We've been waiting a really long time for some steps to move forward. One of my most immediate priorities is the formation of a national indigenous arts service and advocacy organization. We need some sort of a system where, as my colleagues mentioned, we can address committees such as this and also respond to the different departments that have the responsibility and mandates to address things that affect our artists.
It's all about rebuilding the structures within our communities so that we can respond to these things. Many of the systems we had in place traditionally were really clear about who got to be an artist, how they got trained, what they did with their art and what art forms they were allowed to practice. All of that structure came apart with all of the things we've heard about, like residential schools and the Indian Act. It's about redress and rebuilding. This is something we can do at an administrative and operational level without changes to legislation.
In the long term, I still would like to see amendments to the act and, further into the future, either addendums to the act or exemptions from it.