Dorothy Maquabeak Francis

Dorothy Maquabeak Francis
Born	March 22, 1912 Manitoba, Canada
Died	October 16, 1990 (aged 78) British Columbia, Canada

Dorothy Maquabeak Francis (22 March 1912 – 16 October 1990) was a prominent Saulteau First Nation Bahá’í who worked for over five decades to "promote and maintain Aboriginal culture and spirituality" and to "foster understanding and unity between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal groups".

Early years

Francis was a member of the Saulteau First Nation. She was born on 22 March 1912 in Manitoba. She spent her childhood on the Waywayseecappo reserve near Russell, Manitoba.

Residential school

In 1919, Francis was sent to Birtle Indian Residential School in southwestern Manitoba. These were difficult years; in 1978 she said, being in "one of those institutions is like being in a jail."

In 1923, Francis became a member of the family of a Presbyterian minister, Reverend F. E. Pitts, his wife and three children, through an unofficially adoption. Pitts, who was the principal at Birtle Indian Residential School transferred to Alberni, British Columbia and Francis moved with them. In Alberni she lived on the Alberni Residential School and attended the local high school.

Francis returned to the Waywayseecappo reserve when she turned eighteen.

Marriage and family

Dorothy Francis married Magnus Martin on the Waywayseecapo Reserve within weeks of returning there in c. 1930. Martin died in a hunting accident shortly afterwards. The elders conferred upon her the powerful Saulteaux name Maquabeak—which "Bear Sitting Woman".

In 1932 she married Joseph Francis, who was from the Kahkewistahaw Reserve near Broadview, Saskatchewan and they had eleven children. Only nine survived past childhood. After her marriage to Joseph, they lived on a reserve just outside of Broadview, Saskatchewan. One of her children died because at that time, Canadian health services did not offer "adequate hospital facilities for Aboriginal Canadians".

In 1953, the Francis family left the Kahkewistahaw Reserve and moved to Regina, Saskatchewan because of disagreements with the administration of the reserve. By doing so, they were disenfranchised later that year, forfeiting their official Indian status and treat rights. At that time, there were fewer than 50 Aboriginal people in that area. They were forced to live in a tent on the outskirts of the city, because "no one would rent a house to Native Canadians with large families."

Career

Dorothy Francis worked at the "Indian Centre, first as a manager of arts and crafts, then as a family counsellor" in Winnipeg, Manitoba.

She "became an economic development officer and Native cultural worker.

She served as an elected National Arts and Crafts Advisory Committee chair and she served on the Ontario Arts and Crafts Advisory Board.

Her work as an artist has been exhibited in Toronto's Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto.

She was the host of a First Nation's cultural programme, aired weekly on CBC, Canada's national radio station.

She published a book on First Nations legends and recorded First Nations lullabies.

Activism

The Pitts family with their "liberal Christian philosophy and actions" had a "foundation influence". Her subsequent years of activism were influenced by her adopted family.

The difficulties the family endured after they were disenfranchised in 1953 and were living in Regina hardened Francis's resolve to become engaged social action for reforms. She established many grassroots organizations to support and promote First Nations culture. Francis founded the first Indian Friendship Centre in Regina. She was active in the Regina Native Society and spent most of her evenings providing counselling at the Friendship Centre in Regina.

In 1988, Francis was invited to speak at an event with 500 guests, called "Ed Broadbent and friends". She talked about how service to others brought her joy. At that time she was living in Langley, BC. and had just suffered a severe stroke. As a Saultaux elder, she created and was active in the Maquabeak Cultural Society, a First Nations "spirituality project for British Columbia corrections institutions." The Society provided a space "for the continuance and teachings of the native Indian spirituality, culture, and education".

Teaching activities

Angus Cowan introduced Dorothy Francis to the Bahá’í Faith and she became a Bahá’í in 1960. After moving to Calgary in 1960, both Francis and her husband declared as Baha'is. They were among the first nineteen Aboriginal Bahá’ís in Canada.. Francis travelled to many parts of the Canada to share the teachings of the Bahá’í Faith. According to a 1992 University of Alberta thesis, Francis became an active Bahá’í as soon as she joined the Faith and "participated in systematic Bahá’í teaching campaigns among Canada's Western Aboriginal population." In response to ‘Abdu’l-Bahá's explicit directive in the Tablets of the Divine Plan, the sole "specific racial prophecy in all of the Bahá’í scriptures", programs had been "initiated at the local, national, and international levels of Bahá’í administration."

Administrative roles

Francis served on several Local Spiritual Assemblies and was elected as a delegate to the Canadian Bahá’í National Convention several times.

She served on the Canadian National Teaching Committee, the Continental Indigenous Council, and as coordinator for Indian Teaching in British Columbia.

Awards

In 1978, Francis was appointed a member of the Order of Canada for her work promoting Aboriginal culture and identity.

Memorials

Francis is memorialized at the Bahá’í Office for the Advancement of Women, in Québec City, Québec, where her photograph is displayed with photos of other prominent female figures. She is also memorialized at the Native Bahá’í Council at Harper Mountain, near Kamloops, British Columbia.

Personal life

On 16 October 1990, she died of a heart attack in New Westminster, British Columbia.