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By Andrea Smith
Windspeaker.com Contributor
VANCOUVER
Bring Our Children Home. These words were written on canvas held high in four major cities across the country today—Kelowna, Vancouver, Toronto and Winnipeg.
Operation Redbird was the name of the rallies, which were held in support of children and families who have been impacted by the child welfare system.
Redbird was first initiated by Christi Belcourt, who appeared at the Winnipeg event today, but was picked up by other supporters throughout Canada.
“I came out here to support Operation Redbird, and also to support Tamara Malcom, who’s currently fighting with the Ministry of Manitoba to get her kids back after 10 years, (held) without any reason whatsoever,” said James Delorme, past chief of the Klahoose First Nation in British Columbia and organizer of the Vancouver chapter of the Operation Redbird rally today.
He feels even more drawn to the cause because of his own personal experience working with “the system” when he was chief, he says.
“When I was the chief, I knew there was something wrong with the way my members were being treated… They were being discriminated against in so many ways… It’s basically a system that is biased against Indigenous women, and families, and men even... And they have no recourse. It’s the Sixties Scoop all over again,” he said.
Delorme was accompanied by a few other passionate individuals outside 550 Cambie Street today, the location of the Ministry of Children and Family Development in downtown Vancouver. Contessa Brown, a grandmother from the Heiltsuk First Nation, showed up to share her concern for the children as well. She once had a grandson taken by the ministry and placed into foster care. It was a heart-wrenching experience for her and her family, with too many dead ends, she said.
“There is a protocol, so we directly addressed it. The ministry needed many letters that came from doctors, and support workers… We felt like our voices weren’t being heard,” said Brown.
Other members in Brown’s First Nation, including the chief at the time, were frustrated. The Nation planned to send the chief down to take Brown’s grandson right from the foster home he was in. Eventually, the ministry agreed to give the child back to the family, so that step was never needed.
Today, Brown voiced her opinion strong and proud, as the group walked inside the ministry’s office and demanded to talk to the office manager. Once face to face with “Mike”, Delorme spoke first, then Robyn Raw Eater shared some of her feelings on the issue.
And Brown spoke last, expressing the pain she felt during her own experience with the ministry, and stressing the fact that so many mothers don’t know their rights when they’re dealing with the system.
The response from the officer manager was one of empathy and understanding. He said he too knows there are problems, and he was also struggling to find the solutions.
Delorme was pleased it was a conflict-free interaction, because he intentionally did not use the word “protest” to describe today’s rally. And it’s not just non-Indigenous organizations that are to blame, he said. There are also First Nation-run operations that significantly damage the families they deal with. The reason for that is because they are still based on a “colonial structure,” he said.
“I know of some very positive systems… The Sto:lo people have a great system where they use their Elders for helping when there’s an apprehension. So there are options out there... But those greater organizations, whether they’re Native or non-Indigenous, they have to do a better job. And we’re all equally responsible,” he said.
Raweater and Priscilla Couchman went out together to the rally, because both started a Facebook group together called “Keeping our Families Together,” which offers support to families with children in foster care.
Raweater has children in care herself, and the story behind it is tragic. Her infant son passed away from pneumonia, and the ministry apprehended her other two children because of this, she says. Those children were then abused while in care, and two of their caretakers were charged, she told Windspeaker.com.
The second stop for the Operation Redbird rally in Vancouver today was the Vancouver Aboriginal Child and Family Services Society, because that’s the organization that is responsible for looking after Raweater’s children.
Raweater says VACFSS also needs to be held accountable, and made aware of the damage they sometimes do.
“My concern is who is policing VACFSS? I want to let them know that what they’re doing is not working… It’s not right and we need to change the process,” said Raweater.
“We need to help support the families, so we’re blanketing them and not adding more trauma to the families in separating them from their children,” she said.