TRC Calls to Action: #26

Legacy
Justice

26. We call upon the federal, provincial, and territorial governments to review and amend their respective statutes of limitations to ensure that they conform to the principle that governments and other entities cannot rely on limitation defences to defend legal actions of historical abuse brought by Aboriginal people.

As of March 2018, "no amendment has been made to provincial or territorial statutes of limitation acts specifically regarding historical abuse against Indigenous peoples," but the federal government states that there has been "a shift in the way that Canada litigates cases involving Indigenous people to ensure it is done respectfully and advances reconciliation." So, as with many Calls we've read thus far, this one is being recognized in an abstract way without the implementation of concrete legal policies...

TRC Calls to Action: #25

Legacy
Justice

25. We call upon the federal government to establish a written policy that reaffirms the independence of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police to investigate crimes in which the government has its own interest as a potential or real party in civil litigation.

Our usual Government of Canada page states that the government "reaffirms the independence of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police from the executive branch in all criminal investigative matters. Any directions provided by the Minister, pursuant to s. 5 of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Act may not include directions which directly apply to or interfere with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police's criminal investigation functions. In addition, ministers may not attempt to influence in any way the conduct of specific criminal investigations."

According to Beyond 94, (a great resource, but not very user-friendly...) as of March 2018, no written policy pertaining to this Call has been created.

TRC Calls to Action: #24

 
Legacy
Health

24. We call upon medical and nursing schools in Canada to require all students to take a course dealing with Aboriginal health issues, including the history and legacy of residential schools, the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Treaties and Aboriginal rights, and Indigenous teachings and practices. This will require skills-based training in intercultural competency, conflict resolution, human rights, and anti-racism.

I know that some nursing programs include a cultural competency component, but I doubt they go into the depth this Call is requesting (in terms of history and legacy, the UN, Treaties etc...), and, as mentioned in the previous post, such training is not mandatory at this point.

TRC Calls to Action: #23

Legacy
Health

23. We call upon all levels of government to:

i. Increase the number of Aboriginal professionals working in the health-care field.

ii. Ensure the retention of Aboriginal health-care providers in Aboriginal communities.

iii. Provide cultural competency training for all health-care professionals.

As of the 2016 census, less than one percent of healthcare specialists and general practitioners in Canada identified as Aboriginal. I wasn't able to find a lot of recent information, but it sounds like the federal government is working on it, sort of...

I know that new nurses in BC generally go through some cultural competency training, and that there are ongoing training opportunities offered to health practitioners, but as far as I can tell, it is not currently mandatory for those already working in the field. So who knows how many healthcare workers are taking advantage of it here in BC.

(It seems to me a lot of these Calls are being taken up at a grassroots level much more than they are being federally implemented.)

Some relevant resources:

Island Health

First Nations Health Authority

TRC Calls to Action: #22

Legacy
Health

22. We call upon those who can effect change within the Canadian health-care system to recognize the value of Aboriginal healing practices and use them in the treatment of Aboriginal patients in collaboration with Aboriginal healers and Elders where requested by Aboriginal patients.

Once again I'll refer to the Government of Canada page for a quick rundown of the work being done toward this Call. I'd love to know what this actually looks like in terms of being implemented in our healthcare system...

TRC Calls to Action: #21

Legacy
Health

21. We call upon the federal government to provide sustainable funding for existing and new Aboriginal healing centres to address the physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual harms caused by residential schools, and to ensure that the funding of healing centres in Nunavut and the Northwest Territories is a priority.

I'll refer back to this Government of Canada page for a brief rundown of how this Call is being handled.

This Reconciliation Now page has more interesting information about intergenerational trauma and mental health, plus a plan for funding and implementation of this Call.

TRC Calls to Action: #20

Legacy
Health

     20. In order to address the jurisdictional disputes concerning Aboriginal people who do not reside on

      reserves, we call upon the federal government to recognize, respect, and address the distinct health needs

   of the Métis, Inuit, and off-reserve Aboriginal peoples.

 

  Here's where we're at with this Call.

TRC Calls to Action: #19

Legacy
Health

19. We call upon the federal government, in consultation with Aboriginal peoples, to establish measurable goals to identify and close the gaps in health outcomes between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal communities, and to publish annual progress reports and assess long-term trends. Such efforts would focus on indicators such as: infant mortality, maternal health, suicide, mental health, addictions, life expectancy, birth rates, infant and child health issues, chronic diseases, illness and injury incidence, and the availability of appropriate health services.

Check out this Government of Canada page to see what they say about implementing this Call.

According to this BC Report on Indigenous health (2016-17), Indigenous folks in BC are five times more likely to experience a drug overdose and three times more likely to die from overdose than non-Indigenous folks (same goes in Alberta). I couldn't find a federal report on health outcomes for Indigenous Canadians, but another Government of Canada page offers such statistics as: general life expectancy for Aboriginal people is 15 years shorter than non-Aboriginal people, infant mortality rates are three times higher, and rates of diabetes are almost four times higher for First Nations folks living on reserves.

Add to these few stats the astonishing fact that Indigenous women, to this day, are being sterilized against their will, (Google "sterilization of Indigenous women" and you'll find a ton of recent credible articles about this) and it becomes even clearer that we're nowhere near where we need to be in terms of caring for Canada's Indigenous population.

TRC Calls to Action: #18

Legacy
Health

15. We call upon the federal, provincial, territorial, and Aboriginal governments to acknowledge that the current state of Aboriginal health in Canada is a direct result of previous Canadian government policies, including residential schools, and to recognize and implement the health-care rights of Aboriginal people as identified in international law, constitutional law, and under the Treaties.

I believe we've already touched a bit on intergenerational trauma; this is the proven idea that trauma inflicted on one generation of people, families, or communities trickles down to affect following generations. The science here is undeniable. I am of the mind that a lot of us suffer from effects of intergenerational trauma, to some extent, but the instances of this in Aboriginal communities are most keenly observed. (Descendants of Holocaust survivors also show such effects.)

These effects aren't simply psychological or societal; there is also a strong biological component to intergenerational trauma, which is explained by the study of epigenetics, "the study of heritable changes in gene expression." Simply put, trauma changes our genes, and these changes can result in a host of issues which can then be passed down to the next generation(s).

Here are some excellent resources regarding intergenerational trauma and its effects:

University of Calgary

Collections Canada

Femmagazine (this one contains a particularly good explanation)

TRC Calls to Action: #17

Legacy
Language & Culture

17. We call upon all levels of government to enable residential school Survivors and their families to reclaim names changed by the residential school system by waiving administrative costs for a period of five years for the name-change process and the revision of official identity documents, such as birth certificates, passports, driver's licenses, health cards, status cards, and social insurance numbers.

This is something that hadn't even occurred to me, but of course, if you're trying to strip a person of their identity, the first thing you will do is take away their name. This has been done in many instances of genocide, worldwide. According to this Government of Canada page,

"Statistics Canada, in collaboration with other federal departments such as Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada and Indigenous Services Canada, will engage provincial and territorial partners on a process for residential school survivors and their families to reclaim names that were changed by the residential school system. This process would be without administrative fees. Thus far, only the province of Ontario, through the Ontario vital statistics registrar, is waiving fees for name changes on birth records for Indigenous people asking for such a change. For identity documents issued under federal jurisdiction, Service Canada does not charge fees for name changes on Social Security Numbers."

This page was last updated in October of 2018, and I couldn't find any other information on how this particular Call is being implemented...

TRC Calls to Action: #16

Legacy
Language & Culture

16. We call upon post-secondary institutions to create university and college degree and diploma programs in Aboriginal languages.

It looks like many post-secondary institutions in Canada have taken up this Call. For a list of language education and training programs and other resources, check out this Government of Canada page. Not included on this list are University of Toronto, University of Victoria, Lakehead University, UBC, University of Winnipeg, University of Calgary, McMaster, Waterloo, York, Trent, and many more. I'm glad to see centres of higher learning are stepping up and contributing to reconciliation in this regard, and I'd be interested to hear from folks (Indigenous and otherwise) who have taken these programs: what was their experience, what could be improved etc...

TRC Calls to Action: #15

Legacy
Language & Culture

15. We call upon the federal government to appoint, in consultation with Aboriginal groups, an Aboriginal Languages Commissioner. The commissioner should help promote Aboriginal languages and report on the adequacy of federal funding of Aboriginal-languages initiatives.

This Government of Canada site gives a breakdown of what they've been doing re: Language & Culture Calls, and while it looks like the government has been taking steps in this regard, as of yet no commissioner has been appointed specifically for Aboriginal languages. We have an Official Languages Commissioner, Raymond Théberge, but his scope doesn't expand beyond English and French.

TRC Calls to Action: #14

Legacy
Language & Culture

14. We call upon the federal government to enact an Aboriginal Languages Act that incorporates the following principles:

i. Aboriginal languages are a fundamental and valued element of Canadian culture and society, and there is an urgency to preserve them.

ii. Aboriginal language rights are reinforced by the Treaties.

iii. The federal government has a responsibility to provide sufficient funds for Aboriginal-language revitalization and preservation.

iv. The preservation, revitalization, and strengthening of Aboriginal languages and cultures are best managed by Aboriginal people and communities.

v. Funding for Aboriginal language initiatives must reflect the diversity of Aboriginal languages.

Check out the Government of Canada website to learn about the initiatives underway. Most interesting is their Summary of Findings from discussions with various participant groups.

TRC Calls to Action: #13

Legacy
Language & Culture

13.We call upon the federal government to acknowledge that Aboriginal rights include Aboriginal language rights.

Considering the strong influence of language on culture (and vice versa - the two have a symbiotic relationship strongly linked to identity), this is an important Call in terms of maintaining Aboriginal identities. Most ancestral languages are either extinct or near extinction; in some cases, there is only one person left who speaks their ancestral language. As these languages were used as a way to pass down knowledge from one generation to the next, you can see the importance of keeping such languages alive, especially if we truly are concerned with ensuring the continuation of Indigenous cultures.

Some other useful links about Aboriginal languages and the extinction thereof:

Stats Canada

The Canadian Encyclopedia

Canadian Commission for UNESCO

TRC Calls to Action: #12

Legacy
Education

12. We call upon the federal, provincial, territorial, and Aboriginal governments to develop culturally appropriate early childhood education programs for Aboriginal families. 

This one is fairly straightforward, and again underlines the importance of honouring and sustaining Aboriginal identities and cultural practices. Since the first few years of a person's life are the most integral to development, it is essential that during these years we nurture Indigenous children in culturally appropriate ways in order to set them up for success.