Gull-Masty signals go-slow approach to changing First Nations status eligibility

OTTAWA - Indigenous Services Minister Mandy Gull-Masty says the Assembly of First Nations sent a strong signal to her government to end the second-generation cutoff in the Indian Act, but her government won't make that change without broad consultations with leaders.

At a special assembly in Ottawa last week, First Nations chiefs voted to support Senate amendments to a government bill that would expand eligibility under the Indian Act by eliminating the second-generation cutoff — which prevents individuals from registering for status under the law if they have a parent and a grandparent who did not have status.

The resolution, which passed by consensus during the Assembly of First Nations gathering in Ottawa, also calls on Ottawa to commit to increased funding to offset the cost to their communities of absorbing new members.

The AFN works as an advocacy body for 600 First Nations chiefs who attend biannual meetings to discuss issues and pass resolutions directing the executive committee on how to lobby governments.

Indigenous artifacts from the Vatican collection return to Canada

MONTREAL - First Nations, Inuit and Métis leaders welcomed back dozens of Indigenous artifacts released from the Vatican collection at Montreal's airport Saturday.

The 62 items will ultimately be returned to their communities of origin as an act of furthering reconciliation.

Assembly of First Nations National Chief Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak said it was an important and emotional moment for all First Nations, and she hoped it would be important for all Canadians.

"We've come a long way, and we have a long way to go," she said at the airport.

Churchill’s future has looked bright in the past, then politics dimmed the lights

The future of the often-troubled and chronically overlooked Port of Churchill and Hudson Bay railway looks exceedingly bright.

First Nations sue over oil-rich land

A pair of First Nations are suing the provincial and federal governments, claiming land and mineral rights to a swath of land in southwestern Manitoba that generates more than $1.3 billion annually from oil and gas production.

Canupawakpa Dakota First Nation and Dakota Tipi First Nation filed a statement of claim in Court of King’s Bench on Thursday calling for a declaration of title and subsurface rights over Manitoba’s portion of the Williston Basin.

The oil-rich basin stretches from southwestern Manitoba into southern Saskatchewan and over the U.S. border. The Manitoba portion hosts at least 14 identified oil fields and is home to all the current oil production in the province, the lawsuit states.

The plaintiffs are claiming rights over the entirety of the basin in Manitoba, including the “right to economically participate in the extraction, development and production of subsurface minerals.”

Un programme qui ouvre la voie

À 5 ans, Éléonore découvre la natation synchronisée… dans sa langue maternelle. Grâce à la détermination de sa mère et à l’engagement de deux jeunes entraîneuses francophones, un tout nouveau programme voit le jour au club Aquatica. Une petite victoire pour la francophonie et pour l’inclusion dans le sport.

Âgée de cinq ans, la petite Éléonore se rend à la pratique de natation artistique tous les mardis après-midi. Grâce à la détermination de sa mère et de ses entraineuses, elle apprend sa discipline dans sa langue maternelle, le français.

“Elle adore danser, elle adore la musique et l’eau,” nous dit sa maman, Geneviève Roy-Wsiaki. “Ça fait des années que je me dis qu’elle adorerait la nage synchronisée.”

Le choix de l’activité s’est donc imposé naturellement. Mais avant qu’Éléonore puisse se lancer à l’eau, il fallait régler un détail.

Senators amend legislation to make it easier to pass on First Nations status

OTTAWA - Senators have passed sweeping amendments to a bill that would simplify the transfer of First Nations status between generations, rejecting the federal government's advice to limit its scope.

Bill S-2, introduced in the Senate with support by the Liberal government, was drafted to eliminate some gender inequities in the Indian Act and allow some 6,000 people to become eligible for First Nations status.

Some senators and Indigenous community leaders said the bill didn't go far enough.

On Tuesday, senators changed the legislation to eliminate what is known as the "second-generation cutoff," opting instead for a one-parent rule that would allow First Nations status to be transferred to a child if one of their parents is enrolled.

Carré civique, le soutien générationnel

Je donne en famille consiste à lever des fonds pour l’avenir du carré civique. La particularité de ce soutien c’est qu’il implique différentes générations, notamment les plus jeunes qui peuvent parfois se sentir éloignés des sujets liés au patrimoine.

David Dandeneau tente de partager son engagement à tous et à différentes générations.

Le membre du conseil d’administration des Ami.e.s du Carré civique de Saint-Boniface (ACCSB) a eu l’idée de lever des fonds pour notamment assurer des dépenses opérationnelles et à terme préparer également le processus d’appel d’offres que s’apprête à lancer la Ville de Winnipeg.

C’est à travers l’ACCSB, qui a reçu le statut officiel d’organisme de bienfaisance et peut donc recevoir des dons depuis mars 2022, que le monde pourra donner ponctuellement pour cette campagne.

How Canada can regain its measles elimination status

TORONTO - Infectious disease experts say Canada's loss of measles elimination status shows how badly investment is needed in public health, rebuilding vaccine confidence and solving the primary care crisis.

On Monday, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) revoked the measles-free status Canada has had since 1998 because an outbreak of the virus across several provinces has lasted for more than a year.

Dawn Bowdish, an immunologist and professor at McMaster University, said cuts to public health funding, the lack of a national vaccine registry and a shortage of family doctors — all while misinformation about vaccines is circulating widely — have contributed to the rise of measles.

"There's no two ways about this. This will take money — a lot of money — and a lot of investment. And it will take a lot of political will," Bowdish said

Our monuments, statues and memorials give form to honouring, grieving lives lost in war

Tucked at the end of a walkway, which dead-ends between the University Centre and the Helen Glass Centre for Nursing on the University of Manitoba campus, stands a monument in memory of students who never returned from the First World War.

Carved from local Tyndall stone and at just over a metre high, it commemorates the 30 medical students, from both the Manitoba Agricultural College, which later became part of the University of Manitoba, and other universities across the western provinces, who were killed while serving with the 11th Canadian Field Ambulance.

It’s just one of several monuments at the university marking student sacrifices during the First World War and one of many markers — from cenotaphs to statues and even lakes — across the province commemorating Manitobans who have served in conflicts since the province was created in 1870.

Many of those monuments are either hidden or in hard-to-find places. Even veterans from the Second World War — who not so long ago were part of marching parades and outdoor services marking Remembrance Day — are mostly tucked away living the remaining days of their lives in personal care homes.

Indigenous veterans prepare to ‘recognize our own’ on official day

When the Canadian Armed Forces issued a formal apology for the abuses inflicted on Indigenous service members, Jack Park said it hit home.

He was deeply moved when the Indigenous Veterans Day Act — making Nov. 8 the official day to honour Indigenous veterans in Manitoba — was granted royal assent and became law.

“It was so well-received,” Park said on Friday as he prepared for the fourth annual Indigenous Veterans Day ceremony to honour Red River Métis veterans, which will take place on Saturday on Lac du Bonnet.

“I can tell you as an Indigenous person serving, it wasn’t a good thing to be me. They knew we were a different breed, I guess you could say, and they picked on that. The abuse was real. It was absolutely real. When I got out of the armed forces, I was treated like a regular Canadian citizen again. It was a welcome relief to come out of there.”

Decades-long fight to repeal discriminatory second-generation cut-off rekindled on Parliament Hill

First Nations women who’ve spent a lifetime fighting for the right to belong in their own communities have been again travelling to Parliament Hill this fall, repeating their calls for change and their wish: for their children and grandchildren not to be excluded as they were.

Winnipeg MP’s private member’s bill would make residential school denialism a crime

Manitoba New Democrat MP Leah Gazan reintroduced a private member’s bill Friday that would criminalize residential school denialism, saying “real action” is needed to combat rising anti-Indigenous hate.

Bill C-254, if passed, would amend the Criminal Code to include the promotion of hatred against Indigenous Peoples by “condoning, denying, downplaying or justifying the Indian residential school system.”

“We cannot ignore the obvious, that residential school denialism is simply an act of inciting hate against Indigenous people,” Gazan, the MP for Winnipeg Centre, said in a news release.

“Members of Parliament must act immediately to uphold their safety, and I urge all my parliamentary colleagues to protect survivors and families by supporting this bill.”

A century later, Ukrainian church still helping new Ukrainians

When it was founded in 1925, St. Mary the Protectress Ukrainian Orthodox Cathedral in the North End was a welcoming and helpful place for immigrants seeking new lives in Canada.

As the church celebrates its centennial, it is still welcoming and helping Ukrainians fleeing war in their homeland.

“Helping each other never stops,” Eugene Hyworon, co-chair of the cathedral’s centennial committee, said.

A centennial gala will be held Saturday.

The road not taken: lowest number of Manitobans in three decades cross border at Pembina in July, August

Many Manitobans appeared to skip U.S. road trips over the summer as the number of southbound travellers hit at least a 30-year low — excluding COVID-19 pandemic years — at a major border crossing south of Winnipeg.

On second anniversary of Oct. 7 attacks and start of Gaza war, officers say rushing to cover painful vandalism reduces odds of arrests

A swastika on a monument to French Canadian author Gabrielle Roy across the Red River from the Canadian Museum for Human Rights.

The words “F—k Jews” on the wall of a toilet stall at a north Winnipeg middle school.

A spray-painted swastika on a garage door along with the initials M.K.Y., an international neo-Nazi violent extremist group. The initials come from the Russian words for “Maniac Murder Cult.”

But as fast as they appeared, they were being covered up just as quickly — until recently.

Enjoying a slice of Life from 1936

My husband came home from an antique store the other day with a great find: the very first issue of Life magazine to roll off the press.

First Nation in B.C. says 41 more graves found by penetrating radar at school site

SECHELT - An 18-month investigation at a former residential school site in British Columbia's Sunshine Coast has found more evidence of children who disappeared there, the area’s First Nation says.

The shishalh First Nation in Sechelt, B.C., said in a release Friday that 41 "additional unmarked graves" had been found as a result of a search with ground-penetrating radar in the area around the St. Augustine’s Residential School site.

It said the discovery brought the number of suspected graves at the site to 81, after initial findings that were announced in 2023.

"Today is a day of loss for our community and for our families," said Chief Lenora Joe in a video statement.

As memories fade, Canadians mark 80 years since the end of the Second World War

OTTAWA - Relatives of war veterans gathered at the National War Memorial in Ottawa on Friday to mark the 80th anniversary of Japan's surrender and the official end of the Second World War.

Sweat poured down the faces of those assembled in the August midday heat as the Canadian Armed Forces bugler performed the Last Post.

Michael Babin, president of the Hong Kong Veterans Commemorative Association, said there are no living veterans remaining out of the nearly 2,000 Canadians who took part in the Battle of Hong Kong in December 1941.

He said the last known veteran from that fight died a little more than a year and a half ago, at the age of 106.

Try out being a tourist at home — in Winnipeg

Many Canadians and Manitobans are rethinking their travel plans to the United States this summer. We might take this opportunity to become tourists in our own city, rediscovering Winnipeg — a city that is often underappreciated, but one that is truly unique in Canada.

‘We cannot waste any time’: Anand promises ‘action’ and reform in foreign affairs

OTTAWA - Faced with escalating conflict in the Middle East, a collapsing global trade system and a department struggling to reform itself, Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand says she relishes the job of helping Canada navigate a turbulent world.

In a wide-ranging interview Thursday with The Canadian Press, Anand said her experiences in both politics and academia can help her streamline Canada's approach to global issues, allowing it to pursue its interests without losing sight of its values.

"How do you ensure, when you have these large departments, that you're actually able to execute? That is the heart of government. It's the hardest thing to do," Anand said.

"I enjoy difficult responsibilities."

Christian Monnin, ou la chance d’un esprit de famille

Christian Monnin a été nommé juge à la Cour du Banc du Roi pour le Manitoba au début du mois de mars, un évènement fortement symbolique au regard de son histoire familiale.

Symbolique, et sûrement unique au Manitoba. Comme son grand-père, Alfred, mais aussi son père, Michel, et également son oncle, Marc, Christian Monnin, ancien président de la Société de la francophonie manitobaine (SFM), est devenu lui aussi juge à la Cour du Banc du Roi.

Si c’est une fonction sur laquelle il serait pour lui difficile de se prononcer en début de carrière, une question s’avère pourtant légitime: le monde dans lequel a grandi Christian Monnin a-t-il pu influer sur ses envies et ses aspirations?

“Il y a d’évidence une question de socialisation, qui s’applique à toutes les familles,” note tout d’abord Christian Monnin. “La première fois que j’ai assisté à une cérémonie d’assermentation, c’était celle de mon grand-père il y a 42 ans, quand il est devenu juge en chef du Manitoba. Je devais avoir 8 ou 9 ans. Ça a été impressionnant, en tant que jeune, de voir cette cérémonie, tout ce monde qui était présent. Je n’ai bien sûr rien décidé à ce moment-là, mais la carrière de juriste a toujours été quelque chose qui mijotait en moi.”

Sauver la Maison Hourie, le vote est ouvert

Organisée par la Fiducie nationale du Canada, la compétition Next Great Save offre un financement et de la visibilité aux lieux historiques menacés partout dans le pays. Cette année, la maison Hourie de Portage-la-Prairie fait partie des douze finalistes. Les gagnants sont choisis par vote du public, qui est ouvert jusqu’au 17 avril.

Sauver l’un des bâtiments emblématiques de l’histoire du Manitoba. Voilà l’objectif du musée de Fort la Reine à Portage-la-Prairie, qui a inscrit au concours l’une de ses bâtisses: la Maison Hourie. C’est sur le site nextgreatsave.ca que le public, seul juge de la finale de cette compétition nationale, est invité à voter pour sauver son patrimoine favori. Parmi les finalistes, la Maison Hourie est le seul édifice situé au Manitoba.

Restaurer la maison Hourie

Les règles sont simples: pour sauver son patrimoine, chaque finaliste mène sa campagne de sensibilisation pour récolter le maximum de soutien. Parrainé par Ecclesiastical Insurance, ce concours s’inscrit dans les missions de la Fiducie nationale du Canada, créée en 1973. Principal organisme de bienfaisance national, la Fiducie a contribué depuis sa création à la protection de plus de 835 lieux partout au Canada.

National symbols can be problematic, and the Canadian flag has been through a lot in its 60 years

So, folks, where are we at on the Canadian flag? Is it cool to unfurl the ol’ girl again or what?