National Thanadelthur Day Bill

Honourable senators, it’s my pleasure to rise today to speak in support of Bill S-225, An Act to establish National Thanadelthur Day. You have heard a great deal from Senator McCallum about this very important bill, and I want to thank Senator Martin for asking me to be the critic of this bill.

I come from Treaty 1 territory, which is also the homeland of the Métis Nation, and it’s an opportunity for all of us today to think about the significance of having this bill and having the example of Thanadelthur, because she is an example of the tireless leadership and the resolute quality of Indigenous women who both nurture as mothers and protect as warriors.

I think of contemporary Thanadelthurs who — despite obstacles, hardship and opposition — are similarly leading restorative peace and reconciliation efforts in our own time. They are Indigenous activists, like the late Mary Two-Axe Earley; Jeannette Corbiere Lavell, whom we will be honouring here in the Senate next week; Cindy Blackstock; Pam Palmater; Leslie Spillett; Autumn Peltier; Diane Redsky; and our former Senate colleagues the Honourable Sandra Lovelace Nicholas and the Honourable Lillian Dyck.

In this place, we are blessed with Indigenous women leaders who were all esteemed trailblazers before they agreed to be named to this chamber: Senators Dawn Anderson, Michèle Audette, Nancy Karetak-Lindell, Mary Jane McCallum, Yvonne Boyer, Margo Greenwood and Judy White.

I think of Inuit leaders like Rosemarie Kuptana; the artist Daphne Odjig; Manitoba’s own Jackie Traverse; and my family’s beloved friend, the legendary filmmaker Alanis Obomsawin, who is now 93 and working on her fifty-fourth film.

Indigenous women and girls play a key role in preserving their communities. They often act as agents of peace, leading movements that eventually bring the warring parties to the table. They seek to speak truth to power, including within their own communities. They address the root causes of a conflict and increase community engagement, just as Thanadelthur did hundreds of years ago.

When I go home to Manitoba, I’m honoured to receive guidance from three of Winnipeg’s most effective leaders — Hilda Anderson-Pyrz, Sandra DeLaronde and Diane Redsky — often to discuss international advocacy in multilateral processes. Last year, they led the largest ever delegation of Indigenous women to the United Nations in Geneva to participate in the review of Canada under the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women.

Colleagues, we all know a critic is not required to speak to a bill before it comes to a vote. Knowing my support, Senator Martin gave me this opportunity, and Senator McCallum asked me to speak briefly today to confirm my support. I stand with her to ask all of you to join us in honouring Thanadelthur. With our votes in support of this bill, we honour all the Indigenous women leaders and peacemakers who are crucial to progress in families, communities and nations.

Thank you. Meegwetch.