Phil Fontaine addresses a packed Faculty Lounge
The Faculty of Law and the LAWS Program hosted the fourth annual Justice Conference for Aboriginal Youth on March 23, 2012, to provide Aboriginal youth with positive exposure to post-secondary education while engaging them about the legal system, justice sector careers, and postsecondary student life. About 30 students in grades 10-12 came from Toronto and surrounding communities, including the Mississaugas of New Credit and Saugeen First Nation, for a great opportunity to connect with inspirational role models such as Aboriginal law students and justice sector professionals.
Phil Fontaine, former national chief of the Assembly of First Nations, was the keynote speaker. Fontaine discussed Indigenous education, covering a broad range of topics from the legacy of the residential schools system to the current importance of increasing funding for Aboriginal education on-reserve. Following this, an introductory session on the principles and practice of Gladue Court was presented by Duty Counsel Jessica Wolfe and Assistant Crown Attorney Nancy Laton. Students also engaged in an interactive mock trial exercise involving a civil slip-and-fall case. The trial was a lively one, with the students taking their various roles very seriously.
The judges of the mock trial activity suit up in robes in preparation for trial
The final session was a “career carousel” featuring professionals from various justice sector roles who addressed a rotation of the students in small groups, to describe their roles and the paths they took to get there. The professionals featured were Jonathan Davey, legal counsel in the Aboriginal Law Division of the Department of Justice Canada; Anonghous Kitchikake, youth community council caseworker for Aboriginal Legal Services of Toronto; Arnelda Bennett, economic development officer with Sagamok Development Corporation; Maggie Wente, partner at the Aboriginal law firm Olthius Kleer Townshendl, Douglas Sanderson, assistant professor at the Faculty of Law; Edmond Collins, economic development manager of Fort William First Nation; and Ian Bannon, director of operations at Fort William First Nation.
Student comments on the evaluation forms included:
“I am enlightened and humbled by the experience”
“I hope there are more opportunities like this to come”
“(the conference was) a great way to know that Aboriginals can do anything.”
The conference’s activities were overseen by Danielle Thibodeau and Stephanie Nilausen, LAWS Program Coordinators, Lisa Del Col, the Faculty’s Aboriginal Law Program Coordinator, and by the dedicated law student volunteers from the Faculty’s Aboriginal Law Students’ Association and the Osgoode Indigenous Students’ Association.
Students from the Aboriginal Law Students’ Association and the Aboriginal Law Program Coordinator pose with Phil Fontaine following his speech
