Articles by Rose LeMay

Nov 14 2022 — Rose LeMay — Hill Times — The federal government historically didn’t even follow the directives of the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal regarding equitable funding for First Nations children. This is the history of the department purported to serve Indigenous peoples. Historically, the department of Indian Affairs served its own power base rather than Indigenous peoples. Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Marc Miller has […]

Oct 31 2022 — Rose LeMay — Hill Times — There were frantic texts from the RCMP about federal ministers losing faith in the Ottawa police. (Weeks after Ottawa citizens had come to this same conclusion, so better late than sorry?) There was concerned testimony that police officers were really sick and that was the problem (except they were also carting propane tanks to the […]

Oct 3 2022 — Rose LeMay — Hill Times — Gather around for a good news story. It’s about the University of Ottawa’s women’s rugby team, the Gee-Gees. The team has spent some serious time considering its path to push reconciliation, and the truth is that it has a great opportunity. After speaking with Indigenous peoples in the community, the team decided to do something […]

Sep 5 2022 — Rose LeMay — Hill Times — A recent Ekos survey of Canadians found a disturbing relation between the amount of disinformation an individual agrees with, and the level of support for the “Freedom Convoy.” Rest assured this author views even the name of the convoy one of the most insidious and effective uses of propaganda in recent years. On the surface, […]

Aug 8 2022 — Rose LeMay — Hill Times — There was a certain trajectory in the Pope’s speeches across Canada. His first included an apology and was sincere and meaningful but didn’t quite go far enough in taking institutional responsibility for residential schools. The Lac Ste. Anne speech reflected on family as a source of healing both for Indigenous peoples and for Catholics, and […]

Jun 6 2022 — Rose LeMay — Hill Times — Why do we continue to lose Indigenous women and girls? Somewhere between 1,600 and 4,000 Indigenous women and girls have been lost in this country in the last 20 years; some missing, some lost to crime. There is no agreement on the number lost and that in itself should be alarming. Why are institutions in […]

Dec 20 2021 — Rose LeMay — Hill Times — Elementary school teacher Fatemeh Anvari was forced out of her classroom in Chelsea because she wears a hijab, thanks to Bill 21 which rules that civil servants not wear any religious symbols. Apparently, this is in the name of secularism, but let’s be real. It’s in the name of racism if it targets a certain […]

Dec 6 2021 — Rose LeMay — Hill Times — It must be nice to not to fear the national police. It must be reassuring to have a level of trust in them. That trust is misplaced in the RCMP. Journalists Amber Bracken and Michael Toledano were arrested along with Sleydo’ and others working to protect the land against the Coastal GasLink Pipeline. The RCMP […]

Oct 25 2021 — Rose LeMay — Hill Times — When Germany was defeated in World War II, infrastructure was ruined, the economy destroyed, separated east from west, and some wondered if the country could ever return to its former influence. Look at Germany now. It’s one of the most influential countries in Europe and the world. To get there, it had to reconcile with […]

Oct 11 2021 — Rose LeMay — Hill Times — On Sept. 29, the prime minister gave a particularly good speech on Parliament Hill in a special ceremony to honour the children lost at residential schools and survivors. And I still admit to feeling some cynicism. Would the words be linked to action? How long until that lack of action makes its mark again on […]

Sep 29 2021 — Rose LeMay — Hill Times — Six years after the release of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Calls to Action and here we are—struggling to get consensus in Canada to even recognize the National Day of Truth and Reconciliation. Some might say it will take time, but unfortunately that defence has been used for decades now. The recipe is vapid lines […]

Sep 20 2021 — Rose LeMay — Hill Times — It’s been four months since the news broke of 215 unmarked graves from Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc at the former site of the Kamloops residential school in British Columbia. At least 751 unmarked graves were found by Cowessness in the Qu’Appelle Valley the following month in Saskatchewan, and 160 more on Kuper Island in British Columbia, […]