Latest news with #OdawaNativeFriendshipCentre
CBC
23-05-2025
- Sport
- CBC
Here are the 2025 Ottawa Race Weekend road closures
Social Sharing Several major Ottawa roads will be closed this weekend to make way for participants in the Ottawa Race Weekend. The kids', 2K, 5K and 10K races will take place Saturday, followed by the half marathon and marathon Sunday. Organizers expect over 36,500 runners and walkers to participate over the two days. Road closures begin Saturday at 11:00 a.m. with Laurier Avenue W. between Metcalfe and Nicholas streets, and Elgin Street northbound between Lisgar and Slater streets. Saturday's closures mostly affect Centretown and extend south along the Rideau Canal to Dows Lake. Other downtown closures including parts of Elgin, O'Connor and Wellington streets. Some closures will remain in effect until 9 p.m. Saturday. Sunday's closures start earlier with some streets around Ottawa city hall shutting down to traffic starting at 5 a.m. By 9 a.m. the closures will stretch as far as Island Park Drive, Manor Park and Hog's Back Park before receding to roads along the Rideau Canal by 1:30 p.m. Most closures on Sunday will be lifted by 3 p.m. A full list of road closures over the weekend is available on the Ottawa Race Weekend website. Here are some other events that could affect traffic in the coming days: The Great Glebe Garage Sale is happens Saturday across the central Ottawa neighbourhood, making it tougher to drive or bus through until late afternoon. Odawa Native Friendship Centre's 50th Anniversary Powwow is going on all weekend at the centre near St. Laurent Boulavard and McArthur Avenue. The King and Queen visit Ottawa on Monday and Tuesday. Watch for more road closures related to their schedule.
Yahoo
14-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
The border issue Indigenous communities are talking about this election
Members of Ottawa's Indigenous community say they're worried about the impact Canada-U.S. relations could have on friends and family who live on reserves near or severed by the American border. CBC went to the Odawa Native Friendship Centre to find out what voters there are thinking about ahead of the federal election. In several conversations, border mobility came up as a pressing concern. Michele Bourque is a retired federal public servant who was taking part in a quilting class at the non-profit Odawa centre, which provides a variety of programming for Ottawa's urban Indigenous population. She's from the Aamjiwnaang First Nation in southwestern Ontario, which sits just across the border from Port Huron, Mich. "I worry about people going back and forth, and I know a lot of people have stopped going back and forth because of the fear of problems [of] being searched," Bourque said. Border mobility It's a concern shared by many Indigenous families, according to Gabriel Pangowish, the general manager at Odawa, who pointed to the example of Akwesasne, a territory that is severed by the Canada-U.S. border. "The reserve is on both sides of the border and those people, they just need to show a status card to be able to get across. Will this change now because of the government down there?" he questioned. Gabriel Pangowish, general manager at Odawa Native Friendship Centre, says border mobility is important for many Indigenous families. (Robyn Miller/CBC News) Pangowish said the uncertainty is especially hard on families who live and work on different sides of the border. "It's a huge issue," he said, adding that Indigenous people, such as the Ojibway, historically lived on both sides of the border. "So a lot of the families there, they would travel back and forth, not even thinking about this [as a] border, because before colonization that was their territory," he explained. Cost of living Anita Armstrong, Odawa's executive director, said while border issues do come up in discussion, concerns around cost of living are also top of mind for people in Ottawa's Indigenous community. She said Odawa's food bank has grown to serve nearly 90 families, up from about 45 families just two years ago. "We have even staff members who are utilizing the food bank at times. So it's definitely top of mind, and it affects everybody," she said. Odawa is preparing to celebrate its 50th anniversary, and Armstrong said it will be a wonderful celebration. Sadly, she said, the centre is still dealing with the same issues it was decades ago. "But we can't give up. We just have to keep ensuring that we honour our children," Armstrong said. "Our children are gifts from the creator, and we have to remind our community members and clientele that those little ones are our future leaders." She's hoping for a "fair government" that recognizes the needs of the local Indigenous community. "We just need to make sure that we can support them and continue doing so. All of our programs are vital to the healing and of our community members," Armstrong said, adding that she would like to hear more talk on the campaign trail of issues affecting Indigenous communities. "Obviously we recognize the agenda is huge, but we just want to make sure that we ... are represented. It's been rather quiet," she said. The Assembly of First Nations has released its election priorities and is seeking commitments from party leaders on economic reconciliation, Canada-U.S. trade and border mobility, calls to action from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and calls for justice from the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls.
Yahoo
14-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
The border issue Indigenous communities are talking about this election
Members of Ottawa's Indigenous community say they're worried about the impact Canada-U.S. relations could have on friends and family who live on reserves near or severed by the American border. CBC went to the Odawa Native Friendship Centre to find out what voters there are thinking about ahead of the federal election. In several conversations, border mobility came up as a pressing concern. Michele Bourque is a retired federal public servant who was taking part in a quilting class at the non-profit Odawa centre, which provides a variety of programming for Ottawa's urban Indigenous population. She's from the Aamjiwnaang First Nation in southwestern Ontario, which sits just across the border from Port Huron, Mich. "I worry about people going back and forth, and I know a lot of people have stopped going back and forth because of the fear of problems [of] being searched," Bourque said. Border mobility It's a concern shared by many Indigenous families, according to Gabriel Pangowish, the general manager at Odawa, who pointed to the example of Akwesasne, a territory that is severed by the Canada-U.S. border. "The reserve is on both sides of the border and those people, they just need to show a status card to be able to get across. Will this change now because of the government down there?" he questioned. Gabriel Pangowish, general manager at Odawa Native Friendship Centre, says border mobility is important for many Indigenous families. (Robyn Miller/CBC News) Pangowish said the uncertainty is especially hard on families who live and work on different sides of the border. "It's a huge issue," he said, adding that Indigenous people, such as the Ojibway, historically lived on both sides of the border. "So a lot of the families there, they would travel back and forth, not even thinking about this [as a] border, because before colonization that was their territory," he explained. Cost of living Anita Armstrong, Odawa's executive director, said while border issues do come up in discussion, concerns around cost of living are also top of mind for people in Ottawa's Indigenous community. She said Odawa's food bank has grown to serve nearly 90 families, up from about 45 families just two years ago. "We have even staff members who are utilizing the food bank at times. So it's definitely top of mind, and it affects everybody," she said. Odawa is preparing to celebrate its 50th anniversary, and Armstrong said it will be a wonderful celebration. Sadly, she said, the centre is still dealing with the same issues it was decades ago. "But we can't give up. We just have to keep ensuring that we honour our children," Armstrong said. "Our children are gifts from the creator, and we have to remind our community members and clientele that those little ones are our future leaders." She's hoping for a "fair government" that recognizes the needs of the local Indigenous community. "We just need to make sure that we can support them and continue doing so. All of our programs are vital to the healing and of our community members," Armstrong said, adding that she would like to hear more talk on the campaign trail of issues affecting Indigenous communities. "Obviously we recognize the agenda is huge, but we just want to make sure that we ... are represented. It's been rather quiet," she said. The Assembly of First Nations has released its election priorities and is seeking commitments from party leaders on economic reconciliation, Canada-U.S. trade and border mobility, calls to action from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and calls for justice from the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls.
CBC
14-04-2025
- Politics
- CBC
The border issue Indigenous communities are talking about this election
Members of Ottawa's Indigenous community say they're worried about the impact Canada-U.S. relations could have on friends and family who live on reserves near or severed by the American border. CBC went to the Odawa Native Friendship Centre to find out what voters there are thinking about ahead of the federal election. In several conversations, border mobility came up as a pressing concern. Michele Bourque is a retired federal public servant who was taking part in a quilting class at the non-profit Odawa centre, which provides a variety of programming for Ottawa's urban Indigenous population. She's from the Aamjiwnaang First Nation in southwestern Ontario, which sits just across the border from Port Huron, Mich. "I worry about people going back and forth, and I know a lot of people have stopped going back and forth because of the fear of problems [of] being searched," Bourque said. Border mobility It's a concern shared by many Indigenous families, according to Gabriel Pangowish, the general manager at Odawa, who pointed to the example of Akwesasne, a territory that is severed by the Canada-U.S. border. "The reserve is on both sides of the border and those people, they just need to show a status card to be able to get across. Will this change now because of the government down there?" he questioned. Pangowish said the uncertainty is especially hard on families who live and work on different sides of the border. "It's a huge issue," he said, adding that Indigenous people, such as the Ojibway, historically lived on both sides of the border. "So a lot of the families there, they would travel back and forth, not even thinking about this [as a] border, because before colonization that was their territory," he explained. Cost of living Anita Armstrong, Odawa's executive director, said while border issues do come up in discussion, concerns around cost of living are also top of mind for people in Ottawa's Indigenous community. She said Odawa's food bank has grown to serve nearly 90 families, up from about 45 families just two years ago. "We have even staff members who are utilizing the food bank at times. So it's definitely top of mind, and it affects everybody," she said. Odawa is preparing to celebrate its 50th anniversary, and Armstrong said it will be a wonderful celebration. Sadly, she said, the centre is still dealing with the same issues it was decades ago. "But we can't give up. We just have to keep ensuring that we honour our children," Armstrong said. "Our children are gifts from the creator, and we have to remind our community members and clientele that those little ones are our future leaders." She's hoping for a "fair government" that recognizes the needs of the local Indigenous community. "We just need to make sure that we can support them and continue doing so. All of our programs are vital to the healing and of our community members," Armstrong said, adding that she would like to hear more talk on the campaign trail of issues affecting Indigenous communities. "Obviously we recognize the agenda is huge, but we just want to make sure that we ... are represented. It's been rather quiet," she said. The Assembly of First Nations has released its election priorities and is seeking commitments from party leaders on economic reconciliation, Canada-U.S. trade and border mobility, calls to action from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and calls for justice from the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls.
