Farmers reap research rewards
Wed, August 3, 2022
THUNDER BAY, ONT. — There hasn’t been too much rain this summer, but that doesn’t mean the Lakehead University Agricultural Research Station isn’t producing results.
The experimental farm to enhance farmers and their crops — which has been around in some form since 1991 — gave farm owners, their families and LU students a tour of their work Tuesday, showing off different varieties of wheat, barley, hops, oats, flax, canola and alfalfa amongst others which are being grown with environmentally-friendly fertilizers such as anvol and super urea.
Later in the day, the crew visited Jaspers Dairy Farm on Boundary Drive in Neebing to analyze two different strains of canola and how corn would stand up to being cloaked in biodegradable plastic and what it was like using none of the pliable material.
The mastermind behind the research facility is director Tarlok Singh Sahota. His relationship with the farms and the farmers — you might say — has grown quite nicely over the years.
“We believe seeing is believing,” said Sahota, who deals with approximately 50 farms in and around Thunder Bay. “If (farmers) see something happening here, they will try to apply that to their farms. . . . We keep in close contact with the farmers. I keep advising them, keep talking to them. We also consult with them, send them a list of the projects we’re doing and I’ll send them a list if they want to do anything else other than what we are proposing.”
The key to keeping the research facility around is funding. Currently, the Agricultural Research Institute of Ontario (ARIO) anted up more than $2.5 million in 2018 in a five-year plan that ends next year.
Sahota is hoping the funding continues to keep the agricultural-based research going.
“We had very strong public support,” said Sahota at the Little Norway Road facility. “People immediately (contacted) ministers, wrote letters . . . It was originally called Thunder Bay Agricultural Research Station (TBARS) and (the Ontario ministry of agriculture) gave us stop-gap funding of $200,000. Then (ARIO) gave $2.65 million for five years for the university (in 2018) to take over the research station.
“This is our last funding year. It will end in March 2023 and we hope we will get other funding . . . because we do good work and that good work shows because we supply the farms.
“My wish is that the research station continues to get funding. . . . The level of change for farmers in Thunder Bay, it’s hard to match elsewhere. Not only in Ontario, but Canada.”
Thunder Bay Soil and Crop Improvement Association chairman Andrew Brekveld is a believer. While his group studies LUARS research thoroughly each year, the Brekveld farm — Woodstar Farm in Murillo — has taken advantage of the knowledge provided by the research facility.
“Our affiliation with (LUARS) is that they are doing these trials, they’re doing these experiments and we would take them further,” said Brekveld. “We get excited when we can try them on our own fields.
“The last two years, (Woodstar Farm) actually grew a wheat variety that was a top-yielding variety recommended by Sahota. We found in our field that it was the highest yield we’ve ever had on wheat.”
In recent years, Sahota has been releasing the detailed LUARS annual report in late November or early December.
John Nagy, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Chronicle-Journal
Friday, August 05, 2022
MANITOBA
Province announces annual funding for Bear Clan
Wed, August 3, 2022 at 11:40 p.m.·4 min read
The Bear Clan will start to receive annual government funding for the first time, Manitoba’s justice minister announced Tuesday — before he joined a pack of volunteers for an evening patrol of streets in the North End.
Steinbach MLA Kelvin Goertzen, who oversees the justice file, visited the inner-city safety initiative’s Selkirk Avenue den to tout the province’s commitment to providing $100,000 annually to support operations and ensure the organization has predictable funding in the future.
Treasurer Brian Chrupalo said the core funding is a first of its kind for the Bear Clan.
The community organization typically relies on donations and grants from all levels of government in order to equip staff and volunteers with items ranging from sunscreen to sandwiches to hand-out to community members throughout patrols.
“This will help us go a long way,” Chrupalo told reporters, during an evening news conference.
“We are a small, grassroots group of volunteers. You’ll see our volunteers outside. Those people are here volunteering their time, for whatever reason — and bless their hearts for doing it, but the core dollars that we have (will) keep the lights on.”
Manitoba also announced an additional allocation of $100,000 from the Criminal Property Forfeiture Fund, bringing the tally to $200,000. This one-time sum is for the purchase of new safety equipment and other supplies for volunteers, including puncture-resistant gloves, naloxone, flashlights, multi-tool pocket knives and first aid kits.
Originally created by a trio of organizers in 1992, the Bear Clan aims to provide security to residents in and around the North End and downtown Winnipeg “in a non-threatening, non-violent and supportive way.”
The Indigenous-led initiative resumed patrolling city streets in 2014 after a hiatus. Since then, it has grown to encompass regular safety patrols across five Winnipeg neighbourhoods. There are approximately a dozen employees and roughly 275 regular volunteers at present.
Volunteers can often be seen walking in groups at night and on weekends, dressed in signature high-visibility vests with supplies in hand or in wagons. On Tuesday, nearly 20 volunteers — Goertzen included — walked down streets and alleys near Selkirk Avenue to greet area residents, distribute water bottles and clean up discarded needles, among other tasks.
Ahead of the photo-op walk, Goertzen acknowledged that violent crime has risen across Winnipeg and North America following the initial arrival of COVID-19 and related public health orders. Police are only part of the equation when it comes to both preventing incidents and ensuring Manitobans feel safe in their communities, he said.
“We need community members, who are able to outreach and connect with people in a different way than police officers are intended to do. Bear Clan does that exceptionally well,” the justice minister added.
A summer spate of serious crime involving random victims has both made headlines and prompted the union that represents frontline officers to criticize the chief of police for his categorization of the situation as typical.
The latest alarming incidents include: the Canada Day stabbing of a Ukrainian refugee who accidentally bumped into a group of men near The Forks; a random attack near Grant Park Shopping Centre that sent a senior to hospital in critical condition on July 12, and an attempted assault with a knife on a Winnipeg Transit driver, who narrowly escaped injury via bus window late last month.
While overall crime decreased last year, new police data show that violent incidents have been on the rise in Winnipeg.
There were nearly 11,000 more violent crimes — a category that encompasses sexual assault and uttering threats, among other incidents — reported to the Winnipeg Police Service in 2021 versus 2020. The total figure represents a five per cent increase from one year prior and a six per cent hike when compared to the five-year average.
In police Chief Danny Smyth’s opening remarks in WPS’ latest statistical report, he cited a resurgence in assaults as the driving force and called the number of violent crimes involving knives “notable.”
“Stabbings, across the board, are up, both for youth and adults,” said Const. Jay Murray, a public information officer, at a recent news conference during which he indicated it is difficult to pinpoint a specific reason for the trend.
“Knives are readily available, they’re something that you can get from any household, they can be bought relatively easily and I think that speaks to how common stabbings are in the city.”
maggie.macintosh@freepress.mb.ca
Twitter: @macintoshmaggie
Maggie Macintosh, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Winnipeg Free Press
Province announces annual funding for Bear Clan
Wed, August 3, 2022 at 11:40 p.m.·4 min read
The Bear Clan will start to receive annual government funding for the first time, Manitoba’s justice minister announced Tuesday — before he joined a pack of volunteers for an evening patrol of streets in the North End.
Steinbach MLA Kelvin Goertzen, who oversees the justice file, visited the inner-city safety initiative’s Selkirk Avenue den to tout the province’s commitment to providing $100,000 annually to support operations and ensure the organization has predictable funding in the future.
Treasurer Brian Chrupalo said the core funding is a first of its kind for the Bear Clan.
The community organization typically relies on donations and grants from all levels of government in order to equip staff and volunteers with items ranging from sunscreen to sandwiches to hand-out to community members throughout patrols.
“This will help us go a long way,” Chrupalo told reporters, during an evening news conference.
“We are a small, grassroots group of volunteers. You’ll see our volunteers outside. Those people are here volunteering their time, for whatever reason — and bless their hearts for doing it, but the core dollars that we have (will) keep the lights on.”
Manitoba also announced an additional allocation of $100,000 from the Criminal Property Forfeiture Fund, bringing the tally to $200,000. This one-time sum is for the purchase of new safety equipment and other supplies for volunteers, including puncture-resistant gloves, naloxone, flashlights, multi-tool pocket knives and first aid kits.
Originally created by a trio of organizers in 1992, the Bear Clan aims to provide security to residents in and around the North End and downtown Winnipeg “in a non-threatening, non-violent and supportive way.”
The Indigenous-led initiative resumed patrolling city streets in 2014 after a hiatus. Since then, it has grown to encompass regular safety patrols across five Winnipeg neighbourhoods. There are approximately a dozen employees and roughly 275 regular volunteers at present.
Volunteers can often be seen walking in groups at night and on weekends, dressed in signature high-visibility vests with supplies in hand or in wagons. On Tuesday, nearly 20 volunteers — Goertzen included — walked down streets and alleys near Selkirk Avenue to greet area residents, distribute water bottles and clean up discarded needles, among other tasks.
Ahead of the photo-op walk, Goertzen acknowledged that violent crime has risen across Winnipeg and North America following the initial arrival of COVID-19 and related public health orders. Police are only part of the equation when it comes to both preventing incidents and ensuring Manitobans feel safe in their communities, he said.
“We need community members, who are able to outreach and connect with people in a different way than police officers are intended to do. Bear Clan does that exceptionally well,” the justice minister added.
A summer spate of serious crime involving random victims has both made headlines and prompted the union that represents frontline officers to criticize the chief of police for his categorization of the situation as typical.
The latest alarming incidents include: the Canada Day stabbing of a Ukrainian refugee who accidentally bumped into a group of men near The Forks; a random attack near Grant Park Shopping Centre that sent a senior to hospital in critical condition on July 12, and an attempted assault with a knife on a Winnipeg Transit driver, who narrowly escaped injury via bus window late last month.
While overall crime decreased last year, new police data show that violent incidents have been on the rise in Winnipeg.
There were nearly 11,000 more violent crimes — a category that encompasses sexual assault and uttering threats, among other incidents — reported to the Winnipeg Police Service in 2021 versus 2020. The total figure represents a five per cent increase from one year prior and a six per cent hike when compared to the five-year average.
In police Chief Danny Smyth’s opening remarks in WPS’ latest statistical report, he cited a resurgence in assaults as the driving force and called the number of violent crimes involving knives “notable.”
“Stabbings, across the board, are up, both for youth and adults,” said Const. Jay Murray, a public information officer, at a recent news conference during which he indicated it is difficult to pinpoint a specific reason for the trend.
“Knives are readily available, they’re something that you can get from any household, they can be bought relatively easily and I think that speaks to how common stabbings are in the city.”
maggie.macintosh@freepress.mb.ca
Twitter: @macintoshmaggie
Maggie Macintosh, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Winnipeg Free Press
NEW BRUNSWICK
Ousted Horizon CEO pushed for COVID 'red phase' in hospitals
Thu, August 4, 2022
Dr. John Dornan, former president and CEO, Horizon Health Network
Jacques Poitras/CBC
Vitalité vice-president of medical services Natalie Banville replied to Dornan's July 11 email that she had spoken to CEO France Desrosiers, and officials at the health authority wanted to "analyze the situation more closely."
She said cases were increasing but only two of Vitalité's 17 admissions were "COVID related."
"We need to look more closely at the epidemiology and zone situation before moving to red phase," Banville wrote, saying Vitalité's leadership would meet July 12 and respond with a recommendation.
Dornan thanked her and said Horizon would "strive to be on the same page." It's not clear what Vitalité ended up recommending the next day or why Dornan's replacement, interim CEO Margaret Melanson, didn't follow through with his plan.
Unlike Dornan, Desrosiers remains in her position as CEO of Vitalité.
Dornan turned down an interview request from CBC News about his email. "I have no comments," he said Wednesday.
In a statement to CBC News, Melanson said Horizon has "gained more knowledge of the virus" during the pandemic and can now adopt "more targeted and flexible" measures while maintaining important services and allowing visitors.
The statement did not address why Dornan felt differently and favoured a full move to red phase less than four weeks ago.
Three days after his email, and one day before his firing as CEO, Dornan encouraged Horizon staff in an internal memo to "consider showing an example" by masking in indoor public spaces due to "escalating" COVID-19 transmission.
A spokesperson for the Department of Health said on July 18 Dornan's firing was "not related" to that memo.
Horizon and Vitalité moved to the red phase Dec. 31 during a surge of Omicron cases. They returned to the orange phase on June 20.
Dornan's July 11 email referred to a "seventh wave" arriving, even though the province's public health officials have been reluctant to use the term.
Russell told Brunswick News July 12 she might not define future increases in cases as waves.
"I don't want to call it a wave in a sense that everybody defines that differently. I'm saying it's an increased number of cases," she told the newspapers. "Whether it's a wave or not a wave, we're seeing an increased activity level in COVID cases."
Between July 10 and 16, the same week Dornan wrote the email and was fired, 30 people were newly admitted to hospitals because of COVID-19, up from 15 the previous week.
That number jumped again to 40 people between July 17 and 23.
The two health authorities had 209 staff out sick between July 10 and 16. That increased to 229 the week of July 17-23.
As of July 16, Horizon and Vitalité had 84 active hospitalized COVID-19 patients. It increased to 90 a week later.
The number of weekly new cases dropped last week for the first time in weeks. Those numbers tracked infections from July 17-23 and officials said that could indicate that hospitalisation numbers, which lag behind cases by a week or two, would soon peak and start to come down as well.
In new numbers released Wednesday for July 24-30, the number of weekly new cases dropped again and the number of hospital admissions and active hospitalizations for COVID-19 decreased slightly.
Ousted Horizon CEO pushed for COVID 'red phase' in hospitals
Thu, August 4, 2022
Dr. John Dornan, former president and CEO, Horizon Health Network
(Horizon Health Network - image credit)
The former CEO of Horizon Health wanted to move the province's hospitals back to the "red phase" of COVID-19 measures just days before he was fired from the job.
Dr. John Dornan said in an email on July 11 that "a seventh COVID wave is amongst us," with hospitalizations and staff outbreaks increasing.
A Horizon infectious disease and infection protection control committee was "recommending moving to Hospital Red phase next week if numbers continue to deteriorate," Dornan wrote in the email obtained by CBC News.
Dornan wrote that officials "could make that call collectively on Monday or Tuesday next week," referring to July 18 and 19.
The red phase move never happened, even though the numbers did continue to deteriorate.
The following Tuesday, the two health authorities reported an increase in weekly COVID-19 admissions, active hospitalizations, hospital outbreaks and staff infections between July 10-16.
Dornan was fired July 15.
A major element of red phase protocols would be a ban on routine visitors seeing patients in hospitals.
In his email, the then-CEO said moving to the red phase was "contingent" on Vitalité and Public Health agreeing to it.
But Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Jennifer Russell said Wednesday she had no insight into why there was no move to red.
"I don't want to speak for the RHAs. They are the decision-makers in this case, so they're the authority on what happens in their own operations," she said.
Dornan said in the July 11 email it was "probable" Horizon would communicate the possibility of a move to the red phase "publicly this week as a heads up. It is good to be transparent."
That never happened.
At the time of Dornan's firing, Premier Blaine Higgs said a change in leadership was needed to break a "bureaucratic stalemate" in the health system and push forward reforms to address long wait lists and clogged emergency departments.
Higgs made the changes after the death of a patient who was waiting for care in the emergency department at the Dr. Everett Chalmers Hospital in Fredericton.
The former CEO of Horizon Health wanted to move the province's hospitals back to the "red phase" of COVID-19 measures just days before he was fired from the job.
Dr. John Dornan said in an email on July 11 that "a seventh COVID wave is amongst us," with hospitalizations and staff outbreaks increasing.
A Horizon infectious disease and infection protection control committee was "recommending moving to Hospital Red phase next week if numbers continue to deteriorate," Dornan wrote in the email obtained by CBC News.
Dornan wrote that officials "could make that call collectively on Monday or Tuesday next week," referring to July 18 and 19.
The red phase move never happened, even though the numbers did continue to deteriorate.
The following Tuesday, the two health authorities reported an increase in weekly COVID-19 admissions, active hospitalizations, hospital outbreaks and staff infections between July 10-16.
Dornan was fired July 15.
A major element of red phase protocols would be a ban on routine visitors seeing patients in hospitals.
In his email, the then-CEO said moving to the red phase was "contingent" on Vitalité and Public Health agreeing to it.
But Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Jennifer Russell said Wednesday she had no insight into why there was no move to red.
"I don't want to speak for the RHAs. They are the decision-makers in this case, so they're the authority on what happens in their own operations," she said.
Dornan said in the July 11 email it was "probable" Horizon would communicate the possibility of a move to the red phase "publicly this week as a heads up. It is good to be transparent."
That never happened.
At the time of Dornan's firing, Premier Blaine Higgs said a change in leadership was needed to break a "bureaucratic stalemate" in the health system and push forward reforms to address long wait lists and clogged emergency departments.
Higgs made the changes after the death of a patient who was waiting for care in the emergency department at the Dr. Everett Chalmers Hospital in Fredericton.
Jacques Poitras/CBC
Vitalité vice-president of medical services Natalie Banville replied to Dornan's July 11 email that she had spoken to CEO France Desrosiers, and officials at the health authority wanted to "analyze the situation more closely."
She said cases were increasing but only two of Vitalité's 17 admissions were "COVID related."
"We need to look more closely at the epidemiology and zone situation before moving to red phase," Banville wrote, saying Vitalité's leadership would meet July 12 and respond with a recommendation.
Dornan thanked her and said Horizon would "strive to be on the same page." It's not clear what Vitalité ended up recommending the next day or why Dornan's replacement, interim CEO Margaret Melanson, didn't follow through with his plan.
Unlike Dornan, Desrosiers remains in her position as CEO of Vitalité.
Dornan turned down an interview request from CBC News about his email. "I have no comments," he said Wednesday.
In a statement to CBC News, Melanson said Horizon has "gained more knowledge of the virus" during the pandemic and can now adopt "more targeted and flexible" measures while maintaining important services and allowing visitors.
The statement did not address why Dornan felt differently and favoured a full move to red phase less than four weeks ago.
Three days after his email, and one day before his firing as CEO, Dornan encouraged Horizon staff in an internal memo to "consider showing an example" by masking in indoor public spaces due to "escalating" COVID-19 transmission.
A spokesperson for the Department of Health said on July 18 Dornan's firing was "not related" to that memo.
Horizon and Vitalité moved to the red phase Dec. 31 during a surge of Omicron cases. They returned to the orange phase on June 20.
Dornan's July 11 email referred to a "seventh wave" arriving, even though the province's public health officials have been reluctant to use the term.
Russell told Brunswick News July 12 she might not define future increases in cases as waves.
"I don't want to call it a wave in a sense that everybody defines that differently. I'm saying it's an increased number of cases," she told the newspapers. "Whether it's a wave or not a wave, we're seeing an increased activity level in COVID cases."
Between July 10 and 16, the same week Dornan wrote the email and was fired, 30 people were newly admitted to hospitals because of COVID-19, up from 15 the previous week.
That number jumped again to 40 people between July 17 and 23.
The two health authorities had 209 staff out sick between July 10 and 16. That increased to 229 the week of July 17-23.
As of July 16, Horizon and Vitalité had 84 active hospitalized COVID-19 patients. It increased to 90 a week later.
The number of weekly new cases dropped last week for the first time in weeks. Those numbers tracked infections from July 17-23 and officials said that could indicate that hospitalisation numbers, which lag behind cases by a week or two, would soon peak and start to come down as well.
In new numbers released Wednesday for July 24-30, the number of weekly new cases dropped again and the number of hospital admissions and active hospitalizations for COVID-19 decreased slightly.
Mary Two-Axe Early to get star treatment in Kahnawake as part of film fest
Thu, August 4, 2022
A Kahnawake icon will be brought to the big screen by a Kahnawake filmmaker as part of the International First Peoples Festival next week with a screening to be held in Kahnawake next week.
Mary Two-Axe Early: I Am Indian Again – which is directed by Kahnawake community member Courtney Montour -- is one of five short films funded by the National Film Board of Canada to be featured at the festival, and one of the festival screenings will be held right here in Kahnawake August 15 at the Legion Hall at 6 p.m.
The Early film, which has won a handful of awards already – including Best Documentary Short at imagineNATIVE, Best Documentary Short at the American Indian Film Festival, and Best Director at the Weengushk International Film Festival – will tell the story of the Kahnawake icon, who fought for more than two decades to challenge sex discrimination against First Nations women embedded in Canada’s Indian Act, and became a key figure in Canada’s women’s rights movement, fighting for Mohawk woman who challenged sexist and genocidal government policies that stripped First Nations women and children of their Indian status when they married non-Indian men.
Montour speaks with Cree activist Nellie Carlson, Mary’s lifelong friend and co-founder of Indian Rights for Indian Women, and meets with three generations in Mary’s kitchen in Kahnawake to honour the legacy of a woman who galvanized a national network of allies to help restore Indian status to thousands of First Nations women and children. In the film, Montour uses never-before-seen archival footage and audio recordings, as she engages in a deeply personal conversation with the late Kahnawake legend.
The festival will run from August 9 to 18, with another film to be screened in Kahnawake August 15 at 1:15 p.m., also at the Legion Hall. Bill Reid Remembers is the story of the late renowned Haida artist Bill Reid, who despite spending his early life away from his nation’s culture, always kept Haida Gwaii close to his heart. While working for CBC Radio, he started learning how to make jewelry, then later sculpture, using Haida techniques and images, a move that would forever change his life and the Canadian artistic landscape. The film is a beautiful tribute from Alanis Obomsawin to her friend’s remarkable life and rich legacy.
For ticketing information and for more information on the entire International First Peoples Festival lineup, visit www.presenceautochtone.ca.
Marc Lalonde, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Iori:wase
Thu, August 4, 2022
A Kahnawake icon will be brought to the big screen by a Kahnawake filmmaker as part of the International First Peoples Festival next week with a screening to be held in Kahnawake next week.
Mary Two-Axe Early: I Am Indian Again – which is directed by Kahnawake community member Courtney Montour -- is one of five short films funded by the National Film Board of Canada to be featured at the festival, and one of the festival screenings will be held right here in Kahnawake August 15 at the Legion Hall at 6 p.m.
The Early film, which has won a handful of awards already – including Best Documentary Short at imagineNATIVE, Best Documentary Short at the American Indian Film Festival, and Best Director at the Weengushk International Film Festival – will tell the story of the Kahnawake icon, who fought for more than two decades to challenge sex discrimination against First Nations women embedded in Canada’s Indian Act, and became a key figure in Canada’s women’s rights movement, fighting for Mohawk woman who challenged sexist and genocidal government policies that stripped First Nations women and children of their Indian status when they married non-Indian men.
Montour speaks with Cree activist Nellie Carlson, Mary’s lifelong friend and co-founder of Indian Rights for Indian Women, and meets with three generations in Mary’s kitchen in Kahnawake to honour the legacy of a woman who galvanized a national network of allies to help restore Indian status to thousands of First Nations women and children. In the film, Montour uses never-before-seen archival footage and audio recordings, as she engages in a deeply personal conversation with the late Kahnawake legend.
The festival will run from August 9 to 18, with another film to be screened in Kahnawake August 15 at 1:15 p.m., also at the Legion Hall. Bill Reid Remembers is the story of the late renowned Haida artist Bill Reid, who despite spending his early life away from his nation’s culture, always kept Haida Gwaii close to his heart. While working for CBC Radio, he started learning how to make jewelry, then later sculpture, using Haida techniques and images, a move that would forever change his life and the Canadian artistic landscape. The film is a beautiful tribute from Alanis Obomsawin to her friend’s remarkable life and rich legacy.
For ticketing information and for more information on the entire International First Peoples Festival lineup, visit www.presenceautochtone.ca.
Marc Lalonde, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Iori:wase
Video played in court shows Hamilton police officer 'stomp' on Indigenous man's head during arrest
Wed, August 3, 2022
Patrick Tomchuk's family, from left: his sister Dhelia Baldwin, cousins Jessica Oneill and Laura Erie, and mother Olga Tomchuk. Along with his two daughters, they came to his bail hearing to support him, they said. (Cara Nickerson/CBC - image credit)
WARNING: This story contains distressing details
Patrick Tomchuk was violently arrested in May, a video played in court and viewed by CBC Hamilton has shown. Hamilton Police Services (HPS) Const. Brian Wren has been charged with assault as a result of the incident.
Tomchuk's lawyer Jennifer Steenbeek showed the video at Tomchuck's bail hearing, held Wednesday at John Sopinka Courthouse.
Tomchuck is an Indigenous man who was arrested for vehicle theft on May 26 at a gas station on the Mountain.
"He was unconscious and they still continued to stomp on his head," Tomchuk's sister Dhelia Baldwin said, adding that the video made her sick to her stomach.
In the video, several officers are seen tackling Tomchuk between the gas station pumps. The officers appear to forcibly manoeuvre the man, while yelling expletives at him, before an officer kicks Tomchuk in the head, then repeatedly holds his head down into the pavement with his foot.
Tomchuk appears to be unconscious for most of the video.
Before the video was played in court, Tomchuk's children were asked to leave the room. Tomchuk's family members who remained, including his mother, sister and cousins, cried when they saw the video.
Officer charged with assault
Wren was suspended after the incident, and was later charged with assault on June 16 after an HPS investigation.
The video was given to Tomchuk's lawyer confidentially by a bystander who witnessed the incident. The video cannot be released to the public yet, Steenbeek said.
After court, Baldwin told reporters she would like the person who filmed the assault to release the video to the family.
"I think it needs to be shown, and people need to know that it does happen. And we were just lucky that it was on camera," she said.
Baldwin said the family wants to share the video to raise awareness about police brutality against Indigenous people.
Bobby Hristova/CBC
At a press conference held outside the HPS central station Tuesday to raise awareness about the case, Hamilton Regional Indian Centre (HRIC) executive director Audrey Davis outlined recommendations for HPS officers to address police violence and discrimination.
Her recommendations include a third party investigation into the assault, for HPS to consider charging Wren with a hate crime, investigating past alleged assaults on Tomchuk by HPS and for police to wear body cameras, among others.
"This needs to stop. Education, prevention and accountability must be of the highest priority of law enforcement," Davis said.
Outside of court Wednesday, Olga Tomchuk, Tomchuk's mother, asked the person who took the video to come forward and contact Tomchuk's family.
"Your name won't be mentioned," Olga said. "I would like to thank you for taking that video."
Tomchuck granted bail
From the May incident, Tomchuk has been charged with assault on a police officer, resisting arrest and vehicle theft and Wednesday's hearing looked at whether he should be granted bail.
Crown prosecutor Brian Adsett argued Tomchuk has a "horrendous record," including multiple vehicle theft charges, fleeing police and a history of drug use, the latter of which Adsett said is a factor in his criminal activity. Arguing against granting bail, Adsett said Tomchuk has 27 convictions for breaches of court orders in his record.
Steenbeek, meanwhile, said she did not consider Tomchuk a flight risk, because of his family and community ties in Hamilton, and his quest for justice in his assault case against Wren.
By Wednesday afternoon, Tomchuk was granted bail by court Justice of the peace Linda Crawford. He will have to address outstanding charges in Niagara Falls and Barrie, Crawford said.
When reading her decision, Crawford said she took Tomchuk's identity as an Indigenous person and the effects of colonialism on Indigenous people into consideration. Such considerations are known as the Gladue principles, stemming from a 1999 Supreme Court decision.
Crawford said Tomchuk has been very fortunate to have his family's support throughout his history of arrests.
'I think he's just tired of it'
Tomchuk's mother Olga said the assault in the video isn't the worst assault Tomchuk has received from Hamilton Police Services.
According to Jessica Montana, the family's contact at the Hamilton Regional Indian Centre (HRIC), Steenbeek has more information about another assault, but is unable to comment on it at this time.
Steenbeek previously said an HPS officer had assaulted him at least once before. HPS Chief Frank Bergen told CBC Hamilton the service is reviewing its files but so far haven't found any documented cases of that happening. He also called the video "disturbing."
On Wednesday, Tomchuk's cousins Jessica Oneill and Laura Erie agreed to supervise Tomchuk while he is under house arrest. Oneill, Erie and Tomchuk will all be required to pay between $1,000 and $2,500 if Tomchuk breaks the conditions of his bail and flees.
Both cousins said they were aware of Tomchuk's issues with addiction prior to his arrest, and that they intend to get him "culturally appropriate help" through the HRIC.
When asked by the Crown why this arrest would be different this time for Tomchuk, Oneill said, "At this point, he has a lot to look forward to. He does have children, and I think he's just tired of it."
Tomchuk will be released into the joint supervision of Oneill and Erie. He will remain at Oneill's residence, where Erie will supervise him while Oneill is at work.
He will be required to wear a GPS monitor, will not be able to leave Oneill's home without supervision from Oneill or Erie, and is not allowed to operate motor vehicles or sit in the driver's seat of motor vehicles.
Tomchuk's next court date is Sept. 8, while Wren is due in court next on Aug. 18.
Wed, August 3, 2022
Patrick Tomchuk's family, from left: his sister Dhelia Baldwin, cousins Jessica Oneill and Laura Erie, and mother Olga Tomchuk. Along with his two daughters, they came to his bail hearing to support him, they said. (Cara Nickerson/CBC - image credit)
WARNING: This story contains distressing details
Patrick Tomchuk was violently arrested in May, a video played in court and viewed by CBC Hamilton has shown. Hamilton Police Services (HPS) Const. Brian Wren has been charged with assault as a result of the incident.
Tomchuk's lawyer Jennifer Steenbeek showed the video at Tomchuck's bail hearing, held Wednesday at John Sopinka Courthouse.
Tomchuck is an Indigenous man who was arrested for vehicle theft on May 26 at a gas station on the Mountain.
"He was unconscious and they still continued to stomp on his head," Tomchuk's sister Dhelia Baldwin said, adding that the video made her sick to her stomach.
In the video, several officers are seen tackling Tomchuk between the gas station pumps. The officers appear to forcibly manoeuvre the man, while yelling expletives at him, before an officer kicks Tomchuk in the head, then repeatedly holds his head down into the pavement with his foot.
Tomchuk appears to be unconscious for most of the video.
Before the video was played in court, Tomchuk's children were asked to leave the room. Tomchuk's family members who remained, including his mother, sister and cousins, cried when they saw the video.
Officer charged with assault
Wren was suspended after the incident, and was later charged with assault on June 16 after an HPS investigation.
The video was given to Tomchuk's lawyer confidentially by a bystander who witnessed the incident. The video cannot be released to the public yet, Steenbeek said.
After court, Baldwin told reporters she would like the person who filmed the assault to release the video to the family.
"I think it needs to be shown, and people need to know that it does happen. And we were just lucky that it was on camera," she said.
Baldwin said the family wants to share the video to raise awareness about police brutality against Indigenous people.
Bobby Hristova/CBC
At a press conference held outside the HPS central station Tuesday to raise awareness about the case, Hamilton Regional Indian Centre (HRIC) executive director Audrey Davis outlined recommendations for HPS officers to address police violence and discrimination.
Her recommendations include a third party investigation into the assault, for HPS to consider charging Wren with a hate crime, investigating past alleged assaults on Tomchuk by HPS and for police to wear body cameras, among others.
"This needs to stop. Education, prevention and accountability must be of the highest priority of law enforcement," Davis said.
Outside of court Wednesday, Olga Tomchuk, Tomchuk's mother, asked the person who took the video to come forward and contact Tomchuk's family.
"Your name won't be mentioned," Olga said. "I would like to thank you for taking that video."
Tomchuck granted bail
From the May incident, Tomchuk has been charged with assault on a police officer, resisting arrest and vehicle theft and Wednesday's hearing looked at whether he should be granted bail.
Crown prosecutor Brian Adsett argued Tomchuk has a "horrendous record," including multiple vehicle theft charges, fleeing police and a history of drug use, the latter of which Adsett said is a factor in his criminal activity. Arguing against granting bail, Adsett said Tomchuk has 27 convictions for breaches of court orders in his record.
Steenbeek, meanwhile, said she did not consider Tomchuk a flight risk, because of his family and community ties in Hamilton, and his quest for justice in his assault case against Wren.
By Wednesday afternoon, Tomchuk was granted bail by court Justice of the peace Linda Crawford. He will have to address outstanding charges in Niagara Falls and Barrie, Crawford said.
When reading her decision, Crawford said she took Tomchuk's identity as an Indigenous person and the effects of colonialism on Indigenous people into consideration. Such considerations are known as the Gladue principles, stemming from a 1999 Supreme Court decision.
Crawford said Tomchuk has been very fortunate to have his family's support throughout his history of arrests.
'I think he's just tired of it'
Tomchuk's mother Olga said the assault in the video isn't the worst assault Tomchuk has received from Hamilton Police Services.
According to Jessica Montana, the family's contact at the Hamilton Regional Indian Centre (HRIC), Steenbeek has more information about another assault, but is unable to comment on it at this time.
Steenbeek previously said an HPS officer had assaulted him at least once before. HPS Chief Frank Bergen told CBC Hamilton the service is reviewing its files but so far haven't found any documented cases of that happening. He also called the video "disturbing."
On Wednesday, Tomchuk's cousins Jessica Oneill and Laura Erie agreed to supervise Tomchuk while he is under house arrest. Oneill, Erie and Tomchuk will all be required to pay between $1,000 and $2,500 if Tomchuk breaks the conditions of his bail and flees.
Both cousins said they were aware of Tomchuk's issues with addiction prior to his arrest, and that they intend to get him "culturally appropriate help" through the HRIC.
When asked by the Crown why this arrest would be different this time for Tomchuk, Oneill said, "At this point, he has a lot to look forward to. He does have children, and I think he's just tired of it."
Tomchuk will be released into the joint supervision of Oneill and Erie. He will remain at Oneill's residence, where Erie will supervise him while Oneill is at work.
He will be required to wear a GPS monitor, will not be able to leave Oneill's home without supervision from Oneill or Erie, and is not allowed to operate motor vehicles or sit in the driver's seat of motor vehicles.
Tomchuk's next court date is Sept. 8, while Wren is due in court next on Aug. 18.
RIGHT WING SWING
In protests and politics, Canada's 'Freedom Convoy' reverberates
A anti-vaccine protester poses at the National War Memorial in Ottawa
Thu, August 4, 2022
By Nia Williams and Anna Mehler Paperny
COUTTS, Alberta/TORONTO (Reuters) - In late January five friends, just a few years out of high school, piled into a rented camper van and drove 37 hours in the Canadian winter from southern Alberta to Ottawa to join anti-government protests led by a convoy of truckers.
"We were worried about vaccine mandates and our freedom, and it all just going to hell," said Ursula Allred, 22, from her small, rural hometown of Magrath.
Another member of the group, Justin Martin, excitedly phoned home to say the protest -- which occupied Ottawa with tractor-trailers, hot tubs, bouncy castles and scattered symbols of hate for weeks until it was broken up by police -- was "the best experience, ever," said his mother, Lynette Atwood.
"They wanted their freedom back. These were young men who wanted to date, hadn't been able to date, wanted to have a life," she said, referring to the impact of lockdowns and restrictions imposed by provincial and federal governments to curb infections during the coronavirus pandemic.
"They just felt that no one was listening."
Their excitement came to an abrupt end a few weeks later, when all five were arrested at another protest they had joined near the U.S.-Canada border in Coutts, Alberta.
But the reverberations from the so-called "Freedom Convoy" protests against mandatory vaccination policies had only just begun. The protests, featuring hundreds of trucks and thousands like Allred and Martin, had already paralyzed downtown Ottawa and international border crossings for more than three weeks.
Copycat protests featuring trailers and trucks followed in the United States and France. At home, the protests amplified anti-government sentiment among Canadians angry at COVID-19 restrictions and, less visibly, offered a hook for anti-establishment and far-right voices to draw a bigger audience.
Extremists used the convoy "as a pulpit to get their ideas across and, in that sense, it was a success," said David Hofmann, associate professor of sociology at the University of New Brunswick, who has been researching extremism in Canada for about a decade.
They did that directly, with talk of deposing and prosecuting the heads of Canadian government during the protests, as the convoy's organizers declared was their goal in a "Memorandum of Understanding" leading up to the blockade.
But they were also able to do that less directly, by talking up the merits of the convoy on social media and podcasts that also promoted more extremist rhetoric and conspiracy theories.
They were helped by a relatively high level of sympathy for the protesters' frustrations -- which stood at 46% in one Ipsos poll in February -- even if most Canadians did not agree with the convoy's main message of opposing public health measures.
Around 30% of Canadians agreed with the convoy's message in February at the height of the protests, a number that has since shrunk to 25% in July, according to polling research firm Ekos Research Associates.
"This has become a lightning rod, a magnet to kind of focus all of this insecurity, disaffection, anger which predated COVID but which has been reinforced and strengthened by COVID," Ekos President Frank Graves said of the convoy movement.
Its message has become: "You're not alone. You're not the only one who thinks vaccines are unnecessary... Come on out," Graves said.
Though most COVID-19 restrictions on gatherings, wearing masks and vaccine requirements have been lifted in recent months, smaller anti-government protests have continued, with some held as recently as the national holiday on July 1.
'GATEKEEPING ELITE'
Among the most prominent to tap into sympathy for the convoy is Pierre Poilievre, the frontrunner in a leadership race for Canada's opposition Conservative party, who dueled with rivals in a debate over who was first to support the movement.
Fashioning himself as an anti-establishment force determined to free Canadians from a "gatekeeping elite," Poilievre posted footage of himself supporting the convoy rolling into Ottawa.
He promises, among other things, to take on the "state media" by defunding the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the public broadcaster, and to sack the Bank of Canada governor.
He has also pledged to ban federal ministers from attending the World Economic Forum held annually in Davos, Switzerland -- a popular whipping boy for convoy participants and far-right supporters more globally.
Anger against the forum has been buoyed by viral videos falsely claiming the WEF used the pandemic to put in motion a plan by "global elites" to subjugate society in a "Great Reset" - a twist on the WEF's stated plan to identify solutions to major challenges facing the world.
"The gatekeeping elites will try to destroy anyone who threatens their power," Poilievre said on Twitter in response to criticism that he is pushing authoritarian populism.
"I want to become PM to give you back control of your life & make Canada the freest country on earth," he wrote in another post.
Poilievre's campaign did not respond to requests for an interview or to questions on his support for the convoy.
Ekos's Graves says his polling shows that Canadians who support the convoy have "an authoritarian, populist outlook" and could be "the strongest force in the Canadian political landscape" because they are energized and motivated to vote.
Not surprisingly, Canadian conservative politicians are trying to appeal to convoy supporters and tap into the rising populist sentiment, says Jared Wesley, political science professor at the University of Alberta.
"There's a group out there that conservative politicians want to bring back into the fold," Wesley said.
"That results in constant escalation of anti-establishment demands, that has the leading candidate for the Conservative Party promising to fire the Governor of the Bank of Canada."
SIMMERING RESENTMENT IN ALBERTA
The boldness of the convoy movement -- with days of honking in downtown Ottawa, border crossing blockades and the open display of a swastika and confederate flags -- took many outside Canada by surprise.
But those involved and people close to the protesters said it was a natural progression of frustration and disenfranchisement, especially in parts of western Canada, where resentment towards Ottawa has simmered for decades.
Researchers point to a history of anti-government sentiment in largely conservative, oil-rich Alberta. The province prides itself on a frontier spirit and has long felt alienated from eastern Canada, accusing the federal government of relying on its fossil fuels without offering respect or autonomy in return.
"Albertans see themselves as the people who pay for everyone else in Canada," said Peter Smith, a researcher for the Canadian Anti-Hate Network, a non-profit organization that examines hate crimes and hate groups.
In Magrath and the nearby town of Raymond, where Allred's four camper van companions lived, anti-government sentiment and worries about federal over-reach remain strong.
Shortly after Allred and her friends were arrested in Coutts in February, a large black flag reading "Fuck Trudeau," with a red maple leaf replacing the first word's "u," flew in a backyard along the main road into Raymond.
Another house bore "Hold the Line for Freedom" painted in red across a downstairs window, while many vehicles sported Canadian flags and symbols of support for the blockades.
There was widespread sympathy for Allred and her companions, who were each charged, along with five others, with possession of a weapon for dangerous purpose and mischief. They have since been released on bail.
In the most serious charges related to the convoy movement, four men from southern Alberta involved in a border blockade were arrested in February and accused of conspiring to kill police officers. They remain in custody awaiting trial.
Two weeks after the Coutts blockade disbanded, another protest camp remained on the side of the highway farther north in Milk River: a small encampment of trailers and a food truck in a large open field, monitored by a Royal Canadian Mounted Police cruiser parked a discreet distance away.
"That is waking the country up," said Elliot McDavid, one of the camp organizers, adding the protests had achieved their goal of forcing Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to invoke the Emergencies Act to disband them.
In the Ipsos survey in February, 58% of Albertans found convoy participants' frustration legitimate and worthy of sympathy, compared to the 46% national figure.
'A DANGEROUS TIME'
With broad support for policies like universal healthcare and gun control, Canada has long been viewed as more moderate than its southern neighbor. But analysts say right-wing extremism has long had a home north of the U.S. border -- and the "Freedom Convoy" movement and related anti-government protests against COVID-19 restrictions have given it new momentum.
A 2015 study identified about 100 far-right extremist groups. The number has tripled since then, Hofmann said.
Larger groups have splintered but the overall number of participants has also grown, Hofmann said.
He and his colleagues have identified about 1,200 visibly active participants who have either had contact with police or the media or have been active on social media, he said.
This is up from previous counts but changing methodologies make comparisons difficult, he said.
One group that has drawn the attention of analysts in recent months is the Hammerskins, an offshoot of a U.S. neo-Nazi organization. It had been quiet in Canada for nearly a decade but now has a presence in cities like Hamilton, Oshawa, and the Greater Toronto Area, with members also recruiting in British Columbia, said the Canadian Anti-Hate Network's Smith.
Attempts to contact the Hammerskins for comment were unsuccessful.
"The convoy was huge and significant and will be a propaganda tool for a long time," Smith said.
Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino in February alluded to the link between the convoy protests and extremism, saying: "We need to be clear-eyed about the seriousness of these incidents."
He said that some of those charged had "strong ties to a far-right extreme organization," which a source in his office said at the time referred to the Diagolon right-wing network.
Patches featuring Diagolon's flag were affixed to body armor police seized in connection with arrests at the Coutts border blockade in February.
Jeremy MacKenzie, the de facto founder of Diagolon -- a fictional breakaway state that has become a symbol of anti-government sentiment among right-wing Canadians -- has given prominent space to the convoy on his podcast and Telegram channel.
In an interview with Reuters, MacKenzie said Diagolon started as a joke and is a loose social network of "patriotic people", rather than a political movement. He says he is being unfairly targeted by Canadian authorities.
The convoy was a success for Diagolon "because it is part of their goal is to destabilize and to sow doubt, and to delegitimize the government and the state," a federal government source familiar with the matter said in February.
Another group, Veterans 4 Freedom, emerged from the protests and aims to protect anti-establishment protesters and opposes COVID-19 restrictions, said Andrew MacGillivray, a military veteran who is part of the group.
"The rights and freedoms of Canadians are eroding and we are going to work to sustain lawful civic action in order to restore those fundamental rights," MacGillivray said in an interview.
"We just want to make sure that if there's any sort of protest and counter-protest that our volunteers can help keep the peace."
The group helped organize a June 30 protest in Ottawa featuring a veteran who walked thousands of kilometers to protest vaccine mandates and who now faces a court martial for criticizing vaccine policies while in uniform.
Other anti-establishment voices have also been galvanized.
Outspoken Calgary pastor Artur Pawlowski, who reckons he racked up about 40 tickets for violating pandemic restrictions, was charged with inciting people to damage or obstruct essential infrastructure during a speech at the Coutts blockade.
Out on bail, he told Reuters he is fighting the charges and that the convoy had "awakened" people to fight for freedom.
"The truth is I have become a symbol of freedom," he said, later adding he is considering running for office.
"I would clean your swamp. That’s what I do."
His son Nathaniel Pawlowski said he worries about what will happen if people angry at government restrictions are pushed too far: "If you study history, you know this is a dangerous time."
(Editing by Deepa Babington)
In protests and politics, Canada's 'Freedom Convoy' reverberates
A anti-vaccine protester poses at the National War Memorial in Ottawa
Thu, August 4, 2022
By Nia Williams and Anna Mehler Paperny
COUTTS, Alberta/TORONTO (Reuters) - In late January five friends, just a few years out of high school, piled into a rented camper van and drove 37 hours in the Canadian winter from southern Alberta to Ottawa to join anti-government protests led by a convoy of truckers.
"We were worried about vaccine mandates and our freedom, and it all just going to hell," said Ursula Allred, 22, from her small, rural hometown of Magrath.
Another member of the group, Justin Martin, excitedly phoned home to say the protest -- which occupied Ottawa with tractor-trailers, hot tubs, bouncy castles and scattered symbols of hate for weeks until it was broken up by police -- was "the best experience, ever," said his mother, Lynette Atwood.
"They wanted their freedom back. These were young men who wanted to date, hadn't been able to date, wanted to have a life," she said, referring to the impact of lockdowns and restrictions imposed by provincial and federal governments to curb infections during the coronavirus pandemic.
"They just felt that no one was listening."
Their excitement came to an abrupt end a few weeks later, when all five were arrested at another protest they had joined near the U.S.-Canada border in Coutts, Alberta.
But the reverberations from the so-called "Freedom Convoy" protests against mandatory vaccination policies had only just begun. The protests, featuring hundreds of trucks and thousands like Allred and Martin, had already paralyzed downtown Ottawa and international border crossings for more than three weeks.
Copycat protests featuring trailers and trucks followed in the United States and France. At home, the protests amplified anti-government sentiment among Canadians angry at COVID-19 restrictions and, less visibly, offered a hook for anti-establishment and far-right voices to draw a bigger audience.
Extremists used the convoy "as a pulpit to get their ideas across and, in that sense, it was a success," said David Hofmann, associate professor of sociology at the University of New Brunswick, who has been researching extremism in Canada for about a decade.
They did that directly, with talk of deposing and prosecuting the heads of Canadian government during the protests, as the convoy's organizers declared was their goal in a "Memorandum of Understanding" leading up to the blockade.
But they were also able to do that less directly, by talking up the merits of the convoy on social media and podcasts that also promoted more extremist rhetoric and conspiracy theories.
They were helped by a relatively high level of sympathy for the protesters' frustrations -- which stood at 46% in one Ipsos poll in February -- even if most Canadians did not agree with the convoy's main message of opposing public health measures.
Around 30% of Canadians agreed with the convoy's message in February at the height of the protests, a number that has since shrunk to 25% in July, according to polling research firm Ekos Research Associates.
"This has become a lightning rod, a magnet to kind of focus all of this insecurity, disaffection, anger which predated COVID but which has been reinforced and strengthened by COVID," Ekos President Frank Graves said of the convoy movement.
Its message has become: "You're not alone. You're not the only one who thinks vaccines are unnecessary... Come on out," Graves said.
Though most COVID-19 restrictions on gatherings, wearing masks and vaccine requirements have been lifted in recent months, smaller anti-government protests have continued, with some held as recently as the national holiday on July 1.
'GATEKEEPING ELITE'
Among the most prominent to tap into sympathy for the convoy is Pierre Poilievre, the frontrunner in a leadership race for Canada's opposition Conservative party, who dueled with rivals in a debate over who was first to support the movement.
Fashioning himself as an anti-establishment force determined to free Canadians from a "gatekeeping elite," Poilievre posted footage of himself supporting the convoy rolling into Ottawa.
He promises, among other things, to take on the "state media" by defunding the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the public broadcaster, and to sack the Bank of Canada governor.
He has also pledged to ban federal ministers from attending the World Economic Forum held annually in Davos, Switzerland -- a popular whipping boy for convoy participants and far-right supporters more globally.
Anger against the forum has been buoyed by viral videos falsely claiming the WEF used the pandemic to put in motion a plan by "global elites" to subjugate society in a "Great Reset" - a twist on the WEF's stated plan to identify solutions to major challenges facing the world.
"The gatekeeping elites will try to destroy anyone who threatens their power," Poilievre said on Twitter in response to criticism that he is pushing authoritarian populism.
"I want to become PM to give you back control of your life & make Canada the freest country on earth," he wrote in another post.
Poilievre's campaign did not respond to requests for an interview or to questions on his support for the convoy.
Ekos's Graves says his polling shows that Canadians who support the convoy have "an authoritarian, populist outlook" and could be "the strongest force in the Canadian political landscape" because they are energized and motivated to vote.
Not surprisingly, Canadian conservative politicians are trying to appeal to convoy supporters and tap into the rising populist sentiment, says Jared Wesley, political science professor at the University of Alberta.
"There's a group out there that conservative politicians want to bring back into the fold," Wesley said.
"That results in constant escalation of anti-establishment demands, that has the leading candidate for the Conservative Party promising to fire the Governor of the Bank of Canada."
SIMMERING RESENTMENT IN ALBERTA
The boldness of the convoy movement -- with days of honking in downtown Ottawa, border crossing blockades and the open display of a swastika and confederate flags -- took many outside Canada by surprise.
But those involved and people close to the protesters said it was a natural progression of frustration and disenfranchisement, especially in parts of western Canada, where resentment towards Ottawa has simmered for decades.
Researchers point to a history of anti-government sentiment in largely conservative, oil-rich Alberta. The province prides itself on a frontier spirit and has long felt alienated from eastern Canada, accusing the federal government of relying on its fossil fuels without offering respect or autonomy in return.
"Albertans see themselves as the people who pay for everyone else in Canada," said Peter Smith, a researcher for the Canadian Anti-Hate Network, a non-profit organization that examines hate crimes and hate groups.
In Magrath and the nearby town of Raymond, where Allred's four camper van companions lived, anti-government sentiment and worries about federal over-reach remain strong.
Shortly after Allred and her friends were arrested in Coutts in February, a large black flag reading "Fuck Trudeau," with a red maple leaf replacing the first word's "u," flew in a backyard along the main road into Raymond.
Another house bore "Hold the Line for Freedom" painted in red across a downstairs window, while many vehicles sported Canadian flags and symbols of support for the blockades.
There was widespread sympathy for Allred and her companions, who were each charged, along with five others, with possession of a weapon for dangerous purpose and mischief. They have since been released on bail.
In the most serious charges related to the convoy movement, four men from southern Alberta involved in a border blockade were arrested in February and accused of conspiring to kill police officers. They remain in custody awaiting trial.
Two weeks after the Coutts blockade disbanded, another protest camp remained on the side of the highway farther north in Milk River: a small encampment of trailers and a food truck in a large open field, monitored by a Royal Canadian Mounted Police cruiser parked a discreet distance away.
"That is waking the country up," said Elliot McDavid, one of the camp organizers, adding the protests had achieved their goal of forcing Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to invoke the Emergencies Act to disband them.
In the Ipsos survey in February, 58% of Albertans found convoy participants' frustration legitimate and worthy of sympathy, compared to the 46% national figure.
'A DANGEROUS TIME'
With broad support for policies like universal healthcare and gun control, Canada has long been viewed as more moderate than its southern neighbor. But analysts say right-wing extremism has long had a home north of the U.S. border -- and the "Freedom Convoy" movement and related anti-government protests against COVID-19 restrictions have given it new momentum.
A 2015 study identified about 100 far-right extremist groups. The number has tripled since then, Hofmann said.
Larger groups have splintered but the overall number of participants has also grown, Hofmann said.
He and his colleagues have identified about 1,200 visibly active participants who have either had contact with police or the media or have been active on social media, he said.
This is up from previous counts but changing methodologies make comparisons difficult, he said.
One group that has drawn the attention of analysts in recent months is the Hammerskins, an offshoot of a U.S. neo-Nazi organization. It had been quiet in Canada for nearly a decade but now has a presence in cities like Hamilton, Oshawa, and the Greater Toronto Area, with members also recruiting in British Columbia, said the Canadian Anti-Hate Network's Smith.
Attempts to contact the Hammerskins for comment were unsuccessful.
"The convoy was huge and significant and will be a propaganda tool for a long time," Smith said.
Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino in February alluded to the link between the convoy protests and extremism, saying: "We need to be clear-eyed about the seriousness of these incidents."
He said that some of those charged had "strong ties to a far-right extreme organization," which a source in his office said at the time referred to the Diagolon right-wing network.
Patches featuring Diagolon's flag were affixed to body armor police seized in connection with arrests at the Coutts border blockade in February.
Jeremy MacKenzie, the de facto founder of Diagolon -- a fictional breakaway state that has become a symbol of anti-government sentiment among right-wing Canadians -- has given prominent space to the convoy on his podcast and Telegram channel.
In an interview with Reuters, MacKenzie said Diagolon started as a joke and is a loose social network of "patriotic people", rather than a political movement. He says he is being unfairly targeted by Canadian authorities.
The convoy was a success for Diagolon "because it is part of their goal is to destabilize and to sow doubt, and to delegitimize the government and the state," a federal government source familiar with the matter said in February.
Another group, Veterans 4 Freedom, emerged from the protests and aims to protect anti-establishment protesters and opposes COVID-19 restrictions, said Andrew MacGillivray, a military veteran who is part of the group.
"The rights and freedoms of Canadians are eroding and we are going to work to sustain lawful civic action in order to restore those fundamental rights," MacGillivray said in an interview.
"We just want to make sure that if there's any sort of protest and counter-protest that our volunteers can help keep the peace."
The group helped organize a June 30 protest in Ottawa featuring a veteran who walked thousands of kilometers to protest vaccine mandates and who now faces a court martial for criticizing vaccine policies while in uniform.
Other anti-establishment voices have also been galvanized.
Outspoken Calgary pastor Artur Pawlowski, who reckons he racked up about 40 tickets for violating pandemic restrictions, was charged with inciting people to damage or obstruct essential infrastructure during a speech at the Coutts blockade.
Out on bail, he told Reuters he is fighting the charges and that the convoy had "awakened" people to fight for freedom.
"The truth is I have become a symbol of freedom," he said, later adding he is considering running for office.
"I would clean your swamp. That’s what I do."
His son Nathaniel Pawlowski said he worries about what will happen if people angry at government restrictions are pushed too far: "If you study history, you know this is a dangerous time."
(Editing by Deepa Babington)
OTTAWA
Some community advocates want city to step in on sale of St. Brigid's churchThu, August 4, 2022
The United People of Canada are in the process of acquiring St. Brigid's Church in Lowertown, Ottawa. Community advocates want the city to stop the sale. (Dan Taekema/CBC - image credit)
An Ottawa community association says it wants the city to intervene on the impending sale of a local church to a group with suspected ties to the Freedom Convoy.
The previous owners of St. Brigid's Church, located in Lowertown, recently agreed to sell it to The United People of Canada (TUPC) — a group that describes itself online as a "diverse, intergenerational fraternal organization." In social media posts it refers to the building as The Embassy.
But since the group moved in, its colourful redecorating, which includes painted red doors and white tree insignias, has raised eyebrows from members of the local community. Some have pointed to social media posts from some of TUPC's members, which suggest ties to the Freedom Convoy.
Corporate filings for TUPC show three directors: William Komer, Kimberly Ward and Diane Nolan.
In a video posted on March 7, Ward described herself as an adviser for Dwayne Lich, the husband of Freedom Convoy leader Tamara Lich.
On Nolan's Facebook page, several posts appear to be associated with the Freedom Convoy and the movement the winter occupation inspired, such as sharing the Canadian Convoy Rally Song.
TUPC leadership has outright denied any connection to the movement, saying members' actions don't reflect the larger group's beliefs.
Diane Nolan/Facebook
Now members of the Lowertown Community Association are pointing to pictures of what appear to be two vehicles parked in front of St. Brigid's. One has "Freedom Express" painted on the side. The other is marked with a "F*ck Trudeau" sticker. Both are adorned with Canadian flags, a popular symbol among convoy protesters.
"We, as well as the Centretown residents, lived through a very difficult time, and it's certainly not something we want to revisit," said Sylvie Bigras, president of the Lowertown Community Association. "That close association is extremely concerning."
Now the Lowertown association and other local advocates are calling on the city to step in to ensure the building is either acquired by the city itself or sold to someone local. A petition has been started that had more than 500 signatures as of Wednesday afternoon.
Group continues to deny association with Freedom Convoy
Komer, TUPC's director, said he was not aware of the petition until CBC informed him of it, but that a conditional sale of the church has already been agreed upon by the previous owners.
Despite continued accusations, Komer insisted TUPC was not associated with the Freedom Convoy.
Dan Taekema/CBC
"The United People of Canada is in no way whatsoever affiliated with the Freedom Convoy. We've been abundantly clear with that despite what seems to be continuing misinformation being spread online," he said.
The impending owners have broken no rules, but have been the subject of themselves of criminal activity, Komer said.
He said "malicious actors" have committed several offences against TUPC, including death threats, harassment and vandalism on the church steps.
Ottawa police said they have received four calls in the past week related to the former church, but would not comment on the nature of the calls or provide details on investigations into the reports.
City not taking action
A statement from Court Curry, the city's manager of heritage and urban design services, did not comment on whether or not the city would or could eventually get involved in the ownership of St. Brigid's. It only said that "no activity has been initiated to acquire the subject property."
Curry wrote that as a heritage building, any modifications to the interior or exterior of the church would require a permit from the city.
"If the owner of the building plans to readapt the property for any new use, city staff would work closely with the proponent on how to do so," he said.
In a post to its Facebook page, TUPC said it's open to a conversation with its neighbours and it intends to join the Lowertown Community Association's monthly meeting on Monday.
BULLSHIT
Proposed emissions cap on oil and gas sector overly ambitious': CNRLThu, August 4, 2022
CALGARY — The head of Canada's largest oil-and-gas producing company criticized the federal government's proposed emissions cap for the energy sector Thursday, arguing environmental goals must be balanced with economic and energy security concerns.
Canadian Natural Resources Ltd. president Tim McKay made the comments during a conference call with analysts. While the purpose of the call was to discuss the company's second-quarter financial results, McKay took aim at Ottawa's proposed cap in his opening remarks.
He also talked up the emissions reduction efforts that are already under way through Pathways Alliance, an industry group that includes CNRL and other major Canadian oilsands producer.
"In our view, this (federal) cap is unnecessary and overly ambitious in light of our stated preference for government and industry to continue to work together through the Pathways initiative to achieve an already announced emissions reduction target," McKay said.
"It is important for all parties to continue to work together."
The Trudeau government indicated earlier this year that it would impose a cap on greenhouse gas emissions from the oil and gas sector in order to enable Canada to meet its 2030 emissions reduction target.
While the government has so far not indicated what the allowable level of emissions will be, it issued a discussion paper earlier this month in which it said it is considering two options — a cap-and-trade system that will set regulated limits on emissions from the sector, or a modified carbon pricing system for heavy emitters that would see oil-and-gas players pay a higher carbon price.
The federal government has stated it believes Canada's oilpatch is capable of reducing emissions by 31 per cent below 2005 levels by 2030, or 42 per cent below 2019 levels. (Emissions from the sector have risen by 20 per cent since 2005, due to increased production, though emissions intensity per barrel has decreased).
That would bring total emissions from the sector — including production, refining and transportation via pipelines — to 110 million tonnes by 2030, down from 191 million tonnes in 2019. They haven't been that low in more than three decades.
Oilsands industry leaders have suggested meeting such an ambitious target in a relatively short time frame is likely unachievable. Instead, they have set their own targets through the Pathways Alliance, pledging to reduce oilsands production emissions by 22 million tonnes by 2030. That would represent an approximate 30 per cent reduction from current levels.
Key to the industry's plan is a proposed carbon capture and storage project that would capture CO2 from oilsands facilities and transport it to a storage facility near Cold Lake, Alta, delivering about 10 million tonnes of emissions reductions per year from oilsands production.
Pathways Alliance members have not yet pulled the trigger to go ahead with the project, though the group has said the investment tax credit for carbon capture and storage projects unveiled by the federal government earlier this year is an important step.
"The tax credit is a positive approach where industry and government can co-invest in CCUS infrastructure at an achievable pace of development," McKay said Thursday.
CNRL reported Thursday that it more than doubled its second-quarter profits in 2022 as the war in Ukraine continued to put pressure on global energy supplies. The Calgary-headquartered company said it earned $3.5 billion or $3 per diluted share for the quarter ended June 30, up from $1.6 billion or $1.30 per diluted share in the same quarter last year.
Crude prices spiked during the quarter, driven largely by Russia's invasion of Ukraine, with North American benchmark WTI up 15 per cent from the first quarter and up 64 per cent from last year's second quarter.
Canadian Natural's daily production, before royalties, averaged 1,211,147 barrels of oil equivalent per day in the quarter, up from 1,141,739 in the same quarter last year.
The company increased its production guidance for 2022 by two per cent on Thursday, and said it now expects to add 40 million barrels of oil equivalent per day of growth in 2023, and 96 million barrels of oil equivalent per day of growth by 2025. It has increased its 2022 total budget for capital expenditures by $575 million to $4.9 billion, saying it will drill 15 additional thermal in situ wells this year.
CNRL also announced Thursday a special dividend of $1.50 per common share, citing what the company called its "very robust" financial position, rapidly decreasing debt levels, and "significant" free cash flow. The special dividend will be payable Aug. 31 to shareholders of record by end of day Aug. 23.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 4, 2022.
Companies in this story: (TSX:CNQ)
Amanda Stephenson, The Canadian Press
NOVA SCOTIA
Advocacy groups slam government approval of Goldboro mine project
Thu, August 4, 2022
An aerial view of the Touquoy gold mine in Moose River, N.S. Some advocacy groups say the start of a similar two-pit mine in Goldboro could result in large-scale changes to the province's environment. (Ecology Action Centre - image credit)
Environment advocacy groups in Nova Scotia are disappointed a proposed gold mine in Guysborough County is moving forward following the approval of a two-pit gold mine project on Tuesday by the province.
Environment Minister Tim Halman announced the project would be getting the green light under several conditions, saying that he was "satisfied" that any adverse effects to the environment would be mitigated through compliance with the terms of the agreement.
Those terms include the development of a wildlife management plan with the provincial Departments of Natural Resources and Environment and Climate Change and implementing a complaint resolution process to receive and respond to concerns about the project.
Some of the province's environment advocacy groups are not happy about the decision, though. Karen McKendry, the wilderness outreach co-ordinator at the Ecology Action Centre, said in an interview Wednesday that Halman's decision "shouldn't be happening in this day and age."
"Nova Scotia already has a large open-pit gold mine on the Eastern Shore and this is another one proposed," McKendry said. "The one in Goldboro would actually … mine for years, which leaves behind a huge contaminated site and leads to lots of trucking and diesel fuel use and is very polluting, to line the pockets and the coffers of people to make them richer and returns very little, if anything, to Nova Scotia."
In her opinion, McKendry said the approval represented the government's buckling to pressure from the gold mining industry. She also spoke of potential arsenic contamination in waterways and across the wetlands in the area, which she called the province's "kidneys."
"Those (wetlands) are needed for cleaning our water, for carbon capture," she said. "(They're) one of the last refuges for the endangered mainland moose, and so this project, like many others, proposes to destroy dozens and dozens of wetlands, including ones with species at risk in them."
The environmental effects of gold mining in the province have long been debated, particularly in the Goldboro area, which has an extensive history of mining and arsenic and mercury contamination. McKendry said in Nova Scotia, the rock that gold occurs in also has within it a substantial amount of arsenic. When the rock is brought to the surface and the gold is extracted, the rock that remains needs to be contained so there's no chance of polluting waterways and groundwater, she added.
'Happy' with the approval, company says
Signal Gold wants to develop the mine. The project includes two open pits, a processing facility, a tailings management facility, waste rock storage areas, as well as water management infrastructure such as collection ditches, culverts, settling ponds and water treatment systems.
Robert Dufour, the chief financial officer of Signal Gold, said the company is quite happy with the result.
"We were certainly confident starting the process that we had put together a very comprehensive environmental assessment," he said. "It's always exciting when you get that approval."
Dufour said Signal Gold is still reviewing the conditions that came with the approval, but said there was nothing insurmountable.
The company must obtain an industrial approval and make a Crown lease application before construction can begin. Dufour said Signal anticipates construction will begin either in late 2023 or early 2024.
Warden Vernon Pitts of the Municipality of the District of Guysborough also expressed his anticipation for the project and what it could mean for the growth of the county.
"Our population has been falling off the last number of years. We have some residents here that can work at mining, they've done it in the past, and we're looking forward to some new residents moving in, setting down roots," he said. "They'll utilize our services, our schools, and it's a win-win situation for everyone."
He said the hope is that as the mining in the area picks up, other businesses — such as welding or fabrication — will become established, creating more opportunities for residents once the mining is complete.
Madeline Conacher is with the group Sustainable Northern Nova Scotia, which advocates for environmentally sustainable, locally-driven development and has opposed other gold mine proposals for the Eastern Shore.
Like McKendry, Conacher said she's disappointed the government approved the proposal.
Ecology Action Centre
"Sadly, what I find with almost all of the politicians is that they go for the short-term economic benefits and they just don't even look at any of the environmental concerns," she said. "They're just hoodwinked by the promise of all those jobs, and they're keeping their fingers crossed that nothing will go wrong."
In her comments on the company's environmental assessment, Conacher expressed concerns about the potential harms from mine tailings, the depletion of aquifers, infilling, pollution and the impact on the climate and biodiversity.
A total of 48 organizations and people — aside from federal and provincial departments — responded to requests for feedback on the environmental assessment.
Many — including several form letters — were positive about the potential impact of the project on the economy and job prospects. Others raised a wide variety of concerns about the environmental consequences of the project.
A letter from the Native Council of Nova Scotia notes concerns about the alteration and destruction of wetlands and the possibility that the mine could encourage the establishment of invasive species in the area.
The Mi'kmaq Rights Initiative noted a number of environmental concerns in its feedback on the proposal, and also mentioned that the company's plan has "little to no mention of the Mi'kmaw, two-eyed seeing or traditional use and harvesting." The organization also expressed concern about the potential for cumulative environmental effects of the project in conjunction with other proposals in the area.
Pieridae Energy has proposed a liquefied natural gas project for the Goldboro area, and Atlantic Gold has proposed three other gold mines for the Eastern Shore.
Advocacy groups slam government approval of Goldboro mine project
Thu, August 4, 2022
An aerial view of the Touquoy gold mine in Moose River, N.S. Some advocacy groups say the start of a similar two-pit mine in Goldboro could result in large-scale changes to the province's environment. (Ecology Action Centre - image credit)
Environment advocacy groups in Nova Scotia are disappointed a proposed gold mine in Guysborough County is moving forward following the approval of a two-pit gold mine project on Tuesday by the province.
Environment Minister Tim Halman announced the project would be getting the green light under several conditions, saying that he was "satisfied" that any adverse effects to the environment would be mitigated through compliance with the terms of the agreement.
Those terms include the development of a wildlife management plan with the provincial Departments of Natural Resources and Environment and Climate Change and implementing a complaint resolution process to receive and respond to concerns about the project.
Some of the province's environment advocacy groups are not happy about the decision, though. Karen McKendry, the wilderness outreach co-ordinator at the Ecology Action Centre, said in an interview Wednesday that Halman's decision "shouldn't be happening in this day and age."
"Nova Scotia already has a large open-pit gold mine on the Eastern Shore and this is another one proposed," McKendry said. "The one in Goldboro would actually … mine for years, which leaves behind a huge contaminated site and leads to lots of trucking and diesel fuel use and is very polluting, to line the pockets and the coffers of people to make them richer and returns very little, if anything, to Nova Scotia."
In her opinion, McKendry said the approval represented the government's buckling to pressure from the gold mining industry. She also spoke of potential arsenic contamination in waterways and across the wetlands in the area, which she called the province's "kidneys."
"Those (wetlands) are needed for cleaning our water, for carbon capture," she said. "(They're) one of the last refuges for the endangered mainland moose, and so this project, like many others, proposes to destroy dozens and dozens of wetlands, including ones with species at risk in them."
The environmental effects of gold mining in the province have long been debated, particularly in the Goldboro area, which has an extensive history of mining and arsenic and mercury contamination. McKendry said in Nova Scotia, the rock that gold occurs in also has within it a substantial amount of arsenic. When the rock is brought to the surface and the gold is extracted, the rock that remains needs to be contained so there's no chance of polluting waterways and groundwater, she added.
'Happy' with the approval, company says
Signal Gold wants to develop the mine. The project includes two open pits, a processing facility, a tailings management facility, waste rock storage areas, as well as water management infrastructure such as collection ditches, culverts, settling ponds and water treatment systems.
Robert Dufour, the chief financial officer of Signal Gold, said the company is quite happy with the result.
"We were certainly confident starting the process that we had put together a very comprehensive environmental assessment," he said. "It's always exciting when you get that approval."
Dufour said Signal Gold is still reviewing the conditions that came with the approval, but said there was nothing insurmountable.
The company must obtain an industrial approval and make a Crown lease application before construction can begin. Dufour said Signal anticipates construction will begin either in late 2023 or early 2024.
Warden Vernon Pitts of the Municipality of the District of Guysborough also expressed his anticipation for the project and what it could mean for the growth of the county.
"Our population has been falling off the last number of years. We have some residents here that can work at mining, they've done it in the past, and we're looking forward to some new residents moving in, setting down roots," he said. "They'll utilize our services, our schools, and it's a win-win situation for everyone."
He said the hope is that as the mining in the area picks up, other businesses — such as welding or fabrication — will become established, creating more opportunities for residents once the mining is complete.
Madeline Conacher is with the group Sustainable Northern Nova Scotia, which advocates for environmentally sustainable, locally-driven development and has opposed other gold mine proposals for the Eastern Shore.
Like McKendry, Conacher said she's disappointed the government approved the proposal.
Ecology Action Centre
"Sadly, what I find with almost all of the politicians is that they go for the short-term economic benefits and they just don't even look at any of the environmental concerns," she said. "They're just hoodwinked by the promise of all those jobs, and they're keeping their fingers crossed that nothing will go wrong."
In her comments on the company's environmental assessment, Conacher expressed concerns about the potential harms from mine tailings, the depletion of aquifers, infilling, pollution and the impact on the climate and biodiversity.
A total of 48 organizations and people — aside from federal and provincial departments — responded to requests for feedback on the environmental assessment.
Many — including several form letters — were positive about the potential impact of the project on the economy and job prospects. Others raised a wide variety of concerns about the environmental consequences of the project.
A letter from the Native Council of Nova Scotia notes concerns about the alteration and destruction of wetlands and the possibility that the mine could encourage the establishment of invasive species in the area.
The Mi'kmaq Rights Initiative noted a number of environmental concerns in its feedback on the proposal, and also mentioned that the company's plan has "little to no mention of the Mi'kmaw, two-eyed seeing or traditional use and harvesting." The organization also expressed concern about the potential for cumulative environmental effects of the project in conjunction with other proposals in the area.
Pieridae Energy has proposed a liquefied natural gas project for the Goldboro area, and Atlantic Gold has proposed three other gold mines for the Eastern Shore.
Feds create national advisory council on Residential Schools
Thu, August 4, 2022
The creation of a new advisory committee on Residential Schools will help Indigenous communities across the country deal with the issues involved with searching for their children that never came home – and a forensic pathologist with ties to Kahnawake will hep the do that.
Dr. Kona Williams – whose mother is from Kahnawake – is part of the 10-person committee, which will provide expertise, advice, guidance and professional services to communities hoping to continue the search for their loved ones.
As one the only Indigenous forensic pathologists in Canada, Williams will provide advice on exhuming potential remains from around former Residential Schools properties.
Since the discovery of the 215 children around the former Kamloops Residential School in B.C. last year, the government promised to create such a committee. Williams said it’s important work because of ties to the situation and the knowledge that communities would like to, once and for all, figure out what happened to their children who never came home.
“There are many communities interested in finding their children and it has to happen carefully. If I am needed, I will make myself available to advise communities on how best to proceed. This is an issue that’s important to me because my father went to Residential School, my mom went to Day School and my grandparents went to Residential School,” she said.
Williams figures she will be working hand-in-hand with cultural anthropologists in the search for the missing children.
“Because it’s Indigenous-led and I have the expertise to be able to advise communities, I will be making myself available to help them,” she said.
The committee held its first meeting July 19.
The director of the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation said the committee will hopefully allow many of the children who never came home the dignity of a final commemoration.
“Too many children were denied the final dignity of being laid to rest according to their own customs and traditions,” said Stephanie Scott. “Too many families and communities have never been able to find their loved ones who didn't come home from Residential School. I have had conversations with countless First Nations, Inuit and Métis Nation communities who are grappling with difficult questions about how they can find and honour their lost children. This committee will help meet a crucial need for advice that is comprehensive, up-to-date and above all else trustworthy. It will be part of the important healing journey to honour the little ones.”
Federal Crown-Indigenous Relations minister Marc Miller said the important work must and will continue as communities search for their missing kids.
“The National Advisory Committee on Residential Schools Missing Children and Unmarked Burials will provide a wide range of expertise to First Nations, Inuit, and Métis. As Indigenous communities undertake the difficult and essential work to locate and commemorate burial sites at former Residential Schools, the National Advisory Committee will ensure Indigenous-led and culturally sensitive technical advice is available to support their work. We are committed to addressing the harms done and the abuse of Indigenous children, to support communities as they work towards healing.”
Marc Lalonde, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Iori:wase
Thu, August 4, 2022
The creation of a new advisory committee on Residential Schools will help Indigenous communities across the country deal with the issues involved with searching for their children that never came home – and a forensic pathologist with ties to Kahnawake will hep the do that.
Dr. Kona Williams – whose mother is from Kahnawake – is part of the 10-person committee, which will provide expertise, advice, guidance and professional services to communities hoping to continue the search for their loved ones.
As one the only Indigenous forensic pathologists in Canada, Williams will provide advice on exhuming potential remains from around former Residential Schools properties.
Since the discovery of the 215 children around the former Kamloops Residential School in B.C. last year, the government promised to create such a committee. Williams said it’s important work because of ties to the situation and the knowledge that communities would like to, once and for all, figure out what happened to their children who never came home.
“There are many communities interested in finding their children and it has to happen carefully. If I am needed, I will make myself available to advise communities on how best to proceed. This is an issue that’s important to me because my father went to Residential School, my mom went to Day School and my grandparents went to Residential School,” she said.
Williams figures she will be working hand-in-hand with cultural anthropologists in the search for the missing children.
“Because it’s Indigenous-led and I have the expertise to be able to advise communities, I will be making myself available to help them,” she said.
The committee held its first meeting July 19.
The director of the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation said the committee will hopefully allow many of the children who never came home the dignity of a final commemoration.
“Too many children were denied the final dignity of being laid to rest according to their own customs and traditions,” said Stephanie Scott. “Too many families and communities have never been able to find their loved ones who didn't come home from Residential School. I have had conversations with countless First Nations, Inuit and Métis Nation communities who are grappling with difficult questions about how they can find and honour their lost children. This committee will help meet a crucial need for advice that is comprehensive, up-to-date and above all else trustworthy. It will be part of the important healing journey to honour the little ones.”
Federal Crown-Indigenous Relations minister Marc Miller said the important work must and will continue as communities search for their missing kids.
“The National Advisory Committee on Residential Schools Missing Children and Unmarked Burials will provide a wide range of expertise to First Nations, Inuit, and Métis. As Indigenous communities undertake the difficult and essential work to locate and commemorate burial sites at former Residential Schools, the National Advisory Committee will ensure Indigenous-led and culturally sensitive technical advice is available to support their work. We are committed to addressing the harms done and the abuse of Indigenous children, to support communities as they work towards healing.”
Marc Lalonde, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Iori:wase
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