Bearspaw Band member and Stoney Nakoda Nation resident Preston Twoyoungmen said he may be left with no housing in three weeks time — but he’s not backing down without a fight.
Twoyoungmen, a former columnist for the Eagle, has long asserted that the three respective Nation chiefs, councillors and administrations, have targeted him and want he and his family (wife and three young children) to leave the reserve and stop ‘stirring the pot’.
As a columnist, Twoyoungmen would make a point of highlighting what he felt were injustices to Nation members, propagated by an unfair distribution of monies and power in an outdated top-down system.
And now, Twoyoungmen, who works as a human services worker on the Nation, said he has been advised that he and his family have just weeks to vacate their home of six years.
Twoyoungmen has reached out to several media outlets to share his story and was met with a Press TV (independent) crew to film his story on the steps of the Stoney Tribal Administration (STA) Building June 29.
“I want to be left alone,” he said. “They’re making me homeless. They hate me and they want me off this reserve.”
According to Twoyoungmen, in 2009, Chiniki Band member Bud Crawler gave him permission to take over his home and live there. Crawler has since passed away.
The way it works on the Nation is that each respective band (Bearspaw, Chiniki and Wesley) is responsible to provide housing for its respective band members.
Twoyoungmen is a Bearspaw Band member, and now the late Crawler’s family (Chiniki Band) is laying claim to their family home.
Twoyoungmen said he and his family made many improvements to the home, such as fixing previous damages, regular maintenance and equipping the house with amenities such as a fridge and stove (something that the band normally provides).
He was first made aware that his residency was in jeopardy when he received notice in September of 2014 that he was required to vacate the premises on the basis that his home was identified as flood-impacted, was scheduled for demolition and that the family of the deceased Crawler wished to get their home back.
Twoyoungmen consulted legal council at that time and was advised to write a formal letter of complaint to then-chief Darcy Dixon and council; shortly afterwards, the Chiniki election was ongoing and everything seemed to be on hold.
Last week, he was approached by Chiniki CEO Lindsay Blackett and was told again that his house was scheduled for demolition and he would be required to move in a matter of weeks.
According to Blackett, the Chiniki Band is trying to negotiate with Twoyoungmen and has offered him reimbursement for the work he has put into the house, providing he can show proof of the reparations and improvements made by producing receipts.
“We are slated to demolish the house in three to four weeks, but we’re willing to work with him,” said Blackett, adding that this deadline could be extended by a few weeks as Twoyoungmen tries to locate a new house to move his family into.
Blackett added that while this is an ‘unfortunate situation’, it is Nation law that each band is responsible to provide housing for its respective band members and that nobody is ‘above the law’ and the house rightfully belongs to the Chiniki Band and must be returned to the family of the late Crawler.
The Eagle also spoke with Rob Shotclose, CEO of the Bearspaw Band.
Shotclose, highlighting the housing plight on the Nation post-flood, said that while it is the responsibility of each band to provide housing for its members — there are no current temporary, let alone permanent, solutions available.
“Overcrowding is a problem out here, where multiple generations of families are living in homes together,” he said.
Shotclose explained that part of the problem lies in the fact that Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada (AANDC) recognizes the Nation as one (the Stoney Nakoda Nation) rather than as the three individual bands, which is how the people are divided internally.
Sec. 95 of the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) requires the Nation to provide collateral in order to lend money to build/acquire more housing and they cannot lend money out if any one of the three bands is in arrears — which is the case, according to Shotclose; as a result, the Bearspaw Band’s latest application for additional housing to CMHC was rejected.
With respect to individual Nation members who wish to apply for financing on their own, Shotclose said the problem is that banks are highly unlikely to lend money — as repossession rights don’t apply on Nation lands.
Shotclose is hopeful to get all three bands working together to devise better strategies for assisting individuals to get financing.
The three bands have all taken over the remaining flood-related reparations and rebuilds (rather than having the government work on their behalf).
The Wesley Band is continuing with Clark Builders, the Chiniki Band with Trico Homes and the Bearspaw Band recently signed with ServiceMaster of Calgary.
Shotclose said that more than 40 modular units are to be brought to the Nation as temporary housing (currently displaced families are residing at the two elder’s lodges), with 13 or 14 of these dedicated to Bearspaw Band members; it is the intention that these temporary housing units would eventually be purchased and converted into long-term housing.
He said while it’s possible a spot may open up for Twoyoungmen, there are no guarantees at this point.
“There’s just not a lot of options right now,” he explained, adding that it is possible the Bearspaw Band may be able to assist Twoyoungmen with the finances to help him get into some housing off-Nation.
He said that the Bearspaw Band is yet to receive a formal written request seeking assistance from Twoyoungmen.
Blackett said Twoyoungmen has requested a copy of a Band Council Resolution that shows his home belongs to the family of Bud Crawler and that the Chiniki Band is in the process of doing so.
Twoyoungmen asserts that it all comes down to outdated Nation politics — including the division of the Stoney Nakoda Nation into the three bands — and that he has become an unfair target.
Twoyoungmen did add that he might be willing to meet with Chiniki Chief and Council to negotiate some kind of agreement.
