Are Indigenous Rights Truly Being Upheld?

It's episode four in our series about all things Indigenous. I had the honour of chatting with Leslie Anne St. Amour, a passionate advocate for Indigenous rights, a Bonnechere Algonquin First Nation member and the Campaigns Director for Raven.

Here are the critical, eye-opening takeaways from our conversation:

🏠 Funding and Basic Needs

·         Funding for Basic Needs: Indigenous communities, like municipalities, receive funding for essentials like housing, healthcare, infrastructure, and education.

·         Wealth Disparity: Despite this funding, wealth distribution is a stark disparity. Canada profits from Indigenous lands through activities like mining and logging, but the Indigenous people see little to no benefit from these profits.

🚰 Clean Drinking Water

·         Water Crisis: Many Indigenous communities have been deprived of clean drinking water for years, a fundamental human right recognized by the United Nations. This is a critical health issue.

🏞️ Land and Business Ownership

·         Restrictive Regulations: Indigenous people face significant challenges in land and business ownership due to restrictive government regulations and paternalistic laws.

·         Financial Opportunities: These limitations severely impact their financial opportunities and economic growth.

🛡️ Collective Rights

·         Collective Nature of Rights: Indigenous rights are collective, held by the nation, and often misunderstood or misrepresented in mainstream media.

·         Complexities and Challenges: We explore the complexities of these rights, including hunting, fishing, and commercial activities, and the hurdles in proving and evolving them within the modern legal framework.

🌍 A Call for Change

·         Systemic Barriers: Our conversation sheds light on the systemic barriers and historical injustices Indigenous communities face in Canada.

·         Vision for the Future: We discuss the urgent need for a reset that aligns with the original intentions of Indigenous rights and a collective vision for a better future for all.