Bill C-5 (Historical)

An Act to amend the Bills of Exchange Act, the Interpretation Act and the Canada Labour Code (National Day for Truth and Reconciliation)

This enactment amends certain Acts to add a new holiday, namely, National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, which is observed on September 30.

Bills of Exchange Act

[Martin Shields, Conservative, Bow River, AB]

Mr. Speaker, it has been an interesting day listening to speeches. I worked last night on this intervention. It is challenging, in the sense of my background and culture.

It takes me back to the heritage committee when we dealt with this topic, and my understanding and knowledge were lacking. We depended on the witnesses to inform, explain and educate us. Were they all on the same page? No, there were differences of opinion about which day, indigenous day, orange shirt day. We heard opinions about more important things that should be done. It was interesting to listen as they brought it to us at that committee.

By the way, I will be sharing my time with the hon. member for Fredericton.

The bill has now been returned to the House. The goal of this legislation is extremely important, with the reconciliation with indigenous people as the national objective. The residential school is a dark chapter in Canadian history. I did not live it. My family did not live it, but I have visited Siksika Nation, which is in my riding. It is the second largest nation in the country. On that nation there were two residential schools run by two different Christian faiths. One school is gone. The other school is still there. I visited those places with elders. Where the school is gone, there is what they believe to be an unmarked graveyard with no recognition but memories of who went there and never came home.

The other one that is still standing is now called Old Sun Community College. The building has been refitted, changed and provides programs that suit the times that are needed now. As I walked through that building with an elder, there were parts of that building she would go through and parts she would not. She remembered some horrific things in that building, like the day her sister fell three storeys and landed at her feet and it killed her. That should not have happened, but it did. I cannot remember that because it is not part of my background, but I could listen to an elder tell me that story. The story of when she was six years old and would go to school and escape and go home. Her parents would be horrified that she was there, because they knew the Indian agent would soon arrive at the door threatening to take away anything that they had unless she was returned to school. That is not part of my memory, but it is part of my learning.

The bill is important and we are putting the onus on 5% of the population to teach us. Is that the way to do it? We have adults in this country who do not have this education or the opportunity. The town of Strathmore has done phenomenal work with the Siksika Nation. Many students from both communities, Siksika and Strathmore, go to that school. The drama teacher in that school wrote a phenomenal play called New Blood. It is put on by high school students from Strathmore and Siksika. It needs to be seen far and wide because it would educate adults.

I have visited our National Arts Centre, which now has two indigenous employees, but it has no money. I want the play to come to Ottawa. We need adults educated. As mentioned many times in the House, education is a critical piece. However, it is not just for students, it is for adults as well. I have watched that play and seen what the adults learned from it. It is put on by indigenous and non-indigenous students working together to produce a fantastic story of reconciliation with history in it.

Today, as I look at the notes I had and listen to the members, I look at the structure of, for example, Siksika.

Members can look at what the federal governments, provincial governments and municipal governments are responsible for, but do they understand what a municipal government, supposedly, at the band level does? Siksika Nation's council takes care of the roads and the sewer and the water, when it works, if it works, if it is there, but they are also responsible for education in their nation and they are responsible for health. There is a whole broad range of things they are responsible for, and we, as an adult country, do not understand the challenges that level of government has and the responsibilities it has. We do not know that unless we take the time to learn.

How are we going to learn it? Are we putting the onus of this bill on 5% of the population, without resources, to teach the rest of us? That is not going to work.

We have a piece of legislation that should be approved. I totally agree that it should be approved. However, where is the backup, in the sense of what the responsibility is to get the education for this to the population? I am not talking about schoolchildren; I am talking about the adult population. Where is it? We are now putting a heavy debt back on the indigenous people to educate the rest of us by saying, “You've got a day”.

I totally agree with the day. On Siksika reserve, one of the councillors led a walk from those unmarked graves at the school, which is gone, across the nation to the other school. That is an education those people understand. They are walking those footpaths. They are walking the footpaths that their elders walked when they went back and forth. We were not there. We do not know that path. We have to learn it, or this just becomes another holiday, which is wrong. We cannot let this slip into another holiday, yet we are putting the onus on the indigenous people to do it. We are naming it. I am a person who is not of that culture. It is not my history.

I remember when we passed the indigenous languages bill, Bill C-91, at the heritage committee. We had many witnesses come, and the ones I liked the best were the ones who said, “How is the money going to get to our school kids so we can keep our heritage and our culture with our language?”

I made amendments at that committee, and they did not pass. I wanted the money to go directly to the school level, just like the federal government does with the gas tax, which goes directly to the municipality. We bypass the other people and it gets done. I wanted the money to go to the indigenous communities and their schools. That is not where it went. It went to the three major organizations in this country. The leadership of Siksika Nation asked me about this legislation and the money. I said to ask the government and to ask their indigenous organizations where it is. Where is it? They are not preserving their language; they are not getting the money.

We have to work at the grassroots level, just like the indigenous people understand they need to do with their language. They need to get into their schools and teach their own children their languages to keep their cultures. It is an oral culture. They have passed many things on orally. It is a story culture, from elders to generation to generation, but they are not getting the money.

My fear is that we will pass this and we will have a day of recognition. They will be proud to have it, but will the 95% of the rest of Canadians have a clue? That is my fear.

[Brenda Shanahan, Liberal, Châteauguay—Lacolle, QC]

Mr. Speaker, it was a pleasure to hear my colleague speaking on this important topic today. I know that he shares my love of history, of education and of understanding our heritage, especially when, as he so aptly put it, we were not there.

On the question of how we, the 95%, can learn, I wonder if my colleague is aware of the different funding programs that are available at Canadian Heritage. That is what my city of Châteauguay did in conjunction with Kahnawake, which is our neighbour, in producing a joint festival called “la Fête du maïs”. It has been going on for three years now. It is, of course, cancelled this year, but it has been a tremendous source of mutual education.

[Martin Shields, Conservative, Bow River, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the compliment from my colleague. Again, we both share the interest in history and would like to make sure people are aware of it. Is there any information she could share with me? We get a lot, so anything she could remind me of would be great.

However, I will tell members a problem that we have, The heritage committee has a study and now we have brought it back. Siksika nation has a world-class place for artifacts called Blackfoot Crossing. The people were trying to get the original clothing of Chief Crowfoot, who signed the original agreement in 1877. It was in a museum in London. They can not get it back because we have legislation that says it has to be a museum that requests it. We have an archaic word in there that does not allow some indigenous people to bring back artifacts to places on their nations.

We need to fix it. Again, I will have it on the heritage committee for a study. We need to change that so these people can have their artifacts, and we do not have to use that archaic word. They have beautiful facilities, but we have to fix that.

[Christine Normandin, Bloc, Saint-Jean, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his speech.

I hear him talking about the importance of education, the many benefits of learning more about indigenous culture, and the duty to remember.

I also hear him talking about the process in committee, where amendments can be proposed. I understand that some of his colleagues refused to fast-track the study of the bill to have it deemed studied in committee and passed at third reading. I would like to know what improvements they wanted to present in committee that would justify not fast-tracking the bill.

[Martin Shields, Conservative, Bow River, AB]

Mr. Speaker, on the technicality of that, I was sitting here and I did not realize who said what. I just assumed it was coming to committee. The heritage committee is meeting right now and the parliamentary secretary is at that meeting, scheduling Bill C-5 to come before it. I was looking forward to it coming to committee, not from the point of view of voting against it but to learn more about those things and having witnesses come to speak to us about that.

I understand what the member is saying, but it had been moving along that line. We thought it was coming to committee as did the parliamentary secretary. That is being organized in another room on the Hill at this moment.

[Brian Masse, NDP, Windsor West, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I hope, with that comment, that it will be moving through committee rather quickly since it did move entirely the same way through the chamber already. It already received support, not only within this room but also across the country, to move it as expeditiously as possible.

Perhaps the member can enlighten us on how he will ensure it actually will move through quickly and also ensure his party in the Senate will not block it like it did last time.

[Martin Shields, Conservative, Bow River, AB]

Mr. Speaker, as we know, committees are the master of their own destiny. That is what I hear year after year. What happens in a particular committee? That will be interesting, as it always is. We do not know that destiny because we are not there yet.

I will be interested in it at committee and my support in this bill is as it was last time.

[Jenica Atwin, Green, Fredericton, NB]

Mr. Speaker, I wish to acknowledge the land on which I speak today in Fredericton, which is Wolastoqiyik territory, unceded, unsurrendered land operating under the Peace and Friendship Treaties. We cannot just say these words. We must have intention and action behind them, and I implore each member of the House to do just that.

It is an honour to have the opportunity to speak to Bill C-5, and I wish to thank my Conservative colleague for sharing his time with me today.

The issue of meaningful reconciliation is an issue that is important to my constituents and to people across this country, and it is particularly close to my heart for many, many reasons. The first is as a mom of indigenous children. My boys are Wolastoqiyik. They are being raised with an appreciation for their identity, language and culture.

My oldest son is in grade 3 in a public school that has made incredible efforts to not only include indigenous knowledge, history and culture but to truly celebrate it. It is front and centre at every school assembly and event, and in daily routines. There are integrated educational opportunities for all children, and there are unique learning opportunities for indigenous youth through permanent staff employed by our local first nation community, who work at the school every day in innovative and exciting ways.

My youngest son is three years old and attends an on-reserve head start program at the Welamukotuk Early Learning Centre. He receives instruction from his family members and some of our close friends. He is surrounded with love and care and dedication to culturally responsive education. Incidentally, his first day of school was on Orange Shirt Day last year. I could not help but think of the beauty of coming full circle like that, and the symbolic significance that his education will begin and proceed so differently than so many of his ancestors'.

My oldest child looks more like me, with Celtic roots and light skin, although he is proud to be indigenous. My youngest looks more like my husband, with dark skin and dark eyes. My prayer for him is always that he will not grow to experience racism and discrimination because of who he is. I pray he will not feel like he does not belong or that he is not represented in the curriculum he learns throughout his educational journey, as my husband has felt.

Another reason Bill C-5 is so important to me is due to my passion for teaching. My work in the public school system in New Brunswick was on behalf of first nation communities. I worked to include accurate history and improve access to language and cultural experiences for indigenous students, as well as to advocate for institutional reforms for enhanced social justice equity in our provincial education system.

I have seen the many ways our system continues to fail indigenous students. I have also seen the incredible resilience of indigenous students, and I have had the honour to witness inspiring growth, activism and leadership. This generation of youth is ready to tackle our biggest challenges and to lead Canada into a brighter future as the fastest-growing demographic. The seven generations concept comes to mind and reinforces the idea that we bring with us the lessons and experiences of our ancestors and that both trauma and healing pass through the bloodline to the present day, that the decisions we make today should result in a sustainable and equitable world seven generations into the future.

This brings me to our responsibility as Canadians. Orange Shirt Day, in an educational context, is an opportunity to learn, honour and acknowledge the calls to action, and to create space for indigenous elders and survivors to share their truth and feel our love and appreciation. Schools, businesses and organizations across New Brunswick proudly wear orange and undertake events and activities. This takes the form of healing walks, school assemblies, language lessons, mini powwows and other creative and formative expressions.

I worry Bill C-5, which would make this day a holiday, could have the consequence of losing some of the momentum that has been built around awareness, particularly in our schools. I also worry that the concession of this day being only for federal employees may have the consequence of losing the power of the intent of a national holiday. I will certainly do all I can to prevent this in my community, and I would like to see some extra assurances with dedicated investments around this bill.

I am also not convinced the bill represents a meaningful act of reconciliation with indigenous peoples, especially considering events that are transpiring around the country. It seems to me the government makes a habit of selecting only the easiest calls to action from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, abandoning those that require genuine effort, abdicating responsibility for the hard work we must undertake.

I remind the House there is a long list of education and health outcomes that should be our focus, those that would have lasting impacts for positive change, the sorts of changes that would mean indigenous women would not have to suffer as Joyce Echaquan did in her last moments of life and the sorts of changes that would mean Chantel Moore and Rodney Levi might still be with us today.

So far, most of the change I am seeing in Canada is a result of the efforts of indigenous communities and individuals. This is unacceptable. Canada has a responsibility to make things right. Canada must make amends. Canada must have these difficult conversations and must show leadership.

Our success will be measured in the way we respond to indigenous nations on an ongoing basis when questions of sovereignty arise, as they have in Nova Scotia in recent weeks. It will be measured in the way we embrace the collective and inherent rights of indigenous peoples, the way we carry out our relationships with these nations, and the way we embolden or chastise racist commentary from Canadians who do not yet understand these rights.

I recognize that a national memorial holiday was included in the TRC, and I have committed to stand behind each call to action; therefore, I will certainly vote in favour of the bill. However, I hope the government understands its continuing responsibility to support educational initiatives and to fund events and activities around this national holiday. The work we do today in the House will have repercussions on the next seven generations. It will be the foundation of a future in which we understand the truth of our past and celebrate what we have built together.

I implore Canadians to observe this holiday, to learn the true intention behind it and to take on the challenge of becoming allies and champions of reconciliation.

I will end with a metaphor sent to me by Eddy Charlie, a member of the Cowichan Nation and a residential school survivor. He described the long-term intergenerational impacts of the trauma inflicted by residential schools as poison leeched into a river, contaminating everything along the way. He said, “We've been contaminated by hate, pain and aggression, and until we clean up that river, we'll always be stuck in a really bad place.”

The process of cleaning up that river is under way. It is our job as parliamentarians, and as Canadians, to roll up our sleeves and get to work.

The House resumed consideration of the motion that Bill C-5, an act to amend the Bills of Exchange Act, the Interpretation Act and the Canada Labour Code (National Day for Truth and Reconciliation), be read the second time and referred to a committee.

[Alexandre Boulerice, NDP, Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague from Fredericton for her remarkable speech. I learned a lot from it.

I was also very pleased to hear about her two boys. I am sure that her two little guys are in very good hands.

I obviously believe that we must support this bill, which stems from the work of my former NDP colleague, Georgina Jolibois. However, as my colleague from Fredericton stated, we must do even more.

I would like to ask her two questions. First, does she think that the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples should be enshrined in all federal legislation? Second, does she agree that the federal government should drop its court challenge against the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal ruling with respect to social services for indigenous children?

[Jenica Atwin, Green, Fredericton, NB]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his questions and for his comments about my children.

I absolutely believe that we need to enshrine the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples into our federal framework. I certainly believe that children should not be in court defending their rights, especially when it comes to their social welfare.

I wish to add to the record that indigenous communities are more than well equipped to handle child and family services on their own behalf, for their own children, and that we very much need to honour the sovereignty, self-governance and self-determination that I mentioned in my speech.

I want to congratulate first nations communities across the country for the incredible work they continue to do on behalf of their children. I implore my colleagues in the House to continue to do our work to catch up to what they have been doing.

[Kevin Lamoureux, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the President of the Queen’s Privy Council for Canada and to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, the member brings up a valid point with regard to the national legislation and where it has impact. Hopefully, through the legislation, we will see other jurisdictions do likewise and emphasize its importance. As has been pointed out previously, it is not a day off, but rather an opportunity for us to be a better society by getting a better understanding of why we are designating this day.

I would like the member's comments on that.

[Jenica Atwin, Green, Fredericton, NB]

Mr. Speaker, I certainly think it is important to formally enshrine this as an official holiday in Canada. I just wonder what that means. I think we need to have more conversations about the responsibility of non-indigenous Canadians to reconcile what we have done. I think about how we celebrate National Indigenous Peoples Day. A lot of positive actions come out of such a day.

I ask that more Canadians learn. For me, it is really about the educational opportunity, so it goes back to investments, and it goes back to supports. If we were to do better in our education system, if we were to have a more culturally responsive curriculum as part of the provincial system in general, I think that would have a bigger impact than, perhaps, a national holiday.

Again, I support this, but we must go much, much further.

[Kristina Michaud, Bloc, Avignon—La Mitis—Matane—Matapédia, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I really appreciated my colleague's speech. I thank her for that.

This is difficult for people like me who did not experience the atrocities that others in the community did. What we can do is put ourselves in their shoes and be allies. It is our duty as parliamentarians to do this in our own communities, to raise awareness about this day and to ensure our constituents have opportunities to learn and commemorate.

There is consensus among opposition and government members on this bill. I think everyone wants to move towards reconciliation.

What does my colleague think the government should do as a next step towards reconciliation? It seems the opposition parties are very likely to support everything the government does to advance reconciliation with indigenous peoples.

[Jenica Atwin, Green, Fredericton, NB]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for her question.

There is a lot that we need to be doing as parliamentarians. In my speech I looked to the other calls to action. I mentioned some of the outcomes in education and health. I highlighted some of the ways that we continue to fail in these areas.

I also think about the comparisons that have been made with Remembrance Day and with what this holiday could be. It is really about our next steps as members of Parliament in how we choose to observe and promote awareness in our communities around this national holiday. I would like to see more concrete investments and funding commitments because it is going to take a lot more than our words. It is going to take actions, and it is going to take funding, so I think that is a big step.