University of Sask. places professor on leave after her Indigenous identity called into question

Saskatoon -

The University of Saskatchewan has placed a health professor on leave after questions arose concerning her Indigenous identity.

The move comes following a CBC report which raised questions about Carrie Bourassa's assertions concerning her own Indigenous heritage.

"The University of Saskatchewan has carefully reviewed the information in interviews and responses from Dr. Carrie Bourassa to recent articles challenging her Indigenous identity," provost and academic vice-president Airini said in a news release.

The university has placed Bourassa on leave and suspended her duties as a professor in the College of Medicine where her research work has primarily focused on Indigenous health.

"An investigation will be proceeding into the statements and information shared by Dr. Bourassa," Airini said.

The university "continues to be a part of larger conversations" regarding Indigenous identity and hiring processes for positions specifically recruiting those with Indigenous ancestry, Airini said.

In a statement posted online, Bourassa said she is "shocked and dismayed at the recent attack" on her identity.

Bourassa said she is "Métis and (identifies) as such" and that she has been "vetted" through two Regina-based Métis organizations.

"Our community knows who I am and embraces me," Bourassa said.

Bourassa declined CTV News' request for an interview.

In her statement, Bourassa said she is "working with a Métis genealogist to investigate my lineage. The preliminary findings have identified inaccuracies in the published and circulated lineage."

"In our Métis ways, in the event of a loss, community members would adopt the individual who had no family and they would then automatically be seen as family. We see this as custom adoption," Bourassa said.

"Oral history and adoptions are the Indigenous way. In turn, I serve the Métis community to the best of my ability."

During an Oct. 2019 speech available online, Bourassa begins by saying she is Anishinaabe Métis. In another presentation, given at the University of Sudbury in 2018, Bourassa adds that she is Tlingit.

Bourassa says "I really don't like to be put in boxes" while discussing her identity at the start of the presentation in Sudbury.

In her recent statement, Bourassa does not mention a connection to an Anishinaabe or a Tlingit community.

ON LEAVE FROM FEDERAL POST

Bourassa also serves as scientific director for the federal government's Canadian Institutes of Health Research's (CIHR) Institute of Indigenous Peoples’ Health (IIPH).

The IIPH has awarded more than $16 million in funding so far this year, according to data available on the CIHR website.

In a statement on Monday, CIHR president Michael Strong said Bourassa​ has agreed to step away from her duties and is now on indefinite, unpaid leave.​

"I acknowledge the pain experienced by Indigenous peoples as a result of this matter," Strong said.

"Maintaining the trust and confidence of Indigenous communities is essential to the work of CIHR.​"

In her 2019 speech, which was delivered at a TEDx event in Saskatoon, Bourassa argues Indigenous researchers should be at the forefront of research involving Indigenous communities.

"It's about self-determination and if you want to talk about reconciliation, which we are talking about, it is all about self-determination," she said during the TEDx talk.

"Indigenous communities must be leading the Indigenous health research agenda in Canada, full stop," Bourassa said.

MÉTIS-NATION SASKATCHEWAN RESPONSE

In response to inquiries concerning Bourassa, a Métis Nation-Saskatchewan representative pointed CTV News to a statement issued by the organization last week.

"False or insufficient claims to Indigenous ancestry are a serious concern in the arts, academics, and public services where funding, employment, advisory positions, and other opportunities are targeted for Indigenous peoples," the statement said.

"Being Indigenous cannot be reduced to a matter of individual choice or selfidentification alone," reads the statement, which does not specifically reference Bourassa or the controversy surrounding her.

MN-S president Glen McCallum appears to dismiss Bourassa's claim that her Métis heritage has been vetted.

"'Who is a Métis citizen’ is the sole determination of the Métis Nation–Saskatchewan and no one else,” McCallum said in the statement.

The MN-S said in June 2020 it asked all post-secondary education institutions in Saskatchewan to adopt its definition of Métis citizenship.

FALSE CLAIMS 'UNDERMINE' HISTORY

"The thing is with Métis and Métis ancestry, many of our ancestors intentionally had to hide and distance themselves from their ancestry," said John Lagimodiere, longtime publisher of Saskatchewan-based Eagle Feather News.

Lagimodiere, a Métis man, said a false claim regarding Métis heritage "undermines all the work and all the history" that Métis families have carried since Confederation.

"The citizenship process through (MN-S) is very thorough, birth and death certificates going back for generations, like you have to have the documented proof," Lagimodiere told CTV News.

Lagimodiere also questions Bourassa's emphasis on her custom adoption.

"Let's say I get real close with a First Nation family that are wonderful friends of mine and and they say they're going to adopt me in a custom way," Lagimodiere said.

"It does not make me Cree, it makes me a part of their family and that's cool, but it doesn't make me all of a sudden be a Cree person where I can stand up and get status."

With files from Francois Biber