COVID-19 spared Indigenous communities at first but is now attacking them – rabble.ca

At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic last winter, Indigenous communities in Canada were acutely aware of their heightened vulnerability. They feared that even a small number of initial cases could quickly grow — and wreak havoc on Indigenous people throughout the country.

Past experience, as recent as the H1N1 flu of 2009, had taught Indigenous people that when Canadians in general might feel a jolt from an epidemic, Indigenous communities were likely to experience a health tsunami.

In 2009, the H1N1 infection rate across Canada was 24 per 100,000. Among First Nations people in one province, Manitoba, the rate was 130 per 100,000. In Nunavut, it was a whopping 1,070 per 100,000.

In March, this reporter and others warned that planning for the current pandemic had to include specific provisions to take into account the particular risks First Nations face.

Read More: https://rabble.ca/news/2020/10/covid-19-spared-indigenous-communities-first-now-attacking-them

NationTalk Partners & Sponsors Learn More