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.
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Attention post-secondary students, Greg King has a lot of advice to share about how to increase your chances of actually getting the scholarship you apply for.
King is a recent graduate of the University of Alberta, where he successfully completed the bachelor of science/bachelor of education double degree program. During the five years he spent in university, the Metis…
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Native people living in Ontario who are struggling with literacy problems don't have to struggle alone, thanks to the efforts of the Ontario Native Literacy Coalition (ONLC).
The coalition has been around since 1988, providing networking opportunities and support to Native literacy practitioners and learners across the province.
"The main goal of our Native…
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North Spirit: Travels Among The Cree And Ojibway Nations And Their Star Maps
By Paulette Jiles
Anchor Canada edition 2003
391 pages, $21(sc)
In 1973, Paulette Jiles left behind a failed relationship in Toronto and accepted a CBC assignment to work in Big Trout Lake, where she helped establish a radio station that would be run by the local Aboriginal…
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MUSIC BIZ 101
Negotiating a performance booking involves considerations that are unique to each performance contract. However, the elements of any negotiation are the same. The first point of contact involves determining the booking potential, whether initiated by the presenter or the booking agent. Preliminary information about the venue and its past bookings should…
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THE URBANE INDIAN
Far out west, a tempest in a teapot is brewing. Or more accurately, a coffee pot. Where the Pacific Ocean meets the Great White North, Haida Gwaii (better known as the Queen Charlette Islands) has become an unusual battle ground between the coffee empire known as Starbucks, and the lesser known Haida restaurant/coffee shop empire called HaidaBucks.…
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MEDIUM RARE
The place is anywhere, another emergency meeting of chiefs. The specifics aren't important because it's happened so many times. Chief after chief rises to condemn the organization for "not getting the message out." The people have to know, they say. However, there's not a single reporter in the room. The chiefs threw them out.
This happens all the time…
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NASIVVIK
The first Indian Department in Canada was created in 1755 as a branch of the British military in North America. This reveals that it took more than 200 years for some manifestation of government administration to reach Inuit. This may not be any wonder, as Inuit are not Indians. At least, not until we unfortunates in Quebec's Arctic were legally declared Indians…
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Pro Bono
Dear Tuma:
I have been having problems with my employer. They do not want to pay me my back pay, plus pay me for the time I spend on the board as the secretary/treasurer. The employer does not want to sit down and meet with me about my job. I'm at my wits end and don't know where to turn.
Frustrated
Dear Frustrated:
There are a number…
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The communities in the Nunavik region of northern Quebec have gone through a number of changes in the last quarter century, and the Makivik Corporation has been there, working to make them changes for the better.
The Makivik Corporation grew out of the James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement (JBNQA) of 1975, a land claim agreement signed between Hydro-Quebec, the federal…
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Two separate RCMP investigations into possible corruption at an on-reserve health centre have resulted in arrests in early July.
Paul Cochrane, 56, a former assistant deputy minister with Health Canada's Medical Services Branch (MSB) who lives in the Ottawa suburb of Kanata, was charged with one count of breach of trust and seven counts of fraud against the government on…
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The federal government is not being honest about its plan to offer alternative dispute resolution to residential school survivors who want to settle out of court.
That's what two lawyers playing high profile roles in pushing for compensation for residential school survivors told Windspeaker this month.
This publication obtained a draft copy of the government's plan…
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Phil Fontaine is once again the national chief of the Assembly of First Nations.
His July 16 victory over Six Nations of the Grand River Chief Roberta Jamieson was secured when about half of those who had voted for former National Chief Matthew Coon Come on the first ballot chose not to follow his wish that they switch their allegiance to Jamieson.
It was the second…
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Gang wars, prostitution, slums, the drug trade, rogue cops, cover-ups and racism-the urban jungle where life is cheap and the rules don't apply. We're talking about the toughest, hardest, most dangerous ghettos that haunt the major cities in the United States, right?
No. Would you believe Saskatoon?
It's true. Drive along the Yellowhead Highway as it makes its way…
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Dear Editor:
Most teenagers in our community don't know or understand the Cree language. Our Cree language is a big part of our identity and should be used with respect. Many teens in the community want to know and understand their Cree language. I know they do because I'm sure they want to communicate with their grandparents and parents.
I know a lot of teens that…
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Dear Editor:
I read the article about too many sheep and not enough shepherds. Dan, say BAAA. You can count yourself as one of the sheep. As a group and as individuals, all First Nations know what it is to be discriminated against and we need to be careful about how we use this powerful word.
Is it discrimination that the Prairie societies had patriarchal societies…