By Jody Harbour, co-founder of Grandmother’s Voice
Opinion.
The Ontario provincial election comes a day after Grandmother’s Voice hosts Truth with Reconciliation: A Healing Framework. This timing is not a coincidence — it is ancestral guidance. The grandmothers knew something when they chose these dates. Now, with the election looming, the question is: what message are we being called to share?
There is no more status quo.
For too long, reconciliation has been treated as a political afterthought, a talking point that makes its way into platforms when convenient and vanishes once the ballots are counted. The Calls to Action from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission were issued nearly a decade ago, and yet Indigenous people are still waiting for meaningful change. Waiting for clean water. Waiting for land back. Waiting for action on Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, and Two-Spirit people. Waiting for housing, for healthcare, for investments in Indigenous language, culture, and governance. Waiting, waiting, waiting.
Reconciliation was never meant to be a checklist. It is not about hiring a few Indigenous people and calling it done. It is about a complete shift in the way this province and this country recognize Indigenous rights, governance, and leadership. Every political party running in this election needs to answer a critical question: are you ready to stop ignoring the calls for change?
The political status quo is a colonial problem
Affordability, housing, healthcare, and education — these are the core issues dominating this election. They are not just Indigenous issues. They are everyone’s issues. But the reality is, Indigenous communities have been fighting these battles for generations. Poverty, inadequate housing, lack of access to healthcare, and systemic barriers to education are not new crises. They are ongoing consequences of colonization.
Look at healthcare. While Ontarians across the province struggle to find a family doctor, Indigenous communities — especially in the north — have spent decades without consistent access to primary care. Sol Mamakwa, an NDP MPP and Deputy Leader, has been fighting for action on the doctor shortage in northern communities, where many people are forced to travel hundreds of kilometres to receive care. Meanwhile, Indigenous healthcare workers and Indigenous patients face systemic racism in medical institutions, leading to cases of neglect and mistreatment that have cost lives. What party is truly addressing this?
Housing? The province talks about affordable housing but does nothing about the fact that Indigenous people are disproportionately affected by homelessness. The same governments that promise more housing are the ones that make it impossible for Indigenous nations to build on their own lands without jumping through colonial bureaucratic hoops. What party is putting Indigenous housing at the centre of their platform?
Education? Schools in this province are crumbling, underfunded, and failing students — especially Indigenous students. There is still no meaningful, mandatory Indigenous curriculum in Ontario. Indigenous students continue to experience racism in classrooms, and Indigenous-led education programs remain underfunded. What party is addressing this with the urgency it deserves?
These issues are front and centre in the election and Indigenous leadership needs to be at the table shaping solutions. Anything less is just another election cycle of empty promises. You can’t build a country on genocide, and then expect its consequences to not show up in our society.
Reconciliation Is not a talking point
Some will say that the election is not the time to focus on reconciliation — that the “big” issues like affordability and healthcare should take priority. This is the problem. Indigenous people are still being treated as an “issue” to deal with, rather than partners in solving the crises that impact every single Ontarian.
Reconciliation is not separate from affordability. It is not separate from healthcare. It is not separate from housing. These are all Indigenous issues because they are all human issues. But instead of seeing Indigenous governance and leadership as a necessary part of the solution, governments keep Indigenous communities on the outside.
It is time for something different.
Political parties love to bring up land acknowledgments, diversity statements, and gestures of inclusion. But what happens when Indigenous people demand action? What happens when we push beyond symbolic recognition and into real structural change? What happens when we say, “You cannot move forward without us”?
We are at that next level. We are saying that you cannot move forward without us.
The truth is, no political party in Ontario has yet delivered on reconciliation. The Calls to Action have been ignored or watered down. The demands of Indigenous leaders and communities have been sidestepped. The status quo remains, and the province continues to operate within a colonial framework.
But that does not mean the status quo is permanent.
A challenge to every party
This is not just a call to action. This is a challenge. Every political party in Ontario must answer the following questions before election day:
- How will you put Indigenous governance at the centre of decision-making? Not just consultation. Not just advisory roles. Decision-making power.
- What is your plan for Indigenous-led housing solutions? Not generic affordable housing promises. Indigenous-led solutions, Indigenous-designed communities.
- What concrete steps will you take to fix the healthcare crisis in Indigenous communities? More doctors, more funding for Indigenous health programs, real investments in community-based care.
- Will you commit to fully implementing the Calls to Action from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission? Not a few of them. All of them. With real accountability.
If a party cannot answer these questions with specific, actionable commitments, then they are not serious about reconciliation.
No more status quo
The grandmothers knew something when they chose the dates for Truth with Reconciliation: A Healing Framework. Just two nights before the election, we will gather, listen, and share in a space that centres Indigenous wisdom. It will be a reminder that reconciliation is not something to be debated or delayed. It is happening now.
For the candidates running in this election, the choice is clear: Do you want to be part of real reconciliation, or do you want to keep pretending that the status quo is acceptable? Because Indigenous people are not waiting anymore.
