Journalist and author Brandi Morin has been named the recipient of this year’s Freedom to Read Award.

The annual award is given by The Writers’ Union of Canada during Freedom to Read Week, which runs this year from February 18–24. Morin, a writer of  Cree, Iroquois, and French origin from Treaty 6 territories in Alberta, is an award-winning writer whose work has been published National Geographic, Rolling Stone, Al Jazeera English, The Guardian, and The New York Times.

On January 10, Morin was arrested in Edmonton while trying to cover a police raid to clear an encampment of unhoused Indigenous people. She detailed her experiences in a firsthand account for Ricochet Media. She was charged with obstructing a peace officer, and supporters have created a GoFundMe fundraiser for her legal fees.

Morin, who shared her own difficult stories in her 2022 memoir Our Voice of Fire:A Memoir of a Warrior Rising, was nominated for the Freedom to Read Award by a fellow member of Canada’s writing and publishing community.

“Morin passionately tells the stories of people and events in Indigenous communities, creating visibility and voice for those often overlooked and silenced,” the nomination read. “That she seeks out uncomfortable moments to be present, to tell those stories, requires courage, and for that, she deserves to be recognized.”

TWUC has been awarding the Freedom to Read Award during Freedom to Read Week since 1997. Previous winners include Lawrence Hill, Ivan Coyote, and Anjula Gogia.