Fredericton, Tuesday, May 15, 2007

Elizabeth Brewster, a New Brunswick poet, wrote that “people are made of places.”

I can think of no better words to begin an address in a place that is filled with history and dedicated to the greater good.

I cannot tell you how happy my husband, Jean-Daniel Lafond, and I are to finally be here. Although, unlike Jean-Daniel, this is my first visit to New Brunswick, you have been in my heart for a long time and I feel as though I already know you.

In my previous life as a journalist, I had the good fortune of working with a number of New Brunswickers, and I appreciated their spirit and ingenuity.

My husband, Jean-Daniel Lafond, who has been here on a number of occasions as a professor, writer and documentary filmmaker, often speaks of the cultural vitality of your communities.

Of course, it goes without saying that Jean-Daniel and I feel a closeness to Acadians and Brayons because of our common language, although we might speak it with different accents and regional flair.

As the late Gérald Leblanc said, [translation] “sound brings light to the Creole language.”

We are delighted to be here in this Legislative Assembly, where a number of members have fought long and hard for the rights of the Acadian and Francophone community of New Brunswick.

I am told that it was an Acadian member who was responsible for most of the construction work on this beautiful building when he was the Commissioner of Public Works for the province from 1878 to 1882.

Pierre-Amand Landry, originally from the village of Memramcook, was also the first Acadian lawyer and judge in the province.

In June 1916, King George V of Great Britain named him a Knight of the Order St. Michael and St. George, thus making him the first and only Acadian to be given that honour.

My predecessor, the Right Honourable Roméo Leblanc, said that “the progress achieved by the French-speaking community was difficult and often too slow,” but I am happy to report that this Assembly was the first in Canada to be equipped with a system for simultaneous translation, and your province was also the first to declare itself officially bilingual under law.

It pleases me to see you work so productively together under this historic roof; your province is a model of cooperation for the entire country, and the world.

Of course, I am not speaking only of the women and men who came from Europe and other continents, those who have been here for less then 500 years.

The Aboriginal people have seen this land transformed, from the tundra to the forest, and have celebrated its riches for a very long time … over 10,000 years!

The Mi’kmaq and the Maliseet have shared with us the spirit of this generous land.

Their ancestors wisely gathered the various resources offered by the forest, lakes, rivers and ocean that surrounded them. That is how they survived in both good times and bad.

It is not surprising then, that there is no word in either Mi’kmaq or Maliseet for a lack of resources. We could all learn something from that.

Nowadays—when it is more important than ever to handle this blue planet of ours with care, to protect its ecosystems, and to do everything we can to ensure its survival, as well as our own—Aboriginal wisdom is a great source of inspiration for us and for people all over the world.

Although the Aboriginal people and the French explorers were here long before them, the Loyalists—who came from the United States in droves around 1780—made the first efforts to establish a local government.

These efforts led to the creation of New Brunswick as a distinct political entity.

What strikes me in particular is that your province was first created as a territory populated by refugees, both Acadians and American Loyalists, whose ancestors had come to North America over 150 years earlier.

Of course, the deportation of the Acadians was more dramatic than the voluntary exodus by the Loyalists, but New Brunswick’s Anglophone and Francophone communities were both uprooted from their home.

I might even go so far as to say that the memory of those refugees is a part of your collective history and also pertains to the woman who stands before you today.

And it is because of this history that New Brunswick can today face the future with pride and optimism.

The challenges that you have decided to meet as a community rely mostly on dialogue between the people of this province.

Whether it be the diversification of the economy, the desire to become self-sufficient, the requirement to establish a new relationship with First Nations communities, or the urgent need to protect our environment, none of this is possible unless everyone does their part and takes responsibility for the interests of the whole.

My husband and I are looking forward to getting to know the people of this province better.

Yesterday, we met with military personnel in Gagetown and with families who have suffered painful losses over the past few weeks. I think the commitment of our soldiers and their families is worthy of our utmost respect.

We also visited the Beaverbrook Art Gallery and met with artists and musicians from the region whose friendly hospitality warmed my heart.

Over the next few days, we will continue our journey and visit Bathurst, Caraquet and Shippagan, where we will arrive by sea—as it should be done—and where we will be greeted by crab fishers.

When we go back to Rideau Hall, we will be all the richer for the discoveries, conversations, get-togethers, and sea-sprayed, tree-lined landscapes we have discovered here. We will take a little bit of New Brunswick away with us in our hearts, which will make us want to come back to see you again soon.

I would like to quote His Honour Herménégilde Chiasson and invite you to [translation] “dream of a country in which everyone revels in their differences, having escaped comparisons and abolished all similarities.”

This country has a name and it is ours.

May it continue to prosper!