The federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations (FSIN) wrapped up its assembly Thursday on child welfare and declared that the child welfare system in the province needs to change and it needs to have more control over it.
“Because we need grassroots, grassroots support as well, ask your band members, how we can be better and stronger,” said FSIN Chief Bobby Cameron. “How can we not lose our little ones no more.”
The FSIN says it is looking to form an independent committee that wll address and take care of Indigenous youth in care with the goal of eventually taking over the system entirely.
Tim Korol, a child advocate and former deputy minister of social services in Saskatchewan, said that’s a move in the right direction.
“There has become such a culture of non-compliance with the provincial ministry,” he said. “The only way is to turn child welfare back over to the first nations and metis people. They need to have paramountcy and the decisions with respect to their children.”
Korol says the system is fatal for children and he’s frustrated with the amount of Indigenous children dying while in care of the government.
“The system is not working, we have 30 to 40 years of reports, audits that show that social services in Saskatchewan is not able to do the job,” says Korol. “We have 15 to 20 kids dying in care every year, we have our jails loaded with children from the child welfare system and we have this cycle, the children’s children end up in child welfare.”
The FSIN’s timing couldn’t have been better
On Friday, Indigenous Services Minster Jane Philpott is expected to announce that the government is moving on new legislation to turn control of child welfare over to First Nation, Metis and Inuit communities.
Hopefully under the legislative changes proposed the entire system can be done away with with the simple stroke of a pen. Imagine a system which no longer has authority to apprehend children but instead any concerns about the maltreatment of children and or the need for children to be immediately protected would come to the FN Chief’s attention who with the stroke of a pen awards temporary kinship custody of the child(ren) to the next 2 available and capable family members with an order that he/she/they have care and control of said children until such time as a Community Council directs the development and implementation of a restorative family plan. The kin in care providers would obtain the full support and accountability responsibilities from the community in their exercising their traditional fiduciary responsibilities to the family unit for its members. Communities through Chiefs and Councils should also have legislative authority not just with CFS but also with respect to the criminal justice matters; ie. child abandonment, neglect and abuse and also legislative authority to address mental and addiction issues such as through the issuing of community treatment orders.
Done.
It was only done to shut them up and another hero was borm most paremts can not take care of themselves let alone kids they will get taxpayer funding to steal
Hopefully under the legislative changes proposed the entire system can be done away with with the simple stroke of a pen. Imagine a system which no longer has authority to apprehend children but instead any concerns about the maltreatment of children and or the need for children to be immediately protected would come to the FN Chief’s attention who with the stroke of a pen awards temporary kinship custody of the child(ren) to the next 2 available and capable family members with an order that he/she/they have care and control of said children until such time as a Community Council directs the development and implementation of a restorative family plan. The kin in care providers would obtain the full support and accountability responsibilities from the community in their exercising their traditional fiduciary responsibilities to the family unit for its members. Communities through Chiefs and Councils should also have legislative authority not just with CFS but also with respect to the criminal justice matters; ie. child abandonment, neglect and abuse and also legislative authority to address mental and addiction issues such as through the issuing of community treatment orders.
Done.
It was only done to shut them up and another hero was borm most paremts can not take care of themselves let alone kids they will get taxpayer funding to steal
I’m pleased to hear that things are moving forward in our favour. Our community C.F.S has had death of several children in care. Phoenix Sinclair and a child with the the last name Travers and others. My concern these Children were in care with our communities Agency. I feel that the Child and Family Service needs to be more involved with the children in the community and schedule more home visits with the foster parents and children who are in care. More training is also needed plus more workers to handle the needs more effective. Problems that the Children may have should be addressed prompt. Childrens entering care should be assessed as soon as apprehended, to address all the children s needs, mental health as well as communication skills of the child and behaviour of children. I have that the needs of the child are not met and some children are just placed on meds to control their behaviour. I really hate the fact that this is done to Children . Some children suffer for many years before something is done to help them. Some children never receive the help, and most likely diagnosed as F.A.S or some sort attentions disorders. Most of this can be avoided if the children are assessed promptly when taken into care. By our Child and Family Services. These are some of my concerns and solutions. Thank you
I pray this will save more children. I do believe more needs to done so children are not sent to foster care in the first place.
This is a step in the right direction. I will advise the Federal to apply similar changes to the minorities also. Recently,I was closer with the system after two young kids were apprehended. As a result I used this time to critically follow the process. From my assessments the system is broken. You apprehend kids from school disn’t Call their next of. Kin nor their emergegency contact person and took the kids to foster home. These social workers have absolute powers and from my perspective some of their reports are not accurate. The powers they have is more than the powers that biological parents do not have. I don’t think that sometimes from what I observed it is for the best interest of the children. The law have to be strengthened by giving them the pathway procedures that you must call the next of Kim’s or immediate family members before transferring a child to foster home.
I agree. How sad that so many innocent children are at risk. They should not be put in foster care unless it is completely necessary and that sometimes happens.
I’m pleased to hear that things are moving forward in our favour. Our community C.F.S has had death of several children in care. Phoenix Sinclair and a child with the the last name Travers and others. My concern these Children were in care with our communities Agency. I feel that the Child and Family Service needs to be more involved with the children in the community and schedule more home visits with the foster parents and children who are in care. More training is also needed plus more workers to handle the needs more effective. Problems that the Children may have should be addressed prompt. Childrens entering care should be assessed as soon as apprehended, to address all the children s needs, mental health as well as communication skills of the child and behaviour of children. I have that the needs of the child are not met and some children are just placed on meds to control their behaviour. I really hate the fact that this is done to Children . Some children suffer for many years before something is done to help them. Some children never receive the help, and most likely diagnosed as F.A.S or some sort attentions disorders. Most of this can be avoided if the children are assessed promptly when taken into care. By our Child and Family Services. These are some of my concerns and solutions. Thank you
I pray this will save more children. I do believe more needs to done so children are not sent to foster care in the first place.
This is a step in the right direction. I will advise the Federal to apply similar changes to the minorities also. Recently,I was closer with the system after two young kids were apprehended. As a result I used this time to critically follow the process. From my assessments the system is broken. You apprehend kids from school disn’t Call their next of. Kin nor their emergegency contact person and took the kids to foster home. These social workers have absolute powers and from my perspective some of their reports are not accurate. The powers they have is more than the powers that biological parents do not have. I don’t think that sometimes from what I observed it is for the best interest of the children. The law have to be strengthened by giving them the pathway procedures that you must call the next of Kim’s or immediate family members before transferring a child to foster home.
I agree. How sad that so many innocent children are at risk. They should not be put in foster care unless it is completely necessary and that sometimes happens.