Stupidity outbreak mars Harper’s visit
What a relief. Prime Minister Stephen Harper visited Whitehorse yesterday and shared with the territory a fresh insight: the plight of missing and murdered aboriginal women in Canada is not, in fact, a “sociological phenomenon.” Rather, the root of the problem is that we simply haven’t locked enough people away in prison.
“We should view it as crime,” Harper said. “It is crime against innocent people, and it needs to be addressed as such.”
Well, that makes things much tidier, doesn’t it?
No need to fret over the toxic brew that contributes to the many troubles faced by Canada’s aboriginal communities: high unemployment, rife substance abuse, overcrowded housing, low education levels, not to mention the terrible traumas inflicted during residential schools that continue to be passed from one generation to the next, and so forth.
You would think that if the social conditions of aboriginal women had any bearing on their well-being, it would be incumbent upon Canadian governments to actually improve the situation. Thankfully, it’s only a matter of hunting down those bloody criminals.
What a remarkably stupid position for the prime minister to take. These comments were offered as Harper’s rationale as to why a national inquiry into missing and murdered aboriginal women is, in his view, not needed. Marian Horne, president of the Yukon Aboriginal Women’s Council, has rightfully deplored this take.
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