Native Women's Association of Canada sells off assets, promises transparency
The prominent national advocacy group has been engulfed in turmoil over the last year, but it now says it wants to return to collective advocacy, saying in an unsigned statement issued Tuesday that it's co-operating fully with a federal audit covering fiscal years 2018-2024 while conducting an internal review of its own.
"We are committed to rebuilding NWAC as an organization of truth and transparency," the statement said.
One grassroots advocate is skeptical, however. Bridget Tolley is a fixture of activism and advocacy in Ottawa, organizing rallies and vigils through the volunteer-based group Families of Sisters in Spirit, including an annual vigil on Oct. 4.
She has been seeking justice for more than two decades after her mother, Gladys Tolley, was struck and killed by a Quebec provincial police cruiser in front of her home in Kitigan Zibi Anishinabeg in Quebec.
"I don't care about any of those organizations. They mean nothing to me," said Tolley.
"I think the work that we've been doing is all because of the grassroots. The national organizations are only there from 9 to 5. Stuff happens at nights and on weekends with missing and murdered [Indigenous women] and there's nobody around to help us, but yet these guys get all the funding."
Tolley was first involved with NWAC in 2004. A year later, NWAC secured funding for Sisters in Spirit, a five-year research, education and policy initiative on missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls. But the funding ran out in 2010 and wasn't renewed.
"This is when everything went downhill. We never heard a thing from them. They never invited families to meet with them. Nothing," Tolley said.
That's why Tolley said she was surprised to get an email from NWAC just last week asking if the organization could help with this year's Oct. 4 vigil. Tolley hesitated to respond, concerned NWAC may be trying to use the grassroots to boost its own credibility.
"I was shocked," she said.
"I don't want them really to be involved because they used us the last time, and it was very hurtful and the pain is still there. It's triggering."
Headquarters for sale for $8M
CBC Indigenous asked NWAC for an interview on Monday, after reviewing Quebec property records for the organization's real estate holdings. NWAC's statement said it will not be giving interviews, and provided no details about the alleged financial irregularities.
Public records show NWAC's newly renovated headquarters in the Hull sector of Gatineau, Que., which is being sold for an asking price of $8 million, was twice remortgaged in recent years for several million dollars more than the initial purchase price. The group was undertaking renovations that included a café, gift shop and art gallery during that time.
NWAC bought the property in 2018, obtaining a mortgage for $1.8 million, records show. The organization got another mortgage in 2020 for $5.9 million, and the records show NWAC got another mortgage worth $7.5 million in 2022, right around the peak of the pandemic-era real estate boom.
A lawyer who reviewed the deeds said this is not unusual, as each new loan likely paid off the remaining balance of the previous one, and the cash may have been used to finance construction or the property may have been used as collateral to pay for other ventures.
"Some real estate, especially in the area that they were investing in, was not — how can we say — very up to date," said Nicolas Vinette, a Gatineau-based lawyer with Duclos société d'avocats.
The organization now finds itself trying to sell a multimillion-dollar investment in an area surrounded mainly by federal buildings, he said, which was hit hard by the onset of remote work during the pandemic, and which is now sought after more for residential rather than commercial real estate.
"For commercial purposes, it's not the easiest market," Vinette said.
But there is still an opportunity to succeed with the investment, he added.
"It'll just be a question of: Is somebody willing to pay that amount of money for this building?"
WATCH | 'It's supposed to be advocating on our behalf':
Concerns NWAC straying from its mandate
1 year ago
NWAC's pivot to real estate development was part of a plan to give itself more freedom by generating own-source revenue, a move some critics branded as elitist and disconnected.
NWAC's routine audit for 2023 indicates the organization had two mortgages that year, one worth $5.8 million paid in monthly installments of about $37,000. The other mortgage was worth about $610,000.
NWAC also owns a property, its resiliency lodge, in Chelsea, Que., about 15 kilometres north of Ottawa, which is also for sale. Public records show NWAC bought the property in 2019 for $880,000, with an associated mortgage of $850,000.
In its statement, NWAC said the proceeds from the sale of its assets will be re-invested in advocacy for Indigenous women's social, economic, cultural and political wellbeing.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CTV News
19 minutes ago
- CTV News
Sask. RCMP release sketch in relation to sexual assault
Battlefords RCMP are asking for the public's assistance identifying a man connected to a sexual assault investigation near Jackfish Lake. RCMP have released a sketch in hopes of speaking to the man in relation to the assault that occurred in mid-July. The man is described as possibly in his 20's or 30's, standing between six-foot and six-foot two inches tall, with a medium build and dirty blonde hair. If you recognize the man in the sketch or have any information about the incident, you're asked to contact police or Crime Stoppers. Police say due to the ongoing investigation they're unable to provide further details at this time, but will inform the public if an imminent public safety risk is determined. Jackfish Lake is located about 50 kilometres northwest of North Battleford.
CTV News
19 minutes ago
- CTV News
Caught on camera: Saint John Police investigating alleged uptown assault
A window is boarded up at Java Moose Coffee Roasters in Saint John after an altercation between adults and minors. Saint John police are searching for an unspecified number of alleged youths seen in security camera footage posted online of an apparent assault between adults and minors. Saint John police were called to Prince William Street around 10:40 p.m. Tuesday after reports that alleged youths were involved in a fight and had used an unidentified weapon and aerosol irritant on an adult. During the altercation, a front window was smashed at Java Moose Coffee Roasters. Police say they arrived at the scene less then two minutes after receiving the call. While the adults in the video remained on scene to speak with police, the youths- whose ages have not yet been confirmed- fled on foot before officers arrived. 'It's still an active investigation so there haven't been any charges yet,' says Saint John Police Force Staff Sargent Shawna Fowler. There is no word on who or what may have caused the altercation. 'Any incident that you see like that it's concerning,' says Fowler. 'Obviously you don't want to see people involved where they're getting harmed, especially when there's no explanation to you as to why this this is happening.' Police are asking anyone with information about the alleged youth's identity to contact them or Crime Stoppers. Java Moose owner Glen McLean says beginning his day by learning about his storefront's status was a bit disheartening. Having worked uptown for several years, he says the area is one of the best places in the Maritimes between its nightlife, restaurants, and upgrades to the waterfront. The unfortunate thing, he says, is that is seems some people moving to the area don't have that same sense of pride for the city. 'There's so many things that all of us have created down there which are being sacrificed, and I think sacrifice is the right word,' he says. 'We have to do something, we certainly recognize that there's a lot of desperation out there. But if we don't have a place, if we don't have an incredible uptown area, then that desperation will continue.' McLean adds it has become a bit more challenging at times to operate in the uptown between crime, construction, and other issues, but remains upbeat about Saint John being an incredible place to live and work. For more New Brunswick news, visit our dedicated provincial page.
CBC
19 minutes ago
- CBC
Facing declining membership and rising costs, Scouts Canada cuts 30% of staff
Social Sharing Scouts Canada says it has eliminated nearly one-third of its paid staff positions, as the organization attempts to balance its books in the face of an ongoing deficit of about $5 million. "A deficit is when your expenses are outpacing your revenues. And when this continually happens, quite simply it's just not sustainable," said Jordan Moore, chair of Scouts Canada's board of governors. "Had we not acted, we would have had over 45,000 youth across Canada not have a Scouts Canada to return to," she said. The job cuts — which are spread across the country and which work out to the equivalent of 44 full-time positions — are just one of several moves the 110-year-old organization has made recently in an attempt to stabilize its financial position. According to a report released this past May, Scouts Canada has also raised membership fees, reduced central spending, and taken steps to unload some of its properties, which it says currently cost about $1 million a year to maintain. Loss of membership and soaring legal fees Moore says the pandemic hit Scouts Canada hard, resulting in a 50 per cent loss of participants. Though participation has now climbed up to 45,000 young people nationally, it's still 12,000 below where membership sat in 2019 — a number which is itself a far cry from the organization's peak in the mid-1960's, which is estimated to have been closer to 300,000. Moore also told CBC Toronto there have been a number of "unforeseen and unpredictable" legal expenses this year that have further drained the Scouts' bank accounts. Over the years, the organization has made headlines as it navigates settlements and criminal trials against former volunteers, including for sexual abuse cases. WATCH | Former Scouts employee sues: Former Scouts Canada employee is suing the organization, says his work gave him PTSD 8 months ago Stephen Greensides says he was not supported as an employee dealing with heavy files in the safe scouting department. Scouts Canada has denied all allegations made against it. As the May report lays out, Scouts Canada has no insurance to help pay for legal challenges related to incidents that took place between 1968 and 2002. "Recent legal challenges have significantly reduced investments intended for this purpose, and the number of historical cases being reported has increased substantially," it says. A 'volunteer-lead model' As for what the future will bring, Moore says that a new strategic plan will be unveiled in November of this year, explaining that the Scouts plan to embrace what she describes as a "volunteer-lead model ... to empower our adult volunteers to really step in, and own those leadership roles across the country." Kevin Beleskey, who has volunteered for the Scouts for the last 17 years, said volunteers like him understand they're in the midst of a "transition phase." "Now the paid staff are not there, so they need to restructure the volunteer organization to provide volunteer support for the volunteers," he said. According to Scouts Canada, about half of the positions that were eliminated worked directly with volunteers to provide support and help with recruitment. As to whether current and new volunteers will step up to take on greater levels of responsibility, "that is the million dollar question," said Beleskey, who lives in Scarborough, Ont. Terry Fielder, another longtime Scouts volunteer in Pickering and Ajax, Ont., has had a front-row seat for the decreasing levels of participation since he joined in 2006. "There's now only three groups operational in Pickering and two groups operational in Ajax. There used to be 20 when I started," he said. Both Fielder and Beleskey say that above all, they hope the job cuts and other cost-saving measures are effective at keeping scouting alive in Canada. "I hope that scouting does grow," said Fielder. "[We've] got to get our stuff in front of parents and let them see us and, and see that there's an opportunity for kids to develop and youth to grow."
