Lenny Carpenter — Wawatay News

Attawapiskat Chief Theresa Spence has filed a court injunction against Aboriginal Affairs for its decision to put her community under third party management despite a promise the imposed intervention would be lifted once the housing crisis is over.
Spence said the paperwork was signed immediately following a 90-minute meeting with Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Minister John Duncan Dec. 15 in Thunder Bay after Duncan “insisted that the third party has to be involved in this crisis.”

Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug (KI) Chief Donny Morris said he couldn’t believe it when he heard the RCMP had been “spying” on him and his council.
“It came as a surprise and shock to know that I’ve been spied on and to be put in that category as a dangerous person,” he said.

The Attawapiskat housing crisis drew national debate and brought First Nations funding issues to the forefront, making it Wawatay’s news story of the year.
The community declared a state of emergency in late-October as five families, including Elders and children, were living in tent frame shelters or sheds and were expected to endure the upcoming winter without proper housing. First Nation officials said they were living without running water, sewers or electricity. Some reportedly had to throw their sewage out in a ditch.

The Biindigaate Film Festival continued to showcase Aboriginal talent in filmmaking and address important issues at this year’s event in September.
In its third year, the festival’s growth, emergence of success stories and screening of films that highlighted Aboriginal issues makes it Wawatay’s Arts story of the year.

Her drive to provide housing for her community and her stance against third-party management has made Theresa Spence the second female newsmaker of the year.
Spence’s first year as chief of Attawapiskat was relatively quiet until she declared a state of emergency in late-October due to a housing crisis. Five families, including Elders and children, living in tent frame shelters and sheds were expected to endure the harsh Canadian winter without proper housing.