Petition calling on feds improve COVID-19 help for Indigenous communities reaches milestone – APTN News
Jul 20, 2020
Author of petition doesn’t believe communities are ready for second wave of pandemic.
A petition launched by former Ontario chief Isadore Day in April and sent to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, several of his ministers and health advisors demanding that the government do more to help Indigenous communities deal with COVID-19 now has more than 50,000 signatures on it.
“First Nations, Inuit and Métis, are among the most vulnerable Canadians and the least equipped to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic. During the H1N1 crisis, Indigenous people were 6.5 times more likely to be admitted to the ICU. Many Indigenous communities experience poverty, overcrowding, food and water insecurity, and lack adequate access to healthcare and there is a higher rate of chronic disease,” the petition starts.
