UBC Allard professor and lawyer Dr. Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond (Aki-kwe) has released a statement in response to questions about her claims to Indigenous ancestry.
Turpel-Lafond said she is an active member of the Muskeg Lake Cree Nation — something the Muskeg Lake Nation has confirmed — but an article published by CBC on October 12 said that her claims to Cree ancestry do not appear to match historical records or anecdotes from Norway House Cree Nation community members, where Turpel-Lafond said her father was from.
Since the CBC article was published, UBC, the Union of BC Indian Chiefs (UBCIC) and the Saskatoon Tribal Council have voiced support for Turpel-Lafond, although UBC did not comment on her Indigenous identity. Muskeg Lake Chief Kelly Wolfe also confirmed Turpel-Lafond’s membership in the CBC article and in a letter posted on the Nation's Twitter.
"Kinship determines who is a member of the Nation, and she is part of one of our kinship families," Wolfe wrote.
The UBCIC said issues of First Nations identity and community membership are for Indigenous peoples to determine. "It is not the role of the media, the crown, or anyone else to tell us who we are."
Turpel-Lafond served as the inaugural academic director of UBC's Indian Residential School History and Dialogue Centre. She also published the In Plain Sight report in 2020 that found systemic anti-Indigenous racism within the BC health care system.
In a statement posted on Turpel-Lafond’s Twitter account Friday morning, she reaffirmed that she is a “person of Cree, Scottish and English heritage” and that her name, Aki-Kwe, was given to her by Rousseau River First Nation Elder and matriarch Mary Roberts.
Updated statement correcting a typo. It now reads accurately as ‘my father’s parents’ #bcpoli #skpoli #cdnpoli https://t.co/BwgiC3sO2X pic.twitter.com/esCLSu4hEY
— METL (@METLAkikwe) October 14, 2022
She said her father William Turpel was adopted by a non-Indigenous couple in Norway House in a non-formal manner.
“[My father] was Cree, spoke Cree and lived the values of a Cree person,” she wrote.
The CBC report claims it found a birth announcement of her father to her non-Indigenous grandparents from a 1927 edition of the Victoria Daily Times.
In a statement sent to The Ubyssey, Matthew Ramsey, director of university affairs at UBC Media Relations, said UBC cannot provide any of Turpel-Lafond’s personal information, but that the university looks at a candidates’ academic credentials, professional qualifications and lived experience when hiring.
When hiring to fill Indigenous-specific roles, Ramsey said UBC includes Indigenous people on the hiring committee and will advertise when specific connections to Indigenous communities are needed.
He added that UBC has relied on self-identification when hiring for Indigenous-specific roles.
“UBC understands that the issue of Indigenous identity is complex and is committed to working collaboratively with Indigenous peoples as we all seek to navigate these issues and refine these important decision-making processes,” he wrote.
In response to allegations that she was hired through affirmative action reported by CBC, Turpel-Lafond said she has competed for every job she has had alongside all the candidates and has never been awarded a position for affirmative action, although she supports it.
Ramsey told The Globe and Mail on October 12 that "Indigenous identity was not a criterion" when hiring Turpel-Lafond.
Turpel-Lafond added that public statements may have been incorrect on occasion, but that she is only accountable for confirming her qualifications to employers and clients.
“I have been clear in my work that I do not speak for any First Nation as I am a private citizen, not an elected Chief or Leader,” she said.
Turpel-Lafond declined to comment further when contacted by The Ubyssey.
— With files from Anabella McElroy
Share this article
