By Greg Hluska
The Indian Act specifies that if a person with status earns income on a reserve, his/her income is not taxable. This means that aboriginal people can technically get paid less and still take home the same amount as a comparable worker off reserve. Despite this powerful competitive advantage, in 2007, the Aboriginal employment rate was only 66.4% in Saskatchewan. This compares to 88.3% for non-Aboriginal people. This 19.9% difference represents the largest employment gap in all of Canada.
With stats like this, is it any wonder that one in four Aboriginal children live in poverty? Read more »
By Greg Hluska
- One in four First Nations children live in poverty.
- Diabetes among First Nations people is at least three times the national average.
- Recent Census data shows that 23 per cent of Aboriginal people live in houses in need of major repairs, compared to just 7 per cent of the non-Aboriginal population.
- Overcrowding among First Nations families is double the rate of that for all Canadian families. A recent government study found that more than half of Inuit families live in overcrowded conditions. Some three-bedroom homes are known to house as many as 20 people.
- More than 100 First Nations communities are under boil water advisories right now, meaning they have little or no access to clean water for drinking and sanitation.
- First Nations people suffer from Third World diseases such as tuberculosis at eight to 10 times the rate of Canadians in general.
- More than half of First Nations people are not employed.
- 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.
- Aboriginal children are drastically over-represented in the child welfare system.
- High school graduation rates for First Nations youth are half the Canadian rate.
- First Nations youth commit suicide at five to eight times the Canadian rate. The suicide rate for Inuit youth is six times as high as in the rest of the country.
(source – http://www.psac.com/what/humanrights/june21factsheet1-e.shtml)
By Stacey Lolacher
What does Canada Day mean to you? Is it simply a day off… kind of like ‘today’s reason to drink’? In the briefest of terms, to me July 1st is a day of pride and reflection.
It’s a day of pride! No matter what you take away from this brief post, know that I love Canada passionately – for this is true. We have so much beauty, so much prosperity as a whole. Don’t think that I didn’t toast my country with a pint tonight… I did! I’m one of the luckiest people of in the world because I get to wake up in Canada; and I’m certainly very privileged.
However, July 1st is also a day of reflection. Canada has a repugnant, violent, and often invisible history. Canada was not founded by noble pioneers that lived off the land in the face of all odds. Nor was it a mosaic of culture or a project of multiculturalism that succeeded. Canada was founded on the violent misappropriation of Indigenous land. It was founded on the backs of those people that still experience marginalization and poverty to this day.
Do I toast my country on the eve of its birthday? Sure. Do I remember that I only have as much privilege as I do because of colonialism, both historic and contemporary? You better believe it.
By Greg Hluska
First Nations youth commit suicide at five to eight times the Canadian rate. The suicide rate for Inuit youth is six times as high as in the rest of the country.
By Greg Hluska
High school graduation rates for First Nations youth are half the Canadian rate.
By Greg Hluska
Aboriginal children are drastically over-represented in the child welfare system
By Greg Hluska
Among First Nations children, 43 per cent lack basic dental care.
By Greg Hluska
One Aboriginal child in eight is disabled, double the rate of all children in Canada.
By Greg Hluska
More than half of First Nations people are not employed.
By Greg Hluska
First Nations people suffer from Third World diseases such as tuberculosis at eight to 10 times the rate of Canadians in general.