Bill Namagoose was awarded the degree of Doctor of Laws, honoris causa, at the 11:45 a.m. ceremony on Friday, June 24, “in recognition of outstanding contributions to the Cree Nation of Eeyou Istchee over a period spanning nearly 40 years.”
Namagoose is from the Cree community of Waskaganish (formerly, Rupert House, the first location of the Hudson’s Bay Company established in 1668) on the coast of James Bay, Que. At the age of seven, he was sent to an Indian residential school, followed by day school and boarding schools.
Namagoose has been a staunch defender of the rights of the Cree Nation of Eeyou Istchee (northern Quebec). As the Executive Director of the Cree Nation Government since 1988, he has managed a complex court case addressing the failures of provincial and federal governments to implement the 1975 James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement; he co-ordinated opposition to the expansion of the James Bay Hydroelectric Project while promoting energy efficient and other alternatives to address energy shortages in northeastern U.S.; he co-ordinated the defence of Cree rights in the context of possible Quebec secession in 1995. He has worked to ensure respect for the Cree right to self-determination under international law, and that Cree consent was required in any discussions of Cree lands.
Namagoose has worked tirelessly to identify creative ways of translating the recognition of Cree rights into the tangible and progressive development of Cree communities. He has been involved in the negotiations of over 80 agreements since the signing of the original 1975 Treaty.
Currently, Namagoose is the chair of the First Nations Bank of Canada, which manages assets of $1.4 billion.
Namagoose lives in Ottawa with his wife, Jeannie Tenasco, who is Anishinabeg from Kitzigan Zibi.