Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, today I wish to speak about a topic of holistic health and the need for our communities to heal from historic traumas. Mr. Speaker, most of the social issues that Indigenous communities face today, such as health inequities, lack of education, high crime rates, and higher rates of homelessness, are because of colonialism and residential schools. I myself have gone to residential school, as have many others, and now our communities are dealing with the multigenerational effects of that collective experience. That is why, Mr. Speaker, the NWT has some of the worst crime statistics in the country.
For example, the NWT has the highest whole crime rate in the country per capita and also has the second highest rate of violent crime in the country per capita. Additionally, according to the NWT Bureau of Statistics, the Deh Cho region, my region, has some of the highest rates of property crime and violent crime in comparison to the capital region. And the rate of unemployment is several times higher compared to Yellowknife as well.
Mr. Speaker, as a Dene woman representing mostly Indigenous constituents, I can say confidently that we come from strong people. Despite past governments trying to take the Indian out of the child and trying to make us forget about our cultural teachings and depriving us of who we are as Indigenous people, we remain resilient. We cannot allow governments to continue setting us up to fail any longer, and we cannot keep making excuses preventing us from advancing ourselves and making a better life for our families and our communities.
Mr. Speaker, as elected leaders in this House, it is our duty to do what we can to help our people get back on track. It is very important that our government, all levels of government, support or traditional way of being. If our communities truly want to be selfsufficient, then we must begin standing up for ourselves in a respectful and assertive way to create better lives for ourselves and successive generations. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member from the Deh Cho. Members' statements. Member from Yellowknife Centre.
