Wednesday, October 19, 2022




MANITOBA
AMC must create 2SLGBTQQIA+ council, says advocate


Wed, October 19, 2022 

The Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs (AMC) will elect a new Grand Chief next week, and one long-time advocate says he hopes whoever is chosen to lead AMC immediately takes more action to fight for the rights of First Nations 2SLGBTQQIA+ people.

“We cannot continue to invest in old patriarchal systems that are ineffective or not willing to change,” Albert McLeod, a Winnipeg-based 2Spirit elder said on Wednesday.

“We still see a lot of male-dominated attitudes in leadership, and we see homophobia and transphobia because we still see things running under that patriarchal system.”

McLeod, who took part in Manitoba’s very first Pride Parade back in 1987, and who helped write the MMIWG 2SLGBTQQIA+ National Action Plan, says that after the AMC chooses a new leader next week during their Annual General Assembly he wants work to begin to create a 2Spirit/First Nation LGBTQI+ Council at the organization.


He said that council would give a voice to 2SLGBTQ people, and “change the conversation” at AMC.

“It forces people to think more broadly in terms of service delivery, and who they are serving,” he said.

McLeod has successfully lobbied for similar councils to be formed in the past, as he and others successfully advocated for a 2Spirit Council at the Assembly of First Nations (AFN) which was officially added to AFN’s charter in December of 2021.

AMC currently represents and advocates for 62 First Nations communities across the province, but McLeod said he believes Indigenous leaders at all levels in this province need to do more to both help 2SLGBTQ people, and also to understand the specific issues that matter to and effect that community.

“Why are we still electing chiefs and band councillors who have no knowledge or training to prevent gender-based violence, and homophobia and transphobia in our communities, or in the workplace?” he said.

“People need training and education, and as far as I am concerned we are still electing people without that kind of experience and that truly boggles my mind,” he said.

There will be seven candidates on the ballot during next week’s AGM, including former journalist Sheila North, and current AMC First Nations Family Advocate Cora Morgan.

Also running are Eugene Eastman, Jennifer Flett, George Kemp, Cathy Merrick and Darrell N. Shorting.

The AMC's AGM and election for Grand Chief will be held in Winnipeg Oct 25-27, with an all-candidates forum scheduled for Oct. 25, and then the vote scheduled for the next day.

The AMC did not reply to a request for comment from the Winnipeg Sun.

— Dave Baxter is a Local Journalism Initiative reporter who works out of the Winnipeg Sun. The Local Journalism Initiative is funded by the Government of Canada.

Dave Baxter, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Winnipeg Sun

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