Pace yourself, it is later than you think.

After reading this article I wanted to share a  couple of things with the rest of you. Not sure if any of you had a chance to read it. There are many valuable points that the author makes.  I will provide a summary of some of the issues addressed.

Under the gaze of White society, a society engaged in drafting a constitution without recognition of Aboriginal self-determination, every legal issue is heard in the context of a denial of Aboriginal sovereignty. Minorities are invited to keep their culture but enjoy no greater access to power and resources. So how does an Aboriginal man or woman trust a criminal justice system that is foreign (colonial) and based on a set values that are not a part of their ideology? Same question can apply to development programs designed by the West that are meant to tackle sexual violence within Aboriginal communities.

Under the Canadian justice system Aboriginal woman face many obstacles in regards to violence and sexual violence cases. For instance, when alcohol is added to a sexual violence case, it acts as a more significant factor for an Aboriginal male than for a White male. For the Aborigninal male who is accused of rape, alcohol can be seen as a mitigation factor, as a root cause of violence against women. For the Aboriginal female, however, intoxication becomes a form of victim-daming, meaning it works against her: she was drunk so she exaggerated the violence, since she was drunk the way she was acting did not allow the male to realize that she was not consenting etc. Aboriginal women are also more subject to being imprisoned as a result of their responses to being abused. When alternatives to incarceration are discussed women offenders are rarely considered, where as male offenders are. Often healing and culturally appropriate sentencing is applied to male offenders and Aboriginal women are overlooked.

Many Aboriginal women that appear before the commission within their community feel isolated and accused of disloylaty to their Nation whenever they speak out against violence. When Aboriginal women speak out they are often seen as traitors and also risk not being offered the right legal assistance (as assistance is coming from the Canadian  legal system). As a result, women are  forced to choose between continued violence or double victimization and the harsh reality of being without home or community. When victims are foced to leave their homes and communities they are victimized again by the legal system. The logical approach should be to take  the offenders out of the community, not the victims.