Racism and discrimination may explain the high number of aboriginal children in foster homes

News 27 January, 2018

Matthew Usherwood/QMI AGENCY

QMI agency

Saturday, 27-jan-2018 15:34

UPDATE
Saturday, 27-jan-2018 15:39

Look at this article

OTTAWA – The alarming number of aboriginal children living in out of home care is the result of the discrimination, racism and the persistent, believes the canadian minister of aboriginal and Northern Affairs.

At the end of the emergency meeting on the issue of aboriginal child care, Carolyn Bennett said Friday that the social workers and agencies should think twice before removing them to their family.

“Each agency has to ask the question before, is there something else I could do,” said Bennett in an interview with the “Ottawa Citizen”.

The minister deplores the fact that social workers automatically turn to the foster homes to provide a better environment for aboriginal children.

“Let’s be honest about the place of racism and discrimination in these decisions. This must stop,” said the minister.

The two-day conference on the theme “The Children and Families Together,” brought together leaders of canadian aboriginal communities with members from provincial, territorial and federal ministers Carolyn Bennett and Jane Philpott.

Several testimonies of aboriginal people who were torn from their families and trimbalés from one family to the other before being expelled from the system at 18 years of age have been heard during this event.

“The data suggest that it happens every day in Canada as aboriginal children are removed from their mother at birth,” said Ms. Philpott, canadian minister of Aboriginal Services in the “Ottawa Citizen”.

Mrs Philpott on Thursday announced a six-point plan to deal with the problem of the overrepresentation of aboriginal children in foster homes.

“The children should stay with their community and their family unless it is absolutely impossible, said Ms. Bennett. Of course, the safety of these children is fundamental, but they can be safe with their aunt, with their grandmother, in a community-based program of care family. So, don’t let security be an excuse to remove these children from their culture.”