Fairness for Residential School Survivors

In recent years there have been a number of significant steps taken to recognize the impact of residential schools.

 The government's apology, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the compensation program have all been part of the response.

 The fact is that there is still a great deal more to do.

 There are a number of issues with the compensation itself.

 Estimates show that hundreds of survivors still haven’t filed their claim. We called on the Federal government to give all residential school survivors the chance to tell their story. We called on the Minister of Aboriginal Affairs to provide more time for those eligible to submit their applications to the Independent Assessment Process.

  We believe the government needs to ensure that every survivor has the chance to access compensation for the abuse they suffered.

  Last year, the government recognized that many residential school survivors had not yet applied for the Common Experience Payment and extended that deadline for one year for any survivor with a disability, who faced undue hardship or had exceptional circumstances

 We must never forget that many  survivors are struggling to deal with very
difficult situations in their past.

 There are also issues related to what were called day schools where abuse took place, and former students are not eligible.

 There is much more that needs to be done to deal with the intrgenerational impacts of residential schools. Many of the programs that deal with these impacts have been cut. This is unacceptable.

As MP for Churchill I will be continuing to fight for fairness for residential school survivors, their families and communities.