Stronger voices together in the Giisook Council
By Kelly Anne Smith
NORTH BAY—The new Giisook Council: An Urban Indigenous Coalition launched at the First People’s Centre at Canadore College on June 26.
Seven North Bay area agencies of the Giisook Council are dedicated to collaborating to build up the community of urban Indigenous peoples in North Bay pursuing Mino Bimaadiziwin (good life).
Maurice Switzer, president of the North Bay Indigenous Friendship Centre, explained to the gathering that people move to the cities for their kids, job opportunities, and healthcare.
“The more remote your community, the less access you have,” he said.
The Giisook Council is not political, says Switzer.
“We educate them about Indigenous realities. We are not competing with one another or our First Nation community.”
Switzer says the North Bay Friendship Centre began to consider a local coalition after a presentation by Sally Ledger, the senior advisor to Ontario Aboriginal Housing Services.
“She has been involved in coalitions and she approached some of us at the Friendship Centre and talked about how they have been successful in other communities. We’re small. If you heard Lindsey (Kretschmer, Executive Director of Toronto Aboriginal Support Services Council) from Toronto, I think they have 27 agencies. So, we listened to Sally and we’ve talked to people in Sudbury. I know firsthand some of the people in Sudbury that are involved with their coalition. When they go to their municipal government, with more than just one voice, they tend to be listened to.”
Switzer cautions it’s not just about resources.
“North Bay has over 300 people who are homeless. Almost half of them are Indigenous. We certainly weren’t getting half of the millions of dollars in funding that was coming into the city to deal with the homeless situation. That’s really what triggered us to starting Suswin on our own, looking for our own sources of funding. The thing is, it’s not just talking about getting more resources to provide services to urban Indigenous peoples. It’s about sharing our ideas. We all have limited capacity. We all have limited resources. And the Indigenous way is sharing. We have things that we can offer other sister organizations. And they have skill-sets that we don’t.”
Switzer says history and some current events are known and speakers talked about mainstream not regarding Indigenous peoples as a priority.
“I mean, for someone in Toronto to be issuing major reports about social gaps, and to scarcely mention Indigenous peoples flies in the face of what reconciliation is supposed to be,” Switzer expresses. “We want people to understand we are not just doing things to benefit Indigenous peoples. Everything our agencies do makes North Bay a better city. We’re doing work that other people aren’t. They are important contributions. There are thousands of these touchpoints that these seven agencies are making.”
Being stronger together is a big part of Ontario Aboriginal Housing Services (OHS), says Sarah McBain, the OHS communications manager.
“That’s one of the biggest things with OHS, being a province-wide organization is there are so many organizations, coalitions, communities that we want to be a part of every single aspect of it. As much as we have housing all over the province, it’s also community that we need to be a part of as well, and also meet the needs of that community. And being a part of this coalition, we get to know the community better and know what their needs are. So, when there are housing opportunities, we are able to assist.”
The manager of True Self – Debwewendizwin Donna Forget is optimistic that the Giisook Council will have a positive impact.
“We are always hearing about collaboration. I think this one is a true collaboration where everyone has come to the table. Although we all do very different things in the community, we all have the same goals at the end, and that’s to improve the lives of Indigenous peoples in the urban areas. And making sure we can make changes to some of those systemic barriers that are there. For me, that is the biggest hope that we could have with all of us working together, is that we’ll see some of those changes come about and people will be able to have better lives.”
The Giisook Council- Urban Indigenous Coalition members are: North Bay Indigenous Friendship Centre, Niijaansinanik, North Bay Indigenous Hub, Ontario Aboriginal Housing Services, Endaayaan Awejaa, True Self, Canadore First Peoples Centre, and North Bay Métis Council.
At the launch, the Nipissing-Timiskaming MP Pauline Rochefort exclaimed she shared the priorities of the Giisook Council.
“Those being: increase Indigenous Affordable Housing Supports, to improve Indigenous economic prosperity and employment support, to enhance social support services, to improve relations between Indigenous people and government, to eliminate discrimination, to enhance cultural supports, and to achieve an efficient and effective Giisook organization… I’m delighted to be here today and to join you in this journey as we achieve these priorities.”