Volume 9, Issue 12

Awaash shiishikun Kamik: Childcare centre inauguration in Waswanipi

Monday, April 22, was a special day for children and families in Waswanipi. It was the inauguration of the new extension to the Awaash Shiishikun Kamik Childcare Center. It was an extension that the Director, Angel Nakogee Saganash, was justifiably proud to show off to visitors. She has been with the ... read more ››

B.C treaty referendum a shoddy procedure that is unworthy of Canadian politics

Years ago when I was living in England a satirical television show conducted a poll of public opinion that exploded the myth of the objectivity of polls. By cunningly phrasing the questions to obtain the results they wanted, they managed to get a huge majority of people to agree with ... read more ››

Birth in the Spring

Far from the city northward toward the mud flats of James Bay the geese will be migrating. Returning from Elizabeth’s school in Montreal, I heard their honking early one morning as they flew overhead. It was the month of March and it seemed almost too early for them to be ... read more ››

Chickasaw Wrestler Dead at 63

Native wrestling legend Wahoo McDaniel has died of complications from renal failure and diabetes. The former pro football player, who lost both his kidneys four years ago, passed away April 18 at the Cy-Fair Medical Clinic in Houston, Texas. The five-foot-eleven, 280-pound Chickasaw Indian juggled careers as a pro fotball player ... read more ››

Do you have a question that you are too shy to ask your mother? The Naughty Squaw will be your confidant

Do you have a question that you are too shy to ask your mother? The Naughty Squaw will be your confidant. No topic is too embarrassing. Send your letters by fax to (514) 278-9914; or by e-mail to (nation@beesum.ca). Dear Naughty Squaw, I keep seeing “Secret Admirer” classifieds addressed to my boyfriend ... read more ››

First Goose

Cree hunter Mervin Erless was in his blind on Thursday, April 11, at 12:34 p.m., presumably finishing the lunch his wife or girlfriend packed for him, at Grasset Lake, South of Waskaganish waiting for a flock to fly by. Suddenly, flying right towards him was the goose about to become ... read more ››

Get A Life, Buddy

In what can only be described as a desperate quest for fame, John Winter Smith is attempting to visit every Starbuck’s coffee franchise in the world. The 30 year-old Texan began his odyssey in 1998 and has so far visited 2,850 stores. The ever-expanding chain currently has 3,630 stores around the ... read more ››

Joint task force takes on drug dealer

Joint operations have been something that the Chisasibi Police and the Radisson Surete du Quebec have been talking about for a while. It became a reality on the evening of April 12 when officers from both forces arrested a 35-year-old francophone white male in what is called a Tactical High ... read more ››

Mother’s Day 2002

Mother’s Day will soon be upon us. I know some people say every day is Mother’s Day but it is nice to have one day a year that you can make extra special for them. I know many First Nation leaders have pointed this out and have said that the women ... read more ››

Mother’s day: an Ancient Tradition

The earliest recorded Mother’s Day celebrations can be traced back to the spring celebrations of ancient Greece in honor of Rhea, the Mother of the Gods. Later in the 1600s, “Mothering Sunday” was celebrated in England. This was done on the fourth Sunday of Lent (the 40-day period leading up ... read more ››

Native media workers press job issues

Locked-out employees of the CBC Northern Service in Quebec continue to make their case for better salaries and working conditions. The nine CBC North workers have elected a union representative to push their case during negotiations with CBC/Radio-Canada management, which locked out 1,400 newsroom employees from Quebec and New Brunswick ... read more ››

One night of fun can turn a life upside down: AIDS and natives

In 1992 Rene Boucher moved to Vancouver to attend school at a Native College. He was in his second year studying Accounting and doing well when he went out partying with some friends during the Christmas break. Then, says Rene, all it took was one night of unprotected sex with a ... read more ››

Should O.J. Be Concerned?

There are grounds for a preliminary health study among the Ouje-Bougoumou Cree, but no need of a full-blown program of detoxification of heavy metals among community members. That’s the conclusion reached by a third-party review of last fall’s Christopher Covel study of toxic contaminants in the water, wildlife and people ... read more ››

The Dogs Ear

Oskiniko Larry Loyie’s dream of becoming an author has been realized several times over, but he hasn’t stopped with his own success. For Loyie, the process of writing is a powerful force for healing and achieving a sense of self-esteem and power – an important part of his job consists ... read more ››

The Sweet Sleep Smell of Spring

One of the most revered and most welcome of all seasons is here with the arrival of the first goose brave enough to venture past that suspicious looking plastic decoy. The first goose of spring usually signals the primal instinct in all of us and goes off like an itchy ... read more ››

Under the Northern Sky Just in Time

People in southern and mid Ontario have packed away their snowmobiles for the year. However, many along the James Bay coast ride their machines right up until the last patch of snow in mid ApnE In my home community of Attawapiskat, there are still people risking the ride over the frozen ... read more ››