Mr. Speaker, three years ago today, Quebec witnessed the death of Joyce Echaquan, a 37-year-old Atikamekw woman—a wife, a mother of seven, beloved, irreplaceable.
The shocking circumstances of her death brought to light the racism she experienced in hospital, which led to devastating consequences. The resulting shockwave raised awareness about the urgent need to combat this racism by establishing cultural safety measures for indigenous peoples within the institutions that must serve them. It is a matter of principle. In fact, it is called “Joyce's principle”, in her memory.
We still have a lot of work to do to ensure that our laws, policies and practices all live up to this principle, but we now have a name in mind to remind us of this duty: Justice for Joyce.
On behalf of the Bloc Québécois, I would like to express our solidarity to her husband, Carol Dubé, her seven children and the entire Manawan community as they gather to honour Joyce Echaquan's memory this evening.