Calgary News Briefs - September, 2015

Bison treaty signed at Banff Indian Days

On Aug. 13 First Nations from both Canada and the United States met in Banff welcoming the Stoney Nakoda and Samson Cree to sign a treaty to reintroduce bison to areas where they once roamed. Last September, 11 tribe leaders from Montana and Alberta signed the agreement known as the Buffalo Treaty, the first treaty signed among the tribes since the 1800s. The aim of the treaty is to allow the buffalo to roam freely across the Rockies and Great Plains, restoring the animal’s spiritual, economic and food role in First Nations life. Historically, the buffalo played a central role in hunting, ceremony and cultural life. Along with agreeing to work together for bison restoration and grassland conservation on tribal lands, the treaty encourages youth education and cultural restoration among the First Nations.

Clinic helps fentanyl addict on Blood First Nation

When Kevin Shouting discovered Roxanne Blood and Tim Eagle Speaker, parents of four children, had overdosed on what was believe to be fentanyl, also known as Oxy80s, he decided to make a change. Since May, he has sought treatment at a Blood Tribe clinic for his fentanyl addiction, receiving suboxone, an opioid replacement. Dr. Susan Christenson, who has been practicing medicine on the reserve at her Lavern townsite clinic since 2006, says it is difficult to overdose on suboxone unless it is combined with alcohol or other opioids. Because of the number of deaths on the reserve, she has faced little resistance to its use. Doctors believe that suboxone and methadone are treatments that help with withdrawal as those who detox are at a high risk of relapsing. Since Christenson has set up her suboxone clinic, there have been fewer overdoses on the reserve. Shouting also lost a cousin and close friend to fentanyl, linked to an estimated 30 Blood tribe member deaths. The treatment has helped Shouting turn his life around. He has been accepted into Mount Royal University’s social work program with an eye to becoming an addictions counsellor. Among other steps the community has taken include increased patrols, a 24-hour crisis line, and an overdose reversal medication, naloxone. The fentanyl death toll continues to rise with 145 fatal overdoses reported in Alberta in the first six months of this year.

Motorists charged toll for short-cutting through reserve land

A serious crash on Aug. 24 which closed the Trans-Canada highway for about eight hours, saw some motorists begin detouring through the Morley reserve.  Ken Christensen, tribal administrator with the Stoney Nakoda First Nation, told CTV News, “Nation members own the reserve dn people were illegally – and I want to emphasize illegally – on the reserve using it as a detour route.” Considered to be trespassers on reserve lands, the motorists encountered blockades and were charged a toll to pass through. Tolls of $10-$20 were charged to those not following the proper detour to a public highway through the reserve. Calling the detour and incident “unfortunate,” Premier Rachel Notley said, “We have to acknowledge that First Nations have rights on their reserve land akin to, or greater than, certainly private property owners. And you know, they are going to make those decisions and we don’t have jurisdiction on that.”

Elder in the Making to Screen at CIFF

Director Chris Hsiung’s feature documentary Elder in the Making has been selected to premiere at Calgary International Film Festival which runs from Sept. 23-Oct. 4. Co-produced by Cowboy Smithx, the documentary was inspired by The Making of Treaty 7. The documentary brings together two travel companions, a Blackfoot Aboriginal named Cowboy and a Chinese-Canadian newcomer, Chris, who set out on a spiritual journey of discovery through Blackfoot territory. Cowboy Smithx begins to understand his Blackfoot ancestry and missing identity, marked by the letter X. Travelling through the land, his search leads him to explore the meaning and responsibilities of becoming an Elder. Chris also embarks on his own journey of self-discovery, learning about Aboriginal history and the signing of Treaty 7 at Blackfoot Crossing. Narcisse Blood, Wes Olsen, Herman Yellow Old Woman and Alvine Mountainhorse also appear in the film, with music performed by Kris Demeanor, Crack Band and Eya-Hey Nakoda. 

Photo caption: (From left) are Leroy Little Bear of the Blood Tribe; Wesley Band Nakoda Chief Ernest Wesley; Wildlife Conservation Society Vice President, Species Conservation Elizabeth Bennett (signing as witness to treaty); Chief Kurt Buffalo from the Samson Cree First Nation and Narvil Kootenay from the Bearspaw band of the Stoney Nakoda Nation.