Ask Parliament to Support TRC Calls to Action

On November 20, 2019, the Canadian government appointed Marc Miller as the new Minister of Indigenous Services. We look forward to seeing how Minister Miller will fulfill the fundamental responsibilities of reconciliation, including equity, justice and Indigenous leadership in education.

With this new appointment, we invite you to introduce Minister Miller to the #EducationTogether campaign by urging him to work for justice and equity in education for Indigenous students.

Despite years of promises, there’s still a gap: today, far fewer First Nations children graduate from grade 12 than other children in Canada because they aren’t receiving the proper funding and support needed for a quality education. In spring 2018 the Auditor General reported that the real grade 12 graduation rate for Indigenous students is 24 percent compared to the national average of around 90 percent.

Some good steps have already been taken, from announcements of new funding in 2016 to agreements on self-determining Indigenous education systems; however, further commitments to implementing the TRC Calls to Action 7-10 will be necessary to undo the legacy of chronic underfunding of Indigenous education. Continued positive actions include deepening empowerment of First Nation leadership and detailed analysis - and appropriate adjustment - of funding streams.   Full details and data on the impacts and adequacy of the new funding in 2016 are not yet available. This data is necessary to track the fulfilment of the promise to implement TRC 7-10 . 

Change is possible. We know that when Indigenous children have the funding and culturally appropriate education that they need, they thrive!

The federal government has promised to implement the Calls to Action of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Change has been slow, and we’re still not where we should be. A generation of Indigenous children is waiting for justice and equity. Now is the time to follow through on those promises: 

Ask Parliament to implement the TRC Calls to Action and support Indigenous communities!

Read the Backgrounder here or visit the Centre for Public Dialogue.

Photo by MD Duran on Unsplash

Fill in your contact information to take action now!

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Find more action opportunities at crcna.org/publicdialogue/action-centre

Written below is a brief introduction you can use followed by general talking points to include when speaking with the office of your MP. Calls are generally more impactful when citizens use their own words and speak from their own experiences about why an issue matters to them.

Intro:

Hi! I'm a constituent from [advocate's city] and I’m a person of Christian faith calling to let [member’s name] know that I deeply believe in God-the-Creator’s call to reconciliation. Practically, that means urging continued commitment to the TRC Calls to Action and the U.N. Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.