The BC First Nations Justice Council (BCFNJC) is hopeful Canada’s new Indigenous Justice Strategy, which was released in March 2025, will advance change and address systemic discrimination and the overrepresentation of Indigenous people in the justice system.
BCFNJC chair Kory Wilson said while long-term funding is vital to resolve this issue, it’s the will of everyone in the system that’s needed the most.
“Together we’re stronger,” said Wilson.
Wilson stressed the need for everyone to work together to resolve the inherent issues of racism, discrimination and poverty Indigenous People face due to the legacy of colonialism. This encompasses people in the justice system and police forces to the Ministry of Children and Family, the Ministry of Education, teachers and the community workers.
“If you teach somebody and raise somebody to love life, to love learning and to love themselves, what I call the three ‘Ls’, they’re going to be okay. They’re going to be self-determining and unlikely to come in contact with the justice system,” she said.
The new federal Indigenous Justice Strategy complements the BC First Nations Justice Strategy developed in 2020 that charts a path for change with two paths: 1.) reform of the current justice system; and 2.) support First Nations in their restoration of traditional law and legal orders.
Canada’s Indigenous Justice Strategy outlines distinctions-based chapters with set-out priorities for action from First Nations, Inuit and Métis. The First Nations chapter has two paths: 1.) revitalization of First Nations laws and legal systems and 2.) reforming the Canadian criminal justice system.
Provincially, initiatives are already underway when it comes to revitalizing traditional justice systems. In Tla-o-qui-aht First Nation (TFN) territory on the west coast of Vancouver Island, circuit court was relocated to Tin Wis Resort and the Wickaninnish Conference Centre, the former site of Christie Residential School, for the remainder of the year.
The move is a significant step for TFN’s local justice system and will “allow the Tla-o-qui-aht Justice committee to actively participate in the sentencing process”, according to a TFN news release. The nation is also in the middle of hiring a restorative justice co-ordinator to play a key role in “weaving together traditional Indigenous practices with the modern legal system.”
Wilson, who is from Kwakwaka’wakw in northern Vancouver Island, emphasized that the goal of both the provincial and federal justice strategies is to move forward and integrate First Nations laws and legal traditions.
“I remember, if we did something wrong as a kid, we would have to go and talk to your aunties and talk to your granny and talk to everybody, and sit there and listen to them while they impart some kind of lessons to you,” she said. “It’s not about being punished and put in jail. It’s about recognizing what you did wrong or the mistake that you made and then making sure that you make it right. It’s finding that balance and that restoration.”
It costs taxpayers $255,889 per year to keep an Indigenous woman incarcerated, according to Public Safety Canada. For men, it costs $146,456 per year.
“If we just simply keep one person out of the system for one year, that’s $250,000 that’s saved in the system. People have to keep that in mind and in perspective,” said Wilson.
Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal Council President Judith Sayers said for Nuu-chah-nulth, to ensure peace there was a system in place to deal with people who broke the laws.
“If there was a sexual offender, they would bring them out into the ocean in a canoe without paddles and leave them. If you survived, you survived. Obviously, you couldn’t do that now, but my point is, there were laws in place about how to deal with people who offended,” she said, adding that there were also rules in place around wildlife and fishing.
“Even just coming and asking permission from the Ha’wiih to hunt or fish in his territory. If you didn’t ask that, you broke a law and you were asked to leave and your whole catch was taken away from you,” said Sayers.
When it comes to reforming the Canadian criminal justice system, Wilson prioritized training police officers to carry a more trauma-informed and culturally aware understanding into the field.
“If you’re doing a wellness check, you approach it from a wellness perspective. Do it in a different way that’s more gentle. If it’s wellness, approach with, ‘How am I going to help this person?’,” said Wilson.