Elijah Sugarhead of Nibinamik First Nation was following the advice of his Elders when he went to Toronto to join Ryerson University’s Idle No More rally.
Sugarhead delivered a speech on Feb. 4 in Toronto, talking about the various ways the omnibus bill that was passed in December through parliament would affect the environment, land and people of northern Ontario.
On the evening of March 19, a video uploaded to YouTube of a First Nations man being assaulted by a white man in a Dryden restaurant began circulating on the Internet via social-media.
Within a couple of hours, the video, and still images taken of the video, had spread across the social-media site Facebook as well as Twitter. Concerned citizens sent links to, and images of, the video to the Dryden Police Service and to various media outlets as well.
On March 2, Thunder Bay-based company They.Media hosted their first ever hip-hop show at Newfie’s Pub with several acts taking to the stage in what turned out to be a successful and entertaining event.
They.Media is an Aboriginal company that specializes in film, video, public relations and, more recently, music. Tony McGuire, producer and director of They.Media, said he has been working with his company for four years, specializing in videos and PR, and that switching to music was a logical step to take.
Healing and empowering families was on the agenda for the Nishnawbe Aski Nation (NAN) Embrace Life forum that took place March 7-8 in Thunder Bay at St.Paul’s United Church.
NAN Deputy Grand Chief Goyce Kakegamic said the focus of the gathering was healing and also to show people “new ways to take active responsibility for their own lives and the lives of others through proactive decision making and individual family responsibility.”
Nishnawbe Aski Nation (NAN) Women’s Council hosted a three-day conference called “Exploring our Past, Present & Future: Supporting the Women of the Nation” on the weekend of March 15.
The conference was aimed at strengthening and empowering women and explored the past, present, and future roles of women.
NAN Deputy Grand Chief Les Loutitt gave opening remarks for the conference on Friday and said that women embody the strength and integrity of NAN communities.
The reality of the sex trade in Canada, which involves for the most part victimized young girls hidden in underground sex trade and human trafficking networks, was a topic of discussion during two separate events held in Thunder Bay this March.
Bridget Perrier, co-founder of the anti-prostitution group Sex Trade 101, and Diane Redsky, a project director with the Canadian Women’s Foundation, were part of the two dialogues.
Addressing issues like health, education, culture, identity and suicide were on the agenda for youth delegates from 91 First Nations communities during the week of March 25 in Thunder Bay.
The Feathers of Hope forum brought youth from First Nations across northern Ontario together to discuss the issues facing young people and work together on solutions.
Members of the Anonymous group Operation Thunderbird came to the city of Thunder Bay to hold a rally outside of the Thunder Bay Police Services (TBPS) headquarters.
Operation Thunderbird said the rally was to show support for missing and murdered Indigenous women, and to remind local police the importance of taking the issue seriously.
Operation Thunderbird came about after members of the group Anonymous learned of the hate crime and sexual assault by two unidentified white males against a local First Nations woman in December of last year.
Eight youth from across northwestern Ontario expanded their creative writing skills at a workshop in Winnipeg on April 13.
The writing workshop brought together third and fourth generation residential school survivors, in hopes of helping them find their inner voice as writers.
Cheryl Suggashie of Pikangikum First Nation attended the workshop with youth from Batchewana, Garden River and Pays Plat First Nations.
Suggashie said one of her favourite parts of the weekend was when she was picked up at the airport by Nina Wilson, one of the original Idle No More founders.
On April 19, 2013, Whitesand First Nation member Jade Willoughby, 22, signed a contract with Wilhelmina Models and Talent Management Agency. Willoughby, who has been in the modeling industry since she was 16, said that being signed to Wilhelmina Models is “unreal.”
“It’s just everything I ever dreamed of in this industry,” Willoughby said.
Born and raised in Thunder Bay, Willoughby did not have the easiest childhood after being diagnosed with a rare illness that had her on her deathbed by the age of 12.
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