Mary Simon will be installed as Canada’s 30th Governor General Monday at 11 a.m., ET – the first Indigenous person to serve in the role.
Simon was born in Kangiqsualujjuaq in the northern Quebec region known as Nunavik. Simon is bilingual, speaking both English and Inuktituk.
The ceremony will take place in the temporary site of the Senate of Canada in Ottawa.
APTN News will have full coverage of the installation on its website and social media platforms Facebook, Twitter and Youtube.
In Ottawa, reporters Brett Forester and Lindsay Richardson will be on the ground to cover the event and get reaction to Simon taking on the role.
A long time advocate for Inuit culture and rights, she also served as Canada’s ambassador to Denmark and the Canadian ambassador for circumpolar affairs.
Simon also served as chair of the Inuit Circumpolar Council (ICC) from 1986 to 1992.
Simon began her advocacy career in the 1970s at the Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami (ITK) and later served two terms as president.
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‘Long overdue’: Inuit leaders react to Simon’s governor general appointment
In 1975 Simon helped negotiate the James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement. In 1982 she was an Inuit representative during the patriation of the Canadian Constitution.
ITK President Natan Obed says he is pleased with the federal government’s decision.
“I think an Indigenous person as governor general, in this point in time, can be a part of that positive forward thinking, reconciliation-based conversation.”
