Canada's Lost Girls Stacey Dooley Investigates


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This programme contains some strong language and scenes which some viewers may find disturbing

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Canada has a dark secret...

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..the murder and disappearance of thousands of women

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from indigenous communities.

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She was abducted, sold to the sex trade.

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They said they chopped her up.

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I think that somebody did something to her.

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We are all packing. We all have knives.

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Then where the fuck are these girls going to?

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You'd better not be taking me anywhere I don't want to go.

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Why have so many killers escaped justice?

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There were other women that had gone missing,

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and their remains found within 8km.

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Do some Canadians believe indigenous lives to be worth less

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than a white person?

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Some of the worst racists carry a gun, and they carry a badge.

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They said that the police were, at best, incompetent,

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at worst, blatantly racist. What would you say to that?

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This road is known as the Highway of Tears.

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It's believed nearly 40 indigenous women and girls have died

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or disappeared on this road.

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But they are just a fraction of a much larger problem.

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Since 1980, the police say almost 1,200 indigenous women

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have gone missing or been murdered right across Canada,

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but other organisations estimate it to be as high as 4,000.

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One of the youngest is 14-year-old Aielah Auger.

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In 2006, she was found mutilated

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and dismembered by the side of the road in this spot.

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I'm here with local indigenous campaigner Brenda Wilson

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and retired cop Raymond Chalco.

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Can you talk me through what state Aielah's body was found in?

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It was horrific.

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It just seemed to be dumped, left as garbage.

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They had to have a closed casket because her body was so torn up

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and parts of her body were missing.

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Just not something that you want to remember your beautiful little child

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to have gone through.

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Aielah's case, like many across Canada, is unsolved.

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And Ray, you're a private investigator.

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Just so I'm totally clear,

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of all the indigenous women that have gone missing on this highway,

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have any of the perpetrators been held accountable?

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No. None of them have been held accountable.

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-Zero?

-Zero.

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The police investigators of the day said that

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they were, in a lot of cases, convinced that had they been given

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the resources that they needed to do a proper investigation

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they would have been able to solve some of the cases.

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But they weren't given those resources by...

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..people higher up in the police department.

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Most of the victims were last seen alive trying to hitchhike between

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the logging towns

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and remote indigenous communities known as reserves.

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Why do so many of the girls, Brenda, have to hitchhike?

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They are either trying to get to a doctor's appointment,

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they're going to visit family in other towns or other places,

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they could be going there for grocery shopping

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because all of that is available here in the city,

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but in our remote areas along Highway 16,

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all of those services are not available.

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-So basic necessities, really?

-Basic necessities.

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And there's no bus services that go off into those remote areas

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to bring them back and forth.

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Why isn't there any public transportation?

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It's always stated that there is no funding available,

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that it's not an issue.

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How can they say it's not an issue!

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We've really had to push.

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How can any sane, rational individual say that this isn't an issue?

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Well, it's been said many times from different mouths in the government system.

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How many women have to die for it to be an issue?

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Well, so far there's quite a few on Highway 16 that,

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you know, have lost their lives.

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Putting them, you know, having to be in those situations.

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Ray believes most of the homicides on the Highway of Tears

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are carried out by opportunistic male perpetrators.

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This stretch of road is a sexual predator's dream, right?

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-Yes.

-It's in the middle of nowhere.

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That's right and, you know,

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you're just at the mercy of whoever happens to come along.

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There's a pattern of victims being disposed of

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along the remote logging trails.

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It's quite atmospheric, to say the least.

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So, Ray, there are presumably hundreds of side roads like this?

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Yes. You can see little trails, probably animal trails,

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so that if you were wanting to take a body

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it's fairly easy to get through most of that brush

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and then in 50 feet you're totally out of sight,

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so the chances of anybody ever finding the body in there

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are just remote to none.

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It highlights how vulnerable these girls are.

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-It's just very, very scary.

-It's your worst nightmare.

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Imagine yourself if you're hitchhiking to Prince George

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and I stop and pick you up, and you think everything's fine,

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and all of the sudden we're here parked,

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and look at the size of me and look at the size of you,

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and look at what is around.

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Your initial reaction would be to scream or run.

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Who on earth is going to hear you or see you?

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Exactly. I mean, you'd be terrorised.

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This tragedy is not isolated to remote rural parts of Canada alone.

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It's much more widespread.

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For decades, this dark secret has been overlooked, and even denied,

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by some Canadians.

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But in the indigenous communities which make up under 5% of

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the country's population, it's causing outrage.

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THEY SING

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Why are so many of these young women going missing and being murdered?

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In search of answers, I've come to the city of Edmonton.

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Many indigenous women work the streets here in the sex trade.

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This makes them incredibly vulnerable.

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So we're down 118 Ave, here. The girls will call 118 Ave

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and 95 Street "death row" because a majority of all the girls that have

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gone missing or have been found murdered all worked in this area.

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For 20 years, indigenous social worker Kari Thomason has provided

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support and rehabilitation for Edmonton's highest-risk sex workers.

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Stay safe, honey.

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Kari has over 900 girls logged on her database,

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many of whom are homeless and addicted to meth or heroin.

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How many of these girls are indigenous

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that are out on the streets?

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90% are our own people are out here.

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-90?

-It's a high percentage.

-Yeah.

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Because throughout Canada, the indigenous population

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-make up a tiny percentage.

-Yes, absolutely.

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But in comparison to how many of the girls are going missing

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and being murdered,

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-it's disproportionate.

-Absolutely.

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Kari's known some of the girls since they were young.

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We stop and speak to and indigenous woman called Tee,

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who is three months pregnant.

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What age are you, Tee?

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30, yeah?

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'Tee got pimped into sex work by her own mother

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'when she was still a child.'

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How long have you been working on the streets?

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-Ten years old?

-Yeah.

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So this is all you've ever known?

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What's it like?

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Just knowing the shit that that kid's going through,

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you know, it sucks.

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What's gone on there?

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Mum was an active addict, and you need that fix,

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you need that fix, and sometimes you do some god-awful evil things,

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and sometimes you sacrifice your child for the dope.

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Alarmingly, many of these girls have been trafficked from their reserves

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by members of their own community.

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A lot of them get targeted.

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-By who?

-Sadly, by our own people as well.

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So, I mean, you've got little popcorn pimps

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going around to the round dances and the powwows, hooking up to girls,

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and giving that attention and just

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the right amount to be able to lure them away from their families.

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You know, give all the, "Oh, we'll just go to the big city,"

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or "we'll go into town for a weekend."

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-So behave like a boyfriend?

-Absolutely.

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That's part of the game, sadly.

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And the girls confuse that behaviour with love?

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Most of them have never had that healthy outlook

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of what a relationship should look like, right?

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When you're surrounded by a lot of abuse or addiction...

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That's so interesting, Kari,

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that often it's the indigenous man that target their own women.

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Time and again, these women's high-risk lifestyles

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are caused by the people who first exploited them.

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Shelley, do you mind me asking you

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why you're out on the streets working?

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In the last year alone, three of Kari's girls have been murdered.

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Shelley herself has had a close call.

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-Have you ever had a bad date?

-Yes.

-Tell me a bit about that.

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Both of them?

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-That must be such a wake-up call, Shelley.

-It was.

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How many of your friends haven't been as lucky as you?

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-They're all dead?

-Yes.

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If you're in this vulnerable position,

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the likelihood of you going missing skyrockets.

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Yes.

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The perpetrators, are they mostly Caucasian,

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or are some of them indigenous themselves?

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For the bad date ones that we've got,

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most are committed by non-aboriginal.

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We've got a lot that are Caucasian.

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For me, tonight has just been

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a complete eye-opener from start to finish.

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You know, you hear the statistics

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and you're fairly familiar in terms of what's going on,

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but then you're out on the streets with these girls,

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and the sheer desperation and pure hopelessness is just so apparent.

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And, for me, it just sounds like these girls...

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..are up against it, often from the very start.

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And they are being exploited from so many different angles.

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Clearly, the sex trade has made these girls more vulnerable to predators,

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but why did so many end up on the streets?

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Is something going wrong in their communities?

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Since European colonisation,

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Canada's indigenous population has been decimated

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and largely marginalised to the remote state-funded reserves.

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I want to see one of these reserves for myself,

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so I'm flying to the far north of Alberta.

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So we're heading down right now to Fort Chipewyan.

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One of the reasons we are having to fly is because, actually,

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you can only reach this space by a small aircraft

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or a boat for about nine months of the year.

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For the other three months you're lucky if you're able to drive,

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but that's because the water will have frozen over,

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so there's winter roads, if you like.

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I've never been anywhere like this before in my life.

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I mean, we really are in the middle of nowhere.

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It does feel like that.

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Many reserves across Canada suffer from chronic unemployment,

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substance abuse and domestic violence.

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The majority of indigenous people believe these social problems

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stem from places called residential schools.

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Like this one, on the outskirts of Fort Chipewyan.

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For over a century,

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indigenous children were taken away from their families by

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the government and placed in these church-run boarding houses

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to learn white Christian values.

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These controversial institutions were eventually abolished,

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with the last one closing in 1996.

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'I'm meeting Steve Courtoreille.

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'He is the reserve's chief, and was a pupil of this residential school.'

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It's lovely to meet you.

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We're going to have a nose inside this building?

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-Is that OK?

-Yes, it is, of course.

-Awesome. OK. I'll follow you.

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Wow!

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My goodness!

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It doesn't look like a thing has changed.

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No, it's pretty much the same as when they left here.

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Steve, are you able to explain to me why

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the government and the church felt it necessary

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for these residential schools?

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The purpose is to take, as they called, "savages"

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and turn us into human beings.

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They had a job to do - it is to take that Indian out of us.

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-To strip you of all your culture?

-Yes.

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To force the families to put their children in a residential school,

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the families had no choice.

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And you, yourself, Steve, you were a pupil at this residential school.

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Tell me a bit about that, please.

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I was here for ten years.

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-At what age?

-At a very young age, before my sixth birthday.

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There was a lot of abuse that went on.

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Physical, mental, spiritual, emotional.

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Every day to be called a savage,

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"Good for nothing. You will never amount to nothing."

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Those were the continuous comments made to the kids.

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-Vulnerable kids.

-Yes.

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-That have been ripped away from their families...

-Yes.

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-..and forced into this space.

-For sure, yes.

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Then as I got a little older, then there was sexual abuse that went on.

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You're caught in the middle of that fear

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and knowing that nobody's going to believe you.

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-You've got no-one to go to.

-Yes.

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Not a single person that you can turn to and say,

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-"Actually, I'm being abused sexually here."

-Yes.

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The biggest damage that was done was they destroyed the families.

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The extended family concept's not there no more in this community.

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And there's still so much pain from the residents

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who are still alive and well in this community.

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Steve, it sounds to me like, you know, the youngsters,

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your generation, were struggling then,

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-the younger generation here are struggling now.

-Yes.

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How much of a part have the residential schools played

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in what we see today?

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Just imagine now... when the children...

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..the students of that resident school started to become parents.

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There's a lot of violence, a lot of family break-ups.

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I mean, it's common knowledge that sometimes

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the abused becomes the abuser.

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-Yes. Yes.

-It is learned behaviour.

-It is.

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'For Steve, this domestic violence towards women

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'is what's forcing them to the cities and into danger.'

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The woman had no choice but to leave their home.

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They were forced to leave in order to keep their children safe.

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And where else do they end up?

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In the streets.

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Edmonton, Fort McMurray, Calgary, Toronto, wherever.

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-Prostitution.

-Yes.

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Do you know what, it's just tragically inevitable

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that these things are going to happen.

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These residential schools are going to have a knock-on effect through

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-the generations.

-Yes.

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Accusations of racism towards the indigenous population

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casts a shadow deep into Canada's past.

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But many believe prejudice is still a problem today.

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They are critical of the way the authorities have investigated

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missing and murdered women's cases.

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In Leduc County, on the outskirts of Edmonton,

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the remains of five women have been found, all within a six-mile radius.

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No-one has been held accountable for their deaths.

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One of the victims was 20-year-old single mother Amber Tuccaro,

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who was taken in 2010.

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'I'm meeting a friend of Amber's family, April Eve.'

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-I'm Stacey.

-Hi, nice to meet you.

-Yeah, likewise. So nice to meet you.

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I wanted to show you this motel.

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It was the last place that Amber Tuccaro had been seen alive.

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What happened that night? Do we know?

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All we know is that Amber had intended to go to Edmonton

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and had left here and caught a ride...

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..into Edmonton.

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So the last time Amber was seen alive

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-was when she got into a vehicle?

-Yes.

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'April and Amber's family believe

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'the police have mishandled the investigation.

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'They claim that right from the start, officers missed the opportunity

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'to gather crucial evidence.'

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Was there any CCTV with the police?

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Yes, but it took the police quite some time to even go ahead

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and contact the local businesses to get a tape of

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the day that Amber had gone missing.

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So by the time they did that, they had already recorded over it.

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There were so many holes in the investigation from

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the time that Amber first went missing.

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Totally unacceptable.

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That's unbelievable. So there was CCTV available, but they left it...?

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There could have been, yes.

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If they would have acted quickly, who knows?

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Still, we are no closer to having any idea who killed her?

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No. I mean, we're not getting anything back from the investigators.

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The family are often the ones that have to call them to find out,

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you know, have there been any leads.

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Where is the task force investigating?

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You know, where's the community's awareness

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that in their own back yard here in Leduc

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there could possibly be a serial predator?

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But the criticisms of the police don't stop there.

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It wasn't until two years after Amber's disappearance that

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the authorities released an astonishing piece of evidence.

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A recording of Amber's last phone call from inside

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the vehicle that picked her up.

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She can be heard talking to the unidentified suspect.

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Had this recording been released at the time of Amber's disappearance,

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her family believe it could have generated more meaningful leads.

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'For Amber's mum Vivian and brother Paul,

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'the police failings started right from

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'the time they reported her missing.'

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When do you decide to call the police?

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I called them on Friday.

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And Amber was missing from Wednesday night.

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And they said to me,

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"Oh, maybe she's just out partying,

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"and she'll call or she'll come back."

0:23:260:23:29

And I was like, "I know Amber, I want to report her missing."

0:23:290:23:34

Do you feel like the police didn't take you seriously?

0:23:340:23:39

They didn't care. It got to the point where I was calling

0:23:390:23:44

and I don't know if I filled up their voicemail or whatever

0:23:440:23:46

because it would go to switchboard,

0:23:460:23:49

and the lady in the front would be like, "Vivian, you called already.

0:23:490:23:52

"Leave a message." I was like,

0:23:520:23:54

"I did leave a message but no-one is calling me back!

0:23:540:23:56

"So I'm going to keep calling."

0:23:560:23:59

To me, they didn't give a shit. They didn't care.

0:23:590:24:03

It took the police several days to put Amber on

0:24:030:24:06

the missing persons list,

0:24:060:24:08

during which time vital clues are likely to have been lost.

0:24:080:24:11

I think it has to do with just because my sister was Indian.

0:24:110:24:15

That they think, "Oh, we don't have to go as hard,

0:24:150:24:18

"or work as hard on the case." Already, she's labelled.

0:24:180:24:21

They think because First Nation girls, you know, they drink,

0:24:210:24:24

they do drugs, they do all this, so do other nationalities.

0:24:240:24:28

What makes Indians less important?

0:24:280:24:30

So what if she parties? So what if she does whatever she wants to do?

0:24:300:24:35

That doesn't make her less of a human being.

0:24:350:24:38

She was my baby.

0:24:380:24:40

She's my baby.

0:24:400:24:42

SHE CRIES

0:24:420:24:44

They just made her out to be a typical stereotype,

0:24:440:24:47

she's a First Nation or Indian native,

0:24:470:24:49

and just feed us a bunch of bullshit.

0:24:490:24:52

Amber left behind her son Jacob, who is now being raised by Vivian.

0:24:530:24:59

Jacob's growing up now, he's asking questions about his mum.

0:24:590:25:03

He wishes his mum was here.

0:25:030:25:05

And that's what breaks my heart most.

0:25:060:25:09

I mean, needless to say,

0:25:170:25:20

your heart...

0:25:200:25:22

totally breaks for the pair of them.

0:25:220:25:25

But I know that it isn't sympathy they are after,

0:25:270:25:30

they just want justice.

0:25:300:25:32

You know, whatever Amber was or wasn't doing,

0:25:320:25:35

whatever she was or wasn't involved with, you know,

0:25:350:25:39

she was a 20-year-old innocent victim...

0:25:390:25:41

..who was brutally murdered, and nobody's sat in jail.

0:25:430:25:47

How common is this apparently dismissive police attitude

0:25:560:26:00

to crimes against indigenous women?

0:26:000:26:02

Lorimer Shenher is a detective with the Vancouver Police Department

0:26:040:26:08

and was one of the lead investigators

0:26:080:26:10

on Canada's most infamous serial killer case - Robert Pickton.

0:26:100:26:16

-MAN:

-The RCMP descended on Pickton's farm in 2002,

0:26:160:26:19

and launched a massive search that uncovered the remains, or DNA,

0:26:190:26:22

of 33 women.

0:26:220:26:24

Officers first started looking at Pickton

0:26:240:26:25

as they investigated reports of missing sex workers.

0:26:250:26:28

He has been charged with 27 counts of murder,

0:26:280:26:31

and eventually convicted of six.

0:26:310:26:33

Lorimer believes Pickton could have been caught earlier,

0:26:330:26:37

but the police didn't take the matter seriously enough

0:26:370:26:39

because most of the women were indigenous.

0:26:390:26:42

So racism was clearly an issue, live and kicking,

0:26:430:26:47

when you were part of the police force?

0:26:470:26:50

The institutional racism came into play in terms of

0:26:500:26:53

people not thinking it was that important

0:26:530:26:55

to explore why these women were going missing.

0:26:550:26:58

And I could see that in my investigation.

0:26:580:26:59

This file just kept getting put on the corner of people's desks,

0:26:590:27:02

and I kept checking in with them week after week, month after month,

0:27:020:27:06

only to find out that they really weren't doing anything.

0:27:060:27:09

You know, he killed at least 14 or 15 more women in that time.

0:27:090:27:12

I can't help but think that if them girls,

0:27:120:27:14

the majority had have been white women,

0:27:140:27:17

it would have been dealt with a lot quicker.

0:27:170:27:19

It would have. And that was exactly my sense too.

0:27:190:27:21

I think that a lot of the families and the women involved

0:27:210:27:24

in our investigation, they had very frustrating interactions

0:27:240:27:28

with our office staff over the years.

0:27:280:27:31

I heard my own secretary saying, you know,

0:27:310:27:33

"Speak Canadian. This is Canada. Speak English."

0:27:330:27:38

Talking to them like they're deaf and stupid.

0:27:380:27:40

And you would get told you're a bad parent.

0:27:400:27:42

It was your fault that they were on the street in the first place.

0:27:420:27:45

That you're an alcoholic or drug user yourself.

0:27:450:27:48

These were things that I heard being said to the family members.

0:27:480:27:52

And these are the very people that everybody's supposed to be able to rely on.

0:27:520:27:56

-Yeah.

-These are the people that are supposed to help the vulnerable

0:27:560:27:59

and stand up for what's right.

0:27:590:28:00

Yes, but it's two-tiered level of service, isn't it?

0:28:000:28:02

If you're a taxpayer, if you're white, if you're a working person,

0:28:020:28:06

if you're not drug addicted, if you're not an alcoholic,

0:28:060:28:09

then you get this level of service.

0:28:090:28:10

But if you're any of those other things,

0:28:100:28:12

this is the level of service you can expect.

0:28:120:28:14

There are similarities with an ongoing case now,

0:28:140:28:18

so I met a lady called Vivian,

0:28:180:28:20

she lost a daughter, Amber, initially she picked up the phone,

0:28:200:28:23

reported her daughter missing.

0:28:230:28:25

She said she felt they were very dismissive,

0:28:250:28:27

they weren't taking it seriously.

0:28:270:28:29

And apparently, you know,

0:28:290:28:31

there were just a catalogue of errors from start to finish.

0:28:310:28:34

This is a template that you could apply

0:28:340:28:36

and you could just drop it down over the top of literally hundreds

0:28:360:28:40

of investigations across this country.

0:28:400:28:43

Literally hundreds, and starting right from that phone call.

0:28:430:28:46

'I personally feel like it's quite predictable,

0:28:460:28:49

'and totally understandable,'

0:28:490:28:51

that when you're having these conversations with

0:28:510:28:53

the indigenous people they feel completely disillusioned

0:28:530:28:58

and really let down by the police.

0:28:580:29:00

What you expect less to hear...

0:29:000:29:03

is this being confirmed by an individual

0:29:030:29:05

who was part of that very force for over two decades.

0:29:050:29:08

How prevalent is this racism today in wider Canadian society?

0:29:150:29:20

'To try and get a sense of it I've come to 630 CHED,

0:29:220:29:25

'a popular talk radio station in Edmonton.'

0:29:250:29:29

It's 11:05 here in the studio on this Tuesday morning.

0:29:310:29:35

Stacey Dooley, welcome.

0:29:350:29:36

Thank you so, so much. I'm delighted to be here.

0:29:360:29:39

CHED nation,

0:29:390:29:40

you are invited to the table to contribute to this conversation.

0:29:400:29:44

Peter, what's on your mind?

0:29:440:29:46

'How do we even know that the women are being killed off the reserves?

0:29:460:29:51

'They could be killed there, there's so much violence,

0:29:510:29:54

'babies getting shot, people getting killed all the time.

0:29:540:29:58

'How do we know that they don't just dump the bodies off the reserves

0:29:580:30:02

'and blame the white man?'

0:30:020:30:04

What I would say is that indigenous women accept

0:30:040:30:07

that domestic violence is an issue on the reserves,

0:30:070:30:11

so I don't think anyone's arguing with that.

0:30:110:30:14

There's every chance that these girls could be being killed by

0:30:140:30:17

a white man or by an indigenous man.

0:30:170:30:20

Rob has been holding the line. Hi, Rob.

0:30:200:30:23

'Hi, guys. I'm of the mind that what's going on on the highway

0:30:230:30:27

'is a systemic problem.

0:30:270:30:29

'The reserve system needs to be abolished,

0:30:290:30:32

'natives need to be included in our society, not segregated from it.'

0:30:320:30:36

I appreciate the call, Rob.

0:30:360:30:38

On the text line, a listener says,

0:30:380:30:40

"It is absolutely mind-boggling to me that I'm 29 years of age,

0:30:400:30:45

"and I had never heard anything about residential schools

0:30:450:30:49

"until two years ago."

0:30:490:30:50

Well, you know, I'm in a similar boat.

0:30:500:30:53

I didn't realise that these residential schools

0:30:530:30:55

existed here in Canada.

0:30:550:30:56

Stacey, let's get back to the phone lines because they are jammed. Rick.

0:30:560:31:00

-'Hello, there.'

-What's on your mind?

0:31:000:31:02

'Well, I think they're making too much of this.

0:31:020:31:05

'There's been a lot of educated people come from that residential school.

0:31:050:31:08

'I think you do too much on one side and don't tell the whole story.'

0:31:080:31:12

So, just so I'm clear, are you...

0:31:120:31:15

in favour of the residential schools?

0:31:150:31:17

Do you feel they were necessary?

0:31:170:31:19

'I think so, yeah, at the time.

0:31:190:31:21

'Even right now there are supposed to be seven out of ten Indian kids

0:31:210:31:25

'that are in government aid -

0:31:250:31:27

'they still can't seem to look after their kids.'

0:31:270:31:29

So, essentially, they ripped these kids from their families...

0:31:290:31:32

-'I know, yeah.'

-They tried to eradicate all of the culture,

0:31:320:31:36

all of the traditions, sort of, take the Indian out of them, if you like.

0:31:360:31:39

'Well, if it wasn't for them, they wouldn't be living today, you know.'

0:31:390:31:42

Dennis, you're up next. What's on your mind?

0:31:420:31:44

'Well, I think when people disappear,

0:31:440:31:47

'I guess we don't really investigate enough to find out what has happened.

0:31:470:31:51

'And then that just opens more opportunity for bad people

0:31:510:31:54

'because they realise, "Hey, nothing's happening, let's go after more." '

0:31:540:31:58

Well, this is exactly it.

0:31:580:31:59

And it's entirely possible that there is still a serial killer at loose,

0:31:590:32:04

like, around this area. That is just so, so frightening,

0:32:040:32:07

-and that's hard to comprehend in and accept.

-'Exactly.'

0:32:070:32:10

I had no doubt that this audience would have a lot to say about this.

0:32:100:32:14

-Stacey Dooley, it's been a pleasure.

-Likewise. Thank you so, so much.

0:32:140:32:17

-Thanks for spending some time with us.

-Thank you.

0:32:170:32:20

I'm encouraged some of the callers recognised

0:32:200:32:23

what indigenous people are up against.

0:32:230:32:26

But there's no doubt the judgment against their community exists,

0:32:260:32:30

and not just on the end of the phone.

0:32:300:32:32

'A cabbie on one of my journeys has some interesting views.'

0:32:380:32:43

What do you make of the indigenous community?

0:32:430:32:45

An awful lot of them, they stand there with their hand out.

0:32:450:32:49

And the more you give them, the more they want.

0:32:490:32:52

-They have no self-worth.

-Right.

0:32:520:32:55

If you have to get out of bed every morning and go to a job,

0:32:550:32:59

it gives you a sense of purpose.

0:32:590:33:02

The only purpose they have is

0:33:020:33:03

where they can get their next hit or their next bottle.

0:33:030:33:07

Yeah. Why do you think some of them might have these issues

0:33:070:33:12

in terms of alcoholism, drug addiction?

0:33:120:33:15

Because they have nothing else to do.

0:33:150:33:17

Do you think some of them might be trying to self-medicate

0:33:170:33:21

because of what they've been through?

0:33:210:33:23

I mean, these residential schools, the sexual abuse,

0:33:230:33:26

the torture, the starvation, do you think that plays a part?

0:33:260:33:29

Do you not think we've all been through our own...?

0:33:290:33:32

-We've all got our own cross to bear.

-Yeah.

0:33:320:33:35

But don't expect your whole life to be a victim.

0:33:350:33:38

Any other country that was taken over by a people that came in,

0:33:380:33:42

the people that were living there had to conform or else.

0:33:420:33:46

Here, we give them everything.

0:33:460:33:48

What about the idea that they were actually here first?

0:33:500:33:54

Does it matter?

0:33:540:33:56

I just think it's opinions like yours...

0:33:560:34:00

..that encourage racism.

0:34:030:34:06

It's not racism.

0:34:060:34:07

I don't care if you're purple with pink polka-dots.

0:34:070:34:10

Work and earn your living.

0:34:100:34:12

But that's what some of them want,

0:34:120:34:14

but they're not being given that opportunity.

0:34:140:34:17

I see them all the time.

0:34:180:34:20

They get in my cab, and you ask for money upfront,

0:34:200:34:22

and I ask for money up front from just about everybody.

0:34:220:34:25

But, "you're just asking me because I'm native."

0:34:250:34:29

So you're saying that you always ask for money upfront?

0:34:290:34:32

From everybody, just about.

0:34:340:34:36

You didn't ask us for money upfront.

0:34:360:34:39

I treat everybody the same that gets in my cab.

0:34:390:34:41

It doesn't sound like that, to me.

0:34:410:34:44

It doesn't sound like that.

0:34:450:34:47

Well, that's the way it is.

0:34:490:34:52

Of course, I can't stand here

0:34:520:34:53

and speak on behalf of the indigenous people,

0:34:530:34:55

you know, and pretend that everybody's perfect

0:34:550:34:58

because that's not the case.

0:34:580:35:00

But having that conversation with Donna, what she does,

0:35:010:35:05

is she highlights some of the opinions that obviously exist

0:35:050:35:08

here in Canada.

0:35:080:35:10

-THEY SHOUT:

-Inquiry! Inquiry! Inquiry!

0:35:100:35:15

Since Prime Minister Justin Trudeau came to power in 2015,

0:35:170:35:21

his new government have launched an official 50 million inquiry

0:35:210:35:26

into finding answers for the victim's families.

0:35:260:35:29

Those touched by this national tragedy have waited long enough.

0:35:290:35:34

Part of this process is to examine the role of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

0:35:340:35:39

Some of the worst racists carry a gun, and they carry a badge.

0:35:390:35:46

Authorised by you, Commissioner Paulson.

0:35:460:35:49

I hear what you're saying.

0:35:490:35:51

I understand that there are racists in my police force.

0:35:510:35:55

I don't want them to be in my police force.

0:35:550:35:57

'The RCMP will not talk about specifics of any case.

0:36:010:36:05

'However, they have agreed for me to meet a senior officer

0:36:050:36:07

'from their Alberta provincial headquarters.'

0:36:070:36:11

-How are you?

-I'm just fine, thank you.

0:36:110:36:13

-I'm Stacey. How do you do?

-Hi. Superintendent Gary Steinke.

0:36:130:36:16

Lovely to meet you. And thank you so much for your time,

0:36:160:36:18

I really appreciate it.

0:36:180:36:19

I know Commissioner Paulson came out last year

0:36:190:36:23

and accepted that there were racists within the organisation.

0:36:230:36:28

Do you believe that to also be true?

0:36:280:36:31

Are there individuals in the RCMP, as Commissioner Paulson said,

0:36:310:36:33

are there individuals that may be called racist?

0:36:330:36:36

There probably are, like there are in every other walk of life.

0:36:360:36:39

I haven't witnessed any.

0:36:390:36:42

I spoke to two separate people who weren't related to the families in any way,

0:36:420:36:47

and they said, their trail of thought was

0:36:470:36:49

that the police, the RCMP,

0:36:490:36:52

broadly speaking, were at best, incompetent,

0:36:520:36:56

at worst, blatantly racist.

0:36:560:36:58

What would you say to that?

0:36:580:37:00

We're not incompetent. We do want to solve these cases,

0:37:000:37:03

regardless of gender or race.

0:37:030:37:05

And when we go through the investigations,

0:37:050:37:07

by far the majority of murdered aboriginal women are solved.

0:37:070:37:11

Between aboriginal women and aboriginal men,

0:37:110:37:14

or Caucasian women or Caucasian men,

0:37:140:37:18

the stats in solve rates are almost identical.

0:37:180:37:20

I think there's a higher percentage of indigenous women, unfortunately,

0:37:200:37:24

that are vulnerable.

0:37:240:37:25

I mean, that's good news for the victims' families

0:37:250:37:28

who have the answers, but those that don't,

0:37:280:37:30

they truly believe, in their heart of hearts,

0:37:300:37:33

that if their daughter had have been white, Caucasian, blue-eyed,

0:37:330:37:36

blonde hair, that there would be more of a sense of urgency.

0:37:360:37:40

The 72 hours after the individual's gone missing, that time is crucial,

0:37:400:37:45

and I think that's why Amber Tuccaro's mother feels so let down

0:37:450:37:49

because there was no sense of urgency.

0:37:490:37:52

That did not happen in Amber's case.

0:37:520:37:54

I think mistakes were made in that particular case, and she knows that,

0:37:540:37:58

and we've apologised for that.

0:37:580:37:59

Because they feel, I'll be honest with you,

0:37:590:38:01

they feel totally let down. They have no faith in you whatsoever.

0:38:010:38:04

As of today, and in years past, the RCMP have learned lessons,

0:38:040:38:08

as every police organisation has.

0:38:080:38:10

So why is it that so many indigenous women still have such little faith

0:38:100:38:16

and so little trust in their police officers?

0:38:160:38:19

Some of these cases are very, very difficult to solve.

0:38:190:38:22

All I can say is that every single case,

0:38:220:38:24

and the one you've mentioned here, is still under investigation.

0:38:240:38:28

Right, so even if the individuals went missing years and years ago,

0:38:280:38:32

you're telling me here today

0:38:320:38:33

there are still people actively working,

0:38:330:38:35

-trying to solve their cases?

-Absolutely are.

0:38:350:38:38

The police get the last part of it.

0:38:380:38:40

We get the investigation and we unfortunately have to look at

0:38:400:38:43

the bodies and try and solve what happened.

0:38:430:38:45

But the reasons why these things happen are well beyond what we can control.

0:38:450:38:50

I mean, we could go down the list of social causes

0:38:500:38:53

and educational causes and historic causes and could go on and on.

0:38:530:38:58

Do I believe Gary when he says that he is passionate

0:38:590:39:02

and he's determined to seek justice,

0:39:020:39:05

to find out what happened to these indigenous women that went missing

0:39:050:39:09

and are often murdered? Yeah.

0:39:090:39:11

He explained very clearly, actually,

0:39:110:39:13

that he believes the very reason many indigenous women are going missing

0:39:130:39:18

and being murdered is because statistically...

0:39:180:39:22

they are more vulnerable, and you know,

0:39:220:39:24

that sort of backs up what Kari suggests.

0:39:240:39:27

She said that she believes 90% of the girls on the streets are indigenous.

0:39:270:39:31

And with all that said,

0:39:310:39:33

that doesn't mean we should fall into victim blaming

0:39:330:39:36

or an acceptance that this is going to continue to happen.

0:39:360:39:40

You know, that needs to stop.

0:39:400:39:42

The mishandlings, the lack of justice,

0:39:420:39:44

all of that needs to change.

0:39:440:39:47

Whilst police attitudes may be changing,

0:39:470:39:50

the problems for indigenous girls aren't.

0:39:500:39:53

Young women are still going missing,

0:39:570:39:59

yet they continue to come to the city to work the streets.

0:39:590:40:03

The thought of giving someone a blow job down here

0:40:030:40:06

is so depressing.

0:40:060:40:08

'We stopped to chat to Jen,

0:40:130:40:15

'a mixed race indigenous woman who Kari regularly helps out.

0:40:150:40:19

'And I get a sense of just how threatened these girls feel.'

0:40:190:40:23

Jen, how safe do you feel out here?

0:40:240:40:26

A lot of us out here, we're all packing.

0:40:290:40:31

We all have knives.

0:40:310:40:33

-Oh, I see.

-It's little, but it works.

0:40:350:40:37

-It does?

-Oh, yeah.

0:40:370:40:39

The other one that I had,

0:40:390:40:40

that I had to get rid of because it was it was full of blood.

0:40:400:40:43

Can you tell me a bit about that?

0:40:430:40:44

He decided he wanted to start beating the shit out of me

0:40:440:40:47

and he started going stupid on my face.

0:40:470:40:49

I've got a crack in my cheekbone and a crack in my jaw from it.

0:40:490:40:53

And I just started fricking swinging the knife, and, yeah.

0:40:530:40:57

He went and grabbed the blade

0:40:570:40:59

-and slit his hand right down the blade.

-Oof!

0:40:590:41:02

We've still got to live with all that in our mind,

0:41:020:41:04

knowing our people are being murdered.

0:41:040:41:06

-And do you look after each other?

-Yes.

0:41:060:41:09

There's long nights.

0:41:090:41:10

It's not an easy life to live.

0:41:120:41:14

Look, your dinner's here.

0:41:140:41:17

-This is her date.

-Oh, the lad in the car?

-Yeah.

0:41:170:41:20

All righty, people, but I've got to get out of here.

0:41:200:41:23

-All right, Jen. Thanks, Jen.

-Stay safe.

0:41:230:41:27

So I need to get that plate in case anything happens to her.

0:41:310:41:34

Kari, when you can,

0:41:340:41:35

you will try and take a note of all of the registration plates?

0:41:350:41:38

Yes.

0:41:380:41:39

I'll take note of the description of the vehicle, the plates,

0:41:390:41:43

the driver because in case they do go missing or are found murdered,

0:41:430:41:48

this is the last vehicle that we've seen them in.

0:41:480:41:51

-That sort of gives a starting point.

-That's so useful.

0:41:510:41:55

At almost every turn there is a memory of a woman who Kari has lost.

0:42:050:42:10

Down this alley, here,

0:42:100:42:13

is where one of my girls was found murdered.

0:42:130:42:16

-When was this?

-Just last year.

0:42:160:42:18

She was fucking beat so brutally,

0:42:180:42:20

and they threw her out her own apartment window

0:42:200:42:23

while she was still alive.

0:42:230:42:24

-Are they in prison now?

-Yes.

0:42:240:42:26

Did they get life?

0:42:260:42:28

Oh, fuck, no! Nobody gets life here.

0:42:280:42:31

I know one is being charged with manslaughter, I think he got five.

0:42:310:42:35

-Five?

-Yeah. They get a slap on the hand, "Don't do it again,"

0:42:350:42:38

kind of fucking shit.

0:42:380:42:40

That's a joke.

0:42:400:42:41

So this is the window where she was tossed out of.

0:42:410:42:44

On the third floor.

0:42:440:42:46

-So this was her flat?

-Yeah.

0:42:460:42:49

'With such stark odds,

0:42:500:42:52

'the girls are lucky to have someone like Kari looking out for them.'

0:42:520:42:56

But this issue is much greater than just protecting the women

0:42:590:43:03

who are vulnerable today.

0:43:030:43:04

Many of the indigenous people I've spoken to can't wait for change

0:43:050:43:10

and believe one answer lies in making their communities stronger from within.

0:43:100:43:14

'But what hope is there for the future?

0:43:160:43:18

'This is Jacob, Amber Tuccaro's son,

0:43:200:43:24

'who is now seven years old.'

0:43:240:43:26

Jacob, look at this lake.

0:43:280:43:30

It's amazing.

0:43:300:43:34

I see ice blocks.

0:43:350:43:37

Yeah, I can see ice blocks too.

0:43:370:43:39

What's this lake called?

0:43:390:43:41

-Athabasca.

-Athabasca?

0:43:410:43:43

-Am I saying it right?

-Uh-huh.

0:43:430:43:45

And how was school today?

0:43:450:43:47

-Good.

-Yeah, what did you do?

0:43:470:43:49

I did drawing, right?

0:43:490:43:52

-I did drawing the whole day.

-That sounds fun.

0:43:520:43:55

And I just wondered if you would mind telling me

0:43:550:43:58

a little bit about your mummy.

0:43:580:44:00

I only know one thing, she's in heaven.

0:44:000:44:03

I remembered her when I was a baby.

0:44:040:44:06

Do you go and visit her sometimes?

0:44:080:44:11

Sometimes at the graveyard.

0:44:130:44:15

Yeah.

0:44:150:44:16

Sometimes I look for bees.

0:44:160:44:18

In the graveyard?

0:44:180:44:20

Yeah, there's lots of bees there because there's flowers all over.

0:44:200:44:24

Amber Tuccaro's reserve, like many across Canada, is trying to heal.

0:44:240:44:29

THEY SPEAK OWN LANGUAGE

0:44:290:44:36

What are your hopes for Jacob?

0:44:360:44:40

My hopes for Jacob is, with proper support and therapy,

0:44:400:44:44

and any kind of help that we can get for him,

0:44:440:44:47

he'll grow to be a healthy young man without having the struggles of

0:44:470:44:50

having to deal with any issues with his mother.

0:44:500:44:53

And, April, what are your thoughts in terms of, you know,

0:44:560:45:00

Jacob's generation?

0:45:000:45:02

Our children deserve just as much of a bright future as anyone else's.

0:45:020:45:06

Their safety is so important,

0:45:060:45:09

especially for those young people that leave their communities

0:45:090:45:13

and come into the bigger cities.

0:45:130:45:15

They need to have those supports in place

0:45:150:45:17

and not have too deal with all the, you know, negative stereotypes.

0:45:170:45:21

Obviously, it's devastating that Jacob's lost his mum,

0:45:350:45:38

you know, he's had her taken from him.

0:45:380:45:40

And I think his case highlights perfectly what life is like

0:45:420:45:46

for hundreds, if not thousands of kids, right across Canada.

0:45:460:45:50

And that is it. That should be enough for people to demand change.

0:45:500:45:55

You know, to demand this shift in attitude towards indigenous people,

0:45:550:45:59

indigenous women.

0:45:590:46:01

It's the only way that they're going to move forward.

0:46:010:46:03

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