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Originally Posted by [B
CliffFletcher;5324730
Then there's the whole matter of reserves. I'd wager non-Native Canadians who live in isolated rural communities with low rates of school completion and high rates of substance abuse have very low incomes compared to the rest of Canada.[/B]
50 years from now we may very well look at the reserve system with the same dismay and disbelief that we regard the residential school system with
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50 years from now? The reserve system and the Indian Act set up natives for failure from day 1. The problem is that most of the land that was set up as reserves for our natives was basically useless.
Yes, they have found some valuable natural resources on some of the reserves lately, but by and large, the land on reserves is useless. That is also compounded by the fact that many reserves lie in very isolated regions of Canada.
I grew up in Saskatchewan, 30 minutes north of Regina, and my Dad's farm bordered the northern edge of Piapot Reserve. This reserve takes in part of the Qu'Appelle Valley and encompasses the north and south sides of Qu'Appelle Valley as well as the bottom of the valley. Outside of perhaps a bit of cattle ranching and a few gravel pits, there is little else that can be done for industry on that reserve. The bottom of the valley does have some hay land but is not really suitable for grain farming as it is prone to flooding.
Now the land north and south of Qu'Appelle Valley, particularly south, is some of the richest grain growing land in Canada, part of the Regina Plains. However, the Piapot Reserve itself never got any of that rich farm land. Funny how that happened isn't it?
So tell me, how were the members of Piapot reserve supposed to end up as functioning members of our society when they were placed on a tract of land, that although it might be very scenic, is not able to support the members who live there?
Some of the things the natives are asking for in the 94 recommendations are symbolic...some are much more encompassing.There is no easy solution here and it will take huge amounts of conciliatory work from both sides before a solution is found. The sooner the bickering, blaming, and name calling ends, the sooner a solution will be found.
And although the 94 recommendations are aimed at our governments, in all actuality. some initiatives will have to come from the natives themselves. Solutions will only be found when initiatives come from both sides.