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Buffy Sainte-Marie’s Order of Canada Termination Raises Questions on Indigenous Identity

The Office of the Governor General has officially annulled the Order of Canada awarded to renowned singer-songwriter Buffy Sainte-Marie.

This significant action was detailed in the Canada Gazette, the official publication for federal legislative updates and announcements.

The decision follows a report by CBC in 2023 that questioned Sainte-Marie’s claims of Indigenous ancestry. The investigation revealed a birth certificate identifying her birth in 1941 in Massachusetts, indicating both her and her parents as white.

“Notice is hereby given that the appointment of Buffy Sainte-Marie to the Order of Canada was terminated by Ordinance signed by the Governor General on January 3, 2025,” read a concise notification published on February 8.

Family members, including a sister residing in the United States, have stated to CBC that Sainte-Marie does not possess Indigenous ancestry and was not adopted.

In response to the CBC investigation, Sainte-Marie, now 83 years old, contested the findings shortly after they became public, arguing that the episode of The Fifth Estate omitted vital context and contained inaccuracies.

The Nature of Indigenous Identity

“Being an ‘Indian’ has little to do with sperm tracking and colonial record keeping: it has to do with community, culture, knowledge, teachings, who claims you, who you love, who loves you and who’s your family,” Sainte-Marie expressed in a statement to The Canadian Press during this controversy.

Sainte-Marie also remarked that she would not respond to every false allegation leveled against her, emphasizing that many people share similar experiences of uncertainty regarding their heritage and feel alienated by such accusations.

Recently, she shared a tweet stating, “My Truth As I know it” with a link, reinforcing her complex relationship with identity and belonging.

In a video posted on her social media before the CBC’s report, Sainte-Marie reiterated her deep attachment to the Native community, despite acknowledging gaps in her own personal history. “I don’t know where I’m from, who my birth parents are or how I ended up a misfit in a typical white Christian New England home,” she explained. “I realized decades ago that I would never have the answers.”

Previously, her official website claimed she was “believed to have been born in 1941 on the Piapot First Nation reserve in Saskatchewan and taken from her biological parents when she was an infant.”

Ntawnis Piapot, great-granddaughter of Emile Piapot and Clara Starblanket, the couple who adopted Sainte-Marie, responded to the controversy by asserting that the claim of no Indigenous ancestry does not negate Sainte-Marie’s affiliation with a Cree family.

“The adoption process, it took years — it took days and months and years of getting to know each other and trusting each other and going to ceremony and getting her Indian name (from my mushum) to finally look at her and be like, I acknowledge you as my daughter, you’re officially part of our family,” Piapot elaborated.

According to Piapot, the adoption ceremony was conducted in accordance with Cree customs, emphasizing that while blood relation may not be established, Sainte-Marie is considered kin through the spiritual practices involved in the adoption.

“It’s really insulting that someone would question my great grandfather’s choice and right to adopt Buffy as his daughter,” she stated emphatically. “No one has the authority to question our sovereignty; we are a sovereign nation, we are sovereign people, and our adoption practices have been intact since time immemorial.”

Piwapot voiced further frustration regarding the doubts cast upon their family’s history, deeming it “hurtful,” “ignorant,” and “colonial.”

Sainte-Marie’s Indigenous heritage has played a crucial role in her identity throughout her illustrious career that began in the 1960s. She has received numerous accolades, including multiple Juno Awards and the Polaris Music Prize in 2015.

Notably, she secured an Oscar in 1983 for her original song and featured prominently on the children’s program Sesame Street, where her contributions significantly shaped its storylines. Additionally, she founded the Nihewan Foundation, an initiative aimed at enhancing the education of Indigenous peoples and cultures.

In 2023, she announced her retirement from performing due to health concerns. As the discussion around identity and belonging continues, the implications of her situation resonate far beyond her personal narrative, sparking broader conversations about Indigenous identity in contemporary society.

Source
globalnews.ca