Author

Hamilton Wawmeesh

I’m a journalist and photographer with lived experience as an Indigenous person, and my stories have context others don’t. I write about news and issues that matter to urban Indigenous people living in the Lower Mainland, British Columbia.

Wawmeesh's Latest Articles

Support stories that make a difference to the Urban Nation

We’ve shown that dedicated journalism for the Urban Nation makes a difference. Will you support it?

Nisga’a whistleblower story shows need for free press

A free press could have brought both context and scrutiny to this story sooner, both of which are necessary for a healthy democracy.

How can we compete with cheap fake art from overseas, Indigenous business owners ask?

‘I’ve seen these poor carvers that are trying to carry on their culture, and they’ve got to compete with something a quarter the cost that comes in from Indonesia,’ says Shain Jackson.

Legitimate Indigenous souvenir businesses squeezed out

If we’re going to turn the tide on the volume of fake Indigenous art sold in souvenir shops, we need to support more Indigenous-owned shops and designers in Vancouver.

Fake Indigenous art not Indigenous at all, artists say

Our artwork is ‘the way we write down our history, our worldview, our laws. It really is a written language,’ Shain Jackson says.

Why seeing a shelf full of fake totem poles makes me wince

From their randomly splashed designs to their strange choice of materials, fake poles miss every opportunity to honour our culture. And they’re just the tip of the fake art iceberg.

Urban Nation Discourse’s do-or-die moment

Together, we’ve amplified Indigenous voices and connected our community. Now is the moment of truth: Is The Discourse valuable enough that you’ll pay for it?

Hate surges over judge’s statue removal in New West

City council’s decision was well meaning, but extensive public education would have helped.

When Vancouver’s opioid crisis hits close to home

Witnessing a woman overdose makes this city’s drug crisis real in a way statistics can’t.

What’s the state of urban reconciliation in the Lower Mainland?

We asked you what stories we should investigate next in the Urban Nation. This is what you told us.