David Ahenakew
This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. (March 2010) |
David Ahenakew | |
---|---|
National Chief of the Assembly of First Nations | |
In office 1982–1985 | |
Preceded by | Delbert Riley |
Succeeded by | Georges Erasmus |
Personal details | |
Born | Sandy Lake Indian Reserve, Saskatchewan, Canada | July 28, 1933
Died | March 12, 2010 Shellbrook, Saskatchewan, Canada | (aged 76)
Awards | Order of Canada (revoked)[1] |
David Ahenakew
Ahenakew was born at the
Military and political career
Ahenakew served in the
In 1967, upon leaving the army, Ahenakew accepted a position with the Saskatchewan government, and became active in the
During his time as FSIN president he released a report entitled "Indian Education in Saskatchewan," and played a role in the founding of the Saskatchewan Indian Cultural College and the
He received an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from the University of Regina in 1977 and in 1978 he received the John Stratychuk award from the Saskatchewan Human Rights Association.[2]
Ahenakew received the Order of Canada in the degree of Member in 1978. His citation read: "Member of a United Nations committee and of the World Indigenous Peoples Council. His many years of service to Indians and Métis in Saskatchewan culminated in his election as Chief of the Federation of Saskatchewan Indians, which has revolutionized Indian education in his province." He was stripped of the Order of Canada in 2005 after making controversial remarks about the Holocaust.[5]
On March 9, 1981, he was appointed Director of the Saskatchewan Public Service Commission's Special Programs Unit.[2]
In 1982, he was elected Chief of the Assembly of First Nations, a national representative body for Canadian aboriginals.
Controversy surrounding antisemitic remarks
On December 13, 2002, Ahenakew gave a speech to an FSIN group, which was attended by James Parker, a reporter from the
The Germans used to tell me, and I got to know them well because I played soccer against them and with them and so forth. But they used to tell me that you guys are blessed. What we know about the Indians in Canada. They are blessed. But that blessing is being destroyed by your immigrants that are going over there. Especially the Jews, they said. The Second World War was started by the Jews and the Third World War, whatever it is, is between Israel and the Arab countries. I was there as well. But there's going to be a war because the Israelis and the "Bushies" – you know, the bully, the bigot in the United States – tells you that if you're not with me you're against me.
After the session concluded, the StarPhoenix reporter asked him to clarify these remarks, and he explained that while serving in the army after the war, Germans had told him the Jews had provoked the war. The StarPhoenix quoted him as further saying:
The Jews damn near owned all of Germany prior to the war. That's why Hitler came in. He was going to make damn sure that the Jews didn't take over
Arabcountries.
The reporter asked how Ahenakew could justify the Holocaust. The StarPhoenix quoted Ahenakew as replying:
How else do you get rid of a disease like that, that's going to take over, that's going to dominate?
Public reaction
The comments were first circulated in the Canadian national media several days later, and were quickly condemned as antisemitic by Jewish groups, aboriginal leaders and Canadian politicians alike. Both Perry Bellgarde, president of FSIN, and Matthew Coon Come, AFN national chief, were quick to distance themselves from Ahenakew's comments.
In June 2003, Ahenakew was formally charged by the Saskatchewan Justice Department with promoting hatred.[6]
In an interview in the July/August 2003 edition of This Magazine, Ahenakew expressed to reporter Alex Roslin his dissatisfaction with what he called "racial control" of the media, saying that "when a group of people, a race of people, control the world media, something has to be done about it." The article also quotes claims that Ahenakew had long held racist beliefs against Jews, Blacks and other ethnic groups, and that those beliefs had been hidden from the public.[7]
In connection with the remarks from 2002, which were recorded on tape with his knowledge, Ahenakew was later convicted in July 2005 of willfully promoting hatred against Jews. Ahenakew apologized for the remarks, saying they did not represent his beliefs and that he was "caught up in the heat of the moment. I was attempting to spark debate on what has been happening to our First Nations people." At his trial, he later recanted his apology and blamed his outburst on his diabetes, some wine and a change in medication, a defense that was rejected by the court; he was subsequently fined $1,000. Despite this, he retained his belief that the Jews started the Second World War. Jewish groups, aboriginals and politicians later called for Ahenakew's membership in the Order of Canada to be revoked. The Governor General revoked Ahenakew's membership shortly after his trial.[1]
In June 2006, the conviction was overturned by the Saskatchewan Court of Queen's Bench on the grounds that the trial judge failed to properly take into account that the remarks were uttered in the midst of an angry confrontation with a reporter, and therefore may not have constituted a "willful" promotion of hatred. A new trial was ordered.[8]
Second trial
Ahenakew was retried in Saskatoon in 2008. In February 2009, Saskatchewan Provincial Court Judge Wilfred Tucker acquitted Ahenakew because his statements, while "revolting, disgusting and untrue" did not show an intent to incite hatred.[9]
Death
Following a long battle with cancer, Ahenakew died on March 12, 2010, at a hospital in Shellbrook, Saskatchewan, aged 76.[10][11]
References
- ^ a b "Ahenakew stripped of Order of Canada". CBC News. July 11, 2005.
- ^ a b c d e "Ahenakew appointed to head Special Programs Unit". Saskatchewan Indian. 11 (5): 33. May 1981.
- ^ Aboriginal Faces of Saskatchewan Archived 2008-06-10 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Filice, Michelle (December 2, 2015). "David Ahenakew". The Canadian Encyclopedia. Historica Canada. Retrieved February 5, 2019.
- ^ "Conrad Black removed from Order of Canada | CBC News". cbc.ca. Retrieved 2018-11-10.
- ^ a b "Ahenakew charged with spreading hate". CBC News. June 11, 2003.
- This Magazine. Archived from the originalon 2006-08-27.
- ^ "Judge orders new trial for David Ahenakew". CBC News. June 8, 2006.
- ^ "Canada native leader cleared in second hate trial". Reuters. February 23, 2009.
- Canwest News Service. March 13, 2010. Archived from the originalon 2010-03-24.
- ^ "Controversial native leader ahenakew dies". CBC News. March 13, 2010.
Further reading
- Ira Robinson: David Ahenakew and his Antisemitism, in Nathan Elberg, Machla Abramovitz (eds.): Zionism. An Indigenous Struggle: Aboriginal Americans and the Jewish State. Israzine, No. 4 Vol. 49, Canadian Institute for Jewish Research, Montréal, November 2014 fulltext at Isranet
External links
- David S. Koffman: Suffering & Sovereignty: Recent Canadian Jewish Interest in Indigenous Peoples and Issues. Canadian Jewish Studies - Études juives canadiennes 25, 2017, pp. 28–59
- Michelle Filice, "David Ahenakew", The Canadian Encyclopedia, last edited 25 January 2016.