Indigenous

Cheam meadows trail near Mt. Cheam by Chilliwack. (Submitted)

Cheam First Nation ‘shocked’ over all-season mountain resort proposal near Chilliwack

For five years the band has been working on a gondola project of their own

 

Protesters occupied a road leading to Fairy Creek Watershed near Port Renfrew. (Submitted photo)

B.C. First Nation says logging activist interference not welcome at Fairy Creek

Vancouver Island’s Pacheedaht concerned about increasing polarization over forestry activities

 

North Vancouver-Lonsdale MLA Bowinn Ma is going public about anti-Indigenous correspondence she’s received after the province granted Indigenous people 18 and older vaccination priority. (File photo)

MLA receives racist emails after B.C. prioritizes Indigenous people for COVID-19 vaccine

Bowinn Ma says the amount of anti-Indigenous sentiments she’s received in emails ‘has gone through the roof’

 

FILE – A vial of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine is displayed at a pop-up vaccine clinic for EMS workers Center in Salt Lake City on January 5, 2021. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP, Rick Bowmer

All Indigenous adults in B.C. now eligible for COVID-19 vaccine

No proof of ancestry is required

FILE – A vial of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine is displayed at a pop-up vaccine clinic for EMS workers Center in Salt Lake City on January 5, 2021. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP, Rick Bowmer
A view of the West Coast Trail near Nitinat Lake. (David Enstrom - Wikipedia Commons)

B.C.’s iconic West Coast Trail to re-open to visitors in June 2021

Trail has been closed since early 2020 to due COVID-19 concerns

A view of the West Coast Trail near Nitinat Lake. (David Enstrom - Wikipedia Commons)
Indigenous lobster boats head from the harbour in Saulnierville, N.S., on Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS /Andrew Vaughan

Mi’kmaq lawsuit alleges intimidation, harassment in Nova Scotia lobster fishery

Among the named defendants are the Bay of Fundy Inshore Fishermen’s Association and more than two dozen owners

Indigenous lobster boats head from the harbour in Saulnierville, N.S., on Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS /Andrew Vaughan
Wes Lambert poses in this undated handout photo. Wes Lambert’s heart stopped at his wedding reception in Saskatoon 15 years ago. I got up to go to the podium, and I did not make it,” he recalls. He was 50 years old, an unusually young age for a cardiac arrest. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO, Wes Lambert *MANDATORY CREDIT*

Saskatchewan research shows First Nations suffer cardiac arrest at younger age

Some risk factors that lead to heart attacks are higher in the Indigenous population

Wes Lambert poses in this undated handout photo. Wes Lambert’s heart stopped at his wedding reception in Saskatoon 15 years ago. I got up to go to the podium, and I did not make it,” he recalls. He was 50 years old, an unusually young age for a cardiac arrest. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO, Wes Lambert *MANDATORY CREDIT*
British Columbia’s provincial flag flies on a flag pole in Ottawa, Friday July 3, 2020. Questions facing British Columbia’s mining sector shed light on what’s to come as the province works to match its laws with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

B.C. mining laws raise questions as province looks to implement UN declaration

UNDRIP requires governments to get consent before taking actions that affect Indigenous Peoples

British Columbia’s provincial flag flies on a flag pole in Ottawa, Friday July 3, 2020. Questions facing British Columbia’s mining sector shed light on what’s to come as the province works to match its laws with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld
CMA president-elect Dr. Alika Lafontaine, the Alberta-based inventor of the Safespace app that allows people to report experiences of racism within B.C.’s health-care sector. (Canadian Medical Association)

New app a ‘safe space’ for Indigenous people to report racism in B.C. health care

Data collected from anonymous reports will help identify hotspots in the province, drive solutions for change

CMA president-elect Dr. Alika Lafontaine, the Alberta-based inventor of the Safespace app that allows people to report experiences of racism within B.C.’s health-care sector. (Canadian Medical Association)
Lawyer Jack Woodward spoke on “Understanding the rights and title of Indigenous people in Canada” in an informative video conference hosted by the Campbell River Mirror March 18. Photo submitted

British Columbians in for a big adjustment with Aboriginal title settlement, lawyer says

The shift in ownership will be from what is normally called Crown ownership to Indigenous ownership

Lawyer Jack Woodward spoke on “Understanding the rights and title of Indigenous people in Canada” in an informative video conference hosted by the Campbell River Mirror March 18. Photo submitted
Alberta regional chief Marlene Poitras, left, interim Yukon regional chief Kluane Adamek, and National Chief of the Assembly of First Nations Perry Bellegarde, along with co-chairs Harold Tarbell, Racelle Kooy, and Tim Catcheway, listen as Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Carolyn Bennett, centre, speaks during the AFN Special Chiefs Assembly in Gatineau, Que., on Tuesday, May 1, 2018. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang

Indigenous communities need more mental health support in wake of COVID-19: report

A number of First Nations reported increased drug and alcohol use and relapse

Alberta regional chief Marlene Poitras, left, interim Yukon regional chief Kluane Adamek, and National Chief of the Assembly of First Nations Perry Bellegarde, along with co-chairs Harold Tarbell, Racelle Kooy, and Tim Catcheway, listen as Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Carolyn Bennett, centre, speaks during the AFN Special Chiefs Assembly in Gatineau, Que., on Tuesday, May 1, 2018. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang
Salish Orca with artwork designed by Darlene Gait from Esquimalt Nation. (Courtesy of BC Ferries)

BC Ferries calls for Coast Salish artists interested in designing elements of new ship

Succesful applicant’s artwork will appear in and on Salish Heron starting in 2022

Salish Orca with artwork designed by Darlene Gait from Esquimalt Nation. (Courtesy of BC Ferries)
The winners’ artwork from the Xyólheméylh Gratitude Art Contest will be turned into thank-you cards for the Fraser Valley Aboriginal Children and Family Services Society. (Submitted)

Winners announced in provincewide Indigenous youth ‘gratitude’ art contest by Fraser Valley society

Winners’ artwork from Xyólheméylh Gratitude Art Contest to be turned into thank-you cards

The winners’ artwork from the Xyólheméylh Gratitude Art Contest will be turned into thank-you cards for the Fraser Valley Aboriginal Children and Family Services Society. (Submitted)
A GoFundMe campaign has been started in support of Samantha Chalifoux, whose son Traevon, 17, was found dead in a closet of an Abbotsford group home in September after being reported missing four days earlier.

Mom of teen found dead in Abbotsford group home still seeking answers

GoFundMe campaign is raising money for Samantha Chalifoux’s legal fight

A GoFundMe campaign has been started in support of Samantha Chalifoux, whose son Traevon, 17, was found dead in a closet of an Abbotsford group home in September after being reported missing four days earlier.
John Morrow photos.

VIDEO: Missing and murdered Indigenous women march draws many in Abbotsford

Approximately 100 people dressed in symbolic red, slowly marched around Mill Lake

John Morrow photos.
Dee Dee Peters, cousin of missing Hope woman April Parisian, was one of about 30 people who gathered at Five Corners in Chilliwack on Saturday, March 13, 2021 for MMIW Takes Back Canada, a nationwide endeavour to draw attention to the issue of missing and murdered Indigenous women. (Jenna Hauck/ Chilliwack Progress)

VIDEO and PHOTOS: Standing in solidarity in Chilliwack for missing, murdered Indigenous women

People gathered at Five Corners for MMIW Takes Back Canada, drawing attention to nationwide issue

Dee Dee Peters, cousin of missing Hope woman April Parisian, was one of about 30 people who gathered at Five Corners in Chilliwack on Saturday, March 13, 2021 for MMIW Takes Back Canada, a nationwide endeavour to draw attention to the issue of missing and murdered Indigenous women. (Jenna Hauck/ Chilliwack Progress)
A patient care review is underway at Kitimat General Hospital after allegations a pregnant woman did not receive proper care. (Clare Rayment/Kitimat Northern Sentinel)

Northern Health denies lawsuit claim that racism played a part in baby’s death

Sarah Morrison and her partner Ronald Luft allege negligence and ‘deliberate racial indifference’

A patient care review is underway at Kitimat General Hospital after allegations a pregnant woman did not receive proper care. (Clare Rayment/Kitimat Northern Sentinel)
A ceremonial cloth with the names of 2,800 children who died in residential schools and were identified in the National Student Memorial Register, is carried to the stage during the Honouring National Day for Truth and Reconciliation ceremony in Gatineau, Quebec on Monday, Sept. 30, 2019. A new report says more than $3 billion has been paid out to victims of Canada’s notorious residential schools. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang

Final report: More than $3B paid to 38,000 survivors of residential schools

The money was paid under settlement terms of the Indian residential schools class action.

A ceremonial cloth with the names of 2,800 children who died in residential schools and were identified in the National Student Memorial Register, is carried to the stage during the Honouring National Day for Truth and Reconciliation ceremony in Gatineau, Quebec on Monday, Sept. 30, 2019. A new report says more than $3 billion has been paid out to victims of Canada’s notorious residential schools. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang
Indigenous Services Minister Marc Miller responds to a reporters question during a news conference, Wednesday, February 24, 2021 in Ottawa. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

Ottawa won’t set new deadline for providing clean water in First Nations communities

There are still 38 First Nations communities where the water isn’t considered safe to drink

Indigenous Services Minister Marc Miller responds to a reporters question during a news conference, Wednesday, February 24, 2021 in Ottawa. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld
Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Carolyn Bennett takes her seat as she wait to appear before the Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee in Ottawa on March 10, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

COVID-19 magnified systemic discrimination against Indigenous women: Bennett

Bennett said Canada’s colonial legacy has played a role in worse outcomes for Indigenous women

Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Carolyn Bennett takes her seat as she wait to appear before the Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee in Ottawa on March 10, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld