Two Cents Blog
British Columbia leads with five-year-plan to implement UNDRIP
Hill Times April 25, 2022 In 2019, British Columbia legislated to review provincial laws to ensure they are consistent with the…
Remorse and reparations are what makes apologies real
Hill Times April 11, 2022 What makes a good apology? The senior leader needs to make the apology to show responsibility….
When will the Thunder Bay Police be held to account?
Hill Times March 28, 2022 A few years ago, I attended a memorial for a First Nations youth who died in…
War, hate, propaganda … what’s next?
Hill Times March 14, 2022 Evidence is growing that Russia is perpetrating war crimes against the people of Ukraine. Russia is…
Conservative party will do anything to get votes
Hill Times February 28, 2022 Are elected officials who cheered on the occupation a threat to minorities? Almost 200 people arrested,…
See something, say something, do something
Hill Times February 14, 2022 Nazi military names and colours worn openly on the street. Yellow stars worn as a symbol…
Leadership in an age of disinformation is impossible without respectful relationships
Hill Times January 31, 2022 Aggressive convoys, conflicts, and wars all share a similar foundation—a decision to speak and act over…
Instead of fining the unvaccinated, let’s fine the politicians who fan the flames
Hill Times January 17, 2022 Quebec Premier François Legault is forging a unique approach again: fine the unvaccinated. And immediately voices…
It’s not the first time a government tried to restrict what people can wear
Hill Times December 20, 2021 Elementary school teacher Fatemeh Anvari was forced out of her classroom in Chelsea because she wears…
There is no doubt the RCMP is a failed institution
Hill Times, December 6, 2021 It must be nice to not to fear the national police. It must be reassuring to…
Pretendians in our midst
Hill Times November 8, 2021 Pretendian: Canadian of settler descent and values who claims to be Indigenous in order to gain…
Legislate reconciliation, take it out of the whims of partisan politics
Hill Times October 25, 2021 When Germany was defeated in World War II, infrastructure was ruined, the economy destroyed, separated east…
Might be time for Trudeau to bring on an Indigenous Elders’ Circle to provide advice
Hill Times October 11, 2021 On Sept. 29, the prime minister gave a particularly good speech on Parliament Hill in a…
What does it take to do real reconciliation?
Hill Times, September 29 2021 Six years after the release of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Calls to Action and here…
Don’t rush to raise the flag just yet
Hill Times September 20, 2021 It’s been four months since the news broke of 215 unmarked graves from Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc…
Election or no, respect still missing in Canadian politics
Hill Times, September 6, 2021 Let’s have an election! Why, asked the people? No good reason, he said, just because I…
Once again, Indigenous trauma falls off the radar
Hill Times, August 23 2021 If we have to do an election, then let’s talk about things that matter. What is…
The most vulnerable of our society are being left behind
Hill Times August 9, 2021 I had the misfortune of touring a long-term care facility in Ottawa this past month, and…
Time to dismantle Indigenous Affairs, ban feds from Indigenous education and child welfare, prosecute church leaders
Hill Times July 26, 2021 What does accountability look like in the face of mass graves of Indigenous children? A mass…
Simon’s appointment represents hope and change
Hill Times July 12, 2021 Mary Simon’s appointment represents the type of change required for reconciliation. Known as simply Mary to…
This Canada Day is about remembering the thousands of children who demand to be heard
Hill Times June 28, 2021 Kamloops. Brandon. St. Anne’s. Marieval. And the list grows. The numbers are devastating, but they should…
Why National Indigenous Day is important for all Canadians
Hill Times, June 14 2021 June 21 is National Indigenous Day, the summer solstice. Many Indigenous organizations and businesses will close….
Canada is in an identity crisis, and Canadians are appalled
Hill Times June 7, 2021 OTTAWA—Warning: this story contains distressing details. Following the announcement of the mass grave of 215 Indigenous…
Quebec is on the land of Indigenous Nations whether you like it or not
Hill Times May 31, 2021 Quebec Premier Legault wants to increase the use of French in Quebec through Bill 96, come…
Time to address the age of #MeToo in First Nations organizations
Hill Times May 17, 2021 Once upon a time, not so long ago, First Nations and many Indigenous societies governed with…
Are apologies enough when a political leader refuses to represent some Canadians?
May 3, 2021 Are apologies enough when a political leader refuses to represent some Canadians? Just what is “lesbian activity”? I’m asking…
Open the black-box relationship between public health officers and politicians
Hill Times April 19, 2021 Did you know that about 140 countries had zero new COVID cases last week? Canada has…
A change is going to come
Hill Times April 5, 2021 Don’t talk about racism. It’s a sign that there may be an election close. Many racist…
Status card list for First Nations is a hot mess
Hill Times March 22, 2021 I am status, card-carrying First Nations—the federal government calls me a real one. The status card…
Indigenous Services Canada is not up to the task to fix drinking water on reserves
Hill Times March 8, 2021 “When it comes to the safety of drinking water, residents of First Nations communities do not benefit…
The fight about academic freedom in Canada is whitewashed
Hill Times February 22, 2021 Quebec Premier François Legault used social media on Facebook last week to share his belief that…
Inequitable health outcomes for Indigenous peoples is the measure of racism in the system
Hill Times February 8, 2021 Institutional racism is strong in many sectors, but it’s life threatening health care in Canada. Mary…
Canada should pass an order in council against systemic racism
Hill Times January 25, 2021 My family watched the inauguration of U.S. President Joe Biden. We shared with millions of people…
Will 2021 be any better than 2020?
Hill Times January 11, 2021 The first five days of 2021 seemed promising, until the American insurgency went down on Jan….
A timely gift this season could be Canada taking a stand against racism
Hill Times December 14, 2020 The original intent of First Nations reserves was noted by Lt.-Gen. Sir Francis Bond Head in…
When knowing a little about a lot goes wrong
Hill Times November 30, 2020 There was a day and age when the federal government hired public health policy experts for…
Infrastructure gaps for Inuit are critical
Hill Times November 16, 2020 Did you know that infrastructure gaps for Inuit are critical? As a southerner, I have been…
Leadership requires decisive action when the lives of citizens are at stake
Hill Times November 2, 2020 Canada has a value of finding the middle ground and saying nice things, but it tends…
The benefit of the doubt is rarely given to Indigenous Canadians
Hill Times October 19, 2020 If 200 First Nations had committed the actions seen on video by white Canadians in Middle…
Failure and success in Indigenous health
Hill Times October 3, 2020 On Monday, Sept. 28, Joyce Echaquan from Atikamekw died in the Joliette Hospital while nurses taunted…
Throne Speech writers must reflect Indigenous views
Hill Times September 23, 2020 The OPP is arresting journalists, and Throne-Speech writers need to understand why. Journalists in Canada sometimes…
The case for an Indigenous Party in Canada
Hill Times September 7, 2020 What about a new political structure to bring about change—the Indigenous Party? The federal Māori Party…
Indigenous parliament could give stronger voice to Indigenous peoples
Hill Times, August 24, 2020 COVID-19 has shone a spotlight on the cracks in Canada’s social nets, and the fact that…
Ottawa, we have a problem: reconciliation requires structural changes on the Hill
Hill Times August 10, 2020 In 2015, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission released the 94 Calls to Action, a roadmap for…
Work of reconciliation and anti-racism held back by performative action
Hill Times July 27, 2020 It’s been five years into reconciliation and there’s been a lot of talk and not enough…
Forty-nine days of racism in the news
Hill Times July 13, 2020 It’s been 49 days since George Floyd died. It has been forty-nine days of international rally…
Systems are made up of people, systemic racism is based in people
Hill Times June 29, 2020 Racism is harmful. Racism simply says there is no room for those who look different. Anti-racism…
Speak out against racism, demand wholesale change in Canada’s police forces
Hill Times June 15, 2020 In the second quarter of 2020, racism and police brutality was brought to the forefront of…
Why the word ‘Elder’ is more than just a word
Hill Times June 1, 2020 The Canadian Forces Health Services Group has stepped into the gap in long-term care homes in…
Women leaders are running this country, and we should keep it that way
Hill Times May 18, 2020 One really couldn’t say I’m a raging feminist, but I am Tlingit. In my culture women…