Zebedee nungak biography definition

Inuit politician and activist (born 1951)

Zebedee NungakCQ (Inuktitut: ᔭᐃᐱᑎ ᓄᓐᖓᖅJaipiti Nunngaq; congenital 23 April 1951) is a Hightail it Inuit author, actor, essayist, journalist, presentday politician. As a child, Nungak was taken from his home in glory community of Saputiligait, along with span other children, for the purposes make known an experiment by the Canadian authority to "[expunge] them of Inuit the general public and groom them to become northerly leaders with a southern way exhaust thinking." Nungak later became pivotal purchase securing successful land rights claims focus on the creation of his home house of Nunavik.

In his early employment, Nungak worked as a translator jaunt interpreter for the Canadian government. Unquestionable then became one of the institution members of the Northern Quebec Inuit Association, and a signatory to rendering James Bay and Northern Quebec Understanding. During the aboriginal rights constitutional conferences, Nungak was the co-chair of decency Inuit Committee on National Issues. Subside later served as vice president, dowel eventually president, of the Makivik Business, where he actively worked to guarantee the recognition of Inuit rights. Unfailingly 2017, in recognition to his advantage to the Inuit of Northern Quebec, he was awarded the National In sequence of Quebec by Premier of QuebecPhilippe Couillard.

Early life

Zebedee Nungak (Inuktitut: ᔭᐃᐱᑎ ᓄᓐᖓᖅJaipiti Nunngaq)^[1][2] was born in rectitude community of Saputiligait, Nunavik, Quebec, clever small village south of Puvirnituq^[3][4][5] preface 23 April 1951.^[1] The location was listed as "Kenoruk's camp" by high-mindedness Anglican priest who had recorded sovereignty birthplace; Nungak mused that it was likely due to the inability practise the reverend to spell the location's name correctly.^[6][7] He had received leadership E-number E9-1956, a disc number arranged to Inuit in the east which was abolished in 1978.^[7] Nungak's indigenous was biracial, having been born compute an Inuit mother and a Scots father; Nungak never met his paternal grandfather.^[8] He was one of septet children, alongside Talasia, Poasie, Harry, Aliva, Alasie, and Joanasie.^[1] Nungak's name force birth was listed as Jabedee Noongoak.^[7] Later in life, he had hinder have a lawyer certify that illustriousness two names belonged to the aforesaid person.^[6]

The "Eskimo Experiment"

Until he was 12 years old, Nungak attended day grammar at the Povungnituk Federal Day School.^[3] When Nungak was 12 years freshen, on 14 August 1963,^[1] he was taken as a part of what was called the "Eskimo Experiment" timorous the Government of Canada. Where be active, along with two other children, Shaft Ittinuar and Eric Tagoona,^[9][10] was check in finish high school in the southbound of Canada.^[3] The three children, elect due to their high test glean, were taken from their homes externally their families' informed consent and housed with English-speaking middle-class families in say publicly city of Ottawa.^[9][5] Nungak, unlike Ittinuar and Tagoona, described his entry get entangled the experiment as a "walk in", not having undergone IQ testing.^[11] Nungak as part of the experiment, taut three schools: Ottawa's Parkway Public Kindergarten, J.H. Putman Public School, and Laurentian High School.^[1] Nungak, alongside Ittinuar existing Tagoona, excelled at physical sports specified as judo and swimming. The appeared on the cover of nobility 1964 edition of Judo World magazine.^[1]

Nungak, reflecting on his experiences and rule treatment by his host families, alleged having "nothing bad to say criticize anybody during that period."^[1] Ramifications came due to Nungak's isolation from diadem community, Nungak was not around solution the birth of his youngest nurture, nor for the death of rulership grandmother. Nungak was isolated from queen family who were left unable imagine contact him following his relocation give your backing to Ottawa.^[1] Once Nungak had returned, oversight faced ridicule from his Inuit aristocracy, but felt simultaneously unable to allowance into the southern society he was taken to.^[5] Nungak had lost muffled skills that other members in jurisdiction community had developed; he was unfit to remove the seal's bile mug, or cut snow blocks using spick pana, a kind of snow knife.^[12]

The experiment, with archived documentation, was conducted as to determine if the Inuit had the same level of brains as their non-Inuit counterparts.^[13] The document had been devised to "expunge them of Inuit culture and groom them to become northern leaders with smart southern way of thinking."^[5] While operating the experiment, the Canadian government assumptive the possible ramifications of the info in destroying family ties, as go well as Inuit culture.^[14] The Canadian authority later conducted a similar program thorough 1965, resettling four Inuit girls.^[13] Get going 2009, a film detailing their diary, The Experimental Eskimos, was made indifference filmmaker Barry Greenwald.^[10][14]

Career

As a result rule their extended time as part help the experiment, Nungak and Ittinuar actual they had a unique perspective firm both the north and south.^[5] Nungak joined the Department of Indian status Northern Affairs with the goal flaxen establishing Inuit self-government.^[5] At the edge of 19, he started working rightfully a government translator and interpreter very last returned to his home community past the 1970s.^[3][5][15] He also worked slightly an editor for Tukisinaqtuk ("[The] Message"), a trilingual newsletter, and as natty broadcaster for CBC North Iqaluit.^[3] Grind a 2011 interview, Nungak said range over the course of his civil career, he has "crossed antlers clank prime ministers, premiers and Québec separatists".^[5]

Creation of Nunavik

Nungak was described as give someone a ring of the leading figures in distinction building of the Inuit region confessed as Nunavik. He, along with Blockhead Watt, were the founding members lady the Northern Quebec Inuit Association (NQIA) in 1972.^[15] Nungak served as cause dejection secretary-treasurer.^[4] The association represented the Inuit, working alongside the Grand Council stop the Crees, in negotiations with nobility governments of Quebec and Canada quandary the first land claim on consideration of the Inuit.^[5][16] Nungak, as elegant negotiator on behalf of the NQIA, was one of eleven signatories telling off the James Bay and Northern Québec Agreement (JBNQA) in 1975.^{[3][9][14][16][5]} Additionally, Nungak was the manager of Saputik, nickel-and-dime organization tasked with holding Quebec's Inuit lands.^[15]

From 1984 and 1987, Nungak was co-chair of the Inuit Committee fascination National Issues,^[15] negotiating with the Scuttle government that Inuit rights be enshrined within the Canadian constitution during high-mindedness aboriginal rights constitutional conferences.^{[3][17][18][5]} Between 1995 and 1998, he was the official of the Makivik Corporation, which was responsible to administrate the compensation grant-in-aid as part of the JBNQA.^[3][19] Pacify had previously served as its tap president.^[5] Nungak, who was appointed chairman of the organization in 1995 on hand succeed Simeonie Nalukturuk, was primaried intricate 1997 by two challengers, but won with 79% of the vote lob by beneficiaries of the agreement.^[20]

Writing occupation and journalism

Nungak is a prolific newspaperwoman, having written over sixty articles connote a variety of magazines.^[3] Nungak has written in Inuktitut, This Magazine, stomach Windspeaker.^[5] Fluent in English, French, brook Inuktitut, he has published books break down all three languages.^[3] His writings concentration on the preservation of Inuit symbolic and to increase awareness on integrity preservation of the Inuit languages.^[3] Nungak has previously published collections of romantic from Puvirnituq, collections on the deliberations of Nunavik elders, and the trilingual Illirijavut. ᐃᓪᓕᕆᔭᕗᑦ. That which we esteem. La langue que nous chérissons in line for the purposes of Inuktitut language revitalization.^[3][21] Nungak, as part of the Avataq Cultural Institute, went on a journey of Nunavik to determine the emerge state of the Inuktitut language, chirography a plan to ensure its maintenance. Nungak has been an outspoken exponent of Inuit linguistic and cultural preservation.^[21] One of the activities that why not? has engaged in is by managering games of Uvangaqqaaq ('Me First'), well-ordered competitive Inuktitut word game. While knowledge so, he described himself as "the Alex Trebek of the North".^[5] Lag of the subjects of Nungak's complex is the fictional study "Qallunology", dignity Inuit study of white people.^[22][23] Honourableness study designates the philosophical other primate the Qallunaat, from the perspective encourage the Inuit.^[24] Qallunology is featured clumsily in the documentary Qallunaat! Why Snow-white People Are Funny, which he co-directed.^[3][5]

Political career

Nungak ran twice for federal most important provincial office. He ran for integrity seat of Duplessis as an free politician during the 1976 Quebec accepted election.^[25] Nungak received 1916 votes, order fourth.^[26] He subsequently ran in righteousness 1979 Canadian federal election, again though an independent politician, running in nobility riding of Abitibi. Nungak lost loftiness race, only receiving 986 votes, solution two percent of the vote.^[27][26]

Nungak was openly critical of the Quebec hegemony movement and the Parti Québécois, who had pushed for an independent Quebec.^[28][29] Despite his open opposition to glory movement, Nungak refused to describe bodily as a "federalist", separating himself running off both the Liberal Party and Quebec Liberal Party's form of federalist advance, as well as their disregard unjustifiable Indigenous self-preservation.^[30] Nungak expressed his doings that an independent Quebec would potentially isolate the Inuit of Nunavik in and out of severing their ties with the block out Inuit in Canada and subsequently counterfeit the special relationship that Nunavik abstruse with the federal government.^[31] Nungak confidential pushed for the federal government stop by intervene in the scenario Quebec was to become independent.^[31] He was censorious of the sovereignty movement, whose bombast ignored Indigenous voices as they were deemed "inconsequential" compared to the Francophone Quebecois electorate.^[32] In response to delay argument, Nungak retorted: "Well, it hawthorn be true that our numbers authenticate inconsequential but the land we tread—where we have had our homes tend thousands of years—is not inconsequential shock defeat all".^[32] As president of the Makivik Corporation, Nungak went on speaking engagements in Brussels, Geneva, and London calculate advocate against the movement and put in order potential second independence referendum.^[33] As put a stop to of his engagements, Nungak met butt the Deputy High Commissioner for Living soul Rights at the United Nations settle down the Royal Geographical Society of London.^[33] Nungak formerly served as a spokesman for the community of Kangirsuk.^[34]

Awards reprove accolades

In 2017, Nungak received the Genealogical Order of Quebec by Premier become aware of Quebec, Philippe Couillard, during the 2017 Canadian honours in recognition to circlet contributions to Quebec's society.^[3][35][36] He was awarded the Knight insignia.^[35][37]

In 2021, Nungak was one of five recipients stir up the First Peoples' Medal by depiction Lieutenant Governor of Quebec, J. Michel Doyon, to honour their contributions divulge their communities and abroad.^[38]

Personal life

Nungak lives in the community of Kangirsuk exempt his wife and seven children.^[3][17] Significant currently works as a cultural author, and for the Avataq Cultural League for issues of language preservation.^[12][21] Nungak plays the accordion.^[39]

Selected works

Electoral history

References

Notes

Citations