SoVote

Decentralized Democracy

House Hansard - 265

44th Parl. 1st Sess.
December 11, 2023 11:00AM
Context: House Hansard - 265 - Dec/11/23
Mr. Kevin Lamoureux (Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons, Lib.)
  • Dec/11/23 7:33:20 p.m.
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Madam Chair, the member started off by acknowledging the election process of the Assembly of First Nations. I want to congratulate the national chief, Cindy Woodhouse, who is someone I know. Throughout my friendship with her, she has always been a very powerful indigenous woman and a very strong advocate. I am sure she will do exceptionally well and make many contributions in the years ahead. Even though the member has been somewhat cynical, what we have seen over the last number of years is numerous calls to action actually put into place, and many of them are actually a work in progress. I think we are at 80% or 85% where the federal government plays a role. The Government of Canada has been engaged with reconciliation virtually from the beginning, in the call for the public inquiry and in what we heard earlier today in regard to water. Could the member, at the very least, acknowledge that a big part of establishing a positive relationship is that we need to ultimately work harder on reconciliation?
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Context: House Hansard - 265 - Dec/11/23
Ms. Rachel Blaney
  • Dec/11/23 10:55:28 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I think the impact will be actually devastating. I think of one chief in my riding, from Homalco, who spoke about the fact that there is a bridge in their community where they have lost one life of a young person and another young person made an attempt. They now really watch that bridge to make sure that their children do not hang themselves from it. These are real-life truths, and it is hard to figure out how people are going to fight one day for their indigenous rights, fight the next day for basic human rights for their people and fight to keep someone alive when those are the options on the table every day for a leader of an indigenous community. The complexity of that needs to be recognized, and I encourage all members to spend time in indigenous communities so they can better understand that reality.
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