Latest news with #Métis
CBC
7 hours ago
- Politics
- CBC
Northern Ontario First Nations group releases report to challenge Métis claims to the region
A new report commissioned by the Wabun Tribal Council says there is no historical evidence of Métis communities on their territory — a direct challenge to the Métis Nation of Ontario's claims to the region and part of the council's effort to build a legal case against those claims. The report was commissioned by the council, which represents six First Nations in northern Ontario, about a year ago and examines documents from 1794 to 1906 to determine if a Métis community existed on the territory claimed by Wabun nations anytime before 1906. Executive Director Jason Batise says its findings support what many First Nations in the region have said for years. "There are no Métis communities, no historic Métis communities, or otherwise in the traditional lands of the Wabun First Nation communities," Batise said. The Wabun Tribal Council represents Matachewan, Brunswick House, Chapleau Ojibwe, Flying Post, Mattagami and Beaverhouse First Nations, whose traditional lands span an area roughly between Chapleau, Kirkland Lake and Timmins. The Métis, a distinct Indigenous people with a shared culture, traditions and language, emerged in the late 1700s in what is now western Canada. Their communities outside this area, including in Ontario, are contentious. An ongoing debate Roughly six years ago, the Metis Nation of Ontario and the provincial government announced the identification of historic Métis communities. One of those communities is the Abitibi Inland Historic Métis Community, located primarily within Wabun territory and the council's main source of frustration. According to Ontario and MNO, this Métis community developed among a scattered series of interconnected trading posts between Moose Factory on the James Bay coast in the north and the Temiskaming region in the south. Batise argues the new report challenges Métis community claims, stating that mixed Indigenous ancestry alone does not constitute a legitimate Indigenous community. To be recognized under the Constitution, the Supreme Court requires clear evidence of historic occupancy and a distinct community structure, which the Wabun report claims is absent, arguing the "tiny and shifting fur trade posts, scattered hundreds of kilometres apart could not have formed a "distinct Métis community." In a statement to CBC News, Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada said "the Supreme Court of Canada affirmed that Métis have an inherent right to self-government." In February 2023, the Government of Canada and the Metis Nation of Ontario signed a Métis Government Recognition and Self Government Implementation Agreement, recognizing the Métis Nation of Ontario as the Indigenous government for communities within Ontario. "We need to respect the First Nation rights holders," Batise said. "If Ontario and Canada want to do business in our territories, they should only be talking to the First Nations." He said it's troubling that the provincial and federal governments continue to recognize Section 35 rights — a constitutional act that recognizes and affirms existing treaty rights — for what he called "non-existent communities." Métis Nation of Ontario rejects report The rejecting of the basic facts of history to support Métis denialism in Ontario needs to end, said Jacques Picotte, Métis Nation of Ontario Regional Councillor for the Abitibi Inland Historic Métis Community. In a statement to CBC News, Picotte points to the period leading up to the signing of Treaty 9 in 1906, where Métis in the Abitibi Inland region petitioned to be recognized as a distinct group and to be provided Métis Scrip, similar to what communities in western Canada were provided. "These half-breed petitions from the Abitibi Inland region, like those signed by half-breeds at Penetanguishene, Sault Ste. Marie and elsewhere in Ontario, were ignored by the Crown," Picotte said in his statement. Notably, government officials in the early 20th Century repeatedly recognized the injustice "half-breeds" in Ontario faced." The First Nations that make up Wabun Council are signatories to Treaty 9 and Picotte believes to honour that agreement, which states signatories "will maintain peace between each other and between themselves and other tribes of Indians… whether Indians, half-breeds or whites," Wabun council needs to sit down and talk with the Métis. "'If treaties are sacred and solemn documents signed by Indigenous peoples and the Crown, which the MNO acknowledges they are, why are some First Nations choosing to ignore some of the words in their treaties as well as parts of the history that led to the making of their treaties in Ontario?" asked Picotte in his statement. He said the leadership of Wabun First Nations have already spent over $250,000 on a previous report on the same topic. "After spending all of that money and after years of attempting to discredit the MNO, nothing has changed. The facts of history will not change because a new 'expert' has been paid to peddle the same Métis denialism," Picotte said. In 2021, the Métis National Council –– comprised of the Ontario nation, the Métis Nation-Saskatchewan, the Otipemisiwak Métis Government and the Métis Nation British Columbia — commissioned an expert panel whose mandate was to investigate the seven historic Métis communities in northern Ontario. According to MNO's website, "the final report unambiguously confirms generations of shared culture, kinship, and political alliances between Métis communities in Ontario and those further west." A broader legal and political dispute The Ontario government is required to consult with Indigenous peoples when it comes to mining and forestry and other developments on their territory, which includes Métis communities in northern Ontario – something the Wabun Tribal Council has opposed. As for the Métis Nation of Ontario, it maintains it has a right to be consulted is based on its historic and ongoing presence in the province and that all Indigenous peoples should be respected equally. The new report, Batise said, will form part of a broader legal challenge against both the provincial and federal governments, "on the existence of MNO's claims of historic Métis communities in our area." "We're being careful," Batise said. "We want to have our research tidy and concise when we finally launch our claim." Picotte said despite the new report, the negotiated agreements between Canada and the Métis of Ontario remain in place. "Métis communities in Ontario — and the MNO as a federally recognized Métis government — aren't going anywhere," he said.
Winnipeg Free Press
19 hours ago
- General
- Winnipeg Free Press
‘Helping neighbours'
North End One non-profit is aiming to help mitigate furniture poverty through community connection, understanding, and a lot of elbow sweat. The North End-based Oyate Tipi Cumini Yape — which is Oji-Cree for 'where the community meets sharing and recycling' — furniture bank was founded in 2004, but has made remarkable growth since 2022. In recent years, the non-profit has more than doubled its staff, developed several volunteering and internship programs with post-secondary schools such as MITT and the University of Manitoba, and has grown to what's now 49 local referral partners, which connect them to those in need of furniture. 'It's a closed-door issue,' said Greg Georgeson, executive director, of furniture poverty. 'People don't really know it's happening … how many families are struggling.' Imagine a teenager, for example, Georgeson said, housed but without a bed, furniture, utensils to cook or clean with, or any of the objects needed to make a house, a home. 'It hits all the bases,' he said — self-esteem, mental and physical health, and motivation to excel in school or work. As well, people in poverty who are housed but don't have furniture at home are far more likely to return to homelessness — 'over 80 per cent,' Georgeson said, due to a lack of community. As someone who's experienced furniture poverty himself, Georgeson can also speak to how common it is, especially in the city's core. People who come through Oyate Tipi are referred by one of the partners, interviewed, and then welcomed into the centre at 429 Dufferin Ave. to browse and 'shop' through the collection of clean, repaired, (environmentally conscious) pest-controlled couches, chairs, beds and bedding, china and dishes, utensils, and more. Although most are donated — from individuals, as well as IKEA — many of the bedframes are also made on-site in a woodworking room by volunteers. Over 185 beds have been made over the last month, according to Georgeson, by 20 to 30 volunteers on any given day. Many of the volunteers involved in programs at the organization are also from the same communities Oyate Tipi aims to serve: Indigenous youth, members of the 2SLGBTQ+ community, youth who have been through the justice system, and those living in downtown neighbourhoods, to name a few. As well, youth volunteerism, as well as internships, at the bank can often pave the way for becoming paid staff in the future. The very personalized, friendly experience, as well as giving autonomy to participants and volunteers, is what Oyate Tipi has a heavy focus on. 'You can't connect to community by providing things, connection is the broken part,' said Lyle Mustard, communications co-ordinator. 'While our primary resource is providing resources, it's community connection that's important.' Mustard is Métis, and stressed the importance of the furniture bank's role in Indigenous communities, as many participants are facing generational trauma and a loss of stability due to the lasting impact of residential schools. Photo by Emma Honeybun Oyate Tipi Cumini Yape is a referral-based furniture bank in the North End. Alongside helping those facing furniture poverty, it provides volunteer and internship opportunities for youth living in the area, as well as temporary storage for those moving away from unsafe living situations. He said that the way Oyate Tipi aims to help people is to help them like neighbours, because oftentimes, they are. Mondays A weekly look at news and events that matter in your communities. 'This is real life,' he said. 'We have people with lived experiences.' Alongside the furniture bank and volunteering programming, Oyate Tipi provides education through talks and seminars and offers temporary storage for those in the process of moving out of unsafe situations. People interested in volunteering either independently or through their workplace are encouraged to reach out. The organization also accepts monetary donations and furniture donations for the bank. Furniture pick-up comes with a fee, which goes toward staff wages and keeping the organization afloat. For more information, visit or follow @oyatetipi on Instagram and Facebook. Emma Honeybun Emma Honeybun is a reporter/photographer for the Free Press Community Review. She graduated RRC Polytech's creative communications program, with a specialization in journalism, in 2023. Email her at Read full biography Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber. Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
Hamilton Spectator
a day ago
- Politics
- Hamilton Spectator
B.C. Coastal First Nations write to Carney, asking him to reject any new pipeline
VANCOUVER - Coastal First Nations in British Columbia have issued an open letter to Prime Minister Mark Carney, asking him to reject any new proposal for a crude oil pipeline to the northwest coast. The move comes as Alberta Premier Danielle Smith pushes for a new private-sector pipeline that would send crude oil to the northern B.C. coast for export to Asia. Marilyn Slett, president of the Coastal First Nations-Great Bear Initiative, says in a news release that there is no pipeline or oil tanker project that would be acceptable to their group, and any proposal to send crude oil through their coastal waters is a 'non-starter.' The group is asking Carney to uphold the 2019 Oil Tanker Moratorium Act, which prohibits oil tankers carrying more than 12,500 metric tons of crude from stopping, loading or unloading at ports or marine installations along the north coast. It says the act is Canada's recognition of more than 50 years of effort to protect the north Pacific coast, which includes the Great Bear Rainforest and Haida Gwaii, from the risks of an oil spill. The nations say they have not changed their stance since oil tankers were banned from their territorial waters in 2010 based on ancestral laws, rights and responsibilities. The group says the north Pacific coast has one of the richest and most productive cold-water marine ecosystems on Earth, and it remains a source of sustenance, culture, and livelihood for coastal communities and all B.C. residents. The group has instead suggested the prime minister meet with them to 'better understand the credible ecological treasure that is the north Pacific coast.' The letter comes less than a week after Carney met hundreds of First Nations chiefs, where he faced resistance to the Building Canada Act, which allows the government to fast track major projects that it deems to be in the national interest, including by sidestepping existing laws. A news release from the Prime Minister's Office on Tuesday, after he met with premiers in Ontario, says Carney will 'continue meeting with key stakeholders over the coming weeks to ensure big projects are built in full partnership with First Nations, Inuit, and Métis, and to build one Canadian economy.' This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 22, 2025.
Hamilton Spectator
2 days ago
- Hamilton Spectator
BC First Nations Justice Council Opens an Indigenous Diversion Centre on Lheidli T'enneh territory (Prince George, BC)
Lheidli T'enneh Territory, Prince George, BC, July 22, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — The BC First Nations Justice Council (BCFNJC) opens the doors to the Indigenous Diversion Centre (IDC) on Lheidli T'enneh territory, commonly known as Prince George. The IDC is the first of its kind in Canada, hosting an innovative pilot program that will divert Indigenous people from criminal justice system involvement and instead offer pathways to accountability, healing and support. 'Standing up BC's first Indigenous Diversion Centre, in Lheidli T'enneh territory, is a milestone achievement in the advancement of Indigenous-led justice reform. The BC First Nations Justice Strategy, under Strategy 1, has a presumption of diversion as a core justice value that can break harmful cycles, decrease Indigenous representation in jails, and help Indigenous people access culturally appropriate supports and resources. We hold up First Nations and Indigenous communities, the justice partners, and the collaborators for supporting a clear pathway to this work. Our team is dedicated and ready to work hard to realize the success of these programs.'—Kory Wilson (Hemas Kla-Lee-Lee-Kla), Chair, BC First Nations Justice Council With financial support offered through Public Safety Canada's Northern and Indigenous Crime Prevention Fund (NICPF), the IDC now offers a post-release diversion program that follows an indigenous ceremonial modality that focuses on the root causes of offending by providing a caring cultural environment where true rehabilitation and healing can occur. The IDC houses a trauma-informed multidisciplinary team of dedicated professionals who will support IDC participants in conflict with the law avoid the revolving-door of arrest, prosecution and incarceration. The IDC serves First Nations, Métis and Inuit adults residing in Prince George in two streams: Post-Release Diversion Program Individuals who are released from a correctional centre can struggle to reintegrate, without dedicated supports and a sense of belonging. Indigenous adults who are leaving Provincial and Federal correctional facilities and have plans to reside in Prince George are welcome at the Centre to access our wide range of services and supports. The post-release program is now open. Pre-Charge Diversion Program (coming soon) In partnership with Prince George RCMP, the program will divert Indigenous people from being charged with an eligible offence and instead offer enrollment in the program. The staff will develop an individualized 90-day Diversion Plan where participants commit to a set of activities in order to have their charges dropped. Working with a dedicated social worker, participants can advance their long-term healing goals beyond the 90 days. The pre-charge diversion program will open in the Fall of 2025. Indigenous Diversion Centre Activities Include: The Indigenous Diversion Centre is located at 1475 10th Avenue, Prince George, BC. More information can be found online here. While the centre is now open with the post-release program running, IDC staff are planning for a formal grand opening, with a community open house in the Fall of 2025 to coincide with the launch of the Pre-Charge Diversion Program. -30- Quick Facts ABOUT THE BCFNJC The BC First Nations Justice Council (BCFNJC) was created by the BC Assembly of First Nations, the First Nations Summit, and the Union of BC Indian Chiefs who together form the First Nations Leadership Council (FNLC). BCFNJC represents BC First Nations on justice-related issues to bring about transformative change to the legal system. BCFNJC is guided by the unique and comprehensive BC First Nations Justice Strategy (the Strategy) which was jointly developed by the BC First Nations Justice Council, BC First Nations communities and the Province of British Columbia. The Strategy advances 25 individual strategies along two tracks of change: reforming the current criminal justice system and restoring Indigenous justice systems, legal traditions, and structures. Today, BCFNJC is an expanding non-profit organization guided by the vision and voices of Indigenous leadership, including our Elders and Knowledge Keepers. Our team members, who have diverse professional, cultural, and community expertise are working hard to implement the Justice Strategy and advance Indigenous self-determination over justice. With the direction and support of First Nations communities, work will continue to transform the mainstream colonial justice system and champion innovative, Indigenous-led justice solutions. Visit Tracking Justice for more information. Attachments
Hamilton Spectator
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Hamilton Spectator
Back to Batoche wraps up successful celebration of Métis culture
Back to Batoche opened the final day of celebrations with the procession of the President's Cabin to the graveyard at the Batoche Historic Site. Back to Batoche Days are held annually to commemorate the 1885 Northwest Resistance. It has grown into one of the largest Métis cultural gatherings in Canada. Métis Nation Saskatchewan President Glen McCallum said after the procession that Métis history and the history of the Northwest Resistance is important to celebrate. 'If you take a look at the history of the Métis Nation and Batoche, this is a very interesting place. It's got rich history,' McCallum said. He said that the resistance was defeated, but the culture is still alive. '(Louis) Riel fought here and stood up for the rights of Métis, and to be able to see people gathering here from right across Canada.' According to estimates, on Sunday nearly 40,000 people attended Back to Batoche from July 17 to July 20. McCallum said the annual event helps tell the story of the Metis people. It also helps introduce Metis culture to the rest of Canada. 'That story goes out there, and it hits home to us,' he explained. 'There were people arriving just for the day. I heard about it and they said, 'We're not Metis. We're non-Indigenous. We heard about it. We're here. We're going to come back.' This has to be shared because it's for everyone.' McCalllum said working with governments has helped the Saskatchewan Métis get land back. He said there are roughly 1,900 acres across the river and on the Batoche side. 'We have the historic site working side by side,' McCallum said. 'We're getting crowded, but we're good at that because of the good story that's leaving Batoche with the people that come to visit. It's going to continue to grow.' The weekend included cultural celebrations, music, a jigging contest on Sunday, and sports like slow pitch, the Canadian Professional Chuckwagon Association (CPCA), and a rodeo. The last day of CPCA races were cancelled due to rain. 'I look forward to the future in regards to the well-being of our Métis people and the celebration that we have here,' McCallum said. McCallum added that MN-S continues to work with the Federal and Provincial governments, industry and institutions to keep the MN-S name present. During the weekend Premier Scott Moe and other dignitaries came to the annual celebration with Moe speaking at Friday's opening ceremonies. McCallum said he had a very good meeting with Moe, and is confident the MN-S will continue to work well with the province. Going forward, McCallum expects the MN-S to sign harvesting agreements with the government. He said they are also working on health and economic development agreements. 'There are a lot of things we're going to be doing even with the First Nations in Southern Saskatchewan, (and) we have five reserves that we work with in Northern Saskatchewan,' McCallum said. He gave examples of several North Saskatchewan entities like Cameco and Dennison Mines that the MN-S is working with. 'They're all coming to hear us out and hear our story, but more importantly, sign agreements to be able to benefit from what's going on in Saskatchewan,' he said. The Procession pays tribute to those who lost their lives in the Battle of Batoche and are buried at the cemetery on the Historic Site. The Battle of Batoche was a decisive event in Métis history. The Battle of Batoche saw an alliance of First Nations and Métis people against the Canadian militia as part of the North-West Rebellion. The militia was victorious in the battle, which led to the capture of Métis leader Louis Riel, who was eventually executed. McCallum said it is important to remember that history. 'We have to remind people this is actually what happened and to be happy,' he explained. 'We can't be sad all the time. It was a sad moment, but at the same time life continues and the Métis people keep growing and the more that we grow, the more we get to participate in other areas with Metis and First Nations and non-Indigenous people. That's a beautiful thing to see.' After the procession made its way to the cemetery there was a ceremony that included people bringing their Metis sashes to be place on the gravesite. One young boy volunteered his sash which caused a large group of people to give their sashes to the memorial. The MN-S also partners with school divisions in Saskatchewan, including the Saskatchewan Rivers School Division to grow the Michif language. Saskatchewan Rivers offers the Michif language at Queen Mary and St. Louis Public School. McCallum said that MN-S has been able to tap into both Catholic and Public school divisions. 'It's through those organizations that represent schools from elementary to high school, and those are the places that we have to negotiate with, sign agreements, and support them in regards to carrying the language forward,' McCallum said. 'We need to promote it (Michif) more, (and) tell the story of how important that language is.' McCallum said his weekend was busy with interviews and sharing the Métis story. 'It is beautiful. I like people coming to see and to be able to be on the ground and ask these questions and to be able to work together as Canadians. Let's try as much as we can to be able to understand each other more, no matter where we come from, First Nations, Métis, Inuit or non-Indigenous. Let's work together and somehow come with a plan that works for everyone,' McCallum said. Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. 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