For this Mi’kmaw creator, art is a way to amplify activism and promote Indigenous sovereignty [Video]

When Mel Beaulieu prepared to work as the artist-in-residence at the Beaverbrook Art Gallery in Fredericton this winter, the world seemed ominous. 

Beaulieu, a queer member of Metepenagiag First Nation, says their art is often influenced by politics and the world around them. 

And this relationship only deepened in January, the month Beaulieu worked at the Beaverbrook gallery and Donald Trump was sworn in as 47th president of the United States.

On inauguration day, Trump was quick to target transgender and gender diverse people, issuing an executive order that said the U.S. government would now recognize only two sexes — male and female. A few days later, Trump issued an executive order aimed at ensuring the military does not have transgender members.

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