Bernard Cleary (May 8, 1937 – July 27, 2020) was a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

politician. Cleary was first elected to the House of Commons of Canada in the

2004 Canadian federal election The 2004 Canadian federal election was held on June 28, 2004, to elect members to the House of Commons of Canada of the 38th Parliament of Canada. The Liberal government of Prime Minister Paul Martin lost its majority but was able to continue ...

. He was the ''

Bloc Québécois The Bloc Québécois (BQ; , " Quebecer Bloc") is a federal political party in Canada devoted to Quebec nationalism and the promotion of Quebec sovereignty. The Bloc was formed by Members of Parliament (MPs) who defected from the federal Progre ...

'' member of parliament for the riding of Louis-Saint-Laurent. He was the ''Bloc's'' critic to the

Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development Minister may refer to: * Minister (Christianity), a Christian cleric ** Minister (Catholic Church) * Minister (government), a member of government who heads a ministry (government department) ** Minister without portfolio, a member of government ...

. Prior to being elected, Cleary was a businessman, chief negotiator, journalist and professor. In 2006, he was defeated by

Josée Verner Josée Verner, (born December 30, 1959) is a Canadian politician. She represented the electoral district of Louis-Saint-Laurent in the House of Commons of Canada from 2006 to 2011 as a member of the Conservative Party of Canada. She also serve ...

from the

Conservative Party of Canada The Conservative Party of Canada (french: Parti conservateur du Canada), colloquially known as the Tories, is a federal political party in Canada. It was formed in 2003 by the merger of the two main right-leaning parties, the Progressive Con ...

. Cleary was born in

Mashteuiatsh, Quebec Mashteuiatsh is a First Nations reserve in the Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean region of Quebec, Canada, about north from the centre of Roberval. It is the home to the Pekuakamiulnuatsh First Nation. It is located on a headland jutting out on the w ...

. He was the first person of Aboriginal descent to be elected in Quebec, as well as the first

Innu The Innu / Ilnu ("man", "person") or Innut / Innuat / Ilnuatsh ("people"), formerly called Montagnais from the French colonial period (French for "mountain people", English pronunciation: ), are the Indigenous inhabitants of territory in the n ...

person elected from any province, to the House of Commons."Meet Canada's first Innu MP, the Bloc's Bernard Cleary". ''

The Hill Times ''The Hill Times'' is a Canadian twice-weekly newspaper and daily news website, published in Ottawa, Ontario, which covers the Parliament of Canada, the federal government, and other federal political news. Founded in 1989 by Ross Dickson and Jim ...

'', November 8, 2004.

References

External links

*
How'd They Vote?: Bernard Cleary's voting history and quotes
1937 births 2020 deaths 21st-century Canadian politicians 21st-century First Nations people Bloc Québécois MPs First Nations politicians Indigenous Members of the House of Commons of Canada Innu people Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Quebec {{BlocQuébécois-MP-stub