OTTAWA—If an impressive pedigree is any indication of success for an endeavour then the Canadians for a New Partnership, announced at a September 4 signing ceremony in Ottawa, is truly bound for glory, as a host of well known national and international figures from a broad cross section of political, cultural and economic backgrounds have “joined forces in a common cause to strengthen Canada through the creation of a new partnership between the indigenous peoples and all Canadians.”
The new non-profit boasts luminaries on its board such as former Canadian prime ministers Joe Clark and Paul Martin alongside First Nation leaders Ovide Mercredi and former parliamentary Auditor General Sheila Fraser, jurist the Honourable Frank Iacobucci C.C., as well as media figures such as Shelagh Rogers O.C. and Conservative pollster Allan Gregg.
Crossing partisan divides and cultural cleavages, Canadians for a New Partnership’s stated intention is to “engage in an energetic education campaign across Canada with multiple facets, including an active website and social media initiatives, a national speaker’s bureau and media availability. We will expand our network of individuals and organizations committed to building a genuine new partnership with indigenous Canadians and a better and stronger Canada.”
The plan is for the organization’s members, all volunteers, to “attend speaking events, conferences and lecture series across the country to promote our vision and to help offer Canadians a new narrative, a compelling rationale and opportunities for action with the goal of igniting and sustaining momentum towards reconciliation and partnership.”
In this way, the organization “will strive to actively demonstrate to governments and industry the growing broad-based desire for indigenous and non-indigenous Canadians to work together to build a stronger economy and values-based society.”
Canadians for a New Partnership’s base funding is provided by The J.W. McConnell Family Foundation, the Government of the Northwest Territories, the Aboriginal Leadership Initiative of the International Boreal Conservation Campaign, NationTalk, The Walter and Duncan Gordon Foundation, First Peoples Group, McGill University and T.E. Wealth.
At the core of the new organization is the concept that efforts “no matter how well intentioned” to improve the health, education and welfare of indigenous people are destined to the same failures of the past unless a new partnership is built in Canada that will “restore the trust that has been eroded by a litany of historic wrongs.”
Canadians for a New Partnership said it wants to begin a new dialogue among Canadians about Canada’s relationship with aboriginal peoples. “When terms like the ‘national interest’ and ‘equity’ are used by governments or corporations, we want them to ask themselves if their actions are in the interests of the marginalized as well as the mainstream and does ‘equity’ apply to those at the bottom as well as those at the top,” reads the not-for-profit corporation’s declaration.
The concept for Canadians for a New Partnership began as a dream of Stephen Kakfwi, the former premier of the Northwest Territories and president of the NWT Dene Nation. Mr. Kakfwi said that he was inspired by a challenge from his young, adult children. “Following the Idle No More movement I expressed to my adult children the urgent need for a renewed nation-to-nation relationship, built upon mutual respect and understanding between Indigenous and non-Indigenous governments and people across Canada. Without any hesitation, they challenged me to take the initiative and I began making calls to former leaders of all political stripes and backgrounds and was surprised and gratified by the very immediate and positive responses,” he said in a published statement on the group’s website. As an impressive number of prominent Canadians agreed to join in this national initiative over the following months, he added “I know all of us are excited and determined to make a renewed and positive contribution to indigenous peoples and Canada.”
As such the new organization “is built on the principle that indigenous and other Canadians can together build a strong economy and values-based society that will benefit present and future generations.”
“CFNP’s overriding mission is to encourage public and political goodwill, energy and commitment to achieving this goal,” said Mr. Kakfwi during the signing ceremony. “I know all of us are excited and determined to make a renewed and positive contribution to aboriginal peoples and Canada.”
“The unity of purpose among our members and growing numbers of Canadians from all walks of life, including churches, businesses, academia and the public service, tells me we can succeed if we base our approach on mutual respect and responsibility, mutual recognition of our shared history and a genuine commitment to cooperation,” said Mr. Clark.
Mr. Martin added his own thoughts that “too often we have made the wrong choices or failed to deliver on the right ones. But we also know that—notwithstanding this—there is common ground between indigenous and non-indigenous people. We hold the same hopes and dreams for our children and grandchildren. I know because I see it every day in the classroom. If the seeds of agreement in this common ground are ever going to take root and grow, we will have to restore trust and build a foundation of goodwill between all Indigenous people and Canadians.”
Inuit leader Mary Simon, past president of Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, said, “when the first settlers came to our land, we welcomed them. Indigenous people shared with newcomers to help them survive. Trade relationships and alliances of friendship and peace flourished and solemn treaties were signed. These are the values and the partnership that we are trying to restore starting today. A partnership of equals, pledged to reconcile historic wrongs, committed to mutual respect and dedicated to the eradication of inequities.”
Former AFN National Chief Ovide Mercredi went on to say that “there is much to be gained by repairing relations between indigenous and non-indigenous people and much to be lost if we fail to reconcile our differences. The Constitution enshrines our rights and the courts have consistently upheld them. We are not going to go away and we are not going to fade into the fabric of non-aboriginal society. We can either develop the vast potential of Canada together or we can continue the paralysis that flows from misunderstanding, betrayal and neglect. There is no question which path this partnership chooses to travel. Our challenge to the rest of Canadians now is ‘come with us’.”
CFNP member Chelsea Vowel, a young Métis writer and teacher, said the group’s focus on youth and emerging leaders is one of its major strengths. “Creating a better future is not just about convincing the existing powers and voters to change,” she said, adding that “it is also about listening to those whose future you are discussing and ensuring they are involved in every facet of what is being done.”
While the organization had an impressive pedigree at its inception, Canadians for a New Partnership is actively seeking the broader support of Canadians from all across the nation by inviting them to sign onto a declaration posted on its website at www.cfnp.ca.
