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Raven's Eye

BC Raven's Eye logo

Launched in 1997. A news publication specifically designed for the Indigenous people of British Columbia and Yukon.

  • January 18, 2002
  • Adam North Peigan, Guest Columnist

Page 10

After successfully administering Aboriginal health programs in British Columbia for the past 10 years, an era of managing Aboriginal health funding in British Columbia is coming to an end.

On Dec. 18, 2001, the Aboriginal Health Association of British Columbia (AHABC) and its member Regional Aboriginal Health Councils (RAHC) received written notice from the Ministry…

  • January 18, 2002
  • Raven's Eye Staff, Vancouver

Page 9

Four young Native people will find it a little easier to pay their expenses as they pursue their dreams of higher education, thanks to the a new initiative by BC Hydro.

The first ever list of Seventh Generation Club scholarship winners was announced in mid-January. BC Hydro has introduced four new scholarships to be awarded annually to members of the Seventh Generation…

  • January 18, 2002
  • Matthew R. Stewart, Raven's Eye Writer, Vancouver

Page 8

In what is being hailed as a landmark victory for all residential school victims, the B.C. Supreme Court has awarded a 51-year-old Native man more than $233,000 in compensation, loss of earning capacity and legal expenses for the sexual abuse he suffered as a child at the Christie Indian Residential School on Meares Island. The ruling states, "The plaintiff is entitled to a…

  • January 18, 2002
  • Paul Barnsley, Raven's Eye Writer, Ottawa

Page 6

The Assembly of First Nations is going through a difficult and at times painful reorganization after reductions in the funding it receives from the Department of Indian Affairs forced the layoff of 70 employees.

As federal government adds more support staff and hires consultants to advise the Indian Affairs minister in his public relations war with the AFN over governance…

  • January 18, 2002
  • Matthew R. Stewart, Raven's Eye Writer, Vancouver

Page 6

After everyone expected them to be full of fire and gunpowder, some say the questions being recommended to the British Columbia Liberal government on treaty negotiating principles are weak and innocuous.

But the Native leadership isn't letting down its guard.

First Nations Summit representative Bill Wilson was outraged by the proposed questions.

"I think it'…

  • January 18, 2002
  • Matthew R. Stewart, Raven's Eye Writer, Kamloops

Page 5

In the continuing struggle to assert their Aboriginal rights upon traditional Neskonlith lands, two Secwepemc Elders, both grandmothers, one 73 years old and one 75 years old, plus three Secwepemc women and one youth, were arrested Dec. 28, 2001, just outside of Kamloops, B.C. They were arrested for setting up a road block on the approach to Sun Peaks Ski Resort. A sixth…

  • January 18, 2002
  • Matthew R. Stewart, Raven's Eye Writer, Vancouver

Page 4

Discussions held at kitchen tables in thousands of commercial fishermen's homes around B.C. this week must have been tinged with a small sense of victory, after an official report commissioned by the federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) was obtained by the David Suzuki Foundation and leaked to the press. The report, titled A Review of the Department of Fisheries and…

  • January 18, 2002
  • David Wiwchar, Raven's Eye Writer, Ahousaht

Page 3

Standing on the engine cover of the Ahousaht Pride ferry behind a line of Ahousaht Ha'wiih, Nelson Keitlah sang an ancient chant.

"It was a war chant used by Ahousaht prior to a battle with Ootsoosaht in the 1700s and is owned by the Kietlah family," said Nelson, nervous to talk about such significant historical and cultural matters.

"The song was first sung at…

  • January 18, 2002
  • Raven's Eye Staff

Page 2

Health Canada is requesting a recall from the market of certain products containing Ephedral/ ephedrine after a risk assessment concluded that these products pose a serious risk to health. Adverse effects include stroke, heart attack, seizures, psychoses and deaths have been reported.

People suffering from heart conditions, high blood pressure and diabetes are among those…

  • January 18, 2002
  • Raven's Eye Staff, Blue River

Page 2

An agreement was signed between the North Thompson Indian Band and Mike Wiegele Helicopter Skiing during a ceremony in December.

The memorandum of understanding commits the two parties to "jointly contribute to and participate in the development of the long term stability of the regional and local economy, specifically within the eco-tourism industry."

"Concern for…

  • January 18, 2002
  • Raven's Eye Staff, Burnaby

Page 2

Radio station CJSF, the Simon Fraser University campus and community radio station, is looking for people who want to put a show together that reaches out to the Native audience in the Vancouver area.

The positions are volunteer (read: unpaid) but CJSF offers a lot of freedom to develop a show that deals with issues that don't make it to air on mainstream stations.

  • January 18, 2002
  • Raven's Eye Staff, Winnipeg

Page 2

The Business Development Bank of Canada (BDBC) launched E-Spirit 2002 on Jan. 7. The Internet-based Aboriginal youth business plan competition is open to Aboriginal students in Grades 10 through 13 across the country.

Using computers at their schools, students go through a 16-week process, creating a detailed business plan and producing a video presentation that promotes…

  • December 7, 2001
  • Mathew Stewart, Windspeaker Contributor, Westbank

Page 11

If policing doesn't grab you, perhaps you like things a little hotter. Try your hand at becoming a professional firefighter.

Fire Chief Wayne Snitzler of the Westside Fire and Rescue Department in the town of Westbank in British Columbia's Okanagan region always knew he wanted to be a firefighter. His dad had been for 25 years before him. He virtually grew up in the fire…

  • December 7, 2001
  • Brian Lin, Raven's Eye Writer, Vancouver

Page 10

Going to medical school not only changed Shannon Waters' life, it also brought her closer to the heritage that she'd never known.

Finishing up her last year of medical school at the University of British Columbia, 25-year-old Shannon Waters from Chemainus First Nation on Vancouver Island is now in the midst of applying for residency. Her first choice is the First Nations…

  • December 7, 2001
  • Mathew Stewart, Windspeaker Contributor, Toronto

Page 9

To thousands of Canadians, he is the star of the successful Aboriginal Peoples Television Network program Cooking with the Wolfman. When Windspeaker caught up with him recently, the Wolfman was just recovering from an emergency appendectomy before heading out from Toronto to fly to Edmonton to do a show at the famous Rising Sun Cafe.

How did the man from Lillooet get…