Welcome to AMMSA.COM, the news archive website for our family of Indigenous news publications.
Established in 1983 to serve the needs of northern Alberta, Windspeaker became a national newspaper on its 10th anniversary in 1993.
Indian Affairs Minister Jim Prentice was on the receiving end of criticism in May and early June as he hinted at a new approach by the new Conservative government in dealing with Aboriginal issues.
After six month's of Conservative rule, specialists in Aboriginal Affairs are beginning to arrive at the position that the government has no political will to do any more than it must on…
Metis National Council (MNC) leader Clem Chartier sent a letter to Saskatchewan Premier Lorne Calvert on June 6 in an attempt to get Aboriginal groups involved in the talks about the fiscal imbalance in Canada's regions.
The western premiers were about to meet in Edmonton to discuss how the federal transfer payment system could be made fairer. All premiers will gather for a First…
The misfortune of the seal hunt is not the fault of Paul McCartney or animal rights groups, but on the hunt itself. Activists make great scapegoats but the hunt has been documented, the brutal chaos enshrined in photos, on video and in eyewitness accounts. Inuit economic devastation comes not from activists, but is a product of the larger commercial hunt. The senseless slaughter of hundreds of…
Dear Editor:
Re: "Windspeaker should send reporters to witness CAP voting," May 2006
The assertion by your reader F. One Moon in the May 2006 edition of Windspeaker that "the Congress of Aboriginal Peoples is a Metis organization" is incorrect and should have been more thoroughly researched by the author.
The congress was incorporated in 1971 as the Native Council of…
Dear Editor:
Re: "A little retribution," May 2006
It is unfortunate for your readership that your editorial was out of date by the time it was published. The editorial alleged that the final agreement on residential schools reconciliation was in jeopardy because of some perceived political pay-back by the Conservative government. This was immediately proven to be false and ill-…
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Artist served as chronicler of days gone by
Joe Talirunili was born in northern Quebec near Kuujjuaraapik on the shores of the Hudson Bay. There are differing accounts as to the year of his…
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NASIVVIK
Any writer should be eager to get published in any publication. Being published accomplishes two things. First, it earns the writer a bit of money, and I'm being literal when I say "a bit of money". Second, it exposes the writer's style and talent to a wider audience, which is important to any serious writer. On the other hand, writing can have its share of…
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PRO BONO
Dear Tuma:
Our chief just resigned from council. We do not know what to do and wonder, can a chief really resign? Can council reject the resignation? Do we need to have a by-election, as regular elections are not until the fall?
Chiefless in Seattle
Dear Chiefless:
The quick answers to your questions is: Yes, no and maybe. A chief or a…
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THE URBANE INDIAN
It's not often I have brainstorms about topics not usually in my realm of expertise-in this case such as tourism-but if anybody is interested, I do believe I have a wining idea for the city of Saskatoon. It's a unique way to capitalize on some free publicity and for a service that already exists.
I got the idea when I was in Ottawa, of all places…
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There's a chance one of the largest teams of athletes set to compete at the North American Indigenous Games (NAIG) could be pulling out of the event. Officials with Team Ontario, a squad comprised of about 500 athletes and an additional 100 coaches, sport leaders or chaperones, are upset with NAIG organizers and the housing arrangements they've made for them.
The Games…
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A car accident ended Bob Rice's elite running career and prevented him from becoming an Olympian. Yet Rice is on the verge of becoming a hall of famer.
The 40-year-old, who lives in Owen Sound, Ont., will be one of this year's inductees into the Bobby Orr Hall of Fame in Parry Sound.
Rice, an Ojibway, is from the Wasauksing First Nation, located near Parry Sound.…
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Erin Seymour has won yet another national hockey title, but this time for her work as a coach.
Seymour was an assistant coach for the Ontario South entry that captured the gold medal at the National Aboriginal Hockey Championships (NAHC). This year's NAHC was staged April 30 through May 6 at Kahnawake First Nation in Quebec.
Ontario South blanked the Ontario North…
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The occupation of Douglas Creek Estates in Caledonia, Ont. put Six Nations' land claims in the international spotlight in May.
In Geneva, Switzerland, the Lubicon Cree Nation gave up a couple of their precious minutes before the United Nations committee on economic, social and cultural rights to Six Nations' delegate Doreen Silversmith, who spoke about the unresolved land…
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One lane of Argyle St. in Caledonia was opened on May 16 to provide limited access to emergency and local traffic as a sign of good faith by Six Nations protesters. It will take some of the pressure off the most dangerous focal point for angry confrontation between townsfolk and members of the Native community there.
The Argyle St. barricade is one of three erected after…
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October 2005-Confederacy Council "aware" of plans for a "peaceful occupation."
November 2005-Confederacy Council gives support for occupation.
Feb. 28-Occupiers take over 40-hectare (100-acre) development known as Douglas Creek Estates in Caledonia. Land has been cleared and construction by Henco Industries on 10 show homes is nearing completion.
April 16- At…