Food is a key part of culture. The Brandon Friendship Centre developed a pilot project to create a food truck to help introduce Canadians to Indigenous cuisine and culture.

I got to sit down with Indigenous Eats manager Darian Kennedy about this project, building community collaboratively, and the delicious food you can get at Indigenous Eats. 

Indigenous Eats BFC Brandon MB

Intro and outro music: Mind Games -  Mathew Mcguire.

August 6 – 8  Folklorama Fusion, the one unified virtual experience, is taking place. The one Multi-cultural Fusion event is the first time the ethnocultural member communities that make up the pavilions will virtually showcase their heritage. 

Here’s Executive Director Teresa Cotroneo to tell us more about this virtual festival and the history of Folklorama. 

https://folklorama.ca/

Intro and outro music: Mind Games -  Mathew Mcguire.

Cameron Robertson is a Cree speaker who values all indigenous languages. His goals are to teach his culture's words and language through the human spirit of storytelling. Before he was eight, he lived with his grandfather, a trapper, near Norway House.

We talked about Cam's dream to bring back his language, community, media and how he became a writer.

Lisa Muswagon is a Nakoda Cree member of the Pimicikamak Cree Nation, also known as Cross Lake in Northern Manitoba. She was raised in the north, the Interlake Region and Winnipeg and went back to her home community to complete high school. Receiving a hand drum from her father when she was young, she has been performing ever since.

Hellnback is also known as Karmen Omeasoo and is from the Samson Cree Nation in Alberta. The community is part of the hub of Maskwacis Cree Nation south of Edmonton. A veteran in the native hip-hop industry, Omeasoo has come a long way. Hellnback first gained international recognition as a founding member of the groundbreaking group War Party.

I had the opportunity to chat with both Lisa and Karmen about music, culture, and Karmen’s Kidney journey. 

NEW SINGLE "Enipoyak - to stand together”

On Sunday, July 4, 17-year-old Jaden Charles John Oman was murdered in an assault, allegedly at the hands of his best friend. Jaden was rushed to hospital early that Sunday morning but succumbed to his injuries five days before his 18th birthday and dreams of going to school.

Family and friends gathered in front of an Assiniboine Avenue apartment building near Hargrave Street, where Jaden Oman was killed, to hold a  candle vigil in his honour, to mourn together and cherish his life. Jaden was later brought to Churchill to be buried by his sister.

I believe science is one of the coolest things ever, and it's incredibly inspiring to see people enter STEM fields. However, there can often be a challenge for the general public to interpret and understand the in-depth work scientists go through.

Dr. Cody Lo is an Ophthalmology Resident Physician at The Ottawa Hospital. Cody obtained his Doctor of Medicine (MD) and Bachelor's of Science (BSc), majoring in Pharmacology from the University of British Columbia (UBC) in Vancouver and graduated as a Wesbrook scholar. Cody and I discuss his passion for scientific research, advocating against health inequities, and helping mentor the next generation of leaders in his community. 

Want to learn more about Dr. Lo and his work? https://linktr.ee/codylomd

In Canada, 94% of Kinesiology and Physical Education university faculties are white. As of September 2020, only 5.7% of NHL players identified as Indigenous, Black, or part of a Racialized community. How can sports be an equal playing field when we see statistics like this. 

The Anti-Racism in Sport Campaign seeks to increase, promote, and engage in discussions on anti-racism in sport about the presence of all levels of racism in sport in Winnipeg. It also looks at the impact of racism on people’s lives, raises awareness, addresses, and eliminates racism and discrimination experienced by First Nations, Metis, Inuit, Black, Racialized, and Religious Minority communities in sport.

https://antiracisminsport.ca/

Intro and outro music: Mind Games -  Mathew Mcguire.

With what we’ve been seeing about residential schools, understanding and acknowledging the pain of Indigenous communities is more critical than ever. Manitoba 150 has announced partnerships to deliver Blanket Exercises for 50 acts of reconciliation.

I talked with Sky Bridges, a board member of Manitoba 150, about how people can get involved and discuss diversity and reconciliation.

Find out more here. 

Intro and outro music: Mind Games -  Mathew Mcguire.

It feels immoral to celebrate and have fireworks when a  majority of your neighbours are holding a funeral for 1,323 undocumented  First Nation's children, especially when the numbers of these horrific discoveries continue to climb rapidly. July 1, on Portage & Main at 1 pm, three individuals are inviting the Winnipeg community not to celebrate the country that tried to remove its Indigenous People but to join together for an Every Child Matters Walk. The mission is to increase awareness of what has and is happening to Indigenous communities and identify the children buried at residential schools, bringing them home, and giving a safe space for survivors. Their truths deserve to be amplified and validated after being silenced for so long.

Find out more: https://fb.me/e/1CEYPjvKf

For those who don’t live there, Winnipeg Manitoba’s North End often has a rough reputation. However, For Tara Zajac, there’s no place she’d rather be. She knows her neighbours, those in the community care for their own, and she loves how the region almost feels like a small town. Tara is the Executive Director of North Point Douglas Women’s Centre and shares their work in the community and the amazing people living there. 

Visit their website to donate to their Great Canadian Giving Challenge or contribute to the endowment fund. However, the best thing you can give is your time and volunteer.

Intro and outro music: Mind Games -  Mathew Mcguire.