Evidence of meeting #115 for Veterans Affairs in the 44th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was communities.
A recording is available from Parliament.
Conservative
Fraser Tolmie Conservative Moose Jaw—Lake Centre—Lanigan, SK
I'm very interested to hear about the difference in support for veterans in the U.S. versus veterans in Canada. Is there any way you could share that information? I know Mr. Desilets was asking about New Zealand.
Then I have one more question, but I think we're going to be out of time.
Manitoba Chapter, Chair of Unified Veterans of Manitoba, Aboriginal Veterans Autochtones
Are you talking about mainstream veterans, or are you talking about indigenous and Black veterans?
Conservative
Manitoba Chapter, Chair of Unified Veterans of Manitoba, Aboriginal Veterans Autochtones
Up here, the disrespect and racism has been horrible. In the States, it's not so bad, because we respect our veterans down there. We have Veterans Day there. We have all kinds of things whereby veterans are respected by veterans.
I don't know what's going to happen now, with this newest regime, but I can tell you that when I was coming home to see my mom, I got into a taxi in my uniform, and the taxi driver threw me out. I was leaving the Kennedy airport, or whatever it's called now. He threw me out of the taxi because I am a “baby-killing whore”. That was a civilian. It was during my “un-war” war.
Yes, I see you, Mr. Chair. You hate me with that thing.
Conservative
Manitoba Chapter, Chair of Unified Veterans of Manitoba, Aboriginal Veterans Autochtones
Man, I'll tell you....
However, we'll have coffee. How's that?
Conservative
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Emmanuel Dubourg
Thank you.
Ms. Gage, you understand my job. I have to do it. I'm sorry, but you can still—
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Emmanuel Dubourg
No, that's not true. He's a friend of mine. It's not true, no.
Seriously, I have my fellow MP Sean Casey for six minutes, please.
Mr. Casey, please go ahead.
Liberal
Sean Casey Liberal Charlottetown, PE
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thanks to our witnesses for being here. For those who have served, thank you for your service.
I'd like to start with Dr. Held and Mr. Hook.
You referred in your earlier testimony to some work that you're doing along with the Five Eyes partners. I understand that there is a formal relationship between CIMVHR and the health research branch of the Five Eyes. I wonder if you could expand on that in terms of the work that's being done in collaboration with our international partners.
Assistant Scientific Director, Canadian Institute for Military and Veteran Health Research
I can start there.
I'll talk about two pieces. One relates to the demographics that we're talking about today with indigenous veterans.
For everyone's information, the Five Eyes are the U.S., the U.K., Australia, New Zealand and Canada, just so that we're aware of all the countries involved. We do a mental health research innovation collaboration. It's thought leadership from leading experts in the Five Eyes; it's not generating any new research but is synthesizing some of the most important topics that are there by writing commentaries and providing strategic direction.
Another point that we spoke about in our opening remarks was about indigenous veterans or indigenous service members within Canada. Our hope is to help to provide a bit of a strategic framework around research that needs to be done within Canada, recognizing that there's a gap and recognizing that we, as one institute, shouldn't be the one solely setting research for indigenous veterans. We are looking to work with indigenous organizations across Canada to make sure that the questions that are being asked are appropriate, are needed and can start driving research the way it needs to go from everybody's perspectives.
Liberal
Sean Casey Liberal Charlottetown, PE
Ms. Gage, you indicated that you're the founder of national aboriginal veterans day. Can you tell us a bit about how that came to pass and how it has evolved?
Manitoba Chapter, Chair of Unified Veterans of Manitoba, Aboriginal Veterans Autochtones
In 1991, a group of indigenous veterans went to the November 11 ceremonies to lay a wreath, and they were refused. They were told that they were not welcome and that they could do it after everybody left. I believe it was the Congress of Aboriginal Peoples that got some funding and decided that it was going to rectify the whole situation.
I was working at The St. Norbert Foundation. A gentleman came in with two elders and said, “Would you do some typing for me?” I said, “Sure.” I helped him pull together their constitution bylaws. The next thing I knew, I had been elected as the new secretary-treasurer for the Manitoba Aboriginal Veterans Association.
That meant that on August 22 we came here to Ottawa for the national meeting. I ended up being being nominated as “the lady in the pink sweater” as vice-president of the National Aboriginal Veterans Association. They didn't even know my name. At the end of the—
Manitoba Chapter, Chair of Unified Veterans of Manitoba, Aboriginal Veterans Autochtones
Oh, yes, and they haven't heard the end of me.
Throughout the whole meeting it kept coming up: “We need a day. How about June 21?” They were like, “No, because we'll just be another line on the the program,” and so, stupid me, I said, “What about November 8? If you take the 8 and turn it on its side, it's the infinity symbol for the Métis people.” A lot of traditional people know that there are seven.... Well, you know the number seven is quite important to first nations people. The reason is that there are four levels above and four levels below that meet on the surface as a 7. They said, “That's a great idea. We'll be able to get our uniforms out, polish our shoes and learn how to march, figure out what's left and right, and do that.” They gave me a mandate to go out and do it. That's what they said: “Go and get us the day.”
As you can tell, I'm very shy—
Manitoba Chapter, Chair of Unified Veterans of Manitoba, Aboriginal Veterans Autochtones
—and I was thinking, “How am I going to do this?” I pulled a shenanigan or two, told a little white lie—maybe—and got Mayor Susan Thompson of Winnipeg to declare November 8, 1993, as the indigenous recognition and remembrance day. I believe that's what it was.
A gentleman by the name of Eric Robinson was the minister of Indian and northern affairs in Manitoba at that time, and I bugged him for two years to do it as a province. He finally said, “Do you know what, Randi? I will put it on the table. It's going to be voted down, and when it is, will you shut up and leave me alone?” I said, “Sure,” so he tabled it and there was a unanimous vote to do it. In 1993, it started, and it just....
I just push things. I just don't take no for an answer, and I'm really expecting next year to have it on the calendar as a national day of recognition instead of just a little sub-thing.
That's the story, and I'm sticking to it. It's been a labour of love. I faced horrible, terrible racism. It was unbelievable. When we laid the first wreath at the memorial in 1992, a group of Legion ladies were behind us, and the things they said.... Luckily, Sam was able to control me. I didn't go back and put blood on the memorial. It has all completely changed around that now, and the Legion is very supportive and very much there for us.
Just give me a job. I'll do it for you.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Emmanuel Dubourg
For the last intervention, I invite Ms. Rachel Blaney for six minutes, please.
NDP
Rachel Blaney NDP North Island—Powell River, BC
Thank you, Chair, and I thank our witnesses for being here today. I'm going to start with Dr. Held and Mr. Hook from CIMVHR.
I appreciate that you identified that there's a gap in research, and I think that's an important first step. I'm just wondering, as you're moving towards having more research, who decides that. What is your internal process to make sure that what you're researching is important to those people who actually are from those communities?
