Social services remarks over suicide offensive -- Potts

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Remarks made by a senior provincial official defending the government's role in caring for cold wards were offensive, says IAA vice-president Percy Potts.

Potts said Hugh Tadman, senior communications officer with social services, was out of line to point fingers at families in crisis.

Those families should instead be offered rehabilitative help rather than criticism, he said.

"Social services is set up for the very purpose he's blasting," said Potts.

"Someone somewhere has to start showing care for those children."

Tadman in a recent interview with Windspeaker said those critical of the government for its care of wards should "think first about the emotional damage, the neglect and the abuse which children suffer, which causes them to come into our care."

He was discussing a report recently delivered by Judge Michael Porter on the suicide of 16-year-old Metis youth Wayne Moberly, who hanged himself May 30, 1989 in Grande Cache.

Moberly came into the care of the province because of chronic substance abuse by his parents.

Tadman said it's not possible for the government "to wave a magic wand and undo what families have visited upon their children in terms of horrific abuse."

But Potts, vice-presidents of the Indian Association of Alberta for the Treaty 6 area, said when Alberta Social Services intervenes to help a child it should try to help "the whole family instead of just parts of the family."

He said Alberta Family and Social Services has a less than admirable track record in caring for wards like Moberly.

"It's uncaring treatment by the system into which he was handed over," said Potts.

"The scary thing is how many other children in care are on the verge, because they see no way out. Who's helping them?"

He criticized the province for "warehousing" children. "Their method is to go in for the quick grab and put them in foster homes."

But Potts, who was a government ward himself for 18 months in his young teens, said parents aren't blameless and must shoulder some of the responsibility.

"There's hundreds of graves in this country that say social services hasn't done a good job and that some parents haven't done a good job."

Potts said he survived because members of his family helped him when he needed help.

Judge Porter in his report praised social services for caring for Moberly's physical needs. But he criticized the department for neglecting his emotional needs.

"I have heard no evidence, which lead me to believe his emotional needs were being addressed," he wrote.