The Price of a Child

Through the readings that I have done about the reincarnation of the residential school system as child welfare, I wonder about the inequities between government funding for non-Aboriginal children and Aboriginal children. These discrepancies may hinge on historical inequality, or the lack of political will to create change in the present. It is likely a combination of both systems. Regardless of which system is responsible for the inequity, the outcome is that a price is pout on the life of every child, and this price depends on the color of their skin.

Putting a price on the life of a child seems similar to ancient practices of slavery in which individuals were judged on physical characteristics for their worth. I do not know how to change the focus of government on the financial aspect of support towards a holistic understanding of how all children need to be supported in an equitable manner. Equitable treatment comes with the understanding that this is not equal treatment. Each child has individual needs and some will be higher than others. In this case, it is necessary to make a larger financial investment in the future of First Nations children so that they will be able to contribute to a healthier country in the future. The same can be said regarding providing extra financial support to children with disabilities, which is now an accepted practice in Canadian society.

How we value specific cultures also plays into the decision of how to allocate funds in governmental budgets. It is clear that less value is placed on First Nations cultures surviving in Canada and the lack of financial investment in First Nations children reflects this belief. It is necessary to change public perception of the value of First Nations cultures and communities in order for significant investment to be made to sustain these communities.

It is also necessary to move beyond numbers to consider the implications of how these decisions will effect each individual child. If it was necessary to look at a picture and read a biography of each child who will be effected by budgetary decisions, I suspect that different decisions would be made by politicians. I hope it would.