March 13 - 19, 2024

This week’s edition includes environmental protection, health care, justice reform, human rights and more.

 

IN THE NEWS


National headlines highlighted access to justice, human rights and a class action lawsuit 

 

Access to legal services for Indigenous Peoples vital says ALST | APTN News 

Human rights at stake without landfill search: U.N. committee | APTN News 

Class action lawsuit seeks justice for those suffering from intergenerational trauma by residential schools | CTV News 

 

The elver fishery was back in the news in the East Coast  

 

For traditional Mi'kmaw adult eel fishers, it's not about the money | CBC News 

Elvers fishery closure ignores needs of Mi'kmaw say harvesters | APTN News 

 

Environmental rights and health care were front and centre in Ontario  

 

Chalk River: Indigenous resistance mounts to nuclear waste dump near Ottawa River | CTV News 

Northwestern Ontario First Nations Chiefs Unite Against Nuclear Waste Proposal | NetNewsLedger 

'Our reputation has been harmed': Gen7 Fuel alleges harassment by KPMG - Sault Ste. Marie News | Sootoday 

 

Manitoba news featured health care, policing and justice reform 

 

Nurse shortage prompts state of emergency in Pimicikamak Cree Nation | CBC News 

Brokenhead bringing in First Nations police to replace RCMP | Winnipeg Sun 

Manitoba bail reform panned by First Nations leader, justice advocate | Winnipeg Sun 

 

Consultation and justice reform were the top stories in Saskatchewan 

 

First Nations leaders want voice in recommended changes to parole and corrections after stabbing massacre | LarongeNOW 

FSIN raises concerns about lack of consultation as Sask. announces work on irrigation project | CBC News 

 

Alberta news included environmental protection, remediation, and child and family services 

 

First Nations want federal government to class oilsands tailings component as toxin | Globalnews.ca 

Chiefs, province publicly call out feds for taking back unspent oil and gas clean-up dollars | Windspeaker 

‘Our Children are not for sale’: Treaty 8 chiefs | APTN News 

 

Mining, stewardship, LNG and transnational environmental impacts were the top stories in BC  

 

Canada, U.S. launch inquiry into Elk Valley mine pollution | The Narwhal 

Province seeks input on plan to protect Clayoquot Sound | Victoria Times Colonist 

Environment and Land Use Act Orders Regarding Mining Provide Necessary Space to Provide Predictability in the Mining Sector | British Columbia Assembly of First Nations 

B.C.’s big bet on LNG: 5 projects you need to know | The Narwhal 

 

Health care and wildfire response were in the spotlight in the North 

 

Vuntut Gwitchin hope health authority will improve health care | APTN News 

Dene Nation again calls for NWT wildfire public inquiry | Cabin Radio 

 

QUOTE OF THE WEEK


Indigenous people as rights-holders, rather than recipients of Canadian largesse and tolerance, still makes some people uncomfortable...

- Michelle Cyca

 

OFF THE BOOKSHELF


With joy, we breach the haze of suffering that denies us creativity and literature. Joy is art is an ethics of resistance.

- Billy-Ray Belcourt, A History of My Brief Body (2020) 

 

First Peoples Law is seeking additions to our growing team dedicated to defending and advancing the rights of Indigenous Peoples in Canada.
First Peoples Law is the author of Indigenous Peoples and the Law in Canada: Cases and Commentary. Previously authored by legendary law professor Shin Imai for over two decades, the book includes hundreds of annotations of significant court decisions and federal legislation regarding Indigenous rights in Canada. We hope it continues to be a useful resource for Indigenous Peoples defending and advancing their rights across the country.
Bruce McIvor's clear, plain answers to frequently asked questions about Indigenous rights.
Faced with a constant stream of news reports of standoffs and confrontations, Canada’s “reconciliation project” has obviously gone off the rails. In this series of concise and thoughtful essays, lawyer and historian Bruce McIvor explains why reconciliation with Indigenous peoples is failing and what needs to be done to fix it.
We are providing a list of resources for anyone looking to get informed about the truth of Residential Schools shared by Survivors across the country. It is not meant to be an exhaustive list. We would welcome any feedback or recommendations.
Check out our podcast featuring conversations on the defence of Indigenous rights.
Your weekly news update on Indigenous rights from First Peoples Law.
First Peoples Law LLP is a law firm dedicated to defending and advancing the rights of Indigenous Peoples in Canada. We work closely with First Nations to defend their Aboriginal title, rights and Treaty rights, uphold their Indigenous laws and governance and ensure economic prosperity for their members.
Bruce McIvor, lawyer and historian, is partner at First Peoples Law LLP. He is also an Adjunct Professor at the University of British Columbia’s Allard School of Law where he teaches the constitutional law of Aboriginal and Treaty rights. A member of the bar in British Columbia and Ontario, Bruce is recognized nationally and internationally as a leading practitioner of Aboriginal law in Canada. Bruce's ancestors took Métis scrip at Red River in Manitoba. He holds a law degree, a Ph.D. in Aboriginal and environmental history, is a Fulbright Scholar and author of Standoff: Why Reconciliation Fails Indigenous People and How to Fix It. He is a member of the Manitoba Métis Federation.