Summary:
In June 2021, the Canadian Heritage minister announced the appointment of Ronald E. Ignace as the first Commissioner of Indigenous Languages.
The Call to Action:
We call upon the federal government to appoint, in consultation with Aboriginal groups, an Aboriginal Languages Commissioner. The commissioner should help promote Aboriginal languages and report on the adequacy of federal funding on Aboriginal-languages initiatives.
Analysis:
In June 2021, the Canadian Heritage minister announced the appointment of Ronald E. Ignace as the first Commissioner of Indigenous Languages.
Robert Watt, Georgina Liberty and Joan Greyeyes were also appointed as directors.
In June 2019, an Indigenous Languages Act was passed by Parliament, to set up an Office of the Commissioner of Indigenous Languages tasked with: planning “initiatives and activities” to restore and maintain fluency in Indigenous languages; creating technological tools, educational materials and permanent records of Indigenous languages, including audio and video recordings of fluent speakers; and funding immersion programs.
The office also would undertake further research on existing and extinct Indigenous languages.
The Indigenous languages commissioner, like the official languages commissioner, would be chosen by the federal cabinet and appointed to a five-year term.
Virtual consultations on implementation of the act, including topics like the appointment of a commissioner and developing a funding model, were held in the fall of 2020.
The development of the legislation was announced in June 2017 and the federal government launched a nationwide engagement process, seeking input from Indigenous leaders, language teachers and Elders, about how to draft the act.
The Assembly of First Nations, Métis National Council and Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami oversaw outreach within their own communities.
Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami withdrew its support for the bill prior to its tabling.
“The absence of any Inuit-specific content suggests this bill is yet another legislative initiative developed behind closed doors by a colonial system and then imposed on Inuit,” Natan Obed, the president of the ITK, said in a statement.
Obed said the Office of the Commissioner of Indigenous Languages is little more than a new title for the existing Aboriginal Languages Initiative program, a federal office that has largely failed to halt the decline of Indigenous languages despite having a mission similar to that of the new Liberal plan.