Constant Awashish (born in 1981 in

La Tuque, Quebec La Tuque (; ) is a city located in north-central Quebec, Canada, on the Saint-Maurice River, between Trois-Rivières and Chambord. The population was 11,227 at the Canada 2011 Census, most of which live within the urban area. At over 28,000 sq ...

) is an

Atikamekw The Atikamekw are the Indigenous inhabitants of the subnational country or territory they call ('Our Land'), in the upper Saint-Maurice River valley of Quebec (about north of Montreal), Canada. Their current population is around 8,000. One o ...

chief. Since 2014, he is the Grand Chief of the

Conseil de la Nation Atikamekw The Conseil de la Nation Atikamekw (CNA) (French language, French for "Council of the Atikamekw Nation"), officially named Atikamekw Sipi - Conseil de la Nation Atikamekw, is a tribal council in Quebec, Canada. It is composed of the three Atikamek ...

, the tribal council uniting the three Atikamekw Nations. He is known to have declared the sovereignty on their ancestral territory, the Nitaskinan, with the other Atikamekw chiefs.

Biography

Awashish was born in La Tuque, Quebec, in 1981. He was mainly raised by his maternal grandparents on the Indian Reserve of Opitciwan in the northern

Mauricie Mauricie () is a traditional and current administrative region of Quebec. La Mauricie National Park is contained within the region, making it a prime tourist location. The region has a land area of 35,860.05 km² (13,845.64 sq mi) and a popu ...

region of

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

. He completed his elementary and high school studies in La Tuque. He received a law degree from the University of Ottawa, specializing in the rights of the Indigenous people and their territorial rights, the legislation of indigenous entities, and corporate law. Constant Awashish - Assermentation

During the elections on 2 September 2014, he was elected Grand Chief of the

, the tribal council uniting the three Atikamekw Nations, succeeding

Eva Ottawa Eva Ottawa is an Atikamekw political figure. She was the first women to be elected Grand Chief of the Conseil de la Nation Atikamekw The Conseil de la Nation Atikamekw (CNA) (French language, French for "Council of the Atikamekw Nation"), offic ...

. As such, he is also the chairman of the corporation of the Conseil de la Nation Atikamekw. A few days later, the Atikamekw chiefs declared unilaterally their sovereignty on their ancestral territory, the Nitaskinan, by a comprehensive claim. This territory covers 80,000 km² (30,000 sq. mi.) to the north of

Trois-Rivières Trois-Rivières (, – 'Three Rivers') is a city in the Mauricie administrative region of Quebec, Canada, at the confluence of the Saint-Maurice River, Saint-Maurice and Saint Lawrence River, Saint Lawrence rivers, on the north shore of the Sain ...

. The Atikamekw never ceased or sold their territory during the numbered treaties.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Awashish, Constant 1981 births Atikamekw people First Nations in Quebec Indigenous leaders in Quebec Living people