Mandy Gull-Masty arrives for a cabinet swearing in ceremony at Rideau Hall in Ottawa, on May 13.Justin Tang/The Canadian Press
The first Indigenous person ever to be appointed Minister of Indigenous Services Canada has a big job ahead of them and high expectations to meet, the National Chief of the Assembly of First Nations says.
Mandy Gull-Masty, from the Cree First Nation of Waswanipi in Quebec, was sworn in on Tuesday to lead the ministry, which administers services and programs for First Nations, Inuit and Métis communities.
AFN National Chief Cindy Woodhouse told The Globe and Mail that Ms. Gull-Masty will be held to a higher standard because she is a First Nations woman, but that she will prove her leadership to the country.
“High expectations, of course, to try and deliver and fix the broken,” Ms. Woodhouse Nepinak said about the often problematic and paternalistic relationship between First Nations and the centuries-old federal department once known as Indian Affairs.
”We always want to get away from Indian Affairs and take control of our own lives, and we want to get to that point.”
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Ms. Gull-Masty’s appointment is historic, as the portfolio has previously only been headed by ministers of non-Indigenous ancestry. She replaces Patty Hajdu, who was named Minister of Jobs and Families and Minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Northern Ontario.
As minister, Ms. Gull-Masty inherits a series of uncompleted tasks in her new portfolio, including reforming the child welfare system and ensuring Indigenous communities have access to clean drinking water.
A first-time MP, she won her riding of Abitibi-Baie-James-Nunavik-Eeyou by beating Bloc Québécois MP Sylvie Bérubé, who had held it since 2019.
In 2021, Ms. Gull-Masty became the first woman elected grand chief of the Cree Nation in Quebec after serving four years as a deputy grand chief for the Eeyou Istchee. She also served as deputy chief for her own nation in 2014.
With a connection to the land and people of the Eeyou Istchee – the traditional territory that spans more than 300,000 kilometres – the new minister is also the first Cree woman to serve as a federal member of Parliament in the region.
In her role as grand chief, Ms. Gull-Masty lobbied the government for Indigenous community funding and negotiated $200-million through the Indigenous Community Infrastructure Fund to build housing.
Ms. Woodhouse Nepinak said the new minister will have the advantage of already being familiar with the AFN and being able to use her background as a Cree woman and leader to connect with Indigenous people.
“First Nations across the country are going to feel like they have somebody to talk to a lot more and advocate towards and speak to and have political discussions with her,” Ms. Woodhouse Nepinak said, adding that she hopes Canadians and Ms. Gull-Masty’s fellow cabinet members also give her a chance.
“They’ll see a real leader and a strong person … she’ll make Canadians proud.”
The Liberal rookie was elected with the encouragement and support of the Cree Nation in Quebec, which said in a statement posted on social media that Ms. Gull-Masty had the “leadership and capacity to bridge diverse perspectives and advance shared priorities.”
The Cree Nation called the appointment a historic achievement and proud moment “for all Indigenous peoples across the country.”
Indigenous leaders also applauded newly elected First Nations MP Rebecca Chartrand from Manitoba on her appointment as Minister of Northern and Arctic Affairs.
“As Manitoba’s sole representative in the Federal Liberal cabinet, Ms. Chartrand’s leadership will be pivotal in advancing issues that impact northern and Indigenous communities,” says a statement from Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak, a political organization representing Northern Manitoba First Nations.
Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations Chief Bobby Cameron called the Prime Minister’s appointments of both women “a positive step forward … to advancing reconciliation and addressing the priorities of First Nations.”
Buckley Belanger, a Métis elected the lone Liberal in Saskatchewan for the province’s northernmost riding of Desnethé-Missinippi-Churchill River, was appointed Secretary of State for Rural Development.
With a report from The Canadian Press