OUR PATH

 

           OUR PEOPLE

 

As a result of the negative impact of recent history on our traditional ways – the impact of the residential school system and imposition of the external legal system as well as the continuing impact of external child protection agencies up to the present – there are going to be situations arise in which parents do not or cannot live up to their traditional child-rearing obligations.

Past

Development

Designation

Present

 

 

 

 

Recognition

 

We recognize the strength, bravery and resilience of the young people who have faced adversity throughout their lives at no fault of their own. These young people have to fight to build and maintain a sense of home, community, and identity.

We would like to recognize the story of a young boy from the community that is faced to live his life absent of biological parents. In 2015, at the age of 11, himself and his younger sisters, struggled with an incarcerated father and sadly lost their mother to a car crash. Then they were forced to live with strangers outside our community as temporary parents and felt no sense of connection to what was supposed to be their new home.

Finally their aunties offered them a home, however, struggled to raise him and his sisters with the trauma they suffered and continued Children’s Aid Society (CAS) checkups.

He felt lost and hopeless, which fueled pain, heartbreak, and tears.

Everything changed when he found the family he felt at home with again, a secured and beloved home. His Grandmother was the turning point, she returned to the community to give them a home, a home to overcome and combat the trauma they encountered. His grandmother is a strong community member as well as his and his sister’s rescuer.

Now he continues to play sports, maintain good grades, and stay out of trouble, for himself and to make his grandmother proud.

A key problem for First Nations has been that CASs historically applied their responsibility to protect children and youth on reserve without reference to the traditional norms and social structures traditionally tasked with this responsibility. This has resulted in continuous conflict between most First Nations and the CASs that hold responsibility under law for the protection of our children and youth.

Six Nations recognized the need to protect their youth, preserve their culture, and exercise self-determining rights. The community came together to decide on the ownership of a child welfare agency to develop our youth and sustain our culture, Ogwadenio:deo in 2017.

Six Nations Child and Family Services designated to deliver Child prevention services as well as eligibility of community representation in all child welfare concerns.

Help us take care of our own

and sustain our culture.