ARTICLES BY Will Nicholls

For the better of all

Well, another year has come and gone. I hope you’re rested from the ups and downs of last year and ready to meet the new. It has been an interesting year for the Crees. We have seen a new opening up on the part of the leadership, both local and ... read more ››

Tax break for Crees at Troilus

Cree workers at the Troilus Mine must have been smiling just before Christmas. That was when Revenue Canada decided to no longer charge them income tax and return all their back taxes. The tax department backed away from taxing Crees at Troilus after the Grand Council of the Crees took Canada ... read more ››

Europeans exempt Natives from fur ban

Cree trappers can breathe a sigh of relief. The proposed European ban on fur imports will not apply to Native people, according to a recent decision by the European Union. The decision is a result of lobbying by Deputy Grand Chief Kenny Blacksmith and Cree Trappers Association vice-president Thomas Coon, among ... read more ››

Be it Resolved…

A new year is upon us. Isn’t it always strange that it is only this time of year (besides birthdays) that we all look back and reflect on our past. This is why it is the time that we make resolutions to further ourselves in the game of life. We draw on ... read more ››

A dream for all of Quebec

It was a harrowing night for many as eyes were glued to the screen or listening to the results of the referendum coming. You could feel the tension and the excitement every time your side, your vote’s, percentage points went up. Even seeing a .01-per-cent change gave you that “oh-my-god, ... read more ››

In the Cree camp: an Interview with Grand Chief Matthew Coon Come

The Cree War Room at the Sheraton emptied as speech makers started. Coon Come along with Bill Namagoose and Brian Craik watched to the end as speeches were made. Coon Come had days before announced the results of the Cree referendum to Canadian media. The Cree position was clear and ... read more ››

The Evil Empire strikes back

Well, if you haven’t heard about my adventures on the LG-2 reservoir read on. It all started when Karyn Rogers decided to do soil samples. She needed a guide and I volunteered, as I always wanted to see for myself science in the making. On October 10 we started by Cherokee ... read more ››

The Neverendum: The Second Coming

In the first session of the 35st Legislature, Bill 1 was introduced called an “Act Respecting the Future of Quebec.” On October 30 the polls will open and Cree destiny may change. The referendum hits Quebec’s population yet again. Though the wording skirts around the subject, it is still the ... read more ››

Crees carry the load too long

Crees are shouldering the burden of Quebec’s energy choices, says the Grand Council in a brief to the Public Commission on Quebec’s Energy Future. Almost half of Quebec’s energy production takes place on Cree ancestral lands, said the GCCQ, and Crees are entitled to a special role in any reflections on ... read more ››

Relocation blues at Cree construction

The relocation of Cree Construction could prove disastrous for the company that has proven to be a consistent money-maker for the Crees, says a study by a Montreal accounting firm. But not everyone agrees with the study and one Cree business leader says it overlooks a lot of benefits of a ... read more ››

Back on the merry-go-round again

Early in 1964 Cherokee scholar-activist Robert K. Thomas warned, “As I look around at the Indian situation it looks like one big seething cauldron about ready to explode.” Though we say we look at history, we never really seem to learn. Between 1964 and ’74, there was a series of demonstrations, ... read more ››

Cree concerns aired at Chiefs’ meeting

At a recent Chiefs’ meeting in Montreal on September 7, the first topic of interest was the question of sovereignty. A report was submitted by the Eeyou Astchee Commission on its findings to date. Philip Awashish said people are concerned about sovereignty in the Cree Territory. They feel things are getting ... read more ››

Transvestite seen in Mistissini

It was a game few people who attended or played would forget. A local baseball game in Mistissini. It was the Band Council against the Cree School Board. The rules were simple: mixed teams and the batting order had to be male and female alternating at the plate. Chief William ... read more ››

Maamuuteusiitaa: 1st Mistissini Traditional Gathering

Maamuuteusiitaau is the name used for the 1st Mistissini Traditional Gathering. It took place July 19-24 and as the name implies was the first kind of its sort for Mistissini. The stated purpose of the Gathering was to strengthen family and community ties, promote and maintain traditional cultural and values ... read more ››

Bill Sleaver: a community man for all the right reasons

May 31st, 1996 will be the day that Bill Sleaver retires. Bill Sleaver’s paying job is manager of the Moosonee LCBO store. He was asked 24 years ago to take a hardship posting for two years only. He’s still in Moosonee. Sleaver’s other job seems to be Mr. Community. Upon retirement ... read more ››

Lessons in personal leadership, or The Great Boy Scout Revolt

I went to Moose Factory and Moosonee recently. One of my aunts, Minnie Jolly, had passed away. I would like to thank all the people who sent their prayers and condolences with me for the family. I would like to especially thank Grand Chief Matthew Coon Come and Vice-Grand Chief ... read more ››

1,000+ Crees on housing waiting list

The housing situation in the Cree communities is worsening and there is no end in sight unless drastic changes are made, according to a report submitted to the Annual General Assembly of the Grand Council/CRA in Wemindji. Many Crees have to live in condemned housing and in many houses there is ... read more ››

The Nation’s AGA report: “Where’s Hydro when you need them?” One AGA delegate wonders

This year’s AGA cost about $70,000. Or $2,333 per hour for the 30-hour schedule. Democracy doesn’t cost that much in the Cree world when you consider that over 60 people met for three days at the assembly in Wemindji after travelling great distances. As the delegates walked in, there was a ... read more ››

U.S. goose hunt banned for 1995

Canada and the States are moving to ban sport hunting of geese in the Atlantic Flyway. The U.S. has gone ahead with the ban for this year’s season. It wasn’t known at press time whether Canada had already done so. The ban was discussed at the recent Canada Goose Meeting, which ... read more ››

Cree family values

It’s been hard for me these past weeks. Well, it has been hard for family and friends. My grandmother is in the hospital. She has cancer. Those of us who have been there find it very difficult My grandmother has been the backbone of the family. She is our strength ... read more ››

The real deal – are we ready?

The next logical step in the development of today’s Cree Nation would be the formation of a Cree government. The Cree Nation has outgrown the Cree organizations created over the past 20 years since the signing of the JBNQA. Nine Cree local governments were created under the Cree-Naskapi Act and the ... read more ››

Sport hunters face ban on moose hunt

In a dramatic reversal of position, the Coordinating Committee on Hunting, Trapping and Fishing has decided Quebec should ban sport hunting of moose by non-Natives in the southern James Bay Territory. After years of efforts by Crees, the committee agreed in a resolution in June that non-Natives should be barred from ... read more ››

Luke MacLeod: There has to be a focus

Elections were recently held at the Cree School Board. The latest Chairman is Luke MacLeod. Also elected as the Vice-Chair is Lisa Petagumskum. The third member of the new executive is Robert Weistche. Luke MacLeod has been with the school board for a number of years. He served as a commissioner ... read more ››

An absence of ethics

Government for the people by the people. This is the theory of democracy and why we should vote. We vote to choose candidates who will represent us. In fact, the Crees take the theory of democracy just a little farther when we choose delegates once a year to send to ... read more ››

Crees, feds set to sign funding deal

Crees are on the verge of signing a major new agreement with the federal government to provide Cree communities with better operations and maintenance funding. These funds cover a lot of things the Cree communities require—salaries for Chiefs and band employees, maintenance of public buildings, equipment and utilities, public safety, police ... read more ››

Representation and political process

Important issues and questions have been raised in the recent deal with the provincial government The deal, reported in the last issue of The Nation, covers issues like economic development, infrastructure, services for Elders and “modernization” of the James Bay Agreement. Some might say this Memorandum of Understanding is possibly only ... read more ››