Aurélien Gill, (August 26, 1933 – January 17, 2015) was a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

businessman, teacher and politician. Gill served in the

Senate of Canada The Senate of Canada () is the upper house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Monarchy of Canada#Parliament (King-in-Parliament), Crown and the House of Commons of Canada, House of Commons, they compose the Bicameralism, bicameral le ...

from his appointment in 1998 until his retirement in 2008.

Early life

Born in Mashteuiatsh, the only Native community in Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean, Quebec, Gill received a bachelor's degree in pedagogy from

Université Laval (; English: ''Laval University)'' is a public research university in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. The university traces its roots to the Séminaire de Québec, founded by François de Montmorency-Laval in 1663, making it the oldest institutio ...

. An Aboriginal businessman and advocate, Gill also has a background as a teacher and government administrator having been Quebec Director-General of the Department of Indian and Northern Affairs. He was founding president of the Conseil Attikamek-Montagnais and chief of the

Mashteuiatsh Mashteuiatsh is a First Nations reserve in the Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean region of Quebec, Canada, about north from the centre of Roberval. It is the home to the Pekuakamiulnuatsh First Nation. It is located on a headland jutting out on the w ...

Montagnais community from 1975 to 1982 and from 1987 to 1989. Gill was made a Knight of the

National Order of Quebec The National Order of Quebec ( French: ), also known as the Order of Quebec, is a civilian honour for merit in the Canadian province of Quebec. Instituted in 1984 when Lieutenant Governor Jean-Pierre Côté granted royal assent to the (Natio ...

in 1991.

Political career

Gill ran for a seat to the

House of Commons of Canada The House of Commons of Canada () is the lower house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Monarchy of Canada#Parliament (King-in-Parliament), Crown and the Senate of Canada, they comprise the Bicameralism, bicameral legislature of Ca ...

in the

1993 Canadian federal election The 1993 Canadian federal election was held on October 25, 1993, to elect members to the House of Commons of Canada, House of Commons of the 35th Canadian Parliament, 35th Parliament of Canada. Considered to be a major political realignment, it ...

. He faced three other candidates in the electoral district of Roberval. Gill was defeated by

Bloc Québécois The Bloc Québécois (, , BQ) is a centre-left politics, centre-left and list of federal political parties in Canada, federal political party in Canada devoted to Quebec nationalism, Quebecois nationalism, social democracy, and the promotion o ...

candidate Michel Gauthier finishing second, he also finished ahead of future Member of Parliament Alain Giguère who finished a distant fourth place. He was appointed to the Senate on the advice of

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

Jean Chrétien Joseph Jacques Jean Chrétien (; born January 11, 1934) is a retired Canadian politician, statesman, and lawyer who served as the 20th prime minister of Canada from 1993 to 2003. He served as Leader of the Liberal Party of Canada, leader of t ...

on September 17, 1998. He sat as a Liberal representing the Quebec senatorial district of Wellington. He retired from the Senate on his 75th birthday on August 26, 2008. Gill died on January 17, 2015.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gill, Aurelien 1933 births 2015 deaths 20th-century members of the Senate of Canada 20th-century First Nations people 21st-century First Nations people Canadian senators from Quebec First Nations politicians Indigenous Canadian senators Indigenous leaders in Quebec Innu people Knights of the National Order of Quebec Liberal Party of Canada senators Members of the Order of Canada People from Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean Université Laval alumni 21st-century members of the Senate of Canada