Amidst incredible wealth, more than 3.5 million Canadian live in poverty. In fact, poverty is increasing for youth, workers, young families and immigrants and people of colour in this country. Poverty in Aboriginal groups remains appallingly high, both on and off reserve. While Canada officially ranks an impressive 4th on the UN Human Development Index, the statistics measuring poverty in Canada's Aboriginal communities would place us 78th—a ranking currently held by Peru.
The inherited poverty facing our youth is especially emergent. On average, one in every ten children in Canada struggles to have their basic needs met. In First Nations and Inuit communities, one in every four children grows up in poverty. More than twenty years after the House of Commons passed a resolution to eliminate poverty among Canadian children by the year 2000, our government has failed to take any meaningful action in this direction.
In Canada right now:
What makes the persistence of child poverty all the more disturbing is that Canada is such a resource-rich country. It doesn't have to be this way. All children should have the chance to meet their potential.
The Canadian government talks a good talk of addressing suffering abroad, but we need to focus on poverty reduction strategies at home if we are to have any credibility on the global stage. The national platform of the Make Poverty History campaign in Canada puts forward achievable demands that would make a significant contribution to making poverty history—both globally and in Canada.
To sign the petition to end poverty go to www.makepovertyhistory.ca
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