'I have never felt safe': Nunavut MP accuses parliamentary security of racial profiling in farewell speech
In a scathing farewell speech, Nunavut NDP MP Mumilaaq Qaqqaq blasted the federal government for inaction on Indigenous issues and accused parliamentary security of racial profiling.
During a series of speeches by MPs not seeking re-election, Qaqqaq said federal security frequently stopped her to the point where she did not feel safe on Parliament Hill. Her comments have sparked reaction from her colleagues, who spoke to the work still needed to be done in Ottawa to make Parliament a welcoming place for a diversity of voices.
“Every time I walk on House of Commons grounds, speak in these chambers, I’m reminded every step of the way (that) I don’t belong here,” she said during her speech.
“Since being elected, I expect to be stopped by security at my workplace. I’ve had security jog after me in hallways, nearly put their hands on me, or racial profile me as a member of Parliament.”
Qaqqaq added that she would often be reduced to tears on the elevator or in the bathroom until she could regain composure.
“I have never felt safe or protected in my position, especially within the House of Commons,” she said.
“I shouldn’t be afraid of going into work, no one should be afraid of going into work.”
Responding to a CTVNews.ca request for comment, the Parliamentary Protective Service (PPS) that guards Parliament Hill said that it is “committed to deliver on its mission of security effectively while ensuring that all members of the parliamentary community can enjoy a safe, welcoming, and inclusive environment.”
In an email, the PPS said that it has “extended an invitation to Ms. Qaqqaq to discuss the matter further.”
Qaqqaq also accused the federal government of inaction on Indigenous issues, particularly issues that pertain to the Inuk community, such as food security, affordability and housing.
“During my time in this chamber, I have heard so many pretty words like ‘reconciliation,’ ‘diversity’ and ‘inclusion,’” she said. “I have been called courageous, strong and brave by people outside of my party, but let me be brutally honest, nice words with no action hurt when they are uttered by those with power over the federal institution and refuse to take action.”
Qaqqaq, 27, was elected in Canada’s geographically largest riding in 2019. She stepped away from her post in the fall after a tour of housing in her home territory left her depressed and overwhelmed, she told The Canadian Press over the weekend.
In May, Qaqqaq announced she would not be seeking re-election.
“I don’t belong here, but my presence -- I hope -- is starting to crack the foundations of this very federal institution that started colonizing Inuit barely 70 years ago,” she said on Tuesday.
“I’m looking forward to a time when people like me could belong here, a time we can be here.”
This is not the first time a sitting MP has said they felt racially profiled on parliamentary grounds.
Celina Caesar-Chavannes, a Black woman and former Liberal MP representing Whitby, Ont.,wrote on Facebook in 2017 that security did not hold the door for her to enter the building where her office is located, despite working at the location for a year and was later told she needed a pass to get back in the building.
In an interview with CTV News, Caesar-Chavannes said she was “heartbroken” but “empowered” by Qaqqaq’s speech, saying that while she empathizes, she wishes she didn’t have to.
“When I was speaking up about issues that I was having on Parliament Hill… I was very clear that I didn't want another young person or another person coming in after me, to be surprised about what exists on Parliament Hill. How othering it is, how brutal it is to individuals who are not seen as being politicians, and so I'm really disappointed that she had to go through that,” she said.
“There’s no other MP that looks like Mumilaaq, there was no other MP during the 42nd Parliament that looked like me, and yet security can't manage to remember who we are, and that gives a particular sense of un-belonging, that particular sense of otherness that I don't think people quite understand unless they've experienced it, and that needs to shift.”
'A CALL TO ACTION'
Responding to her comments, Indigenous Services Minister Marc Miller said that “it’s a reflection of still who we are as a country that MP Qaqqaq still feels that way,” and that all MPs should feel badly that this has been her experience.
Further, he said that while they have had differences of opinion, Qaqqaq’s perspective is important and she should feel safe coming to the Hill to do her work and represent her constituents.
“That’s happening where she has parliamentary privilege, which is the right and duty to speak on behalf of the people that she represents… it is a sad reflection of where we are. It's unacceptable. And it shouldn't be that way, yet it is,” Miller said.
In a tweet, Conservative MP Michelle Rempel Garner said it was, “a call to action for all of us.”
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh said Qaqqaq’s speech raised “a fundamental question” about who MPs have been and should be going forward, and said he’ll be continuing to apply pressure to the House of Commons to become a more welcoming place for Indigenous people, racialized people, and women.
Singh said that the concerns she’s raised should be immediately addressed by the House, but also the federal government has a continuing responsibility to address the systemic discriminatory actions of institutions like Parliament by taking seriously reconciliation and implementing the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s calls to action.
With files from CTV News’ Annie Bergeron-Oliver
IN DEPTH
Trudeau, key election players to testify at foreign interference hearings. What you need to know
The public hearings portion of the federal inquiry into foreign interference in Canadian elections and democratic institutions are picking back up this week. Here's what you need to know.
'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.
Who is supporting, opposing new online harms bill?
Now that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's sweeping online harms legislation is before Parliament, allowing key stakeholders, major platforms, and Canadians with direct personal experience with abuse to dig in and see what's being proposed, reaction is streaming in. CTVNews.ca has rounded up reaction, and here's how Bill C-63 is going over.
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.
TREND LINE What Nanos' tracking tells us about Canadians' mood, party preference heading into 2024
Heading into a new year, Canadians aren't feeling overly optimistic about the direction the country is heading, with the number of voters indicating negative views about the federal government's performance at the highest in a decade, national tracking from Nanos Research shows.
Opinion
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.
opinion Don Martin: Pierre Poilievre's road to apparent victory will soon start to get rougher
Pierre Poilievre and his Conservatives appear to be on cruise control to a rendezvous with the leader's prime ministerial ambition, but in his latest column for CTVNews.ca, Don Martin questions whether the Conservative leader may be peaking too soon.
opinion Don Martin: The Trudeau lessons from Brian Mulroney's legacy start with walking away
Justin Trudeau should pay very close attention to the legacy treatment afforded former prime minister Brian Mulroney, who died on Thursday at age 84, writes columnist Don Martin.
opinion Don Martin: ArriveCan debacle may be even worse than we know from auditor's report
It's been 22 years since a former auditor general blasted the Chretien government after it 'broke just about every rule in the book' in handing out private sector contracts in the sponsorship scandal. In his column for CTVNews.ca, Don Martin says the book has been broken anew with everything that went on behind the scenes of the 'dreaded' ArriveCan app.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
CRA no longer requiring 'bare trust' reporting in 2023 tax return
The Canada Revenue Agency announced Thursday it will not require 'bare trust' reporting from Canadians that it introduced for the 2024 tax season, just four days before the April 2 deadline.
He didn't trust police but sought their help anyway. Two days later, he was dead
Jameek Lowery was among more than 330 Black people who died after police stopped them with tactics that aren’t supposed to be deadly, like physical restraint and use of stun guns, The Associated Press found.
Fluid in eye cells can 'boil' if you watch the eclipse without protection: expert
Millions of people in parts of Eastern and Atlantic Canada will be able to see the rare solar eclipse happening on April 8. But they should only look up if they have proper eye protection, experts say.
NEW More unauthorized products for skin, sexual enhancement, recalled: Here are the recalls of this week
Health Canada and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency recalled various items this week, including torches, beef biltong and unauthorized products related to skin care and sexual enhancement.
Where is the worst place for allergy sufferers in Canada?
The spring allergy season has started early in many parts of Canada, with high levels of pollen in some cities already. Experts weigh in on which areas have it worse so far this season.
Do these exercises for core strength if you can't stomach doing planks
Planks are one of the most effective exercises for strengthening your midsection, as they target all of your major core muscles: the transverse abdominis, rectus abdominis, external obliques and internal obliques. Yet despite the popularity of various 10-minute plank challenges, planking is actually one of the most dreaded core exercises, according to many fitness experts.
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
Polar ice is melting and changing Earth's rotation. It's messing with time itself
One day in the next couple of years, everyone in the world will lose a second of their time. Exactly when that will happen is being influenced by humans, according to a new study, as melting polar ice alters the Earth’s rotation and changes time itself.
Sunshine list: These were the Ontario public sector's highest earners in 2023
Ontario released its annual sunshine list Thursday afternoon, noting that the largest year-over-year increases were in hospitals, municipalities, and post-secondary sectors.
Local Spotlight
Conservation officers seize 9-foot python from Chilliwack home
B.C. conservation officers recently seized a nine-foot-long Burmese python from a home in Chilliwack.
N.B. man wins $64 million from Lotto 6/49
A New Brunswicker will go to bed Thursday night much richer than he was Wednesday after collecting on a winning lottery ticket he let sit on his bedroom dresser for nearly a year.
Ontario auto-insurance changes could leave some vulnerable, says expert
The Ontario government is introducing changes to auto-insurance, but some experts say the move is ill-advised.
Tipping is off the table at this Toronto restaurant
A Toronto restaurant introduced a surprising new rule that reduced the cost of a meal and raised the salaries of staff.
A tiny critter who could: Elusive Newfoundland Marten makes improbable comeback
Newfoundland’s unique version of the Pine Marten has grown out of its threatened designation.
Ontario man loses $12K to deepfake scam involving Prime Minister Justin Trudeau
A Toronto man is out $12,000 after falling victim to a deepfake cryptocurrency scam that appeared to involve Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
Record-setting pop tab collection for Ontario boy
It started small with a little pop tab collection to simply raise some money for charity and help someone — but it didn’t take long for word to get out that 10-year-old Jace Weber from Mildmay, Ont. was quickly building up a large supply of aluminum pop tabs.
'I was just like, holy cow!': Saskatoon dumpster divers reclaim wasted valuables
There’s a group of people in Saskatoon that proudly call themselves dumpster divers, and they’re turning the city’s trash into treasure.
Ontario to balance budget ahead of 2026 election, citing delay due to 'economic uncertainty'
Ontario is facing a larger than anticipated deficit but the Doug Ford government still plans to balance its books before the next provincial election.