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Exploring Theme: "Targeted Indigenous Groups"
Updates on this page: 84
September 5, 2024
Police ‘handled the situation badly,’ witness says after driver hits Portage and Main protester
Winnipeg police say they kept out of sight as a form of de-escalation and at demonstration organizers’ request CBC News: A witness who saw a driver hit a person with his car as he attempted to drive through the Portage and Main intersection during a protest on Wednesday is criticizing the way police handled the situation....
August 30, 2024
Winnipeg serial murders hit their communities hard: Manitoba chiefs
5 First Nations filed community impact statements (L to R) Rebecca Contois, Morgan Harris, Marcedes Myran and a candle for Buffalo Woman. Photo: APTN Warning: This story contains distressing details APTN News: The serial murders of four First Nations women in Winnipeg has left a specific kind of grief behind, say chiefs of five reserves...
August 26, 2024
She was always a loving person’: Parents of Ashlee Shingoose share their grief
APTN News: heresa Shingoose moves around her kitchen keeping busy. She’s making small talk, explaining she will soon head over to the school field to go make bannock with the other Elders of St Theresa Point Anisininew Nation. It’s midweek through their annual celebration, the Bannock Festival. She’s also pouring coffee for herself, her husband...
August 21, 2024
As sentencing looms for serial killer, statistics show Indigenous women remain unsafe in Winnipeg
Analysis of media reports show 65 per cent of female homicides victims from 2018 to 2022 were Indigenous. The Manitoba Law Courts building in downtown Winnipeg. Photo: APTN News APTN News: When the man who killed four First Nations women in Winnipeg is sentenced next week he’ll get an earful from their relatives and friends....
August 12, 2024
Tina Fontaine inspires action, hope 10 years after her death at age 15
Thelma Favel and friend organize feast, walk to honour all missing and murdered Indigenous people CBC Indigenous: The curtains in Thelma Favel’s living room are closed, as they have been since her grand-niece Tina Fontaine died in Winnipeg in August 2014. They conceal the gravel road where Favel used to see Tina hop and skip...
August 7, 2024
Inuvik RCMP charge member of Beaufort-Delta Education Council with sex related crimes
Police say there could be additional victims. Assistant superintendent Richard MacKinnon has been charged with several sex related offences. Photo: Beaufort-Delta Education Council. APTN News: The RCMP in Inuvik, N.W.T. say they’ve charged the assistant superintendent at the Beaufort-Delta Education Council with “multiple sexual offences” following an investigation. According to police, Richard McKinnon, 44, was...
August 6, 2024
Mackenzie Lee Trottier’s body found at Saskatoon landfill after months of searching
Trottier went missing in December 2020 CBC Indigenous: Saskatoon police say they have found Mackenzie Lee Trottier’s remains at the Saskatoon landfill after months of searching. Trottier, then 22, went missing in December 2020. The search for her body at the landfill began on May 1 and extended well beyond the initial 33-day timeframe. Police...
July 5, 2024
20 years after disappearance, search for Tamra Keepness continues
5-year-old girl last seen in Regina on July 5, 2004 CBC Indigenous: Twenty years ago, the disappearance of five-year-old Tamra Keepness shook the city of Regina. She was last seen around 10:30 p.m. on July 5, 2004, at her home on the 1800 block of Ottawa Street, and was reported missing the next day. Despite thousands of hours of work by investigators,...
June 7, 2024
‘It’s time for action’: FSIN reacts to Sask. MMIWG progress report
Provincial report comes five years after national inquiry issued calls to action First Peoples Law Report: CBC News – The Saskatchewan government released a progress report this week on actions being taken to address missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls in the province. The release of the 47-page cross-ministry report came five years after...
June 3, 2024
NWAC’s annual scorecard to assess federal response to the genocide against Indigenous women finds lack of urgency and transparency
NationTalk: GATINEAU, Que. – A statement from Carol McBride, President of the Native Women’s Association of Canada (NWAC), on the release of NWAC’s annual scorecard of the federal government’s efforts to address the tragedy of the missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls, Two-Spirit, transgender, and gender-diverse people. “Do Canadians truly understand that Indigenous women in...
May 26, 2024
Police’s unsuccessful efforts to identify Mashkode Bizhiki’ikwe detailed in Winnipeg serial killer trial
Lack of answers in search for Buffalo Woman’s identity ‘very disturbing,’ advocate says CBC Indigenous: The Canadian Press – In mid-March 2022, a young Indigenous woman stood outside Winnipeg’s Salvation Army and spoke with a man who invited her back to his home. Wearing a reversible Baby Phat branded jacket and a cloth face mask, she would...
May 22, 2024
First Nations leader says little change for women’s safety since Pickton murders
Indigenous women still face a barrier of systemic racism when it comes to personal safety and access to the justice system when they are victims of crimes says Chief Marilyn Slett. APTN news: The Canadian Press – A First Nations leader in British Columbia says little has changed since the crimes of serial killer Robert...
May 7, 2024
N.W.T. needs to spend more to protect vulnerable people in territory say MMIWG advocates
APTN News: A sacred fire flickered as Dene drummers sang a prayer song to honour missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls, and 2SLGBTQQIA+ people on Red Dress Day. A large crowd gathered at the legislature in Yellowknife by the larger-than-life red dress MMIWG monument, a symbol of the lives taken and the inequities that persist...
May 6, 2024
Red Dress Day must result in more than just awareness, says mother of murdered Indigenous woman
CBC News: After her daughter was murdered, Charlotte Wolfrey spent decades fighting for better services to help women fleeing violence in coastal Labrador. She was successful in advocating for RCMP presence in their communities. She’s done interviews, formed advocacy councils and testified at the national inquiry for missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls. When...
April 29, 2024
Hamilton police officer who assaulted Indigenous man in ‘disturbing’ act to be demoted for 1 year
Brian Wren pleaded guilty to discreditable conduct after assaulting Patrick Tomchuk in May 2022 WARNING: This story contains distressing details. CBC News: A Hamilton police officer will stay on the force after he violently assaulted an Indigenous man, kicking him in the head during his arrest. Brian Wren will be demoted in rank from first to second-class...
April 22, 2024
‘He took the truth with him’: Man acquitted in Tina Fontaine’s death found dead in Ontario
Tina’s great aunt says this means many questions will remain unanswered Tina Fontaine was 15 when she was murdered in Winnipeg. The case remains unsolved. Photo: APTN file APTN News: The man acquitted of murdering 15-year-old Tina Fontaine has been found dead in Kenora, Ont., a summer resort community about two hours east of Winnipeg....
March 28, 2024
Doctors who perform coerced sterilizations need to be held criminally liable, says senator
APTN News: An Ontario senator says the time is now to take serious action against doctors who continue to perform sterilizations on Indigenous women without consent. “My office has counted 12,000 women that have been sterilized against their will,” Yvonne Boyer told Nation to Nation. “This bill is not meant to penalize all doctors… “The...
March 1, 2024
‘This is ground zero’: Saskatchewan father speaks to students about MMIWG
Click on the following link to watch the video: https://globalnews.ca/news/10329217/mmiwg-lecture-saskatchewan-polytechnic-megan-gallagher/amp/ Global News: One Saskatchewan father shared his journey for justice for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (MMIWG) and missing Indigenous people at a student lecture on Thursday. Brian Gallagher’s daughter Megan went missing in Sept. 2020. Her body was found two years later. The Gallagher...
February 14, 2024
Survivors of provincially run schools in Quebec share their stories of abuse
Class action against Quebec institutions approved in December. APTN News: Adrienne Jérôme, a former chief from the Anishnabe Nation of Lac Simon, was a little girl when she attended a day school on the reserve. The school, which still stands today, serves as a constant reminder of the abuse she and many other children in...
February 1, 2024
Frank Gruben: Family, friends, N.W.T. premier call for more information
It’s been more than eight months since Frank Gruben went missing – but the investigation is still active, and hope remains. Frank Gruben’s mother Laura Kalinek (left) and siblings Kimberlyn and Steven Gruben (right) in Aklavik in June, 2023. Photo: Karli Zschogner/APTN. This is part 4 of our series about the disappearance of Frank Gruben....
February 1, 2024
NDP, Plains Cree doctor slam Alberta premier’s transgender policy changes
APTN News: A Plains Cree physician who practices family medicine in Alberta says it’s shameful that Conservative Premier Danielle Smith is playing politics with transgender issues. “It’s really important to know that people don’t do this [gender affirmation] lightly,” said Dr. James Makokis, who identifies as Two-Spirit and works directly with trans patients. “It is...
January 9, 2024
N.S. human trafficking numbers drop, but problem isn’t going away, say experts
Actual trafficking cases likely higher, says RCMP investigator NationTalk: CBC News: Recent figures from Statistics Canada say incidents of human trafficking in Nova Scotia have declined in the past year, but people in the province dealing with the issue say the figures do not tell the whole story. A Statistics Canada report released in December says Nova Scotia...
January 9, 2024
ONWA Calls for Action to Address Violence Against Indigenous Women
ONWA Calls for Action to Address Violence Against Indigenous Women NationTalk: Thunder Bay, ON – The Ontario Native Women’s Association (ONWA) is saddened by the death of Jenna Ostberg, a young woman whose life was just beginning as she embraced her artistic skills and was “looked up to” for her style. ONWA will be following the...
December 8, 2023
Violence against Indigenous women in Montreal ‘staggering’ due to shelter, housing shortages says organization
APTN News: An organization in Montreal that helps Indigenous women says the rates of violence because of a shortage of shelter space and affordable housing is on the rise. “As someone who has been a long time anti-violence frontline worker, the levels of violence I’m seeing are just quite staggering,” said Laura Aguiar, project coordinator for...
December 1, 2023
AMC Council of Elders Emphasizes the Sacredness of Life Amidst Alarming Rise in Homicide Rates
NationTalk: Treaty One Territory – The Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs (AMC) expresses deep concern about the drastic increase in homicide rates in Manitoba. In times of crisis, our cultural ceremonies, teachings, and the guidance of our Knowledge Keepers and Elders become crucial resources. Through these cultural ceremonies and the wisdom imparted by our Elders, representing...
November 29, 2023
Sacred fire lit for mothers killed in Sunday’s shooting in Winnipeg
A sacred fire was lit and tobacco was offered for two mothers killed in a Winnipeg shooting on Nov. 26 that left two others dead. APTN News: Crystal, 34, and Stephanie Beardy, 33, died along with Melelek Lesikel, 29, and Dylan Lavallee, 41. The sisters are from Lake St. Martin First Nation, 270 km north...
November 28, 2023
Family of sisters killed in Langside Street shooting has seen ‘a lot of death,’ chief says
Beardy family forced to leave their Lake St. Martin home during 2011 flood CBC Indigenous: The mother of the two sisters killed in a mass shooting in Winnipeg has now lost four daughters, and the family has also struggled after they were displaced by flooding, the chief of their home First Nation says. Stephanie and...
November 8, 2023
Tragedy, and a Search for Answers on Sai’kuz First Nation
What happened to Chelsey Heron Quaw and Jay Raphael, who left their homes and never returned? The Tyee: Last week, as Pam Heron gave a tearful plea for information about her missing daughter, Chelsey, she already knew something was terribly wrong. “She would have contacted me by now if she could. This is not like...
November 7, 2023
Woman from First Nation in B.C. along Highway of Tears found dead
Chelsey Quaw, who was reported missing on Oct. 11, have been found in a wooded area. APTN News: A woman who disappeared from a First Nations community in central British Columbia last month has been found dead. Vanderhoof RCMP and the Saik’uz First Nation say the remains of Chelsey Quaw, who was first reported missing...
October 27, 2023
Working 118th: The legacy of Edmonton’s ‘killing fields’
The Hope for Wellness Helpline is available 24/7 at 1-855-242-3310. NationTalk: A gust of wind drifts through the prairie grass and into the city of Edmonton. A peaceful setting until you learn the history of the area. The rural city limits have long been an informal resting ground in Alberta’s capital city, where dozens of...
October 12, 2023
Ottawa woman, 97, charged with historical sexual assaults at residential, day schools
Someone went to police late last year about alleged crimes in 1960s and 70s WARNING: This story contains distressing details. CBC Indigenous: Ontario Provincial Police have laid three gross indecency charges against a 97-year-old Ottawa woman, alleging she was involved in sexual assaults in the 1960s and 1970s in northern Ontario residential and day schools....
August 31, 2023
Allegations of sex crimes leads to eviction of employees, termination of water treatment plant construction contract
Community member says Internet Child Exploitation (ICE) unit of Manitoba RCMP asked to assist. One of the worker housing buildings in Sandy Bay First Nation. Photo: submitted APTN News: Sandy Bay Ojibway Nation in Manitoba says it is terminating its relationship with the company building its new water treatment plant amid allegations construction workers sexually...
August 29, 2023
First Nations police investigating allegations young girl was sexually exploited
The band council ordered treatment plant workers out of the community about 180 km northwest of Winnipeg last week. Logo of the Manitoba First Nations Police Service. Photo: APTN The Manitoba First Nations Police Service confirms it is investigating allegations that some workers on a water treatment plant construction project in Sandy Bay Ojibway Nation were sexually exploiting an...
August 14, 2023
Métis senator calls for coerced sterilization to be a Criminal Code offence
The Globe and Mail: Senator Yvonne Boyer is on a mission to change the Criminal Code to establish an offence for forced and coerced sterilization procedures – an issue her office has received numerous calls and messages about and one that keeps her up at night. The Métis lawyer, who has also worked as a...
August 10, 2023
Memorial held on anniversary of Tina Fontaine murder in Winnipeg
Veteran MMIWG2S Activist encouraged by work of younger generation. APTN News: Nine years after his sister Tina Fontaine was murdered, Elroy Fontaine planned a gathering at Oodena Circle in Winnipeg Thursday night to draw attention to the ongoing crisis, and to keep his sister’s memory alive.“I remember CFS bringing me down to their office and them sitting...
July 31, 2023
End the Sexual Exploitation of Indigenous Women and Girls
NationTalk: July 30, 2023,Thunder Bay, ON – In support of the United Nations World Day Against Trafficking in Persons (July 30), the Ontario Native Women’s Association (ONWA) is calling on all levels of government as well as law enforcement and service agencies to increase their efforts to strengthen prevention and support Indigenous survivors of human trafficking/sexual exploitation. ONWA knows that...
July 19, 2023
Camp Marcedes set up at Winnipeg’s human rights museum to honour victims of accused serial killer
Protestors set up Camp Marcades outside of the Canadian Human Rights Museum APTN News: Protesters demanding a search for their loved ones’ remains at a Winnipeg area landfill have found a welcoming new home at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights where the new location has been named “Camp Marcedes”. “We wanted to set up...
July 18, 2023
Brady landfill blockade dismantled in Winnipeg
Organizers say a new camp is to be set up at the Canadian Museum For Human Rights By Tamara Pimentel APTN News: Elder Geraldine Shingoose smudges a red dress mural painted on the road to the Brady landfill in Winnipeg where a blockade stood moments before. “It breaks my heart today. They just come in and...
July 17, 2023
Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs Grateful for Support from Leadership at the Assembly of First Nations and CUPE Local 500
NationTalk: Treaty One Territory, Manitoba: July 16 – The Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs (AMC) strongly denounces the jurisdictional debates amongst all levels of government to refuse the search for the remains of murdered First Nations women in the Prairie Green landfill in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The AMC is grateful for the support of the Assembly of...
July 14, 2023
NWAC demands immediate resumption of search for women’s remains
NWAC Provincial Co-Chair: “If they are not willing to commit returning our relatives home, we will.” NationTalk: The Native Women’s Association of Canada (NWAC) demands that the federal, provincial, and municipal governments take the steps required to begin an immediate search of landfills near Winnipeg for the remains of Indigenous women who are the victims...
July 13, 2023
Stefanson fires back at federal minister, calls his comments on landfill search inflammatory
Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Marc Miller called decision not to search landfill ‘heartless’ CBC News: Manitoba Premier Heather Stefanson says a federal minister was reckless and inflammatory when he criticized the province Wednesday over its decision not to search a landfill for the remains of two First Nations women. Premier Heather Stefanson said last week Manitoba won’t support a search of the Prairie Green landfill...
July 12, 2023
Manitoba’s decision not to search landfill ‘heartless’: Crown-Indigenous relations minister
Provincial government’s move makes landfill search ‘logistically impossible’ this summer, says Marc Miller CBC News: Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Marc Miller criticized Manitoba Wednesday over what he called the provincial government’s “heartless” decision not to search a landfill north of Winnipeg for the remains of two First Nations women believed to be the victims of a serial killer. Premier Heather Stefanson said...
July 12, 2023
First Nations Chiefs Demand Accountability and Support in Search for MMIWG2S Victims at Meeting with Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations Marc Miller
NationTalk: Treaty One Territory, Manitoba – Today, Grand Chief Cathy Merrick and members of the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs (AMC) met with Minister of Crown–Indigenous Relations Marc Miller to discuss crucial matters affecting First Nations in Manitoba. During the meeting, Chief Kyra Wilson, Long Plain First Nation, sought clarification from Minister Miller regarding the Government...
July 10, 2023
Supporters hold their ground at Winnipeg landfill blockade as noon deadline to leave passes
City of Winnipeg may apply for injunction if talks with demonstrators don’t yield resolution, CAO says CBC News: Dozens of people outside Winnipeg’s Brady Road landfill have built barricades and are signalling their unwillingness to leave, despite a noon deadline from the city to vacate the area and the possibility of legal action. Cambria Harris,...
June 19, 2023
Feasibility study says short timeline important for landfill search
The study says one of the most important factors is the time between when a victim’s remains end up in a landfill and when a search begins. A photo of a truck at work at the Prairie Green Landfill near Winnipeg. Photo: Jesse Andrushko/APTN News APTN News: Searching a landfill in Manitoba for 30 days...
June 19, 2023
Is A Genocide Taking Place in Canada? Short Answer: Yes.
NationTalk: (OTTAWA, ON) – A genocide is being perpetuated against Indigenous peoples in Canada. That was the unambiguous declaration of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls. But, despite a death toll that climbs year after year, many Canadians have difficulty understanding how the Inquiry reached its finding, or accepting that...
June 19, 2023
’15 years too long’
Bernice and Wilfred Catcheway’s daughter Jennifer disappeared in 2008. They say the MMIWG inquiry’s calls for justice need to be taken seriously WARNING: This story contains distressing details. CBC News: Bernice Catcheway walks up to a glass armoire in her living room and pulls out a tiny pair of white and pink baby shoes. The...
June 12, 2023
‘Get at the truth’: Judge to study handling of sex allegations against Nunavut priest
A retired Quebec judge is to lead a review into how the Oblates handled past allegations that a former priest sexually abused Inuit children in Nunavut. The Oblates of Mary Immaculate, OMI Lacombe Canada and the Oblates of the Province of France said Monday they have appointed former Superior Court justice Andre Denis to lead the...
June 10, 2023
‘We’re just brushed away’
The family of a missing Indigenous woman says when police left them in the dark, community stepped in to search WARNING: This story contains distressing details. CBC News: It started with a photo posted to Facebook in early March of this year about a missing 37-year old mother who had last been seen in downtown...
June 8, 2023
‘Make a list’, NWAC CEO tells Miller as fed’s get failing grade on progress made on MMIWG plan
Windspeaker: Words spoken earlier this week by Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Marc Miller have the CEO of the Native Women’s Association of Canada (NWAC) riled. Miller delivered a statement June 5 marking the fourth anniversary since the National Inquiry on Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (MMIWG) delivered its final report. “He says it’s not...
June 8, 2023
Manitoba Premier remains mum on funding to search landfill for remains of two women
The Globe and Mail: The decision to search a Winnipeg-area landfill for the remains of two First Nations women and who will fund it remains up in the air a month after a feasibility study was completed. The study, conducted by an Indigenous-led committee, estimated it could take up to three years and cost $184...
June 7, 2023
Brother relieved sister missing from Winnipeg found alive
A happy ending is not the usual way missing persons stories end. Red dresses have come to symbolize missing and murdered Indigenous women in Canada. Photo: Jesse Andrushko/APTN News APTN News: When Harley Dawes’ sister went missing in Winnipeg last September he was worried. The 22-year-old woman from a First Nation in northern Manitoba was...
June 7, 2023
Every Canadian has a role in ending the MMIWG crisis, advocate says
Empathy ‘must stay in Canadians’ hearts past the evening’s news broadcast’: Hilda Anderson-Pyrz This column is an opinion written by Hilda Anderson-Pyrz, chair of the National Family and Survivors Circle, as part of CBC’s “Mother. Sister. Daughter,” a project that tracked progress on the 231 calls to justice from the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered...
June 6, 2023
Advocates decry ‘unacceptable’ inaction on MMIWG inquiry’s calls for justice following 4-year anniversary
CBC’s ‘Mother. Sister. Daughter.’ project found more than half of 231 calls not started — and only 2 are done CBC News: Advocates say they’re disappointed to see so little progress has been made four years after the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls released its 231 calls for justice. For Heidi...
June 5, 2023
Search for missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls hampered by police apathy: Researchers
‘The problem of Indigenous women being overpoliced and underprotected is all across Canada’ Participants walk in the Women’s Memorial March in Vancouver to remember missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls (photo by Liang Sen/Xinhua via Getty Images) Content warning: the following contains disturbing subject matter. NationTalk: University of Toronto – In Canada, research shows...
May 30, 2023
Priest on Little Grand Rapids arrested in sexual assault of 8-year-old girl, RCMP say
Arul Savari was alone with the girl in church when he allegedly touched her inappropriately, Mounties say WARNING: This article contains details of allegations of abuse. CBC News: A Roman Catholic priest on Little Grand Rapids First Nation in Manitoba has been arrested in connection with the sexual assault of an eight-year-old girl in the...
May 25, 2023
Sexual assault organizations struggling to help victims post-pandemic: study
APTN News: The preliminary findings of a new national survey is highlighting how frontline sexual assault organizations are struggling to provide timely services to victims and survivors post-pandemic. The report, which was conducted by national organization Ending Violence Association of Canada, surveyed more than 100 sexual violence organizations (SVOs) across Canada on how the pandemic impacted...
May 19, 2023
Winnipeg is the epicentre for missing and murdered Indigenous women in Canada
By Brittany GuyotMay 19, 2023 Indigenous women account for 65% of homicides in Winnipeg between 2018-22. A gentle breeze pushes through the prairie landscape. Red ribbons can be seen strewn across a chain-link fence at a local landfill. A red dress is also tightly attached. The symbols for missing and murdered Indigenous women and Two-Spirit people...
May 16, 2023
There’s been a lack of implementation on MMIWG calls for justice says FSIN vice chief
APTN News: As the fourth anniversary of the release of the final report from the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls approaches, Aly Bear believes the crisis has only deepened. Bear, who is 3rd vice chief of the Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations in Saskatchewan (FSIN), recently had the opportunity to...
May 12, 2023
Chiefs, families push for search for remains at Winnipeg landfill that could take years, cost up to $184M
Police believe remains of 2 First Nations women are in Prairie Green landfill Landfill search for remains of First Nations women could cost $183M: study WARNING: This story contains distressing details. To view the video, click on the following link: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/landfill-feasibility-study-results-manitoba-1.6840411?cmp=newsletter_Evening%20Headlines%20from%20CBC%20News_1617_1050297 CBC News: A search for the remains of two First Nations women at a...
May 6, 2023
Groups to create interactive map of cases of missing and murdered Indigenous victims in Quebec
‘I want to give back to the families, I want them to reclaim their stories,’ says project organizer CBC News: A moment of silence was held as 10 red dresses hung from trees and chairs around Cabot Square in downtown Montreal on Friday, including one dress small enough to fit a child. There were several people standing...
May 2, 2023
MPs call for national emergency declaration on violence against Indigenous women, girls, two-spirit people
Motion was presented by NDP MP Leah Gazan of Winnipeg Centre CBC News: The House of Commons adopted a motion on unanimous consent Tuesday calling on the federal government to declare ongoing violence against Indigenous women, girls and two-spirit people a national emergency. The motion was presented by Winnipeg Centre NDP MP Leah Gazan. It also...
April 13, 2023
Missing, murdered Indigenous men and boys need to be part of the discussion
An Indigenous man is four times more likely to be a victim of homicide when compared to Indigenous women and seven times more likely than non-Indigenous males, reads a resolution at last week’s Assembly of First Nations special chiefs assembly. Windspeaker.com: Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Marc Miller says he is “absolutely willing” to discuss with chiefs...
April 7, 2023
Hundreds chant ‘we are not trash,’ close Portage and Main in honour of woman found dead in Winnipeg landfill
Supporters come together to call for change after death of Linda Beardy, 33, of Lake St. Martin First Nation WARNING: This story contains distressing details. CBC News: Hundreds formed a ring around drummers and singers in the middle of Portage Avenue and Main Street in Winnipeg Friday evening to honour Linda Beardy after the mother...
April 6, 2023
Woman whose body was found in Winnipeg landfill climbed into bin before it was taken to dump: police
Family expresses disappointment after police say foul play not suspected in death of Linda Mary Beardy CBC News: A 33-year-old woman whose body was found in a Winnipeg landfill on Monday was seen climbing into a commercial garbage bin that same day, and was not seen getting out before the bin was emptied by a...
April 4, 2023
Body of Lake St. Martin First Nation mother, 33, found at Winnipeg landfill
Workers discovered body of Linda Mary Beardy hours after police believe remains were left at Brady landfill WARNING: This story contains distressing details. CBC News: The body of a 33-year-old mother from a First Nation in Manitoba has been found in a Winnipeg landfill, and police say they consider the circumstances surrounding her death suspicious. Staff at...
March 8, 2023
Assembly of First Nations national chief highlights MMIWG at UN on International Women’s Day
Winnipeg case ‘speaks volumes’ of views on Indigenous women, says RoseAnne Archibald CBC News: On International Women’s Day on Wednesday at the United Nations in New York, the Assembly of First Nations national chief said her number one focus is missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls, as well as gender-diverse people. RoseAnne Archibald spoke specifically about the case of...
March 7, 2023
RCMP told Ottawa it could offer advice to Winnipeg police on landfill search, document shows
The Globe and Mail: A newly released document shows the head of the RCMP told Ottawa the national police force could offer guidance to the Winnipeg police on searching a landfill for the remains of two First Nations women. As anger grew over the initial refusal by the Winnipeg police to search the site, RCMP...
February 23, 2023
How missing Indigenous women could be saved with ‘Red Dress Alert’
Nation Talk: CTV News – One Winnipeg MP is calling for a system, similar to the existing Amber Alerts, to be established to notify the public about missing Indigenous women, girls and two-spirit people. “We currently have crisis of violence against Indigenous women, girls and two-spirit people in this country. Something that our current prime...
February 9, 2023
For 50 days she stood vigil at a Winnipeg landfill. The alleged serial killer charged in her mother’s death goes to court today
Daughter of one of four slain Indigenous women, alleged victims of Jeremy Skibicki, wants to ensure “the landfill isn’t their final resting place.” Toronto Star: WINNIPEG—The red dress trembles in the wind as it clings to a chain-link fence. The symbols of missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls are draped all along the perimeter...
December 26, 2022
Almost a fifth of Winnipeg’s homicides this year involved Indigenous women. These are their stories
‘Indigenous women, girls and two-spirit people are absolutely targeted.… It’s devastating,’ says advocate CBC News: Almost a fifth of the people who died by homicide in Winnipeg this year were Indigenous women, a CBC analysis has found. Of the total of 51 homicides recorded in the city as of Dec. 24, at least 10 involved women who were...
December 13, 2022
Indigenous groups call for federal government to fund searches of Winnipeg-area landfills for remains
Letter signatories say inaction from police, police board have left them to advocate for search alone CBC News: Manitoba First Nations leaders and Indigenous groups have sent a letter calling on the federal government to fund their search of two Winnipeg-area landfills for the remains of homicide victims and call in the United Nations for support....
December 12, 2022
A lifetime of agony: families of missing, murdered Inuit women call for answers
APTN National News: Canadian Press – Every day on his way to work in 2016, Veldon Coburn drove past Bordeleau Park, by the edge of the Rideau River near downtown Ottawa. On a September day that year, while he drove past the park, Coburn heard on the radio that a body had been found in...
December 8, 2022
AFN Stands With Family Of Morgan Beatrice Harris And All Mmiwg2s+ Demanding Dignity And Justice
Assembly of First Nations: (Ottawa, ON) – The Assembly of First Nations stands with the families of Morgan Beatrice Harris and Marcedes Myran, who were honoured with a blanketing ceremony by AFN Women’s Council Vice Chair Doris Anderson and Knowledge Keeper Dr. Gwen Point in a ceremony during the AFN Special Chiefs Assembly. Before the...
December 6, 2022
Daughters of murdered Winnipeg woman call on police to recover remains from landfill
The Globe and Mail: Daughters of a Winnipeg woman believed to be the victim of an alleged serial killer are calling on police to recover her remains from a local landfill that officials say is not feasible to search. Morgan Harris, 39, was named by Winnipeg police last week as one of four Indigenous women...
November 28, 2022
‘Stonewalled’: Trans Mountain hides dealings with private security and spy firms
Federally-owned pipeline company refuses to release contracts or reports First Peoples Law Report: CBC News – A federally owned pipeline company is withholding records that would expose its dealings with private security and intelligence firms by citing blanket exemptions under access-to-information law. Calgary-based Trans Mountain responded to a request to see its contracts with these agencies,...
October 23, 2022
Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs Raises Concerns Over the Early Morning Eviction of Every Child Matters Encampment
NationTalk: Treaty One Territory, Manitoba – The Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs (AMC) is concerned over the unnecessary use of force to remove Elders and supporters from the Sacred Fire – Bring the Children Home encampment housed on the grounds of the Manitoba Legislative Building. Demonstrators established the east-side encampment in support of healing after the...
September 30, 2022
‘Why aren’t we talking about it?’ The forgotten cause of missing Indigenous men and boys
Indigenous men are much more likely to be victims of homicide than Indigenous women, but families say they don’t get the same kind of attention. Toronto Star: ENOCH CREE NATION, Alta.—There is no word for goodbye in Cree. Instead people say êkosi mâka, or “That’s it for now.” The belief is that loved ones will always...
May 24, 2021
Restricted Access Zone
Xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh)/Vancouver, B.C. – May 21, 2021: The BC Civil Liberties Association (BCCLA) has written to the provincial government and RCMP Commissioner condemning the arbitrary and unlawful RCMP Exclusion Zone in unceded Ditidaht territory. The RCMP have established two checkpoints and roadblocks along the McClure Main and Caycuse Main roads...
May 11, 2021
Restricted Access Zone
Vancouver Island News – Mounties have established a restricted-access zone as they begin enforcing an injunction against protesters who are blockading logging activity in the Fairy Creek watershed on southwest Vancouver Island. The B.C. Supreme Court granted the injunction to forestry company Teal-Jones on April 1. Protesters have been blocking logging roads in the watershed...
January 6, 2021
Federal Prisoners
The Tyee – Erin O’Toole, leader of the Conservative Party, disagrees with Canada’s vaccination effort that includes a plan to immunize high-risk prisoners in federal prisons — people who are old or sick. The initial wave of vaccinations will reach 600 inmates, about four per cent of the prison population. His comment: “Not one criminal...
September 27, 2020
Indigenous Police Forces
Toronto Star – Indigenous Police Forces only police force in Canada not classified as an essential service. The federal government has promised four times “to speed up the development of a legal framework to recognize First Nations policing as an essential service”: after the 2019 election, after the Coastal GasLInk protests in BC in the...
September 9, 2020
Indigenous Journalists
Toronto Star – Increasing arrests of Indigenous journalists including: Karl Dockstader at 1492 Land Back Lane Haudenosaunee occupation regarding a housing development near Caledonia Courtney Skye, Yellowhead Institute researcher and Ryerson Fellow arrested as well Award-winning journalist Justin Brake was arrested and charged with criminal and civil contempt and criminal mischief while covering a protest...
April 20, 2020
Indigenous prisoners in federal prisons
BC First Nations Justice Council – First Nations leadership across BC is united in calling for immediate action to protect incarcerated peoples amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. The COVID-19 outbreak at the Mission Institution is now the third largest outbreak in the Province of BC, with the first inmate tragically passing away on April 15, 2020....