Attawapiskat Tells Manager to Go Home

Because sending a government agent from far away to take control of their money was really going to go over well in the first place.

Almost as soon as an independent manager arrived at Attawapiskat to take control of the First Nations community's finances on Monday, he was promptly kicked out by the town's leadership. Consultant Jacques Marion took the community up on its offer so as to "respect the volatile situation" on the reserve, which has been gripped in a housing crisis for years due to chronic underfunding. After Chief Theresa Spence declared a state of emergency in the community last month, the Conservative government responded by taking control of Attawapiskat's finances and putting them in the hands of Marion due to concerns of financial mismanagement. Those concerns have proven to be entirely overblown. The band, meanwhile, has likened Marion to an "Indian Agent," and has told him he is not welcome to return to Attawapiskat, even though he is still in charge of overseeing the community's money. So congratulations, government, for making an already terrible situation somewhat worse.