New Brunswick premier faces growing backlash to land acknowledgment policy
New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs is facing a growing backlash to his government's new policy on Indigenous land acknowledgments, and some of the opposition has come from within his own cabinet.
A leaked series of emails reveals Education Minister Dominic Cardy and Transportation Minister Jill Green wrote to the premier on Oct. 15 complaining that the new policy is causing unnecessary conflict and "creates the impression of a government intentionally reinforcing racist behaviour."
The policy, announced just a day earlier by Attorney General Hugh Flemming, forbids government employees from making territorial or title acknowledgments in reference to Indigenous lands.
It has become common across Canada for politicians and others to begin events by stating they are standing on unceded territories of various Indigenous Peoples.
The new policy in New Brunswick says employees can make reference to ancestral territory but not use terms like "unceded" and "unsurrendered."
Flemming has cited a land title claim, filed last year by the province's Wolastoqey chiefs, as the reason for the new policy. But Green and Cardy took exception and said the policy did nothing to reduce tensions around the First Nations file.
"This memo is the furthest thing from a sensitive approach to a delicate issue," they wrote. "Actions like this make it impossible to talk with our First Nations constituents from a position of respect."
The email went on to say the policy needed to be rescinded and an appropriate apology made. However, the two ministers were called to a meeting later that day with the premier, and a subsequent email described the meeting as "productive."
Cardy was not made available for an interview Tuesday. Higgs said Tuesday both ministers have apologized for sending the email. He said a caucus meeting was held Oct. 19 to discuss Indigenous issues in the province.
Aboriginal Affairs Minister Arlene Dunn issued a memo after that meeting, saying her department has been doing a complete review of all initiatives with First Nations to ensure the province is meeting its obligations, and that meetings with First Nations would be scheduled once that is complete.
But Madawaska Maliseet First Nation Chief Patricia Bernard said Dunn's work has included no consultation. "They are talking and doing things about us, without us," Bernard said in an interview Tuesday.
Bernard applauded the two cabinet ministers for speaking out, and agreed the government's behaviour appears racist. "These ministers within their own (Progressive Conservative) caucus, they see it, and they're shocked. It appears somewhat vindictive," she said.
Bernard called on the premier to apologize, but Higgs said he has nothing to apologize for.
"We are being sued as a province. We didn't start this lawsuit," Higgs said in an interview, referring to the Wolastoqey court action. "We are in court being challenged with an unprecedented case of 60 per cent of our land being challenged for ownership. We had to be clear on the government's position."
Naiomi Metallic, an assistant law professor at Dalhousie University, said the province's policy to cease some aspects of land acknowledgments makes little sense because it wouldn't be relevant to courts.
"It has no legal significance," she said in an interview Tuesday. "The legal test doesn't include any aspect of acquiescence by settlers as part of the question of whether there is Aboriginal title or not."
Metallic said the Supreme Court of Canada has made clear the original treaties with Indigenous Peoples in the region didn't include any land surrender.
She said the test for Aboriginal title revolves around issues such as whether the Indigenous group can provide evidence they occupied the land prior to the Crown taking possession of it, as well as whether there's been continuity of Indigenous occupation of lands, both before and after the arrival of settlers.
She said the only importance of land acknowledgment statements is as an act of reconciliation towards Indigenous Peoples.
"They show another group of people respect. They're significant for that. But they won't sway whether a court finds Wolastoqey has legal title, either way," Metallic said.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 26, 2021.
-- With files from Michael Tutton in Halifax
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Doctors say capital gains tax changes will jeopardize their retirement. Is that true?
The Canadian Medical Association asserts the Liberals' proposed changes to capital gains taxation will put doctors' retirement savings in jeopardy, but some financial experts insist incorporated professionals are not as doomed as they say they are.
Something in the water? Canadian family latest to spot elusive 'Loch Ness Monster'
For centuries, people have wondered what, if anything, might be lurking beneath the surface of Loch Ness in Scotland. When Canadian couple Parry Malm and Shannon Wiseman visited the Scottish highlands earlier this month with their two children, they didn’t expect to become part of the mystery.
Fair in Ontario, flurries in Labrador: Weather systems make for an erratic spring
It's no secret that spring can be a tumultuous time for Canadian weather, and as an unseasonably mild El Nino winter gives way to summer, there's bound to be a few swings in temperature that seem out of the ordinary. From Ontario to the Atlantic, though, this week is about to feel a little erratic.
What do weight loss drugs mean for a diet industry built on eating less and exercising more?
Recent injected drugs like Wegovy and its predecessor, the diabetes medication Ozempic, are reshaping the health and fitness industries.
He replaced Mickey Mantle. Now baseball's oldest living major leaguer is turning 100
The oldest living former major leaguer, Art Schallock turns 100 on Thursday and is being celebrated in the Bay Area and beyond as the milestone approaches.
What a urologist wants you to know about male infertility
When opposite sex couples are trying and failing to get pregnant, the attention often focuses on the woman. That’s not always the case.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Made-in-Newfoundland vodka claims top prize at worldwide competition
A Newfoundland-made vodka has been named one of the world’s best by judges at this year’s World Vodka Awards.