New Democrats welcome the landmark ruling in favour of the Sixties Scoop survivors

After eight years of litigation, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice made a landmark decision in favour of the 16,000 Indigenous children in Ontario.

Indigenous children were taken from their communities and placed in non-Indigenous homes from 1965 to 1984 by the federal and provincial governments.

“New Democrats believe that the government had and always will have a fiduciary duty to protect Indigenous culture and languages. We were disappointed to see the Liberal government deny this duty in court and continue Harper’s adversary legal tactics.”
—Romeo Saganash, Indigenous Affairs Critic

Justice Edward Belobaba rightly recognized that Canada failed to take reasonable steps to prevent these children from losing their Indigenous culture and heritage.

This is a critical step on the path towards reconciliation.

We are at a pivotal time in Canadian history. Systemic discrimination against Indigenous peoples continues, and instead of moving towards reconciliation, the government often choses to fight Indigenous Peoples in court.

“We will ensure that the government respect its promise to let the class action move forward so that we can finally move towards reconciliation. Sixties Scoop survivors have waited long enough.”