(Editorial by Steve Bonspiel) [apss_share] Dear Pascal Quevillon, You, and by extension the village of Oka, will never win. We, the first peoples of this land, will never stop fighting for what has always been, and always will be, ours. So you may as well give up, give in, and do what’s right. Stop fighting
Editorial
Walking with the ghosts of the Oka Crisis
[apss_share] Twenty-Nine years after the Oka Crisis, Kanesatake is faced with an opportunity to dance with old traumas as they navigate new relations around the pine forest area with the old wounds that accompany it. The Pines, for many Mohawk people in both Kanesatake and Kahnawake, has come to represent a place
Embarrass yourself now, compete later
Encouraging healthy competition is fine, but encouraging young people to be active, try events, and not be embarrassed to go for a fun run has far more potential for positive impacts. (Megan Kanerahtenha:wi Whyte, The Eastern Door) Racers for health is today. Let’s listen to the title of the event again:
The local electoral system is deeply flawed
[apss_share] Candidates’ night exposed something in the local Indian Act electoral system that, if left unchecked, goes against the very democracy it purports to protect. When K103 Radio called the electoral officer to “ask” if either one of their two non-Native reporters would be “allowed” to cover the meeting, they were told,
Two young women question meeting behaviour
After back-to-back meetings ended in intense confrontations and near physical altercations, two kanien'kehá:ka women reflect on what they feel causes tension in community meetings, and asks why fellow community members can't see one another's opinions without judgement. (Megan Kanerahtenha:wi Whyte, The Eastern Door) [apss_share] Meet in peace and use your inside voice Kahenientha
Remembering the legacy of a tyrant
[apss_share] John A. Macdonald. Those two words and single letter have caused quite a stir in recent months, but for Onkwehón:we, it’s old hat. We don’t like him, his so-called legacy, what he did to us and other minorities, or anything else to do with his name. We couldn’t care less about him, except
Iroquois Nationals still a work in progress
The Creator's Game is more than just a sport for the Haudenosaunee, who know what it means to compete under their own flag and with their own passports. (Courtesy Tracy Rector) [apss_share] After a delay due to proudly using their own passports, the Iroquois Nationals finally made it to the big dance
Casino project has supporters, detractors
[apss_share] Unanswered questions. That’s what came out of the media’s meeting with Lee Thompson and his supporters, for his proposed new water park/hotel/casino. The plan, according to the proponents, was to get a petition into the community two weeks ago to gauge support, and, if 850 people signed, the project would go ahead,
Celebrating 25 years of telling your stories
[apss_share] What does it mean when an independent Onkwehón:we newspaper makes it to 25 years in operation? First off, it’s important to consider this: without a free press that asks the tough questions and covers the difficult stories, free of any influence from outside forces (including the Mohawk Council or anything that
Why Orange Shirt Day matters to everyone
[apss_share] This morning the community will gather to honour residential school survivors and remember the ones who never came home. Orange Shirt Day, an initiative started a few years ago in BC and based on a story from residential school survivor Phyllis Jack-Webstad, is as important a day as any other. It’s a