News

As the commission on Indian residential schools struggles with firings and delays, victims are dying

By: Linda Diebel, Toronto Star

They're dying quickly now, the aged survivors of an Indian residential school system in Canada that yanked tens of thousands of aboriginal children from their families and sent them far away to Christian schools to be stripped of their identity. For more than a hundred years, it was Canada's official policy: "Take the Indian out of the Indian," as Sir Duncan Campbell Scott, head of the Indian Affairs department, defined his mandate early in the last century.

BY: KATE MCLAREN, QMI AGENCY

Shannen Koostachin had a dream -- one that granted all children access to comfortable, cozy, quality education.

Although the First Nations youth leader's tragic death prevented her from seeing her dream in full fruition, a new campaign led by MP Charlie Angus (NDP, Timmins-James Bay) is calling for more funding for education in Aboriginal communities.

Shannen inspired many people, and she started something that needs to continue," said Angus. She believed every kid had a right to a quality education in a real school."

Ms. Jean Crowder (Nanaimo—Cowichan, NDP): Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to rise in the House today to speak to Bill C-9, the jobs and economic growth act. As the member for Outremont, our finance critic, has indicated, the New Democrats will be voting against this particular piece of legislation.

When pieces of legislation come before the House, we have responsibilities as members of Parliament to give them full consideration. Although we do support pieces of this legislation, there are other pieces of it that we are fundamentally opposed to. The Conservative government has decided to jam into this piece of legislation things that should properly be considered by other parliamentary standing committees and should have stand-alone legislation.

Ms. Jean Crowder (Nanaimo—Cowichan, NDP): Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to speak to Bill C-3, An Act to promote gender equity in Indian registration by responding to the Court of Appeal for British Columbia decision in McIvor v. Canada (Registrar of Indian and Northern Affairs). It is a long title for a short bill. New Democrats will be supporting this bill at second reading.

It is important not only for the women and their children in Nanaimo—Cowichan but for the women and their children in British Columbia and across this country.

Ms. Jean Crowder (Nanaimo—Cowichan, NDP): Madam Speaker, I listened with interest to the member's speech. I appreciated his starting off with a story about some of the good things young people are doing. I know in my own community of Nanaimo—Cowichan, a couple of weeks ago, some young people did some brilliant work on cyberbullying, where they presented some things that young people are faced with in cyberspace around bullying and they invited the audience to participate. These young people had a hand in writing the program and certainly in interacting with the audience. So, I think we need to really recognize that young people from coast to coast to coast are doing some good work.

Ms. Jean Crowder (Nanaimo—Cowichan, NDP): Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure to rise today to congratulate Nanaimo's Tillicum Le'lum Aboriginal Friendship Centre on its new indigenous response to sexual abuse program. Building on existing programs, this one of a kind initiative will support sexual health and self-esteem workshops, intervention for men at risk of offending and activities to celebrate aboriginal youth. The use of traditional teachings to foster healthy families is a hallmark of the centre.

Ms. Jean Crowder (Nanaimo—Cowichan, NDP): Mr. Speaker, people are talking about the Nunn report fairly consistently. In his report, Justice Nunn says:

—it would be irresponsible of me not to consider its role in a larger context of youth crime and improvements necessary to accomplish the desired result of lessening youth crime and rehabilitating those who become involved in criminal acts.

He is talking about prevention of youth crime.

Ms. Jean Crowder (Nanaimo—Cowichan, NDP): Madam Speaker, in fact there was another bill that was introduced, Bill C-3 on the McIvor decision from the B.C. Supreme Court. That bill still has not been brought forward for debate in the House despite the fact that there is a deadline of April 6 for implementation of that very important decision for first nations across this country.

When the Conservative House leader was speaking, he characterized what was happening today as a waste of time. I would like the member to comment on the fact that the Conservatives seem to characterize having a debate about the fundamentals around our democratic process as a waste of time. What we have heard from thousands and thousands of Canadians is their concern around what they see as a unilateral abuse of power.

By: John Ward, The Canadian Press

OTTAWA - The federal government has introduced legislation to extend formal Indian status to the grandchildren of aboriginal women who married non-natives - a change that could add as many as 45,000 people to the Indian registry.

The bill, introduced in the Commons on Thursday by Indian Affairs Minister Chuck Strahl, is in response to a 2009 B.C. court judgment which ruled that a law denying Indian status to the grandchildren was discriminatory.

Ms. Jean Crowder (Nanaimo—Cowichan, NDP): Madam Speaker, I am pleased to speak to the budget. I will be splitting my time with the member for New Westminster—Coquitlam.

I want to spend my brief 10 minutes talking about two different aspects of the budget. I want to talk about how it affects people who live in my riding of Nanaimo—Cowichan, but in my role as the aboriginal affairs critic for the NDP, I also want to talk about how it affects first nations, Métis and Inuit throughout the country.