There are definite gaps in the system and flaws in society if we have happenings like this going on. Tragically, a six year old area boy - who was under the care and protection of the Saskatchewan Social Services - is no longer with us.
On the day that little Lee Allan Bonneau was to begin his first day of Grade two, police and officials were gathering for a news conference to address how it is the young boy could have met the fate he did.
In foster care, Bonneau was visiting the Kahkewistahaw First Nation with his foster parents, who were on the reserve to play Bingo in the Education and Sports Complex, when he was beaten and killed by a 12 (ish) year old boy who lived on the reserve.
Apparently the 12 year old - who is believed to have used a blunt force weapon to beat Bonneau to death - had been in trouble many times before. Too young to be charged criminally, he now sits in a government facility while officials try to make sense of what happened and where to go from here.
This isn't purely a racial issue. The six year old was non-Aboriginal. That said, it is a situation that begs answers. Why was this 12 year old so troubled that he wound up taking a life? What kind of an environment was he being brought up in? How can we as a society change that? What kind of home was the six year old placed in? Was there no supervision whatsoever that day? Where do we go from here, in a society that says the youth is too young to be held responsible for his actions?
The Chief of the First Nation is blaming a lack of government funding for what has happened. With more funding he says, there would be additional resources for health and educational issues. It seems to always come down to this. At what point do we say - what we are doing is NOT working. Throwing money at an already messed up situation will not make things any better. It's time for an overhaul.
Bonneau is reportedly the fifth child in the Saskatchewan Social Services system to die in the last four years. It's time we start digging and start demanding answers. We are failing our children and something has to give.
