On Jan. 31, Dr. Michael Mahon, president of the University of Lethbridge, cancelled a talk that Dr. Frances Widdowson was scheduled to present. Like all scholars, Dr. Widdowson has nuanced views on many issues, and she was going to speak on “How Wok-ism Threatens...
Winnipeg City Council needs to know renaming streets will not advance Indigenous reconciliation and it will deny Winnipeggers a chance for a learning experience about the residential schools legacy. A final motion goes to city council on March 23. The motion aims to...
Virtually every CBC program and news item about residential schools alleges that “150,000 indigenous children were forced to attend residential schools”. This is false information. Here is the truth — all of which, as CNN's Don Lemon might say, can be Googled. Some...
For anyone who remembers Thomas Mulcair as a serious person and a honourable Member of Parliament, that memory was just cashed in for pennies on the dollar. In a commentary written for CTV News, Mulcair applauded “two women of character (who) have put their indelible...
The choice we face is clear: a modest expansion of greenfield development or greater housing poverty For 18 years, I have been monitoring international housing affordability, as author or co-author of the Demographia Housing Affordability series. The latest...
The April 1982 Saskatchewan election proved to be a major turning point in the province's history. Over its nine years in office, the Devine government commenced and completed numerous policy initiatives in spite of considerable challenges including two recessions. ...
The government just introduced another speech from the throne, outlining new spending and its legislative priorities for the coming session. When it comes to Indigenous policy, the speech included the usual increased funding for specific programs and services, often...
One of the main reasons for the lack of progress on the federal Indigenous file is the lack of united support among First Nations for real change. Sadly, our non-Indigenous political leaders do not talk about this, former Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau being one...
In 2020, for many Canadians in remote and Northern regions – in both Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities – access to reliable cell phone coverage is still a distant reality. That should be a national scandal. Politicians of all stripes continue to promise...
When we start discussing the inevitable economic recovery after the COVID-19 pandemic, both Nova Scotia and New Brunswick should lift restrictions on natural gas fracking. Natural gas prices are at lows, but that will not stay the case forever. Energy industry...
The COVID-19 pandemic has had devastating effects on the already fragile Indigenous economy, making the Indigenous economic recovery that much more important. Gaming – including Indigenous-owned casinos – plays a significant role in Indigenous economies, especially...
Years ago, I was given a great opportunity to be the lead reporter and do the editing work for a national Indigenous newspaper based in Winnipeg. It was called the Drum/First Perspective newspaper and it covered Indigenous news in Manitoba and around Canada. The paper...
It’s easy to forget that at the beginning of the year, Canada was right in the middle of another crisis triggered by a series of protests over a natural gas pipeline being built through northern B.C. The issue of Indigenous reconciliation was front and centre in our...
There’s a television series called First Contact that’s put out by the Aboriginal Peoples Television Network, and recently broadcast by TV Ontario. The series takes a few people who have had little or no contact with Indigenous people on a tour of Indigenous...
Canadians watching the United States are sadly seeing what the COVID-19 pandemic is doing to Native American communities, knowing what it could have done to Indigenous peoples here. The infection rates for many Native American communities is much higher than other...