Manitoba’s First Nations should reflect on the AFN’s direction as they consider negative reactions to Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre at a recent Assembly of First Nations (AFN) meeting in Montreal.
Poilievre, who in the past has boldly said we need to end the paternalistic Indian Act, delivered an evocative message of community empowerment to the assembled Indigenous leaders. He mentioned untapped potential existing within First Nation communities being held back by distant Ottawa bureaucrats and politicians.
“Your children can be the richest in the world if we unleash these opportunities and that’s why we will be laser-focused on economic growth and opportunity for First Nations.”
His words only elicited scattered applauses from delegates.
Despite cautious support, some First Nation delegates turned their backs to Poilievre.
He was criticized for not mentioning missing and murdered Indigenous women or the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP).
However, that the Conservative leader was the speaker is not the point at all here. Many AFN delegates would have responded the same way to any party leader who delivered a message focusing on economic empowerment and future-oriented growth. They would also likely jeer anyone calling for moving beyond past grievances.
All politicians must realize the AFN’s limits – or indeed of any Indigenous political organization – when they wish to reach First Nations people with a future focused alternative vision.
The AFN is an important national forum bringing forward concerns from First Nations across the country. It is also, unfortunately, an exclusive chiefs-only organization that fixates on past grievances and promotes niche political issues that advance more affluent Indigenous politicians and their organizational interests.
Their focus on those issues often comes at the expense of a broad-based vision for Indigenous prosperity.
AFN’s chiefs always seem to avoid resolutions focusing on grassroots First Nation concerns or any resolutions making them look bad. Thus, delegates won’t ever introduce resolutions condemning on-reserve corruption and nepotism. The Frontier Centre for Public Policy – through its Aboriginal Governance Index – documented governance problems for years from First Nation people firsthand. AFN chiefs won’t air this dirty laundry.
At this recent meeting, AFN’s national chief devoted her strongest support for a recent commitment from Ottawa for almost $48 billion to First Nations to reform the child and family services program. Canadians looking at our country’s deplorable debt situation justifiably wonder where we will find this funding.
First Nation leaders are pleased with the funding but are not talking about how this funding will improve First Nation child and family outcomes. Policy observers know new monies don’t help broken systems.
Some chiefs at the meeting were upset Poilievre did not mention climate change. These chiefs must be tone deaf to their fellow First Nations who have criticized Ottawa’s carbon tax for causing great hardship for their communities. AFN chiefs fixate on boutique issues like the green transition that preoccupy only the Ottawa bubble.
Some chiefs reprimanded Poilievre for not mentioning missing and murdered Indigenous women. They fail to realize economic empowerment policies advance on-reserve Indigenous women and ensure they don’t end up missing. First Nations should focus on raising the status of women, not endlessly talking about past mistakes.
Manitoba’s pro-prosperity, future-oriented Indigenous leaders who reflect on this incident may realize they must look beyond the AFN and make common cause with politicians and the many Indigenous groups and leaders who are pushing for the same thing – a positive, future looking prosperity agenda.
Joseph Quesnel is a Senior Research Fellow with the Frontier Centre for Public Policy.
Related Items:
Aboriginal Governance Index – 2010-2011
Aboriginal Governance Index – 2009-2010
Aboriginal Governance Index – 2008-2009
