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Negative attitudes toward Indigenous peoples is highest among Canadians living in the Prairie provinces, according to a new poll released Wednesday.

The poll, by the Environics Institute, aimed to measure Canadian public opinion on Indigenous peoples. It found a sharp divide between attitudes in the Prairie provinces and the rest of Canada.

“Non-Aboriginal Canadians living in the Prairie provinces hold more ambivalent perspectives on Aboriginal peoples and are less sympathetic overall than others to the challenges they face,” said the poll which surveyed 2,001 non-Indigenous people across the country between Jan. 15 and Feb. 8.

The poll found that Prairie residents were more likely to see Indigenous peoples “themselves as the main obstacle to achieving social and economic equality.” Prairie residents were also more likely to believe Indigenous peoples have a “sense of entitlement.”

Canadians living in the Prairies, however, also exhibited a higher awareness of issues like residential schools and reported a higher frequency of contact with Indigenous peoples than their counterparts in the rest of the country.

“For residents in these provinces, higher levels of direct contact….and greater awareness of issues…have not resulted in a more positive appreciation of, and feelings for, Aboriginal peoples,” said the poll.

The Prairie provinces, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, have the highest proportion in the country of Indigenous peoples relative to the overall population.

“That is one of those findings that we don’t fully know what it means yet. It jumped out off the page at me as well and made me ask why? Why is this the case?” said Ry Moran, director of the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation. “I have some general speculation based on my own, things I have observed here Winnipeg. There is still some fairly real distance between the communities despite living side by each in the city.”

Read the Environics poll here:

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The poll also found divisions between the genders, with women reporting a more positive perspective of Indigenous peoples than men. It also found differences based on age with older Canadians, especially over 60, while having more knowledge of the issue, had more negative views of Indigenous peoples than younger, less informed Canadians aged 18 to 29.

“The youngest generation is also much more optimistic about the prospects for meaningful reconciliation,” said the poll.

Immigrant Canadians surveyed by the poll also exhibited more positive perceptions of Indigenous peoples than those born in Canada and were more likely to consider Indigenous culture and history as a major component of what defines the country.

Environics partnered on the poll with Canadians for a New Partnership, The Circle on Philanthropy and Aboriginal Peoples, The Inspirit Foundation, the Institute on Governance, the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation, Reconciliation Canada and Tides Canada.

Aboriginal Peoples Television Network and Birch Hill Equity Partners also sponsored the poll.

Environics said the questionnaire was developed in collaboration with the project’s partners.

The research included telephone interviews, including over land lines and cell phones.

“The survey is giving us an idea what has changed, but also what remains to be done,” said Stephen Kakfwi, the former premier of the Northwest Territories and spokesperson for Canadians for a New Partnership.

On the question of whether Indigenous peoples have unique rights, over half of respondents in the Prairies said they believed the Cree, Dene, Chipewyan and Anishinabee were no different than any other ethnic or cultural group in the country.

In Manitoba, 52 per cent believe Indigenous peoples have no distinct rights, in Saskatchewan the number was 55 per cent and in Alberta 57 per cent.

Conversely, in Quebec 58 per cent of respondents believed Indigenous peoples had unique rights, followed by Ontario with 56 per cent and the Atlantic provinces with 52 per cent.

Nationally, 52 per cent of non-Indigenous Canadians believe Indigenous peoples have unique rights.

One the question of causes behind the economic and social gaps between Indigenous peoples and the rest of Canada, residents in the Prairies were more likely to blame Indigenous peoples themselves for the disparity. In Saskatchewan 41 per cent believed Indigenous peoples were the cause of their own economic misfortune, while that view was shared among 35 per cent of non-Indigenous respondents in Manitoba and 32 per cent in Alberta.

In Quebec 36 per cent of respondents blamed the policies of the federal government as the source of the economic disparity.

Nationally, 26 per cent of respondents blamed federal policies and the same percentage blamed Indigenous peoples as the cause of the economic gap. About 18 per cent said the blame rested with the attitudes of the Canadian public and 17 per cent said the attitude of Canadians, federal policies and Indigenous peoples were all equally to blame. The poll found that 43 per cent of Canadians over 45 blamed reported a belief Indigenous peoples were the biggest obstacle to closing the economic and social gap.

The poll found that a widespread view exists throughout Canada that Indigenous peoples have a sense of “entitlement” when it comes to federal government services not available to other Canadians. This view was strongest in Saskatchewan, where 37 per cent strongly agreed with the notion, and in Alberta where 34 per cent held the same view.

Non-Indigenous Canadians aged over 45 also reported the same attitude nationally with 33 per cent agreeing Indigenous peoples have a sense of entitlement.

Non-Indigenous Canadians are also divided on the state of relations between Indigenous peoples and the rest of the country. Respondents in the prairies, the territories and in the top income bracket were more likely see the relationship in a negative light.

In Saskatchewan, 60 per cent of respondents said they saw the relationship in a somewhat negative or very negative light. In Manitoba, 57 per cent shared the same sentiments and in Alberta 54 per cent felt the same way. In Nunavut, the Northwest Territories and the Yukon, 61 per cent felt the relationship was somewhat negative or very negative.

British Columbia residents had the most positive view of the relationship with 56 per cent reporting they believed the relationship was very positive or somewhat positive. In the Atlantic provinces the view was shared by 54 per cent and in Ontario by 52 per cent of respondents.

The poll did find some movement over the past decade in Canadians’ awareness of discrimination faced by Indigenous peoples. About 87 per cent of those surveyed nationally said Indigenous peoples faced discrimination either often or occasionally. That percentage has grown from 2004 when 75 per cent shared the sentiment and 74 per cent in 2006, according to previous surveys conducted by Environics.

At 51 per cent, Quebec and B.C. reported the highest percentage of respondents who believed Indigenous peoples faced discrimination “often.”

While most Canadians believe Indigenous peoples face more discrimination than South Asians, 60 per cent, and Blacks, 54 per cent, they are divided on the issue when it comes to Muslims. The poll found 47 per cent believe Indigenous peoples face the same or more discrimination than Muslims while 46 per cent believed the reverse to be true.

The poll found that university graduates believed Indigenous people experienced more discrimination than South Asians, Blacks and Muslims. Younger Canadians aged 18 to 29 were more likely to believe South Asians and Blacks face more discrimination than Indigenous peoples.

Surveyed respondents also largely believed non-Indigenous Canadians hold prejudices against Indigenous peoples whether or not they were conscious of it. A total of 65 per cent of those surveyed either strongly agreed or somewhat agreed with the sentiment. Quebec saw the largest percentage of support on the statement with 78 per cent saying they were in agreement. The trend was similar among women, with 68 per cent agreeing, and young Canadians, with 72 per cent agreeing with the statement.

Knowledge of Indian residential schools was found to be uneven across the country, according to the poll. While about 66 per cent of respondents nationally said they have read or heard something about residential schools, the results showed large variances between the regions.

Awareness was highest in the territories, with about 97 per cent reporting they were aware of residential schools. In Manitoba and Saskatchewan 84 per cent of respondents said they knew about residential schools, while in B.C. 82 per cent said they were aware of the institutions. Quebec recorded the lowest level of knowledge with only 49 per cent of respondents saying they were aware of residential schools. In Atlantic Canada, 68 per cent of respondents said they knew about residential schools.

The numbers show awareness of the issue has grown since 2008 when, nationally, only 51 per cent of respondents reported knowledge of residential schools. That same year, only 27 per cent of respondents from Quebec said they know about the schools and 45 per cent said the same in Atlantic Canada. However, only five per cent of respondents nationally said the federal government should pay compensation for the abuse suffered by students at residential schools.

“The trend is very positive, but we are not done yet. We need that to be 100 per cent in this country. You can’t understand who this country is…without understanding residential schools,” said Moran. “Are we heading in the right direction? Absolutely. Do we still have work to do? For sure.”

Kakfwi said he believes the percentage of Canadians aware of Indigenous issues will continue to rise across the coming generations. With provinces and territories committing to include more information on Indigenous history in school curriculums, Kakfwi believes the trajectory of attitudes will continue to arc away from ignorance.

“All I know is that education and creating awareness and interaction with people is the key to creating tolerance and wiping out stereotypes and racism and the country,” he said. “Kids will know more than what their parents and their aunts and uncles all combined ever knew about indigenous peoples and that is the hope.

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