'Small town, rez guy' helps Toronto City Hall understand Indigenous issues

Life in Toronto is teaching a First Nations man from northwestern Ontario a lot about diversity and in turn, Craig Waboose is teaching Toronto city staff about his own Indigenous culture.

Craig Waboose is one of four Indigenous interns working at Toronto City Hall. It's part of the city's response to the calls to action from Canada's Truth and Reconciliation Commission that urged all levels of government to redress the legacy of residential schools.

"I've always had the interest in going into politics and law, so I'm kind of glad that this opportunity presented itself," said Waboose, 29, of EabametoongFirst Nation, north of Thunder Bay, Ont.

"WhenI first moved here, you know I was kind of the small town, rez guy who didn't really know much about anything or even about the TTC," he said."Then I got to adjust to it and adapt to city life."

Working directly with councillorMary-Margaret McMahon, Waboose said he is proud to "Indigenize city hall."

He was excited when everyone he works with attended the sunrise ceremony with him on National Aboriginal Day.

"It felt great because it felt like I was acknowledged, not only as a person, but as an Indigenous person as well in that they're more than willing to understand the history of Indigenous peoples of Canada," Waboose said.

Cross-cultural relations are different in Toronto than in the northwestern Ontario communities where he grew up,he said.

"Like wheneverI make friends down here, they openly state and acknowledge: 'I'm ignorant of this, but I'd like to know more,'" he added. "Whereas back in Thunder Bay, they just look in a way that you know they're just seeing you as a Native person."

Waboose said he hopes to translate the sincere curiosity of Torontonians into a deeper understanding of Indigenous history, culture and contemporary issues.

The six-month internship began in May. Waboose said he's excited to see where the experience leads him next.

"I still want to go into politics, and I don't know if I should go into provincial politics and represent the northwest or should I stay down here and expand my horizons," he said.