This thesis argues that despite political promises and rhetoric to the contrary the
federal and provincial governments maintain through their policies, legislation,
and regulations the continued assimilation of First Nations; under the guise of
supporting First Nations attempts to resume governance over child and family
services. It is my assertion that governments both federal, provincial and First
Nations need to begin a process and transition towards self-governance in child
and family services based on our traditional laws and practices, in order to
ensure the continued survival of our nations. I have set out a number of
preliminary options for assisting in the process of decolonization in the area of
child welfare.
This thesis is written from my perspective as a First Nations woman engaged in
the practice of law in the area of First Nations child and family services. A
perspective which is inspired by the political work of my relations in the
advancement of Aboriginal rights and title in British Columbia.
In chapter one I discuss the impact of colonization on First Nations children,
families, communities and governments and conclude that the state (federal and
provincial governments), far from promoting First Nations child welfare, have
served to create enormous despair, poverty, dependency, and an erosion of First
Nations cultures, languages, and governance. This chapter ends with a
discussion of First Nations values, practices and traditions in relation to child
rearing and "child protection.
Chapter two examines the recent changes to child and family service delivery in
British Columbia , changes which effectively continue the process of assimilation.
Chapter three examines the current delegated model of First Nations child and
family services in British Columbia. I argue that the delegated model is premised
on assimilation, in that First Nations are bound to comply with the very legislative
and administrative models that were illustrated in chapters one and two to have
had such a devastating impact on First Nations children, families, communities
and governments.
Finally, the fourth chapter provides an overview of the federal and provincial
constitutional framework and political "support" for self-government juxtaposed
against First Nations' perspectives of their inherent right to self-government. In
conclusion I propose a number of interim measures that would support First
Nations resumption of self-government of child and family services . It is
extremely important, in my opinion, that a process and transition towards true
self-governance begin as soon as possible building upon First Nations
community values and cultural practices.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:LACETR/oai:collectionscanada.gc.ca:BVAU.2429/10668 |
| Date | 11 1900 |
| Creators | MacDonald, Kelly A. |
| Source Sets | Library and Archives Canada ETDs Repository / Centre d'archives des thèses électroniques de Bibliothèque et Archives Canada |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Relation | UBC Retrospective Theses Digitization Project [http://www.library.ubc.ca/archives/retro_theses/] |
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