Mary Simon is traveling this week to Nunavik, in northern Quebec. This is his first official visit to his own region since he was appointed as governor general in July 2021.
The five-day trip is expected to include visits to four schools as well as youth groups, emphasizing one of the priorities Ms Simon has set for herself during her tenure to promote education and physical and mental health of young people.
Students and teachers are preparing art projects and expect the visit to last more than a month.
The fact that students can communicate with him in their own language is something very special.said Jade Duchesneau-Bernier, communications coordinator for Kativik Ilisarniliriniq, the Nunavik school board.
Although the incompetence of Ms. Simon who speaks French has been the subject of controversy-prompting hundreds of complaints and investigations by the official custodian of languages-his fluency in Inuktitut is an asset to this special tour.
Very rarely do we have government officials who know what the North is, who the Inuit are, what their culture is, what their language issaid Ms. Duchesneau-Bernier.
The visit of Ms. Simon in the northernmost part of the province arrived just days after his meeting with Quebec Premier Francois Legault, who told reporters he still had work to be done to improve their French skills.
Ms. said. Simon that he was committed to learning French at work, but was denied the opportunity to do so when he attended a federal school in his youth.
He was born near Kangiqsualujjuaq, an Inuit village in Nunavik, in 1947. His mother Nany May, whose surname was Angnatuk-Askew, was Inuk and his father, Bob Mardon May, moved to the Arctic to work. at Hudson’s Bay Company and remained there.
He and his siblings attended the federal day school in Kuujjuaq, then called Fort Chimo. He was home-schooled by his father after 6th grade.
A recognized leader in the North
Si Ms. Simon, 74, has been a leader in the North for four decades. He is the president of Makivik Corp., the organization that owns the land of Nunavik, and Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, the national Inuit organization.
He was Canada’s first Ambassador for Circumpolar Affairs and also served as the country’s Ambassador to Denmark.
On her first day in Kuujjuaq, Ms. Simon is scheduled to meet with representatives from Makivik, the Kativik Regional Government, the Nunavik Regional Health and Social Services Board and the school board before sitting down with the mayor and the board.
The route also includes organizations dedicated to holistic methods of treating trauma and substance abuse in a region battling the effects of colonialism, with high rates of alcohol abuse, suicide risk and death. ‘social inequalities.
The Isuarsivik Recovery Center, for example, emphasizes blending traditional Inuit values with modern practices. It offers six-week inpatient programs for groups of nine men or women, helping them recover from trauma and overcome addictions, free of charge.
Si Ms. Simon will visit a new center, due to open next year, which includes a family hospitalization program. This approach was awarded in March the Arctic Inspiration Prize worth $ 1 million.
Ms. plan. Simon to meet with Inuit leaders and local officials, meet with elders and take part in cultural celebrations throughout the week.
Her husband, author and journalist Whit Fraser, 79, was also part of the official journey into her role as Canada’s viceregal wife.
Si Ms. Simon is known for his role in the negotiation and implementation of the James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement between the Cree and Inuit of northern Quebec, the provincial government and Hydro-Quebec in 1975.
Considered the first modern treaty in Canada, the treaty ratified Inuit and Cree hunting and trapping rights in the region and established compensation of $ 225 million over 20 years in exchange for the construction of hydroelectric dams.
While serving as Ambassador for Circumpolar Affairs, he led negotiations to create what is now known as the eight-nation Arctic Council. He also worked as a producer and host for CBC North.
In 2016, she served as Special Adviser on the Arctic to Carolyn Bennett, then Minister of Indigenous and Northern Affairs, and proposed Indigenous Protected Areas in the North.
Pita Aatami, president of Makivik Corp., said in a statement when Simon was appointed Canada’s next governor general: In Nunavik, we all know our new Governor General as Mary.
Source: Radio-Canada
