REGINA — The Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations (FSIN) is calling on provincial and federal governments to provide more support for the residents living at Camp Marjorie -- a tent city in Regina where community members experiencing homelessness have been living for one month.
On Monday morning, FSIN executives visited the camp and called for action.
“We’re calling upon the federal government to bring in the resources that are required to be able to address all of the trauma that our people are suffering. Ninety per cent of the people who are in this camp today are because of trauma and underlying issues all relating to government policy. All related to the residential schools,” David Pratt, the vice chief of the FSIN, said.
“They’re the original owners and habitants of this land. When our chiefs signed treaties, this is not the future they envisioned for our people.”
In an email to CTV News, a spokesperson for Indigenous Services Canada directed questions about support for Camp Marjorie to municipal and provincial governments, as the request for federal help must come from the province.
The FSIN called on the provincial government to reverse the changes made to the Saskatchewan Income Support (SIS) Program. It asks the Ministry of Social Services to do an internal review of those policies.
Changes made to the program mean landlords no longer receive rent money directly. Instead, it goes directly to program users.
“[The province should] do an internal review of how those changes have negatively impacted our people,” Pratt said.
Regina Treaty Status Indian Services (RT/SIS) is currently working with the City of Regina to form a strategic plan to move the camp residents indoors.
“There is an interim facility that we are looking at that we are hoping to be operational within seven days,” Erica Beaudin, the executive director of RT/SIS, said.
“We will be on-site [at the camp on Monday] and we’ll be working to get people with kinship care, or at least to a warm place with proper food, and working with our partners for the medical care that is required.”
Beaudin said she could not say where the potential location is because it has not been confirmed yet.
“When a province has exhausted their resources to prepare for or respond to a situation, the provincial minister responsible for the public safety portfolio will request federal support,” according to Public Safety Canada’s website.
Lori Carr, the minister of social services, said the province is actively monitoring for any alterations that should be made to the SIS program.
“So far, we’re hearing anecdotally from landlords that there’s a possibility people may end up homeless. We haven’t seen the actual stats on that yet,” Carr said Monday. “If we’re finding that there are members that actually can’t pay their rent and utilities on their own, we’re willing to modify those processes and help pay that on their behalf.”
Carr said this would likely be done on a case-by-case basis.
“It would be a combination of our case workers working directly with the clients and hearing directly from landlords on specific names,” she explained.
At this point, the province said it has 30 applications for the SIS program from Camp Marjorie residents in the works and it has placed ten of those people already.
