valcourt-aboriginalaffairs_thumb-1.png
valcourt-aboriginalaffairs_thumb-1.png This article is more than 9 years old

VIDEO: Aboriginal Affairs Minister says youth suicides are parents’ problem, not his

He said WHAAT?!? Watch:

Who is responsible for preventing youth suicides on First Nations reserves?

According to Bernard Valcourt, the Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northen Development: not him.

Valcourt didn’t offer up a number (It’s “five to six times more often than non-Aboriginal youth”).

But he did tell Angus his question “shows a great misunderstanding” of “the responsibility of the Department of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development.” (His department actually funds programs aimed at improving “life outcomes for First Nation children and families.” It also partners on the National Aboriginal Youth Suicide Prevention Strategy, including supporting “healthy schools in First Nations communities.”)

“These children are first and foremost the responsibility of their parents throughout Canada,” Valcourt continued, before being interrupted by Angus, who can be heard saying “not your responsibility? You are a clown”:

Watch:

Thursday afternoon, Angus crticized Valcourt on Twitter for, as he put it, shrugging off the youth suicide crisis and blaming parents:

Valcourt’s response? Thursday night, APTN News reported the following response from the minister:

Valcourt said he did not check child welfare figures “every day” and repeated that the department has no obligation for child welfare beyond meeting policy requirements to fund the services.
 

“When the member talks about an obligation, I will remind the honourable member that this is a policy matter. This is a policy decision to reimburse provinces and to fund the agencies,” said Valcourt.

But that wasn’t the only thing Valcourt had to say on Wednesday night during a debate in the House of Commons.

When asked by Quebec MP Jonathan Genest-Jourdain what “is the leading cause” of “systemic violence against aboriginal women,” Valcourt replied: “in my experience, every time someone is murdered, a crime has been committed” — echoing Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s controversial statement that missing and murdered indigenous women is not a “sociological phenomenon.”

And when asked by fellow Quebec MP Romeo Saganash why he voted against his private member’s bill to have Canada recognize the UN Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Valcourt replied it would go “against the Constitution of Canada.”

(FYI: this is coming from the same guy who voted for Bill C-51). 

Photo: Department of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development.

Our journalism is powered by readers like you.

We’re an award-winning non-profit news organization that covers topics like social and economic inequality, big business and labour, and right-wing extremism.

Help us build so we can bring to light stories that don’t get the attention they deserve from Canada’s big corporate media outlets.

 

Donate
PressProgress
PressProgress is an award-winning non-profit news organization focused on uncovering and unpacking the news through original investigative and explanatory journalism.

Most Shared

thumb-2024-10-013-brent-chapman-united-nations News

Take Back Alberta Leaders are Training ‘Scrutineers’ to Infiltrate Campaigns and Act as ‘Security’ on Voting Day

Related Stories

News

BC Conservative Candidate Warned of United Nations ‘Conspiracies’ to Take Control of Canada

View the post
New

BC Conservative Candidate’s Campaign Shared Graphic Comparing Public Health Policies to Nazi Holocaust

View the post
News

BC Conservatives Under Fire Over Spokesperson Known for Insults, Slurs and Online Abuse

View the post
Our free email newsletter delivers award-winning journalism directly to your inbox.
Get Canadian Investigative News You Won't Find in Corporate Newspapers.
Our free email newsletter delivers award-winning journalism to your inbox.
Get Canadian Investigative News You Won't Find in Corporate Newspapers.