Windspeaker August 2014 final

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Tsilqhot’in victorybolsters First Nations

across countryPage 7

IAP privacy issuesbeing hammered out

in courtPage 8

Grassy Narrowsundeterred

by court lossPage 4

Photo

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Inform. Impact. Inspire. Independent and Indigenous.

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Powwow: Colour and EnergyPowwow: Colour and Energy

August 2014P a g e [ 2 ]


ADVERTISINGThe advertising deadline for the

September 2014 issue ofWindspeaker is August 21, 2014.Call toll free at: 1-800-661-5469

for more information.We acknowledge the financial support of the

Government of Canada through the Canada PeriodicalFund of the Department of Canadian Heritage.

Departments

FeaturesTsilqhot’in victory bolsters First Nations acrosscountry 7

When B.C. First Nations formally launched aseries of nine long-promised constitutionalchallenges to the federally-approved EnbridgeNorthern Gateway on July 14, they cited onesingle court case over and over.

[ contents ]

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

Business Quarterly — Canada's Aboriginal Business Magazine

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Percy Tuesday didn’t claim to be an Elder, partlybecause he thought the spiritual personaconflicted with his earlier, rambunctious days ofplaying honky tonk bars on Winnipeg’s Main Street.But perhaps more than anything, he was toohumble to assume the title.

[ rants and raves ] 5

[ drew hayden taylor - column ] 6

[ windspeaker briefs ] 9

[ provincial news ] 10 - 13

[ health ] 14

[ sports ] 15

[ education ] 16

[ careers ] 17

[ footprints ] Percy Tuesday 18

New immigrants’ perspective skewed by home-grown discrimination 8

Building bridges between Indigenous peoplesand the immigrant community is becoming apriority as Canada welcomes more newcomersto the country.

PublisherBert Crowfoot

Editorial 1-780-455-2700

E-mail: [email protected]

Contributing News EditorDebora Steel

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CirculationJoanne Rediron

AMMSA BOARD OF DIRECTORS

PresidentNoel McNaughton

Vice President Rose Marie Willier

TreasurerDr. Chester Cunningham

DirectorsJennie CardinalLeona Shandruk

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IAP privacy issues being hammered out incourt 8

If the information and documentation gatheredduring the residential schools’ IndependentAssessment Process are to be kept, they do notbelong with the federal government.

Indigenous women’s ‘firsts’ consumesuniversity student 9

What was supposed to have been an easyassignment for Sally Simpson turned into a labourof love and an appreciation of how hardAboriginal women have had to work – andcontinue to work – to break into a European-dominated North American society.

Defenders from the past will educatethe future 16

Artist Philip Cote wants to educate the countryabout Indigenous heroes, one school at a time.He’s created a series of 11 posters spanning 350years as part of his Master’s thesis at OntarioCollege of Art and Design University in Toronto.


By David P. BallWindspeaker Contributor

Andrew (Shoon) Keewatin, Jr.admits he wasn’t surprised whenhis nine-year court battle againstlogging on Grassy Narrows FirstNation’s traditional territorieswas defeated July 11 in theSupreme Court of Canada.

“It was the kind of decision Iwas expecting,” the trapper andhunter tells Windspeaker, hishome full of furs harvested fromhis extensive traplines. But takingthe Ontario government to courtover its approval of forestrypermits was a necessary tactic inhis community’s long struggle forjustice.

“I noticed there was a lot ofclear-cutting on my trapline, andpretty soon it was coming rightdown to the river,” recallsKeewatin as he reflects onlaunching his legal challenge in2005.

“My biggest fear is that I won’tbe able to trap — but that ishappening already. They’veclearcut a lot of areas.”

From Asubpeeschoseewagong(Grassy Narrows) First Nation —a remote Anishinabe communitythat is home of the longestblockade in Canada’s history —Keewatin took Ontario’sMinistry of Natural Resources totask after it issued a forest licenseto logging firm Abitibi-Consolidated.

Now, despite its legal defeat,Grassy Narrows is vowing tocontinue defending its Treaty No.3 territories in northern Ontario,pointing out that the court didnot, however, allow forunimpeded clear-cutting of thearea, since Ontario must exerciseits logging rights within therequirements of the treaty, whichincludes timber harvesting rightsand traditional uses toIndigenous peoples as well.

The decision came only weeks

after the same court granted alandmark victory to a B.C. FirstNation which was also fighting aprovincial logging approval ontheir traditional lands, with onekey difference: Tsilhqot’in nationnever signed a historic treaty andis therefore considered uncededland.

“I think everything’s all sethere, it’s all in place with thetreaty,” Keewatin said. “It was thekind of decision I was expecting.”

In the court’s unanimous 7-0decision, the judges consideredwhether provincial authority, forinstance to issue forest licencesand permits, applies on treatylands — which are consideredunder federal jurisdiction.

The judges declared that“Ontario, and only Ontario, hasthe power to take up lands underTreaty 3,” but that “both levelsof government are responsible forfulfilling the treaty promiseswhen acting within the divisionof powers under theConstitution.”

For another local hunter andthe owner of the reserve’s grocerystore and gas station, the resultwas nonetheless disappointing.

“This has been a long fight,”said J.B. Fobister, “and while weare disappointed in today’soutcome we will be continuingto fight to protect the health,welfare and culture of the peopleof Grassy Narrows using all thetools available to us.

“We believe Ontario andindustry are morally andpolitically obliged to seek ourconsent before logging our lands.Our people will ensure that thegovernment, public,corporations, and courts neverforget the terrible effect thatindustrial logging has had on thehealth and welfare of our people.”

Members of Grassy Narrowshave maintained a continuousblockade of the logging accessroad near their reserve since Dec.

2, 2002, when two members ofthe ad hoc Grassy NarrowsEnvironmental Group steppedonto the gravel logging road bySlant Lake and raised their armsin front of a fully loaded truck oftimber.

A trapper, hunter, addictionscounsellor and wildernessinstructor to youth in thecommunity, Keewatin backedtheir efforts by building a logcabin on the blockade camp sitethat stands to this day.

Within six years, their blockadeand international environmentalcampaigns forced paper giantAbitibiBowater to cancel itslogging in the area. Likewise, themultinational corporationWeyerhauser was driven out, andthe community was buoyed bythe Ontario Superior Court’sinitial ruling that the provincehad infringed on Grassy Narrows’traditional-use rights under

Treaty No. 3 of 1873.The Assembly of First Nations’

Ontario Regional Chief StanBeardy released a statementfollowing the final decision in thecase praising the band’s efforts toprotect their lands.

“While today’s decision is verydisappointing,” Beardy said, “wewant to commend GrassyNarrows First Nation forstanding up for the rights in theirTreaty and using all avenues toprotect their rights and theirtraditional territories.”

Keewatin confesses that hisinitial 2011 court win came as a“shock,” since his communityhad endured decades of injusticesincluding mercury poisoning,clear-cutting, relocation andresidential schools. Based on thatrecord, he felt at that time theCrown would appeal — andeventually win. (“I just wantedto do something,” he quips).

In addition to opposing clear-cutting, the community is alsodemanding action from theprovince to address widespreaddegenerative illnesses in thecommunity they say is the resultof a massive amount of the toxinmercury dumped into their riverby a factory decades ago.

On July 31, members of thecommunity and their supportersare holding an annual “RiverRun” event in Toronto, in whichparticipants will “walk withGrassy Narrows for clean waterand Indigenous rights.”

But with his court battle overthose rights ending in Canada’shighest court with defeat, doesKeewatin think the communitycan one day win its struggle?

“Oh yeah, for sure,” hechuckles. “We’re going to keepgoing. It’s no setback. Things willcarry on the way things havebeen going all this time.”

Andrew (Shoon) Keewatin, Jr., the plaintiff in a nine-year-long legal case against Ontario’slogging permits on Treaty No. 3 territory, walks on the grounds of Grassy Narrows’ originalvillage site.

Andrew (Shoon) Keewatin, Jr., left, stands by the 12-year Grassy Narrows blockade by Slant Lake, alongside other leaders of the community’s anti-clearcuttingefforts.

Grassy Narrows undeterred by court loss

PHOTO: DAVID P. BALL


[ rants and raves ]The AFN in all its glory Page 5 Chatter

CBC News is in possession of a document that says the federalgovernment is preparing for court challenges of the NavigationProtection Act, the organization reported. The legislation was partof the controversial omnibus budget bill of 2013, changingsignificantly waterways used by First Nations people, among otherusers. In total, 98 per cent of rivers and lakes in Canada are nownot protected, leaving people and groups no option but to go tocourt to challenge development that impedes navigation. “Thenew (Navigation Protection Act) does not define navigability,”reads an Oct. 18, 2013, ministerial briefing note CBC Newsobtained through Access to Information. “A determination ofnavigability by (Transport Canada) for a given project remains anopinion that may ultimately be challenged in the courts as a matterof statutory interpretation. The fact of navigability can only beestablished through a court of law.”

Take treaty rights seriously or suffer the consequences,and in the case of Manitoba First Nations, that means restrictingflows from the Lake St. Martin emergency outlet channel and nottaking the weight of flood waters while other communities getprotection. On July 11 in Winnipeg, Grand Chief Derek Nepinakof the Manitoba Assembly of Chiefs said “It shouldn’t be 100 percent losses in our communities and 100 per cent preservation ofeverybody else.” During a time of massive flooding inSaskatchewan and Manitoba, First Nations protesters preventedcrews from fully reopening the Lake St. Martin channel, built in2011 and designed to lower water levels on the lake.

The Canadian Council for Aboriginal Business (CCAB)and Sodexo Canada have announced that this year’s recipient ofthe Award for Excellence in Aboriginal Relations is formerCanadian diplomat and Fellow with the Arctic Institute of NorthAmerica, Mary Simon. As Canada’s first Ambassador forCircumpolar Affairs, a lead negotiator for the creation of the ArcticCouncil, and former Canadian Ambassador to Denmark, Simon’sleadership is international in scope with northern interests at theheart of her extraordinary career, reads a press statement. TheAward for Excellence in Aboriginal Relations is presented to aCanadian who has personally contributed, through his or herprofessional and voluntary commitments, to building bridgesbetween Aboriginal people and Canada’s business community.The recipient of the award is selected by a jury of Aboriginal andnon-Aboriginal business leaders. Simon will be presented theaward at the CCAB’s 12th Annual Vancouver Gala on Sept. 25.

Aboriginal Legal Services Toronto (ALST) is expanding itsGladue report writing program with an additional $1 million infunding over two years from Legal Aid Ontario (LAO). Gladuereports detail the unique life circumstances of First Nation, Metis,and Inuit people and offer recommendations for sentencing giventheir circumstances. The funding will allow ALST to hire newcaseworkers and offer Gladue report writing services in newlocations: Ottawa, Oshawa - Peterborough – Lindsay, St.Catherines - Niagara Falls, and Barrie - Orillia. The funding willalso allow ALST to hire a new aftercare worker in Brantford. ALSTcurrently employs five case workers in Toronto, Brantford-Hamilton, Waterloo-Wellington and Sarnia. They write Gladuereports at the request of defence counsel, crown attorneys orjudges.

A new agreement with the B.C. government will enable theKanaka Bar Indian Band to share revenue from the Kwoiek CreekHydroelectric Project. The Kwoiek Creek Hydroelectric Project isa 49.9 mega-watt run-of-river project located 14 kilometres southof Lytton and west of Kanaka Bar on the lower reaches of KwoiekCreek, a tributary to the Fraser River. The project includes a 71-kilometres long, 138-kilovolt transmission line to transmit electricitygenerated to the BC Hydro Highland Valley Substation near MamitLake. Once the project is operating at full capacity, it will provideenough hydro-electricity to power approximately 20,000 B.C.households. The Kanaka Bar Indian Band will share 50 per centof the proceeds of the hydro project for the upcoming 40 years.The project created 250 construction jobs with 40 per cent ofthose jobs going to First Nations.

Premier Christy Clark has asked to meet with BC First Nationsleaders and her cabinet in September. It will be the first suchgathering since Clark became premier. “We’re working with the(First Nations) Leadership Council, and invitations are going tobe going to all the chiefs in the province for Sept. 11 to be held inVancouver,” said Aboriginal Relations and Reconciliation MinisterJohn Rustad. The Tsilhqot’in decision has prompted thegovernment to move more quickly on a meeting that has beencontemplated for more than a year, reads a Vancouver Sun report.Rustad said B.C. is reviewing the decision and will need to havefigured out a path forward for the meeting. The Court ruled thatthe Tsilhqot’in First Nation had title to 1,700 square km (650 squaremiles) of land in the western province of British Columbia, andwith many of the 200 first nations in BC without treaty, B.C. isfacing a sea-change in how it does business in the province.

As we head to press, the Assembly of FirstNations is wrapping up Day Two of itsassembly in Halifax, and while there wasn’tthe spitting and hissing that marred the Maymeeting of the organization, tensions wereheightened and loins girded for any sign ofbullying and abuse.

Still, the business conducted July 15,particularly, was often mired in layer uponlayer of confusion over procedure andprocess, and it began with what really shouldhave been a simple task of choosing a monthfor the next election for national chief.

The AFN put forward three options, theleast popular of which seemed the scheduledelection in July 2015, and they opened upthe floor to comments about the choices. Goto the polls in October or December or waitfor July 2015 as the large shadow of a federalelection darkens the path on First Nationsissues.

Some chiefs weren’t prepared for anychoices, stating the organization was in sucha state of dysfunction, a new national chiefwould only get devoured by regional divisionand hi-jinx, just like what happened tonational chief Shawn Atleo. (At leastaccording to one chief who may be selectivelydumping all of Atleo’s troubles andshortcomings at the door of the chiefs-in-assembly.)

No, we need a ‘rudder for our ship,’ saidanother chief.

According to those keeping track of whatseemed like hours on the topic—and oftenwell off of topic—it was decided to put aresolution to the group that the election wouldbe held in December in Winnipeg.

All in favor? Passed by consensus. Theterm for the upcoming chief would beextended six months.

Huh?, said one chief. What justhappened? I thought we were voting on anamendment.

What?, said another. You can’t change theAFN Charter by extending the term of thechief. That will be open to court challenge(even though the chair previously stated thatlegal had already determined it wasallowable).

One chief complained bitterly about thefundamentally flawed way in how theresolution was presented to the group, andthat the decision may not be the one thechiefs as a whole actually wanted.

An exasperated chair said it was done.The votes cast and counted. And he called a

break before the next big terrifyingdiscussion on restructuring the AFN. Whatkind of mess would that bring?

But somewhere during the debate therewas a motion, or was it a suggestion, thatacting spokesman Ghislain Picard be namedas interim rudder. That might get the fundsflowing again. Aboriginal Affairs Canada hadpinched off the supply until the AFN had aleader again.

Blackmail, said one chief, but a strategythat seems effective.

Picard had to check with his chiefs andhe’d get back to us the next day, and sureenough he did.

Great said the chair. Let’s give it up forthe new interim chief. Applause.

What? Point of order. Was there amotion? Because there certainly wasn’t avote? Was there a motion, because themover withdrew the motion the day before?Is the mover and seconder even in the room?

Well, at the end of it all, we can reportthat indeed there was a motion and a half-hearted vote for interim leader and Picardwas installed, but he is considering a run forthe permanent top job, and once he hasdeclared he’ll have to step away from theposition to create a level playing field for allcandidates. (Of course, that last bit was allcommunicated to the delegates too late.)

All this will happen over the next fewmonths, so we’re not exactly sure howeffective this installment will be. Seems a bitof a waste of energy.

Come on AFN.Dysfunction at every assembly,

commented one chief. A lack of discipline,said another.

There is no doubt that a meeting with somany disparate groups with as manyagendas as there are individuals packed intothe meeting room would be a chore to run,but really? So much bumbling around. Noclear leadership at the front of the room thatcould be counted upon, and in times oftrouble and distress, that’s what anorganization counts on. People who can herdcats, and nail Jello to a tree.

And chiefs, you need to take someresponsibility to ensure you understandwhat’s going on—before you vote. There istoo much money, time and effort at stake.These meetings take thousands of dollarsper participant to attend. Surely, there mustbe some onus put on individual delegatesto get things right.

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Unique bond frees up dollars, give First NationsflexibilityBy Shari NarineWindspeaker Contributor

MEMBERTOU FIRSTNATION

Now that the Membertou FirstNation is able to access moneythrough the First NationsFinance Authority, it will besaving tens of thousands ofdollars in bank charges.

“We have two large bank loansat regular banks at much higherrates and much shorter terms.With our borrowing capacitywe’re able to borrow enough topay off these bank loans. Bydoing that we’re able to savebetween $140,000 to $150,000a month in carrying charges,”said Membertou Chief TerryPaul.

Membertou First Nation wasusing the money from the bankto cover the cost of infrastructure,as well as to further economicdevelopment. But bank rates areexorbitantly high for FirstNations because the bank isunable to seize property on areserve if the First Nation defaultson payment. As well, bank loansare for a short period of time.Paul says the longest termMembertou was able to get from

a bank was seven years.Now with funding raised

through FNFA, rates are primeminus and debenture terms areup to 30 years.

Membertou is one of 14 FirstNations which has been approvedto access a $90-million bondsecured by the First NationsFinance Authority. That amountof money equals the loans thathave been approved for theparticipating First Nations.

That approval involved astringent process which includeda five-year examination of theFirst Nation’s governancestructure and financial stability.As well, the First Nation had tohave a revenue stream other thangovernment dollars. Thirty-fourFirst Nations, the majoritylocated in British Columbia, havebeen approved as borrowingmembers. There are 124 moreFirst Nations, that have expressedinterest to begin working underthe First Nations FiscalManagement Act.

Membertou First Nation hasrevenue from a variety of sources,including gaming, fisheries andcommercial outlets, such ashotels, market, gas bar and anentertainment centre.

FNFA was created as one of

three entities through the FirstNations Fiscal Management Act.FNFA, considered in thegovernment category, received afirst-time issuer credit rating ofA3 from the international ratingagencies. Ernie Daniels, CEOand president of the FNFA,expects to achieve the highestrating of AAA within five years.

“We actually received aninvestor grade rating. It’s neverbeen done with a group of FirstNations together in a borrowingpool to borrow money. This is thefirst time ever in the world.Nothing like this exists,” saidDaniels. “What this does, itenables us to go to the marketand borrow money that’s onmuch better terms than the bank.It’s longer term financing at fixedrates.”

Fourteen investors, bothCanadian and American, boughtinto the bond.

“When we launched … thebond was pre-sold. We had theinvestors lined up already. Whatthat indicates is the interest outthere in buying a bond from atotally first time issuer that ismade up of First Nationgovernments,” said Daniels.

The interest is there, he adds,because the risk is less for

investors due to of the rigorousprocess the First Nations had toundertake to qualify.

Daniels notes that eachparticipating First Nationcontributes five per cent to a debtreserve fund in case of a defaultin loan payment. As well, FNFAcan appoint the FinancialManagement Board to work witha First Nation to resolveoutstanding issues. Funding fromthe federal government is alsoavailable for that purpose.

Paul, who is also chair ofFNFA, says the additionalrevenue stream for approved FirstNations provides both securityand independence.

“It’s tremendous. It’s a gamechanger,” he said. “It’s like aGodsend… for any communityacross the country that becomeseligible to be a member.”

Federal government criteriarequire funding to be spentwithin a fiscal year and that isn’talways feasible, he adds.

“This is a way for First Nationsto control their own futures, helpbuild their communities really ontheir own time frame,” saidDaniels. “They don’t need to goand get any authorizations fromIndian Affairs to do anything.This enables them to access the

money when they need it forwhat they need it as long as theyhave the revenues to support theloan.”

Both Paul and Daniels refer tothis accomplishment as a “veryhistoric moment.”

“It has been about 20-odd yearsin the making,” said Daniels,referring to when the FirstNations Fiscal Management Actwas adopted and FNFA alongwith First Nations FiscalManagement Board and FirstNations Tax Commissioncreated.

Paul singles out the hard workof Deanna Hamilton, of theWestbank First Nation, “whoreally came home to retire” andinstead began to work on thedebenture.

“There’s 20 years of workbehind me,” he said. “I’m justvery honoured, feel very, veryfortunate I just happened to bechair.”

Now that the first debenturehas been obtained, FNFA is notresting. Daniels says there is aninterim financial program inplace to allow other approvedmembers to borrow while FNFAacquires secured funding. Heexpects FNFA to issue $100million bond in March 2015.

[ strictly speaking ]

The irony of residential schoolsThere are four things in this

country that all Native people willbe asked or told at some point intheir Aboriginal existence: Doyou have a spirit name? I loveTom King/Joseph Boyden/Sherman Alexie/A Tribe CalledRed/Robbie Robertson. What thehell do you people want? Andfinally, did you or someone inyour family go to residentialschool?

All important, vital issues in theFirst Nations community for surebut it’s the last one that is mostpertinent. At this point in the arcof life that is Aboriginal existence,this issue seems to be the focus ofmuch of our psychological, legaland creative exploration. Sad,considering it used to be moosehunting, canoeing, andnegotiating treaties.

In recent years there has been aplethora of artistic endeavoursthat have provided their owninterpretations of this topic.Books such as Robert Alexie’s“Porcupines And China Dolls”,James Bartleman’s “As Long AsThe River’s Flow”, and KevinLoring’s Governor General’saward winning play “Where TheBlood Mixes” take a kick at thatcan.

Just a few weeks ago my playabout residential schools, “GodAnd The Indian”, was publishedand in the next month or so, “UpGhost River” by Ed Metatewabinwill be released. This is all just thetip of the tipi.

For a decade now I have been

on the jury for the HistoricaCanada’s yearly writing contestfor young and eager Nativewriters called the Aboriginal Artand Stories. Every year severaldozen stories pour in from acrossthe country detailing what’s onthe mind of Canada’s Indigenousyouth. Surprisingly, a sizablepercentage deals with theresidential school years.

Interestingly, most of these kidswere born long after this lastbastion for this forcedCanadinization had closed. Thisis important to note because notevery Native person went to oneof these institutions, but we wereall hit with collateral damage inone form or another.

Not every Jew was in aconcentration camp but the topicstill resonates deeply in mostfacets of their culture.

In the States, I once heard arepresentative from anorganization set up to help fosterand develop film scripts for NorthAmerican Native people

comment “Why is it every scriptwe get from Canada deals withresidential schools? Don’t theyhave anything else to writeabout?”

For better or worse, we haveresidential schools on the brain.With the Truth andReconciliation Commissiontravelling the country doing itsthing, it seems now most ofCanada also has residentialschools on the brain.

As a result, more frequentlythan I am comfortable with, Ipersonally hear or read commentsfrom main stream Canadianstelling Native people to ‘get overit’. ‘Move on’. ‘Quit living in thepast.’ They don’t seem tounderstand that these artydiscussions are part of moving on,or dealing with it.

Still, you can’t help wonderingwhat would happen if these samepeople went to Ground Zero inNew York and yelled out to thepassing public “Geez, can’t youjust move on instead of spending

all this money to memorialize it?It’s not going to change anything.”Or going to any Jewish holocaustmuseum and saying to anybodyhandy “you guys still whiningabout this?” Same could we besaid about asking any man ofAfrican heritage “For Christ’ssake. That was so 19th century.When are you going to just let itgo?”

For us, the topic is still a littlefresh and it’s not quite in the pastyet.

I remember reading one letterfrom a man who seemedgenuinely puzzled that in all ourbitching, we were overlooking allthe obvious educational benefitswe received from our time inthose schools, between thebeatings, sexual assaults andtrying to survive in such harshconditions. We called it the GulagCanadiana. The man commentedthat we did learn to read and studyhistory.

This may actually be true for Icannot tell you how invaluable itwas on the powwow trail knowingthe Battle of Hastings was foughtin 1066. Spoiler alert: William theConqueror won, thus his name.And then there was the math…A x B = C

In many aboriginal languages,this algebraic equation translatesas:

A stands in for ResidentialSchools.

B stands in for Survivors.Therefore, C must stand for

lawyers.

On a certain level, I think thisman was correct in some ways,but not in the way he hadanticipated. They did teachNative people to write. Tounderstand the concept of puttingthoughts and memories down onpaper, to express themselves. Thusthe onslaught of literature aboutthe very topic that made themwrite. Kind of ironic. It’s ourbelief that God does love irony.

Further, it reminded me of thestory of Spartacus. He was a slavehis owners trained as a gladiatorwho subsequently led a bloodyrevolt against Rome. Think aboutit… If you teach a marginalizedand oppressed culture how to useswords effectively, chances are thatdecision is going to come backand bite you in the ass. And it did.And it made a pretty good movietoo.

Same with writing. Despite themurky education available inthose places, the stories are beingwritten, and published. As the oldsaying goes, the pen is indeedmightier than the sword.Spartacus might disagree.

Back to the irony of thissituation. For an institution thatwas set up to kill the Indian tosave the child, the culture and thefight to save that culture hasevolved into a strong and vibrantliterary movement. Like a scar isstronger than the tissue around it,these stories are stronger thanthose residential schools.

The students outlived theschools.

THE URBANE INDIAN

Drew Hayden Taylor


[ news ]

By David P. BallWindspeaker Contributor

VANCOUVER

When B.C. First Nationsformally launched a series of ninelong-promised constitutionalchallenges to the federally-approved Enbridge NorthernGateway on July 14, they citedone single court case over andover.

If anything, it bolsters theargument that the SupremeCourt of Canada’s unanimous 8-0 ruling on the decades-oldTsilqhot’in nation lawsuit onJune 26 truly was as ground-breaking as many had claimed.The ruling reverberated not onlyamongst elected Canadian andFirst Nations leaders, but alsoamongst resource-basedbusinesses anxious over how thedecision might impact theirprojects.

“This is not merely a right offirst refusal with respect toCrown land management orusage plans,” Chief JusticeBeverly McLachlin stated in herruling. “Rather, it is a right toproactively use and manage theland.”

McLachlin and her fellowSupreme Court justicesconfirmed the Tsilhqot’in’s legaltitle to 1,700 square kilometres— or 440,000 hectares — oftheir traditional hunting andtrapping territories, rejectingwhat many had decried was a“postage stamp” approach toland title and rights that onlyconsidered the scatteredpatchwork of the post-colonization reserve system.

Instead, the country’s highestcourt ruled, Aboriginal claims toterritory extended far beyondtheir reserves. It was somethinglong argued by Indigenousadvocates and lawyers, but neversettled formally in the courts.

“We’re celebrating right now,”said Roger William, wholaunched the case in 1983 afterthe provincial government issueda forestry permit to an area of theTsilhqot’in nation’s traditionalterritories. The challenge workedits way through the court system,but with previous cases neverdefinitively answering thesimmering questions aroundwhat title Indigenous peoplehave to areas outside theirmodern reserves, but within theiroriginal land-base.

“This decision is such a huge,most important decision that I’vebeen a part of,” William addedat a press conference at the Unionof B.C. Indian Chiefs’ Vancouveroffice.

However, although the rulingrequires governments to nowjustify any economic activity ontraditional territories, it doesn’toffer First Nations an absoluteveto over development. Evenwhen a local band refuses toconsent to a project, Canadian

authorities can over-ride theirwishes if the proposeddevelopment is deemed to bepressing and economicallycrucial.

It requires First Nations toprove they hold title totraditional lands, and declaresthat the basis for that title —even for nations determined tobe “semi-nomadic” across thoseterritories — requires exclusiveuse and occupation of the area,as well as a history of continuoushabitation there.

The roots of the court victorystretched back decades earlier, tothe government’s hanging of sixchiefs following the 1864Chilcotin War, explained ChiefPercy Guichon, whose Tsi DelDel First Nation is one of sixmembers of the Tsilhqot’inNational Government.

“Tsilhqot’in people since thenhave still been fighting for whatthey believe in, and have beenfighting for their land and rightsbecause of those chiefs’ courage,strength and vision,” Guichonsaid. “I’m so thankful andgrateful to say that, 150 yearslater, we see the Supreme Courtof Canada’s decision today as thefinal justice for our six chiefswho died for our land, way oflife, and the future of theTsilhqot’in.”

The ruling was seen as a slapin the face for the province,concluding that the governmentat the time had “breached itsduty to consult” First Nationswho would be affected byresource extraction industries ontheir land.

“Governments and individualsproposing to use or exploit land,

whether before of after adeclaration of Aboriginal title,can avoid a charge ofinfringement or failure toadequately consult by obtainingthe consent of the interestedAboriginal group,” McLachlinruled.

Former treaty negotiator, FirstNations consultant and author ofResource Rulers: Fortune & Follyon Canada’s Road to Resourcestold Windspeaker thatMcLachlin’s 80-page ruling is askilfully crafted “legalmasterpiece”—but not one thatsurprised him, given that it’s onlythe latest in a long string of

Aboriginal court victories, inwhich he calculates nine-in-tenhave been wins.

“This is a major, major turn ofevents that is going to force a lotof people I now call ‘deniers’ intofacing the new reality in B.C.,”Bill Gallagher said. “FirstNations are now enjoying theclimax of Native empowerment.

“Governments and industriesseeking to use the land mustobtain the consent of theAboriginal title-holders … (But)this is just the natural progressionas to how the law is evolving, andnot a big quantum leap.”

Aboriginal Affairs Minister

Tsilqhot’in victory bolsters First Nations acrosscountry

Bernard Valcourt released astatement following the rulingdescribing the case as involving“complex and significant legalissues concerning the nature ofAboriginal title in the Provinceof British Columbia.

“The Government of Canadais now taking time to review theCourt’s decision to determinenext steps,” the statementcontinued. “Our Governmentbelieves that the best way toresolve outstanding Aboriginalrights and title claims is throughnegotiated settlements thatbalance the interests of allCanadians.”

Roger William, chief of one of the six member nations in the Tsilhqot’in National Government, drums in celebration at theUBCIC offices in Vancouver on June 26. Photo: David P. Ball

Chief Joe Alphonse, chairman of the Tsilhqot’in National Government, speaks after the SupremeCourt of Canada’s decision at UBCIC’s headquarters in Vancouver on June 26.




[ news ]

By Shari NarineWindspeaker Contributor

SASKATOON

Building bridges betweenIndigenous peoples and theimmigrant community isbecoming a priority as Canadawelcomes more newcomers to thecountry.

“When immigrants andnewcomers come in, they’re giventhe view of people’sdiscriminatory views. They getoff on the wrong foot ofunderstanding Aboriginal peopleand how we’ve come to be,” saidBrad Bird, cultural coordinatorwith Aboriginal FriendshipCentres of Saskatchewan(AFCS). “And on the other hand,when newcomers come in toSaskatoon, Aboriginal peoplesometimes look at them as ifthey’re taking jobs from themwith the temporary foreignworkers and things like that.”

Over the next six months,AFCS will be working with theMulticultural Council ofSaskatchewan and theSaskatchewan Association ofImmigrant Settlement andIntegration Agencies on a projectthat will assess the relationship

between the two groups.Building Relationships

through Intercultural Dialogueand Growing Engagement willinvolve community consultationsthis fall in La Ronge, PrinceAlbert, Saskatoon, Yorkton,Regina and Swift Current, all ofwhich have been identified ashaving both high Aboriginal andimmigrant populations.Following the consultations, gapswill be identified and work willbegin on how to address thoseshortfalls.

Response to the call forproposals for the project was metwith positive comments, Birdsays.

“As we’re having morenewcomers come in I thinkpeople are just realizing that thisis important work and the longerit’s put off and not addressed thebigger the problem will be,” hesaid.

The researcher conducting thework will begin the project bylooking at work undertakenacross the country to address thedisconnect that exists betweenthe two groups.

In Kamloops, Paul Lagace,executive director with KamloopsImmigrant Services, has beenworking in that field since he

took over his position in 2009.Lagace is also Metis, a formerboard member on the localAboriginal friendship centre andhas first-hand experience inAboriginal communities havingworked with an AIDS society.

“It’s important that we ensurethat any newcomer… gettingorientation to the communityshould be made aware that theFirst People were here and theissue of immigration andimmigrants has been a 350-yearprocess. That Europeans were notthe original people,” said Lagace.

Since he joined KIS, Lagace hasmade it a practise to recognize thetraditional territory whenever aguest speaker gives a presentationor a workshop is held. Lagace alsoinitiated contact with theAboriginal people when theKamloops Multicultural Societyplanned Canada Day. However,this year the invitation to theAboriginal community was putout by KMS. Lagace sees that asa victory in building relationshipsbetween the two groups.

A contributing factor to thegrowing disconnect betweennewcomers and Aboriginalpeoples is the mainstream media,said Dr. Jennifer Dalton, whoteaches law and political science

in the School of Public PolicyAdministration at YorkUniversity.

“Mainstream media …presents a really narrow pictureof different groups andcommunities in the country,”said Dalton. “When people focusonly on mainstream media…they’re going to get a spin,especially because the big mediaoutlets are governed by variouscorporate interests and politicalleanings.”

Dalton says it is important thatboth groups seek out local andindependent media and employcritical thinking when engagingmainstream media.

Last year, Dalton helpedorganize a conference in Torontothat contrasted Indigenous andimmigrant perspectives. Theconference was the result of aconversation Dalton had with acolleague who raised the issue ofimmigrants’ experiences inCanada. A few years later, Daltonadapted the idea and organizedthe two-and-a-half dayconference.

Former Prime Minister PaulMartin was a keynote speaker.

“He wanted to address up frontthat there is this disconnect, thereis a tension and often times when

New immigrants’ perspective skewed by home-grown discrimination


TORONTO

If the information anddocumentation gathered duringthe residential schools’Independent Assessment Processare to be kept, they do not belongwith the federal government.

“Why is Canada having somuch influence with whathappens to these? This is Canada’sholocaust,” said IAP claimantMichael Cachagee, who is also ahealth support worker.

According to a statement issuedby the Truth and ReconciliationCommission (TRC), the federalgovernment “advised that it doesnot intend to destroy the recordssubmitted by claimants duringthe IAP proceedings… [and] hasdecided to send some of theserecords to Library and ArchivesCanada (LAC), where they willbe kept permanently andeventually made available to thepublic.”

Kimberly Murray, executivedirector of the TRC, says it is herunderstanding that the NationalArchivist wishes to keep thetranscripts and the decisions thatwill come out of the 38,000hearings with this information togo to LAC. Twenty thousandhearings have been completed todate.

Murray said the TRC sees thevalue in keeping the transcriptsand decisions, but wants thosedocuments to be housed in theNational Research Centre in

Winnipeg.“The IAP transcripts and IAP

decisions really are the completebody of the abuses that occurredin those schools. Thosestatements are tested. So whenyou think about 100 years fromnow, 200 years from now, you canhear the criticism of the TRC(statements). ‘Those are justpeople coming forward andsaying what they want. Theyweren’t tested, they weren’texamined, it wasn’t under oath.’You can’t deny the IAP testimonythough. That was under oath,they were questioned by theadjudicator, there were finaldecisions made regarding thereliability of those statements. Sowhen we look at (38,000)statements versus 7,000 from theTRC it really puts a differentpicture on what happened inthose schools and the true extentof those abuses,” said Murray.

“We don’t want people denyingit 100 years from now. We wantpeople in the future to know ithappened so it doesn’t happenagain.”

Cachagee also believes there isa difference between thestatements gathered by the TRCand the testimony providedduring IAP hearings and hebelieves that information shouldbe examined further.

“What they’re getting (at theIAP hearings) is very, veryvaluable,” he said. “That’s why it’sso important to set the groundrules before they go ahead andestablish what they’re going to dowith (the documents). There has

IAP privacy issues being hammered out in courtto be clarity and very, very specificterms of reference and terms ofconditions on how theinformation would be used, whowill have access to it. It has to bebased upon an ethical foundationand someone can’t go downtomorrow and get a court orderbecause they want to know aboutme.”

Confidentiality, says Murray,can be achieved through blackingout names and any other personaldetails that could lead toidentifying the claimant.

However, Chief AdjudicatorDan Shapiro, who heads theIndian Residential SchoolAdjudication Secretariat thatconducts the IAP hearings, doesnot believe redacting is a practicalsolution considering the sheervolume of documents. And ifredacting were to occur, hebelieves that the documentswould lose their archival value.Shapiro is opposed to theretention of any of the records.

“This is the most significantdossier provided about onestigmatized group in ourpopulation that has probably everbeen gathered and there are suchsignificant risks if thisinformation is released that wewill be asking the court to orderthe destruction of the recordsonce our process is complete,”said Shapiro.

He adds that that IRSASpromised confidentiality toclaimants, who, for many, spokeabout their abuse for the first timeever. Some claimants said thatthey would not have spoken if

they knew their stories would oneday become public.

Schedule D of the IndianResidential School SettlementAgreement, which established theIAP, states, “…all copies (ofdocuments) other than those heldby the government will bedestroyed on the conclusion ofthe matter....”

“The Government of Canadais bound by the provisions of theIRSSA, as well as the federal lawsregarding informationmanagement, access toinformation and privacy ofindividuals, and takes theseobligations very seriously. Thegovernment also takes veryseriously the confidentialitypromises and guarantees made tothe IAP claimants,” wrote Perron.

As well, the IAP Guide states,“The Privacy Act requires that thegovernment keep your personalinformation for at least two years.Currently, government practice isto keep this information in theNational Archives for 30 years,but this practice can change atany time. Only the NationalArchivist can destroy governmentrecords.” Personal informationincludes name, age, income,medical records and schoolattendance.

The IRSAS falls under theumbrella of the federalgovernment. However, Shapiromaintains that IAP documentsare not government documents.

As well, IRSSA Schedule Dnotes that while those who receivethe applicant’s information arebound by confidentiality, “church

people talk about what’s the so-called shared experience betweenIndigenous people andimmigrant Canadians theresponse is it’s totally different.This is Indigenous land,” saidDalton. “He wanted to highlightthat even if there is thisdisconnect there’s also a way toget past the disconnect to buildbridges. It’s almost like buildingbridges through differentnotions, different experiences ofexclusion.”

Dalton believes the mosteffective way to bridge thedisconnect is through education.She says mandatory changes tograde school and high schoolcurriculum is necessary so the fullpicture of the Indigenouspeoples, including language,culture, and history, can bepresented and “not in some vile,bias manner.”

She also believes that sucheducation needs to extend to thepost-secondary levels “so there areno people who are misinformedor uniformed, that would makethe biggest difference in bridgingthe gap, not just betweenIndigenous peoples andimmigrant communities butbetween all people who are inCanada.”

entities will use their best effortsto secure the same commitment.”

The schedule does not set outa time frame in which documentsare to be destroyed or how theyare to be destroyed.

“These records are sitting inAboriginal Affairs’ offices, andthese records are sitting in churcharchives and sitting in lawyersoffices and everybody needs toknow that they’re floating aroundout there and there’s nothingunder the settlement agreementthat says what to do with theserecords,” said Murray. “I’moffended thinking all theserecords are out there, of such aprivate nature, and noprotection.”

Murray also says thedocuments not placed in LAC –which could include medical,employment, counselling,treatment, corrections, incomeand Canada Pension Plan records– will be stored in governmentoffices where “any bureaucrat willhave access to it.” If the courtdeems these records need to bekept, then she wants them placedin the NRC where there are“layers and layers and layers ofprotection provided byAboriginal people.”

The TRC and Shapiro haveasked the court for direction andto clarify issues around documentmanagement, which includeswhich documents will bedestroyed, which documents willbe kept, where the documentswill be kept, and how thosedocuments will be protected.

( See IAP Privacy on page 17.)


[ news ]

Windspeaker News BriefsThe Atikameksheng Anishnawbek, Assembly of First Nations(AFN) and The Holmes Group celebrated on July 11 the completionof the “G’WIIGWAAMNAANIIN” (Building Homes & Building Skills)pilot project for housing and infrastructure. The community now hashousing units built to First Nation Sustainable Development Standards(FNSDS) developed as part of the project to create safer, healthierand durable homes and communities for First Nations. AtikamekshengAnishnawbek worked together as a community to ensure their rights,traditions and interests were protected and reflected in the project.

“When Atikameksheng Anishnawbek was chosen as thecommunity to host the “G’WIIGWAAMNAANIIN” - Building Homes &Building Skills - pilot project, it was an exciting time and a greatopportunity to better our housing standards within our community,”said Atikameksheng Anishnawbek Chief Steve Miller. “At the sametime, it presented an opportunity to set an example of how our FirstNation can unite and pull our resources together to accomplish animportant task that has never been done before. Today, we haveaccomplished a housing standard through the First NationSustainable Housing Development Standards and this document isnot only for our community to better our housing standards but canbe shared with other communities to access and use as a templatetowards the development of their own standards. We completed foursingle-unit complex using these standards and this is a greataccomplishment. This four-plex, as we call it, will provide a healthierhome, a home that will last longer and one that is more energyefficient.”

AFN Manitoba Regional Chief Bill Traverse, who holds theHousing and Infrastructure portfolio for the AFN, thanked ‘Canada’sMost Trusted Contractor’ Mike Holmes and The Holmes Group forpartnering with AFN on the project in 2010. “It is truly inspiring to seethe vision of the pilot project now become a reality. The developmentof First Nations Sustainable Development Standards resulting fromthis project will benefit all First Nations across the country.”Said Holmes, “This project was about making better choices, doingwhat makes sense, building smart and teaching the First Nationshow to do it, like using products that will not mould and that helpkeep a home safe and healthy, not to mention the families living inthem, too.”

The First Nations Sustainable Development Standardsincorporate green technologies, clean energy and new innovativehousing materials. The project will also lead to a “Centre ofExcellence” where best practices and lessons learned can be madeavailable to all First Nations.

The National Association of Friendship Centres,the First Nations Health and Social Secretariat of Manitoba and theNative Women’s Association of Canada will receive $1 million a yeareach over a five year period as part of the Partners for Engagementand Knowledge Exchange (PEKEs) grants which aim to promotebetter health for Aboriginal peoples under the Pathways to HealthEquity for Aboriginal Peoples signature initiative. The overall goal ofPathways is to promote health equity among First Nations, Métisand Inuit peoples in four key areas: suicide prevention, obesity anddiabetes, tuberculosis, and oral health. Pathways research will createevidence-based initiatives that support the design and implementationof health interventions. The research will identify how theseinterventions can be adopted by First Nations, Métis and Inuitcommunities across Canada by respecting their cultures andtraditional knowledge.

Legal action has been taken against Canadaby four Alberta First Nations—Sucker Creek First Nation, ErmineskinCree Nation, Kainai Nation (Blood Tribe) and the Tsuu T’ina Nation—on unsafe drinking water. “Potable water is a serious issue in Albertaas we cannot even drink water from pumps or natural springs,” saidAFN Alberta Regional Chief Cameron Alexis. “This situation isunacceptable and must be dealt with quickly.” The state of FirstNations drinking water is a national shame, reads a news releasefrom the Assembly of First Nations. As of March 31, there were 147Drinking Water Advisories in 87 First Nations communities acrossCanada. About 100, or 68 per cent, of these advisories weredesignated as continued advisories, many of which have been inplace for several years. In July 2011, AANDC released the results ofits National Assessment of First Nations Water and WastewaterSystems. The study found of the 807 water systems inspected:

314 (39 per cent) were categorized as high overall risk278 (34 per cent) were categorized as medium overall risk215 (27 per cent) were categorized as low overall risk

Of the 532 wastewater systems inspected:72 (14 per cent) were categorized as high overall risk272 (51 per cent) were categorized as medium overall risk188 (35 per cent) were categorized as low overall risk

The report determined that, nationally, “based on the 10 year projectedpopulations, the combined water and wastewater servicing needsare estimated to be $4.7 billion plus a projected operating andmaintenance budget of $419 million per year.”“In a country as rich as Canada, a country built on the resources andriches of First Nations traditional territories, we can and should domore to ensure First Nations have access to safe drinking water,something most Canadians take for granted,” said Chief Alexis.

Indigenous women’s ‘firsts’consumes university studentBy Shari NarineWindspeaker Contributor

REGINA

What was supposed to havebeen an easy assignment forSally Simpson turned into alabour of love and anappreciation of how hardAboriginal women have had towork – and continue to work –to break into a European-dominated North Americansociety.

In 2012, Simpson, a studentat Wilfred Laurier Universityand enrolled in an IndigenousWomen’s course, was workingon a class project to honourAboriginal women.

“I thought, ‘Okay, I will go onthe Internet and I’ll find the top10 first Indigenous females andI’ll make a collage, hopefullytheir pictures will be on there,too. This will be an easy project.I didn’t find the top 10Indigenous women to mark afirst in Canada. I didn’t find anysuch list at all,” she said in anemail interview.

Undaunted, Simpson decidedto make her own list.

“It quickly became a verytedious task. It consumed me. Iworked on it day and night,” shesaid.

The result two years later is alist that numbers 107 andcontinues to grow. Initially,Simpson did Internet andlibrary searches and workedclosely with the librarian at theWoodland Culture Centre inBrantford, Ont. But once herefforts became public, peoplebegan seeking her out with theirown contributions for her list.

The list begins withNahnebahwequay (CatherineSutton), of the Mississauga FirstNation, who travelled toEngland in 1860 andsuccessfully petitioned QueenVictoria to intervene in a landclaim dispute near OwenSound, Ont. The next first isn’tuntil half a century later whenin 1914 Mohawk womanCharlotte Edith AndersonMonture became a registerednurse. After 1937, with Dr. ElsieCharles Basque, of theMi’kmaw, as the first licensedteacher to teach in a non-Indigenous school, firsts arefairly regular and range fromElsie Knott, of the Ojibwe, aselected chief of a First Nation(Curve Lake) in 1954 to MarjiPratt-Turo (Carla Blakey) as therunway model in New York Cityin 1963 to Dr. Alis Kennedy, aMetis, who became acommercial pilot in 1976 toBrenda Butterworth-Carr, ofthe Tr’ondek Hwech’in, who in2013 became an RCMP ChiefSuperintendent.

Simpson says compiling thelist made her aware of thedeeper struggles women

endured to achieve their goals.“I’ve been learning a lot about

systemic discrimination. WhenI saw the dates of when thesewomen accomplished theirgoals and then I compared it toEuropean women, it becameglaringly obvious,” she said.

Those systemic barrierscontinue today, says Dr.Shauneen Peet, an associateprofessor in AboriginalEducation at the University ofRegina, who points to the twoper cent cap in governmentfunding for First Nations’ post-secondary education as a factor.And when women do managethat hurdle, they tend to enterthe more women-dominatedprofessions, such as teachers andsocial workers. Bridgingprograms are needed toencourage women to considermore diverse fields.

But trailblazing by Indigenouswomen does continue and thenewest addition to Simpson’s listcould be Jennifer Campeau,who made history in June whena Saskatchewan Party Cabinetshuffle saw her named ministerof central services and ministerresponsible for SaskatchewanTransportation Corporation.

“She’s been very consistent,and she’s very grounded, and shehas this very solid personality,”said Peet, of the Yellow QuillFirst Nation member. “I reallywant to commend her for herdetermination and for beingvery, very forward thinking.”

As long as Campeaucontinues to avoid scandals andcontroversy, her future as apolitician is bright, says Peet,who notes that women arejudged more harshly than theirmale counterparts whenbreaking new ground and someof the harshest criticism comesfrom women.

“As Indigenous women wehave to strongly consider howdo we get behind our womenleaders and provide the kind ofsupport that is really required,”she said. Specifically referring toCampeau, Peet added, “Theseare still predominantly male-dominated fields and in hercase, it’s a predominantly whitefield.”

Peet is a member of EqualVoices, a provincial and nationalnon-partisan group thatsupports women in politics andencourages girls and youngwomen to aspire to these roles.

“We have to be very strategicabout the stories we tell aboutone another to counter theperceptions,” she said.

The Indigenous communitycan also judge its womenharshly, says Peet.

“We’ve inherited socialtraumas that really lead to formsof lateral oppressions in our owncommunities. We have to nameit and have to say this too is aproduct of our colonial past and

it needs to be corrected. We can’ttolerate gossip. We must nottolerate women bashing in anyforms. We have to lift oneanother up,” she said.

“Masculine hegemony,” sheadds, has led to some maleleaders treating womendismissively, silencing andexcluding young womenleaders, and treating women’svoices as a threat to maleauthority on the reserve.

Peet says that the Assembly ofFirst Nations is an example ofwhere colonialism has had animpact. While half of the eightcontenders for the 2012 electionfor the National Chief werewomen, Pam Palmater was adistant second to Shawn Atleo,who has since stepped down.

“We’ve experienced a form ofcolonization which has meantfor many folks we’ve alsoadopted those dominant ideasabout gender and that’s alimiting factor for us,” said Peet.“Our women were very, verypowerful (and) have always beenpresent in our communities, buttoo often the gaze is shifted tothe masculine.”

While each woman has herown reason for accomplishingwhat she did, Simpson sees thewomen on her list as sharingcourage, determination andstrength.

Peet says self-confidence,resiliency, and the ability to find“a balance between strength onthe one side and the sense ofcare. For many of the women Iknow… they really want socialchange” are also drivingcharacteristics.

Simpson is encouraged bythese strong women of the pastand what that means for thefuture.

“I think Indigenous womenare Canada’s beacon for hopeand bringing cultures together.That means a lot ofresponsibility, but I think theyare up for it,” she said.

“We have to keep our eyes onsome of these young womenthat are out there. They aredoing some amazing andpowerful things. They areexceedingly bright and they areexceedingly influential… alongthe way they’ve learned thattheir voices matter,” said Peet.“It’s an exciting time.”

Both Simpson and Peet aremothers of daughters. WhenSimpson’s daughter, who sherefers to as “my greatestaccomplishment and sense ofpride and hope” started college,so did Simpson. In her first termin university, Simpsoncommitted to spending a yearin China teaching English. Thatis where she is now.

“I’m a mother of twodaughters and I’m quiteimpressed in their confidenceand leadership and in the workthey’re doing,” said Peet.


Cheam Indian Band opened twonew businesses on July 15,the Cheam Fishing Village, ariverside campground on thenorth side of the Fraser Riverlocated near the Agassiz Bridge,and the Cheam Trading Post, awholesale/retail outlet for freshand smoked salmon and otherseafood, local and Okanaganfruit and berries and Aboriginaltourism products.

The Cheam Fishing Villageis a very unique new businessventure, reads a press release.The new campground willinclude day parking, campsitesand a boat launch and was builtto help accommodate growingrecreational fisheries, especiallywith this year’s anticipated largesalmon run.

The campground has 42sites with water hookups and 25over flow sites (without waterservice). There is a day parkingarea for vehicles and boattrailers. The boat launch hasbeen added to meet the demandof the boaters that have limitedspots to launch their boats onthe Fraser River.

The Cheam Trading Post isa partnership between DarwinDouglas, a Cheam Bandmember and Patty Bower anOsoyoos Indian Band member.

The post will be wholesaling andretailing smoked and freshsalmon from the Fraser Riverand soft fruit from orchards onthe Osoyoos Indian Band lands.The Cheam Trading Post willalso sell authentic Nativemerchandise, BC Aboriginal artsand crafts, local berries,produce, and ice cream.

Grand Chief Stewart Phillip,president of the Union of BCIndian Chiefs, said you couldvery well find him on the land todefend against activitiesundertaken by contractorsworking on Enbridge’s proposedpipeline project. “For myselfpersonally, it won’t be the firsttime that I have been arrestedin that situation and it won’t bethe last time,” he said. And it’snot a negotiation tactic formoney. It’s about Indigenousrights and the environment,land, sea and sky. “We will standwith our brothers and sisters inthe courtrooms, and ifnecessary we will stand with ourbrothers and sisters in solidarityon the land itself,” Phillip said.

Simgiigyet’m Gitwangak andGitsegukla have issuedeviction

notices to all sports fisheries,the forest industry and CN Rail.These groups are expected toleave the Gitxsan territory byAug. 4 until both Crowns haveobtained the required consent ofthe Gitxsan hereditary chiefs.The decision to evict issupported by the SupremeCourt of Canada that the Crownmust obtain consent andpreserve the interests of theGitxsan before carrying on anyactivities on Gitxsan territory,33,000 sq. km in northwesternBritish Columbia, reads a pressstatement. It affects all sportsfisheries on the Skeena Riverand tributaries, all forestactivities authorized by BCTimber Sales and FLNRO, andCN Rail. The Crowns refuse toabide by the rulings of BC courtsthat the Gitxsan have strongprima facie rights and goodprima facie title to these landssince contact in 1846. “There isno legislative authority,” saidnegotiator Beverley CliftonPercival, “for these governmentbureaucrats to makedeterminations regardingGitxsan strength of title andrights. Without the consent bythe Gitxsan Hereditary Chiefsthey are trespassers.”

British Columbia has signed its150th forestry revenue-sharing agreement,this time with Seabird IslandBand from the Fraser Valleycommunity of Agassiz FirstNation. The Forest Consultationand Revenue SharingAgreement ensures a portion ofprovincial revenues fromforestry activities on the band’s

traditional territory supportssocial and economicdevelopment. Chief ClemSeymour said the deal opensdoors for relationship buildingand to create longer-termcertainty in working withgovernment.

Three foster children wereremoved from a Port Coquitlamcouple by the Squamish First

(Continued on page 16.)


Newest graduates startassignment

The newest troop of theRCMP’s Aboriginal Pre-CadetTraining Program graduatedJuly 4 from the RCMP Academy,“Depot” Division, in Regina. The21 graduates will undertakeeight-week assignmentsworking alongside RCMPofficers in detachments neartheir home communities. TheAPTP offers Aboriginal

Canadians between the ages of19 and 29 the opportunity to getan inside look at daily policework. Since its 1996 inception,470 people have completed theprogram and more than halfhave gone on to apply to theRCMP.

Flooding in southeastSaskatchewan

The First Nations of LittleBlack Bear, Cowessess, Star

Blanket, Ochapowace,Peepeekisis and Kawacatoosewere among 75 communities todeclare states of emergency inearly July due to flash floodingcaused by severe weather in thesoutheast part of the province.Then on July 8, 50 people wereevacuated from James SmithFirst Nation in the central partof the province due to flooding.The First Nations are able toaccess flood recovery servicesoffered by the province, whichopened regional recoverycentres in Carnduff, Moosomin,Grenfell, Esterhazy, Balcarresand Yorkton. The province hasrequested a $100 millionadvance on disaster relief fromthe federal government, whichis the same amountSaskatchewan received afterthe 2011 flooding. The totaldamage is expected to cost atleast $360 million.

Reward doubled forinformation on locatingmissing girl

Ten years after herdisappearance, the Board ofPolice Commissioners hasupped the reward in the TamraKeepness case to $50,000 fromthe previous $25,000. Thereward is being offered inexchange for information thatleads to locating Tamra. ReginaPolice Service Chief Troy Hagenhopes that increasing the awardcoupled with the anniversary ofthe girl’s disappearance willstimulate more discussion in thecommunity and bring newinformation. Vigils andremembrance events havebeen held to mark eachanniversary of Tamra’sdisappearance and police haveinvestigated close to 1,700 tips.Tamra was five years old when

last seen in her home in the corearea of Regina on the night ofJuly 5, 2004.

Pasqua First Nation beginslegal action

On June 17, the Pasqua FirstNation filed a Statement ofClaim in the Federal Courtagainst Canada andSaskatchewan for their failure toproperly implement theSaskatchewan Treaty LandEntitlement Agreement and thePasqua First Nation Treaty LandEntitlement SettlementAgreement. In 2008, the partiesreached a settlementagreement which providedPasqua First Nation entitlementto purchase lands to be set apartas reserve lands and thatSaskatchewan would makeCrown land available for sale.However, the First Nation claimsthat Saskatchewan has failed tomake any Crown lands orminerals available for purchaseand the province has createdbarriers to settlement bypermitting new third partyinterests and taking up land forlease and/or sale withoutconsultation with Pasqua FirstNation.

Whitecap Dakota elementaryschool joins Saskatoon PublicSchools

Students on the WhitecapDakota First Nation will becomeSaskatoon Public Schoolsstudents thanks to a dealworked out between the twobodies. The five-year pilotproject is not a response to thecontroversial First NationsControl Over First NationsEducation Act. The plan is tohave the division operate theelementary school on thereserve as a pre-kindergarten toGrade 4 facility, with the olderstudents bused to the city toattend either John Lake orBuena Vista school, and AdenBowman or Walter Murraycollegiate. Funding would flowdirectly to the school divisionfrom the Aboriginal AffairsCanada. Chief Darcy Bear sayshis First Nation is not cedingcontrol of its own school to aprovincially mandated schooldivision, but providingopportunity for the First Nation’schildren. Recruitment will beeasier for teachers and principalat the Whitecap school as theywill be public school divisionemployees and will be eligiblefor employment benefitsprovided through membership inthe provincial teachers’federation. An employee of the

band will continue to teach theDakota language and culture.

Funding committed for fouryears for self-administeredpolice service

File Hills First Nations PoliceService, Saskatchewan’s onlyself-administered First Nationspolice agency, has received$8.2 million over four years tocontinue First Nations policingto the five File Hills First Nationscommunities. The funding iscost-shared with the federalgovernment providing $4.3million and the provinceproviding $3.9 million. The FileHills First Nations Police Servicehas 14 members, whichincludes the Chief of Police, ninepolice officers, and five specialconstables, and is responsiblefor providing policing services toLittle Black Bear, Okanese,Peepeekisis, Star Blanket andCarry the Kettle First Nationscommunities.

First band employees areunionized

The 10 workers who providehealth services for theCowessess First Nation voted infavour of joining theSaskatchewan Government andGeneral Employees’ Union.SGEU is the first union inSaskatchewan to representworkers employed by a FirstNation band. “Many bandsemploy highly-skilled andqualified workers who do notalways receive the same wagesand benefits as otherprofessionals in their field,” saidSGEU President Bob Bymoen,in a news release. “A unionizedworkplace can help achievewage equity. Unionization alsoresults in greater employmentsecurity and workplace stability,which benefits everyone in thecommunity, especially thosewho rely on the servicesprovided by band staff.”

Language apps releasedThe File Hills-Qu’Appelle

Tribal Council, which represents11 First Nations in southernSaskatchewan, has produced aseries of iPhone apps for Creeand other Aboriginal languages.The apps, which are availablein the Apple app store, offerlearning, practice, games andquizzes in a variety ofcategories, including greetings,phrases and expressions. “It’san important first step inengaging our young people, astep in reclaiming our heritage,”said Edmund Bellegarde, chairof the File Hills-Qu’Appelle TribalCouncil, in a news release. Thetribal council’s LanguageApplication Project has been inthe works since 2011 when thecouncil started working withThorton Media, a high-techlanguage tool company fromLas Vegas, to create fivelanguage apps (Cree, Dakota,Lakota, Saulteaux and Nakota).

Compiled by Shari Narine

PHOTO: COURTESY OF SASKATCHEWAN RCMP


Belcourt selected for OAAboriginal Arts Award

Visual artist and authorChristi Belcourt is the 2014recipient of the Ontario ArtsCouncil Aboriginal Arts Award.Belcourt will receive her$10,000 prize on July 30 whenthe Art Gallery of Ontario unveilsthe new work theycommissioned from her.Belcourt is a Métis artist basedin Espanola. Her work includesthe design for the stain glasswindow commemoration forresidential school survivorslocated on Parliament Hill. TheOAC Aboriginal Arts Award wascreated in 2012 to celebrate thework of Aboriginal artists andarts leaders who have madesignificant contributions to thearts in Ontario.

Lower Mattagami Projectprovides First Nationsemployment

A new 78 MW unit at HarmonGenerating Station is nowgenerating clean, renewableelectricity ahead of scheduleand on budget. Close to 100 percent of the electricity OntarioPower Generation produces isfrom sources that are virtuallyfree of climate change or smogcausing emissions. The LowerMattagami Project is apartnership between the MooseCree First Nation and OPG.“Through this project we arebuilding skills, creatingopportunity and facilitatingeconomic growth acrossNorthern Ontario – especiallyamong First Nation and Métispeoples, many of whom haveparticipated in this project andgained significant capabilities

and expertise as a result,” saidMoose Cree First Nation ChiefNorm Hardisty Jr., in a newsrelease. At peak, about 1,600people, including 250 FirstNations and Métis, worked onthe project.

Carleton’s AESP offer moresupport for students

New revenue will allowCarleton University to expandits Aboriginal Enriched SupportProgram. With $150,000 infunding from the CounsellingFoundation of Canada and a$31,000 donation from AnnetteVerschuren, chair and CEO ofNRStor Inc., AESP, whichprovides a supportive learningenvironment to students in first-year courses, will be able tooffer paid mentorship andinternship opportunities. Thefunding will create studentmentor positions for CarletonAboriginal students as part ofthe AESP’s expandedAboriginal High SchoolMentorship Program as well assupport peer mentoringpositions for upper-yearCarleton Aboriginal students.This will support studentretention and leadershiptraining for incoming Aboriginalstudents enrolled in science,business or engineering.Established in 2002 in theCentre for Initiatives inEducation, the AESP is a partof the university’s AboriginalCoordinated Strategy. It isdesigned for First Nations,status and non-status, Métis,Inuit and those of Aboriginaldescent, and enrolls about 35to 40 students a year, all ofwhom are supported by studentmentors.

First Nations beadworkexhibit

The “Spirit Seeds: ACelebration of First NationsBeadwork” exhibition at Peel ArtGallery, Museum and Archiveswill continue until Oct. 13. TheCommunity ConnectionsGallery features numerousobjects decorated with tinybeads called “Little Spirit” insome First Nations languages.“I’m proud of my collection. I amjust the custodian,” NaomiSmith told the BramptonGuardian. The idea of bringingthese artifacts to this exhibit isto share it with people, she said.

Sodexo steps up commitmentSodexo Canada Ltd. is

increasing its partnership withFanshawe College First NationsCentre to support the studentsthey serve. Sodexo is theorganization that providesmanagement services forFanshawe College Residence.Discussions between CalLittlejohn, director of FanshaweCollege Residence, and Kevin

Lamure, manager of the FirstNations Centre, identified threeareas of support that Sodexocan provide to the First Nationsstudents. Sodexo will ensureemployment opportunities arecommunicated to interestedstudents; work will beundertaken to dispelmisconceptions and introduceopportunities for members ofthe college community to learnmore about First Nationsculture; and Sodexo willcontribute to the First NationsCentre’s fall welcome event.

WIPCE to be held in Toronto in2017

Six Nations Polytechnic, inpartnership with TAPResources, has beensuccessful in its bid to host the2017 World IndigenousPeoples’ Conference onEducation. Six NationsPolytechnic and TAPResources will join forces withTourism Toronto and the MetroToronto Convention Centre towelcome delegates, which

PHOTO: ONTARIO ARTS COUNCIL

could number as high as 2,000,to Toronto. WIPCE is aninternational conference thatbegan 30 years ago and attractshighly regarded Indigenouseducation experts andpractitioners. As a result,WIPCE is the largest and mostdiverse Indigenous educationvenue in the world. Theconference continues to leadthe discussion on contemporarymovements in education thatsupport Indigenous world views.“The WIPCE conference isunparalleled in its inspirationalimpact. It is an opportunity toaffirm Indigenous knowledgeand cultures, share bestpractices and recharge yourbatteries with hope andcommitment for the future ofIndigenous people and ourplanet. Six Nations Polytechnicextends a warm welcome to allto attend WIPCE 2017 to sharein this positive and empoweringexperience,” said RebeccaJamieson, president, SixNations Polytechnic.

Compiled by Shari Narine

Find every Ontario Birchbarkarticle online:

www.ammsa.com


( Continued on page 17.)

By Barb NahwegahbowWindspeaker Contributor

TORONTO

A resolution to mount anindependent inquiry in Ontariointo missing and murderedindigenous women (MMIW) waspassed unanimously by OntarioFirst Nations leaders. Chief KellyLaRocca of Scugog First Nationand Chief Georjann Morriseau ofFort William First Nationbrought the resolution forward atthe All Ontario Chiefs Assemblyheld in Toronto in June.

Before the deliberations on theresolution commenced, a groupof Toronto-based MMIWadvocates were invited to addressthe assembly. A song was offeredby Tsong Deh Kwe in honour of20-year-old Cheyenne Fox whodied in Toronto last year after afall from a 24th floor balcony.Joining Tsong Deh Kwe wereAlice Mathias, Sigrid Kneve and

Joan Chaboyer, and Cheyenne’sfather, John Fox.

The resolution was, in part,spurred by the RCMP reportreleased in May that showed thenumber of missing and murderedAboriginal women was much

higher than previously reported.The report shows there have been1,181 Aboriginal women whohave been murdered or gonemissing over the past threedecades. The report also said thatless than 20 per cent of the

women were in the sex trade andthat 83 per cent were killed by anacquaintance, spouse or familymember.

The chiefs’ resolution calls fora provincial inquiry independentof government interference orfunding. Maybe it will serve as arole model for other provinces,said Gordon Peters, grand chiefof the Association of Iroquois andAllied Indians.

“This is an important issue thataffects all of our communities,”Chief LaRocca told the assembly,and it was critical to get at thetruth of the numbers of womenbecause there is such adiscrepancy between what waspreviously reported by police.The report states that close to 90per cent of all female homicidesare solved and there is littledifference in the solve ratesbetween Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal homicides.

LaRocca said MMIWadvocates question the truth andaccuracy of that statement.

Chief Georjann Morriseau said“…we advocate and we tell the

nation that our women areimportant and we reiterate thatconstantly. We talk about it, butif there are no steps or actions inplace to follow through with theseresolutions, then we’recontinuously undermining thetrue significance and value of ourAnishnawbe Kwek.”

There was some discussion thatan inquiry led by the Chiefs ofOntario might be letting thegovernment off the hook. GrandChief Peters said, in fact, takingsuch action will shame thegovernment into taking action,particularly if their lack ofparticipation is well publicized.

“We need to let them know thisis a critical issue for our families,”Peters said, “and that we take thison in a whole-hearted way toensure that we are responsible forwhat happens to our women andchildren.”

The lack of options available towomen in abusive relationshipswas raised by Chief DonaldMaracle of Tyendinaga MohawkTerritory.

Ontario chiefs to undertake independent inquiry

MMIW advocate and singer Tsong Deh Kwe addressing theAll Ontario Chiefs Assembly in Toronto, June.

Chief Kelly LaRocca, ScugogFirst Nation.

Georjann Morriseau, Chief ofFort William First Nation.

Find every Windspeaker articleonline: www.ammsa.com


Health WatchCompiled by Shari Narine

Locally undertaken report contradicts government’scancer findings

A report released in early July by the Athabasca Chipewyanand Mikisew Cree First Nations, in collaboration withresearchers from the University of Manitoba, draws anassociation between oil sands produced environmentalcontaminants and declines in community health and well-being in Fort Chipewyan, Alta. Scientific research methodswere integrated with local knowledge to produceEnvironmental and Human Health Implications of AthabascaOil Sands. “This report confirms what we have alwayssuspected about the association between environmentalcontaminants from oil sands production upstream and cancerand other serious illness in our community,” said Mikisew CreeNation Chief Steve Courtoreille in a news release. The reportindicates that the health of people on the two First Nations isbeing impacted both by traditional foods and store-boughtfoods along with the lack of health services available locally.Researchers and the community leaders urge furtherinvestigation of contaminant concentrations, in addition to themitigation of existing occurrences. The findings contradict areport released by the province in March that indicated the“overall cancer rate in the community is not significantly higherthan expected.”

Donation launches Indigenous health instituteA $10-million donation from Michael and Amira Dan to the

University of Toronto will support the creation of an institutededicated to improving the health of Indigenous peoples. Theinstitute will be based at the Dalla Lana School of Public Healthand will involve faculty experts throughout the university. Anadvisory committee dedicated to community-basedcollaboration will be assembled to ensure key voices fromIndigenous communities are involved in the institute’s mission.“The actual creation of an institute that merges traditional andcontemporary experience in health is a truly excitingdevelopment for Indigenous peoples the world over,” saidElder Fred Kelly, a member of the Ojibways of Onigamingand a citizen of the Anishinaabe Nation, in a news release. “Itis noble in vision and bold in mission. Its spirit ofinnovativeness is a dream coming true.” A governancestructure will be developed over the next few months to ensurea commitment to collaboration and participatory practices withrespect to the institute’s teaching, research and knowledge-translation activities, to ensure benefits for Indigenous peoplesin Canada and globally.

Project to address mental health of adolescenceA partnership formed by the University of Saskatchewan

College of Medicine and the Federation of SaskatchewanIndian Nations, led by U of S medical anthropologist CarolynTait, will contribute to work undertaken by the TransformationalResearch in Adolescent Mental Health, a $25-million projectfinanced by a private foundation and a national research body.Suicide, drug addiction, poverty, poor housing, stress andmany other issues affect mental health, with adolescents livingin remote First Nations communities particularly vulnerable.Tait and a team will work with a number of First Nations inSaskatchewan over the next six months to develop a plan toaddress the concerns and then over the next five years willtake guidance from the youth, their families and those directlyinvolved. The goal is to create a seamless, effective systemfor prevention, treatment and research.

Further inquest demanded to examine racism inemergency care

A coalition, which includes people from across Canada,says it will pick up where the inquest into the death of BrianSinclair left off delving into systemic discrimination in healthcare and making its own recommendations on how to addressit. The Aboriginal man was left waiting in the emergency roomof Winnipeg’s Health Sciences Centre in September 2008because of a blocked catheter. Although he spoke to a triageaide upon his arrival, he was never formally registered norspoken to by a triage nurse. He was discovered dead in thewaiting room 34 hours after his arrival. Aboriginal groups,academics, and health professionals comprise the coalitionwhich says it is disappointed that the inquest did not explore“systemic racism” in Canada’s health-care system. Lawyersfor Sinclair’s family and several Aboriginal groups pulled outof the inquest halfway through because inquest Judge TimPreston ruled the hearing should focus on uncloggingemergency rooms rather than exploring why suchassumptions were made about Sinclair. Many, includingSinclair’s family, are calling for a public inquiry to furtherexamine the discrimination facing Aboriginal and marginalizedpeople in the health-care system. Manitoba’s attorney generalhas said the government won’t make a decision about thatuntil the inquest report is complete around December.

[ health ]’67 Centennial foodies putthe past behind them

PHOTO: SUPPLIED

Marie-Anne Gagnon holds a pan of broiled perch, which was caught by her father, most likelyin Anishinabek territory, where Gagnon’s paternal grandfather is from.


OTTAWA

Marie-Anne Gagnon hasdiscovered that Canada’sCentennial cookbooks providemore than recipes.

“By putting everythingtogether, there is an overarchingdiscourse of Aboriginal peoplebeing in the past and thatmodernity is emphasized tolegitimize the claim of Euro-Canadians for being in Canada,and this is my interpretation,” saidGagnon.

Her major research paper forher Masters of Arts degree inPublic History at CarletonUniversity is focusing onAboriginal foods as represented inthe Canadian cookbooks in the1960s.

“This appropriation of foodkind of legitimizes theappropriation of land.”

Gagnon, who is of French-Canadian heritage, stumbled onthe topic when she decided tolearn more about Indigenouspeople. Having grown up inCanada’s education system, sherealized she knew little about thecountry’s first people. As anundergrad, she began takingcourses on Aboriginal issues. Shestarted studying food and culturaldiversity and that led her toexamine Aboriginal foods andCanadian cookbooks.

When she looked at Centennialcookbooks that includedAboriginal recipes she found thesituation “paradoxical.”

“Policies of assimilation, whichwere still going strong in the ‘60s,were trying to convinceAboriginal people that theirtraditional foods were no good,and I thought it was kind of ironicthat they were celebratingAboriginal food as … part ofCanada’s food heritage,” saidGagnon.

Gagnon looked through dozensof late ’60s cookbooks, visiting thearchives in Montreal as well as theUniversity of Guelph, which hasthe largest cookbook collection inCanada.

Cookbooks that containedAboriginal foods kept to thebasics, in particular, maple syrup,corn, pumpkin, arctic char, andcranberries. Mentions of FirstNations peoples were usually keptto “Indians” with no reference tospecific First Nations. If thecookbook includes anyinformation about Aboriginalpeople and their foods, it wasusually in the first chapter andsimplified.

Essentially, says Gagnon, thecookbooks relegate Aboriginalpeople to the past, claiming it isthe settlers who tamed the wildand took the foods thatAboriginal people gathered to thenext level.

“These recipes are hybrid, butthey’re hybridized by Euro-Canadians,” she said. “We knowthat modern Aboriginal recipesare also hybridized and supercreative and imaginative. But thisisn’t recognized at all. What it saysis that we Euro-Canadians havetaken these foods and we’vecreated all these recipes.”

Gagnon points out that sherecently acquired a cookbookpublished in Kitigan Zibi andrealized she had eaten themajority of those recipes growingup and that her father hadunknowingly used theAnishinabeg term wàboz forrabbits.

Chef Rich Francis, whorecently came into the spotlightas the first Aboriginal contestanton Top Chef Canada, where hefinished third, says the 1960s’cookbooks present grassrootsrecipes and looked more at thecooking methods of preparing thefood.

“It was more survival staples.But today, we no longer have tohunt and gather for our food, sofrom a chef ’s point of view it’smore what can we do with ourcommodities after we reclaimthem,” he said.

While Aboriginal cuisine hasfound its way into numerousrestaurants, the Indian taco stillremains the food most peoplethink about when Aboriginalfood is mentioned, says Francis.

“It doesn’t even come close to

expressing who we are as FirstNations people. There’s nothingunique about it to us.”

Francis has his own way ofcombatting that image.

“I take all our traditional food,all of it, our traditional herbs andmedicines and I use them ingastronomical terms for today’sindustry. I try to keep my rangeas pre-contact as possible,” hesaid. “I love the direction my foodis going right now. It’s more of apersonal statement. And it’sgoing more into the mainstream.”

Francis describes his signaturemeal as potato and herb crustedsalmon with a wild rice and steelcut oat risotto, covered with wildsage blueberry compote.

Presently Francis, who resideson Six Nations, operates a pop-up restaurant, which he moves todifferent sites. Surprisingly, hesays, his food is eaten less by FirstNations people and more bythose who have disposableincomes.

“They are generally interestedin what is modern Indigenousfood,” he said. “The response hasbeen tremendous. It’s verypositive. I love where it’s goingright now. I feel I’m in a very goodspot.”

Gagnon, who is a member ofthe Tetlit Gwich’in and TuscaroraNations, plans on establishing hisown restaurant.

As Canada gets ready tocelebrate 150 years, Gagnon saysshe wouldn’t be surprised to seeCanadian cookbooks, similar tothe Centennial ones, produced.She also says she won’t besurprised if they take on the samecontext as their predecessors,placing Aboriginal people andtheir foods in a historical contextand not recognizing their growth.

But if cookbook were to betruly representative of Aboriginalfoods, says Francis, it would be“night and day” compared to its’67 predecessors. “You’ll recognizethe food but not the style I’mpreparing it in. You’ll definitelyknow what it is, you’ll be able toidentify, but it’s very modern. It’svery clean, it’s not heavy. It’s morenow for creativity and self-expression than it is for survival.”


[ sports ]

By Sam LaskarisWindspeaker Contributor

OSHWEKEN

As it turned out, BrandonMontour simply needed a bitmore exposure.

Despite being an offensivelygifted defenceman who put upsome decent numbers, Montourwas bypassed by all 30 clubs inboth the 2012 and 2013National Hockey League EntryDrafts.

But for the 20-year-old, wholives in the Six Nations town ofOhsweken, Ont., it was a case ofhim being third time lucky. Hewas selected in the second round,55th over-all, by the AnaheimDucks at this year’s draft, heldJune 27 and June 28 inPhiladelphia.

“I had talked to numerousteams throughout the year,”Montour said. “And I had apretty good idea Anaheim wasinterested in me.”

Montour, who was born andgrew up in Tilbury, Ont. beforemoving to Ohsweken four yearsago, had played his first threeyears of junior eligibility in theJunior B ranks. He toiled for twoseasons with the Brantford Eaglesof the Greater Ontario JuniorHockey League. Montour thenmade the move with theorganization when it relocatedand became known as theCaledonia Corvairs for the 2012-13 campaign.

Since the GOJHL is notheavily recruited by pro scouts,entering his final season ofeligibility in the junior ranks,Montour had explored thepossibility of moving to westernCanada, to hopefully play for aJunior A squad in either BritishColumbia or Alberta.

But then the Iowa-based

Waterloo Black Hawks,members of the United StatesHockey League, the top JuniorA circuit in the U.S., came callingfor him.

Montour had a splendid seasonwith the Black Hawks, averagingmore than a point per game. Heracked up 62 points (14 goals, 48assists) in 60 matches andfinished second in team scoring.

More importantly, Montourimpressed scouts from numerousNHL squads, who projected hewould be an early-round pick atthis year’s draft.

“It was probably the bestdecision of my life to go toWaterloo,” he said.

Besides finishing ninth inUSHL scoring this past season,Montour also captured a pair ofprestigious awards. Not only washe named the top defenceman inthe league, he was also chosen asthe Player of the Year, as votedby the USHL’s coaches andgeneral managers.

Montour also excelled in thepost-season. He was the USHL’stop pointgetter in the playoffs,earning 16 points in 12 games.

But Montour and histeammates came up a bit shy ofwinning the league crown, losingto the Indiana Ice in thechampionship final.

Montour has already had a bitof a taste of NHL life. He joinedother Ducks’ draftees andprospects at the club’s week-longdevelopment camp, which endedon July 9 in Anaheim.

“I learned a lot there and it wasa really fun experience,”Montour said.

Besides various on-ice sessions,those at the development campalso had plenty of bonding time.Activities that were planned forthe camp invitees includes anAnaheim Angels’ baseball game,visits to amusement parks, a

Sports BriefsBy Sam Laskaris

Odjick’s Terminal DiseaseFormer National Hockey League player Gino Odjick is

asking for privacy after revealing he has a rare terminaldisease. Odjick, an Algonquin who was born in Maniwaki,Que., wrote a letter which was published on the VancouverCanucks’ website in late June. Odjick wrote that two monthsearlier he was diagnosed with AL amyloidosis, a diseasewhich causes abnormal protein to be produced. Deposits ofthis protein are being formed on his heart, causing it to harden.

Odjick said the original prognosis was that he couldpossibly live years with the disease. But doctors now believeit will be a lot less, perhaps months or even weeks.

Odjick has been in a Vancouver hospital since hisdiagnosis in April. He had gone to the hospital because hewas experiencing a shortness of breath and was told thenews of his disease two days later. The 43-year-old appearedin a total of 649 NHL contests between 1990 and 2002.Though he has stints with the Montreal Canadiens,Philadelphia Flyers and New York Islanders, Odjick spentthe majority of his pro career (eight seasons) with theCanucks.

Odjick racked up a whopping 2,709 penalty minutes duringhis NHL career. He also earned 142 points, including 68 goals.

In his letter Odjick wrote in his heart he will always be aCanuck. And he mentioned his fondness of Vancouver fansand their “Gino, Gino” chants, adding he wished he couldhear them again.

And he did. Several hundred fans gathered outside theVancouver General Hospital on June 29 for a rally in hishonour.

Odjick surprised the fans by coming outside the hospitalto briefly greet his supporters.

In his letter Odjick added he’s hoping the media will respecthis privacy as he wants to wants to spend his time now withhis children and family.

Horn-Miller Joins Hall Of FameFormer Olympian Waneek Horn-Miller will be inducted into

her university hall of fame this fall.Horn-Miller, a Mohawk who represented Canada in the

women’s water polo competition at the 2000 SummerOlympics in Sydney, Australia, will be honoured by Ottawa’sCarleton University. She’ll be inducted into the RavensAthletics Hall of Fame at a gala in the nation’s capital on Oct.16.

Horn-Miller will be one of four inductees into the hall offame this year. During her days at Carleton Horn-Miller wasnamed as the school’s female athlete of the year three times,from 1995-97. And she also guided the Ravens to Ontariochampionships twice.

After graduating from Carleton Horn-Miller went on tocapture a gold medal at the 1999 Pan American Games inWinnipeg.

Horn-Miller is one of three former Carleton athletes thatare joining the hall of fame this year. Another individual isbeing inducted as a builder.

Those entering via the athlete category had to be formerRavens’ varsity athletes who demonstrated excellence inathletic achievement and have not competed for Carletonfor at least five years.

Including this year’s class of honourees, the RavensAthletics Hall of Fame now has 36 inductees.

New Junior Squad On Native LandA new Junior A hockey franchise will be playing out of a

rink on First Nation land in northern Ontario.The Batchewana Attack will play its home contests at the

Rankin Arena in Sault Ste. Marie. As mid-July wasapproaching, the Attack is one of eight clubs that had beenannounced to take part in the inaugural campaign of theCanadian International Hockey League (CIHL).

Despite the league’s moniker, all of the squads that havebeen announced so far are in Ontario. The CIHL is consideredan independent league, however, since it is not sanctionedby Hockey Canada. Besides playing out of a First Nationsrink, the Attack already have another Aboriginal connection.

That’s because former NHL player Denny Lambert, anOjibwe who lives in Sault Ste. Marie, has been hired as theteam’s head coach. Lambert is no stranger to coaching inthe Soo.

He was a member of the coaching staff for the OntarioHockey League’s Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds for eightseasons. He served as the team’s head coach for threeseasons, before being fired in 2011.

Lambert, a member of the Rankin (Batchewana) FirstNation, had also played his junior hockey with theGreyhounds, for three seasons, from 1988 through 1991.

During his pro playing career Lambert appeared in 504NHL matches, splitting his time between the Anaheim Ducks,Ottawa Senators, Nashville Predators and Atlanta Thrashers.He was credited with 94 points, including 27 goals.

movie night and some beachtime.

It won’t entirely be a summerof rest and relaxation, however,for Montour. His off-seasonschedule consists of plenty oftraining as he gears up for his firstseason of collegiate hockey in theNCAA.

Montour will be attending theUniversity of MassachusettsAmherst, where he plans to takebusiness courses.

And the 6-foot, 185-pounderis also looking to improve hisgame. He’s hoping to bulk up byas many as 10 pounds for thecoming season. Growing anotherinch or two would also be ideal.

“I have to keep growing andworking on every aspect of mygame,” he said. “Getting strongeris probably the biggest thing Ihave to do. That’s what I’ve beenhearing my whole life.”

Montour also needs to deciderather soon whether he willcontinue to play box lacrosse. Forthe past two seasons he’s been amember of the Six NationsArrows’ Junior A squad, aperennial powerhouse in theOntario Lacrosse Association.

Montour had only played oneof the Arrows’ first 19 regularseason matches this year. Thesquad only has a 20-game regularseason schedule but is expectedto have a lengthy post-season runand Montour wouldundoubtedly be a welcomeaddition to the squad.

“They’ve been after me for awhile now to play,” Montour saidof the Arrows’ brass. “It’s mydecision whether I play. But Idon’t know if I want to risk it.”

Montour had collected 23points in 13 matches with theArrows last season. And duringhis rookie campaign with the SixNations side he had racked up 43points in 18 contests.

Year in Waterloo was key tosuccess in NHL draft

PHOTOS: SUPPLIEDBrandon Montour


[ education ]

Defenders from the past will educate the future

By Barb NahwegahbowWindspeaker Contributor

TORONTO

Artist Philip Cote wants toeducate the country aboutIndigenous heroes, one school ata time. He’s created a series of 11posters spanning 350 years as partof his Master’s thesis at OntarioCollege of Art and DesignUniversity in Toronto.

The series starts withSahgimah, Odawa Chief,described as “the leader mostfeared by the Iroquois”, and endswith internationally-renownedsinger and activist Buffy Sainte-Marie.

“These people are all defendersof the land, defenders of thepeople, defenders of the culture,”said Cote. At a recent exhibitionat Toronto’s Fort York, he told the50 people assembled for his artisttalk that his work is a counter-narrative to the colonial version

of history that is being taught inthe schools.

Each of the 24”x36” posters isa history lesson and a well-executed and attractive work ofart.

For Chief Sahgimah (c. 1646-1721), Cote created a piecesimilar to an epic movie poster.Sahgimah led a war party of 4,000warriors travelling in 700 canoesagainst the Haudenosaunee. TheMohawks, said Cote, wereencroaching on the hunting andtrapping territory of the ThreeFires Confederacy, a situationcreated by the British insatiableneed of beaver pelts. One of twosites for this battle against 2,000Mohawks took place at BlueMountain, the now popularOntario ski resort. The other siteis Skull Mound by Lake Erie.

“A lot of Anishnawbe peopleknow who Sahgimah is,” saidCote, “but I don’t think the restof the world knows just howimportant he was for the

ALL PHOTOS: BARB NAHWEGAHBOW

Artist Philip Cote in Toronto with his posters of Odawa Chiefs, Pontiac and Sahgimah.

Anishnawbe people in defendingthe territory. How come we don’thear about it?”

This is exactly what motivatesCote’s work with his thesis andhis posters. Indigenous youthneed to know about these heroesso they can situate themselves inCanada’s history and the world.

“We are still withoutrecognition as a nation,” he said,“and Canada and the U.S. had anopportunity to change that andthey didn’t. So we are still inlimbo as a nation of people thatare without representation on theworld stage.”

Who has heard of Jean BaptisteCope, the Mi’kmaq leader whosigned the 1752 Peace andFriendship Treaty with theBritish? He signed the treaty withhis clan symbol, the beaver, Cotesaid. Around the time the treatywas signed, the Mi’kmaq had abounty on their heads.

“Their scalps were worthmoney,” he said and so he

designed something thatresembles a ‘Wanted’ poster. Noimages exist of the leader andCote drew him based on drawingsof other Mi’gmaq people at thattime. Cope signed the PeaceTreaty not so much toacknowledge the Britishsovereignty and territory, saidCote, but more to protect hispeople.

The British awarded Cope thedesignation of Major, a frequentoccurrence at that time accordingto Cote. “It was a military action,the British coming here. Thiswasn’t just about looking for newland for settlement. They werelooking for new territory. But atno time did our people everbecome Generals. It was alwaysMajor.”

Cote’s posters feature leadersfrom the east coast to the west,“who rose up to defend theirterritories” as colonial territoriesexpanded. “The Europeans hada very different idea about whatprogress meant,” said Cote.“Progress meant they were goingto make a lot of money and theywere going to do it through thefur trade. The fur trade expandedthose colonies right into theinterior of North America.”

Maquinna, or Possessor ofPebbles, was chief of the

Mowachaht, Nuu-chah-nulthpeople of Nootka Sound whowere affected by the expandingcolonies. The Spanish arrived inMaquinna’s territory, said Cote,and “claimed this whole territorywithout even asking any of theNative people.”

Cote, who’s a member ofOntario’s Moose Deer Point FirstNation, wants to see the postersgoing into all the educationalinstitutions and FriendshipCentres and “wherever there areAboriginal youth programs so ourpeople can begin to create adialogue about their place here.”That’s just for starters, he said.

In Toronto, he wants to lead aguerilla-style postering action toplaster the city and he’s alreadygot several volunteers lined up tohelp, “to offset and balance thatidea that we are not out there inthe public domain. It’s importantthat an Indigenous person beresponsible for bringing thoseimages out from an Indigenousperspective.”

Tecumseh, Pontiac, BlackHawk, Joseph Brant and RussellMeans are other First Nationsheroes featured on Cote’s posters.The posters will be available forsale in August and Cote isdeveloping a web site for thedistribution.

Artist Philip Cote in Toronto with his poster of Chief Maquinnaof BC.

Artist Philip Cote in Toronto with his poster of political activistRussell Means, June 2014.

Nation in North Vancouver andplaced with another fosterfamily. The children, a girl, agethree, and two boys, ages fourand six, had been with thecouple from almost the time theywere born. “I thought it wasgoing to be forever,” said DeliciaHolman, reports the CBC. “It’sbasically like losing your child.We’ve had them all their lives.It’s very, very emotional for us,”said her husband. The childrenwere removed by the Squamishnation’s child welfare team, theAyas Men Men Child and Family

Services, under its guardianshippowers. It has authority toapprove or reject foster homes.The children were on asleepover on band territory, tohelp prepare them for aneventual return to the SquamishNation and were not returned tothe couple. “Having the childrenreturn to the community isalways our ultimate goal,” saidChief Ian Campbell. “That’s partof the reason we want tomaintain connection, so that thechildren aren’t isolated to onlyknow their immediate careproviders,” said Campbell.

Raven's Eye BriefsThe Kwikwetlem First Nationput the province,municipalities and citizen’sgroups on noticeJuly 10 that it intends to claimtitle interest to all landsassociation with RiverviewHospital, among other area intheir traditional territory.Evidence of the KwikwetlemFirst Nations occupation of theterritory reached back 9,000years, reads a press statement.The nation says it expects tobecome an owner of the landsand develop them.

(Continued from page 10.)

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Shapiro is also asking that theIAP records be declared under the“deemed undertaking rule,”which means that neither canthey be used for any otherpurpose or archived by LAC.

The Ontario Superior Courtheard arguments in Toronto July14 to July 16. The TRC, federalgovernment and IRSAS wasjoined by the NRC, Catholic

Entities, Assembly of FirstNations, an independent counselnetwork.

Shapiro is hoping the court willdeal with the issue “decisively andquickly,” but says the IAPhearings will continue.

“We plan to continue givingpeople assurances ofconfidentiality, because webelieve that is what the settlementagreement provides for,” he said.

( Continued from page 8.)

IAP privacy issuesOntario chiefs to undertakeinquiry

( Continued from page 13.)“We need to ask all levels of

government for funding forhousing and mental healthsupports,” he said. “There is alsoa shortage of policing to protectthe women.” If women are beingabused, Maracle said, chances aretheir children are also beingabused because “men usuallydon’t stop at the women.”

In a recent interview with ChiefLaRocca, she said she and ChiefMorriseau are responsible forensuring action is taken on the

cannot be considered just anAboriginal women’s issue,LaRocca said. “It’s a problem thatis rooted in colonization and,quite frankly, racism.”

“It’s such a large problem and Ithink if we don’t recognize theroot of it, we’re fooling ourselvesto think that somehow it’s thevictims who are blameworthy…It would possibly point to the factit requires an acknowledgementthat our men are in need ofsupport and help as well as thewomen.”

resolution. A meeting in the nextfew weeks will focus on strategiesfor fundraising to undertake theinquiry. Acquiring a charitablenumber is important to securingfunding from foundations andcharities, she said. Anotheravenue to be explored iscrowdsourcing because, “it seemsto be the trending thing alongwith a social media campaign,”she said, “so I’m going to belearning a lot about that.”

The issue of missing andmurdered Indigenous women

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traditional teachings

[ footprints ] Percy Tuesday“The Reverend”

influenced through music,

Percy Tuesday didn’t claim tobe an Elder, partly because hethought the spiritual personaconflicted with his earlier,rambunctious days of playinghonky tonk bars on Winnipeg’sMain Street.

But perhaps more thananything, he was too humble toassume the title.

“The thing is, everyone calledhim an Elder,” insisted friendDavid MacLeod. “He hadcharisma. He was generous. Hehad the kind of personalitypeople gravitated to. And he hadthat special gift of humility – forthat you had to love the maneven more.”

Nick-named “The Reverend”,Tuesday trail-blazed a topcaliber, all-Indigenous show thatgave Native soul to country andpop rock songs. Though he had45 years in the music industry,his unassuming nature wasevident when long-time partnerLinda Wolch announced shewas planning to gift him aCelebration of Life, Love andFriendship last April.

“When we talked about it, helooked at me and said ‘what ifnobody comes?’” Wolch said.

Tuesday needn’t have had amoment’s doubt as hundreds of“who’s who” in music crowdedinto the Indian and MetisFriendship Centre for theoccasion – the place where it allbegan in the late 60’s for Tuesdayand his Feathermen Band. Thelikes of Billy Joe Green, the C-Weed Band, and members ofRed Wine were on-hand tospeak with the icon and hearhim play in public for the lasttime.

To the sound of a drum song,family, friends, and fans watchedas a blanket was placed onTuesday’s shoulders “and heknew he had the love and caringof his community around him,”said MacLeod. Tears flowed aspeople lined up to hug him,realizing they wouldn’t hear The

By Dianne Meili

Percy Tuesday (right) with his partner in life, Linda Wolch.

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Reverend’s signature version ofFreddy Fender’s “Wasted Daysand Wasted Nights” or “Stagg’rLee” again.

On May 26, one month later,the 72-year-old Tuesdaysuccumbed to leukemia. He wastaken back to his home, BigGrassy River Ojibway Nation,for burial.

According to Wolch, the love-filled send-off meant a lot to theman who doted on his familyand friends, and who spentmuch of his boyhood isolatedfrom his own community.

“He was in and out ofhospitals with skin tuberculosisas a child, and I know he wastransported home alone on atrain at one point with just acard hanging around his neck tosay where he was going. Hisparents hadn’t been notified sohe waited alone at that emptytrain station for quite a while.”

There were also 12 years ofresidential school to endure. Hewas shuffled around to sixdifferent institutions, emergingill-prepared to deal with theoutside world when finallyreleased.

In a 2006 interview, Tuesdaysaid he went years without beingsober and admitted his musicand drinking took a toll on hisfamily. But by 1986 he wasspending time with his ownElders, and most importantly,learned about the MedicineWheel. He was seven years soberby the time he learned aboutbalancing his life with theteaching, and soon realized heneeded to go deeper, So far hehad just abstained fromdrinking but hadn’t gotten tothe root of his addiction.

After intensive work onhimself, he was finally able toforgive himself for the pain hecaused those close to him.

“That’s what is so important.You got to forgive yourself firstand that’s not as easy as itsounds.”

What he learned offorgiveness and healing, heshared as an addictionscounsellor on the Big GrassyRiver Ojibway First Nation. Itwas a calling that saw him drivefour hours from Winnipeg,where he lived, to theNorthwestern Ontariocommunity. He said the workcould be draining, but he sawno other way of life for himself,and he would continue doing ituntil he died.

His particular medicine wheelteaching was a compilation ofconcepts he had learned from anumber of Elders, said Wolch,and with it he helped many ayoung person get back on thegood, red road. From his Eldershe gained his Anishnabe name,Ogimaawigaabaw BiziwNindootem, and he often saidit was important for him to beable to introduce himself in hislanguage and identify his clan.

Tuesday met Wolch atWinnipeg’s Folklorama FirstNations Pavilion in 1996. Shesaw his gifts with fresh eyes, andgently encouraged him toassume a teaching role in laterlife and undertake otheraccomplishments. Together,they founded the chief Big BearGathering at Stony Mountainand Rockwood Institutions in1998, to let the inmates knowpeople on the outside caredabout them and that there washope. The event was heldannually for 10 years.

When Tuesday lost his abilityto sing and play in 2008 aftersuffering a stroke, Wolch knewmusic was his soul, and took hisbeloved guitar to the hospital toprop it up in his room.

“Seeing it sitting there broughthim back,” she said.

Off-stage, Tuesday was soft-spoken, but he unleashed TheReverend under the spotlights,playing mainly classic countryand blues, and entertainingaudiences with his dry wit. He

was once scheduled to play withJohnny Cash at Stony MountainInstitution, but the show wascancelled at the last minute dueto an illness in Cash’s family.

Inducted into the ManitobaAboriginal Music Hall of Famein September 2013 at the NativeCommunications Inc. (NCI)Jam, Tuesday played amemorable set in the historicPantages Playhouse Theatre inWinnipeg. In accepting, he wassure to attribute his success to

“having a good band to backhim.”

Son Jason, also a guitarist,often shared the stage with hisdad and said, by watching hisfather, he learned some of hisfirst lessons about being amusician.

Tuesday was a devoted fatherto five children, and fosteredmany others with his first wifeJane. He was proud of hisgrandchildren, and two greatgrandchildren.



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