After 11 years of bringing you local reporting, the team behind the Vancouver Observer has moved on to Canada's National Observer. You can follow Vancouver culture reporting over there from now on. Thank you for all your support over the years!

Jody Wilson-Raybould talks about gender equality and reconciliation during Vancouver visit

The Justice Minister and Attorney General of Canada gave her first official speech after being elected in Vancouver

Justice Minister and Attorney General Jody Wilson-Raybould. Photo by Jody Wilson-Raybould.

When Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould signed on to speak at "Being the Change: Women, Policy and Making a Difference" at Simon Fraser University, it was a few weeks before the federal election and she hadn't yet been elected to office. 

Today, Wilson-Raybould is one of the most prominent names in the Trudeau government.

“So, you got a bonus. You got a Justice Minister!” presenter Gloria Macarenko joked at the sold-out event.

Wilson-Raybould admitted feeling nervous before taking the stage at the packed Djavad Mowafaghian room. Yet, that uneasiness wasn’t evident throughout her 40-minute-long speech where history lessons were combined with food for thought, and the occasional joke. 

Wilson-Raybould reflected on the significance of being Canada's first Justice Minister of Indigenous descent, in a country where Indigenous Canadians couldn't vote until 1960.

Read the full story on National Observer.

More in News

Views from a refugee camp: Who gets into heaven?

I have just returned to Vancouver Island from Greek refugee camps where I met a Yazidi man named Jason who told me about his escape from ISIS in Iraq.   His story begins on a desert road where a...

Vancouver's bicycle sharing grows as 15 new stations installed

Mobi bicycle by Shaw Go in Vancouver. Photo by Christopher Porter from Flickr Creative Commons

International Women's Day Concert celebrates female musicians who turned tragedy into triumph

Every March 8, on International Women's Day, we hear about the achievements of brilliant, talented women around the world. But how often do we learn about the physical and mental disabilities or...
Speak up about this article on Facebook or Twitter. Do this by liking Vancouver Observer on Facebook or following us @Vanobserver on Twitter. We'd love to hear from you.