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Hamilton Spectator
21-05-2025
- Sport
- Hamilton Spectator
Squamish and Musqueam Nation youth athletes win provincial sport awards
A group of young athletes will soon have their name and photo shine in the B.C. Sports Hall of Fame. Three athletes from the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish Nation) and one from xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) Nation are among the 10 recipients of the 2024 Premier's Award for Indigenous Youth Excellence in Sport announced Tuesday. The Indigenous Sport, Physical Activity and Recreation Council (I-SPARC) announced the awards, which has been running since 2015. Athletes 25 and under are recognized for their outstanding achievements in sport but also demonstrating a commitment to education, culture and promoting a healthy lifestyle. Box lacrosse player Logan Mellish from Squamish Nation, softball and volleyball athlete Sophie Campo and hockey star Wyatt Blace from Squamish Nation and synchronized figure skater Summer Cannell from Musqueam Nation are on this year's list. 'Thank you so much for selecting me as one of the top 10 recipients for the primary provincial awards for Indigenous Youth Excellence in Sports,' Mellish said in a video recognizing this year's winners . 'I want to thank my coaches for their belief in me and sharing their dedication and knowledge to help me become a better athlete.' Mellish led the Coquitlam Junior Adanacs to a first-place finish last season, taking home the Minto Cup in 2024 . He is also a role model in his community, the video said, volunteering with a non-profit helping children with disabilities learn lacrosse while also taking Indigenous youth out fishing and teaching harvesting traditions. Campo's team achieved gold at the BC Softball Championship and placed fifth at the Western Canadian Softball Championship. On top of her pitching and batting talents, she also led her school's volleyball team to gold at the South Vancouver Island Championship. 'This award is such an honour, and I would like to thank my loved ones, coaches, teammates and everyone who has supported me and helping me reach my goals,' Campo said. The award is also a high tribute for Blace, who has achieved a lot in his hockey career already. Blace plays on the Alberni Valley Bulldogs, has made BCHL's top prospects game and will soon shoot pucks for ivy league Dartmouth College in the U.S. Figure skater Cannell also holds an impressive record on the ice. The Musqueam Nation member is the captain of the BC Junior Synchronized Skating Team, leading the squad to a win at the West Coast Challenge and top prize at the Mountain Regionals. She also landed seventh place in the Canadian National Skating Championships where she competed against some of the best skaters across the country. 'As a proud Musqueam figure skater, it's an honour to share my journey and celebrate this special moment with all of you,' Cannell said, adding thanks to her family, coaches, teammates and her community for their encouragement and guidance. 'I'm excited for what the future brings, not only for myself, but for the growing presence of Indigenous athletes in all world competition,' she said. 'Thank you I-SPARC for this honour, it's a milestone in my athletic career.' In March, I-SPARC announced the 32 regional finalists for the awards . The awards have created a legacy for outstanding athletes, a press release from I-SPARC said, with many past recipients earning university scholarships, playing on professional sports leagues, and competing with Canadian national teams and at the Olympics. All 10 provincial recipients will receive a $500 bursary and a framed limited-edition print of the award from First Nations artist Carey Newman, plus their photo and biography will be on display inside the B.C. Sports Hall of Fame in downtown Vancouver. 'Congratulations to the 10 exceptional athletes and leaders who are taking home a Premier's Award for Indigenous Youth Excellence in Sport,' said B.C. Premier David Eby in a press release. 'Your commitment to your sport, your studies and your culture is truly inspiring. I wish each of you every success as you continue to pursue your goals on and off the field of play while proudly representing your community.' To see the full list and video ceremony honouring the recipients, check out I-SPARC's website . Abby Luciano is the Indigenous and civic affairs reporter for the North Shore News. This reporting beat is made possible by the Local Journalism Initiative .
National Post
12-05-2025
- Politics
- National Post
Josh Dehaas: There's no denying land acknowledgements are political
Article content Last month, with the assistance of the Canadian Constitution Foundation, a group of University of British Columbia professors and a former student filed a lawsuit asking the B.C. Supreme Court to protect academic freedom by ordering the university administration to stop breaching its statutory duty to remain non-political: No more requiring fealty to DEI ideology from job applicants. No more statements about the Israel-Gaza war. No more land acknowledgements by the administration in academic settings where academic freedom is impinged. Article content Article content There's been little pushback to our claims that DEI purity tests or Israel-Gaza statements contravene B.C.'s University Act requirement that the public university's administration remain non-political. The criticism of our claim that land acknowledgements are political has been substantial. One critic is UBC assistant professor Scott Franks, who argued in an op-ed in the Globe and Mail that, rather than being political in nature, 'land acknowledgments are statements of legal fact.' Franks offers an example: it's a 'legal fact,' he says, that the land that UBC Vancouver sits on is 'unceded and that the Musqueam Nation retains title to those lands.' Article content Article content It's difficult to understand how the assertion that UBC is on 'unceded' Musqueam territory, to which they have title, is anything other than political. There is no court decision that says the Musqueam possess title to those lands. That includes Aboriginal title, which is the communal right to use land that courts have found in small parts of B.C., where First Nations have lived continuously and with the ability to exclude others since the Crown assertion of sovereignty. Article content Article content Franks writes that former Supreme Court chief justice Brian Dickson rejected in the 1984 decision Guerin v The Queen 'the idea that Indigenous peoples' rights were discretionary and political when he found that the Crown owed legal obligations to the Musqueam Nation when it assumed control over the nation's lands.' But Guerin was not about the UBC lands; it was about former reserve lands nearby. Franks may argue that because the Musqueam once used the land that UBC sits on and never 'ceded' it via treaty, that they retain some form of title (the Tsleil-Waututh make similar claims to the same lands). Right or wrong, that's political. To understand why, consider the B.C. Human Rights Tribunals' jurisprudence on what counts as 'political,' developed in the context of political discrimination claims. Article content Article content In the 1994 decision Jamieson v. Victoria Native Friendship Centre, the tribunal found that the Friendship Centre had discriminated against a prospective employee, Jamieson, for his political beliefs asserted in connection with his membership in the Mohawk Warrior Society. The tribunal found that the beliefs in question were political because they concerned 'the way First Nations communities are organized and governed and how these communities relate to each other and to other levels of government.' Claims that UBC is on 'unceded' land, and that the Musqueam have title, are similarly about how the First Nation community relates to the B.C. government. Whether those claims are right or wrong (we take no position), they are political.
Vancouver Sun
28-04-2025
- Politics
- Vancouver Sun
Federal Election Day: Can the Liberals flip two NDP seats and sweep Vancouver?
Article content It's election day across Canada and B.C. residents in Vancouver are heading to the polls to choose new MPs to represent them in the ridings of: Article content Article content • Vancouver Centre • Vancouver East • Vancouver Fraserview-South Burnaby • Vancouver Granville • Vancouver Kingsway • Vancouver Quadra Article content For information on how to cast your vote in your riding, click HERE. You can also look up which candidates are running in your riding using our database HERE. Article content Article content If you're still deciding who to vote for, check out our handy guide outlining 12 hot topics and where the major parties stand on each one HERE. Article content Article content Voters in Vancouver haven't been kind to the federal Conservatives — the last one elected was Wai Young in the former Vancouver South riding in 2011. Article content In 2025, the Liberals are trying to hold on to four Vancouver ridings, the NDP is hoping to keep two. Article content Several incumbents are up for re-election, led by the 10-time Liberal MP Hedy Fry in Vancouver Centre. Her fellow Liberal, Taleeb Noormohamed, is also hoping for re-election in Vancouver Granville. Article content Article content Longtime NDP MPs Don Davies (a five-time winner in Vancouver Kingsway), and Jenny Kwan (a three-time victor in Vancouver East) are also vying for re-election. Article content Article content The high-profile new kid on the block is former Vancouver mayor and NDP MLA Gregor Robertson, who is running for the Liberals in Vancouver Fraserview-South Burnaby, which was formerly known as Vancouver South. He replaces retiring federal cabinet minister Harjit Sajjan. Article content The Liberals have won every election in Vancouver Quadra since 1984, the last six times with another former cabinet minister, Joyce Murray. Article content In 2025, a member of the Musqueam Nation, Wade Grant, will try to hold Vancouver Quadra for the Liberals. A former Musqueam councillor, he was an adviser to Christy Clark's provincial Liberal government.
