Statement for National Aboriginal Day 2016

(OTTAWA) June 21, 2016 – The Green Party of Canada issued the following statement for National Aboriginal Day: “Today, on the 20th anniversary of National Aboriginal Day, all Canadians have an opportunity to celebrate the rich and diverse cultures of the Indigenous peoples of Canada,” said Elizabeth May, Leader of the Green Party of Canada ...

Awful legacy

The crisis in Attawapiskat has shaken Canadians from coast to coast. In fact, it led the news on BBC and the New York times. It is being described as what might be ‘a suicide contagion’. Eleven young people, children really, have been stopped from what appears to be a suicide pact. Suicides and attempted suicides ...

Emergency Debate on Attawapiskat Suicide Crisis

Mr. Speaker, I think all of us tonight are feeling very united in a commitment that is shared and non-partisan. I want to make this more as a comment than a question because I do not want to put my hon. colleague on the spot. The systemic violence of the residential school system over 100 ...

Elizabeth May responds to landmark ruling by the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal

OTTAWA — “Today’s ruling by the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal reiterates what anybody who has been paying attention has known for years: Ottawa has been discriminating against First Nations children on reserve. From woefully inadequate and outdated funding models to a system that incentivized removing children from their families, the Tribunal found that that there ...

Green Party committed to supporting the Inquiry into missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls

(OTTAWA) December 8, 2015 - The Green Party applauded the government’s plan for extensive consultation with the families and communities of missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls. “Federal action on missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls (MMIW) must be guided by Indigenous communities,” Elizabeth May said. “The government has committed to a new nation-to-nation ...

Elizabeth May Supports Ontario Chiefs’ Policy Initiatives at AFN Annual Gathering

OTTAWA – Elizabeth May, Leader of the Green Party of Canada and MP (Saanich – Gulf Islands), attended the 36th Annual Assembly of First Nations’ (AFN) General Assembly in Montreal yesterday. Ms. May delivered a speech to the General Assembly and was the only federal party leader to receive a standing ovation. In addition, Ms. ...

Elizabeth May Statement on National Aboriginal Day

OTTAWA – Elizabeth May, Leader of the Green Party of Canada and MP (Saanich – Gulf Islands), issued the following statement for National Aboriginal Day: “Today is an opportunity to celebrate the rich and diverse cultures of the Indigenous peoples of Canada. This is an important time in our history as we acknowledge the tremendous ...

Reconciliation

Years ago, when my friend Maude Barlow and I were writing a book about the toxic contamination of the Sydney Tar Ponds on Cape Breton Island, I had the chance to interview friends with whom I had been working for years.  The tar ponds were the single largest toxic waste site in Canada and the ...

Elizabeth May Statement on release of Truth and Reconciliation Findings

OTTAWA – Elizabeth May, Leader of the Green Party of Canada and MP (Saanich – Gulf Islands) issued the following statement regarding today’s report from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission: “Today, we pause and listen to the intergenerational survivors of Canada’s Residential School System. Their stories, collected by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) and ...

Elizabeth May calls on Harper Conservatives to end isolation of Shoal Lake 40 First Nation residents

OTTAWA – The Green Party of Canada is calling on Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Aboriginal Affairs Minister, Bernard Valcourt, to restore ferry service to the Shoal Lake 40 community and to work with the province of Manitoba, and the city of Winnipeg in the construction of an all-weather access road. “The people of Shoal ...