The sad fact that many North Americans don't want to face, is that we have some populations who live in 'developing world' conditions right in our backyard.
On this summer's holiday back home in Canada, we ventured out to a pow wow. First Nations people across North America celebrate their annual festival - called a pow wow - in the spring and summer months. Pow wows consist of dancing, drumming and traditional outfit contests. There is singing, dancing, smudging, and sales of food, clothes, jewelery etc.
We had a great time. But we also visited the reservation that hosted the pow wow. And we were shocked, disappointed and amazed at the way people are living in 2011 in a country like Canada.
The following statistics from the Public Service Alliance of Canada speak volumes:
*One in four First Nations children live in poverty.
* First Nations people suffer from Third World diseases such as tuberculosis at eight to 10 times the rate of Canadians in general.
* More than half of First Nations people are not employed.
* One Aboriginal child in eight is disabled, double the rate of all children in Canada.
* Among First Nations children, 43 per cent lack basic dental care.
* Aboriginal children are drastically over-represented in the child welfare system
* High school graduation rates for First Nations youth are half the Canadian rate.
* First Nations youth commit suicide at five to eight times the Canadian rate. The suicide rate for Inuit youth is six times as high as in the rest of the country.
* Diabetes among First Nations people is at least three times the national average.
* Recent Census data shows that 23 per cent of Aboriginal people live in houses in need of major repairs, compared to just 7 per cent of the non-Aboriginal population.
* Overcrowding among First Nations families is double the rate of that for all Canadian families. A recent government study found that more than half of Inuit families live in overcrowded conditions. Some three-bedroom homes are known to house as many as 20 people.
* More than 100 First Nations communities are under boil water advisories right now, meaning they have little or no access to clean water for drinking and sanitation.
* More than half of First Nations and Inuit people are under 25 years of age. This is the fastest growing population in Canada If poverty is not addressed today, it will continue to negatively impact First Nations families for generations to come.
Ghana and Africa as a whole has become the target trendy destination for eco-tourism and voluntourism as well as paid volunteering. Why do we not look inward at communities in North America that lack education, potable water, sanitation, access to health care in their communities?!
The First Nations of North America are the elephant in the room that nobody wants to talk about. Maybe it's not cool to meet up with friends and say you volunteered for two months on a reservation....
Maybe the photos you bring back will not be as exotic as those from Africa. You will not have paid over $3000 for your trip and flown across the globe. But is it any less important?
Ignorance of native issues in Canada is rife. As a city girl, I had no idea how much land across Canada belongs to our aboriginal groups, no idea what their culture was or how it has been eroded. No clue about the poverty that characterizes most reservations. The first time I ever visited a reservation I was already in my late 30's. I'd already lived in Africa for years. And this place was less than a two hour drive from my suburban home... Is our ignorance an excuse? Where is the media coverage? Where is the education on the sordid history of the clash between the aboriginal groups and the colonizers that led to the state of affairs today? How can we all turn a blind eye to the dysfunctional relations that have allowed part of a modern society to slip down through the cracks into the silent abyss?
I would venture to say that it is incredulous that westerners feel the superiority to come to Africa offering help of various kinds, when they have not even looked at the gaping wounds in their own societies. After all - CHARITY BEGINS AT HOME!
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2 comments:
Thank you for this reminder. I've lived in the United States all my life and still cannot get over my recent experience traveling through the Navajo reservation in southern Utah. All at once I was sad that my nation decided this cracked-earth, barren, littered stretch of waterless land was suitable for habitation. I was sickened by the collective history that created this situation. I was also fearful to stop to get gas or provisions as we were not greeted with friendly faces or ever curiosity, but with suspicion.
Very sad,before helping your neighbour's kids,you should look after your kids first.
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