Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, earlier, my colleague asked questions about what we are doing to support diversity and specifically LGBTQ issues within our classrooms. My questions today are for the Minister responsible for Education, Culture and Employment. I am wondering what resources the government has committed to LGBTQ communities outside of the classroom in our general communities. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Minister of Education, Culture and Employment.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Under the Safe and Caring Schools Act, we have also made sure that, in the definition, we are getting community support as well. In terms of supporting, I don’t have any financial resources being put forth. That is something we can definitely look at. I did make a commitment to my department to look at the two groups here, the groups here in Yellowknife, and work with them in terms of developing these policies or getting input into the safe and caring schools regulations when the plans come out as well. We will definitely reach out and see what kind of work we can do together. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The Minister’s department is also responsible for a great deal of heritage funding and certainly LGBTQ history is a large part of our heritage going back to Bud Orange and the Klippert case. We have great festivals here, and this will be fifth year of Pride NWT, proving yet again that the LGBTQ community is very much integrated into our community. Can the Minister speak to if some of those resources can be made available and if they are currently being done so?
Last week we did go through the main estimates. We did approve the education budget. We did mention that there are some funding sources out there in terms of heritage, as well as the arts and cultures. Some of them are contributions that we can get under $15,000, and I encourage NWT Pride or the events that the Member is mentioning submit an application to our department, and we will take it into consideration.
Mr. Speaker, the Minister is also responsible for the status of youth in the Northwest Territories. Has the Minister committed any of his time in his portfolio to promote the diversity of our youth, and in particular LGBTQ youth, while also promoting tolerance and anti-bullying outside of the classroom, not just in the classroom?
In earlier questions about the gay-straight alliances that are happening in Mackenzie Mountain School and St. Pat’s, I think that is a great avenue to get attention on this area to the communities. I said they could actually be the leads right throughout the Northwest Territories. I do look forward to meeting the two groups and, be they willing, look at how we can try to develop something territorially. Outside of the school, that is very hard to regulate. We are looking at ways that we can do it on the school grounds. Outside, inside the communities, is always something tough. When we did the consultations on the safe and caring schools, it was mentioned it takes whole community to address these issues. That is something we want to encourage residents of the Northwest Territories to speak up, step up, and to make sure that it is not accepted in our communities.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Kam Lake.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thanks to the Minister for his answer. I appreciate his efforts on this. I think as the Minister responsible for Youth, we do need to do a great deal of youth outreach, moving forward, in the territory to combat some of these very high statistics we have in the North for violence, addictions, and also to make vulnerable communities feel safe. Could the Minister commit to spending some of his time as Minister responsible for Youth to address this with a strategy or an action plan or some form of tangible measure? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Moving forward in this area, the government can only do so much with the resources we have. That is why we have developed partnerships. Any action plans, any work that we do, we always make sure our stakeholders, NGOs, businesses, youth centres get involved and give us information that we can take into consideration. With the safe and caring schools area, that is a new act. Like much things, it can always be revised and looked at how we can make it better and improved better. But I encourage that we do put some of those things into the safe school plans moving forward.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Mackenzie Delta.
