OTTAWA — Incoming Supreme Court of Canada judge Michelle O’Bonsawin, poised to become the first Indigenous member of that bench, says she’s a “tell it like it…
In O’Bonsawin’s first public appearance since Prime Minister Justin Trudeau nominated her for the position last week, she said she believes her life experience as an Indigenous person, a Franco-Ontarian and someone who grew up in rural northern Ontario will serve her well on the court.We deliver the local news you need in these turbulent times on weekdays at 3 p.m.By clicking on the sign up button you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc.
She said she wanted to be a lawyer since she was a kid and hopes her story will prove inspiring to young people, especially young Indigenous women. “Anything is possible if you set your mind to it and you surround yourself with great people.” As a 48-year-old, she could potentially be on the court for a very long time, until the mandatory retirement age of 75. She joked that she’s in it “for the long haul,” and “I definitely want to get along and play well with others.”
While she was sitting as a judge, she overheard a lawyer telling a younger associate that she was the “Pocahontas of the North.” O’Bonsawin said that “education is key” when it comes to training judges to better understand the experiences of Indigenous people when they are moving through the criminal justice system.
“It is extremely important that Indigenous Peoples be able to see themselves in what are quite frankly colonial institutions,” Lametti told the committee. “And see their participation as a way of making those institutions better, and see this as a way of making Canadian law better.”Article content
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