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That query is posed in today’s Toronto Star by Angelo Persichilli, political editor of Corriere Canadese and a man not afraid of being branded a racist for asking common-sense questions about a glaring social problem.
"That's dynamite, don't touch it!" a politician once told me when I expressed the desire to write about Caledonia and the natives. I agree, it was and still is dynamite, but is this a valid reason not to talk about it?I don't think so. There are pre-Confederation treaties signed but never respected, and $12 billion a year from Ottawa to assist the aboriginals. But still Canada's natives are dying in their reserves. Can we talk about it?
. .
There are 1.2 million aboriginals in Canada. Some 700,000 of them live on reserves in conditions similar to those of Third World countries despite massive federal government spending. Alcoholism is widespread and the suicide rate among young natives is three times higher than in the rest of the population.
Because aboriginal leaders refuse to account for the vast sums of taxpayer money that government hands over every year, and our politicians refuse to insist on such an accounting, the real problems cannot be addressed. Instead, attention is focused on sensational side issues.
Instead of debating how we have created a black hole into which billions are funnelled with minimal accountability and why human rights and legal processes are suspended, we talk about a frustrated Mohawk, Shawn Brant, who is taking the law into his hands, and OPP Commissioner Fantino, who has the almost impossible mandate to enforce a rule of law that, regarding native issues, has taken a leave of absence.
Clearly, aboriginal Canadians are not well served by their leaders or the federal government. Despite annual expenditures of over $10,000 for every aboriginal person, the present system isn’t working. Before it can be fixed, we need to know what happens to all that money so the same mistakes aren’t repeated. Or is it racist to ask for an accounting?
h/t: Bourque
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