Ignoring Indigenous nations and rights as Canada enters a new economic chapter would shred Canada’s reputation, much as ignoring the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement shreds America’s. Ignoring us is contrary to the last decade of Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation work and is a risk to both the legitimacy of political elites and the profitability of Canadian industries.

The AFN is a political organization that advocates on behalf of First Nations with the federal government. Originating as the National Indian Brotherhood in the late 1960s, it has only ever been led by men. That changed in June 2021 when the chiefs made ‘her’story and elected the first female national chief. It was not the first time a woman had run for the post.

We hope the AFN will reflect on why it struggled so significantly, both within the organization and on the public stage, with its first female national chief. We want a politics informed by our Indigenous histories and traditions, but above all, we want a politics for future generations—which is what Indigenous politics have traditionally focused on.