National Indigenous News June 29

Darrell Stranger takes a look at some of the latest Indigenous news making headlines across the country. 

Transcript

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This is a look at your National Indigenous News. I'm Daryl Stranger. A remote community of the Northwest Territories was ordered late Sunday to evacuate as an out-of-control wildfire continues to burn nearby. The territorial government's website says the Decho fire is roughly 7 kilometers west of the Fort Simpson airport. Wildfire officials said the fire is about 4.2 square kilometers in size, and officials with the village of Fort Simpson said in a notice that the community's roughly 1,300 residents should flee to the multiplex arena in Yellowknife, about 630 kilometers east of the village. The City of Yellowknife in a social media post confirmed the multiplex's gym will act as a reception and lodging center. Fort Simpson officials said residents who wished to evacuate by plane should go to the local recreation center. The village says gas stations will remain open so residents living by road can evacuate safely. A social media post from the Territory's wildfire authority says the fire hasn't made significant growth towards the village yet, and there have been no reported losses of infrastructure or structures. An earlier evacuation alert asking people to be ready to flee Fort Simpson was issued after a fire was detectable 10 kilometers from the airport. Northwest Territory's fire said dry conditions with temperatures near 35 degrees and moderate winds gusting to 30 kilometers an hour continued through much of Sunday. Construction has begun on one First Nations road to the Ring of Fire mining region in northern Ontario. Premier Doug Ford visited Webaquay First Nation last week to mark the milestone, his first visit to a region he has spoken about often since taking power in 2018. Webique is one of two remote fly-in-first nations that have signed partnership deals with the province in order to connect them to both the proposed mining area and to the provincial highway system. The proposed road and mine has angered a number of other First Nations in the area that are opposed to development in a largely untouched part of the province. Webacwe has already cleared part of the road that sits on its reserve, which is on an island about 500 kilometers north of Thunder Bay, Ontario. The community's leadership has said it wants the road in order to help lift itself out of poverty and to connect to the provincial highway system. The province says construction is underway on the Webequay Supply Road, which will run 107 kilometers east through wildly varied terrain, from Esker Rock to Peatland and be completed by 2030. Several hundred kilometers south of Webacway is Martin Falls First Nation, which is set to begin construction on its road in August. In between Martin Falls and Webacwe will be the Northern Road Link, which the province said will begin construction in 2028. An immersive exhibit in Thunder Bay, Ontario is telling the stories of 60 Scoop survivors. The 60 Scoop refers to a period starting in the 1960s when thousands of Indigenous children were removed from their homes and forced to live with non-Indigenous foster or adoptive families. This resulted in a loss of cultural identity and family fractures that have lasted generations. While indigenous leaders have made significant progress in taking back jurisdiction over child and family services, the 60s scoop continues to affect First Nations, Metis, and Inuit people. The new exhibit was put together by the Legacy of Hope Foundation with input from the National Indigenous Survivors of Child Welfare Network. The exhibit features firsthand testimonies from twelve indigenous survivors of the 60s Scoop, told through text, photos, and videos. The City of Thunder Bay is hosting the exhibit in partnership with the Legacy of Hope Foundation and Department of Canadian Heritage. It aligns with action item twenty of the city's Smart Growth Action Plan, which focuses on integrating Indigenous perspectives, history, and lived experiences into public spaces and community learning. The exhibit will be on display tomorrow and Wednesday in the community. That's a look at your national Indigenous news.