Topic: Today’s News

*Nurses from across the province gather in Victoria to demand government
address health-care crisis*

As two public health emergencies continue to play out in BC’s health-care
system, nurses are using their voices this National Nursing Week to
highlight long-standing problems that are impacting their mental health and
patient care.

“BC nurses don’t feel like celebrating this week,” says BCNU President Aman
Grewal. “Instead, hundreds have travelled to Victoria from communities
across the province with a somber message that the health-care system is
buckling under the pressure. Enough is enough. We need action now.”

On Monday evening, BCNU is hosting a “Vigil to Heal Heath Care” to give
nurses, first responders and family members a unique opportunity to share
in their grief and reflect on the overwhelming impact the last few years
have had on communities and the health-care system.

Grewal says 82 percent of BCNU members surveyed last year said their mental
health has worsened over the pandemic.

“The act of holding a dying patient’s hand while they lay intubated and
alone or balancing an iPad so family members can say their final good-byes
is something that stays with you,” says Grewal. “It’s had a profound impact
on our members, and they are not allowed to share this reality openly.”

To highlight the mental and physical toll the staffing crisis is having on
nurses, BCNU is sharing five nurses’ stories anonymously. Hear their
stories firsthand by visiting HelpBCNurses.ca
<https://trk.cp20.com/click/cemw-2j98yo-2sbkp0-igxf32y6/>

On Tuesday afternoon nurses will be taking their message to the provincial
government with a rally on the steps of the BC Legislature. Staffing
concerns, working conditions and patient care will be top of mind for those
at the event.

To arrange an interview, please email media@bcnu.org.

May 5, 2022 – CBC, Canada’s public broadcaster and #1 Canadian podcast publisher, today shared details
of its podcast slate for Spring/Summer 2022. The upcoming lineup features several all-new series
including KUPER ISLAND, a powerful examination of the dark history of the notorious Kuper Island
Residential School and its abuse of Indigenous children; and the timely return of the award-winning
investigative series SOMEONE KNOWS SOMETHING: THE ABORTION WARS. CBC’s entire podcast
collection can be found on CBC Listen and everywhere podcasts are available.

CBC’s Spring/Summer 2022 podcast releases are listed below in order of their premiere dates.

KUPER ISLAND – Launching Tuesday, May 17
Long after the Kuper Island Residential School was torn down, the survivors remain haunted by what
happened there. In this eight-part series, investigative journalist Duncan McCue exposes undisclosed
police investigations, confronts perpetrators of abuse, and witnesses a community trying to rebuild on
top of the old school’s ruins and the unmarked graves of Indigenous children.

“When the former chief of Penelakut first told me how her community has grappled with the restless
spirits of children ever since the Kuper Island Residential School closed, I knew it was a story more
people needed to hear,” said McCue. “I wanted to go beyond the cold, hard numbers of unmarked
graves, to help people understand the deaths of children at a residential school aren’t a thing of the past.

These tragic deaths travel like ripples over water, touching generations. These were children who were
loved and had dreams – and their loss still impacts Indigenous lives today.”

SOMEONE KNOWS SOMETHING: THE ABORTION WARS – Launching Wednesday, May 25
Following a two year hiatus due to the pandemic, the top-rated investigative series SOMEONE KNOWS
SOMETHING returns for its eagerly awaited seventh season. This time, host David Ridgen teams up with
investigative journalist Amanda Robb to dig into the 1998 murder of Robb’s uncle, a New York doctor
killed for performing abortions. They uncover a network of anti-abortion activists linked to violence in
North America and Europe. Twenty years later, with Roe v. Wade in the headlines, they ask “could more
violence be on the horizon?” Listen to the trailer here.

THE VILLAGE: THE MONTREAL MURDERS – Launching Tuesday, June 7
As more and more gay men are found murdered in 1990s Montreal, the city reckons with both the AIDS
crisis and a possible serial killer. Faced with police indifference, despite mounting evidence, a group of
activists takes matters into their own hands. This seven-part series, hosted by journalist Francis Plourde,
explores the birth of a movement and the slow march toward justice. In a unique first, podcast
production teams from CBC and Radio-Canada joined forces to tell the same story in English and French.
Radio-Canada’s sister podcast Le Village : meurtres, combats, fierté hosted by Marie-Eve Tremblay also
launches June 7 exclusively on Radio-Canada OHdio.

BUFFY – Launching Tuesday, June 21
Buffy Sainte-Marie is one of the most prolific singer-songwriters of the past century and her music has
quietly reverberated throughout pop culture and provided a soundtrack for Indigenous resistance for the
last 60 years. In this five-part series, Mohawk and Tuscarora writer Falen Johnson (co-host of Secret Life
of Canada) explores how Buffy’s life and legacy is essential to understanding Indigenous resilience.

THE KILL LIST – Launching Tuesday, July 12
When the body of human rights activist Karima Baloch is found off the shores of Toronto, an
investigation into her mysterious death leads all the way back to Pakistan, the country she had previously
fled. In this six-part series, host Mary Lynk explores the rampant abductions and killings of dissidents in
Pakistan, the dangers that follow those who flee to the West, and a terrifying intelligence agency with
tentacles around the globe. How did Karima die? And would Pakistan really carry out an assassination far
beyond its borders? This is a story that a powerful state doesn’t want to be told.

From Canada’s public broadcaster, CBC Podcasts is a richly diverse collection of award-winning podcasts
that engage, enlighten and entertain. CBC is the #1 Canadian podcast publisher, reaching more listeners
worldwide than any other Canadian podcast publisher with millions of downloads each month and more
than 40 series in genres such as true crime, comedy, human interest and audio fiction.

Western science and Indigenous environmental stewardship team up to protect culture and environment

Cape Mudge, BC (May 9, 2022) – After a two-year hiatus due to the COVID pandemic, environmental and cultural Guardians from the Nanwakolas Council’s six member First Nations are gathering in person for a week of specialized training with Indigenous, provincial and federal environmental experts, starting May 9^th. The training includes strategies to better protect local ecosystems and cultural resources within their territories, where presently, only 20 young Guardians are on duty to monitor eight million acres on Northern Vancouver Island and the adjacent mainland south-central coast of the Great Bear Rainforest.

The Guardian programs of the individual Nations (Mamalilikulla, Tlowitsis, Da’naxda’xw Awaetlala, Wei Wai Kai, Wei Wai Kum, and K’ómoks) are supported by the Council’s Ha-ma-yas Stewardship Network (Ha-ma-yas), which aims to build indigenous’ stewardship capacity to ensure the effective management of cultural heritage resources, ecological values, and economic development opportunities. While Ha-ma-yas does not operate its own Guardian program, it works with each Nation on their stewardship interests and focuses on regional issues like standardized training, monitoring and data collection, acquiring recognized compliance and enforcement powers, and finding funding to expand the Nation’s Guardian programs.

Each of the member Nation Guardian programs are involved in projects that their Nation has identified as priorities, such as protecting cultural and ecological values, ensuring the Guardians are prepared for marine incidents on the water, participating in forest stewardship within the Great Bear Rainforest, and old growth management on Vancouver Island. The work the Guardians undertake builds new information that is added to each Nation’s database. The monitoring and data collected is valuable to the Nations in building their own inventory and repository of information that is used in decision making and interactions with industry, government, and other research/academic institutions.

The gathering at the Cape Mudge Reserve on Quadra Island, May 9-13, includes specialized training on land and water provided by current guardians, provincial natural resource officers, experts from the Hakai Institute, Canadian Coast Guard, Provincial Natural Resource Officers, and BC Institute of Technology. Key topics of the Gathering include; bathymetry training (study of ocean, lake and river terrain), grizzly bear camera use, archaeological survey methods, marine search and rescue, vessel towing, dockside booming, hypothermia treatment, compliance monitoring and enforcement networking.

“Our Nations have ancestral responsibilities to take care of the lands, waters, wildlife, and food sources for future generations,” said Dallas Smith, Board President, Nanwakolas Council. “Our upcoming gathering plays an important role in ensuring the Guardians have the training and education they need, as well as professional standards, and a good understanding of data collection methodology so the data they collect is standardized and consistent for analysis and reporting. It’s also a valuable opportunity to once again share experiences and knowledge with Guardians from other parts of BC, Canada and the United States.”

Across the territories of the Nanwakolas Council Nations, there is a growing need to expand the role and size of the Guardian programs so they can more actively be engaged in monitoring forest harvesting, hunting activities, assess important habitats, protect cultural sites, rehabilitate damaged areas, assess resource development referrals, and ensure compliance with land use plans that have been agreed to. There is also an immediate need to increase the Guardians’ capacity to respond to environmental disasters such as the sinking and pollution caused by the Nathan E. Stewart tug/barge near Bella Bella in 2016, as well as the growing impacts of climate change-related disasters such as heat domes, forest fires and floods.

“The Guardians are the eyes and ears of our Nations in this vast territory, and they know more about our land than anyone,” adds Smith. “The integration of western sciences with Indigenous knowledge based on thousands of years of environmental stewardship greatly enhances our ability to monitor the land and prepare and respond to the effects of climate change.”

Currently, the limited funding for the Nations’ Guardian programs comes from revenue sharing through the “Great Bear Rainforest” (GBR) agreement and Marine Plan Partnership (MaPP) with the Province of BC and the Oceans Protection Plan (OPP) with the Federal government, as well annual grant applications and the philanthropic support of organizations such as the Nature United, Hakai Institute and Coast Funds.

Access to ongoing sustainable funding would enable the Guardian programs to address key human resources needs, such as: hiring additional Guardians; increasing participation in academic programs like the Vancouver Island University’s Stewardship Technicians Training Program (STTP), where Ha-ma-yas students have a 100% graduation rate; and providing competitive wages for Guardians so young Indigenous people can live and have long-term careers in their home communities. Increased funding is also required to address infrastructure capital and equipment needs, such as acquiring and maintaining specialized vehicles and boats, and acquiring meeting space, communication technology, software and hardware to meet growing data management needs.

The return on investment in the Guardian programs was confirmed in the 2016 Business Case Report on Coastal Guardian Watchmen Programs, which found on average that “investments made in Coastal Guardian Watchmen programs generated, on the low end, a 10 to 1 annual return and on the high end a 20 to 1 annual return for participating Nations.”

“As Premier Horgan noted when the Province launched the Declaration Act Action Plan, ‘By working together in partnership, we are creating more opportunities, better jobs and stronger environmental protections’,” said Smith. “I think our Guardian programs epitomize that spirit of cooperation and working together to achieve shared goals and a brighter future for our Indigenous Nations and people.”

About Nanwakolas Council

Nanwakolas Council provides services to the member First Nations (Mamalilikulla, Tlowitsis, Da’naxda’xw Awaetlala, Wei Wai Kai, Wei Wai Kum and K’ómoks), including specific technical expertise, operational support and information, facilitation, advice, and coordination of the work of the individual Nations in their stewardship of lands and waters. It also supports the work of the First Nations’ Guardians through the Ha-ma-yas Stewardship Network and advocates for the protection of the member First Nations’ Aboriginal rights when engaging with governments. The member First Nations also work collectively through Nanwakolas Council as a united voice when dealing with matters of collective interest. For more information, visit www.nanwakolas.com

Nurses from across the province gather in Victoria to demand government address health-care crisis

As two public health emergencies continue to play out in BC’s health-care system, nurses are using their voices this National Nursing Week to highlight long-standing problems that are impacting their mental health and patient care.

“BC nurses don’t feel like celebrating this week,” says BCNU President Aman Grewal. “Instead, hundreds have travelled to Victoria from communities across the province with a somber message that the health-care system is buckling under the pressure. Enough is enough. We need action now.”

On Monday evening, BCNU is hosting a “Vigil to Heal Heath Care” to give nurses, first responders and family members a unique opportunity to share in their grief and reflect on the overwhelming impact the last few years have had on communities and the health-care system.

Grewal says 82 percent of BCNU members surveyed last year said their mental health has worsened over the pandemic.

“The act of holding a dying patient’s hand while they lay intubated and alone or balancing an iPad so family members can say their final good-byes is something that stays with you,” says Grewal. “It’s had a profound impact on our members, and they are not allowed to share this reality openly.”

To highlight the mental and physical toll the staffing crisis is having on nurses, BCNU is sharing five nurses’ stories anonymously. Hear their stories firsthand by visiting HelpBCNurses.ca 

On Tuesday afternoon nurses will be taking their message to the provincial government with a rally on the steps of the BC Legislature. Staffing concerns, working conditions and patient care will be top of mind for those at the event.

Les Femmes Michif Otipemisiwak / Women of the Métis Nation honours today, May 5, as the National Day of Awareness for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls and 2SLGBTQQIA+ Folks. Later today, LFMO will host a virtual event for Métis women and 2SLGBTQQIA+ folks to come together to honour families, survivors as well as those who never came home.

LFMO released its own Final Report, entitled Métis Perspectives of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls and LGBTQ2S+ People, in June 2019. Our report listed 62 Calls for Miskotâha. In September 2021, LFMO also shared an update on this progress in a report called Weaving Miskotâha.

“Gender-based violence is not just a women’s issue; it is an issue that requires us and all levels of government to work together.” said Melanie Omeniho, President of Les Femmes Michif Otipemisiwak. “Our mission will remain to see a world where Métis women, girls, Two-Spirit and gender-diverse people are safe, respected, empowered, and have the capacity to create healthy, vibrant, and productive communities. As always, we are grateful to the many families who have selflessly shared their stories in the hopes of creating pathways to systemic change.”

To our Indigenous sisters, survivors, gender diverse folks and families across the Métis Motherland – we honour your strength in sharing your stories and your work in lifting up Indigenous women and 2SLGBTQQIA+ folks around you. We see you, we hear you and we love you.

LFMO speaks as the national and international voice for the Women of the Métis Nation across the Métis Motherland, spanning Ontario westward to British Columbia. Les Femmes Michif Otipemisiwak aims to consult, promote and represent the personal, spiritual, social, cultural, political and economic interests and aspirations of the Women of the Métis Nation, and their Indigenous allies.

Media Requests
Victoria Pruden
Director of Operations
victoriap@métiswomen.org
(250) 208-0105

Sobeys Inc. is proud to announce Kids Help Phone as a new partner in its Family of Support: Child and Youth Mental Health Initiative (“Family of Support”). This new partnership will support two community-based mental health programs from Kids Help Phone, RiseUp and Finding Hope, to connect Black and Indigenous youth to real-time virtual counselling and crisis help. Each program provides 24/7 support for vulnerable youth, with the support of volunteer champions, counsellors and community advisors from Black and Indigenous communities. With Sobeys Inc.’s support, the RiseUp and Finding Hope programs have significant growth plans to help even more youth in Canada.

“Truly national, instantaneous mental health support is vital to address and support child and youth mental health challenges in critically underserved communities across the country,” said Katherine Hay, President & CEO, Kids Help Phone. “Thank you to Sobeys Inc. for this tremendous partnership, which will strengthen our programs in areas such as crisis response, community outreach, skill development, response times and more. These improvements will drive meaningful change for Black and Indigenous youth and help shift the child and youth mental health landscape in Canada.”

RiseUp, powered by Kids Help Phone in partnership with the BlackNorth initiative, is Canada’s only 24/7, bilingual e-mental health support for Black youth, which addresses their unique struggles and experiences compounded by anti-Black systemic racism. The RiseUp program, in collaboration with community partners, focuses on supporting the Black community and Afro-diaspora. RiseUp facilitated 24,000 phone and text conversations with Black youth in 2021, with a goal to grow to 60,000 conversations by 2025.

Finding Hope is a national action plan focused on creating capacity for Kids Help Phone to better connect with Indigenous youth – who face some of the most difficult mental health challenges in Canada, and significant barriers to accessing services and connection. Finding Hope is led, co-created and governed by an Indigenous Advisory Council, connecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis communities with Indigenous volunteers and counsellors. Finding Hope’s goal is to connect Indigenous youth to virtual counselling and crisis response programs one million times by 2025.

“We’ve partnered with Kids Help Phone for so many years and the way they stood up to support youth across Canada during the pandemic has been nothing short of amazing,” said Michael Medline, President and CEO, Empire. “We have so much confidence in the integrated program that has been

reated in partnership with both Black and Indigenous community leaders and are proud to see this programming evolve to provide a focus on supporting early intervention for Black and Indigenous youth.”

Through its Family of Support, Sobeys Inc. continues to support early intervention initiatives to support child and youth mental health at 13 children’s hospitals across Canada. Sobeys Inc.’s partnership with the Sobey Foundation and Canada’s Children’s Hospital Foundations was the inaugural investment for Family of Support, resulting in more than $9 million raised to date for 13 children’s hospital foundations across Canada. Like Kids Help Phone, Sobeys Inc. is also a proud partner of the BlackNorth initiative.

Not Invisible Act Commission set to begin active advisory role in combatting violence against Native people

WASHINGTON — Today, Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland and Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco will recognize National Missing or Murdered Indigenous Persons Awareness Day with a virtual event to highlight the Not Invisible Act Commission. During the event, panelists will discuss the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Peoples crisis and the importance of the Not Invisible Act Commission in the collaborative efforts to address the crisis.

The event will be livestreamed at 2:30 PM ET today on the Interior Department’s website.  

The Departments of the Interior and Justice are working to implement the Not Invisible Act, sponsored by Secretary Haaland during her time in Congress. The law established the Not Invisible Act Commission, a cross jurisdictional advisory committee composed of law enforcement, Tribal leaders, federal partners, service providers, family members of missing and murdered individuals, and most importantly — survivors. Today, the Departments announced the Not Invisible Act Commission members.

“Everyone deserves to feel safe in their community, but a lack of urgency, transparency and coordination have hampered our country’s efforts to combat violence against American Indians and Alaska Natives,” said Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland. “As we work with the Department of Justice to prioritize the national crisis of missing and murdered Indigenous peoples, the Not Invisible Act Commission will help address its underlying roots by ensuring the voices of those impacted by violence against Native people are included in our quest to implement solutions.” 

“The Justice Department is committed to addressing the crisis of missing or murdered Indigenous persons with the urgency it demands,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “That commitment is reflected in the strength of our partnerships across the federal government, including with the Department of the Interior as we take the next steps in launching the Not Invisible Act Commission. The Commissioners announced today will play a critical role in our efforts to better meet the public safety needs of Native communities. The Justice Department will continue to work alongside our Tribal partners with respect, sincerity, and a shared interest in the wellbeing of Tribal communities.”

The Not Invisible Act Commission will make recommendations to the Departments of the Interior and Justice to improve intergovernmental coordination and establish best practices for state, Tribal, and federal law enforcement, to bolster resources for survivors and victim’s families, and to combat the epidemic of missing persons, murder, and trafficking of Native American, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian people. 

Among its mission, the Commission will:

• Identify, report and respond to instances of missing and murdered Indigenous peoples (MMIP) cases and human trafficking,
• Develop legislative and administrative changes necessary to use federal programs, properties, and resources to combat the crisis,
• Track and report data on MMIP and human trafficking cases,
• Consider issues related to the hiring and retention of law enforcement offices,
• Coordinate Tribal-state-federal resources to combat MMIP and human trafficking offices on Indian lands, and
• Increase information sharing with Tribal governments on violent crimes investigations and other prosecutions on Indian lands.

The Commission has the authority to hold hearings, gather testimony, and receive additional evidence and feedback from its members to develop recommendations to the Secretary and Attorney General.

SASKATOON, SK, April 29, 2022 – The Oẏateki Partnership is a unique and unprecedented collaboration among three leading post-secondary education institutions in Saskatchewan designed to transform education and employment systems to support success for Indigenous youth. 

Join founding partners the Gabriel Dumont Institute (GDI), Saskatchewan Indian Institute of Technologies (SIIT), and the University of Saskatchewan (USask), and Indigenous youth and community members, to celebrate the launch of this bold initiative on May 3, 2022. 

Date: May 3, 2022
Time: Afternoon program 1-4 pm, evening program 5-8 pm
Location: Wanuskewin, RR #4, Penner Road, Saskatoon, SK
Itinerary: Engaging, entertaining and educational events and presentations will be ongoing throughout the afternoon and evening, with representatives of all institutions onsite. 

Committed to supporting 32,000 First Nations and Métis youth on their path to post- secondary education and on to meaningful livelihoods, the Oẏateki Partnership seeks to create more dynamic, integrated, ‘wholistic’, and responsive education and employment systems that meet the needs of Indigenous youth and involve them directly in decision-making.  

In partnership with the Mastercard Foundation’s EleV program, which aims to support Indigenous youth in their pathways through education and on to meaningful work, Oẏateki is enabling Indigenous young people in Saskatchewan to lead in their communities and to contribute to self-determination. This work is part of the Foundation’s commitment to building a world where everyone has the opportunity to learn and prosper, with sustained efforts to enable young people in Africa and young Indigenous people in Canada to access quality education and meaningful livelihoods aligned with their values and aspirations. 

The concept of Oẏateki as a symbol of this collaboration was gifted to the partnership by Kunsi Connie Wajunta of Standing Buffalo Dakota Nation. Oẏateki is a Dakota word meaning: all people together and leaving no people behind. 

Port Alberni, BC – The Report of the BC Special Committee on Reforming the Police Act was released yesterday. Their main cure for all the issues with police is to establish a provincial police force for the province, make sure the ills of RCMP policing are addressed and to put in place better policing. Is this the answer, the Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal Council asks? We understand this is a starting point, the proposed Community and Safety Act is to be based on values of decolonization, anti-racism, community, and accountability. Integral to this work, and consistent with DRIPA, is ensuring Indigenous people and Nations are engaged in the drafting of the legislation. This will be critical to the success of the new act.

The Nuu-chah-nulth have been plagued for generations, and particularly in the past few years, with our members being shot and killed by police, as well as deaths in custody, MMIWG, longawaited arrests on killings/murders, lack of culturally safe procedures, and the lack of traumainformed practice. We have been calling for no more deaths by police, better training for deescalation and trauma-informed teams to deal with mental health issues. We continue to work with the RCMP to find better ways of working together, especially in relation to cultural training by our own people and finding ways to instill how valuable our people are to some officers who don’t seem to care.

President Judith Sayers said, “I have reviewed the 11 recommendations of the committee and most of them cover what we had proposed to them when we met the committee. But I question the length of time it would take to establish this police force that will address racism, better training and putting in place mental health and addictions as well as other complex social issues with a focus on prevention and community-led responses. We need changes in policing now.”

The proposed act promises the direct input into their police structure and governance, including self-administered services. President Sayers comments that, “we have not had great success to date in working collaboratively with the province on the implementation of UNDRIP and aligning laws to it, and wonder how successful this would be. But if we can change things for the better in policing, now is the time to take the chance and to do it.”

Vice-President Mariah Charleson added, “The final report issued by the BC Special Committee on Reforming the Police Act and the 11 recommendations made is only words on a paper until we see direct action to end the racism and colonization that persists through police/RCMP services. Our people are literally dying at the hands of our ‘justice’ system. This needs to end now. It is my hopes that this final report is the starting point to a long overdue transformation of an inherently racist system that has continued to negatively impact First Nations people at disproportionate levels.”

Time is of the essence for Nuu-chah-nulth. We do not want to see more shooting deaths by police, higher incarceration rates, and negative relationships and perceptions of the police. We need our Nuu-chah-nulth people protected now by police and most importantly, treated with respect, free of racism and discrimination. If a new body of police can do this, then we can support it. If not, then let us continue working with the RCMP and improving their services. We cannot wait another two years for legislation and then the putting in place of a new policing body.