Saigon Centre residents fear loss of Vietnamese cultural space after Manitoba Housing takeover

Longtime tenants of a social housing project built in Winnipeg for Vietnamese refugees nearly 40 years ago fear its takeover by Manitoba Housing will ruin their main-floor cultural centre.

Saigon Centre at 458 Balmoral St., which was run by the Vietnamese Non-Profit Housing Corp. since opening in 1989, was put up for sale in March because it was $3 million in arrears on its mortgage.

Manitoba Housing and Renewal Corp. is taking over the 54-unit building and the government department is working on integrating it into the provincial housing portfolio, a spokesperson confirmed recently.

While rent levels are protected under a caveat that was enacted when the building opened, residents say they’re about to lose access to their cultural centre. The large room on the main floor is used for community gatherings, health and wellness activities for seniors, festivals, language-learning classes and other events over the last four decades.

Seven of city’s 10 best-paid employees work for police

The City of Winnipeg’s 2025 compensation disclosure document, released Friday, shows seven of the top 10 highest paid employees are police officers.

Winnipeg Police Service Chief Gene Bowers earned $313,467 during his first year in the position, coming second only to an unnamed police superintendent who took home $491,926.

Collectively, WPS members earned $2.1 million of the total $2.9 million paid to the city’s highest earners, equivalent to about 72 per cent. That includes a constable ranked No. 8 in the top 10 after earning $260,234 — more than outgoing Winnipeg Fire Paramedic chief Christian Schmidt (No. 9) at $255,036.

Schmidt’s successor, Ryan Sneath, who was appointed chief this week, earned $247,432 last year.

Berry farms brave storms, eye opening days

Despite the unprecedented downpour, berry season is on in Manitoba.

Bright red strawberries have begun sprouting at Boonstra Farms — just two weeks after the Stonewall-area patch was hit by 11 inches of rain during a storm.

“Hopefully, it’ll still be an OK season,” said co-owner Danielle Boonstra. “We’re still hoping to open, probably after Canada Day.”

Torrential rain and cold temperatures have pushed strawberry picking season back to, likely, the first week of July. Haskap picking may start this weekend.

Farmers just one link in long supply chain

Farmers are hardly front and centre in newly released federal and provincial reports analyzing why food has become less affordable for many Canadians.

The word “farmers” doesn’t even appear in the Manitoba government’s Grocery Price Strategy report until Page 7.

That’s a good thing, because it signals a new level of awareness in how we collectively view the food system. The focus is shifting from front-line farmers to the largely invisible and complicated supply chain connecting field to table.

It might even change how farmers see themselves.

Le pari water-polo de Jayden Del Campo

Le water-polo est arrivé naturellement dans la vie de Jayden Del Campo. Issu d’une famille de sportifs, son père et son grand-père pratiquaient aussi ce sport, une passion qui s’est transmise dans la lignée familiale.

“Mon grand-père a joué dans l’équipe nationale de Cuba et mon père jouait aussi. J’avais comme quatre ans quand mes parents m’ont poussé dans l’eau pour que je commence à jouer.”

Bien que les débuts aient été difficiles — il n’aimait pas être dans l’eau et nager avec un ballon était un vrai défi il a fini par tomber en amour avec ce sport. C’est un chemin qu’il a suivi jusqu’au bout, en devenant entraîneur au Club Vortex, et en acceptant une bourse d’admission à l’Université McKendree aux États-Unis, où il a rejoint l’équipe de water-polo.

Pourtant, malgré une certaine popularité au sud de la frontière et en Europe, la communauté de water-polo reste très petite au Canada. “C’est une communauté qui est vraiment petite au Manitoba. Un de mes buts, c’est de faire grandir ce sport. Pas seulement au Manitoba, mais partout au pays.”

Rituals of ceremonies the cornerstone of Hindu weddings

Taking place over three to five days, a Hindu wedding is steeped in timeless traditions and curated customs.

While the grandeur of Hindu weddings strikes stunning notes, the rituals of the ceremonies remain the cornerstone of the celebration. The rituals are sacred offerings to seek blessings from the Divine and family and friends for the bride and groom to have a healthy and happy life.

Deeply anchored to the wedding rituals, called shaadi ki rasmein, is the role of family members. In Indian culture, it is believed that a wedding is an alliance of two families, not only an alliance of two people. Dates for the wedding ceremonies are sought by a Hindu priest who reads the bride and groom’s horoscope, or kundali to determine the auspicious time, or muhurat for the celebrations. Parents of both sides are consulted in this special first step.

While some wedding rituals are common across different regions of India, others are unique to a particular region. Among Indo- Caribbeans of the Hindu faith, wedding rituals vary. One of these cherished rituals is the Maticoor, or Matkor ceremony, which symbolizes that by expressing gratitude to Mother Earth, the lives of the new couple will be happy and harmonious.

Canada being side-swiped by Trump’s Cuba policy

Canada’s decades-long relationship with revolutionary Cuba has always been a three-country affair — with the United States frequently settling for the spurned third-wheel.

Since the early 1960s, successive U.S. governments have strenuously objected to Canadian trade and commercial engagement with the island. Officials in Washington have always believed that the Canadians were trying to make a “quick buck” at America’s expense, while simultaneously seeking to undermine the U.S. blockade of Cuba.

For almost 70 years now, Canada has had to negotiate the thorny issue of the U.S. trade embargo. Added to that was the anti-Cuba Cuban Democracy Act of 1992 and the still active 1996 Helms-Burton Law. Complicating matters further for Ottawa have been the various additions and subtractions to the unrelenting U.S. efforts to strangle the Cuban economy — particularly during the presidency of Barack Obama.

In January, U.S. President Donald Trump imposed a near-ironclad (some Russian oil is getting through), illegal fuel embargo against Cuba, using American naval vessels and U.S. Coast Guard ships. Additionally, he signed an executive order in early May to expand U.S. economic warfare, or what some call “secondary sanctions,” against those materially assisting the Cuban government.

Protesters denounce controversial exhibition at rights museum

More than 200 people demonstrated outside the Canadian Museum for Human Rights Friday evening to protest the exhibition about the mass displacement of Palestinians in the 1940s during the Arab-Israeli war.

Outside the museum at The Forks, the sidewalk was lined with people wearing white and blue clothing while waving Israeli flags and holding placards that denounced the display.

Palestine Uprooted: Nakba Past and Present focuses on the Nakba, in which an estimated 750,000 Palestinians were displaced between 1947 and 1949. The exhibition documents Palestinian Canadians’ experiences through art, photos and text.

One protester said she worries students and other groups who visit the exhibition will get a one-sided version.

Director brings Métis identity, language to silver screen

TORONTO — Métis culture has been around for centuries, but films set in the Métis world remain rare.

The new movie Blood Lines is intended to help fill that gap. Written and directed by Métis actor Gail Maurice (best known in these parts for playing the fiery title character of the locally lensed 2024 drama Aberdeen), it is set in an Ontario Métis community.

Maurice stars as Léonore, a mother who seeks to reconnect with her grown daughter Beatrice (Dana Solomon) after years of alcohol-fuelled neglect.

Beatrice is unforgiving, and is soon distracted by the presence of a new woman in the community. Chani (Derica Lafrance) has come to town searching for her biological family. Clearly enamoured, Beatrice offers to help.

Winnipeg Habitat home brings tears to the eye of single dad from Africa

Suleman Gado’s eyes filled with tears when the keys to his first house in Canada were placed in his hands Friday morning.

Beside him, his two sons, Gado and Mohammed, watched quietly as years of sacrifice and perseverance paid off.

“Very exciting day to me,” Suleman said. “And very emotional because I do not believe what I’m seeing today. A lot of amazing people who came out.”

Originally from Ghana, Suleman left his home country in 2015 to seek safety and a brighter future.

Palestinian Canadians share keepsakes, memories in CMHR’s Nakba exhibition

Fouad Sahyoun was four years old when his family fled their home in Haifa amid bombardment from encroaching Israeli paramilitary forces in 1948.

“We took a few suitcases and (some) money and we went to Alexandria. We were never allowed to go back,” said Sahyoun, a Palestinian Canadian living in Montreal. “When the money ran out, we became real refugees.”

The 82-year-old is one of an estimated 750,000 Palestinians forcibly displaced in 1948 following the partitioning of Palestine and during the creation of the State of Israel. This event is known as the Nakba, which means “catastrophe” in Arabic.

Sahyoun’s story and the deeds to his family’s seized property in Haifa are included in Palestine Uprooted: Nakba Past and Present, a new exhibition open to the public Saturday at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights.

Exhibit on displaced Palestinians set to open at human rights museum amid criticism

WINNIPEG - The head of the Canadian Museum for Human Rights says it's unfortunate a trustee resigned over an exhibit about displaced Palestinians but she stands by the decision for it to open to the public Saturday.

The exhibit, titled "Palestine Uprooted: Nakba Past and Present," focuses on people affected by the Nakba, Arabic for catastrophe. About 750,000 Palestinians were forcibly displaced in 1948 during fighting over control of what is now Israel.

The exhibit has been in the works for four years, though Palestinian Canadians have been calling for their stories to be told at the Winnipeg museum since it opened in 2014.

Jewish groups have raised concerns that the exhibit could fuel antisemitism by not providing more historical context and that it was created without sufficient consultation and transparency.

Divers Tiaglei, Rumpit jumping their way through 50 states in 50 days

Two months ago, Winnipeg high-diver Alex Tiaglei received a call that he could’ve easily confused for a belated April Fool’s joke.

On the other end was his American-born friend Braden Rumpit, whom Tiaglei had dove against at several competitions around the world.

Rumpit gave it to him straight: he planned to do a cliff dive in all 50 United States in 50 days, and he wanted Tiaglei to do it with him.

“I mean, at first I thought he was kind of crazy,” said Tiaglei. “But then I started thinking about it, and the pieces were definitely falling together pretty well.”

World Cup a mosaic of the human experience

On June 13, the third day of the ongoing World Cup, Morocco played more than a quarter of its Group C match against Brazil without a single Moroccan-born footballer on the pitch.

Instead, the starting eleven deployed by manager Mohamed Ouahbi between the 64th and 89th minutes included players from Belgium, France, Spain, the Netherlands and Canada. (Goalkeeper Yassine Bounou was born in Montreal.) Ouahbi, himself, hails from metropolitan Brussels.

According to the BBC, nearly 25 per cent of the players at this tournament were born in countries other than the ones they’re representing.

One of the more prominent examples of this experience is Luca Zidane.

A Trump commission urges ‘bridges’ between church and state in sweeping draft report

A new report by a Trump administration commission suggests replacing the idea of separating church and state with the idea of building bridges between them.

The assertion — challenging a longstanding concept in American law — comes amid a raft of recommendations in a draft report of the Religious Liberty Commission, released Friday afternoon.

The advisory body was created by President Donald Trump last year and filled almost entirely by conservative Christians. The 224-page draft report — part policy document, part philosophical argument — echoes members' support for a stronger role for religion and religious expression in government, schools and the public square.

The report applauds recent Supreme Court decisions expanding rights to religious expression in public settings, such as creating opt-outs for religious objections to school lessons.

OpenAI and Anthropic limit new AI models to Trump-approved customers during cybersecurity review

ChatGPT maker OpenAI said Friday it is restricting the release of its new artificial intelligence model at the request of President Donald Trump’s administration, the latest in an unprecedented government vetting of AI products for cybersecurity risks.

Its chief rival, Anthropic, announced hours later that the Trump administration has approved a limited release of its strongest cybersecurity model, two weeks after the U.S. Commerce Department effectively banned it.

Both companies said their newest models would be available to small groups of trusted partners. OpenAI said its new AI product, called GPT-5.6 Sol, would be accessible only to customers approved by the Trump administration.

“We don’t believe this kind of government access process should become the long-term default,” OpenAI said in a statement. The company said it viewed the testing period as a temporary step on the “path to broader availability in the coming weeks.”

Transit says it’s short $6.5M to provide free rides for youth year round

Winnipeg Transit has proposed to let youth ride buses for free for only seven months, stating the $10 million the provincial government provided for a year of that service won’t cover the entire cost.

In a new report, Transit says the program, which is meant to offer no-cost rides to youth aged 11 to 17 and high school students aged 18 to 21, would cost at least $16.5 million to implement for 12 months.

The program stems from the pledge in the province’s 2026-27 budget to invest “in free transit for kids and youth.”

Instead of exceeding the amount of government funding, Transit proposes to offer the free rides from September to March 2027, pending city council approval.

Michael J. Fox and father of Nickelodeon slime among Order of Canada appointments

Michael J. Fox wears his Order of Canada pin everywhere.

He wears the little white pin on talk shows; he wears it to meet up with friends — his fellow Canadian New Yorkers Martin Short and Lorne Michaels make sure of it, he quips. And he wore it when he accepted the Presidential Medal of Freedom in the final days of Joe Biden's presidency.

"My intrinsic Canadianism is a bigger part of me than my relationship with the States," he says on a video call from New York, Emmy Awards lined up on the shelf behind him.

The actor and Parkinson's advocate has worn the white pin for 16 years, since he was first named an officer of the Order of Canada. But he'll soon be able to upgrade to the red version of the snowflake-shaped insignia as he's promoted to companion, a higher rank within the order, whose living membership is capped at 180.

Bruce Oake Recovery Centre staff lead participants from darkness, despair of addiction

The Bruce Oake Recovery Centre is awash in summer light. Sun streams through the tall windows at the end of each hallway; through the glass walls of the group rooms, where the men here to recover from addiction are meeting; and through the entry atrium, where an urn holding the ashes of the centre’s namesake rests inside a glass case.

PM Carney says 24 Sussex to be restored with fundraising campaign, design competition

OTTAWA - Prime Minister Mark Carney unveiled plans Friday to restore the prime minister's residence at 24 Sussex Drive in Ottawa through a national design competition and fundraising campaign.

The prime minister said the winning design proposal will be announced by Canada Day of next year.

Carney said the heritage building is a "symbol of the nation" but has fallen into a "critical state" after decades of neglect, and he does not want to see it crumble.

“It has not been cared for with the respect it deserves," Carney said at a news conference outside the building on Friday.

Australia plans to strengthen laws banning children from social media

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — The Australian government plans to strengthen laws that ban children younger than 16 from social media platforms, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said.

Observers said on Friday the government was responding to evidence that the ban on young children holding accounts on platforms including Facebook, Instagram and YouTube had failed since it came into force on Dec. 10 last year. Australia was the first country in the world to pass legislation keeping youth off social media, but others have since followed.

Albanese told Parliament on Thursday this government was considering options to strengthen the ban.

“We’re working on that as a priority because this is something that other generations didn’t have to deal with, which is why it’s complex,” Albanese told Parliament.

Staff shortages threaten defence-related projects, construction industry warns

Construction industry leaders are flagging potential staff shortages as the sector prepares for a surge of defence-related projects.

Winnipeg co-ops among models examined in film

We see theatre artist Debbie Patterson making her way toward the Old Grace Housing Co-operative’s entrance in her wheelchair, then settling inside for a steaming cup of tea. The co-op is her home.

“Well, I’ve always loved this neighbourhood and wanted to stay in this neighbourhood. I lived in a big, three-storey Wolseley house and then got MS and couldn’t do the stairs,” she says in a voiceover.

“Having a place I could move into that was completely accessible was just a godsend at a perfect time when I needed to stop living in my house, so I could stay in my neighbourhood and continue to be in a safe place.”

It’s one of the opening scenes of Meeting a Moment: The Art of Social Architecture, directed by Danielle Sturk and produced by Leslie Stafford, which appears on CBC Gem today and airs on CBC TV Saturday.

Indigenous Chamber of Commerce working to engage with members, increase membership

Shelly Bulycz is good at many things, but retirement is not one of them.

Last August, Bulycz retired from her job as manager of community based programming at University College of the North and moved from The Pas to Winnipeg. She soon grew restless and by the end of October, she’d landed a job as the executive assistant at the Indigenous Chamber of Commerce.

In April, the chamber appointed her to be its second-ever chief executive officer.

“I enjoyed retirement for a month and a half, two months, and then decided I needed a job,” Bulycz said. “The rest is kind of history.”