ARTICLES BY Alex Roslin

Nunavik Health Board is “Disconnected” – “It’s very, very far from Inuit People”: Inukjuak Mayor

When the Inuit signed the James Bay Agreement in 1975, they were promised their own health board. It was supposed to be run by the Inuit, for the Inuit. Twenty-five years later, a generation of Inuit who grew up with the Nunavik Health Board is growing alarmed about how it’s run. ... read more ››

Gay Marriage: Coming to a Home Near U?

The day may not be far off when a Cree man can live with a non-Cree man in a common-law marriage in Iyiyuuschii without the band council’s consent. That would be the impact of Bill C-23, Ottawa’s legislation on same-sex benefits. The bill has been adopted by Parliament and is awaiting ... read more ››

A Suicide in Kuujjuak

In some ways Jackie was a typical teenager in Kuujjuak. She was smart and a natural leader. Younger kids saw her as a role model. But she was also very withdrawn and her head swam with troubled thoughts. In 1998, Jackie (not her real name) was admitted to the group home ... read more ››

Hospital Director Blasts System

Every time another Inuk commits suicide in Nunavik, Eli Weetaluktuk feels guilty. As executive director of the hospital in Puvirnituq, Weetaluktuk believes the health care system that he helps run is failing his people. The Inuit of Quebec have one of the highest suicide rates in the world, and the health ... read more ››

Chief Warns of Corporate Plant Thieves

Xahw Chakash barely had time to pack his bags before his first visit to Iyiyuuschii. “I didn’t bring any documents, not even a sweater,” he laughed. But as soon as he arrived in Waswanipi a few weeks ago, the Mayan chief from Chiapas, Mexico, felt right at home. “They told me I ... read more ››

Alma Struggles to Keep out Air Creebec

It seemed like a simple business expansion. Air Creebec wanted to expand its operations in the Lac St-Jean region by adding a daily Alma-Montreal flight. But Air Creebec’s plan has walked into an unexpected political storm. The mayor of Alma has refused to let Air Creebec use the city’s airport. He even ... read more ››

Silence on Spousal Abuse a Big Problem

Silence might be golden, but not when it comes to domestic violence. Too often, Cree families and community members are reluctant to talk about spousal abuse and to support battered women, because they find the situation embarrassing. That’s the consensus of Cree health workers and police, who say attitudes to spousal abuse ... read more ››

Crees Launch Counter-Strike in Lawsuit

Crees launched a legal counter-strike in the Mario Lord forestry lawsuit, filing an appeal of the controversial decision to remove Justice Jean-Jacques Croteau from the case. Meanwhile, due to a bureaucratic mix-up by the Quebec government, logging machines fell silent all across Quebec on April Fool’s Day. Forestry companies weren’t laughing as ... read more ››

Churches Balk at Paying Up

The Canadian government and church leaders are still squabbling over who should pay compensation to the Native survivors of residential schools. The Feds want the churches that ran the schools to take responsibility and pay some of the money, expected to be in the billions. But the Anglicans and some of the ... read more ››

Ruling Boosts Brantford Class Action

A little-noticed British Columbia court decision could boost the chances of Crees who are involved in a class-action lawsuit against a residential school in Brantford, Ontario. The ruling will also probably open the floodgates for other class actions by Native people across the country. The B.C. Court of Appeal recently decided to ... read more ››

Logging Grinds to Halt Across Quebec

Bungling by Quebec and forestry companies has done what years of Cree complaints have yet to accomplish. It has brought logging to a halt – not just in Iyiyuuschii, but all across Quebec. As of April 1, logging in Quebec was illegal because all forest-exploitation permits in the province ceased to ... read more ››

“A Very Low Blow”

Environmentalists, forestry experts and Crees are reacting with disbelief and concern to the decision to replace Justice Jean-Jacques Croteau as the judge presiding over the Cree forestry lawsuit. “It’s a very low blow to use tactics like that because you’re not happy with a decision,” said Henri Jacob, president of the ... read more ››

Crees Protest Judge Croteau’s Removal

Indignation and anger characterized the mood in the Cree communities as word spread of a stunning reversal in the Mario Lord forestry court case filed by the Crees. “It’s an outright declaration of war. That pretty much says it all about how Canada and Quebec think about Aboriginal people.” said one ... read more ››

Tensions Over Use of Cree at Troilus

Some Mistissini residents are concerned about a decision by management of the Inmet Mining Corporation to restrict the use of the Cree language at its Troilus mine. Crees make up a quarter of the 289 employees at the mine, located 175 kilometres north of Chibougamau. The company says it’s making the move ... read more ››

A River Runs Through It

When the weatherman calls for rain in Tsawataineuk, you don’t just reach for your umbrella. The 150 people of this small British Columbia First Nation get in their homes, and they don’t waste any time along the way. Once or twice a year, after a good rain, the entire village is ... read more ››

Forestry Battle Goes to Washington

A Cree delegation was in Washington last week to tell U.S. trade officials and congressional staff all about Quebec’s forestry practices from the Cree point of view. “Quebec is obviously painting a rosy picture of what’s going on. We went down to give another side of the story,” said Geoff Quaile, ... read more ››

Are Forests Going the Way of the Cod?

Is Quebec running out of trees? From up in James Bay, the answer may seem obvious. Loggers are quickly rushing to the edge of the northern treeline, after clear-cutting the forests in southern Quebec. But the $18-billion forestry industry and Quebec government say the forests are being managed just fine, and there’s ... read more ››

Same Old CRCAP From Reformers

Canada’s newest right-wing party, the Canadian Alliance, thinks Native people live in a ‘communistic system,” and would invoke the notwithstanding clause to overrule court rulings like the Delgamuukw decision. The party, which unites members of the Reform and Conservative parties and has set its sights on winning the next federal election, ... read more ››

It’s a Good Day to Learn Kanien’kéha

If Quebec can have a language law, why can’t Kahnawake? That’s what the elders of this Mohawk community said when they called on the band to adopt a law to protect their endangered language. Just before Christmas, their wish became a reality when the band council passed the Kahnawake Language Law. There ... read more ››

The Rock

So you wanna buy her a diamond. The hard part is over. You found your soul mate. Now, you want to give her something that will last forever, just like your love for each other. Or maybe it’s for your husband, grandmother, mistress, favourite high school teacher, or butcher. But how ... read more ››

Provincial Report Rips Forestry Policies

Logging companies are out of control, and the government lacks the resources to do much about it, say the Quebec government’s own forestry bureaucrats. In a scathing report from Quebec’s Natural Resources Ministry, the bureaucrats admit they don’t know if logging companies are cutting sustainably, and they lack information on what’s ... read more ››

Crees Win Ruling in Forestry Case

The Crees have won a key ruling in one of the early battles of the Mario Lord forestry court case. Justice Jean-Claude Croteau of Quebec Superior Court ruled that the Canadian government can’t wiggle out of being a defendant in the Cree legal action. The lawsuit, filed in the summer of 1998, ... read more ››

Viva Las Vegas Del Norte!

A Cree idea to build a casino in Val d’Or sounds like a good way to create jobs and revenues, but its negative social impacts -like gambling addiction – can’t be ignored. So said a range of Crees and non-Crees about the casino project proposed by CreeCo., which is now being ... read more ››

Hydro-Quebec Almost Causes Trade War

Hydro-Quebec very nearly found itself at the centre of a trade war between Canada and the U.S. last month. The hostilities started when a U.S. Senator denounced Hydro as a threat to America’s “economic and national security.” On the surface, Senator James Jeffords of Vermont is angry that Hydro charges his state ... read more ››

Cutting plans late all over Quebec

Forestry companies all over Quebec are at least six months late filing their cutting plans as required under Quebec law, acknowledge provincial officials. Many companies are 18 months overdue, including some logging in James Bay. The lack of cutting plans has some experts worried logging companies may take advantage of the lack ... read more ››

Quebec too lax with loggers: ecologists

The Quebec government is too cozy with the forestry industry and lets it get away with too much, say environmentalists. Long delays in the filing of cutting plans are just the latest example. “They are too close to each other,” said Pierre Dubois, coordinator of the Coalition for Northern Virgin Forests. “We have ... read more ››