Pamela Palmater – A Woman of Consequence

 Pamela Palmater is a remarkable leader paving the way for the future of Indigenous advocacy. She has dedicated her life to fighting for the rights of Indigenous peoples in Canada in her roles as a lawyer, activist, author, professor, and mother. Palmater’s relentless commitment to justice and ability to connect

Symbols of Canada

 Symbols of Canada By: Michael Dawson, Catherine Gidney and Donald Wright  256 pages • ISBN 9781771133715 From Timbits to totem poles, Canada is often boiled down to its syrupy core in stereotypical symbols displayed everywhere from t-shirts and television ads to our classrooms, museums and courtrooms. Despite their ubiquitous nature, most

What’s Happening North of 60

 Canada is a country born from colonization. This process, and the residential schools that followed, have had monstrous effects on First Nations peoples, effects that we are only beginning to acknowledge through the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. But the colonization of the North, for the First Nations, Métis and Inuit

First Nations Taxation

 A message from Ottawa Life Magazine’s publisher Dan Donovan: Prime Minister Stephen Harper will meet in Ottawa with First Nations leaders this week to discuss treaty and aboriginal rights and economic development. The current state of Aboriginal relations in Canada is at an all-time low and the treatment of Canada's aboriginal community

The Path to Self-Governance: A Rationale Behind Eradicating the Indian Act

 An archaic and racist-based legislative barrier to First Nations Peoples achieving self-governance is the Indian Act. It is considered one of their biggest obstacles. The Act is outdated and an inaccurate reflection of the current relationship between the original inhabitants of our country and the federal government. This affects the

First Nations Come Last

 On May 27, her last day after a decade as Canada's official watchdog, Auditor General Sheila Fraser gave this dire warning.: “If the First Nations and the Federal Government don't find ways of working together, the living conditions in reserves will remain worse off than everywhere else in Canada, and