Status of Women committee  Right now in the outreach program that we have going, there's only one worker and I think there are 176 registered clients. I think other organizations that are non-aboriginal need to get on board and start coming together and working with the aboriginal community. We have a lack

Status of Women committee  May I just add one quick thing?

Status of Women committee  The money that had previously been allocated to the Aboriginal Healing Foundation was then redistributed through Health Canada; we have been encouraged to take advantage of what is offered through Health Canada. But the shelter has been leaving numerous messages with the regional

Status of Women committee  I just want to add to the harm reduction component. We've had a harm reduction project for the past four years. It finished in March of this year. But just adding to what Emilie was saying...we did work with Emilie actually. She came to the shelter quite a few times and met wit

Status of Women committee  Yes, it was a four-year contribution agreement with public health and it ended March 31.

Status of Women committee  Yes.

Status of Women committee  We would also like to see other urban organizations offer culturally appropriate services concerning aboriginal women and domestic violence, such as exclusive support groups, traditional healing, and other services that offer aboriginal women alternatives to western healing. Tha

Status of Women committee  Hello. We actually prepared our presentation, so can we do it that way?

Status of Women committee  Okay. Nakuset is going to start. We have our notes.

Status of Women committee  Violence against aboriginal women is one of the most pressing issues in communities today and can be attributed to such factors as substance abuse, social inequalities, systemic discrimination, and the breakdown of families. These issues can all be traced back to the residential

Status of Women committee  Yes. The abuse suffered is significantly more likely to be life threatening. Having coordinated the harm reduction project for the past four years at the women's shelter, I saw firsthand the link between socio-economic conditions, such as spousal abuse and addictions, and positi

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  I just wanted to add to that. We're starting to see children of survivors coming into the shelter for the first time, or grandchildren of the survivors. Even if an individual's healing takes up to 20 years or longer, as in the statement, you now have new generations of people wh

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  When the Aboriginal Healing Foundation money was cut, we lost three positions, as well. Another project finished at the same time. So four staff positions were cut. We haven't had a lot of time to look into what is available through Health Canada. One of our staff, who couldn't

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  You are asking whether it's possible to provide the services without the funding. Right now we're trying to continue the services. We're relying on a lot of the traditional healers and elders to come in on a volunteer basis. But accessing funding that is equivalent to the AHF is