Members of Saugeen First Nation, located about 400 kms northwest of Thunder Bay...

Members of Saugeen First Nation, located about 400 kilometres northwest of Thunder Bay, are walking to Ottawa to gain equal housing rights for First Nations people who live off reserve, CBC reports. Darlene Necan was among those who built a house this spring for an Elder who was living in an old chicken coup. Now she says there are others who need her help and are living in make-shift shacks next door to the Saugeen First Nation. And Ottawa, she said, needs to hear about it. Last year, she and a group of others decided to build a home for a 74-year-old. The cut the logs from the bush and raised funds for nails and shingles by accepting donations on the side of the highway. Necan said the housing crisis in First Nations across Canada made her realize a need for other solutions. “We gotta do something,” she said. “We can’t just sit and wait for Indian Affairs to do this by their rules. We cannot do that anymore. We have to stand up on our own feet.” Necan said years of writing letters to politicians haven’t improved the housing situation and maybe her walk to Parliament Hill will show government that First Nations are dedicated to finding—and being part of —the solution. The group hopes to be in Ottawa by September’s end.