Honourable senators, I speak today on behalf of our colleague Senator Daniel Christmas who, although he remains in mourning over the recent tragic loss of his wife, feels compelled to share a story of political courage with you all.

Just recently in Nova Scotia, we saw Premier Stephen McNeil undertake an act of political courage by closing the Northern Pulp mill to honour an agreement with the Pictou Landing First Nation. That act of political courage was outstanding to Senator Christmas, and it reminded him of an event 30 years ago to this very day, February 20, when he personally witnessed another act of amazing political courage — something so significant that it was seared into his memory, never to be forgotten.

The 1980s were a period of great difficulty for Nova Scotia and the Mi’kmaw. There were confrontations, arrests, court cases and much anger in the media. There was virtually no dialogue and no relationship between the provincial leadership and the Mi’kmaw. Add to this dynamic that the big news story of that day was all the about Donald Marshall Jr., released from prison in 1982. He was wrongfully jailed in the federal prison for 11 years for a murder he did not commit.

The extent of his tragedy didn’t end there. When his case was reviewed by the Nova Scotia Court of Appeal, Donald Marshall Jr. was blamed again for his own misfortune. The public outcry was huge. The provincial government finally had to call a public inquiry into why Marshall was wrongfully convicted. The inquiry began in 1988 in Sydney, where the murder had taken place. Over a period of a year and a half, the inquiry unveiled the ugly story of the relationship — or lack thereof — between Nova Scotia and the Mi’kmaw.

The inquiry report was finally released in January 1990 and laid the blame squarely on the entire Nova Scotia justice system. It emphatically concluded that Donald Marshall Jr. was a victim of racism.

At the height of this tension, the government of Nova Scotia did the unthinkable or at least the wildly unexpected: It apologized. This could have been done by issuing a news release or by staging a press conference. Instead, the Attorney General of Nova Scotia at that time personally came to Sydney and to Membertou to meet with Donald Marshall Jr.’s family face to face and to apologize.

Senator Christmas was in the room that day and will never forget the impact of witnessing such an extraordinary display of political courage by the then-Nova Scotia Attorney General, a man who was none other than our esteemed colleague and Senator Christmas’s friend, Senator Tom McInnis.

Thirty years on, Senator Christmas considers Tom McInnis’s actions that day as one of the most unforgettable demonstrations of political courage he has ever witnessed.

And he thanks his honourable colleague for his humility and graciousness. Thank you, Wela’loq.