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Judge approves historic $23B First Nations child welfare compensation agreement
| CBC News Loaded
Politics
JUDGE APPROVES HISTORIC $23B FIRST NATIONS CHILD WELFARE COMPENSATION AGREEMENT
The Federal Court has approved a $23 billion settlement agreement — the largest
in Canadian history — for First Nations children and families who experienced
racial discrimination through Ottawa's chronic underfunding of the on-reserve
foster care system and other family services.
THE SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT IS THE LARGEST EVER IN CANADA
Darren Major, Olivia Stefanovich · CBC News · Posted: Oct 24, 2023 10:20 AM PDT
| Last Updated: October 25, 2023
The class-action lawsuit against Ottawa was based largely on a Canadian Human
Rights Tribunal ruling which found Ottawa discriminated against First Nations
children and families. (Chad Hipolito/The Canadian Press)
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The Federal Court has approved a $23 billion settlement agreement — the largest
in Canadian history — for First Nations children and families who experienced
racial discrimination through Ottawa's chronic underfunding of the on-reserve
foster care system and other family services.
The settlement agreement follows a 2019 Canadian Human Rights Tribunal (CHRT)
ruling that ordered Ottawa to pay the maximum human rights penalty for
discrimination: $40,000 for each affected First Nations child and family member.
The government fought the order but eventually negotiated an agreement after it
faced two class-action lawsuits, including one launched by the Assembly of First
Nations that was later merged with another lawsuit.
* Ottawa fighting to avoid paying $80M in First Nations child welfare legal
fees
* Judge to decide fate of $23B First Nations child welfare compensation
Zacheus Trout of Cross Lake First Nation in Manitoba, one of the lead
plaintiffs, said the decision left him feeling "overwhelmed" and "speechless."
"I hope this brings a change of how we look at Indigenous people and how we can
move forward, reconciling all the differences between non-Indigenous and the
Indigenous people right across Canada," he said. "It's history that's been made
here today."
Trout filed a lawsuit in 2021 against Ottawa for failing to provide proper
health support to his two children, Sanaye and Jacob, who suffered from a rare
neurological disorder called Batten disease. Both children died before age 10.
"I've been thinking about my kids all these years, ever since the day that they
passed," Trout said. He said he hopes Tuesday's decision leads to improved
services overall for Indigenous people.
Zach Trout with his wife and children, Sanaye, left, and Jacob, right. (Zach
Trout/Supplied)
"We do not need to be treated as third class citizens in this country and I hope
this makes a big statement for the future generations to come," Trout said.
Jonavon Meawasige said he was thinking about his mother, Maurina Beadle, after
the decision was announced.
Jonavon's brother, Jeremy Meawasige, needs around-the-clock care. He has
cerebral palsy, autism, spinal curvature and hydrocephalus — a debilitating
accumulation of spinal fluid in the brain.
The federal government initially tried to cover only a fraction of Meawasige's
health support costs until Beadle took the government to court and won in 2013.
Beadle died in 2019.
"She would have been really proud of the decision today," Meawasige said of his
mother. "I hope this will keep Jeremy inside his home and keep him loved and
keep him with the people that he needs to be with."
* 'It's what my nephew needs:' Mi'kmaq family hopes court backs Human Rights
Tribunal in compensation case
* Proposed Indigenous Services spending cuts spark concern
Indigenous Services Minister Patty Hajdu said having a finalized compensation
agreement is "good news."
"It is an acknowledgement of the significant harm that discrimination — I would
say systemically racist funding — results in," she said.
David Sterns, the lawyer for the plaintiffs, said compensation likely won't
begin to flow until 2024. He said he was "thrilled" by the ruling.
"This could make the difference between having a shelter for some people or
being homeless for some people," he said.
Cindy Blackstock, the First Nations children's advocate who started the battle
for federal compensation in 2007, told CBC News Network's Power & Politics in an
interview airing Tuesday that the settlement's approval can't be "a page turner
for the government."
WATCH | Advocate, minister react to settlement approval:
JUDGE APPROVES HISTORIC $23 BILLION FIRST NATIONS CHILD WELFARE COMPENSATION
AGREEMENT
8 months ago
Duration 12:30
Cindy Blackstock, executive director of the First Nations Child and Family
Caring Society and Indigenous Services Minister Patty Hajdu weigh in on the
Federal Court approval of a $23 billion settlement agreement for First Nations
children and families who experienced racial discrimination through Ottawa's
underfunding of the on-reserve foster care system and other family services.
Blackstock, executive director of the First Nations Child and Family Caring
Society, said she has concerns about how the government is implementing some of
the compliance orders issued in the CHRT's 2019 ruling.
"We all collectively need to keep our eye on Canada and demand that they stop
this discrimination," Blackstock told host David Cochrane.
Blackstock said ending "root inequalities" in government programs will be key
moving forward.
On top of the $23 billion for compensation, the government set aside an
additional $20 billion for long-term reform of the on-reserve child welfare
system and family services.
Hajdu said the work on reforms, which continues, may be "more important" than
the settlement agreement.
"It has the potential to ensure children, no matter their circumstances, have a
fair chance to succeed," she said. "That work is more complex, it is harder. But
I think we're getting to a good place."
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Darren Major
CBC Journalist
Darren Major is a senior writer for CBC's Parliamentary Bureau. He can be
reached via email at darren.major@cbc.ca.
CBC's Journalistic Standards and Practices|About CBC News
Corrections and clarifications|Submit a news tip|Report error
RELATED STORIES
* Judge to decide fate of $23B First Nations child welfare compensation
* Ottawa fighting to avoid paying $80M in First Nations child welfare legal
fees
* Indigenous groups stand strong in face of landmark child welfare law before
Supreme Court
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