Manitoba news: First Nations children in have higher interaction with CFS before age 5 [Video]

Indigenous families are disproportionately impacted by family separation, with one in three First Nations infants in Manitoba having a file open with Child and Family Services (CFS), according to a newly published study.

The University of Manitoba, the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs (AMC) and the First Nations Family Advocate Office (FNFAO) led the study, published in the international journal Child Abuse & Neglect on Tuesday.

“Canada has among the highest rates of family separation through child protective services (CPS) in the world with a profoundly disproportionate impact on Indigenous (First Nations, Métis and Inuit) families,” the report reads, adding Manitoba has the highest rate of child removal and out-of-home placement in Canada.

The found approximately 35.8 per cent of Indigenous children in Manitoba had a file opened by CFS by the time they were one, compared to 8.5 per cent of non-First Nations infants.

The study also found 8.5 per cent of First Nations children were …