Top News - October - 2004 Published October 18, 2004 Throne speech a big yawn for Aboriginal people Enoch's future full of hope and promise Journey continues to heal school trauma This is only a partial listing of the stories featured in the October 2004 issue of Alberta Sweetgrass. If you are not receiving your own copy of Sweetgrass, then you have missed out on a lot. Click here for Alberta Sweetgrass subscription information. Throne speech a big yawn for Aboriginal people Debora Steel, Sweetgrass Writer, Ottawa There wasn't much to celebrate for Aboriginal people as the 38th Parliament of Canada opened with the speech from the throne on Oct. 5. In fact, as Conservative Opposition leader Stephen Harper pointed out, the government devoted only six paragraphs to Aboriginal peoples in the document. In that six paragraphs, there was only a rehash of the commitments to Aboriginal health made in September at the First Ministers meeting on health care. At that meeting, $700 million was announced to encourage greater Aboriginal participation in the health professions, address disease, such as diabetes, and to create a transition fund designed to improve efficiencies between jurisdictions. Much of what was left in the throne speech was devoted to measuring how badly off Aboriginal people are in Canada. "The Government and Aboriginal people will together develop specific quality-of-life indicators and a 'Report Card' to hold all to account and to drive progress," read Gov. Gen. Adrienne Clarkson. No money, no process, no specifics as to how this was to be done and what progress was to be achieved were mentioned. The commitments in the speech sparked no real reaction from Aboriginal organizations from across the country. Only the Assembly of First Nations sent a press release to this paper, and only after it was requested. In it, Assembly of First Nations Chief Phil Fontaine said a major item missing from the speech was the commitment for "a full First Ministers meeting on First Nations issues, including the critical determinants of health, such as housing, education, economic opportunity, lands and resources and self-government." He said he hoped Prime Minister Paul Martin would address this oversight in his response to the speech the next day. And in fact, Martin did, saying he looked forward to the meeting "to pursue agreement on a comprehensive agenda of action for the benefit of all Aboriginal people." Neither Fontaine, nor the assembly's Alberta representative, Jason Goodstriker, made themselves available to answer a variety of questions we had about the throne speech. Nor did Métis Nation of Alberta president Audrey Poitras. Perhaps that's because no sooner had the speech been read, the leaders of the parties in opposition, the Conservatives and the Bloc Quebecois, threatened to join forces to bend the governing Liberals to their will or bring the government down. Though a negotiated rewording of an amendment presented by the Bloc averted a vote of confidence in the house, the muscle being flexed by Conservative and Bloc members alike in the first minority government in 25 years may force voters back to the polls sooner rather than later, making moot the question of what Aboriginal peoples can expect from this government. Top

Enoch's future full of hope and promise Debora Steel, Sweetgrass Writer, Enoch Cree Nation It was a day to celebrate hard work, persistence and struggle for members of the Enoch Cree First Nation as the sod was turned on a multi-million dollar gaming and entertainment project to be located on the eastern edge of Enoch territory on the fringes of west Edmonton. There was much talk of hope and promise on Oct. 7 as Chief Ron Morin welcomed leaders of industry, government and Alberta's Aboriginal population to the ground breaking ceremony of the River Cree Resort and Casino. Under blues skies and bright sun, Morin spoke of the hope of a future of prosperity for his people and the promise of other ventures springing from the $140 million construction project and the $75 million in revenues expected from the resort annually. Profits realized by Enoch would be put to use, said the chief, to create other business and employment opportunities in the community, while improving civic infrastructure, including police, fire and ambulance services at Enoch. When complete in the summer of 2006, the development will include a 255-room, four-star Marriott hotel, a sports complex with two NHL-sized ices rinks, several restaurants and bars, meeting and conference space, and a 60,000 sq. ft. casino with 600 slot machines, 40 table games and a high-limit gaming lounge. Robert Morin, the president of the Enoch Community Development Corporation, said 90 per cent of the construction costs will stay in the greater Edmonton area. The project will bring 865 construction jobs and, over the duration of construction, a payroll of $35 million is estimated. It has been a long road for the creation of the casino and resort project with years of often-tense negotiation with the province and the non-Aboriginal communities that border the reserve lands. Though the words at the ground-breaking were congratulatory and conciliatory, there have been a number of very public battles that threatened the forward motion of the project. Chief Morin alluded to those battles in his closing remarks before adjourning to a champagne reception for guests and dignitaries. He offered some comfort to the surrounding communities who complained the casino would bring crime and other problems to their area of the city. Morin said the Enoch people were generous by nature and the community leagues and other such organizations would be sure to benefit as the First Nation prospers. The chief said the Enoch project experience will be used by other Aboriginal communities in Alberta and across Canada as a model as others struggle to find benefit for their members in the Canadian gaming economy. The Enoch Cree Nation has partnered with Paragon Gaming, a Nevada corporation with gaming-based projects in New Mexico, Oklahoma and Nevada, which also operates the Augustine Casino in Palm Springs, California for the Augustine Band of Cahuilla Mission Indians. Paragon is also in the final steps of a licensing process with Alexis First Nation. Special guests at the day's ceremony included Assembly of First Nations vice chiefs Jason Goodstriker and Bill Erasmus. Top Smoke alarms best tool in fire safety Debora Steel, Sweetgrass Writer, Edmonton Wal-Mart Canada, in an effort to reduce property damage, injury and death from fire in Aboriginal communities in Alberta, has donated 300 smoke alarms to be distributed to Aboriginal families throughout the province. The donation was made during the 82nd anniversary of Fire Prevention Week Oct. 3 to 9, the theme of which this year was Test Your Smoke Alarms. Statistics provided by the Fire Commissioner's Office show that smoke alarms were installed in only 66 per cent of the homes in Aboriginal communities that experienced fire, and that of those smoke detectors, 15 per cent did not activate during the fire emergency. This was in large part due to either mechanical failure or that they did not have a power source, either battery or electricity. "Smoke alarms, when properly installed, tested and maintained, provide an early warning of smoke and fire danger, which can increase the chance of escape and/or putting out the fire, said fire commissioner Pat Graham. He was onhand at the Métis education centre on Oct. 6 to help present fire safety information to a group of three and four year old children from the Mother and Me Aboriginal Head Start program. The youngsters were allowed to climb up into a fire truck and examine some of the equipment fire fighters use in the course of their work. Sparky, the fire dog was accompanied by T.J. Smart of the Edmonton fire service to help teach the children about what to do in case a fire breaks out in their homes. The children practiced crawling to safety beneath imaginary smoke. They were told how to react if people around them were behaving in a dangerous way that could cause fire, like if someone were to smoke in bed or play with matches or lighters, and they got to hear the sound of a smoke detector and told how to respond. Métis Nation of Alberta President Audrey Poitras was in attendance and glad to support the fire safety awareness efforts of the fire commissioner's office and fire etc., the Fire Emergency Training Centre. Both organizations are making concerted efforts to bring fire safety to Aboriginal communities in Alberta. Poitras said it was important to talk to the very young about fire safety as a first step to increasing awareness in Aboriginal families. The children would have their own unique way of driving the message of fire safety home to parents and friends, she said. Statistics demonstrate that the fire death rate in Aboriginal communities is as much as 11 times higher than in other communities. Judy Harvie, a former firefighter and now advisor to the fire commissioner on behalf of Aboriginal people, said the remoteness of some communities, a lack of fire safety education and the lack of installed and fully operational smoke detectors in the homes of Aboriginal people were major reasons that explain the higher rates of injury and death due to fire. Top