First Nations leaders say mental health crisis worsening at emergency meeting

Indigenous Services Minister Patty Hajdu made the promise that her government will fund a meeting for the youth council in Ottawa.

First Nations leaders held an emergency meeting in Ottawa on Wednesday to discuss a mental health crisis they warn could get even worse without government help.

Nishnawbe Aski Nation says there has been an alarming spate of suicides and suicide attempts in the northern Ontario First Nations it represents.

That includes the suicides of a 12-year-old from Sachigo Lake First Nation and a 20-year-old in Deer Lake First Nation earlier this month.

And in Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug First Nation, nine people have died between December and January.

The group is also raising concerns about the recent unexplained deaths of 14-year-old Mackenzie (Nathan) Moonias and 21-year-old Jenna Ostberg in Thunder Bay, and how their deaths are being investigated.

“Our communities are under so much pressure with these multiple tragic events,” the group’s Grand Chief Alvin Fiddler said in an interview.

“And it’s not just human costs — its financial costs that they have to bear. … (Chiefs) are just running on fumes.”

Fiddler said more lives will be needlessly lost without meaningful collective action, adding his organization is aware of the existence of youth suicide pacts in some communities.