‘You need to do better’: Native Women’s Association of Canada slams Trudeau

On Thursday, September 30, Canada marked the first-ever Day of Truth and Reconciliation, an event created to highlight the plight of Indigenous people across the country past and present. While many used the day to reflect, Prime Minister Trudeau took it as an opportunity to travel to Vancouver Island.

Pictures and video soon emerged showing Trudeau surfing, and lounging at an expensive beachfront resort. The move garnered disgust from across the country, but especially from First Nations groups who had invited the prime minister to join survivors of Residential Schools and their families.

On Wednesday, Trudeau came out and apologized, calling his decision to go on vacation "a mistake."

The Native Women's Association of Canada responded via Twitter, thanking Trudeau for apologizing, but adding that he needs to "do better."

"You could start by taking the genocide of Indigenous women in Canada seriously," they continued. "You could start by implementing Calls for Justice today."

Earlier this year, as CTV News reports, Trudeau acknowledged that the findings of the 2019 inquiry into missing and murdered Indigenous women show that "what happened amounts to genocide."

Many, including The Native Women's Association of Canada, feel as though the prime minister has not matched his words with actions.