Patti LaBoucane-Benson (born February 20, 1969) is a Canadian academic and politician. A

Métis The Métis ( ; Canadian ) are Indigenous peoples who inhabit Canada's three Prairie Provinces, as well as parts of British Columbia, the Northwest Territories, and the Northern United States. They have a shared history and culture which derives ...

, she serves as director of research at the Native Counselling Services of Alberta. She was appointed to the

Senate of Canada The Senate of Canada (french: region=CA, Sénat du Canada) is the upper house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Crown and the House of Commons, they comprise the bicameral legislature of Canada. The Senate is modelled after the B ...

on October 3, 2018 by Prime Minister

Justin Trudeau Justin Pierre James Trudeau ( , ; born December 25, 1971) is a Canadian politician who is the 23rd and current prime minister of Canada. He has served as the prime minister of Canada since 2015 and as the leader of the Liberal Party since 2 ...

. On January 31, 2020, she was appointed Government Liaison by

Representative of the Government in the Senate The representative of the Government in the Senate (french: représentant du gouvernement au Sénat) is the member of the Senate of Canada who is responsible for introducing, promoting, and defending the government's bills in the Senate after th ...

Marc Gold Marc Gold (born June 30, 1950) is Canadian law professor and politician who has served as Representative of the Government in the Senate The representative of the Government in the Senate (french: représentant du gouvernement au Sénat) is ...

. The role entails acting as a

whip A whip is a tool or weapon designed to strike humans or other animals to exert control through pain compliance or fear of pain. They can also be used without inflicting pain, for audiovisual cues, such as in equestrianism. They are generally e ...

to secure votes for government legislation. She was the winner of the

Burt Award for First Nations, Métis and Inuit Literature Burt is a given name and also a shortened form of other names, such as Burton and Herbert, or a place name. Burt may refer to: People *Burt Alvord (1866–after 1910), American Old West lawman and outlaw *Burt Bacharach (born 1928), American com ...

in 2016 for ''The Outside Circle'', a graphic novel she cowrote with Kelly Mellings."Graphic novel The Outside Circle wins $12K Burt Award"

CBC Books CBC Arts (french: Radio-Canada Arts) is the division of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation that creates and curates written articles, short documentaries, non-fiction series and interactive projects that represent the excellence of Canada's div ...

, October 13, 2016.

References

1969 births Living people Canadian senators from Alberta Independent Canadian senators Women members of the Senate of Canada 21st-century Canadian politicians 21st-century Canadian novelists 21st-century Canadian women writers Canadian women novelists Canadian graphic novelists Métis writers Métis politicians Women in Alberta politics Female comics writers 21st-century Canadian women politicians {{Canada-writer-stub