Issues in urban corrections for Aboriginal people

In certain areas of the country, such as the Atlantic provinces, the numbers of Aboriginal offenders are (to borrow the phrase made famous in relation to female offenders in Canada) “too few to count” – meaning that it is difficult to find funding and other resources to devote specifically to the needs and risks presented by the relatively small numbers of Aboriginal offenders. [...] In addition, a member of the National Parole Board (NPB), Prairies Region, and members of the Aboriginal Corrections Policy Unit, the official hosts of the focus group, were in attendance. [...] There, the emphasis is more on the client’s responsibilities to observe the rules and the programs of the institution, and less on the responsibilities of the staff and the community to assist the offender to find the right path. [...] The circular approach reflects the principle of the interconnectedness of all things, wherein the circumstances which give rise to the criminal behaviour, and those which may cure it, are the responsibility of all, not just of the offender. [...] The preferred means for the worker to understand and connect to the individual is through the (hopefully) similar experiences of the worker and his/her relations.