From Nunavik to Rideau Hall: How Mary Simon's home will shape her future as Governor General
In the Inuit region of Nunavik in northern Quebec, the family and friends of Canada’s newest Governor General, Mary Simon, swell with pride as they reflect on how far she’s come.
The former ambassador and prominent Inuk leader, who was installed as the country’s 30th Governor General on Monday, was born in one of the area’s tiny villages, Kangiqsualujjuaq, located on the east coast of Ungava Bay.
It’s a place where the treeline fades into tundra, the huskies roam free, and the stunted vegetation remind of the perseverance it takes to survive.
“The land teaches a lot. The land teaches you to respect. The land teaches you to be human to everyone,” Annie Popert, Simon’s sister, explained to CTV News.
Popert said her sister learned some of her most profound and enduring lessons from the land, as she fondly recalled them picking berries together as children in the summertime.
Those lessons appeared to serve her well as she navigated the trials of attending a federal day school in Kujjuak – a 40-minute flight southwest of her birthplace – in the 1950s.
“With Mary… we always knew that something perhaps special would come about,” Popert shared.
Simon’s strength of character was tested, and perhaps forged, during those years at a government-run school where Indigenous children were forced to speak English as their Inuit culture was systematically washed away.
Popert remembers her brother Johnny and his friends arriving late for school and one of the teachers would shoot a BB gun at their legs as punishment.
“That was pretty awful to watch,” she said.
Dennis Lock, Popert’s son and Simon’s nephew, shared his thoughts on what his aunt’s new role as Governor General means to his people.
“It’s what the country needs right now,” he said, particularly in light of the recent discoveries of the remains of hundreds of Indigenous children who died attending residential schools across Canada.
“With everything that’s been going on with all the kids they’ve been finding...” Lock said before trailing off. “I’m getting emotional.”
As Lock steers a boat down the Koksoak River, the land where the “old Kujjuak” is located is visible. That’s where Simon and Popert’s family used to live, until after the Second World War, when the Americans turned over an airbase to the Canadian government and the community resettled there.
Returning to Kujjuak’s former location, however, is how Popert reconnects with her childhood.
“We lived here for a good number of years when my father was transferred from the Kangiqsualujjuaq outpost camp,” she said.
Popert and Simon’s father, a white man who spoke Inuktitut, ran a Hudson Bay Company trading post, which is how he met their mother, an Inuk woman. The family moved around Nunavik when the children were young before settling on Kujjuak.
Willy Etok’s father used to trade fur with Simon’s father at the Kangiqsualujjuaq outpost camp. He said Simon will make a difference in her new role as Governor General and put their people on the map.
David Annanack, the mayor of Kangiqsualujjuaq who grew up with Simon, is of the same opinion.
“Yes it will for all the First Nations. It will help them to create their future because we’ve been put aside too long,” he said.
As Popert tours her old homeland, she’s reminded of her late grandmother and the stories she would tell of overcoming adversity.
“I think the resiliency is in me and my siblings and Mary, but it’s in all Inuit,” she said.
It’s that spirit that will guide Simon in her new position, according to Popert, and help her to achieve a brighter tomorrow for generations of Indigenous Peoples to come.
IN DEPTH
Budget 2024 prioritizes housing while taxing highest earners, deficit projected at $39.8B
In an effort to level the playing field for young people, in the 2024 federal budget, the government is targeting Canada's highest earners with new taxes in order to help offset billions in new spending to enhance the country's housing supply and social supports.
'One of the greatest': Former prime minister Brian Mulroney commemorated at state funeral
Prominent Canadians, political leaders, and family members remembered former prime minister and Progressive Conservative titan Brian Mulroney as an ambitious and compassionate nation-builder at his state funeral on Saturday.
'Democracy requires constant vigilance' Trudeau testifies at inquiry into foreign election interference in Canada
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau testified Wednesday before the national public inquiry into foreign interference in Canada's electoral processes, following a day of testimony from top cabinet ministers about allegations of meddling in the 2019 and 2021 federal elections. Recap all the prime minister had to say.
As Poilievre sides with Smith on trans restrictions, former Conservative candidate says he's 'playing with fire'
Siding with Alberta Premier Danielle Smith on her proposed restrictions on transgender youth, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre confirmed Wednesday that he is against trans and non-binary minors using puberty blockers.
Supports for passengers, farmers, artists: 7 bills from MPs and Senators to watch in 2024
When parliamentarians return to Ottawa in a few weeks to kick off the 2024 sitting, there are a few bills from MPs and senators that will be worth keeping an eye on, from a 'gutted' proposal to offer a carbon tax break to farmers, to an initiative aimed at improving Canada's DNA data bank.
Opinion
opinion Don Martin: Gusher of Liberal spending won't put out the fire in this dumpster
A Hail Mary rehash of the greatest hits from the Trudeau government’s three-week travelling pony-show, the 2024 federal budget takes aim at reversing the party’s popularity plunge in the under-40 set, writes political columnist Don Martin. But will it work before the next election?
opinion Don Martin: The doctor Trudeau dumped has a prescription for better health care
Political columnist Don Martin sat down with former federal health minister Jane Philpott, who's on a crusade to help fix Canada's broken health care system, and who declined to take any shots at the prime minister who dumped her from caucus.
opinion Don Martin: Trudeau's seeking shelter from the housing storm he helped create
While Justin Trudeau's recent housing announcements are generally drawing praise from experts, political columnist Don Martin argues there shouldn’t be any standing ovations for a prime minister who helped caused the problem in the first place.
opinion Don Martin: Poilievre has the field to himself as he races across the country to big crowds
It came to pass on Thursday evening that the confidentially predictable failure of the Official Opposition non-confidence motion went down with 204 Liberal, BQ and NDP nays to 116 Conservative yeas. But forcing Canada into a federal election campaign was never the point.
opinion Don Martin: How a beer break may have doomed the carbon tax hike
When the Liberal government chopped a planned beer excise tax hike to two per cent from 4.5 per cent and froze future increases until after the next election, says political columnist Don Martin, it almost guaranteed a similar carbon tax move in the offing.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'He's in our hearts': Family and friends still seek answers one year after Nathan Wise’s disappearance
It’s been a year since Nathan Wise went missing and his family is no closer to finding out what happened to him.
'My family doctor just fired me': Ontario patients frustrated with de-rostering
Dozens of Ontarians are expressing frustration in the province’s health-care system after their family doctors either dropped them as patients or threatened to after they sought urgent care elsewhere.
Ottawa pizzeria places among top 20 deep-dish pizzas in the world at international competition
An Ottawa pizzeria is being recognized as one of the top 20 deep-dish pizzas in the world.
Canada Post cracks down on Nunavut loophole to get free Amazon Prime shipping
Amazon's paid subscription service provides free delivery for online shopping across Canada except for remote locations, the company said in an email. While customers in Iqaluit qualify for the offer, all other communities in Nunavut are excluded.
Wildfire near Fort McMurray more than triples overnight, several evacuation alerts remain in place
The fire burning near Fort McMurray grew from 25 hectares to 5,500 hectares over the weekend.
Putin replaces Russian defence minister in rare cabinet shakeup
Russia’s President Vladimir Putin began a Cabinet shakeup on Sunday, proposing the replacement of Sergei Shoigu as defence minister as he begins his fifth term in office.
Man fatally 'slashed in the neck' in downtown Toronto, suspect outstanding
Police are searching for a male suspect after a man was “slashed in neck” on Sunday morning in downtown Toronto and died.
WATCH Dashcam video shows terrifying near-miss on two-lane northern Ontario highway
There were some scary moments for several people on a northern Ontario highway caught on video Thursday after a chain reaction following a truck fire.
Edibles, armchairs and adapters: Here are the recalls for this week
Health Canada announced various product recalls this week, including electric adapters, armchairs, cannabis edibles and vehicle components.
Local Spotlight
Want to boost your trivia score? Learn from these high school trivia whiz kids
English, history, entertainment, math and geography: high school trivia teams could be quizzed on any of it when they compete at the Reach for the Top Nationals in Ottawa in June.
Ottawa pizzeria places among top 20 deep-dish pizzas in the world at international competition
An Ottawa pizzeria is being recognized as one of the top 20 deep-dish pizzas in the world.
From outer space? Sask. farmers baffled after discovering strange wreckage in field
A family of fifth generation farmers from Ituna, Sask. are trying to find answers after discovering several strange objects lying on their land.
Wilfrid Laurier football player drafted despite only playing 27 games in his entire life
A Listowel, Ont. man, drafted by the Hamilton Tigercats last week, is also getting looks from the NFL, despite only playing 27 games of football in his life.
Federal government bans watercraft from Manitoba lake popular with tourists
The threat of zebra mussels has prompted the federal government to temporarily ban watercraft from a Manitoba lake popular with tourists.
Toronto-area dessert shop featured by Keith Lee forced to move after zoning complaint
A small Ajax dessert shop that recently received a glowing review from celebrity food critic Keith Lee is being forced to move after a zoning complaint was made following the social media influencer’s visit last month.
'Oh Crap!' New exhibit at Canada Science and Technology Museum explores human waste
The Canada Science and Technology Museum is inviting visitors to explore their poop. A new exhibition opens at the Ottawa museum on Friday called, 'Oh Crap! Rethinking human waste.'
Regina police hope new biometric monitoring system will save lives in detention facility
The Regina Police Service says it is the first in Saskatchewan and possibly Canada to implement new technology in its detention facility that will offer real-time monitoring of detainees’ vital health metrics.
Her SUV was stolen in Montreal. A Good Samaritan on Facebook helped her get it back
Just as she had feared, a restaurant owner from eastern Quebec who visited Montreal had her SUV stolen, but says it was all thanks to the kindness of strangers on the internet — not the police — that she got it back.