Canadian Aboriginal Women (Part XI)

By Essam Farag

During my convocation ceremony at the University of Guelph in February 2004, a special person was awarded an honorary doctorate of laws. This woman was Dr. Roberta Jamieson, an Aboriginal lawyer and distinguished Canadian celebrity. Her powerful and moving lecture stuck in my memory and challenged me to write about the achievements of Aboriginal woman in all aspects of Canadian society - a sector of the Canadian fabric that is seldom recognized. This article is a continuation of the articles presented in the last ten issues, which was dedicated to Dr. Jamieson and all women belonging to minority groups in appreciation for their contributions.

On the historic day of June 11, 2008, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper publicly apologized to native Canadians in the House of Commons for a government policy of taking natives from their families and forcing them to attend state-funded Christian schools up until the 1970s.

This series about Canadian Aboriginal Women, seeks to make the world more knowledgeable about the Aboriginal population and challenge youth around the world to strive to achieve success regardless of the hurdles they might face, with the dream of creating a better society for future generations. Interestingly, the 2001 Canadian Census figure indicate that about 500 aboriginal people (Indians, Metis and Inuits) have doctoral degrees, about 1,500 have Masters' degrees and about 14,000 have undergraduate degrees.

These articles present the profiles of exemplar aboriginal women who are carving the way for the future of their communities. In part XI, I present the interesting profiles of: Patricia Monture, Janet Smylie, Leann Frederickson and Bernadette McLean.

 

Prof. Patricia Monture: A Mohawk Academic

Dr Patricia (Trisha) Anne Monture, a Mohawk from the Six Nations Grand River Territory (near Brantford, Ontario), was educated as a lawyer in Ontario and has graduated from the University of Western Ontario, Queen’s University and Osgoode Hall Law School.  From 1989 to 1994 she taught at Dalhousie and Ottawa law schools.  In 1994, Trisha joined the Department of Native Studies at the University of Saskatchewan as an associate professor.  She was granted tenure in 1998 and promoted to full professor in 1999.  From 2001 to 2004 in addition to her teaching responsibilities, she was Special Advisor to the Dean of the College of Arts and Science on Indigenous Initiatives. Presently, she is a Professor in the Department of Sociology and active teaching in the area of Aboriginal justice. Dr. Monture passed away of breast cancer on November 17, 2010 at the age of 52. She will be remembered as a passionate Haudenosaunee mother, lawyer, activist, educator, writer and scholar. Her sons Justin (partner Sarah), Michael Blake, and Jack miss her warm and loving smile, her laughter, and her ability to care for others. Her adopted children Leonard, Leith, Lionel and Genine are saddened by this sudden loss. Her sister Patti, brother Darrell, and their daughter Tara (partner Terence) and their children Teryn and Talon are all grieving the loss of her powerful spirit. In Saskatchewan, she has a large family, friends, and colleagues who all loved her dearly. Known for being a profoundly aware and critical intellect, and a loyal friend, Patricia adhered to the traditions of her people, the Haudenosaunee, and worked tirelessly as a grassroots advocate. She is the author of two books: Thunder in my Soul: A Mohawk Woman Speaks (1995), and Journeying Forward: Dreaming First Nations Independence (1999). She edited a recent anthology with Patricia McGuire, First Voices: An Aboriginal Women's Reader (2009). She is the author of numerous peer reviewed articles, scholarly volumes and reports. Patricia received an honorary doctorate from not only Athabasca University in June 2008 but also from Queen's University in June 2009. Patricia led the way on ideas involving Indigenous theory, intersectional theory, governance, law, responsibility, and social and political inequality. She was an inspiration to each person she encountered. Patricia's family is comforted in knowing that she is now reunited with her dancing girl.  

Her book, Thunder in my Soul, contains the reflections of a Mohawk woman and her struggles to find a good place to be in Canadian society. The essays, written in enjoyable and accessible language, document the struggles against oppression that Aboriginal people face, as well as the success and change that have come to Aboriginal communities. It speaks to both the mind and the heart. In her second book, Journeying Forward, she examines her own intellectual and personal colonization as a way to share ideas about what she, as a Mohawk woman, sees as the next steps on the path to finding a solution to the continued oppression of First Nations people. She is dissatisfied with the circuitous progress with which Aboriginal claims and issues are being dealt with in both Canadian courts and Canadian politics. As well, because many current day First Nations political institutions are framed within and defined by the Indian Act, the author also questions the ability of these organizations to assist in fully eradicating the oppression their citizens. She rejects the idea of “self-government” (a goal too narrow and overly inundated by colonial meanings to provide a full solution) in favour of a much larger idea-independence. At the age of 45, she received the Mohawk name Aywahande or "the one who starts things with words!"