Trudeau apologizes for 'colonial,' 'purposeful' mistreatment of Inuit with tuberculosis.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau today apologized in Iqaluit for the federal policy on tuberculosis in the mid-20th century, calling it "colonial" and "purposeful," and saying the government knew it was taking a toll on Inuit.
"For too long, the government's relationship with Inuit was one of double standards, and of unfair, unequal treatment," he said.
"Canada must carry that guilt and that shame."
His speech in Iqaluit on Friday morning began by recognizing the various injustices Inuit were facing at the same time as the tuberculosis epidemic.
These included the government identifying Inuit with numbers — on leather identification tags — instead of by their names, punishing children for speaking their Inuit languages, having their sled dogs teams killed by officials, and moving them away from their homes to assert Canadian sovereignty.
"Because of all this — the forced relocation, the residential schools, the TB policy — it happened at the same time, to the same people within just a few decades," Trudeau said.
Representatives from the four Inuit regions of Canada that stretch across the Arctic to Labrador have been in Iqaluit for much of the week to hear the apology from the prime minister.
Full story at the CBC:
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/trudeau-apology-tuberculosis-iqaluit-1.5047805
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau today apologized in Iqaluit for the federal policy on tuberculosis in the mid-20th century, calling it "colonial" and "purposeful," and saying the government knew it was taking a toll on Inuit.
"For too long, the government's relationship with Inuit was one of double standards, and of unfair, unequal treatment," he said.
"Canada must carry that guilt and that shame."
His speech in Iqaluit on Friday morning began by recognizing the various injustices Inuit were facing at the same time as the tuberculosis epidemic.
These included the government identifying Inuit with numbers — on leather identification tags — instead of by their names, punishing children for speaking their Inuit languages, having their sled dogs teams killed by officials, and moving them away from their homes to assert Canadian sovereignty.
"Because of all this — the forced relocation, the residential schools, the TB policy — it happened at the same time, to the same people within just a few decades," Trudeau said.
Representatives from the four Inuit regions of Canada that stretch across the Arctic to Labrador have been in Iqaluit for much of the week to hear the apology from the prime minister.
Full story at the CBC:
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/trudeau-apology-tuberculosis-iqaluit-1.5047805
He demotes indigenous woman, Jody Wilson-Raybould to bypass Canadian law for his own advantage. And he has the gall to apologize for what other people did years ago? C’mon, gimme a break.
