Chief J. Wilton Littlechild of Maskwacis promoted to Companion of The Order of Canada

Speaking to rdnewsNOW Thursday, Littlechild said he thanks the Creator, and that the honour is for his family and the sacrifices they’ve made along the way.

“My message about reconciliation with 2024 ahead of us remains the same. Going back 25 years to my first recognition with The Order of Canada, a lot of things have happened. For 6.5 years, there was the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s work which led to the 94 Calls to Action. Reconciliation is a lifelong journey. We never stated it would be something that happens overnight, given that it takes all of us working together to achieve it.”

Littlechild points out around 15 calls to action have been completed, while another 50 or so are in progress, and others are yet to be initiated. One he believes crucial is the establishment of a national reconciliation council (calls 53-56).

Bill C-29, An Act to provide for the establishment of a national council for reconciliation, received third reading from the Senate of Canada on Nov. 20, 2023. Funding was initially put forward for it in Budget 2019. An amendment during third reading sent it back to the House of Commons for consideration, however.

The Government of Canada shared this report on the 94 Calls to Action earlier this year.

“Treaty 6 is a peace and friendship treaty, and [it speaks of] peaceful coexistence. I think we’re moving there, I really do. I feel good, having gone through many parts of our country since the report, and seeing what’s going on,” he says. “The council would serve to uplift those good things, and share information so we can all continue working together.”

Littlechild still recalls July 25, 2022, when Pope Francis visited Maskwacis, calling it an important milestone.

He is therefore encouraged, insisting that the yardstick has moved, to steal a football reference — one of many sports he played and was involved in en route to being inducted into the Alberta Sports Hall of Fame as a multi-sport builder in 2009, and the Canada Sports Hall of Fame as a builder in 2018.

As for his advocacy around Indigenous representation in sport, Littlechild is further encouraged by recent news that U.S. President Joe Biden endorses the idea of an Indigenous lacrosse team at the 2028 Summer Olympics.

“Sports contributed to my survival. I hate to think about where I’d be — maybe I would’ve been found dead somewhere by now, but I don’t like to go there. I like to thank God, Creator, for helping me find sport as a way to run away from the abuse I was going through,” he says. “Sport has the power to not only bring people together, but to promote positive well-being. Nelson Mandela once said that sports speak a language children can truly understand, and it’s so true.”

Earlier this year, rdnewsNOW interviewed Chief Littlechild when he was in Red Deer to give an official blessing to the new logo of the Red Deer Optimist Chiefs hockey team — a logo that bears his very own headdress.

BACKGROUND: Red Deer Minor Hockey alters ‘Chiefs’ logo in, “great act of reconciliation,” Chief says

Going back to the Olympics, Littlechild once advocated for the ability of Palestine to fly its flag at the Olympics.

This month, Littlechild, representing Ermineskin Cree Nation, put forward a motion at the Assembly of First Nations Special Chiefs Meetings calling for a ceasefire in Israel and Palestine. The motion was overwhelmingly supported. He agrees with those who say there are similarities to what’s happening in Gaza, and the historic treatment of Indigenous people in Canada.

A ceasefire would allow for time to have a discussion about how to move forward with peace and reconciliation for the region and its peoples, he believes.

“We met with Holocaust survivors here and they said to never allow Canada or people in Canada to say residential schools didn’t exist, and that’s because they faced the same challenges and denial,” he says. “Then you go to the Palestinian situation where there’s been dispossession of people from their lands and territories, including lack of recognition of them as a government or country. I’ve been watching both sides of this issue and what I see there is a lack of voice for Indigenous peoples.”

The parallels are why Littlechild’s motion urged both sides to seek an immediate ceasefire. Another chief supported the motion by amending it to say ‘permanent’ ceasefire, to which Littlechild agreed.

“How do those two countries, given their history of conflict over many centuries, find the ability to be willing to talk about reconciliation? I hope and pray that they would,” he says. “That would bring us full circle, in terms of [recognizing] common experience. Yes, it’s been disastrous and traumatic, but let’s discuss peaceful co-existence.”

Mary Simon, Governor General of Canada, says the individuals recognized today are celebrated for their perseverance, ingenuity and community spirit.

“As governor general, I have seen first-hand that our communities are rich in both excellence and diversity, which we need to do our utmost to recognize,” she says. “I encourage each of us to become catalysts for the change we want to see in the Canadian Honours System by nominating individuals whose exceptional accomplishments may have gone unrecognized through the years.”

Other appointees to The Order of Canada on Dec. 28, 2023, include Albertans Jodi Leanne Abbott of Edmonton, Glen Baker of Edmonton, and Louis Hugo Francescutti of Sherwood Park.

Elsewhere, prominent appointees include George Stroumboulopoulos (Toronto), Michael de Adder (Moncton) and Nikita James Nanos (Ottawa).

A full list of today’s appointees can be viewed at gg.ca.

by Josh Hall | @Vancan19

Chief J. Wilton Littlechild of Maskwacis promoted to Companion of The Order of Canada

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