Volume 15, Issue 7

A practical dictionary for everyday Cree

Learning a language gets harder as people age, but Kevin Brousseau is hoping that his method, in the form of researching and writing a 5,000-word dictionary, will make the Cree language more accessible and easy to learn for lynu and non-lynu of all ages. Brousseau laments the fact that he never ... read more ››

Eastmain election referendum fails: Dispute between Brown and Mayappo leads council to call vote

They say too many chefs spoil the broth. The community of Eastmain is proving that when two chiefs stir the soup too long and too hard, the whole kitchen can come crashing down. Now the community of Eastmain will decide if a new election can improve the band council’s political recipe. Chief ... read more ››

Extreme challenges are a serious business

I shovelled the driveway on a recent afternoon just to get some exercise. It was one of those bright, sunny January days with a temperature at a bone-chilling minus-30 degrees Celcius. The dry, cold air made it difficult to work. The harder I worked, the more air I had to ... read more ››

Juno calls Yellowbird’s name

Aboriginal country music sensation Shane Yellowbird has picked up a Juno nomination for Best Canadian Country Album for “Life Is Calling My Name.” Yellowbird’s debut album immediately shot to the top of the charts with hit singles like “They’re all about you,” and, “Pick up truck.” Yellowbird is no stranger to pan-Canadian ... read more ››

MBJ mayors fight Cree police: Presentations to government committee shows deep opposition to policing deal

The non-Native opposition to employing Cree officers to police Cree lands was taken to a new level in late January as mayors of the Municipalité de la Baie James (MBJ) pleaded with Quebec MNAs to defeat Bill 54, the amendment to Quebec’s Police Act that would enable effective policing of ... read more ››

Phosphate free in 2010?

According to a law recently passed by the Quebec government, selling dishwashing detergents containing more than 0.5% phosphates will be outlawed in 2010. Phosphates are a main cause of the blue green algae contaminating a growing number of Quebec lakes. The Jean Coutu chain of pharmacies isn’t waiting. It will voluntarily ... read more ››

Proposed solutions to vandalism and violence: Mistissini takes steps to deal with youth crisis

Mistissini is actively working to curb youth violence and vandalism. At a community meeting on January 23 these two issues were the hot topics of the evening. A look at just the Cree School Board shows how much vandalism costs this community of fewer than 4,000 people. In 2007, it cost ... read more ››

Robert Bosum, 1917 – 2008

Robert Bosum of Ouje-Bougoumou passed away January 24, only three weeks before his 91st birthday (February 15). He was the oldest man living in Ouje. Bosum and his wife, Emily Capissisit, were known for their generosity, said his daughter Anna Bosum. They adopted many children of the community in the traditional ... read more ››

See no evil, hear no evil…

The dictionary definition of transparency reads: The full, accurate, and timely disclosure of information. Transparency is one of the most important words everywhere in the world, but it seems especially pertinent these days in Eeyou Istchee. Cree territory has been hit with its share of questionable activity in the past; from money ... read more ››

Spotlight on churches: Search for missing residential school children heats up

Defrocked United Church Reverend Kevin Annett is challenging Canada’s churches to acknowledge and surrender the remains of an estimated 50,000 children who never returned home from residential schools. Reverend Annett, along with Ojibwa Chief Louis Daniels and Elder Jeremiah Jourdain presented a letter to Rector Glenn Dion of downtown Vancouver’s Holy ... read more ››

The Medicine Wheel: Wanda Gabriel combines Western and traditional knowledge to help her people heal

When I first met Wanda Gabriel I was struck by her fierce yet calm determination. She had been invited to conduct a workshop at the Annual General Meeting of the Native Women’s Shelter of Montréal at the Maritime Plaza Hotel January 18. We sat down to chat just after Gabriel ... read more ››

When holidays collide

I was recently at the local store when I noticed a strange thing: Valentine’s Day items were slowly being edged out by Easter offerings. I checked the date quickly to see if I didn’t have some kind of two-week memory lapse and yes, it was still the first week of ... read more ››

Yellow Quill Community mourns the loss of two toddlers

Two young girls, Santana Pauchay, 1, and Kaydance Pauchay, 3 were found frozen to death in snowdrifts not far from their home on the Yellow Quill First Nation in Saskatchewan January 29. They left their home after midnight with their father, Christopher Pauchay, 25, and headed to their neighbour’s house ... read more ››