Is ending drug decriminalization the right move for B.C.?
Release Date: 02/13/2026
Indian Day School records go digital
APTN News InFocus
Canada is wrapping up its Indian Day School digitization project. Since 2022, Library and Archives Canada has digitized more than six million records from 699 Indian day schools that operated between the 1860s and 2000. An estimated 200,000 First Nations, Inuit and Métis children attended. On this edition of APTN News InFocus host Cierra Bettens speaks with Beth Greenhorn, a manager with the Day School Project, about how the records were digitized and how they may support survivors. Jackson Pind, author of Students by Day and a professor at Trent University, also joins the podcast to discuss...
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A town in Canada where explosives were just part of growing up
APTN News InFocus
APTN Investigates is going behind the scenes of its latest documentary, War on the Land. Reported by APTN Investigates journalist Kenneth Jackson, the story focuses on a former explosives plant in Nobel, Ont., about 250 kilometres north of Toronto. The factory helped supply two world wars. But decades after closing in 1985, contamination concerns remain. Shawanaga First Nation is now calling on the prime minister to ensure the site is cleaned up. On this edition of APTN News InFocus, host Cierra Bettens speaks with Jackson about how he uncovered the story and whether the land can ever be...
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Is ending drug decriminalization the right move for B.C.?
APTN News InFocus
British Columbia has ended its drug decriminalization pilot program. Launched in January 2023, the exemption allowed adults to carry small amounts of certain illicit drugs in an effort to reduce stigma and address the toxic drug crisis. But on Jan. 31, the province let the pilot expire, saying it did not deliver the results hoped for. The move has sparked mixed reaction. Some, including Grand Chief Stewart Phillip of the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs, call it a setback for harm reduction. Others, like Haisla Nation member and outreach worker James Harry, say the crisis on the ground has only...
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AIM, ICE and the history of Indigenous activism in Minneapolis
APTN News InFocus
Indigenous activism has long shaped Minneapolis. In 1968, the American Indian Movement was founded there, marking a turning point in the fight for Indigenous rights. More than 50 years later, AIM members are back on the streets, responding to fears of racial profiling and unlawful detention by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, known as ICE. On this edition of APTN News InFocus, host Cierra Bettens explores how Minneapolis’ history of Indigenous activism connects to today’s Native-led response to ICE. She is joined by Heather Bruegl, a public historian, activist and a citizen of the...
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Will discrimination against First Nation kids in care finally end?
APTN News InFocus
It has been ten years since the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal ruled that Canada discriminated against First Nations children on reserve by underfunding child welfare services. Yet children and families are still waiting for the system to be fixed. There are now plans in place to end the discrimination. On this edition of APTN News InFocus, host Cierra Bettens speaks with Indigenous Services Canada Minister Mandy Gull-Masty and Cindy Blackstock of the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society about why the proposed plans to end discrimination in First Nations child welfare has taken so...
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How Dan David transformed Indigenous journalism
APTN News InFocus
On this edition of APTN News InFocus, host Cierra Bettens honours the life and legacy of Dan David, the father of APTN. David, a Mohawk journalist, spent 45 years transforming how Indigenous stories are told in Canada and around the world. From reporting for CBC and producing for TVOntario and VISION TV, to rebuilding newsrooms in South Africa, his work set the foundation for Indigenous journalism. In 2000, he co-launched InVision News, now APTN National News. On January 12, David passed into the spirit world at the age of 73 after living with cancer. To reflect on his life and impact, Cierra...
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Taken returns as search for Tanya Nepinak renews calls for justice
APTN News InFocus
APTN’s true crime documentary series Taken is back after a seven-year hiatus. The series first put a national spotlight on the case of Tanya Nepinak, a 31-year-old mother who went missing in Winnipeg in 2011. Nearly a decade after Taken aired her story, Manitoba announced plans to search the Brady landfill for her remains, renewing calls for justice from her family. On this edition of APTN News InFocus, host Cierra Bettens looks at the legacy of Taken and its impact on cases involving Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls and Two-Spirit people. She is joined by Dinae Robinson, head of...
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People in Nunavik say change is needed after another police involved shooting
APTN News InFocus
People in a small community in Nunavik are devastated after another shooting involving police in late December. But police shootings in the Inuit territory in northern Quebec are nothing new. Between 2016 and 2018, Nunavik police killed or seriously injured someone at a rate 55 times higher per capita than Montreal police. Some say part of the problem is that only three of the 155-person force are Inuit. On this edition of APTN News InFocus, host Cierra Bettens speaks with Tom Fennario, a correspondent with APTN Investigates, about the problems with the Nunavik Police Service. • • • APTN...
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From Trudeau’s resignation to Jordan’s Principle: A year in review and what lies ahead
APTN News InFocus
On this edition of APTN News InFocus, host Cierra Bettens is joined by Karyn Pugliese, APTN’s senior online reporter and host of Nation to Nation, and Dennis Ward, host of APTN National News and Face to Face, for a year in review. We break down the biggest stories of the year, from Justin Trudeau’s resignation and the evolving Liberal government under Prime Minister Mark Carney to the appointment of Canada’s first Indigenous minister of Indigenous Services and the debate around Bill S-2. We also look at Jordan’s Principle, tensions within Indigenous organizations and what reporters...
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Can Nunavut fix its child welfare crisis?
APTN News InFocus
On this edition of APTN News InFocus, host Cierra Bettens looks at the state of child welfare in Nunavut and why advocates say the territory is falling behind. Child and youth representative Jane Bates has been raising the alarm for years. In her latest report she says the territory is making little progress in the areas most critical to keeping young people safe. She joins us to talk about what has to change and why she says Nunavut needs action not explanation. We also hear from the minister of Family Services on how she plans to address the concerns raised by Bates and the auditor...
info_outlineBritish Columbia has ended its drug decriminalization pilot program.
Launched in January 2023, the exemption allowed adults to carry small amounts of certain illicit drugs in an effort to reduce stigma and address the toxic drug crisis. But on Jan. 31, the province let the pilot expire, saying it did not deliver the results hoped for.
The move has sparked mixed reaction. Some, including Grand Chief Stewart Phillip of the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs, call it a setback for harm reduction. Others, like Haisla Nation member and outreach worker James Harry, say the crisis on the ground has only worsened.
On this edition of APTN News InFocus, host Cierra Bettens speaks with Vancouver-based video journalist Tina House and Harry about what led to the decision and what it means for communities moving forward.
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