Nunavik leaders are exploring the idea of banishment to block drugs and alcohol entering their communities. It’s a historical practice among some Indigenous communities and recently it’s started making a resurgence. Samuel Wat reports.
Leaders in Nunavik are exploring the idea of banishment as a way to stop the flow of drugs and alcohol into their communities.
Banishment is a historical practice that a growing number of Indigenous communities have been bringing back.
Pita Aatami, president of Makivvik which represents Inuit in Nunavik, says the policy, if implemented, would largely target non-Nunavik residents bringing in contrabands. He says substance use is “killing our people.”
“We want to make it clear to everyone in Canada that we are welcoming, but we’re not welcoming people that are there to destroy people’s lives by selling their drugs.”
Most southerners working in Nunavik have housing tied to their contracts, so changes to employment policy could be one avenue for implementing such a policy. Another is through the landholding corporations which manage Inuit-owned land.
