Topic spans: 1992 - 2005
Davis Inlet: Innu Community in Crisis
"We are a lost people." That description by an Innu chief seemed fitting when a shocking video of six gas-sniffing teens, screaming they wanted to die, was broadcast to the world. The once-nomadic Innu of Labrador have struggled under a haze of isolation, poverty and addiction ever since their 1967 settlement. A second relocation, this time from the shantytown of Davis Inlet to the new community of Natuashish, offered much promise, but it was just the beginning of a long healing process.
6 television clips
8 radio clips
Valentine's Day tragedy
Broadcast Date: Feb. 17, 1992
It was a bitterly cold February night in Davis Inlet. Six children, left unattended while their parents were out drinking at a Valentine's Day dance, huddled around an electric hot plate to stay warm when the curtains caught fire. A huge flame quickly engulfed their ramshackle home killing all six children. The oldest was nine; the youngest was six months. As heard in this CBC report, this Valentine's Day tragedy shocks the tiny isolated community. The fire also thrusts Davis Inlet and the plight of the Labrador Innu into the national spotlight.Valentine's Day tragedy
• Around 11 p.m. neighbours witnessed the house on fire but had no means to help. "We had no fire trucks or pumps," said Sebastian Piwas, "there wasn't even enough water nearby to fill a bucket. People said there were kids in there. But there was nothing to do but watch the building burn." — the New York Times, November 1996• At the time of the Valentine's Day tragedy, nearly all the adults in Davis Inlet were receiving public assistance and getting drunk on home brew — a powerful concoction of sugar, molasses and yeast stirred into boiling water and left overnight to ferment.
• The six children who died in the fire were Wendy, Jeremiah, Daniel, Simon, Mary Jane and Madeline Rich. Their parents, Gregory and Agathe Rich, were charged with abandonment but a judge in Labrador dropped the charges in 1996, ruling that too much time had elapsed before the case was heard.
• As a result of the fire, the Innu held an internal inquiry which led to the publication of Gathering Voices: Finding Strength to Help Our Children. The report proposed a seven-step long-term plan including land claim settlement and establishment of a family treatment centre in the community.
Valentine's Day tragedy
Medium: Radio
Program: Canada at Five
Broadcast Date: Feb. 17, 1992
Host: Lorna Jackson
Reporter: Conrad Lutes
Duration: 1:35
Last updated:
April 26, 2005
Activez le Javascript sur votre navigateur...
14 clips in this topic . page
Topic
On April 1, 1999, the new territory of Nunavut was born, finally making the controversial dream of the Northwest Territories' Inuit a reality. It meant the Inuit gained self-rule and control over their own...
Topic
Georges Henry Erasmus has a dream: Self-government for the native peoples of Canada. The charismatic native leader has devoted his life to fighting tirelessly for the right of his people to control their own...
For Teachers - Educational activities
- All GradesConsequences of Relocation
- 6-8Davis Inlet Timeline
- 9-10Healing
- 11-12Interview Response
- 11-12Sovereignty
Valentine's Day tragedy .
The CBC Digital Archives Website.
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.
Last updated: April 26, 2005.
[Page consulted on Feb. 16, 2012.]