SSW103: Aboriginal Peoples

Aboriginal Peoples in Canada: First Nations People, Métis and Inuit

Statistics Canada, (2011). A selection of statistics and reports. 

First Peoples' Language Map of B.C. 

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We Were Children - National Film Board Trailer 
 

Aboriginal adults recount what happened to them in residential schools for NFB movie.

 

As young children, Lyna and Glen were taken from their homes and placed in church-run boarding schools. The trauma of this experience was made worse by years of untold physical, sexual and emotional abuse, the effects of which persist in their adult lives. In this emotional film, the profound impact of the Canadian government's residential school system is conveyed unflinchingly through the eyes of two children who were forced to face hardships beyond their years. We Were Children gives voice to a national tragedy and demonstrates the incredible resilience of the human spirit.

 

Inside Story Americas - Revisiting a dark chapter in Canada's history

Al Jazeera, (2013). 

Intergenerational Trauma & Healing with Joe Solanto (1/3)

 

 

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Canada First Nations: More Children In Care Now Than During Height Of Residential School System 

Huffington Post, (2011). 

 

There are more First Nations children in care right now than at the height of the residential school system. That system was a national disgrace that prompted Prime Minister Stephen Harper to apologize for its catastrophic impact on natives.

Instead of being at home with their parents, brothers and sisters, tens of thousands of First Nations children are in foster homes, staying with distant relatives or living in institutions.

"It's a culmination of decades worth of social ills," Beaucage says.

A disheartening mix of poverty, addiction, history and politics has conspired to separate First Nations children from their parents.

Researchers aren't certain how many native kids are no longer living with their parents. A major study in 2005 pegged the number at 27,500. Since then, provincial and federal data as well as empirical reports suggest the numbers have risen.

That's easily double the size of the cohort forced away from their homes and into residential schools during the late 1940s and 50s — a brutal period of Canada's history that still haunts First Nations families.

Former auditor general Sheila Fraser estimated First Nations children were eight times more likely to be in care than other Canadian kids. She pointed out that in British Columbia, of all the children in care, about half are aboriginal — even though aboriginals are only about eight per cent of the population.

Jordan's Principle

"Jordan" was Jordan River Anderson, a Cree boy from Manitoba who died in hospital at the age of five as he waited for federal and provincial governments to agree how to pay for his care.

Ottawa and provincial governments have vowed not to let such a thing happen again. They say a child in need of services will receive the services immediately, and the governments will work out the payment scheme later.

Human Rights Complaint vs. Canada

the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society of Canada, along with the Assembly of First Nations and the Canadian Human Rights Commission, are arguing the discrepancy in funding for child welfare services on reserves versus off reserves constitutes discrimination.

Ottawa contends it's not fair to compare the two.

Cindy Blackstock, executive director of the caring society, says she sees case after case of First Nations children in trouble being sent routinely into care because that's where the funding is instead of trying to help families deal with their problems.

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Couple's Baby Apprehended at Birth
Reynolds, S. (2009). Surrey North Delta Leader

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Myths of Justice - Indigenous peoples in Canada

 

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A 'shocking' half of Canadian First Nations kids live in poverty: study

Perkel, C. (2013). Canadian Press.  

TORONTO - Half of Canada's First Nations children are living in poverty, triple the national average, according to a new analysis of census statistics that pegs the cost of easing the problem at $580-million a year.

 

The analysis of census data from 2006 — the latest year relevant statistics are available — finds one-third of immigrant children and almost one-quarter of visible minority kids live below the low income line.

For other indigenous children — Metis, Inuit, and non-status Indian children — the rate is about 27 per cent.

 

The overall rate for children who belong to none of those groups is about 12 per cent.

 

"That half of status First Nation children live in poverty should shock all Canadians," said Patricia Erb, head of the charity Save the Children Canada.

 

The report points out that poverty is not just a measure of income, noting that status First Nations children often live in communities that are impoverished when it comes to services and infrastructure.

 

According to the study, indigenous children trail the rest of Canada’s children on practically every measure of well-being: family income, educational attainment, water quality, infant mortality, health, suicide, crowding and homelessness.

 

The report estimates it would cost $7.5 billion a year from either market income or government transfers to bring all children in the country up to the poverty line.

 

The report suggests that government jurisdiction plays a critical role in the poverty rates, especially for First Nations children.

It urges an increase in federal child benefits but also says the key is to remove barriers to education, training, employment and entrepreneurship.

Study co-author, Daniel Wilson, said the indigenous population is the fastest growing in Canada.

"If we refuse to address the crushing poverty facing indigenous children, we will ensure the crisis of socioeconomic marginalization and wasted potential will continue," Wilson said.

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UN special advisor on indigenous rights still not allowed to visit Canada

Andy Radia, (2013). Yahoo News Canada. 

The NDP have sent a letter to Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird urging him to approve a year old request by James Anaya — the United Nations' special rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples — to come to Canada for an official visit.

In an email exchange with Yahoo! Canada News, in January, Anaya said that he's made at least two requests to the Harper government.

In 2011, in response to the Attawapiskat housing crisis, Anaya called conditions in many First Nations communities "dire."

"I have been in communication with the Government of Canada to express my deep concern," Anaya wrote in a statement.

"The social and economic situation of the Attawapiskat seems to represent the condition of many First Nation communities living on reserves throughout Canada, which is allegedly akin to third world conditions."

Minister Baird's office would not say what was causing the delay in approving Anaya's visit. A spokesperson from Foreign Affairs simply told Yahoo! that his request is "under active consideration."

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Wake up to the aboriginal comeback

John Ralston Saul (2013). The Globe and Mail. 

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Idle No More Short Documentary - GROUNDED NEWS

Doc Zone: 8th Fire: Aboriginal Peoples, Canada and the Way Forward- Preview 

                                          

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On privilege, criticism, and the challenge of being a good ally

Wright, M. (2013). Rabble.ca

Being an ally is hard, but never as hard as being a person who needs allies.



I've been on both sides, so to speak. As a gay man, I've been grateful to allies. As a non-Indigenous person, I've tried to be a good ally to Indigenous people.

When the media covers Indigenous issues, the comments sections online come alive with racism. The trouble being, these arrogant a-holes think their racism is truth and fact. Ignorance and racism around Indigenous issues has been recycled for generations.

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Racist Nanaimo Newspaper Letter Rebuttal:

Educate Canadians To Be Knowledgeable Citizens             

Danica Denomme, (2013), Huffington Post BC.

SSW103: DisAbility

Hope is not a Plan trailer

Paul Caune: Civil Rights Now

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Falling through the cracks

Cooper, A. (2013). Revelstoke Times Review.

This week, Jeffrey Moncrieff will be moving to Vancouver from Revelstoke. For the last six months he has been living here with his brother Andrew in the Big Eddy. It’s been tough getting out with the snow limiting his mobility. He had to leave his wheelchair in Vancouver, and even if he did have it, it wouldn’t have been much use to him here.

Moncrieff has cerebral palsy and also believes he has some form of autism, though he has not officially been diagnosed with it. He walks with a shuffle and his hand movements are slow and deliberate. He is difficult to understand. He needs help with many day-to-day activities most people take for granted – cleaning, shaving, cooking, doing laundry, even tying his shoes.

Jeffrey Moncrieff has tried to get into Community Living BC, an agency mandated to provide support for adults with developmental disabilities and those who meet the criteria for personal supports. He was denied because he didn’t meet their criteria. 

“The documentation we have received does not confirm that you have significant limitations in adaptive functioning in addition to a diagnosis of either a Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD) or Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD),” CLBC wrote in a letter denying him service.

For Moncrieff, that criteria amounts to discrimination. “I don’t think its fair to single out two groups with mental disabilities from a whole range of mental disabilities,” he said. “What happens to everyone else? They can’t get help. We didn’t ask to be born with a disability but we need some assistance and we can become good citizens.”

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Living With A Disability -Part 3

Understanding people with disabilities needs to start with the young. 

Breazeale, R. (2012). Psychology Today. 

Resilience and Disability - Part 2

Breazeale, R. (2012). Psychology Today. 

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Changing the Framework: Disability Justice

How our communities can move beyond access to wholeness

Mingus, M. (2010). Disability Justice.  

People usually think of disability as an individual flaw or problem, rather than as something partly created by the world we live in. It is rare that people think about disability as a political experience or as encompassing a community full of rich histories, cultures and legacies.

Disability is framed as lacking, sad and undesirable: a shortcoming at best, a tragedy at worst. Disabled people are used as the poster children of environmental injustice or the argument for abortion rights. For many people, even just the idea that we can understand disability as “not wrong” is a huge shift in thinking.

Our communities and movements must address the issue of access. There is no way around it. Accessibility is concrete resistance to the isolation of disabled people. Accessibility is nothing new, and we can work to understand access in a broad way, encompassing class, language, childcare, gender-neutral bathrooms as a start.

SSW103: Social Class

UK now has seven social classes

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UNICEF Child Well-Being Index: Canada Ranked 17th Out Of 29 Wealthy Nations

Canadian Press, (2013). Huffington Post. 

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Dr. Neil Brooks on the influence of the wealthy 

from "Poor No More

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Stiglitz: Nobel prizewinner in economics finds increasing economic inequality in Canada disturbing

BC Federationist, 2013. 

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Food insecurity a 'serious' social issue, report finds

Clare Clancy, (2013). Vancouver Sun.  

Food insecurity in Canada is "a serious social and public health problem," says a report that found nearly one in eight Canadian households couldn't access sufficient, safe and nutritious food in 2011.

The study said 3.9 million Canadians were affected and the 330,000 households that were "severely food insecure" were worried they would run out of food before being able to afford more.

At a national level the number of people facing food insecurity is rising, she said, with 450,000 more Canadians affected in 2011 compared with 2008.

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‘Virtually impossible’ to reach B.C. income assistanceoffice: advocates

Judith Lavoie, (2013). Times Colonist.

Trying to contact income assistance offices in B.C. is an exercise in frustration for clients and those trying to help them, say advocates working with social service clients.

“There have been constant problems getting through on the 1-866 number and, in the past month, it has been virtually impossible,” said Kelly Newhook, Together Against Poverty Society executive director. “They put people on hold for an hour or more and then they cut people off.”

The story is repeated by people working on poverty issues from around B.C, Newhook said.

The same number is the main contact point for all income assistance clients in the province. 

“TAPS can’t get a response from the ministry. We are not even getting call backs from supervisors, and we are helping 10 to 15 people a day,” she said.

In 2012-13, the B.C. Ombudsperson opened more files on complaints about the Social Development Ministry than on any other area of the government, according to its annual report.

An emailed statement from a ministry spokesperson said there was a problem, but it has been fixed.

“The ministry recently experienced temporary network connectivity issues that resulted in longer than normal phone wait times including call interruptions/disconnection,” he said.

The ministry recognizes that, at times, call volumes cause delays, he said. New contact centre staff are being hired and trained.

Applications for income and disability assistance can be made online, he said. The website is www.iaselfserve.gov.bc.ca.

SSW103: Multiracial Identity

One Big Hapa Family - Trailer

Multiracial Identity - Documentary -Trailer

NYTimes.com - Being Multiracial in America

Multiracial Identity

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Multiracial Identity

CBC, (September 5, 2012). 

Matt Galloway spoke with Karen Arthurton and Lalo Lorza. They are with St. Stephen's Community House in Toronto, and are both contributors to a book produced by St. Stephen's called, "It's Not all Black and White: Multiracial Youth Speak Out" . 
Listen  (runs 5:42)

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Between: Living in the Hyphen

Anne Marie Nakagawa, (2005). National Film Board of Canada.

Anne Marie Nakagawa's documentary examines what it means to have a background of mixed ancestries that cannot be easily categorized. By focusing on 7 Canadians who have one parent from a European background and one of a visible minority, she attempts to get at the root of what it means to be multi-ethnic in a world that wants each person to fit into a single category. 

Finding a satisfactory frame of reference in our 'multicultural utopia' turns out to be more complex than one might think.Between: Living in the Hyphen offers a provocative glimpse of what the future holds: a departure from hyphenated names towards a celebration of fluidity and being mixed.

SSW103: Gender and Sexuality

Human Sexuality is Complicated...

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Don’t Be that Guy: Urging Men to Own Their Role to End Rape

‘Don’t be that girl’posters in Edmonton spark debate

Global News, Alberta. 

'Don't Be That Girl'Campaign: Men's Rights Edmonton Say They're Not Advocating Rape.

Huffington Post, (2013).  

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"Rehtaeh is gone today because of the four boys that thought that raping a 15-year-old girl was OK and to distribute a photo to ruin her spirit and reputation would be fun," her mother wrote. 

"All the bullying and messaging and harassment that never let up are also to blame. 

Lastly, the justice system failed her. Those are the people that took the life of my beautiful girl."

~ Leah Parsons, mother of Rehtaeh Parsons

RehtaehParsons was my daughter

Glen Canning, (April 10, 2013). Herald News. 

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Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide

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Gender Income Gap

Conference Board of Canada.

No violence statistics, no policy

Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, 2013. 

Progress on ending violence against women in Canada is stalled by the absence of a coherent national policy and consistent information about the levels of that violence says a study released today by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA).

“The difficulty of collecting data about violence against women has been a barrier to progress in ending that violence,” says the study’s author, Kate McInturff. “However, the data that do exist tell us three things very clearly: this problem is big, it comes at a high cost, and we are making little or no progress in putting a stop to it.”

The study estimates the combined cost of adult sexual assault and intimate partner violence is $334 per person per year in Canada. This puts the cost of these crimes on par with the cost of the use of illegal drugs in Canada (an estimated $262 per person) or the cost of smoking (an estimated $541 per person). Federal public spending to address violence against women, on the other hand, amounted to $2.77 per person for the 2011-2012 fiscal year.

The study makes several recommendations on how to improve the situation, including: the implementation of regular, sensitive, detailed surveys of incidence of sexual assault and intimate partner violence; and a coherent, coordinated, well-resourced national action plan to address violence against women.

The Gap in the Gender Gap: Violence Against Women in Canada is available on the CCPA website.

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Violence against women worldwide is 'epidemic'

BBC, (2013). 

More than one in three women worldwide have experienced physical or sexual violence, a report by the World Health Organization and other groups says.

It says 38% of all women murdered were killed by their partners, and such violence is a major contributor to depression and other health problems.

WHO head Margaret Chan said violence against women was "a global health problem of epidemic proportions".

The study also calls for toleration of such attacks worldwide to be halted.

And it says new guidelines must be adopted by health officials around the world to prevent the abuse and offer better protection to victims.

The key findings are:

• violence by an intimate partner is the most common type of abuse, affecting 30% of women across the globe
• 38% of all women murdered were killed by their partners
• 42% of women physically or sexually abused by partners had injuries as a result
• Victims of non-partner attacks were 2.6 times more likely to experience depression and anxiety compared with women who had not experienced violence
• Those abused by their partners were almost twice as likely to have similar problems
• Victims were more likely to have alcohol problems, abortions and acquire sexually transmitted diseases and HIV

"This new data shows that violence against women is extremely common," said report co-author Prof Charlotte Watts from the LSHTM.

"We urgently need to invest in prevention to address the underlying causes of this global women's health problem."

The document adds that "fear of stigma" prevents many women from reporting sexual violence.

It stresses that health officials around the world need to take the issue "more seriously", providing better training for health workers in recognising when women may be at risk of violence and ensuring an appropriate response.

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Domestic violence against men: Know the signs

Domestic violence against men isn't always easy to identify, but it can be a serious threat. Know how to recognize if you're being abused — and how to get help.

By Mayo Clinic staff.

Domestic violence — also known as domestic abuse, battering or intimate partner violence — occurs between people in an intimate relationship. Domestic violence against men can take many forms, including emotional, sexual and physical abuse and threats of abuse. It can happen in heterosexual or same sex relationships.

It might not be easy to recognize domestic violence against men. Early in the relationship, your partner might seem attentive, generous and protective in ways that later turn out to be controlling and frightening. Initially, the abuse might appear as isolated incidents. Your partner might apologize and promise not to abuse you again.

In other relationships, domestic violence against men might include both partners slapping or shoving each other when they get angry — and neither partner seeing himself or herself as being abused or controlled. This type of violence, however, can still devastate a relationship, causing both physical and emotional damage.

You might be experiencing domestic violence if your partner:

• Calls you names, insults you or puts you down
• Prevents you from going to work or school
• Stops you from seeing family members or friends
• Tries to control how you spend money, where you go or what you wear
• Acts jealous or possessive or constantly accuses you of being unfaithful
• Gets angry when drinking alcohol or using drugs
• Threatens you with violence or a weapon
• Hits, kicks, shoves, slaps, chokes or otherwise hurts you, your children or your pets
• Assaults you while you're sleeping, you've been drinking or you're not paying attention to make up for a difference in strength
• Forces you to have sex or engage in sexual acts against your will
• Blames you for his or her violent behavior or tells you that you deserve it
• Portrays the violence as mutual and consensual

If you're gay, bisexual or transgender, you might also be experiencing domestic violence if you're in a relationship with someone who:

• Threatens to tell friends, family, colleagues or community members your sexual orientation or gender identity
• Tells you that authorities won't help a gay, bisexual or transgender person
• Tells you that leaving the relationship means you're admitting that gay, bisexual or transgender relationships are deviant
• Justifies abuse by telling you that you're not "really" gay, bisexual or transgender
• Says that men are naturally violent

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New Zealand ParliamentChambers Break Into Song After Passing Marriage Equality

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Experiment that convinced me online porn is the most pernicious threat facing children today: By ex-lads' mag editor MARTIN DAUBNEY

By Martin Daubney, (2013). Daily Mail UK. 

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The Selling of Masculinity

Dr. Nerdlove, (2013). Everyday Feminism. 

The search for an identity and finding one’s own definition of what it means to be a man is an important part of maturity for young men, one that has been with us through most of recorded history.

With the ubiquity of mass-communication – whether it be magazines, newspapers, movies, television or the Internet – it’s not surprising that many men look to popular culture for sources of information what male behavior is supposed to be and how we’re supposed to display it.

Unfortunately, mass media doesn’t send the greatest of messages about how to be a man. In fact, we are regularly bombarded with messages selling the idea that masculinity is violent, physically aggressive and sexually domineering and that anger and stoic toughness are the only appropriate emotions for men to display.

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TEDxRainier - Alyssa Royse - Your Sexuality

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Sext Up Kids

CBC Doc Zone, 2012. 

The powder keg that is porn culture has exploded in the lives of North American children. The often-devastating consequences are explored in the new film Sext up KIDS.

From tiny tots strutting bikini-clad bodies in beauty pageants to companies marketing itty-bitty thongs and padded bras to 9-year olds, images of ever-younger sexualized girls have become commonplace.  Add to that: ever-younger boys with 24-7 access to hard-core internet porn.   It saturates their lives - from skate parks to the school bus – by the time they’re eighteen, 80 percent of boys are watching porn online. Toss social media into the mix and kids can not only consume X-rated images, but can also now produce them.  Sexting has become a Grade 7 right of passage.

Sext up KIDS exposes how growing up in a hyper-sexualized culture hurts our kids. Teens and pre-teens show and tell what they are doing and why they are doing it.   Experts reveal startling new research, tracking how the pressure to be sexy is changing teen and sexual behavior in alarming ways, as “anal becomes the new oral.” Parents and educators struggle to help kids navigate puberty in a world where the line between pop culture and porn culture is increasingly blurred. For every parent who thinks, “that’s not my son or daughter,” Sext up KIDS is your wake up call.

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One in five Canadians think a woman encourages sexual assault when she is drunk

Newswire, 2013. Canadian Women's Foundation.

19 per cent of the respondents believe that women may provoke or encourage sexual assault when they are drunk. Of these, nearly one-quarter (23 per cent) were people between 18 and 34 years old.

"The belief that women are responsible for sexual assault because of their actions or appearance is still common in our society, and can cause women who have suffered abuse to stay silent and often feel responsible for what happened to them," says Anu Dugal, Director of Violence Prevention at the Canadian Women's Foundation. "Canadians must stop questioning and blaming sexual assault victims and start asking why some men rape women."

The study has also found that 15 per cent of Canadians believe women can encourage or provoke sexual assault by flirting with a man (20 per cent for age 18-34) and 11 per cent think women can encourage or provoke sexual assault when they wear short skirts (17 per cent for age 18-34).

In addition to physical trauma, sexual assault victims commonly have long-term and serious psychological effects that may include depression, self-blame, shame, fear, and anger. The programs funded by the Canadian Women's Foundation help women recover and rebuild their lives through counselling, legal advice and safety planning.

If you have been sexually assaulted:

1. Safety - Go to a safe place.
2. Report it - If you want to report the crime, notify the police immediately. This can help you regain a sense of control. Consider also calling a friend or family member who can offer support.
3. Save the evidence - Do not shower, eat, drink, wash your hands or brush your teeth after the assault until after you have a medical exam. Save all the clothing you were wearing at the time of the assault in a paper bag.
4. Get medical help - Go to a hospital or clinic. Even if you do not think you were physically harmed, you should still have a medical examination. If you think you were given a "rape drug" ask the hospital to take a urine sample.
5. Document - Write down as much as you remember about the assault, including a description of the assailant.
6. Get emotional support - Talk to a counsellor, crisis line or community organization that is trained to assist victims of sexual assault. Counseling can help you cope with the emotional and physical effects of the assault. Remember that the assault is not your fault.

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Creating gender equity: Lessons from Iceland

The sexually liberal country has not only criminalised the purchase of sex, but has also banned strip clubs.  Megan Murphy, (2013). Al Jazeera. Iceland ranked first place in the 2012 Global Gender Gap report, moving up from number 4 in 2008. Based on factors like economic participation and opportunity (so, looking at things like wage equality and the number of women in the labour force and in positions of power), educational attainment (based on factors such as female literacy and the number of women enrolled in higher education), health and survival (which looks at life expectancy and mortality rates), and political empowerment (which takes into account the number of women holding political office as well as the number of female heads of state); this report ranks countries throughout the world.  Unlike the US, Iceland dealt with the crash by prosecuting those responsible, holding banks accountable, minimising, and in some cases forgiving individual household debts completely, cutting government spending and raising taxes. They also came to the rather radical conclusion that a male-dominated economy and business culture were part of what led to the crash in the first place. In response, Iceland developed a legislation that ensured companies' boards were composed of 40 percent women and incorporated what they called "feminine values" into the "mainly male spheres of private equity, wealth management and corporate advice". Throughout all this, the new government made maintaining Iceland's extensive welfare system a priority, protecting the middle and working classes above the rich. The country learned the consequences of right-wing privatisation policies and responded accordingly. Sigurdardottir said in an interview with Transform!: "The system was not only economically harmful, but every day we have more information about the corruption and the greed that existed in that system."  Having nearly reached gender parity in government, women hold 41 percent of seats in government, in comparison with the 17 percent of women in parliament in the US. The country offers generous maternity and paternity leave as well as and childcare provision from the state.  The sexually liberal country not only criminalised the purchase of sex in 2009, but, the following year, Iceland banned strip clubs. A feminist and a progressive endeavour, the proposal to ban hardcore pornography online has wide support in Iceland, as does the ban on strip clubs and the criminalisation of johns.  When I talked to author and feminist activist, Professor Gail Dines, about this proposal, she emphasised that this was not about restricting sexual content, nudity, or erotica. Iceland's Interior Minister Ogmundur Jonasson, who is currently drafting the legislation, is looking specifically at restricting pornography that is hardcore, violent and cruel.  The porn industry, Dines says, actually controls much of the discourse around sex. To limit that control, she argues, doesn't restrict "free speech". "The question is: Do we want to have broader debates and a broader discourse about sex, or do we want the pornographers to control it?" Iceland's work to phase out the sex industry has been done, not on a puritanical or moralistic basis, but, is simply based on the belief that "it is not acceptable that women or people in general are a product to be sold".