QUESTION PERIOD — Ministry of Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs
Treatment of Indigenous People by the Quebec Health Care System
September 22, 2022
Minister, I want to come back to the aftermath of the atrocious death of Joyce Echaquan two years ago at Joliette hospital. The coroner found that her death was accidental, but that racism and prejudice were contributing factors. The death of this Atikamekw mother of seven children and its consequences have came up again during the election campaign with an obvious lack of sensitivity.
Beyond this controversy, I’d like you to comment on the divide between Indigenous people and the Quebec government concerning the acknowledgement of systemic racism. As you are a Quebecer and minister responsible for this issue, what is your assessment of the progress made in the way Indigenous people are treated in the Quebec health care system? Are you concerned or not?
I am very concerned, not only as a Quebecer or a Canadian, but as a human being. I don’t like to talk about it publicly too much, but I’ll break the rule.
I talk to Joyce Echaquan’s husband, Carol Dubé, fairly frequently. During the election campaign, I saw an individual who was seriously hurting, a man who was very deeply wounded as a human being. I find it really distressing to see that kind of reaction. Obviously, he feels that way because he misses her, but it’s also because of the denial of reality that all Indigenous people encounter.
That is something that I have never felt upon entering a hospital. I never felt an icy fear, the fear of discrimination or even death in this case. There’s work to be done, and it is up to the federal government to continue investing in the health care system to combat systemic racism. Denying the problem won’t make it go away. In fact, it will keep happening. It is happening all over Canada.
This problem exists even in provinces where things are going a little better, such as British Columbia. Recognizing that there’s a problem is a first step. Eradicating it is another. One need only look at the Viens commission report and the coroner’s report to see that this problem has yet to be solved. An election campaign isn’t going to change things.
