Perry Bellegarde, elected grand chief of the Assembly of First Nations on Wednesday and the now the most powerful native politician in Canada, has spent the last 16 years honing a single, unambiguous message.
To paraphrase another prairie politician who hit it big on the national stage, in Mr. Bellegarde's view, the First Nations want in.
A career politician and longtime regional chief from Saskatchewan, Mr. Bellegarde has long argued for a broader interpretation of treaty rights, one that would see First Nations earn a much larger share of resource revenues and jobs.
In a fiery first speech as grand chief Wednesday, Mr. Bellegarde doubled down on that theme. "To the people across this great land, I say to you, that the values of fairness and tolerance which Canada exports to the world, are a lie when it comes to our people," he said.
"Canada will no longer develop pipelines, no longer develop transmission lines, or any infrastructure, on our lands as business as usual. That is not on."
'Canada is Indian land. This is my truth and this is the truth of our peoples'
His final remarks drew one of the loudest responses from the crowd:
"Canada is Indian land," he said. "This is my truth and this is the truth of our peoples."
The speech, which came after Mr. Bellegarde swept to an easy first ballot victory at the AFN's national convention, marked a significant departure from the conciliatory tone of his predecessor Shawn Atleo. But for Mr. Bellegarde, it was a perfectly on brand.
First elected as a chief in his mid 20s, Mr. Bellegarde was thrust onto the provincial stage in 1998, when he beat back two challengers to become the head of the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations (FSIN) at the age of 35.
From the start, he focused in that job on what he called "the treaty agenda." In a 2001 interview, he called Saskatchewan's booming uranium, potash and energy industries "unfinished treaty business" and vowed to extract a greater share for his people — in jobs, cash or both. In 2013, he called for a moratorium on new resource permits in Saskatchewan, decrying the lack of a revenue-sharing agreement with First Nations as "economic racism."
Mr. Bellegarde echoed those ideas Wednesday. "We will no longer accept poverty and hopelessness while resource companies and governments grow fat off our lands and territories and resources," he said. "If our lands and resources are to be developed, it will be done only with our fair share of the royalties, with our ownership of the resources and jobs for our people. It will be done on our terms and our timeline."
A member of the Little Black Bear First Nation, Mr. Bellegarde grew up on a small reserve northeast of Regina. He first tried for the AFN's top job in 2009, when he lost to Mr. Atleo on the eighth ballot.
On Wednesday, he faced two other contenders and was required to win 60% on the final ballot. He won 63% on the first ballot.
He captured 291 votes, compared to the 136 who voted for his nearest rival, Ghislain Picard, regional AFN chief of Quebec and Labrador.
Leon Jourdain, former Grand Chief of Treaty 3, which constitutes northwest Ontario and eastern Manitoba, came third with 35 votes.
Mr. Bellegarde's victory opens a challenging new phase for the AFN. Earlier this year, the organization was thrown into disarray when Mr. Atleo quit because of complaints from other chiefs over his perceived co-operation with the federal government on a controversial bill to reform First Nations education.
Relations with Stephen Harper's Conservative government have been in a deep chill on issues ranging from education to violence against indigenous women, to natural resource development.
As well, within indigenous communities, there are complaints the AFN chiefs no longer reflect the First Nations "grassroots."
In the leadership contest, Mr. Bellegarde took a more moderate approach to dealing with the federal government than had his rivals, declaring to reporters as voting began Wednesday morning that he'd seek an early meeting with the prime minister if he became top chief.
By contrast, the two others said they would not reach out to Mr. Harper, and Mr. Jourdain even said any AFN leader who meets the prime minister will be "selling out" his own indigenous people.
At a news conference after his victory, Mr. Bellegarde emphasized he disagrees with Jourdain.
"To this government here, that's here now, we need to reach out and bring them to the table because the status quo in this country is just not acceptable."
"You have to bring people to the table. No question. You can't stay on the outside. You have to engage in dialogue."
In an interview last week, Mr. Bellegarde revealed he previously met Mr. Harper when he was working to restore funding to a First Nations university.
His takeaway? "You had to make the business case and engage in the dialogue. You don't get everything you need or want all the time, but at least have the exchange."
Asked if the prime minister has an "open mind" on the priorities of indigenous people, Mr. Bellegarde said: "It's not there yet. You can see that."
Mr. Bellegarde said he knows what to do if the federal government turns its back on him. "Then you do the legal, political, activist strategy. All three have to work concertedly to bring people to the table."
After Mr. Bellegarde's victory was announced, Mr. Jourdain said chiefs had chosen to support the "corporate world" instead of their own children's future.
"This was a turning point of the indigenous nations of this country. Assimilation has done what it is supposed to do."
National Post, with files from Postmedia News and The Canadian Press
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