After reading the final report of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Women and Girls, I had two reactions.
First, a deep sadness at how Canada, and I mean all of us, have failed these women and their families. The layer upon layer of pain from the detailed testimony is numbing and sobering.
But then I felt frustration. After three major inquiries , the Aboriginal Justice Inquiry, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and now MMIWG, progress toward restitution and resolution is glacially slow.
Structural poverty is a common denominator for many of the problems highlighted in the various reports. Policies to improve the economic circumstances of Indigenous people in Canada should be a priority. Yet as an economist, it’s puzzling to me that none of these three important inquiries offer much useful advice on how Indigenous communities and persons can gain wealth and income.