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- Community: Mushuau
- Transcripts:
| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Comparisons to residential school |
| Excerpt | Well, I’d like to start off, you know, say a moment of silence to remember those murdered Indigenous women and the children that had never made it home through residential schools. And still, today, residential school is still alive and well, today. It’s called child welfare system.
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Negative impact on family of origin |
| Excerpt | My life has been profoundly affected by the foster care system in Newfoundland and Labrador. My three kids are in care right now since last year of August. They have been removed because, I guess, I couldn’t provide the service. I got into drinking and heavy drugs, as well.
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| Theme | Innu Community Perspectives, Strengths & Rights |
| Sub-Theme | Nutshimit (hunting, ceremony, way of life) (+) |
| Excerpt | "But my grandfather always said to me education was very important, wished me to go to school. If I didn’t listen or didn’t pay attention in school, my grandfather would – my grandparents – late grandparents would always take me to the country, which my grandfather always said to me: If you don’t wanna learn something in school or non-Aboriginal education, you’re gonna learn something on the land. Which I am very grateful I had that opportunity to learn how to trap and to survive on the land and to respect the animals and respect Mother Nature in the land, on the land.
We would be in the country from spring to ice break. We would travel there in – on Ski-Doo in winter and through summer and we’d go on the boat back to Davis Inlet in summer.
In the fall, we would go in – on the boat in the country and we’ll come out in the Ski-Doo in the winter. We’d be there two or three months at the most, at a time out on the land."
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| Theme | Innu Community Perspectives, Strengths & Rights |
| Sub-Theme | Education, training, employment |
| Excerpt | I’m grateful I got to spend a lot of time on the land and, at the same time, learn the non-Aboriginal lifestyle. There was another world out there that I can educate myself and profoundly pass that to my children, that education is important.
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| Theme | Mental and Emotional Impacts |
| Sub-Theme | Ongoing & intergenerational Trauma (involving alcohol, substance use, violence/abuse within families) |
| Excerpt | Growing up in – as an adopted kid, my grandfather drank, my grandmother didn’t drink until her last breath. She passed away a few years ago. My grandparents would take me wherever my grandfather was offered to get the next drink, I guess, or get a quick fix, wherever he was invited by his friends. I see a lot of the violence throughout those – throughout that journey. I know my dad was very violent towards my mom, as well.
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| Theme | Mental and Emotional Impacts |
| Sub-Theme | Suicide, suicide ideation, self-harm |
| Excerpt | There were four of us boys that my parents had. I lost my brother through suicide at age 18. When he was 18, he committed suicide. After parents – growing up in adoption, as a young age to a teenager, we – all four of us were in separate – we didn’t live together in one household, we were all separated. So I didn’t really had a chance to know my older brothers that well, because we were all scattered in different homes. I do recall my two late brothers – they’re older brothers – were in and out of group homes – boys’ home.
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Negative impact on family of origin |
| Excerpt | After parents – growing up in adoption, as a young age to a teenager, we – all four of us were in separate – we didn’t live together in one household, we were all separated. So I didn’t really had a chance to know my older brothers that well, because we were all scattered in different homes. I do recall my two late brothers – they’re older brothers – were in and out of group homes – boys’ home.
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| Theme | Mental and Emotional Impacts |
| Sub-Theme | Suicide, suicide ideation, self-harm |
| Excerpt | You know, losing my two role models, I guess, my older brothers, was a big loss to me. After my brother committed suicide when I was 11 or 12 years old, it was very hard because you – he make sure I go to school every day and that I didn’t get in trouble with the law. After the loss of my brother through suicide, I guess the world came down upon me, you know, it shattered.
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| Theme | Substance Use and Treatment |
| Sub-Theme | Alcohol & other substances – as a child/youth |
| Excerpt | At a young age, you know, I started using alcohol and drugs to numb the pain, what I went through as a kid. I don’t ever – I don’t recall being physically abused by my adopted parents, but I do recall when I didn’t listen, my grandmother would hit me with the boughs on my feet.
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| Theme | Other system involvement |
| Sub-Theme | Justice/Corrections (incarceration) |
| Excerpt | Also, that I recall, I started getting up – ending up in trouble with the law at a young age when I start to put myself in the wrong crowd, I guess. You know, I tried to fit in somewhere where I’d be accepted, who I was. But I made a lot of bad choices throughout my life. I ended up in group homes. I ended up in Whitbourne detention centre a few times.
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Comparisons to residential school |
| Excerpt | Still today, I thinking there’s only few – two or three province have admitted and the premiers itself; I can’t recall which province admitted that they have done a lot of damage to Indigenous people across Canada. And here we are today, the system is still well alive – it’s well alive. Like I said earlier, it used to be called residential schools, where kids were removed from their homes. A lot of those kids never made it back home, and I’m very honoured to speak here at the Inquiry.
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| Theme | Mental and Emotional Impacts |
| Sub-Theme | Ongoing & intergenerational Trauma (involving alcohol, substance use, violence/abuse within families) |
| Excerpt | Just over a year ago, maybe 14 months now, my three children were removed from my – our care, at the time, my partner, but I’m no longer in that relationship with the mother – that my children were removed because the addictions and the trauma I was going through. But since then, my kids have been in care, a lot of things have happened to my kids.
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Lack of transparency & mistrust |
| Excerpt | There have been many issues and problems that have been happening to my kids while in their care. They were placed in a foster home here in the community, where one of the foster parents was allegedly charged with sexual interference. I made the inquiries, talked to CSSD about if my children were touched or sexually abused at that home. Today, I don’t have that answer. I’ve been waiting for that answer for a long time.
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| Theme | Other system involvement |
| Sub-Theme | Health System Access |
| Excerpt | My son was born with a heart murmur at the – you know, when he was born, he had – we had to be in St. John’s for so many months. Then had to be transferred to Halifax at the IWK Children’s Hospital to get his heart fixed for the heart murmur. And he has cardiology appointments, special appointments in Janeway since he was born. Since he’s been in care, he has missed quite a few appointments with cardiology and other appointments that were important for him – for his to be healthy, to be healthy and be in good spirits.
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Court time & legal services |
| Excerpt | "Again, like I said, my kids have through – went through a lot since they’ve been in care. I have advocating for my kids since January when I came on board with my family lawyer. It took some time to get a family lawyer. There was no family lawyer in the Legal Aid Office at the time, so it took some time. And I’ve been working with CSSD from day one and I’ve been
advocating for my boys, for their well – for their best interests and their well-being while in their care. Those needs have been broken many times by the system, CSSD."
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Court time & legal services |
| Excerpt | "I’m – all my – when my first children were removed, they were all in one place. After the – those allegations, the sexual
interference allegations were – I didn’t hear it from CSSD itself. I had to get the – I had to hear it from the local community – a third party.
As soon as I heard that these things were happening, I contacted the CSSD, my social worker, along with my family lawyer. And my kids were put at EPH, Emergency Placement Home, here in Sheshatshiu, which three of them have been separated. Two of my boys are still living at the EPH here in Sheshatshiu. Their sister was separated, put to another foster home."
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Lack of transparency & mistrust |
| Excerpt | My daughter has been house to house and foster home to foster home since she’s been in care. And it’s quite concerning, you know, not knowing what could happen in the foster home where I wasn’t consulted by CSSD.
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Court time & legal services |
| Excerpt | "About two weeks ago, where my daughter was, the family broke down. They couldn’t give the services and care for my daughter. So my daughter was put in a home here in Sheshatshiu. I had a case conference with the CSSD, with the assistance with Innu Round Table staff, that not long after my daughter was soon placed at a home, my daughter was taken to emergency department here in Goose Bay, where I got informed that she had a lot of lice from that home, and she had infection in her private area. At two years old – 2½ years old; she just turned three there last week.
And a lot of questions came to – came to me, you know. I had – I requested, through my family lawyer, have a meeting – case conference: Why is this happening to my children while in their care?
When I have to go to Family Court, CSSD lawyer and the CSSD social workers are always argue that, you know, the best interest of the child for their safety and well-being. But since my kids have been in care, the system has failed. There are many, many holes in the system and I have – I even have brought those concerns to child advocate, Newfoundland and Labrador.
And many – I have sent emails and I have sent emails to the child advocate myself, directly, and my family lawyer has followed up with the child advocate. Still today, we’re in October, I haven’t heard anything or any response from the child advocate. You know, these stuff are very serious to me as a parent. This will traumatize and be affected my kids, what’s going through them while they’re in care."
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Abuse/mistreatment in care |
| Excerpt | "When my son had those appointments, before he got removed from our care, he never once missed those appointments. My son that – two of my sons who are living at EPH gotten beaten up by older kids at the EPH. My son that I talk about earlier who had a heart murmur, has medical issues, was rushed to hospital emergency department ’cause repeatedly one of the children there keep repeatedly kick him in the head.
I don’t know how many times my older son has been scratches on his face."
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Lack of transparency & mistrust |
| Excerpt | I don’t know how many times my older son has been scratches on his face. And I brought these attention and my concern to a CSSD and – through email, ’cause I like to deal with CSSD through email, it’s recorded. If I speak over the phone, anything, it’s – the words might be never heard or documented.
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Impact on community/collective |
| Excerpt | Like I said – also, like I said, there was many holes in the system here. It has brought a lot of families to devastation, I believe, not only me but other families, other Indigenous groups and non-Indigenous groups as well, I believe, that have – the system had broken families apart, have caused a lot of headaches and burdens to the kids and parents.
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | High staff turnover, inconsistency |
| Excerpt | "When I have a meeting with the CSSD, they all – they always have these beautiful words but there’s no action to follow up on that when I raise these concerns.
I have dealt so many social workers since my kids have been in care. I had so many social workers I had to deal with. My social worker had to leave and another social worker had be signed, and the list goes on. And it took a lot of burden on me. I know my kids are – wanna come home early, but I’m stuck with the system."
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Unresponsiveness/being ignored |
| Excerpt | "Also, since my boys, my two boys are still living at EPH since September of last year, one of my sons, one of my boys – they’re my sons, that’s the one I have mentioned earlier, he has a medical condition – was physically assaulted by staff at EPH.
I didn’t hear it from directly from CSSD, I had to get the third party. Local member told me that from the community. When something serious or that concerns me, I always have to find out from – through a third party, not from CSSD. And like I said many times, they have told me – they have said it in the meetings I had with them that they will notify me if there’s anything important like appointments.
Since my kids in – been in care, I only attended one appointment with my children, that was a dentist appointment. I was promised in January I will be attending every clinical or medical appointments with my children.
Only recently my daughter, last month, was medevaced to St. John’s because she had infection in his ear. She had to had a small operation surgery. I asked for assistance through the CSSD to get me out there and to cover the cost so I can be with my daughter since my daughter was in care. I didn’t get any assistance from CSSD."
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| Theme | Other system involvement |
| Sub-Theme | Health System Access |
| Excerpt | I moved out of Natuashish in 2014 and I’ve been living here, Sheshatshiu and Goose Bay. I guess the main reason I moved to Goose Bay and Sheshatshiu was there are resources here that I can get help. There was less resources in my community of Natuashish. I can easily go to LG Health, to mental health, to addictions counsellors to speak to there.
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| Theme | Substance Use and Treatment |
| Sub-Theme | Sobriety/Treatment |
| Excerpt | I’m profoundly proud that I came this far, to where I am. Yes, I still struggle. I was sober for eight years for a long time – alcohol and drugs. The loss of other family members: grandparents, my late dad, close family and friends that I lost throughout – you know, death after complications with health and other factors. Dealing with the CSSD, you know, I relapsed. I relapsed last year and – but I always manage to pull myself back again. Then the stress, you know, the stress was – the loss and depression was eating me up. I thought I could do it on my own without asking help, and it was only a matter of time I went back out there and drinking again.
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Court time & legal services |
| Excerpt | "Also, I have requested, when I hear serious issues that are happening my kids in care, I always ask for have a meeting with CSSD case conference through assistance with IRT. There was times I would wait for them to reply. Sometimes I don’t get the reply from my own social worker or a supervisor from CSSD, many, many occasions I have to go through my lawyer.
I have to send my email to my family lawyer, that’s when the ball starts to kick in. I have to go through many, many occasions through my family lawyer to get meetings to meet with CSSD and to have a plan for my children."
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Unresponsiveness/being ignored |
| Excerpt | And I notice lately, since my – since the mother of my kids, my ex-partner now, has come on board, they have spoken and met with my – the mother of my children a lot, instead of me because, I feel they don’t wanna deal with me. The CSSD don’t wanna deal with me because I have a lot of concerns and brought a lot of issues. More likely, they don’t wanna hear my story.
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| Theme | Experiences of Abuse and Racism |
| Sub-Theme | Language barriers |
| Excerpt | I – my ex, right now, partner, the mother of our children that are in care, has a language barrier, has low education, cannot speak freely the way I can speak and I even brought that up to my family lawyer and we – she collaborate that with a CSSD lawyer.
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| Theme | Experiences of Abuse and Racism |
| Sub-Theme | Abuse – from peers |
| Excerpt | "Still, today, the bullying and – the bullying at EPH by two older other kids that are staying there as well are happening with my children. My son is seven years old and my – the other son who’s at the Emergency Placement Home is five years old.
They still encounter bullying over there. They still being attacked. Only a week ago my son had a lot of scratches on his face because an older kid there beat him up again. And I’m questioning myself: How can this happen while my kids are in care? Why is this happening?"
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Unresponsiveness/being ignored |
| Excerpt | "They still encounter bullying over there. They still being attacked. Only a week ago my son had a lot of scratches on his face because an older kid there beat him up again. And I’m questioning myself: How can this happen while my kids are in care? Why is this happening?
And I brought those concerns to CSSD. I’m always – like I said earlier, they always give me beautiful words for me to hear. I feel like they only want to shut me up because they give me those kind and beautiful words, but no action. There is no action. And I even told them before: I know how the system works. I know how bureaucrats work."
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Court time & legal services |
| Excerpt | I have advocating my boys every day since I came on board with CSSD and when I had my lawyer, the family lawyer assigned to me. Still today, I’m advocating for my boys, for their best interests to have a better life. So they don’t have to be traumatized what’s happening while in their care.
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Negative impact on family of origin |
| Excerpt | None of this stuff happened to my boys and my children before they got removed. So much damage has been caused and a lot of pain on me and my children and I – also, the mother of our children – my children.
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| Theme | Substance Use and Treatment |
| Sub-Theme | Sobriety/Treatment |
| Excerpt | I’ve been sober 26 days, today. To me, it’s a milestone. I have come long ways. And I don’t think we’re all bad people, but we’re condemned by the system, who we are as Indigenous groups.
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| Theme | Innu Community Perspectives, Strengths & Rights |
| Sub-Theme | Intergenerational Cultural Continuity |
| Excerpt | And I said – and they asked me: Where do you get this stuff? How do you learn this stuff? Where did you go to school? Did you go to university? I said – I point out in the woods, I said: That’s where my school was as a young age. That’s where I learned. I had a really good teacher, which my late grandfather was. And I said to them, my grandfather balanced the non-Aboriginal culture and our culture had the same balance. He knew those things were profound about that would help me in long term in my life.
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| Theme | Mental and Emotional Impacts |
| Sub-Theme | Resentments/anger toward systems |
| Excerpt | Talking about thoseRecommendations, as well, I believe even the United Nations madeRecommendations to Canada, the Government of Canada, that Canada has failed an obligation to meet Indigenous groups before the child welfare system; not only the child welfare system, but legal aspect, as well, to deal with agencies.
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Unresponsiveness/being ignored |
| Excerpt | My son was sent – had to go see cardiology a week ago. Again, over the phone I was promised there would be transportation offered by CSSD, a taxi for me to go to the airport to meet my son. Her mother travelled with her and another worker at EPH. I did follow up with the taxi stand if there was a PO for me to get up to the airport and then get home after my son was departed. I was told there was none.
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| Theme | Mental and Emotional Impacts |
| Sub-Theme | Resentments/anger toward systems |
| Excerpt | Like I said many times, the system – there are many, many holes in the system and no one from CSSD or the Minister of CSSD is taking responsibility. These things are happening. They’re failing the children. They’re failing the Indigenous groups. They’re failing the families.
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Negative impact on family of origin |
| Excerpt | I have never been more stressed in my life until I became a part of the CSSD. My children were happy. My children met their appointments on time. My children never got scratches or black eyes. My five year – my four year old, at the time, had a black eye while he was in care. Where he was living, he got beat up by older kid there.
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Kinship care or adoption (esp. grandparents/communal child rearing) |
| Excerpt | "Only recent weeks ago, I’m told that EPH will be shut down and my kids, CSSD is scrambling to find a place for my boys that are living there. It’ll be shut down at the end of the month.
Again, I am very fortunate to have my ex-partner, his uncle step up to the plate to give a home while we’re before CSSD or before the courts, for my children so they have to be – that they – so they don’t have to be sent out from their own community. My son tells me he loves it here in Sheshatshiu. He has a lot of good friends in school. He don’t wanna move. He wants to be here – part of here. "
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| Theme | Substance Use and Treatment |
| Sub-Theme | Sobriety/Treatment |
| Excerpt | My seven year old has been removed three times since he’s been seven because I relapsed, I went to drinking. And today I take that full responsibility, I have no one to blame but myself that these things happen. But, again, I’ve been working very, very hard with CSSD to implement, to improve, for my children’s future and their health and the other factors that are played in, while in their care.
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Impact on health of youth in care (across lifespan) |
| Excerpt | Also, I can add that I’m trying – I’m working very hard with CSSD, along with the assistance IRT. It’s so hard, because even while I do so work with them closely, my children are experiencing trauma. No children should ever – no children that are before or in care of the child welfare system or CSSD should never experience this. My children are very innocent. They don’t have to be beaten up. They don’t have to go through this while they’re in care.
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Court time & legal services |
| Excerpt | "On many occasions I have been before the Family Court, and their lawyer always argued continuous custody to care for them and I read – I said it on the record at the last court of – Family Court we had: The system has failed my children. There is many holes in the system. I brought my concerns to the judge to hear these, because even though my lawyer didn’t want me to say these things but I said it has to be recorded.
I have a right. Even though I’m Indigenous or Innu man, I said I still vote to Canada. I still pay taxes ’cause I work part-time with the court, as well, as interpreter from time to time. I used to work with Legal Aid probation when I was still living in Natuashish."
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Comparisons to residential school |
| Excerpt | This issues that going on with my children and with the system is – child welfare system or CSSD, whatever the name they have – wanna use. They have changed so many names but they’re all still the same. And like I said earlier as well, residential school is still well alive in Canada today, but they have changed their name to CSSD or child welfare system.
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Loss of Innu-aimun, culture, community connection |
| Excerpt | If I do recall, there’s only – there are so many Innu and non – other Indigenous groups in Labrador or place outside Labrador. A lot of these children, even my son today, he’s seven years old, don’t speak Innu, don’t understand Innu because he was removed three – this his third time, the older one, the seven year old has been removed. He was placed in Goose Bay with non-Indigenous foster homes and I’m very, very sad when I speak to my son in English.
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Loss of Innu-aimun, culture, community connection |
| Excerpt | I recall, before my – before they were removed, we had to go to St. John’s for my son, who has a medical issues, appointment. Here I am in a taxi. You know, we always deal with – we always – I always use one taxi when I’m there, it was an older gentleman. I recall we went to a store and we came back and it was the same gentleman I called to pick us up after shopping, he was mad at me when I spoke to my son in English. He said: How can you speak your own son in English when you have your own language? And I told him my reasons. I said my son was removed from my care many months ago – many years ago. He was placed in non-Aboriginal town, non-Indigenous group family foster home. And I said my son don’t understand me if I speak to him in my own language. It’s very sad, you know, what’s transpired to my kids since they been in care.
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Negative impact on family of origin |
| Excerpt | It’s been 14 months since my kids are be in care. I was at the point to get ’em back in my life, and stress and health – my health has declined as well, only recently – a lot of worries. I lose sleep. I had to be medicated, given Medication to help me to sleep by a doctor because what I encounter with CSSD – not only CSSD but other factors that are going on in my life as well.
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| Theme | Substance Use and Treatment |
| Sub-Theme | Sobriety/Treatment |
| Excerpt | "I have – I know I have a long ways to go. I don’t dwell on the past. If I dwell on the past that will hold only my happiness. It would take my freedom. It would take my inner peace that I have. If I think about the future, I will only be worried what’s gonna happen the next day. Tomorrow will take care of itself; it’s not here yet. I have to live in the present and I have to occupy myself, keep myself busy, to maintain my sobriety.
Since I’ve been sober 26 days, I only see my kids once through a visit."
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Court time & legal services |
| Excerpt | "And I even brought that up to child advocate. A few months ago I follow up with child advocate, Newfoundland and Labrador. She stated in an email she was gonna follow up with CSSD what’s going on, what’s happening. I never heard anything. A few weeks ago, since I’ve been sober 26 days, I sent another email directly from myself and afterwards my family lawyer follow up with child advocate: I will talk to my director, see what we can do.
It’s been so many, many months that these things are – that I brought up, that I believe that will help me and my children to address those things that are happening to my children. Even today, the child advocate is not doing her job, I guess, his or her job. That’s the reason why child advocate is there, to assist families with this serious stuff, problems going on in – with the agencies."
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Court time & legal services |
| Excerpt | "Also, I have never been notified my kids were taken to an emergency or appointments by CSSD. I always have to find out from a third-party management, locals in the community here in Sheshatshiu, that my son was there at the hospital. As soon as I hear from these individuals, I follow up in email with my – with CSSD: How come my son was at emergency? What was going on?
There was times I never get a reply and I have to go through my family lawyer, to send email directly to my family lawyer. Then my family lawyer emails CSSD lawyer. That’s when I feel the ball started to kick in – roll in when I have to go through them, through those people, instead getting directly answers from CSSD."
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Lack of transparency & mistrust |
| Excerpt | Also, I have never been notified my kids were taken to an emergency or appointments by CSSD. I always have to find out from a third-party management, locals in the community here in Sheshatshiu, that my son was there at the hospital. As soon as I hear from these individuals, I follow up in email with my – with CSSD: How come my son was at emergency? What was going on?
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| Theme | Substance Use and Treatment |
| Sub-Theme | Sobriety/Treatment |
| Excerpt | Today, I can say that I’m proud where I am sober. I’m waiting to go to a 90-day program out in Windsor, Ontario. It’s called Brentwood Recovery Home.
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| Theme | Substance Use and Treatment |
| Sub-Theme | Sobriety/Treatment |
| Excerpt | I know in going to Brentwood, I know it’s gonna help me and to be a good father. I know I’m a good father but I made bad choice in my life – bad decisions. I have no one to blame but myself. I don’t blame the mother or blame God. I think which a lot of us in this world would blame the God when things happen in our own – the way we like to make it happen.
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| Theme | Innu Community Perspectives, Strengths & Rights |
| Sub-Theme | Asserting rights & self-determination |
| Excerpt | "Me, as an Innu man, I’m 43 years old. I’m not intimidated by any uniform figure or government figure, police, courts, CYFS. I’m not intimidated. I’m proud I’m Innu and I’m proud my kids are Innu. I’m proud my kids are in their communities.
And that being said, I’m very honoured to be speak at this Inquiry. Not only this will help me, it will help my story out there, as well, that more people may come speak at the inquiries and help the – especially the children, especially parents."
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Reflections on being in non-Innu homes |
| Excerpt | "My daughter is being placed house to house, like I said earlier. Most of the family, you know, foster parents that she’s been with have asked assistance to assist for CSSD. Which CSSD, at the beginning, said: We’ll provide you this. We’ll help you with this. But most of the time they had to pay out their own pockets while my kids are in care. And I think that’s where there’s sometimes there’s a breakdown in foster care because they’re not getting the service that they were told they would get the assistance from CSSD when they become a foster parents.
But I know when kids are with non-Indigenous foster parents, the services are there automatically right away. But with Indigenous group, Innu, when they become foster parents, they have to go barrier after barrier, wall after wall, to get those services or to get those assistance from CSSD."
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Abuse/mistreatment in care |
| Excerpt | I knew my son was sexually abused. He told me that before his death.
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Comparisons to residential school |
| Excerpt | Today, it's not called residential schools. It's called CSSD today. Similar what happened in Fifties, Sixties Scoop, it's happening still today, in Canada. It's like, you know, like, the guy who did the Inquiry, Sinclair, talk about, 4 you know, kids in care has failed. Canada has failed Indigenous families, Indigenous children.
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Court time & legal services |
| Excerpt | I have lost my kids -- my other kids that I have currently at home today. They are home today because I had to fight through the court system to get them back. My lawyer didn't want me to fight through the courts. My lawyer told me we'll lose this case. We have a small chance to get your kids back. Well, I said, it's up to the judge, who is going to decide, not you, who is just my lawyer. You work for me. That's part of your job to work for me. Ten months, we went to court, me and my partner. We got our kids back home today. They're home today. They're happy.
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Lack of cultural understanding/appreciation |
| Excerpt | Like I said again, when he -- I knew when he was in Sheshatshiu group home, no one from CSSD or his -- whoever the social worker was, trying to reach out to me and said to me, Kevin, you know, 14 can you take your son? Can your son live with you? Can your son stay with you instead of him going to St. John's? There were many, many questions that needs to be answered that are not answered today.
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Lack of cultural understanding/appreciation |
| Excerpt | Like a good friend of mine told me, you have -- we have all -- you guys -- you people -- he's a -- he's a non-Indigenous person. He's a retired lawyer. He told me, you, Innu, have social workers that are young as -- a lot of them probably don't have kids. So then when it comes to -- for them to kids, they don't know what to do. They just shove them around or here and there.
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Lack of transition-out-of-care, back to community planning, support |
| Excerpt | And I know a lot. I know a lot of those people. I know a lot down the coast here in Labrador that have been in care of CSSD. As soon as they get -- as soon as they're turned 18, 18 they're sent back home. No services after. They're just, like, send them home to a pack of wolves. And they have no -- they have no way of their history and knowledge, no identity. Just broken guitar strings.
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Lack of transparency & mistrust |
| Excerpt | "I lost my son in 2004 (sic), September 6. He died -- I'm not really sure how he died. But just trying to get the pieces together. And he was still -- he was under CSSD.
COMMISSIONER DEVINE: All right.
MR. PASTIWET: CSSD sent him out to St. John's. I have some things that was happening to my son while he was in St. John's, in group home under CCSD supervision, I believe."
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Lack of transparency & mistrust |
| Excerpt | I have never heard anything from CSSD after his death. I have never heard from anybody. I have heard maybe one or two, three people that knew my son, that worked with my son, that worked in group home that knew him very well. But nothing from the department of CSSD. No one has reached out to me. I don't believe anyone has reached out to his mother, Charlotte. I went out -- I went out to St. John's, you know, when his body was there. His mother and his daughter -- his sisters were there.
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Lack of transparency & mistrust |
| Excerpt | There was never, never help. Not once, you know, the department or his social workers reach out to me when he was in St. John's. No one. I had never heard. I would hear from other people. I would call them third-party people. That's how I know. And that's how I hear these things that was happening to my son. And I know one worker who was very concerned to me -- concerned for my son. He told me that he was very concerned for my son. Because they were giving him something, and he changed. He wasn't himself anymore.
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Lack of transparency & mistrust |
| Excerpt | I know his grandfather -- his grandparents loved him very much. And they were concerned, 21 too. They want him to come home. But under some reason, he signed a paper that I don't know what paper it is. He signed the paper when he was 18. And I don't have that answer. What paper did he sign? And I -- like I said, I've been trying to get these answers. And I haven't.
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Lack of transparency & mistrust |
| Excerpt | And I -- you know, I really, really like to know what happened to my son, what pills were given to him, what services were given to him. Because I have no knowledge. The only time I ever heard was he's in hospital under the Mental Health Act. That's all. Those were three simple words I heard. You know, I never get called from CSSD when he was in hospital. I would have to hear it from third-party people, not from the department.
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Lack of transparency & mistrust |
| Excerpt | And if my son was brought home or me or his mother -- I don't know how much communication they have with their mother. I don't know. Because the mother never said anything. It's never mentioned how much communication CSSD had or social worker had with the mother. But they never had a communication with me directly, as a father.
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Lack of transparency & mistrust |
| Excerpt | And I haven't heard any -- the reports I heard from social workers, I never heard anything, or the school reports that they were -- when they were in foster home, I never heard that from the school. They're doing good in school. And I always check up with their teacher. "How are they doing today?" "Oh, they're the best kind." And that -- you know, that gives me something to think, you know.
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Loss of Innu-aimun, culture, community connection |
| Excerpt | What I mean he wasn't -- he was not himself was the kid that I knew when he was -- when I was around in Natuashish with him, he seems like he lost his culture, his identity as an Innu. He would talk about -- he would talk about the culture in a different way. He said, "You know, I don't know that culture. It's not my culture." That, you know, to me is very -- was very, very disturbing for me to hear from my own son, who was an Innu kid. He must heard it somewhere. He must heard it someone, or someone must have said something to him to talk in this way.
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Loss of Innu-aimun, culture, community connection |
| Excerpt | It's like children are money figure for the government, dollar signs for the foster parents, for the system. They don't see them as Indigenous. They see them as money. You know, that's all I can say. The system has failed me as parents, community in Natuashish, and the families. The community is going to be in pain for my son. Because he was from here. And he was Innu. And the system will just forget about him. It's like, "Oh, he's gone. Where's the other one?" That's how the system works.
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Negative impact on family of origin |
| Excerpt | It's like my son was put in the care and shuffled somewhere on the island. And after his death, nobody ever mentioned to his name. Nobody ever -- it's like he never exist to CSSD. But as a family, as a father, he will always be -- exist with me. And it hurts to think about my son, 9 what happened. And these -- this could be preventable. This -- he could have -- if I was asked to help him or find a way for help him, I would do my best to find him help, either through Indigenous Services, through counselling, and so on. And there are many, many, many -- like I said, many, 16 many answers that have been unanswered by the system. And you know, to be honest, the system has failed many people, many, many children. Many, 20 many families are torn apart when their kids are taken --
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Negative impact on family of origin |
| Excerpt | And it's heartbreaking, you know. The mother is -- the mother is more devastated. Because the mother took care of that boy and carried that boy nine months in her womb. She did the hard work for nine months. And she'll be struck with this pain for the rest of her life. Because the connection that she had with the baby in her womb, when the -- when her son was in her womb. And sometimes, too, you know, I blame myself for my son's death. Wish I was there. Wish I knew -- you know, I would see my son -- like I said, I would see my son when I was in St. John's, you know.
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Negative impact on family of origin |
| Excerpt | But again, you know, it hurts me so much to -- you know, they ask -- the 10-year-old, my son asked about his brother. Because he met him. "What happened to my brother?" I said, "You know, your brother is no longer with us." And he's all -- he has all these questions. And I just tell him, you know, "He's gone. That's all. He's gone." You know, maybe one day, he'll take time with him, to be with him. The -- you know, your son -- your brother was in care. And like I said, my wife -- my ex-partner, I mean, is the one it hurts the most. He's going to bear that pain the rest of her life. I will bear that pain for the rest of my life. The system won't bear that pain. Because that's not their son.
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Unresponsiveness/being ignored |
| Excerpt | I have never heard anything from CSSD after his death. I have never heard from anybody. I have heard maybe one or two, three people that knew my son, that worked with my son, that worked in group home that knew him very well. But nothing from the department of CSSD. No one has reached out to me. I don't believe anyone has reached out to his mother, Charlotte. I went out -- I went out to St. John's, you know, when his body was there. His mother and his daughter -- his sisters were there.
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Unresponsiveness/being ignored |
| Excerpt | I knew he was living in a group home. And I guess, after 18, he was still under the group home, my understanding. But he was living with his common-law boyfriend in St. John's. But my understanding from this lady that after my son died few days was he was still under care of CSSD. And I don't know if that's true or not. But I never have those answers. Because I've been trying to communicate CSSD about my son, what happened to him, and what was -- why -- what was those pills?
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| Theme | Child Welfare |
| Sub-Theme | Unresponsiveness/being ignored |
| Excerpt | It's like my son was put in the care and shuffled somewhere on the island. And after his death, nobody ever mentioned to his name. Nobody ever -- it's like he never exist to CSSD. But as a family, as a father, he will always be -- exist with me. And it hurts to think about my son, what happened.
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| Theme | Innu Community Perspectives, Strengths & Rights |
| Sub-Theme | Asserting rights & self-determination |
| Excerpt | I have lost my kids -- my other kids that I have currently at home today. They are home today because I had to fight through the court system to get them back. My lawyer didn't want me to fight through the courts. My lawyer told me we'll lose this case. We have a small chance to get your kids back. Well, I said, it's up to the judge, who is going to decide, not you, who is just my lawyer. You work for me. That's part of your job to work for me. Ten months, we went to court, me and my partner. We got our kids back home today. They're home today. They're happy.
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| Theme | Innu Community Perspectives, Strengths & Rights |
| Sub-Theme | Examples of Innu-led services/supports |
| Excerpt | You know, I -- I'm -- I'll be starting working with Innu Round Table August -- in a few weeks. I'll be one of the Innu reps. Because I applied for a job. And I had the interview. And they told me that I have the knowledge and the experience to help advocate families, advocate children. Because I've been there before. I was in that spot. And I'm really -- you know, I'm really happy, you know, where life is going. Today, I'll always, always going to miss my son. That's it.
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| Theme | Innu Community Perspectives, Strengths & Rights |
| Sub-Theme | Innu values and retrospective reflections |
| Excerpt | My son would never have been a non-Indigenous (inaudible) person. He was an Indigenous person. He was Innu. He -- you know, the reason I say that, no matter how much the world, the system, Canada, general, they cannot make me as a White person. Because I'm Innu. And I'll always be Innu. And I'm proud to be Innu. They can do so many things in their ways. Because the system lives by paper. Innu don't live by paper. They live off the land, the water, the animals, the sacred drum, the shaking tent, the sweat lodge. That's how we survived. Our people were never sick with heart rates, heart attacks, with diabetes, this disease that we have today. My grandparents, who survived and lived off the land, born on the land, were very, very healthy people.
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| Theme | Innu Community Perspectives, Strengths & Rights |
| Sub-Theme | Nutshimit (hunting, ceremony, way of life) (+) |
| Excerpt | My son would never have been a non-Indigenous (inaudible) person. He was an Indigenous person. He was Innu. He -- you know, the reason I say that, no matter how much the world, the system, Canada, general, they cannot make me as a White person. Because I'm Innu. And I'll always be Innu. And I'm proud to be Innu. They can do so many things in their ways. Because the system lives by paper. Innu don't live by paper. They live off the land, the water, the animals, the sacred drum, the shaking tent, the sweat lodge. That's how we survived. Our people were never sick with heart rates, heart attacks, with diabetes, this disease that we have today. My grandparents, who survived and lived off the land, born on the land, were very, very healthy people.
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| Theme | Innu Community Perspectives, Strengths & Rights |
| Sub-Theme | Responsibility to community |
| Excerpt | You know, I -- I'm -- I'll be starting working with Innu Round Table August -- in a few weeks. I'll be one of the Innu reps. Because I applied for a job. And I had the interview. And they told me that I have the knowledge and the experience to help advocate families, advocate children. Because I've been there before. I was in that spot. And I'm really -- you know, I'm really happy, you know, where life is going. Today, I'll always, always going to miss my son. That's it.
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| Theme | Mental and Emotional Impacts |
| Sub-Theme | Resentments/anger toward systems |
| Excerpt | The policies they have has failed many, many, many people. I have seen people die -- commit suicide after they were in -- removed from their parents. Not only in Natuashish and Sheshatshiu. On the coast of Labrador, I know people that commit suicide. Got into heavy addiction because there was no help.
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| Theme | Mental and Emotional Impacts |
| Sub-Theme | Resentments/anger toward systems |
| Excerpt | It's like children are money figure for the government, dollar signs for the foster parents, for the system. They don't see them as Indigenous. They see them as money.
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| Theme | Other system involvement |
| Sub-Theme | Health System Access |
| Excerpt | I know he was -- there was times he would be placed at the hospital under Mental Health Act. And just by learning through -- and his mother said the same thing. We learned that our son was start having seizures after taking these pills -- depression pills or whatever pills were given to him since he was in St. John's.
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| Theme | Substance Use and Treatment |
| Sub-Theme | Alcohol & other substances – as a child/youth |
| Excerpt | To speed up things, my son was abusing solvent abuse while -- between 2015, 2016, or 2017. And I think the CSSD, you know, got involved with him while I was living in Sheshatshiu in Goose Bay at the time. I recall, in 2018, 2019, my son was placed in the group home in Sheshatshiu, in -- with CSSD. I -- he was there, I believe, a couple months. Because, at that time, I was living in Sheshatshiu. And he would come by and visit me and his other siblings with my other relationship.
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| Theme | Substance Use and Treatment |
| Sub-Theme | Alcohol & other substances – as a child/youth |
| Excerpt | In St. John's, he started to get into heavy drugs. That's my understanding. He started doing cocaine, into drinking, marijuana, 6 and popping pills. Still, today, just hearing from people that knew my son, that my son died, 8 he was -- him and his friends were drinking and doing drugs that the night -- that night he died.
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| Theme | Substance Use and Treatment |
| Sub-Theme | Medication |
| Excerpt | just speaking to his mom recently, that my son was given depressant pills without our consent, without any knowledge of me, as a dad, or his mother. I know my son changed a lot when he was in St. John's. Because I would go out to St. John's for appointments and other things. Sometimes I would meet my son there. He wasn't himself anymore when he was in -- placed in St. John's.
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| Theme | Substance Use and Treatment |
| Sub-Theme | Medication |
| Excerpt | I know he was -- there was times he would be placed at the hospital under Mental Health Act. And just by learning through -- and his mother said the same thing. We learned that our son was start having seizures after taking these pills -- depression pills or whatever pills were given to him since he was in St. John's.
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| Theme | Substance Use and Treatment |
| Sub-Theme | Medication |
| Excerpt | But after him being in St. John's and being distributed by these pills, whatever they were, you know, I -- you know, I'm assuming it's depression pills. But he told me once that they didn't -- he doesn't know what he was taking. But the doctor told him that he needs to take them. And the doctor didn't explain to him what were those pills for.
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| Theme | Substance Use and Treatment |
| Sub-Theme | Medication |
| Excerpt | It's -- you know, it's very, very disheartening to see an Innu kid with no help while he was in care. Just give him pills. That was the offer they gave him. They gave him pills for his -- if he had mental health, he -- if he had -- he was -- if he was suffering trauma, if he was suffering with other, you know, things, you know, physically, mentally. I knew my son -- you know, I knew my son was sexually abused. He told me that before his death.
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