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- NWAC Congratulates Mary Simon on Appointment as Governor General
Policy Sectors
July 6, 2021
OTTAWA - The Native Women’s Association of Canada would like to congratulate Mary Simon on her appointment as Governor General of Canada, the first Inuit person to become head of state in a country that has been home to Indigenous people for tens of thousands of years.
The federal government has made an excellent choice in selecting Ms. Simon as Viceregal representative of the Monarch. She has been a human-rights activist and outspoken champion of her people. She was an excellent leader of the Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami and served Canada well as Ambassador of Circumpolar Affairs and to Denmark.
In Ms. Simon, the daughter of a fur trader, Canada will have a Governor General who is intensely proud of her Inuk culture and well qualified to represent all Canadians, from coast to coast to coast. As Indigenous women, we are pleased with today’s announcement and proud that an Inuit woman is finally serving in this prestigious position.
We must point out, however, that Ms. Simon is being asked to serve the senior role in what is still a colonial system of governance.
To achieve true reconciliation, the federal government must re-examine its appointments of Ministers to lead departments that have a profound effect on Indigenous lives – the departments of Crown-Indigenous Relations and Indigenous Services.
It is time that those two Ministries are led by Indigenous people. It is time for the government to get out of the way and to allow Indigenous people to manage their own affairs.
We, as Indigenous women, are delighted with the appointment of Ms. Simon as Governor general. Now it is time to carry that progress forward.
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For information, or to arrange an interview, contact:
Laurel Sallie
laurel@sparkadvocacy.ca
+1 (905) 751-6370
Pour obtenir plus d’information ou prendre des dispositions pour une interview, contacter:
Laurel Sallie
laurel@sparkadvocacy.ca
+1 (905) 751-6370
About The Native Women’s Association of Canada
The Native Women’s Association of Canada (NWAC) is a National Indigenous Organization representing the political voice of Indigenous women, girls, transgender, Two-Spirit, and gender-diverse people in Canada, inclusive of First Nations on and off reserve, status and non-status, disenfranchised, Métis and Inuit. An aggregate of Indigenous women’s organizations from across the country, NWAC was founded on the collective goal to enhance, promote and foster the social, economic, cultural and political well-being of Indigenous women within their respective communities and Canada societies.
À propos de l'Association des femmes autochtones du Canada
L'Association des femmes autochtones du Canada (AFAC) est une organisation autochtone nationale qui représente la voix politique des femmes, des filles, des transgenres, des bispirituels et des personnes de sexe différent au Canada, y compris les membres des Premières nations vivant dans les réserves et hors réserve, les Indiens inscrits et non inscrits, les personnes privées de leurs droits, les Métis et les Inuits. Regroupant des organisations de femmes autochtones de tout le pays, l'AFAC a été fondée dans le but collectif d'améliorer, de promouvoir et de favoriser le bien-être social, économique, culturel et politique des femmes autochtones au sein de leurs communautés respectives et des sociétés canadiennes.
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