Child intervention roundtable lacks Aboriginal voices

When Bernadette Iahtail did not receive an invitation to the government’s recent child intervention roundtable, she didn’t fret about it. Instead she continued to plan Creating Hope Society’s March forum on addiction, family violence and child welfare, and took comfort in knowing that “Aboriginal allies” had been invited to the roundtable.

“Of course it bothers me not to be invited, but we have other work that we do that is really, really important. We are returning kids back home,” she said. Iahtail serves as executive director for the Creating Hope Society, which she founded. The society’s mission statement is “An Aboriginal home for every Aboriginal child in care by 2025.” Iahtail is a child of the system.

Aboriginal children account for nearly 70 per cent of those in government care.

Child and Youth Advocate Del Graff, who attended both days of the round table, Jan. 28 and 29, says the lack of Aboriginal representation in the room was glaring and that voice of “lived experience” was sorely missing. On the second day, three young people who were part of the child welfare system told their stories.

“It changed the discussion in a healthy, dramatic way,” said Graff, whose office arranged for the young people to attend. “They helped us to rethink how we were thinking about this issue.”

The roundtable focused on the issue of serious injury and death of children in care and examined what constituted a meaningful investigation; how to improve transparency and accountability in such investigations; and what information should be shared publicly. The roundtable agenda was set by the previous minister of Human Services.

It had been new minister Manmeet Bhullar’s hope that consensus could be reached over the two days and he could move forward with an action plan.  That did not happen.

“The idea is that we have commitment to change in three different areas. The details of that have to be worked out,” Bhullar said at the end of the roundtable.

Graff is not surprised consensus wasn’t reached, saying that the issues are complex. However, he falls short in calling the roundtable just another forum in which opinions were voiced. Since 1999, the province has received 258 non-binding recommendations on how to improve the child welfare system.
“I’m cautiously optimistic,” said Graff. “This is a set of issues that is now receiving significant public attention and for change to actually take place it requires public attention. I was happy to have a sense that this is on the public’s agenda.”

Iahtail agrees.  She says taking care of society’s most vulnerable is “everybody’s job. It’s not just the minister.”

She also holds that an emphasis needs to be placed on Aboriginal children remaining with their families and resources dedicated to improving the family situation.

“I see some of my families who struggle, living day to day. ‘What should I do? Should I pay my rent or should I buy food? Should I pay my rent or should I pay Epcor?’” she said.

Iahtail is encouraged that Bhullar’s five-point plan to bring about changes to the child intervention system includes examining root causes.

The roundtable discussion is to be summarized in a document to go online to solicit feedback from the public.

Graff is hopeful that public input will build a broad-based plan, which will be tabled in the legislature and outline steps in moving forward and “will create optimism about what we’re doing in this province.”