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A ceremony held in Gatineau this week saw the return of sacred items to their home communities from the Vatican Museums archive, part of an ongoing process that will see a total of 62 items transferred to Indigenous communities across Turtle Island.

The Mohawk Council of Kahnawake (MCK) is continuing to meet with political leaders across the spectrum, recently sitting down with Conservative Party of Quebec leader Eric Duhaime as part of their efforts to ensure Kahnawake’s political priorities are considered in provincial politics.

The highest court in Quebec has dismissed an appeal from the Kahnawake Gaming Commission (KGC), which had argued that provincial courts lack the power to weigh in on its regulatory decisions.

When Indigenous leaders head to the National Assembly in Quebec City, a satisfying outcome is hardly likely. So last week, when they made the trek to bring their concerns about provincial justice minister Simon Jolin-Barrette’s hare-brained scheme to pass a polarizing (and legally dubious) Quebec constitution in the party’s waning days, it was a predictable exercise in futility.

As general consultation meetings continue in regards to Bill 1, the Quebec government’s constitutional project, so too have calls for the bill to be withdrawn, particularly coming from Quebec’s First Nations, whether through the Assembly of First Nations Quebec-Labrador (AFNQL) or by individual communities such as Kahnawake.

For many in Kahnawake, a trip across the border is a regular occurrence – but community members are being advised to exercise more caution than usual in light of growing tensions following the actions of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents, including a situation where a First Nations man is said to have been detained and his Certificate of Indian Status seized.

After months of his party trailing in the polls, Coalition Avenir Quebec (CAQ) leader François Legault announced his resignation this Wednesday, a move that Mohawk Council of Kahnawake grand chief Cody Diabo said leaves questions for the future of the community’s relationship with the provincial government.

Two plans, one compiled by First Nations advocates and the other by the federal government, have been filed with the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal (CHRT), each proposing paths forward for the long-term reform of First Nations Child and Family Services.

The Mohawk Council of Kanesatake (MCK) “caretaker council” continues work under a limited mandate outlined by Federal Court last year.

With just days remaining before a court-ordered deadline for the federal government and First Nations organizations to submit proposals for reform of the on-reserve child welfare system, Indigenous Services minister Mandy Gull-Masty is confident there’s a path forward.