Category: News

Demand for unity is getting louder

The arduous journey of the Nishiyuu Walkers may be complete, but their demand for unity and a new relationship between the federal government and aboriginal people is only getting louder, native leaders said Monday. Seven men, including a guide, left the Cree community of Whapmagoostui, Que., on Jan. 16, and walked ... read more ››

Mistissini celebrates Women’s Day

The Mistissini branch of the Cree Women of Eeyou Istchee Association devoted six days to the women of their community by holding a special women’s conference from March 4-8, followed by a day of outdoor activities at the local children’s camp. The “Live, Love & Laugh Conference” featured a number of ... read more ››

Recommendations for Ontario jury rolls

  Inquiries into the deaths of remote First Nations students Reggie Bushie, Jethro Anderson, Curran Strang, Paul Panacheese, Robyn Harper, Reggie Bushie, Kyle Morriseau and Jordan Wabasse may finally see the light of day as former Supreme Court justice Frank Iacobucci delivered his report and recommendations regarding the exclusion of First ... read more ››

Murder-suicide in Kuujjuaq

  The community of Kuujjuaq was in mourning after Kativik Regional Police Force Constable Steve Dery, 27, died from gunshot wounds and another officer was injured while responding to a domestic dispute on March 2. His funeral took place March 9 at the Notre-Dame Basilica in Ottawa attended by colleagues, family ... read more ››

Télé-Québec airs Objectif Nord

Télé-Québec aired the last part of a four-part documentary series about northern Quebec on March 11. This final episode, titled The Future of the North, concluded one part of Télé-Québec’s massive multimedia undertaking called Objectif Nord. Objectif Nord seeks to inform Quebecers about the North with a documentary series, website and ... read more ››

Strongly opposed

A poll on uranium mining in Quebec confirms support for the Cree Nation’s position A new poll from Leger Marketing commissioned by the Canadian Boreal Initiative shows widespread opposition to uranium mining – and by association, to the Matoush uranium project – across both Cree and non-Cree communities. Though Cree opposition ... read more ››

Increasing awareness

Will revamping the sex-ed program change the alarming stats?   It was just a few months ago that several health professionals from the Cree Board of Health and Social Services of James Bay were talking about how sex education needed to be expanded to an even younger clientele in the communities as ... read more ››

Standing up for women

International Women’s Day highlights the issues Every year on March 8, people around the world celebrate women who have made a difference in our society and raise their voices for those who have been silenced. Violence towards women is like a house fire – you cannot extinguish half of it and ... read more ››

Discovering Tursujuq’s beauty

A new collaborative park project for the north   photo by Robert Fréchette Covering an incredible 26,910 square kilometres of pristine land untouched by development, the new Tursujuq National Park project, on the eastern coast of Hudson Bay, highlights the transition between the boreal forest and tundra. Located near the Inuit community of Umiujaq, ... read more ››

Traditional Cree Fishing and Chisheinuu Chiskutamaachewin Project

Students of the cabinet-making program offered by Sabtuan Adult Education Services took a morning off their woodworking projects on February 7 to visit the Traditional Cree Fishing and Chisheinuu Chiskutamaachewin Project with their teacher, Andy Anderson. The project comprises a series of teaching lodges arranged in a semi-circle on the bank ... read more ››

A new voice for the missing and murdered

A new Parliamentary committee will be formed, but who will it help?   A motion put forward on Valentine’s Day by Liberal MP Carolyn Bennett will finally see a new Parliamentary committee study the alarming number of missing and murdered Aboriginal women in Canada. The motion passed unanimously on February 27. Bennett, who ... read more ››

Respect and recognition

It is that time of year when Quebec’s community newspapers look back and take stock of their efforts. Here in Quebec we send the stories to the Quebec Community Newspapers Association and they send them to judges from outside the province. As editor-in-chief I am proud of the 12 nominations and ... read more ››

Patrick Brazeau: The journey continues

Since the collapse of the pedestal Patrick Brazeau called home, little has been heard beyond the initial reactions. Perhaps the changing of the guard in Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development (AANDC), which saw John Duncan replaced with Bernard Valcourt as minister, had some positive results for Prime Minister Stephen Harper. ... read more ››

Cultivating cross-cultural business

March 12 and 13, the Eeyou Economic Group in collaboration with the Chibougamau Chamber of Commerce will be hosting an entrepreneurial symposium, “Towards the Development of Sustainable Partnerships in Northern Quebec,” in Chibougamau. Also on the event’s steering committee are the Chibougamau Eenou Friendship Centre and the Northern Entrepreneurship Centre. They ... read more ››

Duncan walks the plank

A minor scandal over an inappropriate letter gave Prime Minister Stephen Harper the pretext he needed to dump now-former Aboriginal Affairs Minister John Duncan from his cabinet. Duncan submitted his resignation February 15 after a small uproar over his letter of recommendation for a constituent. The letter was addressed to the ... read more ››

Attawapiskat ice road blockade

A standoff between residents of the First Nation of Attawapiskat and the De Beers’ Victor diamond mine ended without incident on February 22. A team of officers from the Ontario Provincial Police force arrived to enforce a court order to remove the barricades that had been set up for the ... read more ››

Elders pass on

On February 20, the community of Whapmagoostui lost beloved Elder and longtime Clergyman Sandy Masty. Born in 1925, he passed away at age 88. The love and tenderness he showed to his fellow community members will long be remembered. His legacy lives on through his family and the people whose ... read more ››

Cree Hockey News & Notes

Jonathan Cheechoo returns to the pro ranks Moose Factory’s Jonathan Cheechoo has returned to the ice as a member of the American Hockey League’s Oklahoma City Barons, the farm team for the NHL’s Edmonton Oilers. Cheechoo, who scored 56 goals in 2005-2006 to win the Rocket Richard Trophy, joined the Barons ... read more ››

Tales from the Amazon

An Aymara storyteller shines a light on a disappearing way of life During an intimate evening in the cozy confines of Pointe Claire’s Des Bons Voisins cabaret, celebrated Aymara Elder Roberto Alencar Zuazo recounted extraordinary stories of his life growing up in the remote Amazonian jungles of Brazil. As the United Nations ... read more ››

SAKAHÀN

Indigenous art sparks interest at the National Gallery   Rebecca Belmore, Fringe, 2009 The Algonquin word Sakahàn means “to ignite a fire.” It appropriately represents the impact that Aboriginal artists have had on the global arts community over the last decade. Like a fire spreading outwards, Indigenous artists are leaving a lasting impression ... read more ››

Mapping the Matoush project

An American geographer says the topography around Strateco’s uranium exploration proposal poses unacceptable threats to the region’s watershed The Grand Council of the Crees and others in Eeyou Istchee opposed to Strateco Inc.’s plan for advanced uranium exploration in the Mistissini area recently made an important new ally: Michael Hunt, director ... read more ››

The butterflies go free!

The Nation steps into a winged-wonderland at the Botanical Gardens   If you are in Montreal and are desperate for some escapism in the dead of winter, the Butterflies Go Free exposition at the Botanical Gardens is like stepping into a magical fantasyland. Tropical warmth and luscious greenery provide a welcoming environment for ... read more ››

A fighter for Native women

New NWAC president Michelle Audette looks at the big picture for International Women’s Day   With International Women’s Day being celebrated March 8, the Nation checked in with Native Women’s Association of Canada President Michelle Audette for her views on how well Aboriginal women are faring in Stephen Harper’s Canada. An Innu activist ... read more ››

Silent no more

Thousands participated in Valentine’s Day actions and marches across Canada to demand justice for missing and murdered Aboriginal women and to build a safer future for their surviving sisters. For the past 22 years the Memorial March for Missing and Murdered Women has been held on February 14. According to the ... read more ››

Developing the South

A Chisasibi delegation trolls Quebec towns for business opportunities   Businesses from non-Native communities often venture north to Eeyou Istchee to develop entrepreneurial opportunities within the Cree Nation. In late January, however, the Cree Nation of Chisasibi decided it was time to return the favour, sending a delegation of six representatives on ... read more ››

Charlie’s love will live on

As a young person growing up in Mistissini I was unsure of my place in life. More often than not, children learn from those who are older than they are. Outsiders blithely refer to them as Elders but I knew something they didn’t. My mother taught about the “Great Ladies” ... read more ››