We are all treaty people

NEWS RELEASE

ALGOMA UNIVERSITY

****************************
20th annual Elders Gathering - We Are All Treaty People

SAULT STE. MARIE - Algoma University and the Anishinaabe Initiatives Division are pleased to announce the 20th annual Elders Gathering, being held Saturday, October 25, 2014 at Algoma University.

This year’s theme for the gathering is We Are All Treaty People as this year marks the 164th anniversary of the 1850 Robinson-Huron Treaty.

This year’s keynote speaker is Maurice Switzer, a citizen of the Mississaugas of Alderville First Nation - one of seven communities whose traditional territories were affected by the 1923 Williams Treaty.

He has served as director of communications for the Assembly of First Nations and the Union of Ontario Indians, for whom he is currently under contract as a communications adviser.  

He was the first Indigenous publisher of a daily newspaper in Canada, and the first Indigenous student at Trent University.  

In 2010 Maurice was honoured with an Anishinabek Nation Lifetime Achievement Award.

There is a discussion panel during the day which will centre on treaties in Canada and how they affect all Canadian citizens today.  

The panel will feature Maurice, Joe Sayers, Don Syrette and Shirley Horn.

In addition, Joe Corbiere will be a guest speaker and there will be Wampum Belt workshops hosted by Isaac Day-Murdoch and Carol Nadigiwon.

A day camp for children will be available for parents who wish to attend.  

The day will begin at the fire arbour with a Sunrise Ceremony at approximately 8 a.m.

This one-day gathering will bring together people from all over Ontario, and everyone is invited to come and learn from the elders about the importance of treaties in Canada.

Check the Facebook event page for more details on the schedule and presenters.

****************************