James Gabriel (Mohawk) is a politician, a former chief of Kanesatake, a First Nations settlement within the boundaries of the city of Oka, Quebec. He was elected three times as Grand Chief, serving from 1995 to 2004. His tenure in office was controversial, marked by bitter divisions between his supporters and opponents that resulted in violence in January 2004.
Early life and education
James Gabriel was born to a European-Canadian mother and Mohawk father. Under the matrilineal kinship system at Kanesatake, children are traditionally considered to be born into the mother's clan, so Gabriel did not have a formal kinship relationship through his mother with the community. He grew up at Kanesatake, and both he and his father are registered as members of the community. He grew up bilingual in French and English. (In a 2004 article, Benoit Aubin suggested that such differences between maternal ancestries was part of the divide in the Nation between modernists like Gabriel and traditionalists like Steven Bonspille, John Harding (Sha ko hen the tha), and Pearl Bonspille, his opponents on the chiefs' council in the early 2000s, after he was re-elected as Grand Chief.) The grand chief took his family to safety in the neighbouring community of Laval.
Disputes continued through 2004 over the leadership of the Kanesatake police force. An interim director was appointed but his power was limited to Mohawk who lived outside Kanesatake in nearby Oka. Leadership of the police was contested. Gabriel's status in the community was a matter of controversy in 2004-05. Some believe he was legitimately removed as Grand Chief in January 2004, while others (in and out of the community) rejected this interpretation.
In early June 2005 the Sûreté du Québec Command testified to their understanding that the tobacco/drug raid was intended to replace both Police Chief Cross and the Police Commission. The S.Q. and RCMP Command had both argued with Gabriel against conducting the raid. They testified that it was poorly planned and that Gabriel relied on dubious evidence in his decisionmaking.
Gabriel was defeated for the position of grand chief by opponent Steven Bonspille in the June 26, 2005 elections, losing with 344 votes to Bonspille's 375. The six band council chiefs elected were a slate of Gabriel supporters, and resulted in a new council. Their political differences resulted in difficult governance. He declined to run for re-election after his first term.
Some aboriginal groups in Canada, including the powerful Assembly of First Nations, have openly sided with Gabriel in this dispute, as has the Parti Québécois. Gabriel's supporters believe that the provincial government capitulated to organized crime at Kanesatake in early 2004 by allowing him to be driven from the community. His opponents argue that his rule over the community was heavy-handed and arbitrary. They said his efforts to stop the contraband cigarette trade were an intrusion into accepted community practices.
S-24
Gabriel helped to negotiate the passage of S-24, a federal bill which, according to its backers, was meant to clarify the Kanesatake community's relationship to the federal government. Because Kanesatake is not a "reserve" but a "settlement", it has not been subject to the provisions of Canada's Indian Act. Opponents of S-24 believe that the bill was intended to reduce the community's autonomy.
A community referendum narrowly passed the bill by two votes. Many residents boycotted the electoral process entirely. Some believed Gabriel intended to convert Kanesatake into a municipality under Canada law. Such action would have increased the powers of the federal and provincial governments over the community.