Latest news with #FirstNation
Global News
an hour ago
- Politics
- Global News
‘A basic human right': Manitoba First Nation declares state of emergency over water quality
Leaders of a First Nation in northern Manitoba say they're declaring a state of emergency over poor water quality. Officials in Pimicikamak Cree Nation, also known as Cross Lake, said in a statement Tuesday morning that the community is facing a crisis because of its aging water treatment plant. Pimicikamak Chief David Monias said he's calling for federal help to replace the facility and build a modern sewer system and safe piping, as the current plant isn't able to keep up with the needs of the community. Funding had been promised previously, he said, but political delays — including elections — have left things at a standstill. 'Access to safe drinking water is not a luxury, it is a basic human right, and it is a treaty right,' Monias said. Story continues below advertisement 'Canada has a fiduciary duty to ensure our people are not forced to live under boil water advisories or face repeated failures of an archaic system. Get weekly health news Receive the latest medical news and health information delivered to you every Sunday. Sign up for weekly health newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy 'Our people should not have to beg for clean water in 2025.' Monias said the federal government should be held to account for a promise made by former prime minister Justin Trudeau, when he was first elected, that every house in Canada would have clean running water by 2030 — a goal he doesn't see being achieved for many First Nations communities across the country at present. The situation, Monias said, is often thought of from a technical standpoint, but it's really a human issue. 'This isn't just about pipes and plants, it's about our families, our children, and our elders,' he said. 'Every day they worry about whether the water is safe to drink or if the taps will run dry. No Canadian family should live this way, and yet our people are still being forced to. 'Canada must live up to its responsibility and give Pimicikamak and all First Nations the dignity of clean, reliable water.'
CTV News
19 hours ago
- CTV News
Partial skeletal remains found on Manitoba shoreline: RCMP
A map of Manitoba showing Tataskweyak Cree Nation, Fox Lake Cree Nation and York Factory. Uploaded May 29, 2025. (CTV News Winnipeg) Mounties are investigating after partial skeletal remains were discovered on the shoreline near a Manitoba First Nation. Thompson Rural RCMP say the remains were found near Tataskweyak Cree Nation and were reported to police on Saturday. Officers arrived on scene and were told low water levels on the lake revealed the remains in the sand. Mounties say an anthropologist is helping with an investigation to find the remains' origins and age, which police believe are historical. The investigation continues.
Winnipeg Free Press
20 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Winnipeg Free Press
Ally's Ribbons assembles group of Indigenous designers, models for iconic Milan Fashion Week
Alyssia Sutherland was her own first client. Now, she's taking a delegation of Indigenous designers and models — including some from northern Manitoba First Nations — to Milan Fashion Week (Sept. 23-29) in Italy. 'One individual going to Milan, we can't make a wave or a splash,' Sutherland said. 'My goal is to get as much people as we can to these opportunities.' MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS Ally's Ribbons, her business, is no stranger to the spotlight. Since launching in 2020, Sutherland's ribbon skirts have been shown at fashion weeks in New York and Paris, and at the Cannes Indigenous Arts and Fashion Festival. Milan is the widest net Sutherland has cast yet: nine designers and 26 models are in tow, part of a group of roughly 100 heading to Italy with Ally's Ribbons. Some come from Sutherland's home community of Peguis First Nation. Others come from Sagkeeng, Opaskwayak and Berens River in Manitoba, and 'all over Turtle Island,' including the United States. 'It's really important for us to let people know that we're here, we've always been here and we'll continue to be here,' said Sutherland, 29. 'We're going to show the world through our art.' She grew up watching her grandmother sew dresses. In 2018, her mother-in-law taught her to work a sewing machine. MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS Sutherland made her own ribbon skirt, a traditional Indigenous garment with rows of colourful ribbons. 'I started going to ceremony and there was a lot of people recognizing my ribbon work,' Sutherland recalled. They asked her to make them skirts. Soon, through word of mouth, Sutherland's wares were coveted throughout the province. She created an Instagram page for her work in January 2020. It became a tool for receiving orders around Canada and beyond. Sutherland credits two Indigenous celebrities for growing her customer base. Fawn Wood, an Alberta musician, bought a skirt from Sutherland in 2021 and showed it off to fans via social media. A year later, actress Crystle Lightning tapped Sutherland to create an Indigenous poodle ribbon skirt. The handmade skirt was used in performances of Bear Grease, an Indigenous reimagining of the long-running musical Grease. MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS Each Ally's Ribbons creation is unique. It's helped increase appeal, Sutherland relayed. 'I make ribbon to make a statement,' she said. 'I don't like replicating stuff.' She contacted a Canadian Indigenous production house about joining it for the Cannes Indigenous Arts and Fashion Festival in 2023. The answer came back yes — bring yourself, your designer brother and 11 looks. 'We didn't know what we were doing,' Sutherland said. Her brother, Terrance Thomas, creates the men's pieces under Ally's Ribbons' umbrella. The duo met their models and learned the ropes when they arrived at the event in France. 'To be in that environment with other designers and models, just proud to be there, was such an eye-opening thing,' Sutherland shared. 'The Milan show is kind of my test of, 'Can I put on a good show? I am not making any money from this production.'– Alyssia Sutherland Trips to New York and Paris fashion weeks followed in 2023 and 2024. Sutherland started bringing her own models. She pitched a bigger Indigenous fashion showcase — one with several designers overseen by Ally's Ribbons — to the production company she works with, HiTechModa. The result will unfurl Sept. 28 in Italy. 'The Milan show is kind of my test of, 'Can I put on a good show?'' Sutherland said. 'I am not making any money from this production.' Designers joining the roughly one-hour event include Thomas, April Slater from Misipawistik Cree Nation (Grand Rapids) and Dreyden Flett Roulette from Opaskwayak Cree Nation. Ally's Ribbons models have been preparing since May. Ocean Bruyere, the company's head model, is coaching the group. MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS 'We really focus on mental health and supporting our models because there's a lot of barriers we have to get through, especially as being Indigenous people,' said Bruyere, 28. 'We're stepping into a colonial environment that is used to seeing one look and one look only.' The models represent different sects within Indigenous culture, including Afro-Indigenous. 'There's no set standard for age, size or appearance,' said Bruyere, who's from Sagkeeng First Nation. 'Me and Ally really want to focus on showing a variety of people.' Meditation, cultural practices and team bonding activities are interwoven into the runway preparation, Bruyere said: 'We have to learn how to be OK with our skin colour, the way our bodies are shaped, the way our eyes are shaped.' 'We really focus on mental health and supporting our models because there's a lot of barriers we have to get through, especially as being Indigenous people. We're stepping into a colonial environment that is used to seeing one look and one look only.'– Ally's Ribbons' head model Ocean Bruyere Lucy Kemp, who's walking the Milan runway with Ally's Ribbons, called the troupe a 'really healthy, holistic group of people.' She's co-organizing a fundraiser to cover Milan trip expenses. Ally's Ribbons models will walk in a fashion show Sept. 5 to raise money. Fashion week trips are pricey, Sutherland explained. 'Top clothing houses are there represented,' Indigenous Chamber of Commerce president Renee Greyeyes said of Milan Fashion Week. 'For us to have that recognition means that our clothing, our cultural attire, is being accepted on a world stage.' Gucci, Versace and Fendi regularly take spots at the prestigious event. Greyeyes has noticed ribbon skirts increasingly being worn in Manitoba spaces. Provincial government event invites now offer a dress code of business and cultural attire, a change made since Wab Kinew became premier, Greyeyes said. MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS 'We're not embarrassed to wear (ribbon skirts) anymore,' she added. 'It's quite different from 30 years ago.' She called Sutherland a 'really strong example within the Indigenous business community.' Sutherland aims to start a modelling agency within the next year, building on work Ally's Ribbons is currently doing. First, though, Sutherland is focused on getting her crew to Milan. Ally's Ribbons is selling $28 tickets to its September show, happening at Swish Studios at 290 McDermot Ave., on Eventbrite online. Organizers have dubbed the evening event 'Manitoba to Milan' and will host a pop-up market. There will be tickets at the door. Gabrielle PichéReporter Gabrielle Piché reports on business for the Free Press. She interned at the Free Press and worked for its sister outlet, Canstar Community News, before entering the business beat in 2021. Read more about Gabrielle. Every piece of reporting Gabrielle produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press's tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press's history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates. Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber. Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Climate
- Yahoo
Evacuation advisory lifted for Lavillette residents as nearby fire contained
Lavillette residents can now unpack their bags after the province ended an evacuation advisory Sunday morning. Residents in the northeastern New Brunswick community, located about 20 kilometres northwest of Esgenoôpetitj First Nation, had been on alert since Friday that they could be asked to leave on short notice. An 8.5-hectare fire located south of the community continues to burn. It is considered contained "within a bulldozed break or wet line," according to the province, but it is still possible for the fire to escape. As of 5 p.m. Sunday, the Department of Natural Resources reported 39 fires burning across the province. Seven of are classified as out of control. The Oldfield Road fire, near Miramichi, remains the largest fire at 1,402 hectares. A fire in Northumberland County, called the Chief's fire, has more than quadrupled in size over the last 24 hours. It is now 218 hectares. Another 100-hectare fire called the Beaver Lake Stream fire, also in Northumberland County, continues to burn out of control. A 120-hectare fire in Gloucester County falls under the same classification. Environment Canada has only issued an air quality statement for Miramichi and area due to wildfire smoke, but EMO is investigating reports of smoke as they get them. The Oromocto Fire Department said in a Facebook post on Saturday that it and other fire departments in the region, including Harvey and Upper Kingsclear, are receiving a high number of smoke-related calls. EMO requests members of the public not to fly drones above or around the fire zones. The weather could help with firefighting efforts today. There are some showers and thundershowers in the forecast. Showers will start early in the northwest and move eastward during the afternoon, according to Environment Canada. The day's high will be between 24 and 28 C. Rain is expected to end late Sunday night with a low of 8 C.
CTV News
a day ago
- CTV News
Manslaughter charge laid in fatal shooting of 13-year-old: Manitoba RCMP
A teenager arrested at the scene of an alleged shooting on a Manitoba First Nation has been charged with manslaughter. Cross Lake RCMP say the 17-year-old male was charged Sunday, the day after he was arrested at a Pimicikamak Cree Nation home. He was remanded into custody. Mounties say they were first called to the scene on Saturday afternoon. A 13-year-old boy was shot and transported to a nursing station, where he was pronounced dead. RCMP told CTV News both the accused and the victim are from the community. A firearm was also seized when the 17-year-old was arrested. Police say the investigation is ongoing. None of the allegations have been tested in court.
