I can't speak on this issue because I'm not very well informed on it. I will say that in the US, we break statistics down according to race, and in fact more black people are incarcerated making race seem to be a factor. We see trolls come through this forum pushing that idea. Yet criminality does not correlate with race, it correlates with other factors, many of which are economic and social. One big one is -- their father being incarcerated. Talk about creating an endless cycle.
And it comes down to race if a large portion of that race is in dire straits. And that is a part of Biden's Build Back Better that the Republicans hate. Investing in the people on the bottom so that they get out of the trap they are in. In this way Natives here are no different than Blacks in the US. It is systematic when your family is under constant stress, low wage earners, moving from place to place, a kid spending two years at most in one school. You end up being a outlier. And these are easy to get picked up by gangs.
"Aboriginal people experience poverty more frequently than do non-Aboriginal people. According to a study conducted by Winnipeg’s Social Planning Council, more than one-half of Aboriginal households exist below the poverty line, compared to about 20% of non-Aboriginal households"
The kids are at a disadvantage. The stress at home does not make for good schooling. Parrent not able to help the kids with their homework,. the kid gets discouraged and falls farther behind.
"Indian families are more likely to be single-parent families, especially off-reserve, where 36% are single-parent families, compared to the provincial and reserve average, both at 18%."
One third of families has a single parent, not the best for the kids, especially when the vacant parent is not fulfilling monetarily to the kids upbringing.
"The Indian death rate for persons between 25 and 44 years of age is five times higher than the non-Indian rate. For Indian men, the average age at death is 25 years younger than for non-Indian men. For Indian women, it is 28 years younger."
"According to the 1986 census, 34.2% of Manitoba’s Indian population over the age of 15 had less than grade nine education, compared to 18.2% of the total provincial population."
"Indian people have a much different age distribution than the general population in Manitoba. In 1971, 51% of the Indian population were under 15 years of age. For 1991, this is estimated to have declined to 38%. The corresponding 1991 figure for non-Indian people was 22%.
31 Because there continues to be a high number of Aboriginal youth entering their child-bearing years, it is expected the Aboriginal birth rate will continue to remain higher than the provincial rate for some time."
All contributors to more aboriginals in trouble with the law. If another race, segment in society lived under the same conditions they would probably end up the same way. In that way it is a systemic problem. But the natives I knew that got out of the trap, they worked hard to get out. They decided they did not want to live in poverty and they did what they needed to get a better life. They made sacrifices for their kids to have a better life. It is hard putting aside the present for the future. Two days ago a buddy of mine showed me a picture of his kids. They are not going to be mixed up in the justice system. The parents are separated but they share looking after the kids and they are giving the kids every advantage that a white kid would get. The kids are getting much more than I ever got. As The Aboriginal Justice Implementation Commission states, many of the problems have alcohol as a cause. I feel it is a contributing factor in keeping the kids from growing up 'normal'.
