Mary Simon sworn in as Canada’s first indigenous governor general
- Simon’s appointment comes after the discoveries of more than 1,000 unmarked graves at church-run residential schools for Canada’s indigenous children
- ‘I am honoured, humble and ready to be Canada’s first indigenous governor general,’ said Simon at a ceremony in Ottawa’s Senate on Monday
Mary Simon, who on Monday became the first indigenous person to be named governor general of Canada, has fought to preserve her people’s way of life, opposing oil drilling in the Arctic, supporting seal hunting and defending Inuit culture.
As Canada’s head of state and Queen Elizabeth’s representative in the Commonwealth nation, Simon said her appointment marks “an important step forward on the long path towards reconciliation.”
It followed the painful discoveries of more than 1,000 unmarked graves at church-run residential schools funded by the government to forcibly assimilate Canada’s indigenous population.
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More than 4,000 pupils died of disease and neglect, while others have recounted physical and sexual abuses by headmasters and teachers who stripped them of their culture and language.
Simon, wearing a seal skin vest, was among several indigenous leaders present in parliament in 2008 for the government’s official apology for those abuses.
“I’m filled with optimism that this action by the government of Canada and the generosity of the words chosen to convey this apology will help us all mark the end of this dark period in our collective history as a nation,” she said then.
But, she added, “let us not be lulled into an impression that when the sun rises tomorrow morning, the pain and scars will miraculously be gone. They won’t.”
“I am honoured, humble and ready to be Canada’s first indigenous governor general,” said Simon, in her first official speech on Monday at a ceremony in Ottawa’s Senate.