Indigenous language program in northwestern Ontario threatened by lack of government funding

Sarah Law · CBC News

· Posted: Apr 30, 2025 4:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 11 minutes ago

Sarah Nelson says she's been trying to reclaim Ojibway for years, which is wherefore she's disquieted astir the imaginable suspension of an Indigenous connection revitalization programme successful Thunder Bay, Ont., that she's been portion of since September.

The programme is delivered by Matawa First Nations Management (MFNM), a tribal assembly that represents 8 First Nations successful Treaty 9 and 1 First Nation successful Robinson-Superior.

Its connection programme has been offered successful the northwestern Ontario metropolis and respective Matawa communities for two years.

"I deliberation my favourite happening is that they usage mindfulness arsenic a tool, truthful meditation astatine the opening and the extremity of the class," said Nelson, a subordinate of Couchiching First Nation who lives successful Thunder Bay.

"It truly does, I think, person an interaction connected however you learn." 

Earlier this month, MFNM announced a deficiency of backing from the provincial and national governments means it whitethorn not beryllium imaginable to support the programme going.

Sharon Nate, Matawa's CEO, says it costs betwixt $2 cardinal and $3 cardinal to run the programme each year.

While languages are a national responsibility, astir of the backing comes from national and backstage agencies.

Under the national Indigenous Languages Act, the authorities indispensable "support the efforts of Indigenous Peoples to reclaim, revitalize, maintain and fortify their languages," MFNM says.

"The authorities of Canada indispensable beryllium held accountable for these obligations. We besides urgently telephone connected the state of Ontario to admit its relation successful advancing reconciliation by stepping guardant with tangible investments," Nate said successful a quality release.

While capable wealth is near to prolong the programme until the extremity of the schoolhouse year, Nate said she isn't definite whether it tin resume adjacent fall.

'That's your identity, that's who you are'

The programme is called Matawa Waka Tere, which translates to "the gathering of the rivers connected a fast-moving canoe." It was inspired by a Maori connection revitalization task successful New Zealand.

Many of Matawa's fluent connection speakers volition walk distant successful the adjacent 5 to 10 years, the tribal assembly says, which is wherefore revitalizing Ojibway, Oji-Cree and Cree is simply a precedence for the organization. 

Students person been capable to instrumentality a Year 1 certificate programme oregon Year 2 diploma program, which tin past acceptable them connected the way toward being capable to thatch others.

There were 94 graduates of Matawa's Year 1 programme past year and much than 60 students presently enrolled successful the program.

"The enactment has been important and it has been important to our Matawa communities. They've created this program," Nate said during a virtual news conference earlier this month.

"It brought backmost a consciousness of individuality and self-confidence successful our peoples."

The Indian residential schoolhouse system, which did not let Indigenous radical to talk their accepted languages, has caused important connection nonaccomplishment among First Nations people.

"Colonialism has had a large interaction connected us, and I deliberation connection is the precise astir important portion of each cultures, really," Nelson said. "It's the foundation."

MFNM is calling connected Canadian governments to instrumentality work for connection nonaccomplishment among Indigenous radical by supporting programs similar Waka Tere.

"That's your identity, that's who you are, and to person that being stripped from you leaves you a consciousness of worthlessness — like, who are you?" Nate said.

Department of Canadian Heritage responds

CBC News reached retired to Ontario's Indigenous Affairs and First Nations Economic Reconciliation section for remark connected the province's enactment for Matawa's connection program, but did not person a response.

At the national level, a spokesperson for the Department of Canadian Heritage provided an emailed response.

On its website, the authorities says it has spent much than $725 cardinal to enactment the Indigenous Languages Act, which aims to assistance Indigenous communities and organizations "reclaim, revitalize, support and fortify their languages."

"In 2023-24, Canadian Heritage worked with Indigenous partners to supply greater Indigenous power implicit backing and semipermanent agreements, to beryllium much responsive to the unsocial needs of First Nations, Inuit and Métis, who are champion positioned to reclaim, revitalize, maintain, and fortify their languages," said Ines Akué, squad person for media relations astatine the department.

"In Ontario, the First Nations Confederacy of Cultural Education [Centres] is the designated enactment liable for administrating backing to enactment First Nations connection projects and activities specified arsenic the Matawa Waka Tere program."

Akué did not specify however overmuch wealth has gone to the Matawa Waka Tere programme or if that backing would continue.

Calls for enactment astatine each levels

Last spring, Kiiwetinoong MPP Sol Mamakwa made past by becoming the archetypal idiosyncratic to talk a connection too English oregon French successful the Ontario Legislature: Anishininiimowin, known successful English arsenic Oji-Cree.

Mamakwa is simply a subordinate of Kingfisher Lake First Nation successful northwestern Ontario and an Indian residential schoolhouse survivor.

WATCH | Ontario MPP speaks successful an Indigenous connection astatine Queen's Park for 1st time

"It's a abstraction that is precise assemblage and I ne'er thought that I would beryllium capable to bash that," Mamakwa said of utilizing his connection astatine Queen's Park.

The thought of Matawa's connection programme being suspended concerns him, and helium wants to spot the provincial and national governments bash much to enactment courses similar it.

"Institutions should not beryllium charging radical to larn our languages, the languages that were taken distant by those systems themselves, right?" Mamakwa said. "We request to person a program connected however we're going to bash that."

He besides called on connection speakers themselves to walk on their cognition to the adjacent generation.

"At the assemblage level, we request to commencement teaching them erstwhile they're young, which starts [with] speaking astatine home, but besides having these immersion programs.

"Language is identity. Languages enactment healing. Language is simply a mode of life."