World news – More indigenous representation in government: student

A resident of Mandalay West recently represented Winnipeg North at the biennial Daughters of the Vote conference.

A resident of Mandalay West recently represented Winnipeg North at the biennial Daughters of the Vote conference. Conference.

Julia Hutlet was one of 338 women and gender delegates from federal struggles across Canada who practically met between March 5th and 8th for the third edition of the event.

Julia Hutlet represented Winnipeg North at the Daughters of the Vote conference between March 5th and 8th.

As one of 35 delegates selected to address the summit, Hutlet, a law student, called First year at the University of British Columbia, Members of Parliament on improving Native American representation in government and ending tokenization.

However, there are currently only 10 indigenous representatives in the lower house – four First Nations, four Métis and two Inuit. Four are women.

Hutlet, himself a Métis person, studied Métis Displacement for her thesis as a student in the University of Manitoba’s sociology program and in 2019 worked at Riel House – a national historic site commemorating the life of Louis Riel.

« I did what I learned at Riel House and did (my) degree in sociology and learned that the Métis are (underrepresented) in parliament or some other type of government association, and I wanted that To make changes. » « Hutlet, 22, said.

 » I know a lot of Indigenous students I went to school with and they didn’t apply for things because they didn’t see people reflect in those positions.

Hutlet said that in the future she would like to start a program to support indigenous women who are interested in working in politics or the legal field.

Equal Voice, a non-governmental organization that promotes women in politics, launched the inaugural Daughters of the Vote conference in 2017 to mark the 100th anniversary of the acquisition of the right to vote by some women in Canada.

Normally the summit takes place in Ottawa but was put online this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Delegates take part in workshops, panels, training and other activities to learn about Canada’s political systems and institutions and to network with each other and with government officials.

Hutlet said her biggest takeaway from the experience was that it won’t be forever just because indigenous representation in government is currently low.

« The speakers were very encouraging about this … (They said) You are here for a reason and we chose you to be here. Make sure you do something with it, don’t let it just flop.

« This is the biggest bite I’ll have with me for a long time. »

If the 1979 breakout single from The Buggles was about Sydney, it could be print Call Killed the Radio Star.
Prior to joining Canstar Community News, Sydney was a presenter and reporter for several local news channels in rural Manitoba. After Sydney found she enjoyed writing more than speaking, she moved to Winnipeg just months after graduating from Carleton University in Ottawa with degrees in journalism and geography.
Through clenched teeth and frozen fingers, she has come to appreciate Winnipeg – numbing winters and everything. When she’s not in the newsroom, Sydney plays card games, listens to music, and writes content for her friends that are too cheap to hire a PR team.

Sydney has a strong heart for community news and believes any neighborhood, city, and township is better off because of it – although they may be biased. Sydney loves learning about communities and what makes them tick. That’s why she’s grateful to be a reporter covering those neighborhoods in northwest Winnipeg that have a lot of resilience and innovation.
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