Young First Nations woman uses pageant to platform on unsafe drinking water
- Jeanelle Mandes | August 11, 2014
Feather Pewapisconias-McKee, a 20-year-old First Nations woman from Littlepine First Nation, won the title of Miss Water Saskatchewan last month. But she doesn't plan on stopping there; she is competing for Miss Earth Canada and hopes her platform will make a difference.
"I'll be competing in Miss Earth Canada. The pageant is based on environmental issues and my environmental issue that I'm presenting is unsafe drinking water on First Nations communities," she says. "The goals of the pageant are to raise awareness and bring a discussion and try figure if there are ways to make a difference with the platform," she adds.
The Miss Earth Saskatchewan pageant was held in Saskatoon last month and it's based on being a positive role model in environmental concerns that affect the world today. McKee believes that reserve water is a major environmental concern.
She grew up on the reserve and she realized that water was one of the main issues living on the reserve.
"You don't really think about it because you're so used to it. Once you're living in a city, you realize how much of a luxury it is to have clean drinking water. You realize of how much it needs to be fixed on reserves," says McKee.
She describes the water back on her reserve smelling like rust and even now when she goes back home for visits, she says the situation hasn't changed.
"When I go home to visit and even in a lot of other different reserves, I notice they don't have water piping systems. Some reserves are still using water trucks to haul water," she says.
McKee is hoping her platform will raise awareness and for people to have more of an understanding that this is one of many problems that occur on reserve communities.
"I understand when people want to help third world countries but no one is really looking at the problems here in our lands," she says.
"That is one of the agreements in the treaties is to have clean drinking water and it's not there. We have to find solutions to make it better," she adds.
She's been writing letters to different First Nations bands to get sponsorship hoping to raise $1,800 in order for her to attend the pageant.
The Miss Earth Canada pageant will be held this month in Montreal and she's looking forward in participating at a national level with hopes of winning the contest and spreading awareness.