Housing crisis needs solutions

In reading the news headlines today, I noticed one of the main stories was about my home community of Attawapiskat along the James Bay coast.
The news item highlighted the housing crisis happening in communities like Attawapiskat, Fort Albany and Kashechewan. Some people are living in tents and sheds. But this is not news to me. As long as I can remember housing has always been in a state of crisis on the James Bay coast.
I grew up in a crowded living space. As far back as I can remember I shared a single room with at least four or five brothers. We had two sets of bunk beds and a large double bed in one room to accommodate us. Our parents had another room to themselves and our sisters had one of their own. Privacy and space of our own was not available. We shared our home with each other and often many other family members and friends.
For the longest time, I thought it was how people lived in the rest of the world. Most of my friends, cousins and relations lived the same way. Nobody had homes with just three or four people it was more like 10 or 15. It was never easy to share those little houses but we had no choice.
The only time I ever felt a sense of having an area to call my own was at school. I had my own desk where I could keep my books, pencils and anything else that was special to me. There was a sense of ownership and privacy in having small keepsakes in one place where they were somewhat safe.
I remember watching television shows and seeing teenagers or children with their own rooms. Their homes were large and had so many rooms. I thought that was how wealthy people lived. So it was a big shock to discover just about every family in Timmins and North Bay had a big home. I attended high school in both cities. I found out that children expected their own rooms.
Although things were tight for us about 20 years ago, I always thought it would get better and promises of more housing from our leaders and politicians would come true. However things seem to be out of control.
Statistically, the population of Native people is growing fast but our housing needs are not keeping up with this trend.
I commend MP Charlie Angus and MPP Gilles Bisson for bringing this crisis to the attention of the public and the government of Canada and Ontario.
There was another headline in the paper that caught my attention. The world’s population surpassed seven billion in October. I couldn’t help but think that Native communities are reflecting what will happen in other parts of the world. Experts predict the increased population will affect housing, food supplies, transportation, energy use and material consumption. Scientists say our species generates a great deal of food, but we waste tons of it every year. We also consume more than half of the world’s available freshwater supply. And even though we consume a great deal of the world’s resources, nearly a billion people still go hungry. The distribution of wealth is not fair.
If we can’t offer a solution to over crowded reserve homes for First Nation people in Canada, how is society in general going to deal with the world population growth in the future?
We need an entirely new way of thinking. We need people in power to offer creative solutions that are geared to making sure everyone has a chance at a good life. I think we will need leaders like Charlie and Gilles to take us to a more peaceful era where the playing field is fair and honourable.