Mr. Speaker, I will respond by talking about aboriginal communities in general.
Everyone in Canada has heard about the Idle No More movement. Aboriginal youth, and some older members of the community as well, took to the streets to say that they had had enough, that they could take charge of their own lives and do something. They want to be treated as equals.
That movement would not have existed if the Conservatives had been respectful of aboriginal communities and open in that relationship. Idle No More showed that aboriginal people do not trust the government anymore, that they are tired of hearing promises year after year and never seeing action. That is the message that needs to be repeated and understood.
We need to stop acting like children. In our country's history, the aboriginal people were here first, and they did not cede their lands or their rights. We come here and are constantly forcing bills on them. We do not listen to them. We do not try to include them. Then we ask them to trust us, despite the fact that they have never had access to everything they have been entitled to for years.
First nations communities live in poverty, and this government is asking them to trust it. It does not consult them, but it knows what is good for them, even though no Conservative has ever set foot in an aboriginal community, as far as I know.
It has been years since aboriginal people have seen a government representative, yet they are told that the government knows what is good for them. That is bullshit. Sorry, Mr. Speaker, I would like to withdraw that word.
The government needs to get out, go see them and talk to them. It is not complicated.