John Horgan news release explains how he marked National Aboriginal Day before it even occurred

Politics is a tough business. Not only must you knock yourself out to win the confidence of the public, you also have to remember an endless number of dates that are important to different communities.

Politicians routinely send out best wishes on Lunar New Year, Vaisakhi, Philippine Independence Day, and other occasions.

One of the most important, of course, is National Aboriginal Day, which celebrates the founding people of this country. It falls on June 21.

Yesterday, the B.C. NDP issued its news release one day early.

"B.C. New Democrat leader, John Horgan, marked National Aboriginal Day by celebrating the ongoing achievements and outstanding contributions of Canada’s First Nations, Inuit and Métis," the June 20 release declared in its first paragraph.

Under the June 20 date, Horgan's quotes included this gem: “Today, New Democrats join all Canadians in acknowledging the significant work ahead, affirming our commitment to lasting reconciliation and celebrating National Aboriginal Day.”

Horgan pointed out in the news release that members of his party "are especially proud on this National Aboriginal Day" because of the election of Melanie Mark, who was elected last February as a First Nations woman in Vancouver–Mount Pleasant.

"The election of Melanie Mark as the New Democrat MLA for Vancouver-Mount Pleasant demonstrates the powerful contributions of aboriginal people in our democracy, but when it comes to reconciliation, there is still much work to do," Horgan said.

The news release also included a link to the video below.

Anyone interested in celebrating National Aboriginal Day today in Vancouver should head over to John Hendry Park, where festivities take place at Trout Lake beginning at noon.

(After this article appeared, the B.C. NDP sent an email to the Straight maintaining that the news release was not a gaffe. "We sent out the leader’s statement at the end of the day yesterday so that newsrooms would have it in hand as National Aboriginal Day began today," wrote Official Opposition executive director Mike Lowe. "It is common practice. For example, the BC government put out a release related to NAD yesterday: https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2016ARR0038-001080 and the BC Assembly of First Nations: http://www.bcafn.ca/bc-regional-chief-shane-gottfriedson-celebrates-the-20th-anniversary-of-national-aboriginal-day/" The two statements that Lowe cited, however, did not speak in the past tense on June 20 about how anyone had "celebrated" National Aboriginal Day.)