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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.
Simon still playing
Chris Simon didn’t have to wait for National Hockey League officials to sort out their labour situation in order to begin his current season. That’s because for the fifth straight year, an Ojibwe from Wawa, Ont., finds himself playing in the primarily Russian-based Kontinental Hockey League (KHL).
Simon, who is turning 40 in January, is toiling…
The Langley school district will continue to expand its Aboriginal-focused education program in 2012-13.
The program, which dates back to a 2010 Aboriginal Enhancement Agreement, teaches students about Aboriginal traditions, spirituality and culture.
“The program is very tied to Aboriginal spirituality,” said Sandy Wakeling, Langley school district’s communications manager,…
If a new education system is to be put in place that will fully benefit First Nations children, it has to be First Nations-driven and in “true partnership” with the federal government.
“There are no two sides when we’re trying to work on a true partnership and a good relationship so a child can benefit,” said Morley Googoo, regional chief for Nova Scotia and Newfoundland, who holds the…
When Juno-award winning country music star George Canyon was a kid, all he dreamed about was becoming a pilot. He strongly felt, he said, that he needed to serve the country and be in the Air Force.
At age 12 he enlisted in the Air Cadets.
The singer, who hails from the country’s East Coast, described his first flight. It was in a glider and he loved it, he said. He was soon in a…
With no album, radio play or front-person to fall back on, Beat Nation Live is hard to quantify: A musical trickster of sorts.
The live hip-hop shows are electrifying. This all-Indigenous crew, from nations across Turtle Island, spit rhymes as other members create traditional-style art with both spray paint and iPads on digital screens. They’ve made themselves at home everywhere from…
One of Canada’s poorest First Nation communities is next door to a diamond mine that is expected to produce six million carats of rough diamonds in its lifetime. The First Nation, Attawapiskat, made inter-national headlines in October 2011 when Chief Theresa Spence declared a state of emergency because of a severe housing crisis.
Several of Attawapiskat’s citizens, including elders and…
Holy man lived by "hollow bone" philosophy
Few holy people have been as open about their spiritual practices as Frank Fools Crow, the ceremonial chief of the Teton Sioux who allowed his powers to be written about in books by non-Native authors.
Assuming no ownership of his supernatural abilities–always affirming the “source of power is not ourselves”–Fools Crow…
The hypnotic thump of powwow drums dominates the opening of “Electric Pow Wow,” the emblematic track of Ottawa electronic crew A Tribe Called Red (ATCR), recently nominated for Canada’s prestigious Polaris Prize.
Within half-a-minute, the drums and jingles of this representative track coalesce with the pitch-shifting warble of a heavily distorted synthesizer bass-line. Powwow singers…
On Sept. 5, Grand Chief Konrad Siouï of the Huron-Wendat nation in Wendake celebrated three events of great cultural and historic significance, not just for his nation but for the country.
The grand chief chose to honour a great man of his nation, François Vincent Kiowarini (1944-2009), Kiowarini’s ancestor Grand Chief Nicolas Vincent (1771-1844) and the British-Huron Treaty. Kiowarini…
Artist—Various
Song—Would You Do Today
Album—Honouring Our Heroes: A Tribute to Métis Veterans
Year—2012
The Gabriel Dumont Institute has published a musical cd in Tribute to Métis Veterans with proceeds of sales going to The Métis Veterans Memorial Monument Project. So what should you expect? How about offerings from some of Canada’s most well known and accomplished…
Windspeaker: What one quality do you most value in a friend?
Diyet: When a person is joyful that has a great ripple effect†on everyone around them. When a person is truly joyful they are in a state of honesty, they are caring and supportive and have all the qualities I’d wish for in a friend.
W: What is it that really makes you mad?
Diyet: Gossip. When we lack the ability to…
WOLF SONGS & FIRE CHATS
There’s a ceremony I do for myself every morning. Once I’m awake and have had a coffee and some time to feel my spirit moving, I gather my prayer articles, my smudging bowl, eagle wing fan and cedar, sage, tobacco and sweetgrass. I put them in the bowl, light them and go through my home offering blessings to my wife, myself, our things and saying a quiet…
THE URBANE INDIAN
I just recently got back from visiting the great state of Wisconsin. I had been asked to come and speak to a few classes at the Menominee Tribal College about my work and Native literature in general. Overall, I had a great time and met some fabulous people. This is one of the reasons I like to travel so much; the people, places and things you learn.
…Assembly of First Nations National Chief Shawn Atleo spoke passionately at a Ryerson University convocation, leaving no doubt that First Nations are frustrated with promises broken by the federal government. He said Canadians have a role to play in ensuring equitable treatment for First Nations people.
“You too can be a part of this journey. You can play an important role in…
Assembly of First Nations National Chief Shawn Atleo has repeated his call for a federal investigation into the unsolved cases of murdered and missing Aboriginal women.
“A call for a national public inquiry, that request has yet to be heeded by the federal government,” Atleo told an Aboriginal crowd of mostly women, who attended the Sisters in Spirit rally at Edmonton City Hall on Oct.…