Save the Children Statement on Reconciliation and Canada’s 150th Anniversary

June 29, 2017…As Canada marks the 150^th anniversary of Confederation this July, there is much in our history and our role in the world to celebrate.  Yet at the same time, Canadians and the Government of Canada must remember and acknowledge that much of the privilege and rights that we enjoy and celebrate today have been earned at the expense of Indigenous Peoples.

As Canada celebrates 150 years of existence, Indigenous People in Canada mark 150 years of unceded territory and broken treaties, denial of agency and self-governance, and the abuse, exploitation and trauma done to their children. A key hallmark of this was and is the system of forced child removal, starting from the Residential School System, flowing through to the Sixties Scoop and continuing today with the ongoing Millennium Scoop and Indigenous foster child industry.

While we acknowledge the many great achievements of Canada and Canadians, we must also acknowledge that today in Canada there are more Indigenous children in state/ward care than at the height of the Residential School era.

Through the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada, many of the perpetrators responsible for such widespread disruption, fear, violence, and harm made formalized apologies. They spoke of the need to acknowledge the acts committed by churches, governments, and institutions against Indigenous Peoples. They spoke of remorse for those acts. And they apologized for the impact those acts have had on generations of Indigenous children, families, and communities across Canada.

Alongside those apologies came commitments to work together to heal. Healing takes time, and it is essential for reconciliation. And for Canada to succeed as a truly equitable society, reconciliation is critical.

In that spirit, Save the Children would like to take this opportunity to affirm its continued commitment to all 94 of the Calls to Action in the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada’s final report, Honouring the Truth, Reconciling for the Future. This commitment is vital to our Relationship Framework, which forms the basis for all of our relationships and work with Indigenous communities.

We also take this opportunity to make a strong re-commitment to working with Indigenous nations, communities, and children to ensure we move forward collaboratively, in the spirit of reconciliation.

Save the Children today calls on the Government of Canada and Prime Minister Trudeau to immediately:

• Make the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada’s 94 Calls to Action central to the Government’s mandate, and dedicate appropriate resources to their implementation and execution.
• Uphold Jordan’s Principle and end its resistance against the equitable funding of child welfare services for Indigenous children
• Implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) within all domestic legislation
• Support a respectful and meaningful engagement of families in the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls with dedicated resources and processes. This must include a mandate for the RCMP to fully participate within the Inquiry.

It is well documented that mistakes bring with them opportunities for learning and growth. Canada and Canadians must acknowledge their flaws and learn from their mistakes in order to move towards a stronger, more united, reconciled nation in which every last child has a healthy start in life, the opportunity to learn, protection from harm and the right to a limitless future.

Reconciliation requires commitments. From Canadians, it’s a commitment to the process, to learning to be an ally, and to agreeing to do better for all of our children. From the government, it’s about meaningfully committing to the guiding documents outlined above; a commitment not only in principle, but with one supported with adequate resources.

Marking the 150th anniversary of Canada is an occasion to reflect on the past while also looking to the future and the next 150 years. For Canada and Canadians to move forward, it must be movement stemming from reconciliation. And it is only with the proper commitments in hand, from each other and from our leaders, that we can move forward together on the path of collaboration, reconciliation and trust.

ENDS