Edmonton News - Year in Review 2012

Aboriginal artwork to brighten up street
Fifteen panels created by three Aboriginal artists are on display at intersections along the LRT route from Southgate to Century Park. The panels are the creations of well-known artists Aaron Paquette and Jason Carter and budding artist Bluebird Chloe Mustooch. The $50,000 project was the result of a partnership between the Edmonton Arts Council and City of Edmonton Transportation Department. Mustooch is the granddaughter of former Alexis Nakota Sioux Nation Chief Howard Mustas. In the ceremony that unveiled the panels, Mustas said the work would help “capture the positive reality” of Aboriginal people in the city and work toward fighting racism.

University of Alberta leads the way
The University of Alberta continued to lead the way for other post-secondary institutions when it came to commitment to Aboriginal learning and inclusion. The U of A became the first western university to host the Legacy of Hope Foundation’s exhibit 100 Years of Loss: The Residential School System in Canada. The exhibit was brought in by Dean of Education, the Aboriginal Teacher Education Program and the Indigenous Education Council. The U of A became the first university in Canada to join the Aboriginal Human Resource Council Leadership Circle. It also offered the first ever Indigenous Artist-in-Residence program, the position filled by Jordan Bennett, a Mi’kmaq artist from Stephenville Crossing, Newfoundland. Bennett will be at the U of A until the end of May 2013.

Memorandum signed with Treaty 6
In July, the city signed a Memorandum of Cooperation and Dialogue with the Confederacy of Treaty 6. The memorandum states, in part, “that the well-being of the Confederacy of Treaty No. 6 First Nations peoples and all peoples who live within the boundaries of Edmonton is a shared responsibility.”  The memorandum is the result of almost two years of talks between Treaty 6 and the city examining opening lines of communication and opportunities to work together. “We have to have formalized, enhanced level of communication and dialogue as opposed to one-offs,” said Alexis Sioux Dakota Chief Cameron Alexis. All 18 First Nations that comprise the Confederacy of Treaty 6 have members residing in Edmonton.

EPL dissolved Aboriginal Advisory Group
The Edmonton Public Library ended the work of its Aboriginal Advisory Group in March. Teh decision did not sit well with AAG members, including Jacqueline Fayant, who took her concerns to the Alberta Human Rights Commission. Fayant was told that because AAG was a committee of EPL, the decision to disband the group was entirely up to EPL. EPL’s decision was made the same month it received the Municipal Affairs Award from the province for Library Services to Aboriginal People. Joanne Griener, acting CEO for EPL and its executive director for management services, said AAG was no longer required as EPL had now moved to community librarians and had forged relationships with numerous Aboriginal organizations. Fayant said that when EPL dissolved the AAG, the EPL “missed our desire and wish for consultation with our community….Lack of consultation is another form of exploitation.”

Former EPS employee claims racism
In May, Edmonton Police Services agreed to mediation with the Alberta Human Rights Commission over allegations from Kathleen Sawdo. Sawdo resigned her position of court administrator for the EPS in March 2011. “I expect to encounter racism every day when I leave my home, but I never expected to encounter racism in my work place,” said Sawdo, an Anishinaabe from Nezaadiikaang, Lac Des Mille Lacs First Nation, in Ontario, and graduate from programs at the University of Alberta and Grant Macewan University. Muriel Stanley Venne, co-chair for the Aboriginal Commission of Human Rights and Justice, has accompanied Sawdo in Sawdo’s fight for recognition of wrong-doing. “(EPS) has good policies in place, but the implementation is lacking,” said Stanley Venne. “You can write all the things you want, but if you don’t implement it, it means nothing.” Sawdo will be seeking financial compensation from EPS.

Fort Edmonton Park to include Indigenous history
Mayor Stephen Mandel has thrown his support behind a move by Fort Edmonton Management Company to develop a new section in the park that will tell the story of the area’s Indigenous people. “I think that’s something that needs to be a big priority of city council … and all of us to begin to recognize the important contributions the First Nation, Métis and Inuit peoples made to the province of Alberta, the country of Canada,” said Mandel. Spearheaded by Lewis Cardinal, the proposed development is to be carried out in two phases and consists of exploration trails, camps, tipis, and smaller huts along with larger structures. Cardinal wants to see the project completed by 2017, in time to celebrate Canada’s 150th anniversary.