First Nation in Manitoba declares state of emergency due to drugs, violence

THOMPSON - The chief of a northern Manitoba First Nation says her community is so overwhelmed by drugs and the resulting violence that her members are living in fear.

Sayisi Dene First Nation has declared a state of emergency and is calling on provincial and federal governments for better policing and mental health and addiction supports.

The fly-in community about 325 kilometres north of Thompson sees an RCMP presence about once a month, with two officers travelling there, often for less than a day.

Chief Kelly-Ann Thom‑Duck says recent violence has members scared to visit the band office or grocery store and that previous conversations with RCMP have led "nowhere."

HBC charter goes on display at Manitoba Museum

After months of petitions, legal scrutiny and political pressure, the 1670 Hudson’s Bay Company Royal Charter has formally arrived at the Manitoba Museum, marked by a ceremony including many notable Canadian and Indigenous political leaders.

“It’s with a profound sense of gratitude and humility that I stand before you today as we recognize the gifting of the HBC Royal Charter, together with our consortium partners,” said Dorota Blumczynska, CEO of the Manitoba Museum.

“Today marks an opportunity that is not to redefine the past, but to better understand it, and to help us use it to build a more just and inclusive future.”

The 356-year-old document, which not only birthed HBC, but effectively laid a foundation for colonial Canada itself, attracted new controversies in the last year or so. After years of bleeding at the bottom line, HBC announced in March 2025 that it would begin liquidating its stores across the country and selling off its assets to pay off creditors.

Designated encampment debate returns to city hall

A city councillor is renewing efforts to identify potential locations for designated encampment sites following an Ontario court decision that could impact how homeless people are relocated in Winnipeg.

The motion, introduced by Coun. Cindy Gilroy is scheduled to go before the executive policy committee next week. It calls on the public service to examine multiple locations across Winnipeg that could be considered suitable to host encampments.

Speaking to the Free Press on Thursday, Gilroy said a recent court decision in southern Ontario has renewed the case for designated encampment sites in Winnipeg. Last month, a judge barred the Region of Waterloo from clearing an encampment in Kitchener, Ont., unless alternative housing options were made available to those living there.

“The laws are changing so dramatically,” the chair of the community safety committee said, adding she’s unsure if the city is prepared for a similar legal challenge in Winnipeg.

Millions of litres of sewage dumped into rivers after outages

Millions of litres of untreated sewage were dumped into Winnipeg rivers over the past 48 hours after Tuesday night’s massive storm caused power failures at pumping stations across the city.

HBC Royal Charter welcomed in ceremony at Manitoba Museum

WINNIPEG - A 356-year-old document that granted the Hudson's Bay Co. control over roughly one-third of Canada is now in public hands.

The HBC Royal Charter was unveiled Thursday at the Manitoba Museum in Winnipeg in a ceremony that was both a celebration of the new life of the document and a reflection on the troubled legacy it created.

"In 1670, a king, sitting across the ocean, claimed authority over our lands," said Ovide Mercredi, former national chief of the Assembly of First Nations.

"Through the so-called right of discovery, vast territories were granted to the Hudson's Bay Co., as if our lands and territories were empty. But our lands were not empty, our nations were here."

Northern First Nation purchases popular tourist lodge in Seal River watershed

The Sayisi Dene First Nation has purchased one of the largest hunting and fishing lodges in Manitoba’s Seal River Watershed, marking a return to the community’s traditional lands and an economic development opportunity for the northern nation.

The Lodge at Little Duck is nestled between Neganilini and Little Duck lakes, more than 1,000 kilometres north of Winnipeg. It is located in the Seal River watershed, a 50,000-square-kilometre subarctic ecosystem relatively untouched by industrial development, and centred on the last major river in northern Manitoba without a hydroelectric dam. A network of provincial and federal parks has been proposed to protect the region.

“The Sayisi Dene people have a real connection to the lands, especially around where the lodge sits,” Chief Kelly-Ann Thom-Duck said in an interview. “We have plans to use the area and see where it goes.”

The fly-in hunting, fishing and eco-tourism destination has its own airstrip, lounge and cabins. Manager Shawn Paul said it regularly welcomes more than 100 guests every summer and fall for guided caribou hunts and fishing trips.

WAG-Qaumajuq exhibition offers fresh perspective on history of Indigenous representation in art

A new exhibition at WAG-Qaumajuq invites viewers to grapple with two simultaneous histories of Indigenous presence in art.

Reframed, which opened Wednesday, takes settler art of Indigenous people shaped by colonial perspectives of the time and contrasts it with modern-day contemporary work from Indigenous artists who challenge those perspectives.

Many historical paintings create a vague representation of Indigenous people by homogenizing the culture and erasing historical presence, says Marie-Anne Redhead, assistant curator of Indigenous and contemporary art.

“I wanted to highlight Indigenous perspectives on these artworks to really see these people as people,” she said.

Tory MP says 4,000 letters sent urging Carney to amend Indian Act status rules

OTTAWA - A Conservative MP says more than 4,000 letters have been sent to the House of Commons committee on Indigenous issues demanding that the federal government immediately change the way First Nations status works under the Indian Act.

MP Billy Morin, the former chief of Enoch Cree Nation who serves as the Conservative party's critic of Indigenous Services, echoed those calls in a letter he sent to Prime Minister Mark Carney this week.

The committee, known as INAN, is studying legislation that would change the rules establishing who is entitled to First Nations status under the Indian Act. It was introduced in the Senate as S-2 and initially had support from the governing Liberals.

The legislation was drafted to eliminate some gender inequities in the Indian Act and allow some 3,500 people to become eligible for First Nations status.

At 356, the HBC charter is about to get a Manitoba Museum welcome

When Hudson's Bay faltered last year, Manitoba Museum CEO Dorota Blumczynska didn't even need to look at the institution's bank accounts to know it couldn't afford to buy the royal charter that formed Canada's oldest business.

Inuit group calls for overhaul of Nutrition North, poverty reduction frameworks

OTTAWA - The organization representing Inuit in Canada says the federal government program meant to subsidize the high cost of food in the North isn't working and should be scrapped.

The call to shut down Nutrition North is part of Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami's new poverty reduction strategy, released Tuesday.

The report says the program has failed to improve food security in Inuit Nunangat, the Inuit homelands, and that its fragmented approach is not fully aligned with Inuit priorities.

"It's a scattershot approach in a policy environment that is begging for specific intervention," ITK president Natan Obed told The Canadian Press.

Quebec municipalities and environmentalists say province’s water reserves are at risk

A group of environmental organizations and municipalities is worried that Quebec’s groundwater reserves are dwindling due to overconsumption and the effects of climate change.

In an open letter sent to the environment minister, the 12 municipalities and nine environmental organizations say the province is consuming more groundwater than is being replenished.

The municipalities, located along the Saint-Lawrence valley, say Quebec has taken its renewable freshwater for granted and are calling on the government to trigger a province-wide evaluation and increase regulation.

“In Quebec, we have long believed that water was an infinite resource. Gone are the days of rose-tinted glasses,” they wrote in the letter.

Legislation to create Manitoba-Indigenous Crown corporation pending as some First Nations express concerns

Legislation to create a new Crown corporation is hung up, in part, on First Nations’ concerns the entity would override the government’s duty to consult individual nations before launching projects.

“We’re having challenges, I think, creating an endorsement or support for… the draft legislation,” said Grand Chief Jerry Daniels of the Southern Chiefs’ Organization that represents 33 First Nations.

Negotiations are underway on legislation to create the Manitoba Crown-Indigenous Corp., which will work with Ottawa’s Major Projects Office and Arctic Gateway Group on the proposed expansion of the Port of Churchill.

The southern chiefs group is part of a board that meets regularly with the provincial government; Indigenous Futures Minister Ian Bushie deemed the group the interim Manitoba Crown-Indigenous Corp.

Bishop of the Arctic: Christopher Williams immersed himself in northern culture

Born on May 22, 1936, in Sale, England, John Christopher Richard Williams arrived in Kugluktuk in 1960 at the age of 24.

His journey north began with what his son Drew described as a chance encounter in a student dormitory room, when he came across a handmade ceramic coin bank shaped like an igloo — a fundraising display for the Diocese of the Arctic.

Williams’ decision to ask what the coin bank was, Drew said, “ended up being either the stupidest or most significant question he would ever ask in his life.” That moment led to a deeper conversation about ministry in the North and the need for clergy in isolated communities.

Moving away from plans for a career in advertising, he instead immersed himself in northern culture, becoming fluent in Inuktitut and later working alongside colleagues to translate portions of the Old Testament, helping to make religious texts more accessible in the language.

Saying ‘no’ to AI data centre a huge win for Manitoba — and Kinew

It’s a tale of two provinces — and two artificial intelligence data centre mega-projects.

Limited interest in latest oil and gas lease sale for Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge

JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — Two corporations bid on a handful of leases during the latest oil and gas lease sale in Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge on Friday, a showing critics described as tepid but one that further opens the door to possible development in the pristine region.

The Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority, a state corporation that already has leases in the refuge's coastal plain, had the winning bid on three tracts and Hex Energy LLC on two, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management announced. The tracts cover about 72,000 acres. Nearly 690,000 acres had been offered. Winning bids totaled $3.7 million.

The federal agency's state director, Kevin Pendergast, said a “new era of active leasing and exploration is just beginning to unfold.”

While there is no active drilling underway, the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority’s board last month authorized additional spending for efforts including a seismic survey program aimed at locating oil formations, as well as lease purchases in this latest sale. A message seeking comment from Hex Energy was not immediately returned.

SCO-led app Miikahnah Connect links Indigenous workers to labour demand

As Jay Sanderson turned to face his job site, evidence of his work stared back — plywood replacing windows at the former Hudson’s Bay Co. flagship store downtown.

Lately, he’s been in the basement.

He’s working with several First Nations members on the construction of Wehwehneh Bahgahkinahgohn, the Southern Chiefs’ Organization’s revamp of the old Bay site.

Construction on the facility — which will include housing and a childcare centre, among other things— is slated for another two-and-a-half years, according to SCO’s grand chief.

Ottawa pumps the brakes on proposed changes to major project environmental reviews

OTTAWA - The federal government is pumping the brakes on its proposed changes to how major projects are reviewed, and says it won't table legislation on the changes until the fall.

Last month Ottawa released two discussion papers which proposed, among other things, approving major projects before they’re reviewed and exempting certain projects from laws meant to protect species at risk.

It also proposed taking the responsibility for reviewing pipelines, transmission lines and offshore renewable energy projects away from the Impact Assessment Agency and handing it to the Canada Energy Regulator.

The federal government has said it has been told by industry that the level of expertise on energy projects that lived at the Canada Energy Regulator couldn’t be found at the Impact Assessment Agency.

Early childhood educators discuss First Nations students’ needs

Early childhood educators traded tips to improve attendance and well-being among First Nations students and their families at a first-of-its-kind event in Winnipeg.

The University of Winnipeg hosted an inaugural roundtable for ECEs to share their challenges and successes related to Indigenous education on Tuesday.

“The limited assessment data that we do have shows Indigenous children are not doing as well in life as other children and so we need to pick it up,” said Sheri-Lynn Skwarchuk, a professor who oversees the developmental studies program.

The facilitator described the gathering of nearly 50 women, including front-line workers, centre co-ordinators and post-secondary instructors, as a momentous occasion for their shared profession.

Indigenous speakers, politicians watching audit of languages office closely

OTTAWA - Indigenous language speakers and political leaders say they were disappointed to learn a landmark Indigenous languages office is under investigation after the federal government received anonymous complaints.

The Canadian Heritage department has ordered a financial audit of transactions and activities at the Office of the Commissioner of Indigenous Languages, The Canadian Press reported earlier this week.

The department has not elaborated on the specific allegations made against the office, an arm's-length body that was set up five years ago in response to a recommendation by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. The department has said it has contracted an independent third-party firm to conduct the audit and has notified Commissioner Ronald Ignace.

One Indigenous language speaker said part of the problem with organizations like the commissioner's office is that they're accountable to the federal government, not to Indigenous people.

AFN chief rebukes Alberta separation talks in meeting with King Charles

OTTAWA - The national chief of the Assembly of First Nations rebuked the Alberta separation movement during a meeting with King Charles at Buckingham Palace on Tuesday.

"The King was there with us in unison, that First Nations are foundational partners in the creation of Canada, and our relationship cannot be changed or moved just from politics," Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak told The Canadian Press in an interview.

"As long as the sun shines, the grass grows and the river flows, we're all treaty people in Canada."

The Alberta government is putting forward a referendum in October asking voters if they want to remain part of Canada or to pursue a second binding referendum on separating from Canada.

Peace, justice and bringing this country together

From the War of 1812 to today, no one has stood up for this country and worked for unity in this place more than Indigenous Peoples.

Even residential school couldn’t erase who Christina Henderson was

Over her life, Christina Gladys Henderson was known by a few names.

She was born Aug. 6, 1948, as Teenie Cook, to Adam Cook and Violet Quill, and lived her early years in Sapotaweyak Cree Nation, on the shore of Lake Winnipegosis, about 600 kilometres northwest of Winnipeg.

She would later adopt the name Tina, which most people called her, and later, Christina. In marriage, she would trade the surname Cook for Henderson.

Over her 77 years, however, one part of her identity did not change: Henderson would hold fast to her first language, Swampy Cree, despite more than a decade spent in residential schools — institutions that routinely punished and humiliated First Nations children for speaking their own languages.