Category: 2007-10-12

Opinion – Refusing to be Silent – Economic Disruption in Indian Country

On Friday, August 10, my husband, Shawn Brant, was denied bail for the second time on charges relating to the closure of the CN main line, a provincial highway and the 401. Shawn is a member of the Mohawk Nation of Tyendinaga. The context for all the charges he currently ... read more ››

Murphy’s movies

I recently watched yet another rerun of Dab Iyiyuu and it brought back memories of the day when I was in the movie business. I was a soundman, a professional sounding board (no, not a soundman sounding bored), location scout, casting director and pyrotechnical technician. We were filming fantasy stories on ... read more ››

Hunting by bush plane? – Innu erect blockade to protest aerial harassment of caribou herds

The Innu of Matimekush-Lac John in Schefferville are blockading the access road to their territories in a protest over the practices of some outfitting companies on their traditional lands. The Innu allege that the outfitting companies are intentionally flying lower over the territories to divert the caribou so that their ... read more ››

McGill Powwow offers diversity

Powwow season came to an unofficial end as McGill University hosted its fall classic of singing, dancing and culturally diverse entertainment September 21 in downtown Montreal. Held on a beautiful sunny Friday, the event attracted students and curious onlookers to see head dancer John McComber of Kahnawake and get their fix ... read more ››

First Nations may save Canadiens

Prodigal son Carey Price has already made quite a name for himself at every level in hockey. He won the Canadian Hockey League’s award for Goaltender of the Year, guided Team Canada to a gold medal in the 2007 World Junior Championship and won the Calder Cup in the American Hockey ... read more ››

Elections For Councillors for Chisasibi

Name: Number of Votes 1. Daisy House Lameboy: 4932. Jacob Sealhunter: 4133. Sarah Pashagumskum: 4014. Janie Pashagumskum-Moar: 3905. Bobby Neacappo: 3876. Reginald Sam : 3847. Charlie Louttit: 3748. John E. Sam: 3729. Ernest Spencer: 37210. Violet Pachanos: 35711. Mabel Rabbitskin-Napash: 35012. James Bobbish: 321

Native Nikes?

The multinational shoe giant Nike is moving up the politically correct ladder by offering a new product, Air Native N7 shoes, that are marketed specifically to Native Americans and cannot be purchased by others. In an effort to combat the lingering problems of obesity caused by a sedentary lifestyle amongst many ... read more ››

Status Indians to disappear in 200 years?

Winnipeg demographer Stewart Clathworthy is prediciting that no status Indians will be left in less than 200 years. Federal legislation is the main culprit, as the children of mixed marriages (including one parent who is not a treaty Native) are being eliminated from the list as “Indian,” and stripped of the ... read more ››

Help wanted – High unemployment continues to hurt Cree economy

Eeyou Istchee needs 3,000 more jobs in order to match employment levels in the rest of Canada. That’s one of the challenges addressed by economic advisors, analysts and businesspeople at the first Cree Regional Economic Development Conference in Oujé-Bougoumou September 18-20. Hot topics included the labour market, education statistics and external ... read more ››

The 500

While Robert Pickton faces trial in Vancouver, hundreds of murdered aboriginal women across Canada are quietly forgotten. Beverley Jacobs and her Sisters in Spirit are working to change that. Kelly Morrisseau was found naked and barely alive at the entrance to a Gatineau park the morning of December 10, 2006. She ... read more ››

The Last Explorer

Snoopy, of Peanuts fame, couldn’t have put it better when he started off his master opus with, “It was a dark and stormy night.” That pretty much covered the two days I was on the set of Rezolution Pictures’ latest documentary, The Last Explorer. When I arrived it was raining and ... read more ››

Will on the Grill

This edition of the WOG includes a few seasoning mixes and sauces, which are good for you in a variety of ways. They cost less than store-bought mixes and contain no preservatives. You can change them to your taste (or that of your family). Just add or reduce the amount ... read more ››

Falling Leaves and Geese

I sat in the back yard the other night to enjoy the warmth from a southern breeze blowing into town. I had noticed, a few days earlier, that a flock of geese had been flying high in the sky on their way south. Even though it was warm, I had ... read more ››