1. John Ciaccia was a Canadian politician who was provincial cabinet minister from Montreal, Quebec.
58 Facts About John Ciaccia
1. 2.
John Ciaccia occupied various posts in the cabinets of Liberal premiers Robert Bourassa, and Daniel Johnson Jr.
3.
At his resignation, John Ciaccia was the longest-serving member of the Assembly.
4.
John Ciaccia gained international attention for his efforts in negotiating the end of the Oka Crisis alongside his federal counterpart, Tom Siddon, in 1990.
5.
John Ciaccia was born Giambattista Nicola Ciaccia in the Italian town of Jelsi in the region of Molise on March 4,1933.
6.
John Ciaccia emigrated to Canada via Ellis Island in 1937 with his mother and elder sister reuniting with their father, who had already come to Montreal in 1935.
7.
John Ciaccia recalled the trials of growing up in another country, being viewed by some as an outsider.
8.
John Ciaccia became fluent in both English and French at an early age, reading novels and encyclopedias in both languages as a child.
9.
John Ciaccia then pursued his studies at McGill's prestigious Faculty of Law, whose faculty, at the time, consisted of future Supreme Court and Superior Court justices.
10.
John Ciaccia was later told by a colleague the soon to be bankrupt man left his clients' office in tears.
11.
John Ciaccia implemented the native youth liaison program which employed natives to help coordinate native youth programs throughout Canada.
12.
Indian Affairs minister Jean Chretien defended John Ciaccia, noting the difficult nature of his deputy's workload.
13.
In 1972, John Ciaccia helped found the Indian Way School, in the Kahnawake Mohawk reserve south of Montreal.
14.
Bourassa asked John Ciaccia to run in the newly formed electoral riding of Mont-Royal, a multicultural area of Montreal, regarded as a Liberal stronghold.
15.
John Ciaccia accepted the offer, resigning from his Federal post in the department of Indian Affairs.
16.
John Ciaccia, considered a "specialist on native peoples", was tasked with finalizing a deal between Quebec and the natives.
17.
In exchange for ending further legal obstruction to the project, John Ciaccia initially offered affected native communities a reported $100 million in royalties along with increased hunting and fishing rights.
18.
John Ciaccia publicly suggested native leaders were overstating their peoples' genuine opposition to the project, offering to personally travel North to gauge the reaction himself.
19.
John Ciaccia made good on his offer and in April 1974 visited the Cree village of Fort George in northern Quebec.
20.
John Ciaccia spent hours answering questions from hundreds of residents in a school auditorium.
21.
John Ciaccia nevertheless continued his role as chief government negotiator with the Cree and Inuit on the James Bay project.
22.
John Ciaccia was one of 26 Liberals who managed to hold on to their seats.
23.
At a press conference alongside Ryan, John Ciaccia highlighted Ryan's opposition to the controversial Bill 101.
24.
John Ciaccia seriously considered running for the leadership, but ultimately decided not to run.
25.
John Ciaccia urged his federal counterpart, Pat Carney, to block the sale.
26.
John Ciaccia sought to find another buyer for the refinery that would keep it operational.
27.
Towards the end of 1986, John Ciaccia grew increasingly frustrated with what he viewed as gouging of companies by the oil companies.
28.
John Ciaccia commissioned a 1987 report which concluded oil companies and gasoline distributors were pocketing most of the tax cuts on the retail price of gasoline in Quebec's outlying regions, failing to pass down the savings to consumers.
29.
In June 1987, John Ciaccia issued a decree, valid for 3 months, controlling the price of gasoline, setting a ceiling on the price in outlying regions.
30.
John Ciaccia accused the Mulroney Conservatives of stalling on the construction of the Matane mill in the economically depressed Gaspe, a project they had endorsed during the previous federal election.
31.
John Ciaccia said his riding office received insulting phone calls from English residents, angry over his decision.
32.
John Ciaccia decided to stay, questioning any good that would come from his resigning, saying he could do more for anglophones by remaining in cabinet.
33.
John Ciaccia is bound to face some harsh criticism for not having joined his colleagues in restoring the honor of the community.
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John Ciaccia knew that, which makes his decision a courageous one in its own way.
35.
In May 1989, with an election coming in the fall, John Ciaccia addressed a hostile crowd at an Alliance Quebec convention.
36.
John Ciaccia later told reporters that he "felt like Daniel in the Lion's den" at the convention.
37.
John Ciaccia already had experience with the Native community in the 1970s: first as a federal civil servant, then as chief provincial negotiator during James Bay Hydroelectric development.
38.
John Ciaccia was a staunch supporter of the Meech Lake Accord, a package of proposed amendments to the Canadian Constitution, intended to persuade Quebec to sign on the Constitution Act of 1982.
39.
Contrary to Trudeau's claim that any reference to a "distinct society" was an insult, John Ciaccia highlighted how recognition of cultural differences are arguably a key part of the Canadian identity.
40.
John Ciaccia left the meeting confident a deal would soon be reached.
41.
John Ciaccia was pressing 'onward into the mouth of hell'.
42.
On July 26,1990 it was reported that John Ciaccia was allowing Mohawks to use a dock on the land of a Dorval property he owned.
43.
John Ciaccia acknowledged the dock's existence but maintained it was used solely for sending in essential goods such as food and medical supplies.
44.
John Ciaccia nevertheless held on to his post as minister of International Trade.
45.
In January 1991, John Ciaccia would meet a delegation of MEPs who had come to Montreal on a fact-finding mission.
46.
In 2000, John Ciaccia published a personal memoir of the crisis, The Oka Crisis: A Mirror of the Soul.
47.
John Ciaccia participated in many trade missions, in search of potentially new markets for Quebec exporters.
48.
John Ciaccia was an ardent supporter of the North American Free Trade Agreement, arguing it would increase growth in Quebec's service and high-tech industries, among others.
49.
In 1992, John Ciaccia visited Vietnam on a trade mission, another country in the process of liberalizing its economy.
50.
John Ciaccia helped sign an agreement promoting economic and technological cooperation between Vietnam and Quebec.
51.
John Ciaccia was given a new portfolio, Immigration and Cultural Communities, in addition to his previously held one in International Affairs.
52.
In outlining a three-year plan on immigration, John Ciaccia addressed concerns that the French language was in danger on the island of Montreal, where most immigrants to Quebec choose to settle.
53.
In 1994, with an upcoming election and the Liberals trailing the PQ in the polls, John Ciaccia considered retiring from politics.
54.
Just as he did during the 1980 referendum, John Ciaccia actively campaigned for the "No" side in the 1995 referendum, acting as strategist for the No Committee.
55.
In September 1998, with a general election set for November 30, John Ciaccia announced he would not be seeking re-election.
56.
John Ciaccia was a well-known figure in Montreal's Italian community, and frequent invitee to events organized by the Italian Chamber of Commerce.
57.
John Ciaccia had one son, Mark, and two grandsons, Erik and Nicholas.
58.
John Ciaccia died in his home in Beaconsfield, Quebec on August 7,2018, at the age of 85.