OTTAWA, March 3, 2021 – The Congress of Aboriginal Peoples (CAP) today calls for justice in the death of 22-year old Cileana Taylor of the Curve Lake First Nation. Ms. Taylor suffered a severe brain-injury in September when she was allegedly assaulted by Jordan Morin. On Friday, February 26th, Ms. Taylor was pronounced dead after she was taken off of life-support. This is particular shocking given that according to court documents, Jordan Morin was on bail for a separate assault in 2019.
Statement by Congress of Aboriginal Peoples National Chief Elmer St. Pierre:
“Despite the brutal killing of Cileana Taylor, the accused Jordan Morin was allowed to walk free after a bail hearing on February 3rd. It is outrageous that this man can be allowed to interact with our community after allegedly victimizing a young Indigenous woman.”
“These are the circumstances that have allowed for systemic violence against Indigenous women across our country. Our justice system must act with strength on cases which see more of our friends and family members added to the list of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (MMIWG).”
“CAP is calling for swift justice in this case, and for the accused Jordan Morin to be placed into custody to prevent further loss of life while on out on bail. We must see systemic changes if the government is to make real progress on future cases involving Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls. The system must treat the those that attack Indigenous women as seriously as other victims in society” added National Chief Elmer St. Pierre.
Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada — Wednesday, 3 March 2021: The MacKenzie Art Gallery is pleased to present an online, playable exhibition of new work produced during the Gallery’s first Digital Artist in Residence (DAiR) program held in the Summer of 2020. DAiR v1: Video Games by Artists delves deeper into the conceptual, creative, and narrative boundaries of video game design to explore its potential as an artistic medium. Each work investigates an aspect of our contemporary moment, making inquiries into the subjects of care, control, mental health, isolation, and shared crisis. All artworks are playable online at mackenzie.art—in their original, intended format—with a standard desktop or laptop computer. The exhibition will include several online events.
On March 4 and 11 at 7 PM CST, the artists in the exhibition will discuss their projects and how they use video game design software to create art. These talks can be viewed online for free across the MacKenzie’s Facebook, YouTube, and Twitch accounts.
In the first iteration of the Digital Artist in Residence program, the MacKenzie worked with six digital artists, whose work is featured in the online exhibition. Thirza Cuthand’s Bipolar Journey is a game inspired by the artist’s personal experiences with Bipolar Disorder. Hilarey Cowan’s Caring Capacity is a meditative, interactive audio-visual experience about care. Dallas Flett-Wapash plays on popular game mechanics to reveal their underlying ideologies in Crappy Home Designer. The Sky is Falling by Simon Fuh is a new interpretation of Chicken Little, explicitly tied to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. In Sandee Moore’s Nowhere/Anywhere, players explore reimagined prairie landscapes while embodying a plastic shopping bag. Launched in the summer of 2020, the MacKenzie’s DAiR program brought together artists from across the country to collaborate virtually at a time when many arts programs were cancelled due to COVID-19 measures. “It was important to quickly respond to the needs of artists at that time of uncertainty,” says Cat Bluemke, who worked alongside digital programs coordinator Jonathan Carroll to develop the DAiR initiative.
“The DAiR program offered artists a form of community and production support at a time when many of them were isolated at home, and connected them with likeminded artists who were physically located across the country. By working with digital artists, we were able to create an exciting new exhibition for the MacKenzie that can now be experienced in its intended format by audiences at home.” Bluemke and Carroll developed the DAiR initiative as part of the MacKenzie’s Digital Lab project, funded through the Canada Council for the Arts, which supports digital art production and literacy across the province of Saskatchewan.
The Digital Lab began in 2019 under the guidance of current CEO John G. Hampton and has been offering new programs throughout the pandemic that are suited for audiences at home. An exclusive event for MacKenzie members will run Thursday, March 25 at 7 PM CST. Bluemke and Carroll will discuss the DAiR exhibition and how to use video game technology as an artistic medium. Interested members can sign up to attend this session in advance. For interviews with Cat Bluemke, Jonathan Carroll, or the DAiR artists featured in the online exhibition, please contact one of our communications staff below.
Vancouver, B.C. – Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH) is pleased to announce COVID-19 vaccination clinics will open to eligible seniors on Monday, March 15, 2021. People 80 years of age and older, and Indigenous (First Nations, Métis and Inuit) people 65 years of age and older, will be eligible to be vaccinated as part of Phase 2 of the B.C. COVID-19 Immunization Plan.
VCH will have vaccination clinic sites across Vancouver, Richmond and Urban and Rural Coastal communities. Most vaccination clinics will be open seven days a week, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. with evening appointments also available. Dedicated sites have also been established for Indigenous (First Nations, Métis and Inuit) people, which will offer services that are culturally safe, with ceremonial plans in place.
An appointment booking toll-free phone line will begin operating on Monday, March 8 from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., seven days a week. People 80 years of age and older, and Indigenous (First Nations, Métis and Inuit) people 65 years of age and older, can book their appointment by age group by calling 1-877-587-5767.
To facilitate access to as many eligible seniors and Indigenous (First Nations, Métis and Inuit) people as possible, VCH invites people in the following age groups to call the appointment booking phone line from the dates indicated below:
Richmond, Vancouver, North Vancouver and West Vancouver Call Starting March 8: (Vaccinations starting March 15)
Year of birth in or before 1931 (seniors 90 years of age and older); year of birth in or before 1956 for Indigenous people (65 years of age and older) Call Starting March 15: (Vaccinations starting March 22)
Year of birth in or before 1936 (seniors 85 years of age and older); year of birth in or before 1956 for Indigenous people (65 years of age and older)Call Starting March 22: (Vaccinations starting March 29)
Year of birth in or before 1941 (seniors 80 years of age and older); year of birth in or before 1956 for Indigenous people (65 years of age and older)
Sunshine Coast, Powell River, Whistler, Squamish and Pemberton Call Starting March 8: (Vaccinations starting March 15)
Year of birth in or before 1941 (seniors 80 years of age and older); year of birth in or before 1956 for Indigenous people (65 years of age and older)
Before calling the phone line, people are asked to have a pen and paper, their personal health number, full name, date of birth, postal code and a phone number available.
For reference, below is important contact information related to COVID-19 vaccine.
● If you are eligible to book a vaccine appointment at VCH: call 1-877-587-5767. This toll free line is only for booking vaccine appointments.
● If you have a clinical question: first speak with your family doctor or nurse practitioner, or call 811 for nursing advice prior to booking your appointment.
● For questions about the COVID-19 vaccine, call 1-888-COVID19 (1.888.268.4319) or visit gov.bc.ca/covid19.
● For information on VCH vaccination clinics: vch.ca.
VCH is appealing to family members, friends, neighbours and social services agencies to help reach eligible seniors in the community. Please share the COVID-19 vaccination information with people 80 years of age and older, or Indigenous (First Nations, Métis and Inuit) people 65 years of age and older, to help them plan ahead for when the appointment booking phone line opens, according to age group.
Vancouver Coastal Health is responsible for the delivery of $4.1 billion in community, hospital and long-term care to more than one million people in communities including Richmond, Vancouver, the North Shore, Sunshine Coast, Sea to Sky corridor, Powell River, Bella Bella and Bella Coola. VCH also provides specialized care and services for people throughout B.C., and is the province’s hub of health-care education and research.
Wendake, March 1, 2021- The Chiefs of the Assembly of First Nations Quebec-Labrador (AFNQL), gathered in a virtual assembly on February 26, unanimously voted a resolution to adopt Joyce’s Principle. Inspired by the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, this Principle aims to guarantee all Indigenous peoples the right of equitable access, without any discrimination, to all health and social services, as well as the right to enjoy the highest attainable standard of physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health. Joyce’s Principle requires mandatory recognition and respect for Indigenous traditional and living health knowledge.
“The AFNQL is firmly committed to the promotion and respect of Joyce’s Principle. The Chiefs of the AFNQL recognize that this Principle is a unifying guide for all governments, institutions and individuals who have the duty and responsibility to provide services to the First Nations population “said AFNQL Chief, Ghislain Picard.
The tragic death of Joyce Echaquan in September 2020 brought to light the presence and serious consequences of systemic racism in Quebec’s health care system. Joyce died enduring racist insults while hospitalized and suffering but she was able to film these despicable actions by healthcare workers. The Principle is a call to action for governments to commit to eliminating racism and discrimination in services to First Nations. The community of Manawan and the entire Atikamekw Nation developed and adopted Joyce’s Principle, also as a tribute to the courage of Joyce Echaquan.
About the AFNQL
The Assembly of First Nations Quebec-Labrador is the regional political organization that brings together the 43 Chiefs of the First Nations of Quebec and Labrador. www.apnql.com
OTTAWA, March 1, 2021 – The Congress of Aboriginal Peoples (CAP) today condemned the police shooting of 28-year-old Julian Jones on the Opitsaht First Nation in Tofino, B.C. CAP is calling for a full investigation into the shooting death and supports the Independent Investigations Office of British Columbia in their civilian-led inquiry.
Statement of CAP National Vice-Chief Mr. Kim Beaudin:
“The police must be held accountable for training failures which lead to the senseless use of deadly force on our community members across Canada.”
“We are sickened by this needless death, but not surprised that the Tofino RCMP have failed to adequately support the Opitsaht First Nation. For years, police have carried out extra-judicial violence against Indigenous peoples, and the distrust in our communities has not been fostered overnight.”
“The police must show the policies and practices they have in place to de-escalate their response. We will not accept this being swept under the rug with an internal investigation from the Tofino RCMP. The Tla-o-qui-aht community has already lost a young woman to policing failures in the last 12-months, when New Brunswick officers killed Chantel Moore on a wellness check.”
CAP supports the call for policing reform across Canada and an end to police violence in racialized communities.
David Chartrand, Minister of Veteran Affairs of the Métis National Council, issued the following statement on the launch of the Métis Veterans Legacy Commemoration Program:
With great pride and pleasure, today we launch the Commemoration Program, the final element of a three-phase implementation strategy by the Métis Veterans Legacy Program.
For over 20 years, I have been meeting with our Second World War Métis Veterans and their families. I have listened to their stories – their message is consistent – all they hoped for is an apology and the recognition they deserve as men and women who risked and in some cases, sacrificed their lives in the name of freedom.
Fighting to preserve their legacy has been the driving force of my work as Minister of Veteran Affairs, resulting in a contribution agreement and an apology from Canada. I want to thank Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for keeping his promise to the Métis Nation and Minister Lawrence MacAulay for his commitment to these vital steps towards reconciliation.
The Commemoration Program, a first-of-its-kind national recognition legacy program, aims to unite the Métis Nation in honouring our Veterans. As a nation, we will finally tell the stories of the sacrifices made by our Veterans, by appropriately and respectfully recognizing the losses, the pain, and anguish war leaves behind.
The Program will fund projects to honour Métis Veterans, create public monuments, host ceremonies, and undertake education initiatives. The Program is designed as a permanent initiative for future generations to draw upon, so we never forget what our Second World War Métis Veterans had to endure in the name of peace and security around the world.
Since June 2019, the Métis Veterans Legacy Program has focused on reconciling with Second World War Métis Veterans. To date, 29 Veterans, 24 spouses, and the children of 5 Veterans have been presented with recognition payments. While our focus remains on Second World War Métis Veterans and their families, the Commemoration Program will be open to all eligible Métis Nation individuals, governments, institutions and organizations, and qualified Canadian individuals and organizations.
Today is a day that we look back at the neglect many of our Second World War Métis Veterans experienced and chart a new course standing side-by-side with them, as we fulfil our sacred obligation to honour and commemorate their sacrifices and contributions.
We will honour those Métis Veterans who fought, those who came home, and those who were lost and did not return. You are our heroes today, tomorrow, and forever.
Meeqwetch
David Chartrand Minister of Veterans Affairs Métis National Council
Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively have donated $250,000 to Influence Mentoring Society, an organization that helps Indigenous youth in post-secondary education, with the goal of eliminating employment gaps faced by Canada’s Indigenous peoples.
In many Indigenous cultures, mentoring is an important way in which youth are guided through the world and learn from their elders. The donation will allow the organization to launch its Influence Mentoring Program. The online program helps Indigenous post-secondary students find mentors anywhere in Canada, who work with youth to improve their knowledge on Indigenous cultures, history and issues.
“We are so happy to support the Influence Mentoring program that will help Indigenous youth in Canada, who are trying to successfully complete their post-secondary pursuits and enter the job market for the first time,” the couple said in a statement. “All too often, diverse groups are left behind in the things we take for granted. This program aims to rectify that imbalance.”
This isn’t the first time Ryan and Blake have supported Indigenous employment. Last year, they donated $200,000 to the International Centre for Women’s Leadership at Nova Scotia’s St. Francis Xavier University to help its Indigenous programming.
“The world’s changing quickly, and one thing we’re sure of is that communities are best led from within,” Ryan said in a statement at the time. “Indigenous women are the leaders who will develop and implement approaches to increase social capital of their own communities, organizations and nations.”
Ryan also dedicated a portion of his salary from Netflix‘s The Adam Project, which was shot in Vancouver, toward hiring BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and people of colour) crew members through the Group Effort Intiative.
“Making a movie, well, it’s a group effort. But for entirely too long, that group has systemically excluded Black, Indigenous, people of colour and a whole host of other marginalized communities, of all ages,” he said in a statement at the time.
We’re happy to hear about Ryan and Blake’s new donation!
Wendake, March 1, 2021- The Chiefs of the Assembly of First Nations Quebec-Labrador (AFNQL), gathered in a virtual assembly on February 26, unanimously voted a resolution to adopt Joyce’s Principle. Inspired by the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, this Principle aims to guarantee all Indigenous peoples the right of equitable access, without any discrimination, to all health and social services, as well as the right to enjoy the highest attainable standard of physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health. Joyce’s Principle requires mandatory recognition and respect for Indigenous traditional and living health knowledge.
“The AFNQL is firmly committed to the promotion and respect of Joyce’s Principle. The Chiefs of the AFNQL recognize that this Principle is a unifying guide for all governments, institutions and individuals who have the duty and responsibility to provide services to the First Nations population “said AFNQL Chief, Ghislain Picard.
The tragic death of Joyce Echaquan in September 2020 brought to light the presence and serious consequences of systemic racism in Quebec’s health care system. Joyce died enduring racist insults while hospitalized and suffering but she was able to film these despicable actions by healthcare workers. The Principle is a call to action for governments to commit to eliminating racism and discrimination in services to First Nations. The community of Manawan and the entire Atikamekw Nation developed and adopted Joyce’s Principle, also as a tribute to the courage of Joyce Echaquan.
About the AFNQL
The Assembly of First Nations Quebec-Labrador is the regional political organization th
Wendake, le 1er mars 2021– Les Chefs de l’Assemblée des Premières Nations Québec-Labrador (APNQL), réunis en assemblée virtuelle le 26 février dernier, ont voté une résolution à l’unanimité pour adopter le Principe de Joyce. Inspiré de la Déclaration des Nations Unies sur les droits des peuples autochtones, ce principe vise à garantir à tous les Autochtones un droit d’accès équitable, sans aucune discrimination, à tous les services sociaux et de santé, ainsi que le droit de jouir du meilleur état possible de santé physique, mentale, émotionnelle et spirituelle. Le Principe de Joyce requiert obligatoirement la reconnaissance et le respect des savoirs et connaissances traditionnelles et vivantes des Autochtones en matière de santé.
« L’APNQL est formellement engagée dans la promotion et le respect du Principe de Joyce. Les chefs de l’APNQL reconnaissent que ce principe est un guide rassembleur pour tous les gouvernements, institutions et individus qui ont le devoir et la responsabilité de donner des services à la population des Premières Nations. » a déclaré le Chef de l’APNQL, Ghislain Picard.
La mort tragique de Joyce Echaquan en septembre 2020 a révélé au grand jour la présence et les conséquences graves de racisme systémique dans le système de santé québécois. Décédée sous une pluie d’insultes racistes alors qu’elle était hospitalisée et souffrante, Joyce a pu filmer ces agissements ignobles de la part de membres du personnel soignant. Ce principe est un appel à l’action à l’engagement des gouvernements, afin d’éliminer le racisme et la discrimination dans les services offerts aux Premières Nations. La communauté de Manawan et l’ensemble de la Nation Atikamekw ont élaboré et adopté le Principe de Joyce, aussi en hommage au courage de Joyce Echaquan.
À propos de l’APNQL
L’Assemblée des Premières Nations Québec-Labrador est l’organisme régional politique qui regroupe les 43 chefs des Premières Nations du Québec et du Labrador. www.apnql.com
Interactive sessions and chances to win prizes offered at online event
College of the Rockies will host its first-ever virtual Open House on Saturday, February 27 from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
“This year it is easier than ever to take part in our Open House,” said Jennifer Inglis, College Recruitment Officer. “With our virtual event, participants can view presentations and take part in interactive sessions with faculty and staff, from the comfort of their own home. Most presentations are only 15 minutes in length and participants are able to pick and choose which ones they would like to take part in.”
In addition to program-specific information, the virtual Open House will include sessions with College service providers including Financial Aid, Education and Career Planning, and a student panel where attendees can find out what it is like to attend College of the Rockies by hearing directly from current students.
Sessions will be hosted by College faculty, staff, current students, and industry representatives from the Industry Training Authority (ITA) and Interior Health. Whenever possible, presenters are sharing their information in unique and engaging ways.
Continuing Education will present the many short-term, general interest courses available, and will introduce some of their dynamic instructors, including Shinobu Murata who teaches Japanese language courses, Haiku, and Japanese Calligraphy.
Individuals interested in studying overseas, once travel resumes, will have the opportunity to talk with Kerry Brinkert, Manager of International Projects and Partnerships, about the work the College is doing to provide short-term and semester-long study abroad opportunities in 2022 and beyond.
“We encourage participants to attend as many of the sessions as possible, and to be sure to ask questions,” Inglis said. “Our faculty and staff are eager to discuss their specific programs and services and look forward to the opportunity to interact with community members and future students.”
Participants who register in advance for the Open House will be entered to win a $700 tuition voucher. Pre-registration is available on the College’s website.
As in past years, applications received during the event will have the application fee waived. A form to request the coupon code for the fee waiver will be available during the event.
Learn more about College of the Rockies’ Open House and register for the event at cotr.ca/open-house
