” said Yoachim. Brennan, speaking a few days after Samra’s public statement, would not comment on either Samra’s allegations or Samra’s
work. “It’s just not appropriate. This would be a personnel issue and whether I have concerns or not really isn’t something that I can talk about publicly,” said Brennan. She added that she had supported Samra’s appointment as permanent CAO. Brennan did call Samra out on contracting MacDonald. However, she admitted that Samra had the authority to hire someone if the contract is for less than $25,000. According to Samra, the contract is for less than $10,000. “Strictly speaking, (Samra) followed procedure,” said Brennan. “But I do have concerns because of the earlier issues with the Nanaimo Daily News when he was editor there. There was a lot of upset in the city.… It kind of gave us a black eye.” As far as Samra is concerned she heard from the people who the letter targeted and offended. She spoke to councillors at Snuneymuxw First Nation and First Nations people in the city and they voiced no concerns about her offering the contract to MacDonald. “I honour what happened. I’m not going to pretend it didn’t. I know he can be a lightning rod for other people, but I did what I needed to do with my dialogue with the local First Nations,” said Samra. Yoachim was on Snuneymuxw band council when MacDonald published the letter, which was “very upsetting and
unfortunate.” He was also on council when MacDonald attended and spoke about including the letter and “he was very open to reconciliation.” Yoachim has had personal conversations with MacDonald and says he has no concerns with MacDonald’s contract. Reconciliation is also high on Yoachim’s agenda. He said he took a leave from Snuneymuxw band council, which he sat on for 14 years, to run for Nanaimo city council. “The reason I ran was to bridge our two communities and I successfully got in the city election,” he said. He believes city council has done good work, pointing at the zero per cent increase in taxes. He also believes that Samra has produced quality work and says she could only do better without the animosity displayed toward her by McKay and Brennan. “The country is in an era of reconciliation and trying to reconcile with Indigenous peoples across the country. It doesn’t make sense. Why wouldn’t you embrace this beautiful situation we’re in?” said Yoachim. “We’re ahead of the country, we’re ahead of the curve and this is the direction the country is going ….This (treatment of Samra) is such not the avenue one should go down when it’s so optically wrong and just wrong in general.” McKay did not respond to a request from Windspeaker for an interview.
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[ news ]
Ontario steps up with action on health
PHOTO: FILE
Assembly of First Nations Regional Chief Isadore Day By Shari Narine Windspeaker Contributor
THUNDER BAY, Ont. Ontario has committed close to $222 million over three years to address gaps in health services for the province’s Indigenous population, particularly those in the north. The announcement came two months after Nishnawbe Aski Nation Grand Chief Alvin Fiddler, supported by Assembly of First Nations Regional Chief Isadore Day, declared a health emergency. “It’s unfortunate that in a lot of cases that it takes a declaration
of some sort to be issued before attention is given to a community,” said Fiddler. On Feb. 24, the Sioux Lookout Area Chiefs Committee on Health and NAN declared a public health emergency stating “there are needless deaths and suffering caused by profoundly poor determinants of health.” The declaration called for the province and Canada to “commence prompt and sustained action, with immediate, intermediate and long term strategies” within 90 days. The province took action within that time frame, announcing Wednesday May 26 funding that will be added to the
approximately $208 million the Ministry of Health and LongTerm Care currently allots annually on Indigenous-specific programs and services. Day applauds the province for stepping up so quickly, but says the crisis in the north – as well as poor health and living conditions in the south – are not recent developments. “We would have liked this to have been happening sooner,” said Day. “There’s no doubt that $220 million over three years isn’t going to fix the problem … but we’re definitely going to keep the pressure on and look at where the needs are starting to surface again.” David Jensen, spokesperson for the Ministry of Health and LongTerm Care, says in an email interview that the impetus for action followed a meeting in which Fiddler approached the federal and provincial governments about health issues in his region. “We also have a new spirit of collaboration with our federal colleagues and we are working collaboratively with our Indigenous partners to develop and implement programs and services that will deliver results on the ground,” said Jensen. The new funding will be targeted largely to First Nation communities in the Sioux Lookout region and Nishnawbe Aski Nation. Jensen says NAN and the declaration helped determine the four areas in which the money is to be spent – home and community care, primary health care, diabetes prevention and management, and life promotion (suicide) and crisis support. Fiddler says a meeting next week in Toronto with the province will outline the next
steps to be taken. It is important, he says, that the communities remain involved so that their needs are met, that the new resources reach them, and that changes are rolled out in a timely manner. “The minister has directed the ministry to put services on the ground as quickly as possible, while respecting the partnership process with our Indigenous colleagues,” said Jensen. He points out that when the new program is fully implemented it will mean a new investment of $104.5 million topping up the annual amount of money the province spends on Indigenous health programs to $314 million. Fiddler says the new funding from the province is a “significant first step” to address the disparity in health services, but more is needed. The federal government has yet to respond to NAN’s declaration although NAN and other First Nations representatives met with provincial Health Minister Eric Hoskins and federal Health Minister Jane Philpott at the same time. Both the province and Canada were involved in drafting the framework set out to address bridging the health gaps. That framework, points out Fiddler, commits Health Canada to implementing all the recommendations outlined in the auditor general’s spring 2015 report. Auditor General Michael Ferguson found that “overall, … Health Canada did not have reasonable assurance that eligible First Nations individuals living in remote communities in Manitoba and Ontario had access to clinical and client care services and medical transportation benefits….” Fiddler says Philpott is
planning to visit the NAN communities shortly. “We are beyond tinkering with policy. What we’re looking at here is a total transformation of the health care system,” said Fiddler. Improving health care in the communities is only one part of a much, much larger picture, he says, which includes the needs for adequate housing, safe drinking water, quality education, and food security. Day says he is hopeful the federal government will be responding with more funding. In its March budget, the federal government committed to spending an extra $8.37 billion over five years to help improve the living conditions of the Indigenous population. Day, who is also the health portfolio holder for AFN, says First Nations have a strong working political relationship with Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne. “We are focusing on building our partnership with Indigenous people in this province and making a real difference in health outcomes,” said Jensen. “Comparing Ontario’s spending on Indigenous health with other provincial jurisdictions is not something we are doing or looking to do.” Day says other province’s need to take a page from Ontario. “It will be important as we go forward that all health issues across the country not be looked at in silos or jurisdictions, but that we … get the political commitment of all people involved to sit down and talk about elevating and increasing the quality of life for First Nations and increasing health outcomes for First Nations,” said Day. “That’s everybody’s responsibility. That’s part of reconciliation.”
Know where your food is coming from A First Nations seafood company is using technology to keep its customers informed about where their product is coming from. Ha’oom Wild Seafood is using tracking tags on all halibut caught for the commercial market. The ThisFish program at www.thisfish.info allows customers to learn who caught their seafood, (as well as when, where and how) using smartphones, tablets and computers. It will even send a message to the harvester. This is the first year Ha’oom Wild Seafood is offering Puu?i (halibut) since the inception of the company in 2012. The company has become well-known for its gooseneck barnacles, a tender, flavourful pale pink meat that is served in fine restaurants around the world, but they also offer Sablefish, Chinook Salmon and Lingcod. Halibut, however, will be the only product, so far,
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to have the THISFISH tag attached. Ha’oom, which simply means food, or something good to eat, was developed by the T’aaqwiihak Nations, a group of five Nuu-chah-nulth Nations (Ahousaht, Ehattesaht, Hesquiaht, Mowachaht/ Muchalaht, and Tla-o-qui-aht) which have proved up to the Supreme Court of Canada their Aboriginal right to fish and sell fish into the commercial marketplace. The company is recommended by the Vancouver Aquarium as ocean-friendly. The name T’aaqwiihak refers to the permission granted by the hereditary chiefs to carefully harvest seafood products from their territories. “Our fishers meet Canada’s overall objectives for fisheries management, sustainably harvesting all Ha’oom Wild Seafood,” reads the website at www.haoom.ca .
The ThisFish tag will trace the journey of Ha’oom halibut from ocean to plate. “Having consumers be able to of T’aaq-wiihak and the Nuu- system which follows the journey trace their halibut back to the chah-nulth fisheries rights case as of the product from ocean to T’aaq-wiihak fishery not only a whole,” commented Alex plate, was launched by Ecotrust distinguishes Ha’oom seafood Gagne, T’aaq-wiihak Fisheries Canada in 2010. Seafood is products as unique in the Coordinator. identified with uniquely coded ThisFish, a seafood traceability tags and labels. marketplace, but raises awareness
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PHOTO: SHARI NARINE
Alexander First Nation Elder Andy Auigbelle said it is important for young people to have “that spiritual part.”
Program aimed at keeping kids from gangs has high Aboriginal numbers By Shari Narine Sweetgrass Contributing Editor
EDMONTON
Two-thirds of the youth enrolled in WrapED are Indigenous. Given the systemic issues facing the Aboriginal community – Indian residential schools, foster care, high incarceration rates, poverty, intergenerational trauma – it’s not surprising that in the two and a half years the program has been operating in Edmonton that the numbers of Aboriginal youth are so high, says Jodene McIsaac, program manager with Native Services Counselling of Alberta. WrapED is specific for youth who are at high risk of gang
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involvement. NCSA is one of six partners that collaborates for WrapED or Wraparound Edmonton. All the partners - Africa Centre, Edmonton John Howard Society, Edmonton Police Service, Native Counselling Services of Alberta, REACH Edmonton and YOUCAN Youth Services – work to provide full services or wraparound services, for the youth in the program. The systemic issues that face Aboriginal youth make them vulnerable for gang recruitment, says McIsaac. “For a lot of these young people (a gang) is the best support they have had. There’s a place to sleep, what they perceive is safety for them.
They’re perceiving it as safe place to be. They’re seeing support. They have people around them. They’re not lonely. This is the information the kids gives us. It’s not the healthiest environment, but for them it’s a safe place where they feel their needs are being met,” she said. WrapED aims to provide that alternative support by lowering the numbers of children that each youth worker has assigned to them. By lowering the number, it allows the youth worker and the youth to establish a relationship. “Through that relationship they build a team of people around them to provide wraparound supports to the young people,” said McIsaac.
“It’s just ongoing support.” The support provided by the team ranges from help with school, employment, housing and income supports, as well as liaising between the court system and the young person and the children’s services system and the young person. Cultural programming is also provided for the Aboriginal youth in WrapED. Connecting to culture provides stability, says Alexander First Nation Elder Andy Auigbelle. “Having that balance with our young people isn’t there and having that spiritual part is really important,” said Auigbelle, who counsels men who have been incarcerated. “A lot of them didn’t see
organizations like this in their time. They had no place to go.” Auigbelle says a program like WrapED is important for youth, who want to be helped. “It’s about relationships we have with all creation and how we’re all connected to everything in this world. Sometimes we forget we’re part of that circle and we tend to put ourselves outside that circle,” he said. “We all have that need to better our lives somehow, to leave that hurt behind, which is not our fault. Most of the time it’s not our fault when we’re young. It’s put in front of us without our consent. But with that help, it makes a big difference.” Funding has been approved for five years for WrapED.
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Approximately $200,000 worth of drugs seized in two busts
PHOTO: EPS
The haul made by the Edmonton Police Service: $94,000 in seized drugs, firearms and paraphernalia.
Drug busts in Edmonton and Fort Saskatchewan over a threeday period resulted in the seizure of close to $200,000 worth of drugs and charges laid against 10 people. On May 20, the Edmonton Police Service Northwest Division charged seven people in relation to an investigation which yielded $94,000 in various drugs, firearms and paraphernalia seized over the weekend. Taken included 600 grams of methamphetamine, 632 fentanyl pills, 205 grams of shatter, over 150 oxycodone pills, and various quantities of crack cocaine, mushrooms and GHB. In Fort Saskatchewan on May 18, a joint investigation between ALERT and RCMP Fort Saskatchewan resulted in the seizure of more than one kilogram of cocaine and three arrests. An estimated $100,000 worth of drugs with 1.1 kg of cocaine and 907 grams of marijuana were netted.
Find every Alberta Sweetgrass article online: www.ammsa.com June II 2016
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Newest race track could be next door to River Cree
Cold Lake Elder featured in Scholastic book
By Shari Narine Sweetgrass Contributing Editor
ENOCH CREE NATION The capital region’s next “A” class racetrack could be located on the Enoch Cree Nation. The River Cree Racing and Entertainment Corporation is one of seven expressions of interest received by Horse Racing Alberta for an organization to own and operate a premier horse racing facility for the Edmonton market area. Northlands announced earlier this year that 2016 would mark its final year in the horse racing business. “We’re pretty thrilled. It came up really quick and we put together a group,” said Enoch Cree Nation Chief Billy Morin. HRA put out the call April 28 for expressions of interest, setting the deadline for May 19. The River Cree Racing and Entertainment Corporation was formed under the Enoch Entities Group. It includes Morin, band councilor Michelle Wilson and licensed “A” track manager Levi Morin. Les Butler, former CEO with Northlands, has been hired as a consultant. With 30 years in the industry, Butler is well respected and has a “fantastic resume,” said Morin. What is being proposed is a $75 million capital investment located directly south of the River Cree Resort and Casino. It would contain the only one mile track in western Canada, inside which would be a track to race thoroughbreds and Standardbreds. Construction would begin fall 2016 or spring 2017 and the track would be operational spring 2018. While the HRA’s expressions of interest deals solely with a race track license, the HRA wants more. Proponents must also be intending to obtain a racing entertainment centre gaming license, which is issued by the Alberta Gaming and Liquor Commission. “The goal is to do (the development) in phases when it comes to infrastructure. The track and pedway system and then maybe open up the restaurant, slot machines and everything else that comes with the license, maybe a month after,” said Morin. For the gaming aspect, Morin says they will be calling on the expertise of the River Cree Resort and Casino board, CEO Robert Morin and secretary Roger Smith, who developed the First Nations gaming policy. “The gaming aspect of it is very, very important. Our casino is by far the highest revenue earner in the capital region in Alberta,” said Morin. HRA is supposed to be considering all expressions of interest over the next 30 days and then requesting successful applicants to submit proposals. “I still believe that Enoch provides everything that HRC needs and that the AGLC needs and that everybody (needs). I can’t see anybody beating our location, both what we can offer in terms of gaming, and the speed and the resources we can raise quickly when it comes to financing this thing,” he said. Morin says his group is eager to move forward with their proposal. “Everybody is all hands on deck and we’re pretty excited about it. The next thing I’ll be doing will be lobbying for political will from the provincial government to move forward and get in front of them to at least hear our proposal,” he said. Morin is unclear how revenue raised from the slot machines at the racetrack will be distributed. Presently, revenue raised at on-reserve slot machines sees First Nations benefit both through direct earnings and grant funding. With race track entertainment facility licenses, slot machine earnings are also split, with a portion going to the Alberta Racing Corporation. “We would probably try to blend the two (formulas) … distributing (money) to First Nations … that would be something we’d like to discuss with (the provincial government),” said Morin. Construction of the race track and facility would employ 100-200 people and operational maintenance would provide jobs for 100-150 people. Morin says he has been told that one horse employs seven people when fully operational.
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PHOTO: PROVIDED
This two-page spread on Elder Nancy Scannie is part of Scholastic’s Take Action series geared to upper elementary students.
Blackstock to receive honourary degree The University of Saskatchewan will present Cindy Blackstock with an honourary degree at its June 2 spring convocation. Blackstock, as executive director of the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society of Canada, carried the cause of First Nations children’s rights all the way to the Federal Court of Appeal in a decade-long legal campaign that resulted in a landmark decision in January by the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal. “We are proud to have the opportunity to celebrate her commitment, courage and conviction, and her many achievements…,” said U of S President Peter Stoicheff. Blackstock will be recognized as a champion of children’s rights and awarded an Honourary Doctor of Laws. Blackstock, 51, is a member of the Gitxsan Nation in B.C., an associate professor at the University of Alberta, and an accomplished author and keynote speaker. She will be one of six honourary degree recipients at this year’s U of S spring convocation ceremonies.
Cold Lake First Nation Elder Nancy Scannie with Keepers of the Water is featured in the Scholastic publication Every Drop Counts. The two-page question and answer feature talks about when Scannie, now 76, was born and how there was no concern about safe drinking water then. Scannie also explains the special role of women, “We try. We try very hard. We are connected with the water. But we can just do so much. We do our praying, we do our ceremonies and we pray on the water.” The classroom unit pack is geared to grades 4 to 6 students. “Very honoured to be a part of Keepers (of) the Water,” said Jesse Cardinal, who serves as coordinator for Keepers of the Water. “(The Scholastic book is a) great learning tool about water.”
Northern Affairs Minister Carolyn Bennett to repeal the First Nations Financial Transparency Act, and also requested a review of all legislation passed by the previous Conservative government. Bennett committed to repealing the FNFTA. Sawridge First Nation Chief Roland Twinn said although he is pleased with Bennett’s decision, he is “cautious that there was no indication of how First Nations will be consulted going forward.” Twinn said he is not opposed to transparency when it comes to federal funding, but does not want his Nation’s own-source revenue included. The Chiefs met with Bennett and Alberta’s Indigenous Relations Minister Richard Feehan Wednesday at the AOTC gathering at the Tsuut’ina Nation and called for less talk from the ministers and more action. The Chiefs also raised the issue of revenue sharing and said Bennett committed to return with a response from the federal government. With the withdrawal of the Consultation Levy Act, Feehan committed to engagement with First Nations to develop a new consultation bill.
Two now charged in taking advantage of community Buffalo receives one more honour assistance The Claresholm RCMP have now charged a second person for fraudulently posing as a Fort McMurray evacuee to gain community assistance. On May 24, Jaime Lynn Cox, 39, was charged with five counts of fraud under $5,000. On May 15, Darryl Lincoln Joseph Rondeau, 46, was similarly charged. He pled guilty in Fort McLeod Provincial Court on Wednesday. Cox has been released from police custody and is scheduled to appear in Fort McLeod Provincial Court on June 1. The investigation began May 12, when the RCMP received a complaint from Family and Community Support Services that a couple was claiming to be evacuees from the Fort McMurray wildfires. An investigation determined that they had never lived in Fort McMurray and had no ties to Alberta and that they were taking advantage of the people in the community of Claresholm, who thought they were helping people who lost their home in the wildfires. Citizens provided a place to stay, clothes, meals and a purchase of work boots.
Transit pass to be made available to low income families in Edmonton As part of a joint effort to reduce and prevent poverty, the provincial government and Edmonton are developing a cost-shared low income transit pass to increase access to public transit and connect families to community supports and resources. The province has committed $6.2 million over three years - half the cost - toward the low income transit pass. It is estimated that 20,000 people each month would be eligible for, and make use of, a low-income transit pass program. Alberta Human Services will provide $213,000 in 2016, $2 million in 2017 and $4 million in 2018. “This is a key End Poverty Edmonton recommendation and significantly advances the city’s partnership with the Alberta government on meeting the needs of our vulnerable population,” said Edmonton Mayor Don Iveson in a statement.
Alberta Chiefs want more action from federal, provincial governments Chiefs at the Assembly of Treaty Chiefs unanimously passed a resolution directing federal Indian and
Former Chief of the Samson Cree Nation Victor S. Buffalo was inducted into the Junior Achievement Alberta Business Hall of Fame during a ceremony in Edmonton May 5. Buffalo’s economic accomplishments have been considerable. He was one of the guiding forces behind Peace Hills Trust Company, Canada’s first and largest Aboriginal-owned financial institution owned entirely by the Samson Nation; and he won a landmark breach of trust lawsuit in 2005 against Canada that permitted the Samson Cree Nation to gain control of $350 million of their own oil and gas revenues, which is now secured in the Kisoniyaminaw Heritage Trust Fund. Buffalo is also passionate about education. In 1980, he established the Samson Education Trust Fund, which presently sits at $30 million. Samson Cree Nation now has one of the highest ratios of post-secondary graduates to population of any First Nation in Canada. This is only one of many recognitions bestowed upon Buffalo. In 2005, he received an Alberta Centennial Medal in recognition of his many contributions to the province; in 2006, he was inducted into the Aboriginal Business Hall of Fame by the Canadian Council for Aboriginal Business; in 2007 he was appointed to the Alberta Order of Excellence; and in 2008 he was invested into the Order of Canada at the Officer level.
Edmonton food trucks helping the food bank What the Truck?! will be accepting its first donations for Edmonton’s Food Bank this weekend. After numerous suggestions from both guests and vendors, Edmonton’s food truck extravaganza, What the Truck?!, has invited Edmonton’s Food Bank to collect monetary and food donations at this season’s events. What the Truck?! is a celebration of food trucks and food truck culture in Edmonton. The non-profit organization connects Edmontonians with food trucks for private events. What the Truck?! will be accepting donations for Edmonton’s Food Bank at the Expo Centre May 28 and 29, as well as Blatchford (June 18), Northlands Race Track (July 8), Telus Field (Aug. 20) and Churchill Square (Sept. 25).
PTSD, suicide prevention among topics to be discussed by fire chiefs
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RCMP continue work as Fort McMurray prepares for re-entry
PHOTO: RCMP
Fort McMurray RCMP members continue to ensure public safety as work is undertaken by essential service agencies to prepare community for re-entry to begin June 1.
Local Fort McMurray RCMP detachment members have been joined by 79 members from other Alberta RCMP detachments to assist in emergency operations being undertaken by essential service agencies who are preparing the community for re-entry next week. Traffic control and a few check-points at key locations in and around Fort McMurray are ensuring the essential service agencies are getting to where they need safely and quickly. Some areas of the municipality remain unsafe as a result of wildfire damage. At the same time, the RCMP is continuing with 24-hour roving patrols throughout evacuated areas to protect the property of residents and businesses.†As the process of recovering from this major event continues, the RCMP is also ensuring that the travelling public moving on Highway 63 through Fort McMurray and carrying on northward stay within the speed limits and carefully dealing with all traffic lights.
About 200 fire chiefs from across Alberta will be gathering in Calgary from May 28 to June 1 for the annual conference of the Alberta Fire Chiefs Association. “The fire events over the past month have brought attention to the important role of first responders and especially firefighters,” said Camrose Fire Chief Peter Krich, who serves as ACFA president. “Although the events in Fort McMurray are not an official part of our program, they will certainly be top of mind in discussions.” Among the topics to be discussed include post-traumatic stress disorder and related health issues; recruitment and retention; and suicide prevention.
a two-year grant to fund a chief resilience officer and technical support and access to about 60 private and public sector tools and services to develop and implement a resiliency strategy. The 100 Resilient Cities Network was launched in 2013 to enable 100 cities world-wide to better address the increasing incidents of acute shocks and chronic stresses faced in the 21st century. “What we learn through our participation in this network will translate into an even more resilient city for our citizens,” said Nenshi.
The quality, depth and quantity of reporting on Canada’s Indigenous communities will be the focus of the Canadian Association of Journalists gathering in Edmonton May 27-28. “Canadian journalists can only benefit from gaining a better footing when it comes to reporting on Indigenous communities,” said CAJ president Nick Taylor-Vaisey. Among the sessions will be “following the money in Indian country” led by APTN’s Jorge Barrera and Melissa Ridgen, who will draw on their own experiences; and, a session on covering the issue of missing and murdered Indigenous women as the national inquiry is about to get underway. The CAJ is Canada’s largest national professional organization for journalists from all media, representing over 600 members across the country.
the Legislature Monday, while commendable, lacks specifics and accountability. “I’m concerned about how the government is choosing to do this. The environment ministry has consolidated control of all monitoring and regulatory aspects of this bill, including the creation of a new agency which answers only to the minister,” said Swann in a news release. The bill does not give Albertans incentive to conserve as 60 per cent of families will receive the full rebate; no targets or guidelines for renewable energy development have been set; and the measurement of environmental progress “is now firmly in the hands of the environment ministry. What methods are they using to determine the effectiveness of the Climate Leadership Plan? Will this process be transparent? How is the monitoring going to be independently checked?” said Swann.
Lack of transparency with climate change concerns Swann Journalists to examine coverage of Indigenous monitoring Alberta Liberal Leader David Swann says the communities, Indigenous issues Climate Leadership Implementation Act introduced in
RISE plans events to commemorate anniversary of Timeline extended for work of joint review panel release of TRC report RISE Edmonton will join with others across Canada for Frontier Oil Sands mine project June 2 as part of a mass blanket exercise marking the one year anniversary of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s final report and 94 calls to action. The blanket exercise will take place at city hall and is one of a number of events planned for next week. On Monday, RISE and Stantec will reimagine RISE’s Reconciling Edmonton project in combination with the RISE Heart Garden in the lobby of Stantec’s downtown offices. On Tuesday, RISE will unveil Walk with Me in the lobby of the Boyle Street building. This interactive audio installation shares the stories of neighbours, colleagues, and friends in reconciliation. On June 4, there will be a pop-up round dance at 2 p.m. at the Federal Building plaza on the Legislature grounds near the original site of Fort Edmonton.
Calgary Named Member of 100 Resilient Cities Network The City of Calgary is now among the global cities classified as the Rockefeller Foundation’s 100 Resilient Cities. The achievement brings funding and resources to support and unify current projects and initiatives focused on preparing for and recovering from future environmental, social and economic disruptions. “As we’ve seen over the past few years, Calgary is a resilient city,” said Mayor Naheed Nenshi in a statement. “Whether we are responding to the floods of 2013, adapting to the economic downturn, or taking in refugees and evacuees, we have shown the very best of ourselves. We applied to be a member of this network because we know we can become even better.” Membership into the 100RC Network of cities includes
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A three-member joint panel has been formed to review Teck Resources Limited’s proposed Frontier Oil Sands mine project located approximately 110 kilometres north of Fort McMurray. Alex Bolton has been appointed as the chair of the joint review panel and is joined by Robert McManus and Bill Klassen. Because of the wildfires that have affected the residents and Indigenous groups in the Fort McMurray area, federal Environment and Climate Change Minister Catherine McKenna has extended the timeline by three months for the panel to submit its report. This extension will allow the panel to begin its preparatory work while postponing the start of Indigenous and public engagement activities until the situation in the region improves. Under the agreement developed by McKenna and Jim Ellis, president and CEO of the Alberta Energy Regulator, the panel will conduct a review of the environmental effects of the project, consider mitigation measures, determine whether the project is likely to cause significant adverse effects, and identify any follow-up programs required. The panel will also consider comments from the public and Indigenous groups that are received during the assessment. The Frontier Oil Sands mine project includes the construction, operation and reclamation of an oil sands surface mine with a production capacity of about 260,000 barrels per day of bitumen. The estimated project area is over 24,000 hectares. If approved, the proposed project would operate for 41 years.
Compiled by Shari Narine
Plan still to be ironed out for returning to most damaged neighbourhoods By Shari Narine Sweetgrass Contributing Editor
EDMONTON Officials are still working on a plan that will allow residents in the largely destroyed Fort McMurray neighbourhoods of Waterways, Abasand and Beacon Hill to be able to return to their homes and personally retrieve keepsakes and valuables. Municipal Affairs Minister Danielle Larivee said Tuesday that she understands the importance of that step. Following the Slave Lake fire in 2011, residents, whose homes were destroyed, were unable to return. They had to depend on first responders to wade through wreckage and rescue what was salvageable. “Right now … we are doing a lot of assessment of the risk associated with the most damaged areas in terms of if it poses any hazard or risk not only to the people investigating their own property, but also if it could potentially pose a risk to a broader area than that,” said Larivee. The province announced a phased-in return-to-FortMcMurray last week although it is contingent on air quality and proximity of the wildfire. Residents could start making their way home June 1 and those to arrive first would be those who live in areas least impacted by the wild fire, which forced a mass evacuation May 3. According to the re-entry plan, residents in the neighbourhoods of Waterways, Abasand, Beacon Hill, Grayling Terrace, and Draper, the hardest hit neighbourhoods, are scheduled to return on the final day of re-entry, June 4. The most damaged neighbourhoods were homes to many of Fort McMurray’s Indigenous population. Last week, Larivee announced that local accommodations will be arranged for those who have lost their homes. Primary accommodation will be drawn from the vacancies that existed prior to the fire. Scott Long, executive director with Alberta Emergency Management Agency, says in the multiple telephone town halls, which have attracted over 10,000 participants each night, residents have made it clear they want to visit their damaged homes. “We want to make sure that is as safe as possible. And how that looks and what that plan is looking like, we’re working closely with the municipality, details to follow based on additional environmental testing,” said Long. That environmental testing is underway right now. Long said that at the end of this week a “rehearsal for re-entry” will be carried out by officials, led by the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo with support from the province, industry partners, business stakeholders, and anybody else deemed necessary. “Essentially what we are going to do is we’re going to go step by step … in what we expect and hope to happen. We will question some of those assumptions, and if we find that there’s a gap, something we haven’t thought of, we will build it into the plan,” said Long. Chad Morrison, senior manager with Alberta wildfire prevention, says the fire, which is still classified as outof-control, has claimed 522,892 hectares, 2,500 hectares in Saskatchewan, and is burning away from the community and the oil sand facilities. He says more firefighters will be coming from other parts of the province and Canada, United States and South Africa and will add to the already 1,200 firefighters at the scene.
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[ sports ]
Kahnawá:ke hockey champ heading to Vermont U
Kale Kane playing for the Chilliwack Chiefs. By Dale Cory Windspeaker Contributor
CHILLIWACK, B.C.
Life is good these days for Kale Kane. Although still stinging – both mentally and physically - from the rigors of a long playoff run, which ended when his Chilliwack Chiefs fell just two wins shy of a BCHL (British Columbia Hockey League) championship, Kane is thrilled with where he’s at in life, and in hockey. Kane grew up on the Kahnawá:ke reserve, just 10 kilometers south of Montreal, on the banks of the St. Lawrence River. Hockey has always been his passion. He drove himself to be a better player, and it paid off
with an offer to attend Salisbury (Connecticut) Prep School in 2014-15. Kane played on a Connecticut Wolf Pack U-18 team, which won a national title. It took a lot of hard work to get to this point. “My cousins (Logan and Jonathan Kane) actually went pretty far too, so growing up, I was always looking up to them. I always wanted to go to a prep school and do what they’ve done,” he recalled. “They told me it’s a lot of fun. You meet new people and make a lot of friends. So, I’ve always tried to strive to make it to the next level, college, or whatever is to come.” Many of Kane’s teammates on the Wolf Pack – Matteo Esposito, Vimal Sukumaran, Jake Smith, Jeremy Germain and Zach Giuttari – joined him
PHOTOS: SUPPLIED
on the Chilliwack Chiefs team, which actually began the year with eight former Wolf Pack players (Eric Benshadle and Ben Scharf were traded away during the season). This group of national champions formed the nucleus of a powerhouse Chilliwack team, which finished with the second-best record in the BCHL. Chilliwack advanced through the first three rounds before dropping the BCHL final in six games to West Kelowna. “Mateo’s grandfather (Wolf Pack head coach Doug Messier, former NHL’er Mark Messier’s father) really scouted me and wanted to get me here to Chilliwack,” said Kane. “It was a long season, but it flies by. It’s a grind, but it’s fun,” said the 5’10”, 170-pound
forward. “I’m not that big on travelling, but you gotta do what you gotta do.” In 71 regular season and playoff games, Kane totaled 20 goals, 34 assists, 54 points, and 81 penalty minutes. “On the ice, I’m kind of a twoway guy,” said Kane. “I like to get into the physical game. I like to score. I like to do everything. That’s what I try to do on the ice for the guys.” When asked what led to the team’s success this season, Kane quickly points to one main reason. “In the locker room, everyone liked one another. That’s one big thing. We never really had any problems. Everybody knew we were pretty good. We knew we were good, but we were always trying to be good. We knew what we had to work with on the team,” insisted Kane. “Off the ice, every day, we were hanging out – at my place or someone else’s place. We were always doing stuff.” While the focus was on winning hockey games, Kane also joined his teammates in the Chilliwack community, attending school events such as Read With The Chiefs. “Kale has been an instrumental part of our community involvement,” said Barry Douglas, longtime Marketing and Sales Manager for the Chilliwack Chiefs. “He is very popular with the youth and adults and always has a fantastic attitude.” Kane is adamant his competitive nature has led him to success at every level he plays. “With hockey and lacrosse, I was a pretty competitive kid, and I always wanted to get better and move on to the next level. You know, you can’t be screwing around with drugs and alcohol.
I always figured, stick with sports and keep working hard, and here I am now,” he said. “I say just try and find something, a sport or a hobby that you just love doing, and see it through. Just try and stay out of trouble. You pick and choose your friends. That’s what I’ve done and I’ve made it this far. Try and get your mind away from all that kind of stuff.” Kane has accepted a full scholarship to attend the University of Vermont in 201617. It’s a place close to his heart, and close to his family back in Kahnawá:ke. “One of my cousins was actually at Vermont. When I was growing up I would go and watch his games at the old Gutterson Fieldhouse. Always loved it as a kid. So, I’m kind of trying to follow in his footsteps,” said Kane. “Also, it’s just two hours away from my house, and my parents can come and visit and I can easily go home if I want to. It kind of works out good for my family and me.” Kane will learn from one of the best. Kevin Sneddon is one of only three head coaches to lead the University of Vermont men’s hockey program over the last half century. Sneddon enters his 14th year as the head coach of the Catamounts for 2016-17 year and his 24th year in the coaching profession. He has led the Catamounts to three NCAA tournament berths in the last eight seasons, including the program’s secondever NCAA Frozen Four berth in 2009. Twelve of Sneddon’s former players have signed NHL contracts during his tenure. “Obviously it would be nice playing in the NHL. I’m trying to go as far as I can, but at the end of the day, I want to graduate with a degree.”
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June II 2016
[ sports ]
Tournament turns into a festival of basketball
Colton Yellowhorn has extended his pro career playing in European leagues By Sam Laskaris capacity this year, a couple of at SFU’s Office for Aboriginal Windspeaker Contributor months before the event kicked Peoples, is hoping the fact the festival was held at the university off. “It was a huge increase for us,” will have a lasting and inspiring BURNABY, B.C. Askew said. “And we had about effect on some of the It certainly didn’t take long for 15 teams on the waitlist.” participants. a West Coast basketball event to Askew believes one of the Lindsay, who is Cree, certainly grow from a small tournament reasons so many squads are has fond memories of visiting a to a Native hoops festival. interested in this event is because post-secondary school in his In 2014, Vancouver’s Native the tournament registration fee early teens. When he was 13, Education College staged an is rather low. Clubs only paid a Lindsay’s school had a field trip inaugural basketball tournament $200 entry fee. at the University of British in order to give its school teams “We wanted to make it Columbia. an opportunity to play against affordable for all the teams, but “Over 40 years later I still some other squads. especially for the out-of-town distinctly remember that day,” That event, which was held at teams because their expenses said Lindsay, who was so inspired the Musqueam Indian Band were so high,” said Askew, who being in a university setting that gym, attracted 17 squads from also co-ordinates a NEC athletic he went on to become a college across British Columbia. and cultural program called the professor and has worked at both The tournament grew to 20 Wellness Warriors. UBC and now SFU. teams, including three from The host NEC entered three Lindsay was pleased that Alberta, in 2015, so organizers teams in the festival. One of through this festival numerous opted to move the event to these clubs ended up winning Aboriginal players were Burnaby’s Simon Fraser the co-ed division. introduced to a university University to utilize its four Teams from Ahousaht took campus he now works at. He gyms, as opposed to the lone top honors in both the girls’ and saod one of SFU’s cornerstone gym at Musqueam. boys’ youth divisions, for those philosophies is community As for this year’s event, held players under 18. The engagement. May 20 to May 22, it was once Maaqtusiis Ma’as won the girls’ “Having this tournament here again staged at SFU. And the category while the Maaqtusiis is an endeavour of that event experienced significant Hoyas took home the boys’ title. community engagement,” he growth as organizers capped the Other winners included a said. number of entrants at 32 teams. Vancouver side dubbed Vancity, Organizers were able to run The participating squads which captured the men’s this year’s festival in part because included two from Alberta and division, and a team called they attracted 17 different one from the state of People Of All Nations, which sponsors. But Askew said all of Washington. won the women’s category. Also, these sponsorships were for this More importantly, however, North Vancouver’s Txayusem year only. And she’s not sure how the event dropped the moniker emerged victorious in the many organizations will tournament and was renamed masters division, which was for continue their sponsorships. the NEC-SFU Native Basketball players 35 and over. †The In order for the festival to be Festival. That’s because besides masters division was open to held again and for it to continue on-court action, it also included both sexes, however, only men to grow, Askew said organizers youth basketball camps, took part. need to track down some more Aboriginal arts and crafts The festival also included a money, hopefully including a workshops, as well as numerous pair of free basketball camps for major sponsor. booths selling Indigenous food, Aboriginal youth. Steve Hanson, “We’re trying to get a jewelry, Native sports apparel the head coach of the SFU substantial source of funding,” and arts and crafts. varsity men’s squad, was among she said, adding organizers “All the feedback we’ve had is those instructing at the camps. would like to increase the that was a really positive Others that were helping out number of competing squads to environment,” said festival at the camps included players at least 40 in 2017. director Claire Askew. from both the SFU women’s and She was also glad to see the men’s teams. festival reach its maximum William Lindsay, the director
Photos: Katerina Oherova
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[ health ]
Hunters’ endurance, strength and agility boosted by games
PHOTO: PROVIDED
Issaluk (center) is a well-known Inuit actor and traditional games athlete, who spent 20-years competing professionally. By Andrea Smith Windspeaker Contributor
The Banff Center for the Arts has a special guest coming around for this year’s National Aboriginal Day celebration. The Centre has chosen to spotlight the Inuit people for its three-day event, beginning June 20. Along with screening films based on the Inuit Arctic experience, they will hold workshops about Inuit history and culture, led by Johnny Issaluk. Issaluk is a well-known Inuit actor and traditional games athlete, who spent 20-years competing professionally. “I was 16 when I started competing in Arctic traditional games… There’s agility games, strength games, and endurance games. When I started there were seven communities that would come together and compete for a week, with different categories for men, women, juniors, and Elders,” said Issaluk. He was born in Churchill, Man., but spent most of his life in Chesterfield Inlet. Traditional Inuit culture was a major influence. He shot his first caribou when he was five years old, and built his first igloo at age 12. Being involved in the traditional games was a natural next step for him, especially given his strong build and above-average height as a young man. “The competitions were all over. The last games we had were in Greenland, but there’s different games… There’s
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Northern Games, Arctic Winter Games, and Regional Games. The Arctic Winter Games are in Alaska, Greenland, and Russia, and the Regional Games are regional, around seven communities in Keewatin,” said Issaluk. According to Issaluk, these games were created specifically to keep the human body healthy and functioning well throughout the year, despite life in a harsh, cold climate, and particularly during the torment of winter. Each game targets a different part of the body and has a different purpose. And interestingly, while the games have been around for thousands of years, games played by Indigenous people in northern Russia are actually very similar to the games played in Canada’s north by the Indigenous people, he said. “The agility games make your body flexible and agile, because back in the day they used to chase animals by foot and catch them with knives and harpoons. You need to be agile because its’s very rough,” said Issaluk. “And the endurance gamesÖ They used to walk for days to get to where the animals were and chase them by foot… You had to be at the top of your game all the time in order to survive. If you didn’t survive… if you didn’t catch animals… the family and village would starve,” he said, adding that the strength games were simply to build muscle in a hunter’s body. Issaluk’s three chosen demonstration games for his Banff Center workshop are the
“high kick,” the “head pull,” and the “knuckle hop.” For each game, a number of opponents would be competing against one another. During the high kick, a target of some kind is chosen and participants must jump up and kick the target, then land on the same foot they kicked the target with. The person who kicks the highest target is the winner. For the head pull, two opponents are strapped together just above their ears, while down on all fours on the ground, and the winner is the one who pulls the other person over a target line. Lastly, the knuckle hop is a game where the competitors have their elbows pulled in next to their bodies, and they “hop like a seal” on their knuckles and toes as far as they can. The winner is the person who can go the farthest distance in that position. Issaluk said he’s enjoyed participating in all of them, and he’s won more than 200 medals in his two-decade professional career. “I played all of them, and I did well at them. But now I don’t play anymore, I just teach and coach. I teach whoever wants to learn… I think it’s important to learn Inuit culture and keep it alive. It’s strong in different places, but like everything else, it’s getting modernised,” he said. For more information about the Banff Center’s National Aboriginal Day celebration, go to https://www.banffcentre.ca/ events/national-aboriginal-dayarctic-games-and-inuit-culturejohnny-issaluk
Expanded FASD assessments gets kids on the best track sooner
Health Sciences North (HSN) in Sudbury, Ont. announced May 19 that the Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) clinic at NEO Kids is now accepting referrals for children under the age of six. Previously, the clinic dealt with children between the ages of six and 18. New Canadian guidelines use a series of indicators to determine if a child under the age of six has impairments that suggest FASD, even though a diagnosis may not be confirmed because of the child’s young age. “The new diagnostic guidelines are extremely important as they make it possible to identify at an earlier age children with FASD and those at risk of FASD. Children designated at risk are to receive the same services and interventions as children with a confirmed diagnosis of FASD,” said Kelly Oreskovich, a social worker with the FASD clinic at NEO Kids. “We know that early intevention and support leads to better outcomes in life. So the earlier the child is diagnosed or identified as at risk, the better.” The FASD clinic at NEO Kids opened in 2011, and was a
partnership between HSN, the Anishinabek Nation, Mamaweswen North Shore Tribal Council, the Shkagamikkwe Health Centre (Greater Sudbury), and the Noojmowin Teg Health Centre (Manitoulin Island). “This collaborative effort in developing the FASD clinic has meant that families living with FASD can access an assessment closer to home and with community supports,” said Carol Ann Cheechoo, director of Community Programs with Shkagamik-Kwe Health Centre. “The opportunity for assessment and diagnosis of FASD at earlier ages provides for more community resources to be identified to support the families earlier.” In the past five years, the FASD Clinic has assessed 180 children from across northeastern Ontario. So far in 2016, the number of referrals to the FASD Clinic is equal to the referrals in all of 2015. The FASD Clinic at NEO Kids accepts referrals from the general public. To refer a child for FASD assessment contact NEO Kids at 705-523-7120 ext. 1073 or koreskovich@hsnsudbury.ca
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[ education ]
Grassy Narrows: The First Nations banker will accept most toxic community in honourary degree June 1 Canada, says scientist
PHOTO: BARB NAHWEGAHBOW
PHOTO: BARB NAHWEGAHBOW
Grassy Narrows First Nation Clan Mother Judy Da Silva.
Continued from page 7. Chief Fobister is hopeful that this time the government will listen and take action. A recently-released expert report has found that one of Canada’s most notorious toxic dumping sites can be cleaned safely. “This week, a new scientific report by three renowned scientists,” said Faisal Moola, “has found that Grassy Narrows Wabigoon River can indeed be cleaned up and the fish can indeed become safe again to eat, but this will only happen if there is political will from Premier [Kathleen] Wynne and her government… “On behalf of the David Suzuki Foundation and our tens of thousands of supporters, we are calling on the Premier to listen to the science and to adopt the recommendations of the remediation report that has been released by Dr. Rudd and his colleagues yesterday. No single act would go further to illustrate that a new era has dawned in our relationship with First Nations and our shared environmentÖ the science community is saying very, very strongly, the time has come for justice to proceed and for this river to be cleaned up.” Chief Fobister said, “The momentum is there now. We have scientists now that say it’s possible to clean up the river. The government of Ontario has always said there’s no scientific evidence that the river can be cleaned up, but now they can’t deny it. The ball is in their court now.” Chief Fobister is also counting on the support of Canadians who
June II 2016
Faisal Moola, of David Suzuki Foundation and Professor at University of Toronto and York University at Grassy Narrows First Nation Press Conference, have become more aware of how human actions harm the environment. “In the last 30 years, concern for the environment has become stronger and stronger,” he said. Ontario Regional Chief Isadore Day pledged the support of the Chiefs of Ontario for Grassy Narrows First Nation, “to obtain full remediation of the EnglishWabigoon River systems, and that the Ontario government should do the right thing and clean up the river. Ontario now has the opportunity to base their actions on studies that have indicated that the Grassy Narrows First Nation river system can be cleaned up from mercury poisoning and it should be cleaned up,” said Day. One of the priorities for the Ontario government, he said, has been reconciliation and the day previous, he and other leaders and community members were in the Ontario legislature to witness Premier Wynne’s apology to residential school survivors. He said the Premier talked about colonial policy, and “if the apology came with the commitment to deal with colonial policy, then the Grassy Narrows issue should be part of the follow up and action based on that apology and based on that commitment.” “We need that river cleaned up and it will take care of the future generations,” said Da Silva. “We’ve already been poisoned. I’ve been poisoned. Simon has been poisoned. And our people sitting in the audience have been poisoned. But it’s for those little kids that are still unborn and that are just growing up to have a chance to have a good life.”
Keith Martell, one of the original founders of the First Nations By Andrea Smith Windspeaker Contributor
SASKATOON
After years of hard work— driven to improve the economic conditions for the Aboriginal people he serves—Keith Martell, one of the original founders of the First Nations Bank of Canada, will be receiving an honorary degree. Martell is from the Waterhen Lake First Nation (Saskatchewan), and graduated in 1985 from the University of Saskatchewan with a Bachelor of Commerce degree. The U of S is now bestowing on him an honorary Doctor of Laws from their College of Law and Edwards School of Business. Martell will address the graduating class when he receives the honor during convocation June 1. “Work ethic is important. I know people don’t like to hear that. There’s a lot of this ‘Dragons’ Den’ idea that says you’ll think of the best idea overnight and make a million dollars. That’s a rare occurrence,” said Martell. “More often, the occurrence is you get an opportunity and you work hard it… My grandparents worked hard, my parents worked hard, and there’s probably a correlation to that,” he said. Martell’s interest in business and economics started from a young age, so the Bachelor of Commerce degree, and the job he found later in accounting, were natural for him. While growing up, he had
watched his father and grandfather sit on the band council for Waterhen Lake for many years. His grandfather and another family member even serving as chiefs. From them he gained a wealth of knowledge on how to achieve success for himself, including learning the importance of education, despite his father having attended Indian residential school. “For him, education was a bad experience. But he was still very focused on making sure we understood we had an obligation to do our best, and move forward… Recognizing I had a parent that went to residential school, I think I valued education even more,” said Martell. “It was never negative for me. It was always positive… but I knew how it could be,” he said. Martell’s career path involved 10 years as a chartered professional account with KPMG, an accounting firm, before he moved over to the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations in 1995. With FSIN, Martell worked as chief financial officer. And he, along with other members of FSIN, developed a special “Aboriginal capital project” so they could lend more money to small Aboriginal-owned businesses, which they saw a real need for at the time. “That became successful by the early 90’s. We saw even more opportunity for First Nations business growth, but felt the banking industry didn’t really understand or support that. Saskatchewan was still in the
process of settling land and treaty claims, which brought millions of dollars in. Banks were willing to take the deposits, but not to put good loans behind good businesses,” said Martell. As an even greater solution, Martell and a few other key people, established the First Nations Bank of Canada. Martell started out as a board member for the bank, but has been the Chief Executive Officer for many years now. Through his work with this institution, Martell has literally changed the lives of Aboriginal people in need of certain financial services. “First Nations, Métis, and Inuit are our first focus. We understand their environments, the economics, and legal issues on reserves. So we end up giving more financial services to projects than other banks would because we understand them better,” he said. And Martell has two prime examples of the true impact FNBC services can have for people. One is of a forestry business run by a First Nations band council that was denied loans by a bank which saw them as a “risky” investment, based primarily upon stereotypes about corruption in council. Martell and the FNBC understood the band’s economic situation very well, however, and granted them a loan, which helped them grow their business so much that the denying bank later came back and offered them even more money as part of a three-way partnership between all of them. The second example is of the effect of setting up banking kiosks in remote communities. Martell recently met a woman in the north who is now able to have her child support payments come to her on time, rather than waiting three extra weeks for everything to be done through the mail. But none of this is a story about luck, and Martell will tell you that very plainly. This is, in fact, exactly what he plans to say to graduating students about how they, too, can reach their own goals in life. “People always say I’ve been lucky. There’s a certain truth to that, but luck is the intersection of preparedness and opportunity,” he said, adding that it’s an expression he had heard in the past. “If you come across an opportunity and you’re not prepared, it means nothing. But if you’re prepared, people always call that a lucky break… People who always look lucky are probably out there looking for the opportunity,” said Martell.
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Larry Loyie [ footprints ] Author encouraged Aboriginal writers By Dianne Meili
One cold winter night, Larry Loyie and his younger sisters hauled an old steamer trunk up Rabbit Hill overlooking Alberta’s Slave Lake. Unable to afford a real sled, a scoop shovel and tin strips served as sled runners as the children hopped in the box to whiz over the snow. It’s scenes like this, simply and honestly told, that engaged readers, young and old alike, in Loyie’s books. His Cree upbringing was first captured in As Long as the River’s Flow; it’s success paved the way for three more books detailing his early life. His sledding adventure in The Moon Speaks Cree, the fourth and final installment in his awardwinning Lawrence Series, captures the closeness of traditional Aboriginal life in the early 1940’s, and shares deeper lessons of respect for culture and history. The residential school product never forgot his dream of being a writer, even as he held down jobs in logging camps and in commercial fishing on the west coast. He taught himself to type and went back to school in the mid-1980s to learn grammar and took a free creative writing course at an east Vancouver learning centre. He published short pieces and was soon deeply involved in the Canadian literacy movement, co-editing The Wind Cannot Read, an anthology of learners’ writings published in B.C. for 1991’s Year of Literacy. “He was already well on his way to becoming a full-time writer when we met,” said Constance Brissenden, who taught creative writing at the learning centre Loyie attended. The University of Alberta theatre graduate directed Loyie’s first play Ora Pro Nobis, Pray For Us, based on his years in residential school, a subject that was only just beginning to be talked about. After three more plays, Loyie focused on children’s books to help readers, especially young Aboriginal students, understand the simple beauty of Indigenous culture. By this time he and Brissenden had become life partners and had formed the Living Tradition Writers Group, encouraging
others to tell their stories. The two would spend 23 years writing together, and travelling to classrooms, libraries, conferences and festivals across Canada. “Larry didn’t do what he did because he wanted to become a famous writer,” said Brissenden. “He wrote because he wanted children to know about the positive aspects of their culture. His culture was Aboriginal of course, but he told all kids – Philippine, German, East Indian – to learn about their culture.” In her tribute to her great uncle, Brookelynn Fiddler wrote “Larry Loyie is my hero because he was a spiritual speaker and he turned anything that was going well into something going great. He has taught me to always believe in my culture no matter what people may say or if they judge.” After more than two decades of making more than 1,600 literary presentations across Canada, Brissenden confesses she was looking forward to retiring from their arduous schedule. “When Larry was 78 I asked him about retiring. But he said ‘we’re not going to retire. I have to keep doing this for the children. I need to encourage them to feel pride in their culture and who they are.” The quiet, unassuming Loyie, whose grandfather Edward Twin gave him the Cree name Oskiniko – Young Man – was born in Slave Lake in 1933. His life in the bush was spent helping his family with daily chores like gathering wood and carrying water, punctuated with teachings from his grandparents and adventures like the one he shared with his Kokom (grandmother) Bella Twin. In As Long as the Rivers Flow, Loyie describes a medicinepicking trip with Bella that could have ended with a bear attack. A grizzly bear unexpectedly reared up before them on the trail but Bella handily shoots it with her old .22 rifle. The skull of the biggest grizzly bear in North America is housed in a private museum near Slave Lake, and his grandmother’s prowess with a gun is still talked about amongst hunters.
PHOTO: SUPPLIED
Larry Loyie
After three years in Slave Lake public school, Loyie spent three years in Grouard’s St. Bernard Mission. He was allowed to return home for two months every summer. When a fever sends Loyie to the High Prairie hospital, the young boy enjoys time away from the oppressive school and flips through a Look magazine featuring an article about bullfighting by Ernest Hemingway. Admiring the photos of the writer watching a bullfight with glamourous women – and more photos in the magazine of mountains and rivers – he decides then and there to be a writer and to travel to faraway countries. After leaving school at 14,
Loyie would spend years working as a labourer until acting on his dream and taking his first writing course. His distinguished career culminated with the publishing of Residential Schools, With the Words and Images of Survivors in 2014. The full-colour, hard cover book was written with Mohawk writer and residential school expert Wayne K. Spear, and features many of the over 200 interviews Loyie and Brissenden conducted with survivors over 20 years. First person accounts outline the strict military model the schools followed, the endless hours spent in church praying, and how hard work in the fields replaced learning in the classrooms, at least in the early
years. “It’s his masterpiece,” said Brissenden. “Since it came out it’s already sold over 7,000 copies. That’s huge. 1,200 copies is a Canadian bestseller. It’s being used in schools across Canada and its being reviewed to be used in the new residential school curriculum. “As Long as the Rivers Flow came out in 2002 and it’s still a bestseller. It’s spent 14 years on the publisher’s list.” Loyie was diagnosed with cancer in 2010. Sick for six years, he began using technology like Skyping to reach his audiences, but continued with interviews and appearances as best he could. He passed away at 82 in Edmonton on April 18.
Every single Windspeaker article ever published (well, almost) is now available on our online archives at www.ammsa.com The archives are free to search and read. P a g e [ 18 ]
June II 2016
Guide to Powwow Country Windspeaker’s Exclusive Guide for the 2016 Powwow Trail
Inside... Museum and Gallery Exhibits Cutural Heritage Sites Cultural Celebrations
Passing along the joy and tradition of powwow. At Ben Calf Robe Powwow in Edmonton, Alberta Photo: Bert Crowfoot June II 2016
Plus... Our 2016 Powwow Country Calendar of Events
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British Columbia Dorothy Grant Fashion designer and traditional Haida artist Internationally renowned fashion designer and traditional Haida artist Dorothy Grant hit the big stage this year when her work was worn by actor Duane Howard at the Academy Awards in Hollywood. Howard, who portrayed Elk Dog in The Revenant, walked the red carpet in a tuxedo by Grant. “Haida form line design is really graphic work,” said Grant. “It’s really about how it fits on a jacket. I’m not one just to plop art on a garment…. I fill spaces in an appropriately kind of balanced way that fits on the body.” Grant placed her accents, artwork of eagle and raven, on the lapels of the tuxedo, which she says was “just a natural place to put Haida art.” It was also a shout-out to Howard’s Nuu-chah-nulth heritage. Movie director Alejandro Gonz·lez Iñárritu purchased tickets a week before the Oscars in order for Howard to attend, along with American Indigenous actors Arthur Redcloud and Forrest Goodluck, and English actor Will Poulter. The Revenant, which earned Iñárritu the Oscar for best director and Leonardo DiCaprio the Oscar for best actor, was filmed mainly in Alberta and had a large contingent of local Indigenous actors. Howard says being at the Academy Awards for the first time was “amazing. It was awesome. It was one of the best things anybody could experience.” For more information, check out: http://dorothygrant.com/
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c' sna? m: The City Before the City Until January 2020 Museum of Vancouver 1100 Chestnut St, Vancouver, British Columbia e
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Actor Duane Howard wore fashion designer and traditional Haida artist Dorothy Grant’s work to the Academy Awards.
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c' sna? m, the city before the city, which shares the history of Musqueam People, received the Governor General’s History Alive! Award in 2015. The exhibitions tell the story of c' sna? m, one of the largest ancient Musqueam villages and burial sites upon which Vancouver was built. The ancient village of c' sna? m was founded about 5,000 years ago at what was then the mouth of the Fraser River, and is today in Vancouver’s Marpole area. The exhibition was jointly curated by the Musqueam First Nation, the Museum of Anthropology at the University of British Columbia, the Museum of Vancouver, and Susan Roy from the University of Waterloo. “c' sna? m, the city before the city is a perfect example of how a museum exhibition can counter an existing narrative— that Vancouver is a young city of immigrants—and replace it with a more truthful version of events. In this way, museums help shape our future as well as our past,” says Janet Walker, president and CEO of Canada’s History Society. The exhibition continues until January 2020 at the Museum of Vancouver. The Governor General’s Award for Excellence in Museums: History Alive! is a partnership between the Canadian Museums Association and Canada’s History Society. e
For more information, check out: http://www.museumofvancouver.ca/exhibitions/exhibit/ c%CC%93%C9%99sna%CA%94%C9%99m-city-city
Gwaii Hannas National Park Reserve Queen Charlottes, British Columbia Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve was runner up in 2015 for the National Geographic’s World Legacy Awards. The park reserve is a collaboration between Parks Canada and the Haida people to manage a national park reserve. The reserve and Haida Heritage Site occupies 1,470 square km and consists of 138 islands, stretching from Tasu Sound south to Cape St. James. The area was declared a Haida Heritage Site in 1985 and added to the national park system in 1988. The reserve contains century-old cedar poles carved with crests of the eagle and raven clans of the Haida; remnants of longhouses; and Haida Gwaii watchmen cabins. Cultural sites are also found in rivers, on beaches, in the intertidal zone†and in the forest. A Legacy Pole was raised in 2013 on Lyell Island, site of 1985 logging protests that eventually protected this region as Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve. For more information, check out: http://www.canadianparks.com/bcolumbia/gwaiinp/ index.htm
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Alberta A Parallel Excavation: Duane Linklater & Tanya Lukin Linklater April 30–September 18, 2016 Art Gallery of Alberta 2 Sir Winston Churchill Square Edmonton, Alberta Ociciwan Contemporary Art Collective presents an exhibition of new works by internationally known artists Duane Linklater and Tanya Lukin Linklater. Featuring installation work by both artists, the exhibition explores notions of excavation in relation to the intellectual, environmental and cultural resources most immediate to the artists. Duane Linklater investigates the structure and materiality of the gallery wall itself, which includes gypsum, wood and steel, and considers the political implications of those materials as resources extracted in Canada. Linklater is OmaskÍko Cree, from Moose Cree First Nation in Northern Ontario and is currently based in North Bay, Ontario. Tanya Lukin Linklater’s sculptural work excavates the Art Gallery of Alberta’s archival records to investigate the complex relationships of Indigenous peoples and artists to institutions, museums and galleries. Lukin Linklater is Alutiiq from Alaska and makes her home in Northern Ontario. A Parallel Excavation: Duane Linklater & Tanya Lukin Linklater is curated by Ociciwan Contemporary Art Collective and organized by the Art Gallery of Alberta.
First People: Bones and Stones Museum of the Highwood 1 Street SW High River, Alberta First People: Bones and Stones opened at the museum in High River at the end of April. It features the heritage rich site Woman’s Buffalo Jump, which is located two miles northwest of Cayley, Alberta. Artifacts on display, such as stone arrowheads; spear points, scrapers and choppers, are nearly 2,000 years old. The Woman’s Buffalo Jump was used before horses were introduced. The site first came into local prominence in 1952 when a flash flood went through Women’s Coulee and exposed many bones and artifacts. Woman’s Buffalo Jump was one of the first sites to be excavated by formal archaeologists. Richard Forbis led the entire project, which began in 1958 and concluded in 1959. Many of the artifacts used in the First People: Bones and Stones are on loan from the University of Calgary as the Glenbow Museum’s archaeology department recently closed. Woman’s Buffalo Jump is also part of oral tradition for the Blackfoot and might be the location of the story of the First Marriage where Napi, trickster and Creator, brought men and†women together. Both sexes joined each other at the jump site. It was decided the men would hunt and the women would take care of the domestic duties. The story goes that the beautiful woman Napi desired did not love him back and while everyone else paired up in the end, Napi didn’t have a partner and turned himself into a pine tree.
PHOTO: BERT CROWFOOT
Ben Calf Robe Powwow in Edmonton, Alberta.
“Courage” by Leo Arcand was presented by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to US President Barack Obama.
Leo Arcand Sculptor Studio in Driftpile First Nation, Alberta Leo Arcand has been soap carving for 25 years and working full time in art for almost two decades. Earlier this year one of Arcand’s pieces was selected by the Prime Minister’s Office. In March it was presented by Prime Minister Trudeau to US President Barack Obama. “It’s really significant and really means a lot to our people. I’m sure it’s a small thing for the (government leaders), but our people are really embracing this moment,” said Arcand. The piece gifted is called “Courage” and stands for hope, love, understanding, and humanity. The eagle head, representing Mother Earth, and woman’s half face, representing humans, symbolize “working together as one in spirit,” said Arcand. The negative space represents message from the spirit and “we don’t know what the spirit looks like.” It was selected by the PMO from the Bearclaw Gallery in Edmonton. Arcand created the piece in January. Arcand, who is from the Alexander First Nation but now calls Driftpile First Nation home, has sold his work all over the world.
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JUNE 2016 June 3 – 5, 2016 Annual Tulalip Veterans Powwow Donald Hatch Gym Greg Williams Court 6700 Totem Beach Avenue Tulalip, Washington, USA Contact: Andy James Phone: 360-722-6570 Vendors Contact: John Romero Jr. Phone: 206-498-7640 June 4 – 5, 2016 Kitigan Zibi Traditional Powwow Kitigan Zibi, Maniwaki, Quebec Contact: Mariette Buckshot Cayer Phone: 819-449-1275 June 4 – 5, 2016 Painted Hand Casino 16th Annual Powwow Farrell Agencies Arena Gallagher Centre Yorkton, Saskatchewan Contact: Painted Hand Casino Phone: 306-786-6777 Email: paintedhand@siga.sk.ca www.paintedhandcasino.ca June 4 – 5, 2016 21st Annual Aboriginal Gathering and 13th Annual Powwow Peace River Agricultural Grounds Peace River, Alberta Contact: Wendy Goulet Phone: 780-624-6316 www.peaceriveraic.com June 4 – 5, 2016 Saa Gii Ba Gaa Powwow Saa Gii Ba Gaa Powwow Grounds 5344 Lakeshore Drive Nett Lake, Minnesota, USA Contact: 218-757-3261 ext.202 www.boisforte.com June 4 – 5, 2016 35th Annual Yuba-Sutter Powwow Beckwourth Riverfront Park Biz Johnson Drive Marysville, California, USA Phone: 530-749-6196 June 10 – 12, 2016 30th Annual Red Earth Native American Cultural Festival Cox Convention Center Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA Phone: 405-427–5228 June 10 – 12, 2016 Prairie Band Potawatomi Powwow Prairie Peoples Park 150th & M Road Mayetta, Kansas USA Phone: 1-888-727-4946 ext. 7701 www.pbpindiantribe.com June 10 – 12, 2016 Table Mountain Rancheria Powwow Table Mountain Powwow Grounds 8184 Table Mountain Road Friant, California, USA Phone: 559-822-2587 June 11 – 12, 2016 13th Annual NCGLNAC Gathering of Great Lakes Nations Tri-State Antique Gas Engine Association Grounds 1010 Morton Street Portland, Indiana, USA Contact: Kay Neumayr Phone: 765-426-3022 June 11 – 12, 2016 Timiskaming First Nation Powwow Timiskaming First Nation Arbor
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Notre Dame du Nord, Quebec Phone: 819-723-2255
Phone: 250-267-6588 Contact: JoAnne Moiese Phone: 250-267-7147
June 11 – 12, 2016 Nanticoke Lenni-Lenape Tribe of New Jersey 37th Annual Powwow Salem County Fairgrounds State Highway, Rt. 40 Woodstown, New Jersey, USA Phone: 856-455-6910 www.nanticokelenapetribalnation.org
June 18, 2016 21st Annual Mattaponi Powwow Mattaponi Indian Reservation 1413 Mattaponi Reservation Circle West Point, Virginia, USA Contact: Mark Custalow Phone: 804-769-8783 Email: mcustalow@gcaservices.com
June 11 – 13, 2016 11th Annual Spirit of the Peace Competition Powwow District of Taylor Ice Centre Taylor, British Columbia Contact: Alison Manitowabi Phone: 250-785-0612 Vendors Contact: Marlene Greyeyes Phone: 250-785-0612
June 18 – 19, 2016 Raritan Native American Heritage Celebration and Powwow Middlesex County Fair Grounds 655 Cranbury Road East Brunswick, New Jersey, USA Contact: 718-686-9297 Email: native@redhawkcouncil.org www.redhawkcouncil.org
June 16, 2016 18th Annual Anishinabek Veterans Memorial Golf Tournament The Mark O’Meara Course at the Grandview Golf Club 245 Grandview Drive North Huntsville, Ontario Contact: Jason Restoule Phone: 705-497-9127 or toll-free: 1-877-702-5200 Email: an7gc@anishinabek.ca www.an7gc.ca
June 18 – 19, 2016 17th Annual Fort Robinson Intertribal Gathering Fort Robinson State Park 3200 US HWY 20 Crawford, Nebraska, USA Phone: 308-632-1311 www.panhandlercd.com
June 17 – 19, 2016 Muckleshoot Veteran’s Powwow Muckleshoot Powwow Grounds Auburn, Washington, USA Contact: Grant Timentwa Phone: 253-876-3327 www.muckleshoot.nsn.us June 17 – 19, 2016 40th Annual Great Lakes Area Traditional Powwow Woodland Valley Gathering Grounds Wilson, Michigan, USA Contact: Molly Meshigaud Phone: 906-723-2612 June 17 – 19, 2016 Kaw Nation Washunga Days Intertribal Powwow Allegawaho Heritage Memorial Park Council Grove, Kansas, USA Phone: 620-767-5413 www.washungadays.com June 17 – 19, 2016 12th Annual Honoring Our Ancestors Powwow 4026 US Hwy 322 Wayne, Ohio, USA Contact: Annamarie Watchful Lynx Phone: 440-536-2213 June 17 – 19, 2016 Rainy River First Nations Powwow Manitou Rapids, Ontario Contact: Nicole Cochrane Phone: 807-482-2479 June 17 – 20, 2016 Summer Solstice Aboriginal Festival & Competition Powwow Vincent Massey Park Ottawa, Ontario www.ottawasummersolstice.ca June 18, 2016 Chief William Father’s Day Powwow Chief William Powwow Arbor 12 km south of Williams Lake, British Columbia Contact: Frances Supernault Phone: 250-280-1450 Contact: Virginia Gilbert
June 18 – 19, 2016 Kaboni Traditional Powwow Thunderbird Park Wikwemikong, Ontario Phone (toll-free): 1-844-945-8687 Email: inquiries@wikwemikong.ca www.wikwemikong.ca June 18 – 19, 2016 Nottawaseppi Huron Band of the Potawatomi Annual Powwow Pine Creek Reservation 1485 Mno-Bmadzewen Way Fulton, Michigan, USA Contact: Robyn Burlingham Phone: 269-704-8373 www.nhbpi.com/pow-wow-2016 June 18 – 19, 2016 35th Annual Plains Indian Museum Powwow Center of the West’s Robbie Powwow Garden 720 Sheridan Avenue Cody, Wyoming, USA Contact: Nancy McClure Phone: 307-578-4102 www.centerofthewest.org/event/ plains-indian-museum-powwow June 18 – 19, 2016 55th Annual Aamjiwnaang First Nation Powwow Bear Park 1972 Virgil Avenue Sarnia, Ontario Contact: Tracy Williams Phone: 519-336-8410 June 19, 2016 St. Albert National Aboriginal Day Festival Lions Park Corner of Tache Street & Sir Winston Churchill St. Albert, Alberta Contact: Gwen Crouse Email: gwencrouse@hotmail.com June 21, 2016 Igniting the Spirit Gala 2016 A Celebration of the Thunderbird Time: 5:00 - 9:30 pm Ottawa Conference and Event Centre 200 Coventry Road Ottawa, Ontario Contact: Shelagh Mills Phone: 613-612-5482
Email: smills@wabano.com www.wabano.com June 23, 2016 7th Annual National Aboriginal History Month Celebration Yonge & Dundas Square Time: 12:00 – 8:00 pm Toronto, Ontario Phone: 416-964-9087 www.ncct.on.ca June 23 – 26, 2016 Fort McKay Treaty Days Fort McKay First Nation, Alberta, Contact: Audrey Redcrow Phone: 780-215-2384 Email: aredcrow@fortmckay.com June 24 – 26, 2016 19th Annual Peoria Powwow Peoria Powwow Grounds 60610 East 90 Road (at County Road 137 & E-90 Road) Miami, Oklahoma, USA Phone: 918-540-2535 www.peoriatribe.com June 24 – 26, 2016 Iyinowak Annual Powwow SLCN Cultural Powwow Grounds Saddle Lake Cree Territory, Alberta Vendors: Marilyn Makokis Phone: 780-726-7609 Vendors: Fabian Large Phone: 780-726-4020 www.saddlelake.ca June 24 – 26, 2016 Lake Vermilion Traditional Powwow Lake Vermilion Powwow Grounds Vermilion, Minnesota, USA Contact: Muriel Deegan Phone: 218-750-7772 Contact: Tracey Dagen Phone: 218-780-1478 June 25 – 26, 2016 Dokis First Nation 16th Annual Traditional Powwow Dokis First Nation, Ontario Contact: Paige Restoule Phone: 705-494-0912 Contact: Gwen Dokis Phone: 705-763-2280 Email: dokispowwowcommittee@gmail.com June 28 – 30, 2016 Beaver Lake Cree Nation Annual Competition Powwow “Mamowi Wicitowin” 18 km SE of Lac La Biche Beaver Lake Cree Nation, Alberta Contact: Marlene Sharphead Phone: 780-623-2553 Contact: James Gladue Phone: 780-404-3287 June 29 – July 4, 2016 118th Annual Arlee Celebration Arlee, Montana, USA Contact: Willie Stevens, Chairman Phone: 406-270-6958 Email: willies@cskt.org www.arleepowwow.com
JULY 2016 July 1 – 3, 2016 Ermineskin Cree Nation Powwow Maskwacis Park Maskwacis, Alberta Contact: Iris Albert Phone: 780-585-3065 Contact: Nina Makinaw Phone: 780-352-1321 Contact: Gloria Nepoose Phone: 780-585-3741 www.ermineskin.ca
more events listed online: www.ammsa.com June II 2016
July 1 – 3, 2016 O’Chiese First Nation Powwow Celebration Celebrating Our Cultural Heritage O’Chiese First Nation Reserve Rocky Mountain House, Alberta Phone: 1-888-256-3884
Calgary, Alberta Phone: 403-261-0101 July 14 – 17, 2016 Back to Batoche Days Batoche National Historic Site Batoche, Saskatchewan Phone: 306-343-8385
July 1 – 3, 2016 19th Annual Swan Lake Competition Powwow Swan Lake, Manitoba Contact: Eileen Catcheway / Phone: 204-836-2424 Email: slfn_powwow@yahoo.com
July 15 – 17, 2016 Kainai Powwow & Celebration Red Crow Park Standoff, Alberta Phone: 1-877-737-6379 www.kainaipowwow.com
July 1 – 3, 2016 22nd Annual Wildhorse Resort & Casino Powwow Umatilla Reservation 46510 Wildhorse Blvd. Pendleton, Oregon, USA Phone: 1-800-654-9453 Email: info@wildhorseresort.com
July 15 – 17, 2016 Onion Lake Cree Nation Annual Powwow Onion Lake Cree Nation, Saskatchewan Contact: Bruce Whitestone Phone: 306-344-7541 www.onionlake.ca
July 1 – 4, 2016 144th Annual Quapaw Powwow Beaver Springs Park 5681 South 630 Road Quapaw, Oklahoma, USA Contact: Mike Shawnee, Powwow Chairman Phone: 918-724-6403 www.quapawtribe.com
July 15 – 24, 2016 The Great Northern Arts Festival Under The Midnight Sun Midnight Sun Complex Inuvik, Northwest Territories Phone: 867-777-8638 Email: gnaf@inuvik.ca www.gnaf.org
July 7 – 10, 2016 65th Annual North American Indian Days Blackfeet Reservation Browning, Montana Contact: Blackfeet Tribal Office Phone: 406-338-7521 www.blackfeetcountry.com July 8 – 10, 2016 Enoch Cree Nation Powwow Enoch Cree Nation, Alberta Phone: 780-470-0359 July 8 – 10, 2016 Alexis Nakota Sioux Nation Annual Powwow Alexis Nakota Sioux Nation, Alberta Contact: Alexis Nakota Sioux Nation Administration Office Phone: 780-967-2225 www.ansn.ca July 8 – 10, 2016 32nd Annual Great Mohican Powwow Mohican Reservation Campgrounds 23270 Wally Road South (County Road 3175) Loudonville, Ohio, USA Phone: 1-800-766-2267 www.mohicanpowwow.com July 8 – 10, 2016 Squamish Nation 28th Annual Youth Powwow 100 Capilano Road West Vancouver, British Columbia Contact: Gloria / 778-228-6501 Contact: Jan / 604-986-7414 July 9 – 10, 2016 26th Annual Echoes of a Proud Nation Powwow Kahnawake Powwow Grounds (10 miles south of Montreal) Kahnawake Mohawk Territory, Quebec Phone: 450-632-8667 www.kahnawakepowwow.com July 9 – 11, 2016 Calgary Stampede Powwow Indian Village 1410 Olympic Way SE
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July 16, 2016 8th Annual Colorado Springs Native American Intertribal Powwow Mortgage Solutions Financial Expo Center 3650 N. Nevada Avenue Colorado Springs, Colorado, USA Contact: Rhetta Walter Phone: 719-559-0525 / 703-798-4320 www.onenationwt.org July 19 - 20, 2016 Moses Lake and Cardston Powwow Lions Park Cardston, Alberta Phone: 403-653-3366 July 22 – 24, 2016 Dakota Oyate Wacipi Sioux Valley Dakota Nation, Manitoba Phone: 204-855-2670 / 1-866-721-0293 July 22 – 24, 2016 Spirit of the People Powwow Tzeachten Sports Field 46770 Bailey Road Chilliwack, British Columbia Contact: Gary Abbott Phone: 604-845-5234 Email: garyvabbott@live.com July 22 – 24, 2016 38th Annual Keweenaw Bay Maawanji’iding Ojibwa Campground Baraga, Michigan, USA Contact: Gary Loonsfoot Jr. Phone: 906-353-4108 Contact: Alden Connor Jr. Phone: 906-353-4278 July 22 – 24, 2016 37th Annual Grand River ‘Champion of Champions’ Powwow Chiefswood Tent & Trailer Park Six Nations of the Grand River Ohsweken, Ontario Phone: 519-751-3908 1-866-393-3001 www.grpowwow.ca
July 22 – 24, 2016 Coeur d’Alene Tribal Encampment and Julyamsh Powwow Kootenai County Fairgrounds Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, USA Phone: 1-800-523-2464 July 28 – 31, 2016 150th Annual Winnebago Homecoming Celebration Veterans Memorial Park Winnebago, Nebraska, USA Contact: Tara Hernandez / 402-8783119 Vendor Info: Lucy Rave / 402-8783126 www.winnebagotribe.com July 29 – 31, 2016 38th Annual Thunderbird Grand Mid-Summer Powwow Queens County Farm Museum 73-50 Little Neck Parkway Floral Park, New York, USA Phone: 718-347-FARM (3276) www.queensfarm.org www.thunderbirdamericanindiandancers.org July 29 – 31, 2016 47th Annual Kihekah Steh Powwow Kihekah Steh Powwow Grounds 193rd Road & 52nd W Avenue (Javine Hill Road) Skiatook, Oklahoma, USA INFO: 918-396-3736 / 918-637-4241 Vendor Info: 918-381-7996 July 29 – 31, 2016 Lac La Biche Powwow Days & Fish Derby Lac La Biche Recreation Grounds Lac La Biche, Alberta Contact: Colleen 780-623-2477 Email: LLBPowWow@gmail.com www.llbpowwowdays.com July 29 – 31, 2016 Kamloopa Powwow Secwepemc Powwow Grounds Kamloops, British Columbia Contact: Kamloopa Powwow Society Phone: 250-828-9782 Email: powwow@kib.ca www.tkemlups.ca July 29 – 31, 2016 Tsuu T’ina Nation Annual Celebrations Redwood Fair Grounds 5 km east of Bragg Creek on Hwy 22 Contact: Dayna Big Plume Phone: 403-281-4455 July 29 – 31, 2016 Piikani Nation 59th Annual Celebration Crowlodge Park Brocket, Alberta Contact: Piikani Nation Administration Office Phone: 403-965-3940 July 29 – 31, 2016 Peepeekisis Cree Nation Powwow Peepeekisis Cree Nation, Saskatchewan Contact: Administration Office Phone: 1-888-892-2292 July 30 – August 1, 2016 56th Annual Wiikwemkoong Cultural Festival Wikwemikong Unceded Indian Reserve Manitoulin Island, Ontario Contact: Wikwemikong Heritage Organization Phone: 1-877-859-2385 www.wikwemikongheritage.org
August 2016 August 2 – 4, 2016 Thundering Hills Powwow Nekaneet First Nation, Saskatchewan Contact: Administration Office Phone: 306-662-3660 August 4 – 7, 2016 Innu Nikamu Festival Aboriginal music & arts festival Mani-Utenam, Québec Phone: 418-927-2476 www.innunikamu.ca August 5 – 7, 2016 8th Annual Healing Mother Earth Intertribal & Traditional Powwow Fischer’s Pine Lake 3924 Maple Road Jefferson, Ohio, USA Contact: Sandi Red Wolf Phone: 440-344-9845 / 440-3194483 Email: redwolf_0801@aol.com August 5 – 7, 2016 Constance Lake First Nation Powwow On Hwy 11, just west of Hearst, Ontario Constance Lake First Nation, Ontario Contact: Band Office Phone: 705-463-4511 August 5 – 7, 2016 52nd Annual Rocky Boy Celebration Rocky Boy, Montana, USA Contact: Dustin Whitford or Caryn Sangrey Phone: 406-395-5705 August 6 – 7, 2016 Poundmaker’s Lodge Annual Powwow 25108 Poundmaker Road Sturgeon County, Alberta Phone: 1-866-458-1884 / 780-458-1884 Email: info@poundmaker.org www.poundmakerslodge.com August 6 – 7, 2016 Bear Mountain Powwow Anthony Wayne Recreation Area Harriman State Park Palisades Interstate Parkway Stony Point, New York, USA Phone: 718-686-9297 Email: native@redhawkcouncil.org www.redhawkcouncil.org August 9 – 13, 2016 Aboriginal Music Week Winnipeg, Manitoba Contact: Alan Greyeyes Email: alan@ammb.ca www.aboriginalmusicweek.ca August 11 – 14, 2016 Siksika Nation Fair Siksika, Alberta Contact: Lucille Wright Phone: 403-734-5100 Phone: 403-901-9817 www.siksikanation.com August 11 – 14, 2016 19th Annual John Arcand Fiddle Fest Windy Acres on Pine Lake Hwy #60 SW of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan Contact: Vicki Arcand Phone: 306-382-0111 Email: windy.acres@sasktel.net www.johnarcandfiddlefest.com August 12 – 13, 2016 Caldwell First Nation Powwow Traditional Caldwell Territory Corner of Bevel Line & Seacliff Drive East Leamington, Ontario Contact: Lonnie Dodge or Isabel Lewis P a g e [ 23 ] Phone: 519-322-1766 www.caldwellpowwow.ca
more events listed online: www.ammsa.com
Saskatchewan / Manitoba Don Wilkins’ metal sculptures of Metis history Louis Riel Trail (Highway 11) Metal sculptures by Saskatchewan artist and retired farmer Don Wilkins along Highway 11 pay homage to the role Métis people played in the region’s settlement. Among the sculptures is the first to depict Louise Riel, near Bladworth. The four-metre piece of work is called The Invitation and
Oviloo Tunnillie: A Woman’s Story in Stone May 21 - September 11, 2016 Winnipeg Art Gallery 300 Memorial Boulevard Winnipeg, Manitoba
The Buffalo Hunter, at Craik, stands 12 feet tall and was erected in 2000. (Photo: donwilkins.net)
symbolizes the time period in 1884 when a delegation went to Montana to ask Riel to help the Métis people in their negotiations with the Canadian government. Wilkins’ depictions of Métis history cover the years 1850 to 1895. His other sculptures are: The Surveyor, at Chamberlain; The Ox and Cart, at Aylsbury; The Buffalo Hunter, at Craik; The Buffalo, at Girvin; twodimensional open framed buffalo, near Chamberlain; The Bone Gatherer with Horse and Cart, at Dundurn; and two-dimensional buffalo at Buffalo Plains’ grain terminal, at Balgonie. In 2001, Wilkins and a committee of volunteers were able to get Highway 11 renamed the Louis Riel Trail. Additional Red River cart sculptures can be seen at the Bethune rest area, Highway 15 west of Kenaston, Hanley, Warman, Rosthern, Duck Lake, and Saskatchewan Landing.
Rings, Ruts and Remnants Trail Saskatchewan Landing Provincial Park Stewart Valley, 50 km north of Swift Current on Highway 4 The Saskatchewan Landing Provincial Park straddles the west end of Lake Diefenbaker. Saskatchewan Landing was once a bustling centre. First Nations, Métis, trail freighters, government surveyors, European settlers and North West Mounted Police all passed this way. The story is shown through the Red River carts used to cross the river in the 1800s, the ruts left by those carts, the teepee rings, and stone cairns. The Rings, Ruts and Remnants interpretive trail is a 2.6 km hike and gives an overview of some of the history surrounding Saskatchewan Landing. Since the Landing was a much-used crossing point on the South Saskatchewan River, this trail provides a glimpse into the lives of the people who lived and traveled here. The trail offers up teepee rings, rock cairns, a buffalo rubbing stone, remnants of homesteads, cart ruts, survey markings and even graves. The trail is clear-cut with the occasional hill. The trail also includes Goodwin House, built in 1897 by Frank Goodwin, a former North West Mounted Police officer. Saskatchewan Landing became more of a stopping area and the house used as a hotel. The house, restored 25 years ago, is a visitor and interpretive centre. A celebration marking its reopening is planned for July 16. For more information, check out: http://www.saskparks.net/SaskatchewanLanding.
Wanuskewin Heritage Park 15.5 km northeast of Saskatoon along Louis Riel Trail Wanuskewin Heritage Park is best known for its dedication to the history of the land and the people who lived and thrived there. Six thousand years ago, the nomadic tribes that roamed the northern plains gathered on this site to hunt bison, gather food and herbs, and escape the winter winds. The story of Wanuskewin is just beginning to be uncovered. Wanuskewin is Canada’s longest-running archeological dig and some of those dig sites date back thousands of years, making them older than the Egyptian pyramids. These sites provide clues to the daily existence of the early peoples. Tipi rings, stone cairns, pottery fragments, plant seeds, projectile points, egg shell fragments and animal bones are evidence of active thriving societies. Some sites teach about traditional life while other sites, like the ancient Medicine Wheel, still remain a mystery. Open year-round, Wanuskewin Heritage Park has something for everyone. The gift shop supports skilled local and rural artisans for their work and pays them fairly, while the dining menu offers traditional First Nations cuisine in a contemporary style. Wanuskewin Heritage Park is now connected to the Meewasin Valley Trail. For more information, check out: www.wanuskewin.com.
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The Winnipeg Art Gallery is showcasing the first retrospective exhibition of carvings by Oviloo Tunnillie, one of the most respected Inuit sculptors from the Canadian Arctic and one of very few female carvers to achieve international success. The exhibition features 67 sculptures drawn from private and public collections in Canada and the United States. Tunnillie†was a†prolific carver with a distinctive modern style characterized by curvilinear, fluid shapes. Her earliest work is a typical genre of finely-crafted birds and sea life, but in the 1980s she became known for less conventional themes, such as athletes and exploited women. Tunnillie created sculptures dealing with social issues, including alcoholism, that affected her own life and her focus on nude figures, marked a distinctly new departure for an Inuit artist, male or Oviloo Tunnillie, Ikayukta Tunnillie Carrying her female. Tunnillie’s work is part of the Drawings to the Co-op, 1997 Serpentinite 50.5 x 29.5 WAG’s collection of contemporary Inuit x 37.0 cm Collection of John and Joyce Price. art, the largest of its kind in the world. The WAG is working to create the Inuit Art Centre to celebrate and engage with Inuit art and Indigenous cultures through exhibition, research, education, and art making. It will also house the WAG’s nationally recognized studio art and learning program.
Indian Treaty No. 1 Plaque Lower Fort Garry National Historic Site On Highway 9, 28 km north east of Winnipeg Rural Municipality of St. Andrews, Manitoba The signing of Treaty No. 1 is recognized by a plaque unveiled in 1928 outside the west gate of Lower Fort Garry National Historic Site. Treaty No. 1 was signed Aug. 3, 1871, by seven Chiefs of the Ojibway and Swampy Cree with a representative of the Crown. In return for reserves and the promise of annuity payments, livestock and farming implements, the First Nations ceded the land comprising the original province of Manitoba. Indian Treaty No. 1 was also known as the Stone Fort treaty, as the local First Nations referred to Lower Fort Garry as the Stone Fort. Lower Fort Garry, which was built for Governor George Simpson of the Hudson’s Bay Company between 1831 and 1848, has one of the finest collections of early stone buildings in western Canada. Schooners linked Norway House to the fort which was a focus for industry and transport in the lower Red River Settlement. Its farm helped supply food for boat brigades and oxen for Red River carts. The Aboriginal communities in the surrounding areas regularly traded their leather goods, farmed crops and dried fish with the Hudson’s Bay Company, and many worked for the company by taking part in the yearly buffalo hunts. This continued well into the 1850s and 1860s, with many Aboriginal women working on the company farms, and the men working the small fishery on the Red River. After 1870 the fort was used as a federal prison and the first training base for the North West Mounted Police. It was given to Canada by the Hudson’s Bay Company in 1951. Today, Lower Fort Garry has 46,000 objects on-site. The artifacts featured are selected from this larger collection of artifacts and historical reproductions. There are 13 buildings, including nine furnished to represent the mid-1800s, three museum display spaces, and a gun powder magazine. For more information, check out: http://www.pc.gc.ca/eng/lhn-nhs/mb/fortgarry/natcul/natcul1.aspx
Mikinak-Keya Spirit Tour Canadian Museum for Human Rights 85 Israel Asper Way Winnipegm Manitoba A unique partnership between Elders and the Canadian Museum for Human Rights created the Mikinak-Keya (The Spirit Tour). The tour was developed with seven Elders representing Anishinaabe, Cree and Dakota Nations. Mikinak-Keya Spirit Tour invites visitors to discover the powerful connection between First Nations’ sacred knowledge and worldviews and the museum’s architecture and human rights mandate. Inspired by ceremony and living oral traditions, this tour offers unique insight into the seven sacred teachings that call on us to take responsibility for how we live and treat each other. The tour focuses on the museum’s architecture and use of space rather than the exhibits. There is singing, storytelling, works of art and amazing views. The 90minute tour is offered at quiet times of the day – early morning or evening - to provide for a contemplative experience. The tour is led by the museum’s Indigenous program interpreters. For more information, check out: https://humanrights.ca/home.
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Ontario
A summer concert at Harbourfront Centre. (Photo: Harbourfront Centre)
The Sweet Sound of Our Nature: Sadie Buck and the He hi ye Girls Aug. 11, 2016 at 7 p.m. Harbourfront Centre 235 Queens Quay W. Toronto, Ontario Sadie Buck and the He hi ye Girls will be showcased as part of Harbourfront Centre’s Summer Music in the Garden series. The free concert will feature traditional and contemporary Haudenosaunee music and the sweet sound that only being in nature can provide. Buck is the creator of the first ever Aboriginal dance opera. Bones debuted in 2001 at The Banff Centre, in Alberta. Its cast of singers and dancers included representatives from three continents and 17 different Nations. Buck is from the Six Nations Reserve in Ontario and the Tonawanda Reservation in New York State. She is a librettist and composer. For more than 40 years, Harbourfront Centre has been presenting a wide diversity of culture, both national and international at distinctive venues in the heart of Toronto’s downtown waterfront.
Bronze sculpture of Francis Pegahmagabow Charles W. Stockey Centre for the Performing Arts 2 Bay Street Parry Sound, Ontario A life-sized bronze sculpture commemorating Francis Pegahmagabow, the most highly-decorated First Nations soldier of WW I, will be installed in Parry Sound, Ontario, in June. The sculpture will stand at the Charles W. Stockey Centre for the Performing Arts, overlooking Georgian Bay, with a view of Parry Island, Pegahmagabow’s home. Tyler Fauvelle, a professional artist based in Sudbury, Ont., created the sculpture, featuring elements of Ojibwa culture. Pegahmagabow was awarded the Military Medal in 1916, the citation speaks of his great bravery, disregard for danger, and faithfulness to duty. Similar acts of valour were recognized by additional bars to that medal, and Pegahmagabow was one of only 39 members of the Canadian Expeditionary Force to receive two bars to the Military Medal. A skilled sniper and scout, he fought overseas for almost the entire war, seeing action in some of its most horrific battles. On his return from the war, Pegahmagabow persistently rebelled against barriers and racism, agitating for change. He served as Chief of the Parry Island Band (Wasauksing First Nation), band councillor, and as Supreme Chief of the Native Independent Government.
June II 2016
The stained glass window, designed by Christi Belcourt, commemorates Indian residential school survivors. (Photo: aadnc-aandc.gc.ca)
Giniigaaniimenaaning (Looking Ahead) by Christi Belcourt Centre Block of Parliament Ottawa, Ontario Metis artist Christi Belcourt’s stained glass window in Centre Block of Parliament shines as a reminder of residential schools and the importance of reconciliation. The window, installed in 2012, is located directly above the west door of Centre Block. It is a permanent commemoration of the legacy of Indian residential schools and of the historic apology delivered by Prime Minister Stephen Harper in 2008. The title of the piece is “Giniigaaniimenaaning,” meaning “looking ahead” and within the deeper meaning of the Ojibway word is the idea that everyone is included and everyone is looking ahead for the ones “unborn.” “The story begins in the bottom left corner of the glass, with your eye moving upwards in the left panel to the top window, and flowing down the right window to the bottom right corner. The glass design tells a story. It is a story of Aboriginal people, with our ceremonies, languages, and cultural knowledge intact; through the darkness of the residential school era; to an awakening sounded by a drum; an apology that spoke to the heart; hope for reconciliation; transformation and healing through dance, ceremony, language; and resilience into the present day,” said Belcourt. Her work was selected by a panel of five.
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PHOTOS FROM MANITO AHBEE
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June II 2016
PHOTOS FROM MANITO AHBEE
PHOTOS: BERT CROWFOOT
Photos from Manito Ahbee Powwow in Winnipeg, Manitoba.
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THE NORTH / USA
Wilderness expeditions Nunavut
Manito Ahbee Powwow in Winnipeg, Manitoba.
PHOTO: BERT CROWFOOT
Seneca Art & Culture Center Ganondagan State Historic Site 7000 County Road 41 (Boughton Hill Road) Victor, New York The Seneca Art & Culture Center explores the histories, traditions, and cultures of the Seneca and Iroquois people, and highlights the significance of the site as a major 17th-century Seneca town. The $15 million center, opened in July 2015, takes design inspiration from important symbols of unity within the Iroquois Confederacy. The architecture of the 17,000-square-foot, one-story building is grounded in two important symbols of peace in the Iroquois Confederacy: the Hiawatha belt, which visually captures the coming together of five original, Native nations into one Confederacy, and the Longhouse, which facilitated communal living and reinforced a sense of social unity. The center allows the non-profit Friends of Ganondagan, in partnership with New York State, to present year-round exhibitions, programs, and events that tell the story of Seneca and Iroquois contributions to North American art, culture, and society over the last 2,000 years. The gift shop features offerings of Seneca and Haudenosaunee artworks, jewelry, books and gifts relating to Ganondagan, as well as Iroquois White Corn Project products. For more information, check out: http://www.ganondagan.org/sacc
Schemitzun August 27-28, 2016 The Mashantucket Pequot Museum & Research Center 110 Pequot Trail Mashantucket, Connecticut The Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation hosts Schemitzun, the Feast of Green Corn and Dance, honouring Mantoo (Creator), provider of all things and celebrating the Nation’s harvest, ancestors, Elders, veterans, family and Native American heritage. The celebration is only one event at the Mashantucket Pequot Museum & Research Center. Tribally owned-and-operated since it opened†in August 1998, the museum brings to life the story of the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation. It serves as a major resource on the histories and cultures of Native Americans in the northeast and on the region’s rich natural history. The museum is a 308,000-square-foot complex, which includes permanent exhibits, the Mashantucket Gallery (a gallery for temporary exhibits), a restaurant and a museum shop. The research center houses collections, a library, archives, and archaeology and conservation laboratories. The building is designed to interact with its surrounding environment while maintaining the ecological integrity of the area. It embraces the tree line and is nestled into the landscape; two of the five levels of the facility are below ground. A 185-foot, stone-and-glass tower provides sweeping views of the swamp and region. The large, circular, glass-and-steel Gathering Space serves as an arrival area. The restaurant features a variety of Native American cuisines, and the museum shop specializes in contemporary Native American arts and crafts. For more information, check out: http://www.pequotmuseum.org/default.aspx
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PHOTO: BERT CROWFOOT
For visitors who are seeking a more remote northern experience in Nunavut, wilderness lodges provide that opportunity. They are situated in locations specifically chosen for a wide variety of outdoor activities in scenic arctic environments. They all come with expert local guidance, include maximum safety preparations and provide a high degree of personal service. Depending upon the season, visitors might arrive to the lodge by floatplane, boat, dogsled or snowmobile. There are no formal roads connecting the 25 separate communities of Nunavut nor are they connected by railroad. For a few months each summer once the sea ice has cleared, usually by late July or early August, it is possible to boat between Nunavut communities. The area around the wilderness lodges can be explored in kayaks or inflatable rafts, by mountain biking, hiking, or ATV. Guided by local experts, day-trip excursions can include roaming muskoxen, swimming belugas and wandering polar bears – watching all from a safe distance. Bush plane gives access to fly-fishing or special areas for filming migrating caribou herds as seen from above. For more information about tourism in Nunavut, check out: http:/ /nunavuttourism.com/
Tombstone Territorial Park The Yukon Tombstone Territorial Park†is a legacy of the Tr’ondÎk HwÎch’in land claim agreement and lies within that traditional territory. The park protects a unique wilderness of rugged peaks, permafrost landforms and abundant wildlife, all reflected in a rich First Nations culture. As such, this remote park has few established trails and even day hikes present rough terrain and drastic weather changes. It is recommended that hikers leave a trip plan with someone or the RCMP before traveling into the Tombstone Park area. Backcountry camping at Grizzly, Divide and Talus Lake sites require reservations and permits in order to reduce impacts on the natural and cultural resources. The Dempster Highway bisects the park and provides an opportunity to view stunning arctic tundra landscapes and wildlife, and access to hiking areas. The concentration of wide ecological niches has resulted in a diverse collection of flora and fauna uncommon at this latitude. The Dempster Highway begins about 40 km east of Dawson City and extends 736 km to Inuvik. The highway crosses the Peel River and the Mackenzie Rivers, depending on the season by ferry or ice bridges. The Tombstone Interpretive Centre, a one hour drive north of Dawson City, is worth a visit. The building was designed to withstand the harsh and remote northern environment, reduce its environmental impact and maximize the energy from the sun. The centre showcases the park’s features through interpretive displays and trails, guided walks and programs, and a list of special events. For more information, check out: http://www.env.gov.yk.ca/camping-parks/tombstonepark.php
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Quebec / Maritimes
PHOTO: BERT CROWFOOT
Manito Ahbee Powwow in Winnipeg, Manitoba.
Gespeg Interpretation Site 783, boulevard Pointe-Navrre Gaspe, Quebec The Gespeg Interpretation Site is a reconstructed traditional Mi’gmaq village from the 17th century where guides explain history, way of life, and customs of the Mi’gmaq people. A short trail through the village shows wigwams, round fire, utility objects and hunting traps, showcasing the practical and ingenious lifestyle of the ancestors. Interactive displays also help bring home the story about how the Mi’gmaq retained their traditions despite being in contact with European fishermen since the mid-1600s. A thematic permanent exhibition presents the writings and testimonies of the early missionaries and explorers to the the Mi’gmaq universe, the prehistoric origin of the Mi’gmaq provinces along the Atlantic coasts, and the influence of Mi’gmaq Gaspesian toponyms including Gaspé, which means “where the land ends.” The boutique offers a wide range of authentic handicrafts and quality products, highlighting the Mi’gmaq crafts and other products native culture of Quebec. For more information, check out: http://www.micmacgespeg.ca/?lang=en
Brousseau Inuit Art Gallery 35, rue Saint-Louis Vieux-Quebec, Quebec The Brousseau Inuit Art Gallery was created in 1999 as a private museum by Raymond Brousseau. Brousseau acquired his first piece of Inuit sculpture in 1956 and kept adding to his collection. The result was his first gallery in 1974. Acquiring the best work from Inuit artists, who are represented by a number of North Canadian Inuit cooperatives, is now the work of current director Jean-Francois Brousseau, which he has been doing for almost two decades. The ongoing support of the Brousseau Gallery has allowed the artists to pursue their works faithful to their traditions and to improve their standard of living. The Inuit art room, with over 450 pieces, demonstrates the evolution of Brousseau’s collection. Pieces from the Baffin region represent the main producers of arts in the Canadian arctic. The Nunavik region is the cradle of contemporary Inuit art. Artists in the Kivalliq region produce an esthetic which dispenses of details and creates more form. The sculpture of the Kitikmeot region is characterized by fantastical forms with themes linked to shamanism and spirits. Sculptors in the Inuvialuit region work with whale bone, walrus ivory and musk ox horns, and sometimes area stone. The subject of every display is illustrated mainly through carvings, carefully chosen and identified, in French, English, and, in many instances, Inuktitut. For more information, check out:
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PHOTO: BERT CROWFOOT
Ben Calf Robe Powwow in Edmonton, Alberta.
Kekina’masuti Nemitekemk Nktuey Mijua’jijk: Through Children’s Eyes Art Gallery of Nova Scotia 1723 Hollis Street, Halifax, Nova Scotia 341 Main Street, Yarmouth, Nova Scotia The ongoing exhibition, Kekina’masuti nemitekemk nktuey mijua’jijk: Through Children’s Eyes, is a selection of artwork by young children from reserves throughout Nova Scotia. The artwork on display was collected from four and five year olds in the Aboriginal Head Start On-Reserve programs and reflects the imagination and creativity of these very young artists as they express their cultural and personal experiences. The exhibition also includes two works from the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia’s Permanent Collection by First Nations artists Alan Syliboy and Dozay Christmas. These two images were used by the gallery, during the in-service workshops for Head Start co-ordinators, to demonstrate how original artworks can be used to encourage the development of visual literacy in young children. The children’s art is also featured in a new publication, Kekina’masuti Nemitekemk Nktuey Mijua’jijk: Through Children’s Eyes:An L’nu Resource for Exploring the Visual Arts, developed as a result of a partnership initiative between Head Start programs, the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia and the Glooscap Heritage Centre with support from First Nations and Inuit Health Atlantic Region. It was designed as a resource, for early childhood educators in Mi’kmaw communities, to offer ways to connect culture with creative self-expression in and through the arts. For more information, check out: https://www.artgalleryofnovascotia.ca/about
Torngat Mountains Base Camp and Research Station 2-6 Royal Street Happy Valley-Goose Bay, Labrador Established in 2006, Torngat Mountains Base Camp Project was created to facilitate ease of access and enjoyment for visitors, while maintaining a cost-effective, authentic and reliable system for researchers engaged in scientific and archaeological work. The first base camp was located on Shuldham Island. In 2007, it was relocated to its current location in St. John’s Harbour, just outside the park boundary on Labrador Inuit Lands. The base camp is operational from mid-July to the end of August. Torngat Mountains is polar bear and black bear country so travelling with an experienced Inuit polar bear guide enhances the journey. There are no designated camping sites so a tent can be pitched anywhere but at archaeological sites. Be prepared to see tent rings, graves, blinds, fox traps and food caches, as well as stone cairns and inukshuks. Now a ridge hiking excursion is offered with an eight-minute helicopter flight from base camp to a nearby mountain ridge where visitors spend the day overlooking some of the park’s most spectacular landscapes. Since 2009, the operational management of Base Camp has been the responsibility of the Nunatsiavut Group of Companies, the business branch of the Nunatsiavut Government. For more information, check out: https://thetorngats.com/
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