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The following headline demonstrates the unwillingness of the people and the media who live and work in the cities to really understand and be willing to do something about anybody living in other environments. With findings such as "aboriginal children are the most disadvantaged group in Canada" and "aboriginal children, particularly in rural settings, continue to lack adequate housing, food security, clean water and access to services", it is obvious that the lack of equitable resources for people living in these environments is contributing to the problem. But instead of recognizing this reality, the newspaper coverage and headlines focus on trying to force everyone into their concrete ghettos.

The press release for the actual report follows the newspaper coverage ...

From Canwest News Service, Montreal Gazette

Aboriginal kids do better in cities than on reserves: study

Kerry Benjoe, June 26

REGINA - Aboriginal children on Canadian reserves are starting out their lives at a disadvantage compared to non-aboriginal kids - and even compared to aboriginal kids living in cities, a new study suggests.

Jessica Ball, a professor at the University of Victoria's School of Child and Youth Care, says in a new report for the Montreal-based Institute for Research on Public Policy that aboriginal children are the most disadvantaged group in Canada.

"This is not news. There have been persistent disparities for decades and they are attributable to historic conditions," said Ball.

What surprised her was the gap that exists between urban and on-reserve First Nation populations.

"There is a special set of circumstances that is especially challenging for aboriginal children living on reserves and in the North," said Ball.

"Being able to pull apart two different kinds of patterns for urban versus rural and northern aboriginal children is something the study has helped us understand."

She found that aboriginal children, particularly in rural settings, continue to lack adequate housing, food security, clean water and access to services.

Ball's study examined the opportunities for health and development of First Nation, Metis and Inuit children from infancy to age five.

"We as Canadians have to be concerned about the persistent disparities in health and education and quality of life for aboriginal young children in Canada because it's a public concern," said Ball.

Ball said conflicts and disconnects between federal and provincial jurisdictions play a major role in creating the gap between rural and urban aboriginal kids. Children living on reserve fall under federal jurisdiction and don't have access to provincial programming that may help them.

Ball said she did uncover some good news. She said more and more aboriginal children are completing school and Health-Canada funded Aboriginal Head Start programs are having a positive impact on aboriginal children and their parents.

"I really think that what we're doing in Canada with the (Aboriginal Head Start) program is one of the most promising practices," said Ball.

"Here in Canada we have made so much headway in supporting young aboriginal children through the AHS model."

The projects typically provide half-day preschool experiences that are meant to prepare young aboriginal children for their school years.

"Our children are catching up," said Delora Parisian, executive director of Regina's Aboriginal Family Services Centre.

"They don't always enter the mainstream school behind anymore. In some cases, they are ahead of other students," said Parisian.

"The main benefit is that, 'It's OK to be First Nations or Metis person,' because most of us, the parents, grew up believing that we weren't OK. We try to instill that right from the get-go with these little ones."

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Poor Living Conditions mean Bleak Future for Aboriginal Kids

June 26, 2008

Study calls for more broad community-led programs to address crisis Montreal – Aboriginal children, especially those in rural and northern Canada, are the least-supported in the country in terms of their access to the basic elements of quality of life, according to a new study released by the Institute for Research on Public Policy.

The study, “Promoting Equity and Dignity for Aboriginal Children in Canada,” found that a large proportion of young Aboriginal children continue to lack adequate housing, food security, clean water and access to services. Their situation is compounded by other factors, including the impact of residential schools on the parenting abilities of generations of Aboriginal mothers and fathers. Environmental risks and acute health problems appear to be at an especially critical level among First Nations children living on reserve and among Inuit children across the North, according to the study’s author, Jessica Ball.

“While health and development indicators show that Aboriginal children are more likely than non-Aboriginal children to need health services and early interventions, they are far less likely to receive them,” says Ball. “These legacies need to be recognized in government policy decisions and program investments.”

The federal government should increase its investment in Aboriginal Head Start in order to significantly expand the program and other family-centred, holistic, preventive and community-driven initiatives, argues Ball. "Equitable opportunities for quality of life will allow generations of Aboriginal children to benefit from and contribute to a postcolonial society that protects and nurtures its youngest members and their diverse cultural heritage.”

“Promoting Equity and Dignity for Aboriginal Children in Canada,” by Jessica Ball, a professor at the University of Victoria’s School of Child and Youth Care, can be downloaded free of charge from www.irpp.org.

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