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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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Chief Tom Bressette of the Chippewas of Kettle and Stony Point First Nation in Ontario, and Harold Calla, band councillor with British Columbia's Squamish Nation, met with Aboriginal media on March 28 to sell Bill C-19, the proposed First Nations Fiscal and Statistical Management act.
Bressette is the chairman of the First Nation Statistics Advisory Panel, Calla, the…
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An attempt by the federal government to bring a stop to the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations' legal action against the First Nations governance act was not successful.
The legal action, brought by the FSIN Senate under the name of former Senator David Ahenakew, asked for "a permanent constitutional injunction prohibiting the defendants or their agents or servants…
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Opposition members and First Nations leaders opposed to the proposed First Nations governance act say there is still hope that the bill can be prevented from becoming law.
This in spite of a determined effort by Liberals to rush Bill C-7 to a vote in the House of Commons by limiting debate of the act by members of the Standing Committee on Aboriginal Affairs.
The…
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The arrival of mosquitoes has never been anybody's favorite sign that the long winter is finally over, but since the arrival of the West Nile virus in Canada, these tiny creatures are not just an annual annoyance anymore.
To help deal with this threat to the Canadian public, Health Canada will be working closely with First Nations, to help prevent the spread of the virus…
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Dear Editor:
re March, 2003 editorial ("Shelve the Governance Package").
The record of the last four national chiefs is instructive: when one comes on as too strong against the federal government, he is cut down by the "benefactor" and labeled militant or aggressive; when they appear to be too weak in dealing with the federal master, they are repudiated by his…
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Dear Editor:
I've been watching the war in Iraq with disgust. America says it's doing this to secure peace for itself and, God bless 'em, all of us. But here's the biggest insult to humanity: America says it's doing this to "help" the Iraqi people.
Yes, they're coming to free, feed and clothe their new "citizens"... at least the ones who haven't been blown up by a…
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Elsewhere in this month's issue of Windspeaker, you will see Kettle and Stony Point Chief Tom Bressette state a fundamental truth about the First Nations' leadership.
He said that First Nation chiefs or technicians who criticize people who accept a federal government paycheque are throwing rocks from the front porch of their glass houses. Elected chiefs can't hint that…
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The year was 1830, and in a camp along the banks of the Belly River in what is now southern Alberta, a boy was born. His parents named him Astoxkomi-Shot Close. As he grew older, he was known by many other names, as was the way of his people.
In his youth he took the name Kyiah-st-ah, or Bear Ghost, and still later he took the name of his late father, Istowun-eh'pata, or…
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Working hard in school and getting good grades should be enough. But sometimes, if you're a Native person, it just isn't.
Kahnawake Mohawk Pam Stacey graduated from CEGEP (as community colleges in Quebec are called) with strong marks and high hopes for a career in nursing, but the Quebec government won't let her get to work.
The young mother of three children said…
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Access to post-secondary schools is a major stumbling block for many would-be Aboriginal students because entrance requirements may be too high, said an Aboriginal educator.
Doug Dokis, program advisor for Mount Royal College, believes Native students would have a fighting chance of getting into their programs of choice if colleges and universities set aside seats for…
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While the most recent statistics show the number of Aboriginal students completing their high school education is on the rise, the graduation rate still lags behind that of their non-Aboriginal classmates.
Deborah Jeffrey has been very active in the area of First Nations education for a number of years. Department head for First Nations Education Services with School…
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Music Review
Chester Knight and his band the Wind have performed across North America, including an appearance at a GRAMMY showcase last year. Knight won a JUNO in the Aboriginal Recording of the Year category in 2000 for Falling Down, and his current CD Standing Strong is nominated this year in the same catergory.
Standing Strong blends rock power with a First…
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Inuit Art: An Introduction
By Ingo Hessel
Photography by Dieter Hessel
Douglas & McIntyre
198 pages (sc)
$45
From a tiny ivory maskette carved by the Arctic's ancient inhabitants, to contemporary works created using both traditional and non-traditional styles and mediums, Inuit Art: An Introduction uses a mix of text and photographs…
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In British Columbia, a mobile diabetes unit is on the road, and sometimes, in a plane, to bring eye exams to remote communities.
It began in early 2002 as a pilot project operated by the First Nations Chiefs' Health Committee in partnership with the University of British Columbia Department of Ophthalmology, Health Canada's First Nations and Inuit Health Branch and the…
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The second annual Caring for the Caregivers conference in Williams Lake was held on Feb. 17 to 19 at the Nenqayni Treatment Centre.
This year's conference was hosted by the centre and by Punky Lake Wilderness Camp Society's Eagle HEART program. Thirty-six front-line workers were present as Cpl. Mike Legault from the RCMP North District Drug Awareness Service give an…