Welcome to AMMSA.COM, the news archive website for our family of Indigenous news publications.
Launched in 1997. A news publication specifically designed for the Indigenous people of British Columbia and Yukon.
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Every Tribal Journey is a test and the test is never the same. This year it was the weather that tried the endurance, stamina, and courage of the paddlers from the West Coast of Canada and the United States. There were times in their week-long odyssey that the participants in the 28 canoes were cold, wet, hungry and in danger of their lives; but asked if he would do it again,…
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Along some of the most isolated and harsh coastal areas of the Pacific Ocean, there lived Aboriginal people who were caught in the midst of a European power struggle during the colonial era.
The Yuquot were protected from the winds and elements by living in Nootka Sound, one of the few areas secure enough to withstand the direct pounding of the Pacific. This isolation,…
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A court case to determine whether government and third parties must consult First Nations about Crown land-use prior to Aboriginal title being decided by a court or affirmed in a treaty resulted in a two-to-one decision in favor of First Nations by the British Columbia Court of Appeal last month.
The court held Weyerhaeuser Co. must consult with the Haida Nation about its…
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Presented with an opportunity to share his artistic talent with his community, Albert West has carved himself out a niche on Cormorant Island.
West is the resident canoe maker for the 'Namgis First Nation and has held this role for the past six years. Now 69, he has created 10 canoes during this time. He embarked on his most recent project for the reserve's invitational…
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After years of planning and negotiating, the first juvenile geoducks were planted in Hesquiaht Harbour last month, marking the beginning of a unique and innovative business venture.
More than 2400 small geoducks were planted into the sandy sub-tidal zone with the hope that they'll be ready for harvesting in five years' time.
"This is not a formal production, but a…
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It was fun time for families at the inaugural summer carnival held Aug. 21 at the Vancouver Aboriginal Friendship Centre. The four-hour event offered a range of activities including a sponge toss, ring toss, darts, a basketball shoot-out and the always entertaining dunk tank.
Carnival co-ordinator Kat Norris said a few hundred people attended.
"It went really well…
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Senior Ojibway artist Ron Noganosh knows all too well the suffering and racism his people have endured.
A number of Noganosh's very personal pieces reflecting those themes are currently on display at the Greater Victoria Art Gallery.
The show, entitled It Takes Time, opened July 12 and runs until Sept. 22.
Noganosh's work is a satisfying mixture of honesty,…
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Nancy Luis credits her destiny to friends in high places.
"A psychic once told me that I have a spirit guiding me, protecting me," said Luis. "But if you'd told me as a child I was going to be an artist, I would have laughed. I was never artistic."
But an artist she is. As the proprietor of Aboriginal Creeations, Luis has tweaked and transformed the typical dream…
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In an effort to help sagging deer populations, the province is considering an active wolf and cougar cull across Vancouver Island. This plan could face problems from environmentalists and First Nations such as Nuu-chah-nulth, who hold the wolf in very high regard.
With the Vancouver Island blacktail deer population having plummeted from about 12,000 animals in the late…
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Attorney General and Minister Responsible for Treaty Negotiations Geoff Plant stopped in Port Alberni on July 30 during his tour of British Columbia First Nations treaty tables. His message: "This visit is a small step of reaffirming that we, as the province, are willing to look at new ideas and look at old ideas in different ways (with respect to treaty negotiation)."
…
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One of the largest and most respected dictionary publishers in the world will be changing "Nootka" to "Nuu-chah-nulth" this year, almost 30 years after the name was officially changed.
In 1973, the West Coast District Council of Indian Chiefs voted unanimously to officially change the term Nootka as it applied to the first peoples of the west coast of Vancouver Island to…
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The sound of songs and cheers filled the House of Huu-ay-aht the last week of August, as a huge bronze plaque was unveiled recognizing the ancient city of Kiix?in as a place of national importance.
Hidden by more than a century of cedar tree and salmonberry bush growth, the once densely populated village of Kiix?in has been left relatively undisturbed since the Huu-ay-aht…
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United Native Nations held a signing ceremony on Aug. 29 in Blood Alley in Gastown, which is the alley at the 30 block of Cordova Street.
The unusual venue was chosen to highlight a partnership witnessed on that day by Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal groups, agencies and government representatives, who have elected to work together for positive change in the Downtown…
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With the British Columbia government cutting back on social assistance payments, Indian and Northern Affairs Canada is following suit, but because of the unique funding arrangement with Nuu-chah-nulth, "on-reserve" recipients will not see a change in their rates.
"Through the federal transfer agreement, the Nuu-chah-nulth administer social assistance through block funding…
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A Squamish First Nation member has had a $2,400 fine levied against him by the Williams Lake Provincial Court for illegal hunting.
Originally James Andrew, a Coast Salish man, was charged with six counts under the Wildlife Act, but half the charges were dropped. Andrew pled guilty Aug. 6 to two counts of illegal possession of dead game and one of hunting on someone else's…