Wave of Indigenous Suicides Leaves Canadian Town Appealing for Help

[mahatmakanejeeves]

Wave of Indigenous Suicides Leaves Canadian Town Appealing for Help

By LIAM STACK MARCH 18, 2016

Leaders of an indigenous community in rural Canada have appealed to national authorities for help after a wave of suicides and attempted suicides set off a public health crisis in their remote town and revived a painful conversation about the relationship between the government and its native communities.

Six people have killed themselves in the past three months, and more than 140 more have attempted suicide or expressed a desire to kill themselves in the Cree Indian community of Cross Lake, with a population of about 6,000. ... The area has been wracked by an unemployment rate of nearly 85 percent, deep poverty and a profound sense of alienation from the wealth, majority-white cities of southern Canada, officials said.

The suicides began on Dec. 12, when a homeless woman in her early 20s hanged herself in a relative’s home, said Donnie McKay, a local councilor. The death began a disturbing trend in Cross Lake, the hub of the Pimicikamak Cree Nation in the vast coniferous wilderness of Manitoba.

“It’s been very difficult for the people of our nation,” Mr. McKay said. “There is a lot of grief and sorrow.” ... Five more people in their teens, 20s and 30s have killed themselves since that first death, Mr. McKay said. Part of the problem, he said, is that the area has too few jobs and too little government investment.

[shenmue]

1. ...

[JonathanRackham]

2. Same problem in interior Alaska amongst the tribes.

The author of the book; "The Final Frontiersman" attributes it to loss of tribal and cultural identity. Villages that avoided modernization (TV, Internet, electricity) did better than villages that embraced it. Some Indians called it the white man's curse. Makes me miss growing up on a farm where we were busy 0500-2100 daily and then some.

[Baobab]

3. There needs to be an alternative value system rather than the value system

that tells people they are worthless if they don't have an education and good jobs, fancy car, etc. because jobs are going away and what will people do if they still are dependent on money and their self esteem depends on having a job and a steady income.

By mid century, machines will overtake us in intelligence and long before then they will likely do a huge amount of the work that's currently done by people so long before that this is going to be the norm rather than the exception.

[JonathanRackham]

5. Worded very nicely.

[Baobab]

4. Canada should dump the trade deals like CETA, TPP, NAFTA that prohibit

direct government investment if a business exists in that market segment.

No big multinational corporate business is going to invest in those areas unless they suddenly strike gold or something, its inherently a losing proposition.