Canada and The First Nations People.

[Wisdom]

Long Train of Abuses takes a look at the issues that First Nations in Canada are experiencing. We also take a look back at the blockades and confrontations of the past between Canada and The First Nations People.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ybq4yDrbB1A

[bluekrissyspikes]

why? to live in the past a bit more?? what's done is done and you got a sweet deal afterwards unlike any other peoples who've been wronged throughout history.

[Wisdom]

why? to live in the past a bit more?? what's done is done and you got a sweet deal afterwards unlike any other peoples who've been wronged throughout history.

Yeah, a sweet deal.....


* One aboriginal child in eight is disabled, double the rate of all children in Canada.
* Among First Nations children, 43 per cent lack basic dental care.
* Overcrowding among First Nations families is double the rate of that for all Canadian families.
* Mould contaminates almost half of all First Nations households.
* Almost half of aboriginal children under 15 years old residing in urban areas live with a single parent.
* Close to 100 First Nations communities must boil their water.
* Of all off-reserve aboriginal children, 40 per cent live in poverty.


http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2006/...#ixzz0saarD2MP

[Wisdom]

http://www.afn.ca/article.asp?id=764

The Reality for First Nations in Canada





First Nations people in Canada…



Live in Third World conditions:

· First Nations living conditions or quality of life ranks 63rd, or amongst Third World conditions, according to an Indian and Northern Affairs Canada study that applied First Nations-specific statistics to the Human Development Index created by the United Nations.

· Canada dropped from first to eighth as the best country in the world to live primarily due to housing and health conditions in First Nations communities.

· The First Nations’ infant mortality rate is 1.5 times higher than the Canadian infant mortality rate.

· A study by Indian Affairs (the “Community Well-being Index”) assessed quality of life in 4,685 Canadian communities based on education, labour force activity, income and housing. There was only one First Nation community in the Top 100. There were 92 First Nations in the Bottom 100. Half of all First Nations communities score in the lower range of the index compared with 3% of other Canadian communities.



Die earlier than other Canadians:

· A First Nations man will die 7.4 years earlier than a non-Aboriginal Canadian. A First Nations woman will die 5.2 years earlier than her non-Aboriginal counterpart (life expectancy for First Nations citizens is estimated at 68.9 years for males and 76.6 years for females).



Face increased rates of suicide, diabetes, tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS:

· The First Nations suicide rate is more than twice the Canadian rate. Suicide is now among the leading causes of death among First Nations between the ages of 10 and 24, with the rate estimated to be five to six times higher than that of non-Aboriginal youth.

· The prevalence of diabetes among First Nations is at least three times the national average, with high rates across all age groups.

· Tuberculosis rates for First Nations populations on-reserve are 8 to 10 times higher than those for the Canadian population.

· Aboriginal peoples make up only 5% of the total population in Canada but represent 16% of new HIV infections. Of these, 45% are women and 40% are under 30 years old. HIV/AIDS cases among Aboriginal peoples have increased steadily over the past decade.


Face a crisis in housing and living conditions:

· Health Canada states that as of May 2003, 12% of First Nations communities had to boil their drinking water and approximately ¼ of water treatment systems on-reserve pose a high risk to human health.

· Almost 25% of First Nations water infrastructures are at high risk of contamination.

· Housing density is twice that of the general population. Nearly 1 in 4 First Nations adults live in crowded homes. 423,000 people live in 89,000 overcrowded, substandard and rapidly deteriorating housing units.

· Almost half of the existing housing stock requires renovations.

· 5,486 of the 88,485 houses on-reserve are without sewage service.

· Mold contaminates almost half of First Nations households.

· More than 100 First Nations communities are under a Boil Water Advisory for drinking water.

· Core funding to support on-reserve housing has remained unchanged for 20 years.

· Almost half of First Nations people residing off-reserve live in poor quality housing that is below standard. Most First Nations homes off-reserve are crowded.

· First Nations have limited access to affordable housing: 73% are in core need, most are spending more than the standard of 30% of their income on rent.



Are not attaining education levels equal to other Canadians, even though most First Nations are under the age of 25 and represent the workforce of tomorrow:

· There has been literally no progress over the last four years in closing the gap in high school graduation rates between First Nations and other Canadians. At the current rate, it will take 28 years for First Nations to catch-up to the non-Aboriginal population.

· About 70% of First Nations students on-reserve will never complete high school. Graduation rates for the on-reserve population range from 28.9%-32.1% annually.

· 10,000 First Nations students who are eligible and looking to attend post-secondary education are on waiting lists because of under-funding.

· The number of post-secondary students has been declining in recent years. In 1998-99, participation rates of Registered Indians was at a high of 27,157 but dropped to 25,075 in 2002-03.

· About 27% of the First Nations population between 15 and 44 years of age hold a post-secondary certificate, diploma, or degree, compared with 46% of the Canadian population within the same age group.



Lack jobs and economic opportunities:

· Unemployment rates for all Aboriginal groups continue to be at least double the rate of the non-Aboriginal population. Registered Indians have the highest unemployment rate of any Aboriginal group, at 27%.

· Registered Indians have the lowest labour force participation rate of any Aboriginal group, with a rate of 54%.



Yet First Nations receive less from all levels of government than non-Aboriginal Canadians:

· The average Canadian gets services from the federal, provincial and municipal governments at an amount that is almost two-and-a-half times greater than that received by First Nations citizens.

· In 1996, the federal government capped funding increases for Indian Affairs’ core programs at 2% a year, which does not keep pace with inflation or the growing First Nations population. A recent Indian Affairs study found that the gap in “quality of life” between First Nations and Canadians stopped narrowing in 1996.

[Wisdom]

[1] Indian and Northern Affairs Canada (INAC), 1998. The Human Development Index examines per capita income, education levels and life expectancy to compare the world’s countries.

[2] Statistics Canada; Health Canada, Healthy Canadians, A Federal Report on Comparable Health Indicators, 2002

[3] INAC, 2002

[4] Health Canada, Health Sectoral Session Background Paper, October 2004

[5] Health Canada, Diabetes Among Aboriginal People in Canada: The Evidence, March 2000

[6] Health Canada, A Statistical Profile on the Health of First Nations in Canada, March 2003

[7] Health Canada, FNIHB Community Programs Annual Review 1999-2000, August 2000

[8] Indian and Northern Affairs Canada

[9] First Nations Centre, National Aboriginal Health Organization, Preliminary Findings of the First Nations Regional Longitudinal Health Survey 2002-2003, November 2004

[10] 2003 Report of the Auditor General of Canada

[11] Regional Longitudinal Health Survey, National Aboriginal Health Organization

[12] Health Canada

[13] 2004 Report of the Auditor General of Canada

[14] INAC, Nominal Roll 1994-2000

[15] 2004 Report of the Auditor General of Canada

[16] Statistics Canada, DIAND Core Census Tabulations, 1996, T-11

[17] Ibid.

[Wisdom]

Most Aboriginal people will suggest to those who care to listen, and
many learned scholars and jurists would agree, that these arrangements,
by whatever name one chooses to call them, were agreements of co-occupation
and co-existence within the territory. That is, they were not, as
has been suggested and indeed argued over the years, the surrender and
capitulation of any rights to sovereignty or self-government by the Aboriginal
people.

[KDawg]

Very sad statistics Wisdom.

What do you suggest be done to fix this?

[riggs]

Nice to see you put Canada first in your title.

[riggs]

why? to live in the past a bit more??

I'm not at all surprised>

[bluekrissyspikes]

Yeah, a sweet deal.....


* One aboriginal child in eight is disabled, double the rate of all children in Canada.
* Among First Nations children, 43 per cent lack basic dental care.
* Overcrowding among First Nations families is double the rate of that for all Canadian families.
* Mould contaminates almost half of all First Nations households.
* Almost half of aboriginal children under 15 years old residing in urban areas live with a single parent.
* Close to 100 First Nations communities must boil their water.
* Of all off-reserve aboriginal children, 40 per cent live in poverty.


http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2006/...#ixzz0saarD2MP

it's not our fault they are poor. they choose not to finish highschool and focus so they can get the grades they need for their free education. that is a personal choice. there are no children in canada that don't have access to dental care. if they dont have a dental plan they can go to their nearest health unit for a referal and social services will cover the cost even if they arent on the system. nice try though. as for the illness stuff, yeah, we are totally responsible for the genetic immunities of other people and for them seeking/not seeking healthcare when necessary. *rolls eyes* and over crouding homes? again, a personal choice. i know several natives i grew up around that now have 6-11 children. birth control anyone?? maybe stop inviting cousins from all over to live at your home too?? re:hiv infections being high in the population, again CONDOMS are free....they will also help with the over crouding problem. diabetes? teach your kids about veggies instead of prepackaged donuts and dollar store cookies. knowing there is a genetic link to diabeties, maybe take some precautions? duh. unemployed, didn't graduate high school? again, personal choice. i think it's time to take some responsibility for the direction they are leading themselves and for what they choose to do with their lives and stop blaming others for their decision to sit back in poverty and not do anything to or put the effort in to better themselves.

[Super Gram]

Thats what I thought too

[Soundbear]

Easier to ignore there, too.

[Evil Monkey]

Easier to ignore there, too.

I agree. No more Wisdom for me. I have never ignored anyone before but all this native spam weekly, with the 309,7432975984759827598235,8932758974398539285732 posts about this garbage from Wisdom are just getting annoying. Especially all this political stuff in the soapbox.

[italiandomino]

* One aboriginal child in eight is disabled, double the rate of all children in Canada.
* Among First Nations children, 43 per cent lack basic dental care.
* Overcrowding among First Nations families is double the rate of that for all Canadian families.
* Mould contaminates almost half of all First Nations households.
* Almost half of aboriginal children under 15 years old residing in urban areas live with a single parent.
* Close to 100 First Nations communities must boil their water.
* Of all off-reserve aboriginal children, 40 per cent live in poverty.

ohh boo hooo !!

i love how you use children to make it seem more worse then what it is, considering the population of natives are a fraction of everyone else, of course the numbers are gonna seem high, it is based on per capita .. is it really Canadians fault that natives dont know how to keep their legs closed with the wrong guys ? no wonder there are so many single moms .. their fathers are either dead beats .. or in jail (I beleive natives make up the highest population in jail am I correct ? you must have left this out of your list because you dont want the rest of us Canadians seem that natives are all trouble makers, http://www.vcn.bc.ca/august10/politics/facts_stats.html , look up your own stats) .. so what is the purpose of this thread anyways ? make us canadians feel bad for natives ?

Free schooling, I am surprised they dont all have great jobs if they can get their education for free, oh wait, blame it on their culture, family drug and alcohol abuse and sexual abuse is the reason for that all.

1 in 8 child are born with a disablity ? define disabilty ? like a learning disability ? cant read or write ? maybe the mother should lay off drugs and booze while they are preggie .. that might help out alot.

Mold contaminates half of first nations households ? clean the damn house more often, pretty simple.

40 % live in poverty .. parents should go out and get jobs so the kids wont have to live in poverty, this isnt us candians fault, this is their damn parents fault. lazy parents seem to be contagious and will end up with lazy kids who will repeat the same cycle.

nice try though, but this is one of those useless threads.

[italiandomino]

Nice to see you put Canada first in your title.

i hate to agree with a LEafs fan .. but i thought i was the only one that noticed that

[dancingqueen]

it's not our fault they are poor. they choose not to finish highschool and focus so they can get the grades they need for their free education. that is a personal choice. there are no children in canada that don't have access to dental care. if they dont have a dental plan they can go to their nearest health unit for a referal and social services will cover the cost even if they arent on the system. nice try though. as for the illness stuff, yeah, we are totally responsible for the genetic immunities of other people and for them seeking/not seeking healthcare when necessary. *rolls eyes* and over crouding homes? again, a personal choice. i know several natives i grew up around that now have 6-11 children. birth control anyone?? maybe stop inviting cousins from all over to live at your home too?? re:hiv infections being high in the population, again CONDOMS are free....they will also help with the over crouding problem. diabetes? teach your kids about veggies instead of prepackaged donuts and dollar store cookies. knowing there is a genetic link to diabeties, maybe take some precautions? duh. unemployed, didn't graduate high school? again, personal choice. i think it's time to take some responsibility for the direction they are leading themselves and for what they choose to do with their lives and stop blaming others for their decision to sit back in poverty and not do anything to or put the effort in to better themselves.

On the note of diabetes, it depends on if it's type one, or type 2.
If we are talking type 1, what one eats, is understood to have little to nothing to do with obtaining type 1 diabetes, it is actually understood to be a viral infection that attacks the pancreas. Type 2 diabetes does have much to do with what we eat, and with native Americans their body is not built to withstand the amount of junk as others can, much like alcohol and why they are more susceptible to alcoholism.
You can't just say "well take precautions" We have literally beaten into them for generations that they must live as we do, do as we do, etc in order to be considered semi-human. To say "take precautions" is further being said from a privileged perspective.

You also make an interesting point. "it's not our fault they are poor" Many Canadians as a whole, are considered the working poor, I wonder if general poverty is actually the problem rather than poverty among Native communities. Most people are "working poor"

[dancingqueen]

lazy parents seem to be contagious and will end up with lazy kids who will repeat the same cycle.

Lazy parents, or parents that where abused and neglected beyond imagination?
a little bit of empathy can go a lon way, and it won't hurt you ID.

[italiandomino]

Lazy parents, or parents that where abused and neglected beyond imagination?
a little bit of empathy can go a lon way, and it won't hurt you ID.

that excuse can only be used so much DQ .. lots of ppl are abused .. and move forward with their lives .. i only have empathy with those that wanan move forward .. not use it as an excuse for failure

[bluekrissyspikes]

On the note of diabetes, it depends on if it's type one, or type 2.
If we are talking type 1, what one eats, is understood to have little to nothing to do with obtaining type 1 diabetes, it is actually understood to be a viral infection that attacks the pancreas. Type 2 diabetes does have much to do with what we eat, and with native Americans their body is not built to withstand the amount of junk as others can, much like alcohol and why they are more susceptible to alcoholism.
You can't just say "well take precautions" We have literally beaten into them for generations that they must live as we do, do as we do, etc in order to be considered semi-human. To say "take precautions" is further being said from a privileged perspective.

You also make an interesting point. "it's not our fault they are poor" Many Canadians as a whole, are considered the working poor, I wonder if general poverty is actually the problem rather than poverty among Native communities. Most people are "working poor"

okay, well i did not know that about diabeties, but if it's viral how can you blame other people for it? yes, they were made to assimilate into society but they can still eat healthy as others can too. what you pick out at the grocery store is again, a personal choice.
i agree with what you say about poverty. it is not just a native issue. it is an issue throughout canada and especially amung those who did not put forth the effort to maintain good grades and pursue secondary educations. there are a lot of homeless and people living paycheck to paycheck and not quite making it that are not native.

[riggs]

i hate to agree with a LEafs fan .. but i thought i was the only one that noticed that

It's easy to agree on many things when the hockey doesn't get in the way........