APTN News InFocus

Indigenous people live with a lot of harsh realities – poverty, inter-generational trauma, murdered and missing loved ones, suicide, racism, displacement, cultural loss. Satire can be a distraction and sometimes poking a serious issue with a funny stick, can raise awareness, start a conversation or make an important point.

On this edition of InFocus, Host Melissa Ridgen explores Indigenous humour – how humour and satire help people deal with serious issues, and is our humor different from others?

Two spirit people have been a part of Indigenous culture long before settlers arrived in North America. Colonization brought many things with it, including a different foreign perspective on gender and sexuality.

On this addition of InFocus, Host Melissa Ridgen chatted with drag queens – the Queen of the Oil Patch and the Master of the Jig – all of whom shared what it’s like for them to be two spirited.

Have you ever wondered how an investigative news story comes together? How journalists get to the bottom of complex topics?

On this addition of APTN’s InFocus, host Melissa Ridgen sits down with the APTN Investigates team to discuss some of their favorite moments and the work behind the camera that audiences don’t get to see.

On this year’s final addition of InFocus, Host Melissa Ridgen took a hard look at how 2018 was in terms of reconciliation.

What were the steps forward, and backward, this year? Was there meaningful effort or just talking points and empty gestures?

This week on InFocus, Host Melissa Ridgen takes a closer look at what we’re teaching our kids in school.

Are children — Indigenous and non-Indigenous — getting enough Indigenous content in the classroom?

On this edition to APTN’s InFocus, host Melissa Ridgen looks at Indigenous experiences on campus, from the perspective of educators and students.

There’s no shortage of stories in the news or social media of incidents like the ‘Its okay to be white’ posters that were posted at the University of Manitoba, and left many Indigenous students feeling unsafe.

In this episode, Melissa Ridgen put Indigenous athletes and sport InFocus.

She spoke with Olympic hopeful James Lavallee. The Red River Métis kayaker was named 2017s Male Indigenous Athlete of the year in Canada and won three medals at the 2017 Canada Summer games.

Along with Buffy Handel, founder of the Aboriginal School of Dance has blended dance and fitness to stay in shape and help others reach their fitness goals.

It’s an issue that has taken up its fair share of the media spotlight over the past few months – but do people understand what the Recognition and Implementation of Rights Framework actually is?

InFocus Host Melissa Ridgen navigates through this proposed federal legislation that the Liberal government has been working on since February 14, 2018.

Racial profiling can come in many forms. Have you ever been followed by store staff while shopping? Do you seem to get served differently in restaurants or in stores? Does it happen regularly?  Has you changed the way you act in stores because of this?

If you said you yes, you may be the victim of racial profiling. In this episode, Host Melissa Ridgen puts Shopping While Brown InFocus.

There has been a lot of talk about healing lodges after Tori Stafford’s killer was transferred to one from a traditional prison.

Moving Terry-Lynne McClintic, 28, to the Okimaw Ohci Healing Lodge in Saskatchewan from Grand Valley outraged many Canadians.

In this episode Marlene Orr, Matt Willan and Tori’s father, Rodney put healing lodges InFocus.