When Queen’s professor Laura Murray was teaching her ENGL 287: Unsettling Kingston/Katarokwi course, which focused on local and national Indigenous issues, she invited Laurel Claus-Johnson – an Elder from the Bear Clan of the Mohawks – to come to the first class and speak with students.
Then, for the following weeks, Ms. Claus-Johnson kept coming. She was a determined advocate who served as a cultural bridge and loved to share her knowledge of Indigenous issues with the students.
“She was such a gift in that class,” says Professor Murray. “She came because she wanted to learn, and she wanted to teach. She was such a blessing to students. She would listen to students who didn’t know anything, and she would respect them and help them see they needed to learn more. She loved coming to class.”
Many are remembering Ms. Claus-Johnson, who passed away Sept. 30, 2022, as a committed community leader who deeply cared about the environment, women’s rights, and Indigenous rights.
She first came to Kingston in the mid-1980s to study law at Queen’s but never completed her studies.
“She didn’t need a law degree to make an impact,” says Professor Murray.
She continued to stay involved at Queen’s long after her student days. She was a member of the Indigenous Council of Queen’s University, consulting and providing guidance to many students, professors, and administrators.
Taylor Tye, Artsci’21, Ed’23, worked with Ms. Claus-Johnson on a research project while in undergrad and describes Ms. Claus-Johnson as a strong Mohawk woman.
“I’m an English major so I am inspired by language,” says Tye, who is Ojibway and currently a student with the Indigenous Teacher Education Program at Queen’s. “She spoke in stories, and she really drew you in in beautiful ways. I look back at some of the conversations and think ‘I learned so much from Laurel and I didn’t even realize it.’”
Over the years, Laurel supported and advised the city on many matters, often reminding staff and council that the words we speak carry our intents and should be chosen with care.
Her impact extended far beyond the Queen’s campus. Among her many accomplishments were the community roles she held. She was a founding member of the Katarokwi Native Friendship Centre, a former executive director of Dawn House, and a member of the Katarokwi Grandmothers’ Council, the Prison for Women Collective, and the Limestone District School Board Indigenous Education Advisory Committee.
She was passionate about helping people in prisons ever since she came to Kingston in the mid-1980s, working diligently alongside Canadian Mohawk lawyer and activist Trish Monture, Law’88, LLD’09.
“There were many that died and took their own lives there. I still think there are deep reparations that need to be made there,” Ms. Claus-Johnson said during an interview with The Kingstonist in 2022. “Not only that, but I believe in the spiritual, mental, physical, and emotional well-being of prisoners. There are 10 prisons in the area. Certainly tha