Dear reader,
When Canadians hear the word “pretendian,” a list of prominent people accused of falsifying Indigenous identity comes to mind: novelist Joseph Boyden, filmmaker Michelle Latimer and, in a particularly high-profile case, legendary folk singer Buffy Sainte-Marie.
Queen’s University students Amira and Nadya Gill were never household names. But, in academic circles across the country, the revelation that their family had been fraudulently claiming Inuit ancestry was similarly explosive.
In 2024, Toronto Life writer Sarah Treleaven chronicled how the twins’ mother, Karima Manji, crafted an elaborate lie about their identity to gain access to financial aid for her daughters. Soon after publication, Manji pleaded guilty, and the Crown dropped all charges against the twins.
More than a year later, Nadya, using a new name, Jordan Archer, is speaking to media for the first time. This week, she told the Toronto Star that she knew nothing of her mother’s scam—and hopes to be judged accordingly. Below, we revisit Treleaven’s story about Canada’s first criminal case of Indigenous identity fraud.
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