Hon. Pat Duncan: Honourable senators, February 14, 2023, marks the fiftieth anniversary of a special day, an historic moment on Parliament Hill that will be celebrated by Yukon First Nations and all Yukoners.

Colleagues, please picture a snowy, Ottawa day — February 14, 1973 — on the steps of Parliament Hill. Elijah Smith and a delegation of Yukon First Nations, some of whom are still with us, presented then-prime minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau with a typewritten document, a booklet entitled, Together Today for our Children Tomorrow.

Reserves for First Nations were not created in Yukon. Rather, lands were set aside. Yukon First Nations land claims had been put forward as early as 1901 when Chief Jim Boss of the present‑day Ta’an Kwäch’än wrote letters to the Superintendent General of Indian Affairs in Ottawa and to the Commissioner of Yukon.

An iconic photo of the presentation and acceptance of the document by the former Prime Minister Trudeau showed the acceptance by Canada of the First Peoples of the Yukon, an appreciation for their relationship and rights to the land, the use and preservation of resources and the importance of the preservation of culture and language for their children, tomorrow. It marked the beginning of the land claims negotiations.

In the words of the Council of Yukon First Nations, as this is their story to tell:

The claim was founded on the principle that aboriginal rights still existed in the Yukon Territory and that the Government of Canada had a longstanding obligation to negotiate a treaty with the aboriginal peoples of the Yukon.

In 1990, 17 years after the presentation of Together Today for our Children Tomorrow, an Umbrella Final Agreement was reached. The UFA is a framework under which individual First Nations land claims agreements are negotiated.

As we prepare to celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of the historic recognition by Canada, 11 of the 14 Yukon First Nations have such agreements.

Honourable senators, it is one thing to complete the land claims agreement; the real work is giving life and meaning to the words. Visual demonstrations of the agreements are evident on road signs in Whitehorse, in suburbs where we use “stop” and “Ńłān“ in Southern Tutchone to halt traffic. Respectfully, if you self-identify as being First Nations, Métis or Inuit when you arrive at Whitehorse General Hospital, the First Nations liaison worker will come to your room or the emergency department to offer you support during your stay. Traditional foods will be offered to help you recover.

Yukon has walked a path towards a new understanding with First Nations for the past 50 years as we have reached these agreements. The challenging work is not finished. As Canada finds our path to reconciliation, I would proudly say to you, as others have said, “We are a Yukon that leads.”

Senators can visit the Council of Yukon First Nations website to share in our celebration next week and to download Together Today for our Children Tomorrow.

Shä̀w níthän,mahsi’cho, gùnáłchîsh, thank you, dear colleagues.