THUNDER BAY – Leaders with Nishnawbe Aski Nation say they are disappointed with the lack of progress on recommendations from the inquest into the deaths of seven Indigenous youth in the city of Thunder Bay.
“It will be two years on June 29th since the coroner’s report was released and the inquest was completed,” said NAN Deputy Grand Chief, Anna Betty Achneepineskum. “There have been some recommendations that have been fulfilled, but that percentage is still very low. There is still a lot of work that needs to be done.”
On the second day of the NAN Chiefs Winter Assembly, members received an update on NAN’s progress on the implementation of the inquest recommendations.
The inquest handed down 145 recommendations to organizations and political bodies, including NAN, to improve safety for Indigenous youth attending school in the city of Thunder Bay. The inquest was called after seven Indigenous youth - Jethro Anderson, Reggie Bushie, Robyn Harper, Kyle Morrisseau, Paul Panacheese, Curran Strang and Jordan Wabasse - died between 2000 and 2011 while attending high school in Thunder Bay.
Achneepineskum said NAN is working with partners to move forward on the recommendations. In order to ensure progress, NAN has set a deadline of Mar. 31 for the implementation of key recommendations.
“We felt it was really important that we push that and so we will see after Mar. 31,” she said. “But as of today, I am not satisfied in terms of the progress. We are talking about the security of our children, our students. I believe that we should have made a greater effort to move the recommendations a lot faster and to ensure there is that commitment to cooperation.”
According to Achneepineskum, capacity issues delayed working on the recommendations and she said it took nine months to secure funding to hire personnel, including four inquest coordinators.
A first year report card for the implementation of the inquest recommendations gave NAN and the province of Ontario a C+ rating.
During Premier Kathleen Wynne’s visit to Thunder Bay, she said the province is continuing to work the federal government and continues to put resources and supports in place to help make young people who travel to urban centres for school feel safe.
Following her address to the NAN Chiefs Winter Assembly on Wednesday, Wynne said she met with students from Dennis Franklin Cromarty High School, who talked about the need for different residential options for students attending school.
“This is not just about one thing,” Wynne said. “It’s not just about what goes on in the classroom, it’s not just about housing, it’s not just about counseling supports, it’s about all of those things.”
“My priority is that we make sure we have the right supports and resources in place so that young people feel safe, that they feel they have someone to talk to and that they feel supported,” Wynne continued.
The recommendations Achneepineskum would like to see instituted as soon as possible include increased funding for boarding homes and residences for Indigenous youth attending school in Thunder Bay.
Work on the safety audit of area waterways in conjunction with the city of Thunder Bay is one of the recommendations that has been fulfilled, but Achneepineskum said a lot more work needs to be done.
“We are hearing from the families directly that they are not content with the progress,” she said. “Those are the people that are vital to ensuring that we are accountable. As an executive member of NAN, I believe it is our responsibility to fulfill the request of the families. We have to continue to lobby and ensure the implementation process is moving forward.”
