Essay 5 La Loche Shooting aboriginal 4C PDF

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Aboriginal Statistics http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/news-video/video-rich-countrypoor-nations-11-startling-statistics-about-the-disparity-betweenindigenous-people-and-the-rest-of-canada/article22852873/

When Despair Reigns, Violence Follows by Andre Picard Globe and Mail Tues Jan 26 1 Friday’s mass shooting in La Loche, Sask., which left four people dead and seven others critically injured, is unspeakably sad, and doubly so because most of the victims and the alleged shooter are so young. But, if any good is going to come from this, we must look beyond the crime itself and examine the environment in which it occurred. 2 La Loche, a town of 3,000 with a predominantly Dene population, is like many other remote communities that pepper Canada’s north. It is isolated and poor: largely forgotten and mostly neglected. Such is the lot of most of 600 or so First Nations, Inuit and Métis communities scattered across Canada. Social problems, from substance abuse to suicide, are commonplace. 3 One-quarter of all homicide victims in Canada are aboriginal, even though they make up less than 5 per cent of the population. The suicide rate in First Nations communities is roughly seven times higher than the general population; among the Inuit, it is 11 times higher. Indigenous peoples have rates of traumatic injury four times higher than the non-indigenous population: Motor-vehicle crashes, drownings, fatal fires, accidental poisonings and firearms-related injuries are all-too-routine occurrences, especially in the North. Not to mention that indigenous peoples have a life expectancy that is a decade less than non-indigenous Canadians. The statistics are mind-numbing.

4 In places such as La Loche, health and social services are also inadequate, too many people need help but there is not enough money to fund social services. At La Loche Community School, where some of the shootings occurred, there were no mental-health services. Yet, according to media reports, the 17-year-old suspect was a victim of ceaseless bullying due to his physical appearance. 5 There is much despair, and much about which to despair. Of course, none of this excuses mass murder. 6 But if we are to prevent this type of horror from repeating itself, and to address the crying needs of First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples more broadly, we need to understand the context. Both the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples have provided lots evidence for the harm done by colonization, such as dispossession of land and assimilation through residential schools.

7 More than 150,000 First Nations, Inuit and Métis children were shipped off to residential schools and isolated from their families and communities. Many were also victims of emotional, physical and sexual abuse. The harm to aboriginal culture, and the loss of family ties and parenting skills in particular, continues to ripple through generations. 8 The end result is too often young people who are lost and hopeless. Hopelessness is a breeding ground for abuse and violence. 9 Still, the mass killing in La Loche is rare. Most of the time, people turn the violence inward, not outward. Not a month goes by when there is not a report of a rash of youth suicides in an isolated community: Pikangikum, Neskantaga, Nain, Maskwacis, Shamattawa and the list goes on. 10 Rates of depression are twice as high in indigenous communities as mainstream Canada; so, too, are rates of substance abuse. It is no wonder that mental-health problems are commonplace in indigenous communities, given the political and historical context, and the social environment in which people live. 11 While we cannot change the shameful history, we can address the political and cultural context in which people live. Let’s not forget that there are indigenous communities that are thriving, where the rates of violence, suicide and substance abuse are average or below average. 12 What distinguishes them is what social scientists call “cultural continuity,” meaning that, collectively, people have self-determination, and, individually, a sense of belonging. The successful indigenous communities have settled land claims, have self-government, have control over education services, have things almost all Canadians take for granted, like drinkable water, fire services and health and social services, as well as cultural facilities. In short, having control over local issues, and a collective sense of history and culture, helps shield vulnerable members, such as young people.

13 This approach cannot be implemented overnight. Healing centuries of wounds will take time, money and considerable effort. But the price of doing nothing is even higher: Genocidal rates of suicide, more lost generations and more tragedies like La Loche.

MAKE SURE TO ANSWER ALL QUESTIONS IN YOUR OWN WORDS

1

What two key words does Picard use to describe the community of La Loche in paragraph 2?

2

Summarize, in point form, the 4 sets of statistics in paragraph 3. Make sure to include the aboriginal statistic and the comparison to the rest of Canada.

3

What point does Picard make about the school in La Loche in paragraph 4?

4

Why do you think Picard wrote the last sentence of paragraph 5?

5 Based on paragraph 7, summarize what happened in Residential Schools. Using your own ideas, explain, in at least 4 sentences, how this could cause problems within families and communities now. 6 Picard writes that “mass killing” is still rare in aboriginal communities. What does he say often happens instead? (paragraph 9) 7

What is the point of paragraph 11?

8

What 4 different solutions does Picard offer in paragraph 12?

MAKE SURE TO ANSWER ALL QUESTIONS IN YOUR OWN WORDS 1

What two key words does Picard use to describe the community of La Loche in paragraph 2?

2

Summarize, in point form, the 4 sets of statistics in paragraph 3. Make sure to include the aboriginal statistic and the comparison to the rest of Canada.

3

What point does Picard make about the school in La Loche in paragraph 4?

4

Why do you think Picard wrote the last sentence of paragraph 5?

5 Based on paragraph 7, summarize what happened in Residential Schools. Using your own ideas, explain, in at least 4 sentences, how this could cause problems within families and communities now. 6 Picard writes that “mass killing” is still rare in aboriginal communities. What does he say often happens instead? (paragraph 9) 7

What is the point of paragraph 11?

8

What 4 different solutions does Picard offer in paragraph 12?...