First Nations

Canada must stop controlling how First Nations harvest and sell salmon, halibut, and dozens of other marine species, a B.C. court has ruled. 

"How do you explain to a little girl that her people were kidnapped and incarcerated at schools where they were beaten for speaking their parents’ language, told their gods were devils and taught to hate themselves?" asks columnist Julian Brave Noisecat.

The Alberta government is contributing $8 million in grants to assist First Nations and Métis communities locate the remains and honour the memories of residential schoolchildren.

A First Nations chief in southern British Columbia says there are mixed feelings in his community after a Catholic church burned to the ground in an overnight fire, one of two Catholic churches in the area that were destroyed in blazes that police consider suspicious.

A landmark piece of Liberal legislation aimed at harmonizing Canada's laws with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples has passed third reading in the Senate, paving the way for the bill to be enshrined into law before a possible federal election.

Federal Fisheries Minister Bernadette Jordan revealed the initial framework and guiding principles for Ottawa’s $647.1-million Pacific Salmon Strategy Initiative (PSSI) announced in the 2021 budget.

The first story I heard about “the missing” was from a Dene elder, Catherine, just over 10 years ago. She was speaking about the impact of tuberculosis on her family at a health conference. The topic triggered her memories of residential school, and of a younger sister who never returned.

The plan released Thursday — the second anniversary of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls' final report — was branded as the long-promised "national action plan." However, the document is something of a preliminary framework that some Indigenous leaders said fell short of the urgent action needed. 

"These tragic happenings are still engraved in our minds, our bodies, our soul and our spirit,” said We Wai Kai elder Alberta Billy, days after the remains of 215 Indigenous children were confirmed at a B.C. residential school.

The forests around Port Renfrew, which are in the traditional territory of the Ditidaht and Pacheedaht First Nations, have had numerous blockades set up since August 2020. 

Lawyers representing several environmental groups argued Monday that the Ford government failed to meet the requirement to consult the public when it passed the law, which rewrote Ontario’s environmental assessment rules.

Last spring, Ontario’s auditor general warned the government that changes to environmental assessments in Bill 197 were “not compliant” with the law. Now, First Nations and environmental groups are asking a judge to review the decision.