{"id":309,"date":"2016-02-24T16:51:56","date_gmt":"2016-02-24T16:51:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/arcticincontext.com\/?p=309"},"modified":"2021-07-30T23:30:56","modified_gmt":"2021-07-30T23:30:56","slug":"our-man-in-the-red-chamber","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jsis.washington.edu\/aic\/2016\/02\/24\/our-man-in-the-red-chamber\/","title":{"rendered":"Our Man in the Red Chamber"},"content":{"rendered":"

This article was originally published in\u00a0Up Here Magazine<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

By Tim Edwards<\/strong><\/p>\n

A letter from Senator Nick Sibbeston used to sit above the coffee machine at the Yellowknifer newspaper offices, congratulating publisher Jack \u201cSig\u201d Sigvaldason on a lifetime achievement award and cryptically mentioning a 1980\u2019s session of the territorial council, precursor to the legislative assembly, and an incident involving a coffee mug. I\u2019d heard the story when I worked there as a reporter, as well as one involving fisticuffs, but never in as much detail as Sibbeston lays down in his newly-published memoir, You Will Wear a White Shirt: From the Northern Bush to the Halls of Power<\/em>.<\/p>\n

After Sibbeston had dramatically taken off his suit, vest and tie in the middle of a council meeting and donned instead a moosehide vest, complaining about the adoption of foreign governance symbols in the North, some other members of the council wanted to get back to budgets and legislation. From the book:<\/p>\n

I spoke about the racism toward the Native people in this part of the North, and how white people had imposed their system on us. In frustration, I declared, \u201cI am serious to the point of crying on this issue.\u201d Tagak Curley, who was sitting two seats away from me, interrupted. \u201cCry! Cry tears!\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

I turned on him. \u201cYou had better watch out or I will go and give you a punch.\u201d As I began speaking again he continued making rude remarks, and I lost my temper. I stalked over and hit him on the side of the head with my fist.<\/em><\/p>\n

Sibbeston was expelled from the house for the day, and apologized for his conduct the next. But he kept pressing the point\u2014to the annoyance of some of his colleagues\u2014that aboriginal people were coming from the bush without the education and knowledge to get government jobs, which often went to southerners.<\/p>\n

It was as if I were invisible. There was just stony silence on the other side where the ministers sat. Emotionally drained, frustrated and upset, I picked up a coffee cup from my desk and threw it in the direction of the chairman. The cup came crashing down on the floor in front of him and broke into pieces. Everyone fell silent, aghast at what had happened. I was surprised myself. Then I stood and walked to the exit. \u201cIf that\u2019s all you care about the things I said, stick this council up your ass. I resign!\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

At the urging of his colleague John Parker, Sibbeston didn\u2019t resign. He instead returned to his home in Fort Simpson for a rest, worried about what his reception would be.<\/p>\n

I shouldn\u2019t have worried. In the stores, in church and on the streets, people greeted me like a hero. They found it amusing that I had thrown a cup in the assembly. I soon realized that what had seemed like a serious incident in Yellowknife was not seen that way at all by the people. Some said, \u201cIt\u2019s about time someone shook things up in Yellowknife\u201d while others said, \u201cYou should have thrown more cups.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

He\u2019d go on to become government leader, and in 2001 Prime Minister Jean Chretien appointed him as senator. We caught up with him as he got ready to return to a very different Ottawa from the one he left.<\/p>\n

How have things changed in the North since you began your career?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Initially the communities were very small, living in log houses and hunting and trapping, living that kind of a life\u2014the settlements have really changed. They have become modern. In places like Fort Simpson, my hometown, when I first started in the \u201870s people were going to outhouses, and that isn\u2019t the case any longer. People have modern houses.<\/p>\n

I was in some southern First Nations communities a couple of summers ago on a senate study of housing and infrastructure, and some communities in Northern Ontario and Manitoba, they really had bad housing. They had a lot of mould\u2014and just basically no housing, you know? Materials were brought in the summer and people do the best they can but there just isn\u2019t the money to provide adequate housing, and I just felt when I was there, doesn\u2019t anybody care? Isn\u2019t anybody accountable? Don\u2019t they have an MP? Don\u2019t they have an MLA? Here in the North we have local government and housing associations and education boards, so the short of it all: I think in the North the situation is so much better for native people than it is in the Northern [provinces].<\/p>\n

People live very well. The other night I was in Fort Liard and I slept at my friend\u2019s cabin along the highway. It isn\u2019t a palace by any sort, but it\u2019s an adequate cabin. He\u2019s got all of the things he needs and he\u2019s happy to live out in the bush along the highway. When he wants to, he goes out to the highway and thumbs a ride to town. So just the fact that you don\u2019t have much doesn\u2019t mean that you are poor, or that you\u2019re pitiful. You live freely, you live as you wish, and you can go to town and get all the amenities and the things that you need and come back to live where you will, and I think that\u2019s the case with a lot of people in the communities.<\/p>\n

Is it possible to improve living conditions in the Northern provinces?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I don\u2019t know. The situation is so severe. You have a lot of boil water situations. I think having reserves makes it difficult. We have remote communities but we have programs to provide housing, to provide proper water, to provide good schools and so forth. I think native people in the North are fortunate because they\u2019ve been able to become involved.<\/p>\n

The relations between native and non-native people is much better in the North than it is in the northern parts of the provinces. Native people are kind of segregated onto little enclaves, reserves [down south]. They\u2019re isolated and it just makes it more difficult.<\/p>\n

\"Our<\/p>\n

In the North, is there a difference in the types of people in the territorial government nowadays than when you first got into politics?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Well, when I was in government there were hunters and trappers, bush pilots, ex-RCMP members, businesspeople, the odd lawyer, the odd reporter. I\u2019m thinking of back in the \u201870s. I think now you have to be fairly educated. It\u2019s difficult for a hunter and trapper to just come out from the bush and be a candidate, but in the \u201870s that was possible, and we had a number of Inuit members that just knew their own language, didn\u2019t know any English at all.<\/p>\n

When you look back at your scuffle with Tagak, the coffee cup\u2014that wouldn\u2019t happen nowadays, would it?<\/strong><\/p>\n

At the time I was able to be quite passionate about issues. I just feel that I had a great opportunity and I was able to do all of this and express some of my real concerns and feelings, and\u2014unfortunately or whatever\u2014it got taken up with a lot of passion. But I\u2019ve always said that\u2019s what it takes in order to get change. Nothing happens by writing nice, kind, soft letters. You really have to pound the table and become really active. That\u2019s how changes come about and it certainly did in my time. Tagak Curley just got an Order of Nunavut. I sent him a letter congratulating him.<\/p>\n

That was around the time you were lobbying for more traditional culture to be integrated into government ceremony.<\/strong><\/p>\n

I was so afraid that we were going to inherit or grow into an Alberta or Ontario style of government. We in the North are unique\u2014let\u2019s develop and accept something that\u2019s really identifiable to the people of the North that makes sense to them. Even the Speaker\u2019s chair\u2014why do you bow to something? What is there, something magical or a spirit in there? If you\u2019re going to do it, let\u2019s do it with something we identify with and know.<\/p>\n

What do you make of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau?<\/strong><\/p>\n

He\u2019s been in the region and down the Nahanni. I think he\u2019ll be reasonable. I think he\u2019ll be good to the North. Already he\u2019s been good to the North\u2014look at the Inuk he\u2019s appointed, Hunter Tootoo, to be minister of fisheries. I\u2019m pretty impressed with the way he moulded the cabinet. A very diverse group of people. We have an aboriginal person that\u2019s in charge of Justice. That\u2019s pretty amazing.<\/p>\n

And that\u2019s Jody Wilson-Raybould of the Kwakwaka\u2019wakw.<\/strong><\/p>\n

I think it\u2019s great. Obviously, not all the positions of the federal government will change, in terms of dealing with First Nations, but at least the Minister of Justice will have an understanding of native issues and the constitutionality of aboriginal rights.<\/p>\n

Are you expecting a different mood in Ottawa?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I\u2019m excited about going back because it had been a terrible place to be for the past few years under the Harper regime because in the Senate itself, there was a lot of manipulation. There was an attempt by the prime minister\u2019s office to control the Senate, the Conservative members, in terms of just passing its legislation, and it\u2019s been real caustic, not a very nice place to be.<\/p>\n

But I think things will change. I really look forward to going back to Ottawa now, with a new government. In the Senate I know that the Liberals are somewhat independent, we\u2019re not part of the Liberal caucus\u2014and the Senate really needs to be independent, less partisan, and really be good sober second thought. Oftentimes legislation is passed hastily in the House of Commons under political maneuvering, so the Senate has a chance to review it in a calmer, less partisan way.<\/p>\n

Now the independent Liberals will I think represent the government in the Senate, and the Conservatives that had been representing the [former] government will sit in opposition. They\u2019re more numerous\u2014there\u2019s about 60 of them\u2014but they\u2019ve already indicated that they\u2019re going to be cooperative. They\u2019re not going to be blocking legislation. I have a feeling that a certain amount of rationality and civility will come to the Senate.<\/p>\n

The Harper government gained praise for apparently paying more attention to the North than any other previous government.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Well, he came more often. He didn\u2019t pay attention. He didn\u2019t meet with any people. It was all very controlled; a photo opportunity. Sure, he\u2019s probably been North more than any other prime minister, but he never really engaged with Northerners in a real, meaningful way. And [the Conservatives\u2019] view is to militarize the North and I\u2019ve always thought well, that\u2019s fine, but really the best way to recognize sovereignty is the people living there. Engage with them and have them happy.<\/p>\n

What can the government do to make it such that the people in the North are really happy, comfortable, at ease?<\/strong><\/p>\n

That\u2019s the challenge. There\u2019s things that the federal government can do: making sure that the territorial government has enough money for housing; money for hospitals and healthcare. It\u2019s very expensive because there\u2019s no adequate hospital services [in most of the communities] so people have to be flown to the bigger centres or to the south.<\/p>\n

Do you have a wishlist for the federal government?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I\u2019d love to see the government build a highway down the Mackenzie Valley. What a difference a road would make. It changes lives everywhere there\u2019s a road. The government has slowly been building bridges over the creeks and rivers. It\u2019ll take millions of dollars, but it\u2019ll do wonders for the North. It\u2019ll open up the area for development, lower the price of food and provide a better quality of life because people then can drive out.<\/p>\n

The NWT itself is changing pretty rapidly, not only with devolution but with the momentum from self-government agreements\u2014the T\u0142i\u00b8cho\u00b8 have theirs, D\u00e9l\u0131\u00b8ne\u2019s has been signed, others are in negotiation. How might this change how the territory operates?<\/strong><\/p>\n

You already have a government in place with the territorial government. It\u2019s a baby government because it just came about in \u201968, but it\u2019s progressed a lot to the point where it\u2019s typical of any responsible government in the south. Now with devolution, it has control over lands and resources, so it\u2019s come a long ways.<\/p>\n

I think it will be interesting to see how the aboriginal governments come and interface and interact with the territorial government\u2014because, at the moment, the territorial government provides all the services, all the programs.<\/p>\n

But in these land claims, these self-government agreements, there\u2019s provisions for these aboriginal governments to take over certain functions: education, social programs, housing, justice. It\u2019s going to be decades and decades before these aboriginal governments are mature and developed enough to take on these functions, but the provisions are there for them to take on a lot of the functions that the territorial government is presently providing.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s like the Northwest Territories is becoming a federation of its own.<\/strong><\/p>\n

That\u2019s right, because you have the central territorial government and you have the aboriginal governments in different parts of the North. You\u2019re eventually going to have all these governments develop and grow and become functional and interface with government. In 20, 30, 40 years from now, the situation will be quite different. Everything will not be handled out of Yellowknife, as it is now. All these aboriginal governments will be functional, little entities unto themselves. You\u2019ll have aboriginal government\u2014truer, more realistic than it is now. Now it\u2019s aboriginal government in name and in theory, to an extent. In the next 20, 30 years they\u2019ll come unto themselves, they\u2019ll develop and they\u2019ll become functional.<\/p>\n

Hopefully they\u2019ve been designed well enough that it will all work. Because the notion of self-government is significant. You\u2019re not going to be governed from afar, even Yellowknife. I think when people govern themselves and take responsibility, there can be more accountability and kind of a truer government, more independent.<\/p>\n

At the moment I think everyone in the North is so used to government. Money comes from government. Without government there wouldn\u2019t be any money, it almost seems. There isn\u2019t much industry otherwise. Through time, hopefully, as these self-governed entities develop, they\u2019ll also have to deal with the reality of the economy. How are they going to provide jobs? How are they going to be self-supporting, to a certain degree? And they\u2019re going to have to look and see what is on their land that can be developed, maybe mines, maybe oil and gas. Some, if they\u2019re fortunate, could have the resources just like Alberta and be very well off, and others that don\u2019t have the resources will have a more difficult time. It\u2019s like a microcosm of Canada, in a sense\u2014the different regions, the way they can develop and be economically sound, it\u2019s just all dependent on resources.<\/p>\n

*****<\/p>\n

*****<\/p>\n

Tim Edwards is associate editor of the Travel & Adventure, History, and Politics section of Up Here Magazine.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

[Photos courtesy of Hannah Eden\/Up Here<\/a>]<\/p>\n

This article first appeared on the World Policy Institute website.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This article was originally published in\u00a0Up Here Magazine. By Tim Edwards A letter from Senator Nick Sibbeston used to sit above the coffee machine at the Yellowknifer newspaper offices, congratulating publisher Jack \u201cSig\u201d Sigvaldason on a lifetime achievement award and cryptically mentioning a 1980\u2019s session of the territorial council, precursor to the legislative assembly, and<\/p>\n

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