Manitoba chiefs warn of youth services inequity

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This article was published 11/04/2022 (990 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

OTTAWA — A court order that extends services to Indigenous youth who age out of foster care has garnered praise, but Manitoba chiefs warn it could have adverse consequences.

The Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs hailed a recent ruling by the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal to include youth aging out of care in federal services. However, it argues Ottawa must do the same for kids who aren’t under the care of Child and Family Services.

“Any time CFS services extend beyond what is available to First Nations children through Jordan’s Principle or other existing services/programs, we create a perverse incentive for people to put their children in care,” wrote acting grand chief Eric Redhead.

Jordan’s Principle is a concept Parliament ratified in 2007, which holds that First Nations children should receive care upfront and let governments fight over payment afterward.

The principle is named after Jordan River Anderson, was born at Health Sciences Centre in Winnipeg with multiple disabilities. He died there in 2005 at age five, after two years of the Manitoba and federal governments squabbling over who would pay to provide home care at Norway House Cree Nation.

The concept has been the basis of a decade-long tribunal case which ruled Ottawa racially discriminates against First Nations children by providing services that are subpar to what non-Indigenous children get in provincial system. Those services include dental care, special education and physiotherapy.

As part of the tribunal case, a March 24 ruling extended programs for wards of foster care beyond age 17, up until they turn 26.

Redhead hopes that will mean programs for all First Nations children, and not just those in foster care.

“We are hopeful that this is a step in the right direction to ensuring long-term systemic changes for First Nations children and families,” he wrote.

Perverse incentives in foster care have long been a concern for First Nations in Manitoba and other provinces.

Both the province and federal government have reformed CFS in recent years to better fund preventive work such as parenting classes. For decades, foster care had largely been funded based on how many children agencies have taken from the family home, which often left social workers little choice but to apprehend a child, instead of working to resolve issues in the home.

Last week, AMC issued a lengthy report by academics on how Jordan’s Principle is working in Manitoba.

The report argued red tape and colonial structures hold back the program from actually achieving equitable services. It recommended more autonomy, and a better tracking of whether children can actually access adequate services.

dylan.robertson@freepress.mb.ca