'He was a visionary': Inuit leader remembered in Northern Quebec

Robbie Tookalook, an Inuit leader who was instrumental in the signing of the 1975 James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement is being remembered as one of the pillars of modern-day Nunavik.

Tookalook died on Oct. 4, in his home village of Umiujaq, on Hudson Bay.

''It was important for him to die in the north,'' said his friend Sen. Charlie Watt, who visited Tookalook a few weeks before his death.

Watt said even in his final days, the 73-year-old wanted to discuss elements of the James Bay treaty that have not yet been implemented.

''That's Robbie for you,'' said Watt, describing him as a person who was fully committed to any issue he took on.

Defining Canadian history

The James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement was the first major land-claims agreement in Canada.

In addition to providing financial compensation for Cree and Inuit communities affected by the massive James Bay hydroelectric development project, it defined future relations between Indigenous and non-Indigenous governments.

Watt remembers meeting Tookalook in the early 1970s in Inukjuak, Que., during the first legal challenge to the hydroelectric project.

Watt said he was amazed by Tookalook's ability to handle himself in a bureaucratic legal setting, an environment that stood in such stark contrast to his northern community.

''He was quite energetic, active and tried his best to represent his people,'' said Watt. ''He is going to missed by a lot of us.''

For more than two decades, Tookalook was a board member of Makivik Corporation, the administrative body that now represents the Nunavik Inuit.

Makivik's communications co-ordinator, William Tagoona, who also met Tookalook in the 1970s, remembers his dedication to Indigenous peoples.

''He knew we were being left behind, put into a corner, and he wanted to get out of that. And the only way was to speak up for yourself,'' said Tagoona.

Both men were sent to residential schools, an experience that shaped Tookalook's commitment to Indigenous rights, said Tagoona.

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''What it really taught us was to fight for what you need, to fight for what you saw was injustice.''

Tagoona said Tookalook was overjoyed when his daughter Louisa defeated him in an election for a seat on the board of directors of Makivik.

She also succeeded him as mayor of Umiujaq.

''He was a firm believer in the next generation taking over,'' said Tagoona.

Tributes pour in for 'leader, teacher'

Makivik Corporation posted a tribute to Tookalook on its Facebook page, describing him as ''a great leader from Umiujaq," the village he helped build in the 1980s.

Tagoona said he was moved to see hundreds of people respond to the post, which goes on to read, ''He said it seems like he spent his whole life in politics but adds he liked the life of a hunter the most.''

Tagoona said this was fundamental to Tookalook's life's work.