It certainly IS - as has been pointed out - a tragic legacy, but is throwing more cash at the problem (as has happened historically for years) going to make everything better? I think not.
According to newly released data from a National Canadian Household survey, of the approximate 30,000 children currently in foster care in Canada, over 14,000 are Aboriginal - that's nearly half of all the children in care and government representatives say the number is shocking. But is it really?
Neglect, brought on by poverty, poor housing and substance abuse are said to be key factors as to why this trend is happening. And no doubt they are.
"These are all things that child welfare can do something about," says Cindy Blackstock, executive director of the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society of Canada. "What we have here is a very dire statistic for children who, just like their parents in many cases, are being removed from their families because of neglect. The government is simply not giving these children the same opportunity to grow up with their families that all other Canadian children enjoy..."
Hmmm... Doesn't this statistic scream the fact there are problems with accountability and the way we fund reserves? Maybe if we actually sat down and reexamined this issue rather than continue to throw funding at it as has been historical in Canada we might get somewhere.
According to the stats, the rising number of children in foster care is directly proportional to the overall steady growth in First Nations populations. Between 2006 and 2011, the Aboriginal population in Canada increased at a rate of 20 per cent, as compared to a five per cent increase in the non-aboriginal population. These are alarming statistics. What kind of world are we looking at if we continue to let this happen. How fair are we being to all of these innocent children?
"It's a devastating number. It makes your stomach boil," says an expert on Aboriginal issues at the University of Saskatchewan adding the numbers "underscore a tragic legacy that we don't talk about as openly as we should in Canada. What you're seeing is the impact on children on family breakdown, alcohol or drug abuse and cultural loss in Aboriginal communities... You don't learn healthy parenting skills when you grow up in an institution..."
No you don't. So let's stop making the mistakes of the past, stop sweeping things under the carpet and deal with the problem at hand. The lives of countless children and their futures depend on it.
