Q. Cathy Towtongie is a Canadian

Inuk Inuit (; iu, ᐃᓄᐃᑦ 'the people', singular: Inuk, , dual: Inuuk, ) are a group of culturally similar indigenous peoples inhabiting the Arctic and subarctic regions of Greenland, Labrador, Quebec, Nunavut, the Northwest Territories, and ...

politician from

Rankin Inlet Rankin Inlet ( iu, Kangiqliniq; Inuktitut syllabics: ᑲᖏᕿᓂᖅ or ''Kangirliniq'', ᑲᖏᖅᖠᓂᖅ, or ''Kangir&iniq'' meaning ''deep bay/inlet'') is an Inuit hamlet on Kudlulik Peninsula in Nunavut, Canada. It is the largest hamlet a ...

Nunavut Nunavut ( , ; iu, ᓄᓇᕗᑦ , ; ) is the largest and northernmost Provinces and territories of Canada#Territories, territory of Canada. It was separated officially from the Northwest Territories on April 1, 1999, via the ''Nunavut Act'' ...

. She was elected to the

Legislative Assembly of Nunavut The Legislative Assembly of Nunavut is the legislative assembly for the Canadian territory of Nunavut. The seat of the Assembly is the Legislative Building of Nunavut in Iqaluit. Prior to the creation of Nunavut as a Canadian territory on Apr ...

in the

2017 general election This national electoral calendar for 2017 lists the national/federal elections held in 2017 in all sovereign states and their dependent territories. By-elections are excluded, though national referendums are included. January *5 November ...

to represent the electoral district of

Rankin Inlet North-Chesterfield Inlet Rankin Inlet North-Chesterfield Inlet ( iu, ᑲᖏᕐᒃᖠᓂᐅᑉ ᐅᐊᖕᓇᖓ−ᐃᒡᓗᓕᒑᕐᔪᒃ, french: Rankin Inlet Nord-Chesterfield Inlet, Inuinnaqtun: Kangirliniq Tununga-Igluligaaryuk) is a territorial electoral district ( rid ...

. Prior to her election to the legislature, Towtongie served two terms as president of

Nunavut Tunngavik Nunavut Tunngavik Incorporated (NTI; , ) is the legal representative of the Inuit of Nunavut for the purposes of native treaty rights and treaty negotiation. The presidents of NTI, Makivik Corporation, Nunatsiavut, and the Inuvialuit Regional Co ...

from 2001 to 2004 and from 2010 to 2016. In this role, she faced criticism when she publicly objected to

Iqaluit City Council Iqaluit City Council is the governing body of the city of Iqaluit, Nunavut, Canada. As of November 2019, the council consists of mayor Kenny Bell and councillors Joanasie Akumalik, Simon Nattaq, Romeyn Stevenson, Janet Pitsiulaaq Brewster, Solomon ...

's decision to raise a

rainbow flag A rainbow flag is a multicolored flag consisting of the colors of the rainbow. The designs differ, but many of the colors are based on the spectral colors of the visible light spectrum. The LGBT flag introduced in 1978 is the most recognized u ...

during the

2014 Winter Olympics , ''Zharkie. Zimnie. Tvoi'') , nations = 88 , events = 98 in 7 sports (15 disciplines) , athletes = 2,873 , opening = 7 February 2014 , closing = 23 February 2014 , opened_by = President Vladimir Putin , cauldron = , stadium = Fisht Olympic ...

in protest against the

Russian gay propaganda law The Russian federal law "for the Purpose of Protecting Children from Information Advocating a Denial of Traditional Family Values", also referred to in English-language media as Russia's gay propaganda law or anti-gay law, is a bill that was una ...

. In 2020 she faced further criticism when she objected to the use of the word

two-spirit Two-spirit (also two spirit, 2S or, occasionally, twospirited) is a modern, , umbrella term used by some Indigenous North Americans to describe Native people in their communities who fulfill a traditional third-gender (or other gender-variant) ...

in a motion on

missing and murdered Indigenous women Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW) is an epidemic of violence against Indigenous women in Canada, the United States, and Latin America; notably those in the FNIM (First Nations, Inuit, Métis) and Native American communities. Acros ...

by fellow MLA

Elisapee Sheutiapik Elisapee Sheutiapik is a Canadian politician, who served as mayor of Iqaluit, Nunavut, from 2003 to 2010, and was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Nunavut in the 2017 general election. Mayoralty She won the mayoral election in 2003, defea ...

, arguing that the concept was not a part of Inuit culture. The criticism included an open letter from actress

Anna Lambe Anna Lambe (born 25 September 2000) is a Canadian Inuk actress from Iqaluit, Nunavut. She is most noted for her debut role as Spring in the 2018 film ''The Grizzlies'', for which she received a Canadian Screen Award nomination for Best Supporting ...

, calling on the legislature to censure Towtongie for her comments. In 2021, just a few days before the commencement of the

2021 Nunavut general election The 2021 Nunavut general election was held on October 25, 2021, to return the members of the 6th Nunavut Legislature. Since the adoption of a fixed election date law in 2014, general elections in Nunavut are held in the last Monday of October in ...

campaign, Towtongie criticized the clothing manufacturer

Canada Goose The Canada goose (''Branta canadensis''), or Canadian goose, is a large wild goose with a black head and neck, white cheeks, white under its chin, and a brown body. It is native to the arctic and temperate regions of North America, and it is o ...

for its decision to stop using natural fur in its products. Towtongie was defeated in the 2021 election by Alexander Sammurtok.Derek Neary
"Two judicial recounts required in Nunavut territorial election"
''

Northern News Services NNSL Media (Northern News Services LTD) is a news and media company based in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories. It is one of the few remaining independent newspaper companies in Canada, producing all-original content with little to no reliance ...

'', October 25, 2021.

References

Members of the Legislative Assembly of Nunavut Women MLAs in Nunavut Inuit politicians Living people Year of birth missing (living people) 21st-century Canadian politicians 21st-century Canadian women politicians Inuit from the Northwest Territories Inuit from Nunavut Canadian Inuit women People from Rankin Inlet {{Nunavut-politician-stub