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“Manitoba is seizing a record number of newborns – as many as 40 in one month from one downtown Winnipeg hospital – rather than supporting parents, Morgan said.
Numbers tabled in the legislature in May show that, between 2008 and 2014, Manitoba has consistently apprehended between 318 and 388 newborns a year.
The infants are being taken into care without any assessment of the parents or their ability to care for the child, she said.
“The taps of apprehension are on high and the bathtub was full five years ago, so they have kids spilling out all over the place. They’re prepared to shove them anywhere.”
Manitoba has one of the highest apprehension rates in Canada, said Morgan, who added the seizures are as damaging as Indian residential schools. The longer a child is in care, the more complex the child’s needs become, she said.
“In this system, you are guilty until you can prove you’re innocent. They’re not going in and investigating to see if there is another side of the story. They’re not going in there to say, ‘How can we help you?’ … They just take the kids.”
The province recently became the first in Canada to apologize for systematically apprehending aboriginal children starting in the 1960s and placing them with non-aboriginal families – a practice known as the ’60s Scoop.
“They’re still taking children. How can they not want to address what they’re doing right now?”
Manitoba has more than 10,000 children in care. The system has been under scrutiny for years following several high-profile deaths and assaults.”
– The Globe and Mail, Manitoba First Nations advocate says family services seizing a baby a day.
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Indian Country 52
Indian Country 52 is a weekly project by David Bernie that uses the medium of posters that promote issues and stories in Indian Country.
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