On September 30th, 2011 GSA Council voted to support the Sisters in Spirit vigil. To learn more about Sisters in Spirit, click here.

The GSA Council motion reads as follows:

Whereas young Indigenous women are five times more likely than other women of the same age to die as a result of violence; and

Whereas the Native Women’s Association of Canada has documented over 600 missing and murdered Aboriginal women in Canada, a number which could be much higher; and

Whereas Canadian police and public officials have also long been aware of a pattern of racist violence against Indigenous women in Canadian cities but have done little to prevent it, including a failure to implement measures such as training, protocols and accountability mechanisms; and

Whereas both the 2008 UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women and a 2011 parliamentary report by the Standing Committee on the Status of Women have recommended that Canada develop a specific and holistic plan for addressing the conditions affecting Aboriginal women, including poverty, inadequate housing, low school-completion rates, low income and high rates of violence; and

Whereas the federal government has failed to implement a comprehensive national plan on stopping violence against Aboriginal women and girls; therefore

Be it resolved that the Graduate Student’s Association endorse the October 4th Sisters in Spirit vigil on Parliament Hill; and

BIFRT councillors and members be encouraged to attend the October 4th vigil.

On October 21st, 2011 GSA Council voted to support the Denan Project by purchasing tickets to a fundraiser in support of the project. To learn more about the Denan Project click here. To view the documentary film, click on Denan, Ethiopia for the link to the video.

The GSA Council motion reads as follows:

Whereas
 GSA ‘engages in many campaigns on issues that affect graduate students and students in general; and

Whereas GSA also engages in activities that improve the well-being of communities in Ottawa and beyond; and

Whereas the The Denan Project is a non-profit, grassroots organization whose volunteer members secure resources to provide free medical care, potable water, agricultural training, education, and other critical services for the people of Denan, Ethiopia and surrounding villages; and

Whereas Ethiopian students and other African students are organizing a fundraising event on Saturday, November 19, 2011 6pm-8pm; therefore

Be it resolved that the GSA purchase $200 worth of tickets to be distributed to graduate students on a first-come basis. 

The following is a letter from the GSA to Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada, John Duncan regarding the Attawapiskat housing crisis (also available for download below):

 
Dear Minister Duncan,

I am writing to you on behalf of nearly 4,000 graduate students at Carleton University in Ottawa. With the 2% cap on the PSSSP program still in place we are continuing to see barriers to post-secondary education grow for Indigenous students. Equitable and accessible education is of great significance to all Canadians and this is why both the Carleton Graduate Students’ Association and Carleton Centre for Aboriginal Culture and Education are proud supporters of the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society’s Shannen’s Dream campaign.

As I am sure you are aware, Shannen Koosatchin was from the Attawapiskat First Nation in Northern Ontario. Her desire for a comfortable, modern, accessible school for students on her reserve was a passion she pursued all the way to Ottawa. Though your recent commitment to build a new school in the community by 2013 is a welcome one, it is clear that an even greater barrier to children in Attawapiskat is the fact that many of them do not even have a comfortable home to live in.

Your decision to place the Attawapiskat reserve under third-party management is victim blaming and presents no real solution to the immediate and critical need for adequate housing in the community. In a recent CBC interview, you indicated you were not aware of the housing crisis until the end of October and then, in the same breath, stated AANDC officials have been visiting the reserve monthly. It is clear the federal government has no policy, plan, or desire to rectify the housing crisis on reserves throughout Canada. This crisis has little to do with management and everything to do with a lack of inclusive, consultative, and forward-looking federal policy regarding on-reserve housing in Canada. The 2011 June Status Report of the Auditor General of Canada is explicit:

We believe that structural impediments severely limit the delivery of public services to First Nations communities and hinder improvements in living conditions on reserves. We have identified four such impediments:

-lack of clarity about service levels,
-lack of a legislative base,
-lack of an appropriate funding mechanism, and
-lack of organizations to support local service delivery.

As advocates for accessible education we are left wondering how any child is going to be engaged in class when they are living in such unacceptable conditions. It is our hope that as AANDC Minister you will undertake a comprehensive plan, in consultation with on-reserve communities, to address the problems outlined in the Auditor General’s report. Shannen’s dream for a comfortable and accessible school will never be a reality until her community can also have comfortable and accessible homes.

Sincerely,

Kelly Black
Vice-President Operations

On August 16th, 2011 GSA Council voted to support the I Am A Witness campaign. To learn more about I Am A Witness, click here.

See the GSA Council motion listed under Jordan's Principle below for more details.

On August 16th, 2011 GSA Council voted to support the Jordan's Principle campaign. To learn more about Jordan's Principle, click here.

The GSA Council motion reads as follows:

Whereas First Nations children are over represented in child welfare care and there are currently more First Nations children in child welfare care in Canada than at the height of residential schools; and

Whereas First Nations children are more likely to be reported for neglect which is driven by poverty, poor housing and caregiver substance misuse; and

Whereas Provincial child welfare laws apply both on and off reserves but the provinces expect the federal government to fund it on reserve and the little funding provided by the federal government is wholly inadequate, resulting in a two tiered child welfare system; and

Whereas reports, including by the Auditor General of Canada (2008) and Standing Committee on Public Accounts (2009) confirm that federal government funding for child welfare services on reserves is inadequate and must be changed in order to ensure comparable and culturally based child welfare services for First Nations children; and

Whereas in October of 2008, the Canadian Human Rights Commission ordered a tribunal to determine whether or not discrimination with regards to First Nations child welfare has occurred pursuant to the Canadian Human Rights Act; and

Whereas the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society is appealing the dismissal of the case in March 2011 on a technicality and will be presenting its case again in February 2012; and

Whereas payment and jurisdictional disputes between the federal and provincial/territorial governments have led to First Nations children being denied medical services available to all other children; and

Whereas Jordan’s Principle is a child first principle named in memory of Jordan River Anderson and calls on the government of first contact to pay for services for the child and then seek reimbursement later; therefore

Be it resolved that the Graduate Students’ Association endorse the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society’s I am a Witness and Jordan’s Principle campaigns.