ARTICLES BY Amy German

Romancing Time

It has been called a “Hallmark Holiday” for its synonymity with the rush to buy greeting cards, flowers and heart-shaped boxes of sweets but the day of love did not always have such a consumer-driven meaning. St. Valentine’s Day’s origins go back a long time, to 269 AD to be precise, ... read more ››

Moose Cree Gets the Right to Play

The Moose Cree First Nation will be the first Ontario community to have the privilege of having a child-development-based hockey program designed specifically for them through the Right to Play organization. The deal between Indian and Northern Affairs Canada (INAC) through the province of Ontario will be a first for the ... read more ››

First Nations Tribunal shelved again

The human rights tribunal over whether the federal government discriminates against Native families by underfunding child welfare on reserves has been shelved while the Feds attempt again to have the case dismissed. In 2007, the complaint was lodged on behalf of the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society of Canada ... read more ››

Islands in question

The fate of offshore islands near the Wemindji portion of the James Bay coast will finally be voted on this coming March. Though the Crees and the Inuit came to an agreement with the federal government on jurisdiction over the territory last year, the deal has yet to be ratified in ... read more ››

Higher Learning

With the resources available for Crees to pursue training or post-secondary education, there is no time like to present to invest in one’s education. From the business world to careers in health, tourism or child care, employment opportunities abound for the Crees, particularly when it comes to skilled workers possessing certificates ... read more ››

Selling the Plan Nord to the Crees

Natural Resources Minister Nathalie Normandeau brought a clear-cut message to Mistissini January 11: billions of dollars of heavy industrial development is coming to Eeyou Istchee. Left unsaid but certainly understood was that the Crees can either jump on board or get out of the way, but either way the environment ... read more ››

Hunting Violations?

Five Cree hunters from Chisasibi were fined approximately $300 by the Sûreté du Québec (SQ) for offences under a Municipality of James Bay (MBJ) bylaw regarding “peace and good order” in December 2009 and early January. This new bylaw restricts the use of firearms within two kilometers of an airport and ... read more ››

Joint adventure

The Cree Nation’s associations for trappers, crafts and tourism have come together for the sake of a common goal: delivering the goods. In late December the Cree Trappers’ Association, Cree Native Arts and Crafts and the Cree Outfitting and Tourism Association signed a memorandum of understanding to see how the three ... read more ››

Top gun

Waswanipi’s Matthew Happyjack got quite the surprise on December 16. Though he was delighted to find out that he had been selected to be the next president of Air Creebec, what took him aback was that within a few hours he was already getting phone calls congratulating him on the ... read more ››

Goal Achieved

After forming officially in 1996, the First Nations Bank of Canada (FNBC) has finally reached its ownership goal as of Nov. 1, 2009, by completing its share conversion with Toronto Dominion. Having reached an 80% share interest, the Aboriginal shareholders have taken control of the bank. “It is one of these ... read more ››

The Praise Keeps Rolling In

When Gabriel Rabbitskin won four gold medals and one silver medal in swimming at the North American Indigenous Games in BC during the summer of 2008, the entire Cree Nation rejoiced. Because of his commitment to his sport, athletic development, his positive community image, concern for holistic development and achievement of ... read more ››

To Good To Be True

Though the environmental impact assessment for Strateco’s latest uranium exploration project will only be released in late November, Strateco’s CEO and President Guy Hébert was only too eager to tell the Nation that the project will have “no environmental impact.” The approximately 8000-page assessment was supposed to be released by Nov. ... read more ››

Cree Women Unite!

Though the idea of forming an organization to further women in terms of equality has been rattling around the Cree Nation for decades, the movement has now gained the means to move forward as a real entity. The Cree Women of Eeyou Istchee Association (CWEIA) finally became incorporated last January, acquired ... read more ››

“It’s Either Me or the Camera!”

What started out as filming footage for a seemingly innocuous Niskamoon video project has turned into quite the debacle. On October 28, Pearl Weistche and her camerawoman headed out to a meeting hosted by the Société d’énergie de la Baie James (SEBJ) at Smoky Hill. The meeting was between some SEBJ ... read more ››

Two Diabetic Solitudes

The diabetes epidemic in Canada has had a throttling grip on Indigenous populations nationwide but where you live might really impact the severity of the situation. According to the Cree Health Board, there is a 19% diabetes rate among Quebec Crees 20 years older compared to a rate of 4.9% to ... read more ››

Stop the glow

When Voyageur Memorial School teacher Élaine Hébert first saw postings of uranium mining projects near Mistissini in 2008, she, like many locals, did not know the full impact of what the project could mean to the community. The Matoush project has been talked about throughout Eeyou Istchee ever since the prospect ... read more ››

Possible end looms for important project

Five years after the project to find out whatever happened to the 520 missing and/or murdered Aboriginal women in this country started, the women who got the ball rolling may lose their funding. The Sisters In Spirit (SIS) initiative at the Native Women’s Association of Canada is currently waiting on a ... read more ››

Traditional Rights at Risk

While many Quebec regions are anxiously awaiting the newfound powers that Bill 57, the province’s new Forestry Occupation act, will give them, the bill also seeks to remove rights from Aboriginal groups. The new bill that Quebec is currently working on passing, will seek to take control out of the hands ... read more ››

Enforcing Attendance for Athletes

The Cree Nation of Mistissini is now strictly enforcing a minimum of 70% school attendance for students who want to play hockey or broomball both at home and in tournaments. John S. Matoush, the Mistissini Band Councilor who is in charge of the recreation file for the community, said that the ... read more ››

Professional learning

Education has been a hot topic in Eeyou Istchee for some time now between the recent Cree School Board elections and various education reforms that have brought new information into the public view. In light of this, the CSB held a symposium in downtown Montreal from October 5-6 to get a ... read more ››

The best of the best

From classical form to contemporary poses, Les Grand Ballets Canadiens is about to launch a new season that will celebrate everything fabulous about the ballet and beyond. Though Les Grand Ballets was formed in 1957, this year they are celebrating a decade of working with their cherished Artistic Director, Macedonian-born Gradimir ... read more ››

Sending the wrong message

n mid-September many rural Manitoba Aboriginal communities were shocked and horrified when they opened their packages of supplies to combat the H1N1 virus sent to them by the federal government. The packages had hand sanitizers, masks, gloves and a series of body bags that contained full post-mortem kits that included a ... read more ››

The final farewell

He may be gone but that does not mean that everyone has finished saying their goodbyes. Albert Diamond spent a lot of time in Val-d’Or throughout his life for business, pleasure and benevolence purposes and on Wednesday, September 23, the folks of Quebec’s “sin city” came out in droves to remember ... read more ››

Dishing up justice

It’s been a busy year for the Justice Department of the Cree Nation. Between the ground breakings for the new justice facilities to the adoption of innovative new programs, the Justice Department has been working hard at making Eeyou Istchee safer for everyone. The newly created Department of Justice has been ... read more ››

Successful development

While the recent economic doom and gloom has meant a down season for tourism around the world, for the Cree Outfitting and Tourism Association (COTA), it’s been an outstanding year. Having presented their annual report at the Annual General Assembly at the end of August, the association is feeling as though ... read more ››

Albert Diamond in Memoriam

The Cree Nation has been left in a state of shock and sadness with the sudden death of Albert Diamond, 58, who passed away on Wednesday, September 9. He was laid to rest in his home community of Waskaganish on the following Tuesday, September 15. Always a family man who loved ... read more ››