The former Supreme Court of Canada justice became the 31st Governor General on Monday
Upon being installed as the 31st Governor General of Canada on Monday morning, former Supreme Court of Canada justice Louise Arbour reflected on her roots in Montreal, describing her upbringing as taking place in a comfortably homogeneous environment.
Speaking in French, Arbour said she grew up in uniform and was educated exclusively by women, her mother and the sisters of the Congregation of Notre Dame. Until she turned 20, Arbour’s classmates, like herself, were all white, Francophone, and Catholic.
Canadians’ ancestors, Arbour said, come from all over the world. Switching to English, the Governor General urged Canadians not to “slow our momentum towards progress out of fear of differences.
“Extreme polarization is dangerous, but so is extreme consensus,” she said. “It is through our differences, and our fundamental right to express them, that we will nourish critical thinking, creativity, and innovation. It is through our differences that we will build a common future.”
Arbour argued that Canadians “benefit from strong institutions that allow different views to be expressed.” She pointed to the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, which she said “guarantees that our cherished individual rights are subject only to the reasonable limits that are necessary for life in a free and peaceful democracy.
“This is what it means to live under the rule of law,” Arbour added. “In an open society like ours, the purpose of law is not to restrain, but to construct a greater freedom for all.”
Arbour was sworn into her new role in Ottawa by Supreme Court of Canada chief justice Richard Wagner. The jurist, who served as a high court justice from 1999 to 2004, replaces Mary Simon, Canada’s first Indigenous Governor General, who has held the role since 2021.
Before joining the SCC, Arbour, 79, was a judge for both the Supreme Court of Ontario and the Ontario Court of Appeal. After leaving the high court, she served in numerous international roles, including as the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.
From 2021 to 2022, she led an independent review of Canada’s Department of National Defence and the Canadian Armed Forces, recommending significant reforms to address sexual misconduct and institutional culture issues.
Prime Minister Mark Carney was among several individuals who spoke at Arbour’s swearing-in ceremony on Monday. “Canadians entrust the Governor General to defend our institutions, to uphold our core values of liberty, fairness, solidarity, and sustainability, to represent our ambition to build a stronger, fairer country for all,” Carney said.
“These duties call for sound judgment, deep learning, and an unwavering commitment to the rule of law, the very principles on which our new Governor General, her excellency Louise Arbour, has built her exceptional career,” Carney said.
He noted in French that, while Arbour has served at the SCC, some of her most significant achievements have occurred outside courtrooms.
Towards the end of her speech, Arbour referenced Canada’s ongoing development push.
“Former United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan often spoke of the three pillars of the United Nations: security, development, and human rights,” Arbour said. “He always stressed that there can be no security without development. No development without security, and neither development or security without the protection of human rights.
“This is as true in Canada as it is everywhere else,” Arbour continued. As we undertake major initiatives to strengthen our economy and to grow our security, including in the Arctic, we must remain attentive to the rights of those directly affected. And we must always ensure a fair sharing of both burdens and benefits.”
