On Wednesday, April 11, Liberal Concordia hosted a panel of experts to discuss Aboriginal issues, such as education and closing of Projets Autochtones du Québec’s (PAQ) homeless shelter.
On the panel were Liberal MP Carolyn Bennett for St. Paul’s, Kahnawake Grand Chief Michael Delisle, Donat Savoie, the former Executive Director of Canada’s Inuit Relations Secretariat, Jean-François Arteau, the Executive Assistant to the President of the Avataq Cultural Institute, and PAQ Director Adrienne Campbell.
The panel’s initial focus was how the Harper government has sidelined Native issues by dealing with the problems as just one other department it needs to worry about. Bennett opened by saying, “Aboriginal education should be for all Canadians. If they don’t know the history and the culture, then an apology is just window dressing.”
Her inspiration for the goal of educating all Canadians is New Zealand where great progress was made after Maori culture and history were introduced into the basic curriculum. What happened there was once students understood the past, they learned to move forward which in turn led to their parents following.
“We have a problem in this country. We have jobs with no workers and workers with no jobs,” she stated. “The fastest growing segment in this country have to be the solution for our job issue.” But the solution can only begin once the First Nations develop a secure cultural identity and regain a sense of control.
Bennett concluded by saying, “Let the First Nations, Inuit and Métis set their own path, and our job will be to help.”
Delisle expanded the need to include Aboriginal history in the Canadian school curriculum. His primary job as a representative of his community is to inform non-Natives on the history most don’t know.
Reflecting on the injustice that happened to the Mohawks he said, “We are realistic, not looking to displace Canada. But a lot of things were done through laws which led to 24,000 acres of land being taken away, and we want it back.” For that to happen the entire country would have to know the history which is best when done through the guidance of Elders and leaders.
Arteau, who has held senior positions in the Kativik Regional Government and Makivik Corporation, shared what he knew about the issues facing the Inuit and First Nations communities.
The issues that he brought up were small housing units crammed with people and Jean Charest’s Plan Nord. The housing problem is currently a major obstacle in allowing the Inuit to move forward which all levels of government need to help in tackling.
Arteau is against the Plan Nord because it runs counter to what Bennett states is Canada’s job, which is to help out with the path that the First Nations, Métis and Inuit choose to take. Instead, he has come up with a proposal he calls Plan Nunavik in order to bring back a sense of control to the northern communities.
The closing of the PAQ homeless shelter in downtown Montreal will leave a void the city can’t afford to lose. Because of a domino effect in the slashing of the health budget, the CLSC has refused to renew the shelter’s lease and will be leaving it homeless.
Campbell spoke about the precarious situation that the shelter is in and why it is so important in establishing a thriving Aboriginal community in Montreal. When Inuit and First Nations first visit Montreal it can get pretty overwhelming which is why PAQ provided cultural services that aren’t offered elsewhere.
The sense of community and the help in transitioning the shelter provides will be lost if it cannot find a new building. The main issue is that most boroughs would rather not have a homeless shelter in their neighbourhood let alone an Aboriginal one.
Because of this dual layer of discrimination it is even more important to help them as they are vulnerable. Campbell said, “The people on the streets are just as much citizens of Montreal as you and I sitting here.”
