Well, it isn’t Christmas or in any way nice. It’s wildfire season and it’s scary. As a former firefighter and as the son of one, I know just how bad it can get. In Moosonee, my father fought a huge fire that almost took out the town, let alone the men and women trying to stop it.
I will be celebrating my sixth year of sobriety at the end of July. I had my last beer on some random afternoon of what feels like two lifetimes ago without a clear plan of how I would implement these changes in my life – or if it would last at all. But here I am.
As summer officially starts warming up the northern hemisphere and school ends, the days become a little lazier. The need to wake up early dissipates slowly in the minds of many a student and the long daylight hours take its toll on those who still have to work for a living. Sometimes, it’s a bit too much looking out the window at four in the afternoon and seeing everyone going about their summer pleasures.
There has been some good news lately in honouring agreements and righting wrongs when it comes to Indigenous peoples on the James Bay coast. The big news was the announcement by Indigenous Services Minister Patty Hajdu of $1.2 billion for the Weeneebayko Area Health Authority (WAHA) for their Hospital Redevelopment Project.
Splat! Another large moth collides with my windshield as I cruise down the Billy Diamond Highway. I activate my windshield wipers and they distribute the dead insect around, adding another layer of slime to the already well-smeared glass.
A blog written back in 2015 lists eight key issues for Indigenous Peoples in Canada. I would argue that there are many more. To begin: Indigenous children and youth have higher death rates, live in inadequate housing, have higher rates of suicide, poorer health, lower levels of education, higher rates of incarceration, higher rates of unemployment and lower income levels.
The International Court of Justice recently ruled that Israel’s military operations in Gaza, particularly concerning the blockade and military incursions, constitute violations of international humanitarian law and the human rights of the Palestinian population. The ICJ’s ruling comes too late, one could say, for the hundreds of thousands of Israel’s victims in Gaza.
The sweat is starting to glisten on my skin and the heat is starting to annoy my usual good humour, enough to start swearing at Mother Nature and her whims. What was just recently a delightful pattern of falling snowflakes is now a swarm of hungry mosquitoes.
There are times when you look at what is around you and wonder why it is this way. Look at the 1992 Rodney King trials and the riots as the white policemen were exonerated of beating him unnecessarily.
When I first looked at the studies of mining contamination of the waters around Ouje-Bougoumou I was more than a little angry. Many of you, once you read the story will feel equally shocked and outraged over what has been withheld from the Ouje-Bougoumou people. This information is the smoking gun: the Quebec government’s own data show that the lake and river sediments are poisoned.
